With casualties mounting, the situation at the hill is becoming very costly for both sides. We decided that the engagements on the third day would be smaller (This is after all a "secondary objective for the future siege of Orleans). We also decided that since the first and second day took place on the Center, and the Left of the hill that the final day would be on the Right flank of the Hill.
Lord Cromwell sat in his field tent pouring over his map of the operations area, damning his incompetent captains at allowing themselves to be beaten back time and time again from HIS HILL! He hoped the special service trooper he picked for scouting out the french line for flaws would find something good for his ears. The Queen was not a woman to be crossed with defeat and especially not by the french, and not so close to the objective, it simply wouldn't do for an officer of his station, to be sent to "The Reformatoria"...
"Lord Cromwell!!" yelled a breathless sentry, running into the tent panting. He saluted and continued "Sah, the Frenchies shot our man, the scout sir, he was galloping at full speed back towards us when they hit his horse and unsaddled him. They are making a go for him sir I'm sure of it!"
"Alert the Reserves to go in as quick as they can to recover him, he carries many delicate secrets. NOW MAN ! NOW !"
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The Objectives for both sides is to fight their way to the wounded scout in the center of the field and carry him back to their lines ALIVE. The scout is also able to be killed, and both sides are also under orders to fire on the scout if the battle appears to be going south for them. He has information that would seriously compromise either forces effort in the Saints Hill region.
There was also a Barrage of Off Board Artillery occurring which was represented by a card in the event deck
Order of Battle
French Forces.
Royal Guardian Corps, 60th Orleans Detachment.
-Captain Bosch commanding
3rd Armored Steam Corp,
1st Spanish Line Infantry "The Stark Sires"
- Xavier la Rouge commanding (after the death of his father during the previous day)
La Vaillant
- sister ship of "The Armstrong"
British Forces
3rd Foot
-Captain Teague commanding
12th Armored
6th Steam-Squires
1st Velocicopters
A Shot of Deployment, smoke from the ongoing barrage, along with refuse from the previous few days combat litters the field. Both Armies start in a column to represent their movement onto the field.
Turn 1, the Stark Sires are hit by a shot from the barrage, the Velocicopters move up quick on my left, shots are traded back and forth and one of the two tanks explodes! Crazy first turn.
A view from the Copters, as the 3rd foot advances to musket range of the french
The barrage picks up, tanks fire into the opposition, and the 3rd and Steam-Squires let out thunderous roars of fire onto the Stark Sires, cutting down dozens, including la rouge, who was unfortunate enough to be leading from the front at the beginning of the 3rd's Volley. The survivors, pick themselves up and run forward to fire into the 3rd with their own rifles, killing only about 5. (The Stark Sires, are fearless due to a long series of events that will be explained in a later post)
The Center of the field is looking hellish, the scout even takes a stray round from the volley at the Sire's, but thankfully doesn't die just yet.
The RGC move up, and as usual Bosch belows a challange at Teague who eagerly accepts, All the surviving infantry, scream into one another, the French backed up with their Occult Wizard summoned, daemon allies gain the upper hand at first, but the Arch-Daemon is pulled to the ground (not before taking 15 men with him). The ebb of the battle goes on for several turns, in which the scout is accidentally stabbed, before crawling out of the combat. Again he is fortunately alive. The Velocicopters, get to the La Valliant and fire a harpoon into it, upon which a royal marine armed with a dagger shimmies his way across, while the fight rages below.
The combat begins to wind down, but the 3rd rally around their Regimental Colors, with the last 5 men killing almost triple their number out of sheer tenacity of the dice roll, before being stabbed to the ground like animals. Teague, crawls away from the combat heavily wounded but not dead, Bosch is similarly wounded, but is carried off by a member of the 60th RGC to French lines. The Royal Marine completes his crossing (this next bit is not an exaggeration it all occured via rolling) and taking his dagger is unable to totally tear the skin of the blimb to cause deflation, he does however use it as a line to get at the cockpit, which he smashes through. Stabbing a driver in the head in the process before being jumped upon by the rest of the B.O.P. operators (BOP is the acronym for the lobotomized men and women who operate french steam tech), and thrown from the cockpit.
The Scout, who is now only barely clinging to life from his wounds is picked up by the Steam-Squires, who begin the march back to British lines. The next few moments carry on for a life time as every possible trooper, daemon, steam wonder, and tank on the field race to either aide the escape or kill the scout. With the copters even going so far as to attempt to shoot the remaining harpoon through the scout's leg (thankfully for him perhaps that didn't quite work, it did make him rout though which was good for laughs, to watch the English chase after him before he got off the table)
Unfortunately however, mere meters from friendly lines, the scout was hit by a flame spell from a daemon.
Ending the game in a draw.
Pvt. Scotts, watched in horror as the man, covered in blood who had just run from the hulking form of the walker which was now firing into the distance, burst into flame. He kept coming from momentum, screaming, the skin melting from him and his red coat becoming ashen. Scotts jumped back, as the man went over the trench lip and fell in. Running over he looked down, at the thankfully dead scout, signing himself and offering a quick prayer for the man, he gasped in a deep breath, picked up his musket and ducked back into the trench.
Lord Cromwell, threw down his spyglass in disgust and horror at watching the foul thing from hell ignite the last best chance for a quick completion to the engagement. Casualty figures Quartermaster.... he said angrily to the space behind him.
"Still coming in sire"
"Hurry the Hell up then would you... I need to know what i have left."
"Yes mi'lord."
Cromwell's eyes stood fixed into the smoke and charred ground that sprawled out before him. he heard the sounds of the Quartermaster run off to complete his task, and another run up to him. Not turning round he practically screamed.
"WHAT IS IT NOW!"
"begging the Lord Commanders forgiveness for my intrusion but you have a communique sir... from..from London...
"Give it to me." He said, wheeling around to take a letter stamped with the seal of the Royal House, and heraldry of the Black Prince of Wales. He opened it. What he read filled him so full of incandescent rage that he nearly hit the poor young officer before him.
"What is the...m...matter lord commander?"
"We are to be reinforced... by Colonists from America.... Commanded...BY...LEE ! and I am.. am.... to.... TO SHARE COMMAND OF THE FRONT!" he was positively shaking at the thought of sharing power and with a low born american gentleman like Robert. E. Lee.
He Stormed off into the direction of his tent yelling back at the boy .
"TELL THE QUARTERMASTER THAT IF I DON"T GET MY DAMNED FIGURES BEFORE SUNDOWN I'LL KILL BOTH OF YOU FOR TREASON!"
gulping, the young man ran off to tell the Quartermaster, and to help him, for both their sakes...
Casualties
2 Tanks Destroyed, 2 Crippled
approx. 100 infantry K.I.A. /W.I.A / Captured
2 Steam Walkers Damaged Heavily
Captains Teague, and Bosch both critically wounded.
With the battle another draw and neither of us convinced that the strategic importance of Saints Hill is worth more blood shed, we have decided to move to another location in the lines, about 30 miles to the right of Saints Hill, called "Hyll-Grove" which we will learn more about next time. I'm tempted to also have a couple backstory posts, to fill you in more on the characters and regiment background so you can get a little more involved in the drama between these characters and regiments.
All that said the Overall Casualties for Saints Hill are as follows.
450 Infantry KIA/WIA/Captured
4 Tanks
5 Steam Walkers
2 Large Flying Machines
2 Characters (Commadore Jarvis, & Ricardo La Rouge "Beast of the South")
6 Critically Wounded Characters
30 Cavalry
1 Mountaintop.
Its been an amazing battle, and we may even revisit the stalemate here nearer to the Siege of Orleans, but for right now, we feel we are grinding the area, and want to play around with other missions in different regions.
Kudos for reading everything
-Your Favorite Madman-
