General d'Armee in Newport News, Virginia

Over the past two months, we have played 2 games of General D'Armee that were well-attended by members of the Old Dominion Military Society (ODMS). Both games were meant to be demonstration games in order to teach the rules to new players of the system.

The first game was an 1813 scenario pitting Bertrand's Franco-Italian Corps against a Russian Corps commanded by St. Priest just prior to the epic battle of Leipzig.  The fight was set in the late afternoon hours a couple of days prior to Leipzig and St. Priest's objective was to delay Bertrand in joining the rest of Napoleon's Grande Armee (and also to punch the French in the nose, making them pay for the ground) before withdrawing at nightfall.  The French victory conditions were centered on taking the Saxon town of Vockerode (approximately 50 miles north of Leipzig). The Russians, who unknown to the French were planning on retreating at nightfall, were focused on maximizing French casualties and delaying Bertrand's force.

There was a large group of gamers who wanted to see General D'Armee in action. Throughout the game, the players easily picked up the general mechanics and agreed that the flow was very smooth and seemed historically accurate.

The Russians, even with a few command and control issues, held out in the village and succeeded in "faltering" 2 French brigades. Although Bertrand's veteran French troops prepared for a proper assault on Vockerode, unlucky dice rolls doomed the initial French assault to be repulsed by the stubborn Russian troops. The game was called and the Russians declared a major victory....and then retreated into the night.

Here are some pics of the game:

The Russian center and left flank

Bertrand's Italian troops faced Russian jagers in the woods

Jagers sharpshooting

French troops face Russian guns in the center

The action intensifies

The Italians looked good, but could they win the day?

French assault the village of Vockerode !

Cossacks guard the Russian left flank but wavered in their orders

The initial French assault on the village was repulsed by the Russians

Another game was hosted a month later and featured the Battle of Maida 1806. Interest again was high and the scenario was played twice, with the French winning the first game, and the British coming out on top in the second fight. Here is a link to the scenario of Maida (originally written for Carnage and Glory, but revamped for General d'Armee): 

https://madmacsattic.blogspot.com/2016/01/maida-1806-using-carnage-and-glory-2.html

Again, the players very quickly picked up the mechanics and began to dive into the nuances of the system more in this game. Here are the pics of this game: 

British players ponder their strategy

An ODMS member eyes the battle !

British troops holding their position

A charge by French light cavalry didn't make a dent in the tough British infantry

Both games were a blast to host and it was great to see so much interest in the rules. General d'Armee is my rules set of choice (along with Carnage and Glory for large group games) and I am excited to continue building interest in the rules and putting on more games in the future.