August 1914 Preview: Scenario One
By Randall Dreger
March 2010

After months of playtesting, the finalized Infantry Attacks rules system has pretty much come together. The playtesters have switched their focus to the individual scenarios to make sure they have good play balance in the various tactical situations the game presents. Playtester Randall Dreger has been nice enough to write up an after-action report for the first scenario of August 1914, the debut game in the Infantry Attacks series. We share it with you here to give you a little taste of the game:

Scenario One
The Harrowing of East Prussia
15 August 1914

Russian cavalry led the advance into German territory, scrupulously avoiding incidents with the local population. That wouldn't stop propagandists from describing rape, robbery and arson on a wide scale, attributed to "the Cossacks." The Russian cavalry's probe came to a halt near the village of Lindental, where they ran head-on into the locally raised German regular cavalry division.

Preliminary Notes

This scenario is a meeting engagement between opposing forces of German and Russian cavalry, supported by machine-gun units and on-board artillery. The main objectives for this scenario are:

1. Secure the east-west road. 

2. Secure the town of Lindental.

3. Inflict casualties.

Turns One and Two (0700- 0715 Hours)

The Germans enter the west edge of the board with 16 cavalry squadrons plus supporting units. They enter as a united force on turn one but then split up at the western fork in the road on turn two, with eight squadrons heading north while the other eight squadrons continue eastward. The wagons with the MG and artillery units trail behind the eastbound column.

The Russians enter the east edge of the board with 12 cavalry squadrons plus supporting units. They enter as three separate forces, with four squadrons traveling along the north edge, four squadrons traveling along the south edge and the remaining four squadrons entering on the road and dismounting near the town of Lindental. The Russian artillery and MG units move toward the town.

Turn Three (0730)

The eastbound German column moves toward the town, and the two Russian cavalry wings respond by closing in and surrounding the German column. The Germans in the north move to pursue the northern Russian cavalry wing.

Turn Four (0745)

Russian artillery fires over open sights at the Germans just before they charge into the Russian cavalry. Fighting is brutal but the Germans break the Russian lines, with two and a half Russian squadrons lost and one German squadron eliminated. German reserves stand ready to reinforce their vanguard or strike down any fleeing Russians.

Playtester’s Note: I think the bad bloody nose the Russians took here is a result of three blunders on their part: First, they wasted their initiative on a relatively weak artillery barrage and thus allowed the Germans to charge them first. Second, their mounted cavalry advanced too far ahead of the forces at Lindental and thus became outnumbered two to one. Thirdly, I believe it would have been much more prudent of the two Russian cavalry wings to dismount on turn three so that they could use opportunity fire against the Germans. This is because the Germans cavalry is subject to the Battle Lust special rule in this scenario, which requires them to remain mounted until they’ve taken significant damage. Mounted cavalry presents an easy target for opportunity fire, so if the Russians had dismounted and thus been able to use opportunity fire they could have done much more damage to the Germans.

Turn Five (0800)

Outnumbered and shocked, the Russians begin to flee and lose two more half-squadrons to pursuing German cavalry. The Russian artillery tries to cover the cavalry’s retreat and has some small success, eliminating half a pursuing German cavalry squadron.

Turn Six (0815)

The pursuing German cavalry eliminates half of another Russian cavalry squadron in the open grasslands west of Lindental. The Russians have now lost eight steps, which is half the strength of the two cavalry wings that entered the board at game start.

Turn Seven (0830)

German forces get the initiative on demoralized Russian cavalry and use Cold Steel attacks to mop up four more reduced Russian cavalry squadrons. But then the dismounted Russian cavalry, having advanced westward from Lindental on foot during the disastrous mounted fight on the road, begins to fire at the mounted Germans.

Turn Eight (0845)

German cavalry reserves circle northward around the dismounted cavalry, but they hesitate to advance on the town due to the Russian MG unit there (which will get to fire on a high column against mounted German cavalry).

Turn Nine (0900)

The dismounted Russian cavalry fire and eliminate an entire German squadron. The weakened Germans then pull back, judging that they have insufficient time remaining to take the town.

Turns Ten through Twelve (0915-0945)

The German cavalry, which has now taken three step losses and is thus no longer subject to the Battle Lust special rule, dismounts and covers the east-west road on Board 48 to ensure the Russians don't try to advance westward and retake the road on Board 45. Russian artillery hits the Germans and does some damage, but not enough to change the outcome of the battle.

FINAL RESULT

The game ends with a German Minor Victory because they repelled the Russian attack and advanced German lines (specifically, at the end of play all hexes of the east-west road on Board 45 are free of undemoralized Russian combat units). The Russians lost 12 steps and the Germans lost five, which means the Russians were just two German step losses shy of scoring a Minor Victory, too (Russian Minor Victory = 7 German steps lost). So if the Russians had done better in the initial clash on the road, they probably would have pulled off a draw.

OVERALL IMPRESSION

A quick and fun cavalry battle with interesting choices available to both sides for how to attempt victory.

"Playtest" this scenario for yourself! Order Infantry Attacks: August 1914 NOW!