Nobody will believe this, so I've got the photos to prove it!

We were having a 300 pointer or something like that. John Nichols, John Coffey, and I were playing opposite - Maynard, Dennis Largess and Dave Snow. John Nichols was our "overall" or "supreme" commander. Dennis Largesse was theirs.

I had the extreme right with a large force of infantry, 4 cavalry units, and 6 field guns. Using skirmishers, foragers and the two woods T managed to smuggle my infantry close to the enemy. Uhlans from Maynard's Prussian forces charged a couple of times on my far right, driving In the light Infantry but taking heavy losses to rv artillery and cavalry. We then settled into an artillery duel in which my more numerous guns lost 2 for 1. Nichols, meanwhile, had shifted the grenadiers and the heavy cavalry and guard cavalry of the reserve up behind my troops.

A new player also commanded one of our brigades approaching the town in the middle of the field. Being unexperienced he allowed Dennis's Austrians to cut him up badly, but he had numbers and held on.

Then we launched our attack.

As the reader will see, not all of our troops were readily visable at first (see the card behind the French line?)

We actually came to charging distance and, by throwing in the horse Grenadiers, some currassiers, lancers, and hussars, we isolated a portion of the enemy line getting 12 units on 7.

Having been lucky all day the enemy rolled us out, but, though he almost made it, we had too many troops.

What did he get? A retreat in order, of course.

Enraged, we pressed on - again we had him, at least 5 to 1 in combat points with a lot of dice to average out. They forced us to roll - and won!

Fortunately my remaining cavalry had been carrying itself well. They'd caught the enemy manuevering on a narrow front and cut him up badly, so their cavalry was ill placed to pursue. Moreover the cavalry and light Infantry in support bagged a supported horse battery before my troops were forced back. This left but one enemy gun right of the woods, and my massed fieldguns took it out and broke two of the enemy's squadrons which massed for pursuit.

But the intrepid enemy infantry carried their charge eventually all the way back to the hill in left back ground of the pictures. Piddled, usually outnumbered and rashly exposed they carried it! One base of light infantry repulsed a charge of the Imperial Guard Horse Grenadiers, dropping the Colonel.

By vigorous counter attacks we regained most of the hill and checked the attack, but the village had been wrested from the, Polish Troops, and John Coffey's cavalry was entirely routed, leaving his infantry much too far forward for comfort. We retreated.

In about five strategic moves our big push had been halted by a succession of incredible bad luck (I rolled 3x5's on 3 dice during 2 consecutive melees) and the enemy followed up forcing 2 melees which he won though outnumbered. To have the light Infantry check the Horse Grenadiers was just adding insult to injury.