How to play French: Part 1 Infantry

Рет қаралды 18,065

3 жыл бұрын

In this video we look at the key components to using the French army, specifically infantry! Cavalry and artillery to come!
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Пікірлер: 110

@thescarletpumpernel3305 3 жыл бұрын

To quote a history teacher, the french army 'didn't fight to win, they won and fought'. It was all about psychology.

@BootsontheTable 3 жыл бұрын

Great video. I always think that the strength of the French is the aggressive attack, but so many opponents seem to delay delivering the attacks needed. As a British player I love it when they form line and try to outshoot me!

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Yeah, it's an odd one. I get it, but it's just not viable

@CullodenPaintingStudio 3 жыл бұрын

Excellent stuff. Looking forward to the midweek content as well as the next in this series.

@yavok 3 жыл бұрын

Another excellent piece of content. Keep up the fantastic and informative work!

@carpet3768 3 жыл бұрын

Great work m8, really looking forward to the cavalry video

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Coming soon!

@shring7 3 жыл бұрын

ABC, Always Be Charging

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Hahaha. Love it!

@grandadsartspace5805 3 жыл бұрын

What a superb video I don't wargame but if I ever do then I will remember what you have said , I am just starting to look at painting naps and starting to get hooked and I have wondered why the French attacked in column now I know many thank for all of your very informative videos please keep it up I am enjoying them so much

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Check out my video on the french infantry too. The column was a good way to get troops in to the fight, and keep moving forward. As the quality of troops fell off a cliff they would use this formation right up to the bayonet charge

@dupeesfashionconsultant4204 3 жыл бұрын

My favorite upload alert! Good to hear the voice again.....make all those french players watch this before the next greatest game!

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Ha. Thanks bud. Yeah, I wont have Andy to temper me this time either 😂😂😂 to be fair, shouting at other generals is very in the spirit of Napoleonic French senior officers!

@historypunkwargames4760 3 жыл бұрын

Great video as always thanks for making my day ☺️👍

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching!

@pfcsantiago8852 3 жыл бұрын

Will have to do a Tshirt, 'Attack Attack Attack'

@LittleLouieLagazza 2 жыл бұрын

After some massed- or grand battery prep, I like to send three waves of "order mixte" with a vast cloud of skirmishers out front. That third wave of battalions in column can punch holes like an icepick all day long

@davidoxley8855 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks - really useful for someone fairly new to wargaming like myself

@BrushQuill 3 жыл бұрын

An interesting video to listen to.

@baldiesbattlesinminiature5902 3 жыл бұрын

Great briefing Tim, not sure my lads like your anti Russian sentiments and are looking forward to facing you again when allowed. Horror of horrors I have even started painting again. Looking forward to your cavalry article as it is always nice to have a full understanding of how the enemy intend to steam roll you.

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Absolutely! I'm just salty because the pile of 25 Russian sprues is reaching the top of my painting pile! :D

@Ridmasta 3 жыл бұрын

Great stuff! Any chance you will be covering some of the smaller nations like the Portuguese?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

I certainly will be! I've just done an allied one (Brunswick), so I'll look at a French one next, then...who knows. I can tell you Portugal will deffo be one, in the meantime check out my video on Sir Manly Power

@Ridmasta 3 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming Awesome, aye I watched the Manly Power one on release, cracking stuff

@LittleLouieLagazza 2 жыл бұрын

+1 Portuguese!

@basement1908 3 жыл бұрын

Outstanding! Thanks my friend!

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching!

@basement1908 3 жыл бұрын

I looked through the rules and the supplements again... I see where the attack column gives +1 to command and pas de charge gives an additional +1. I also saw the +1 to the morale save unless hit by artillery.... I couldn't find the attack column being +1 to hit from musket fire or the free move if order is failed. (I am blind though 😂😂). I will keep looking. We have a decent size game next weekend, this could be one less rule I screw up 😂. Have a good one my friend 👍

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

@Basement 1908 ! You too! It just goes to show, stop playing for six months and I get rusty! I need some games!

@3dWargamer 3 жыл бұрын

Nice one mate thanks alot for doing this I have gone a bit french mad on my channel lol

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

I do love the French!

@JSparo-TotalWarMachinima 3 жыл бұрын

That's a nice profile picture you've got. Vive l'Empereur !

@OW... 3 жыл бұрын

Nice one guys...

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@jonathonrodriguezthomas6457 3 жыл бұрын

tres bien!!

@hoosieryank6731 3 жыл бұрын

But...but...but...I was told that a French column was really a reinforced line, maybe five or six ranks deep instead to two or three, and that the columns getting whacked in the Peninsula were march columns moving blind, then discovering Brit line foot behind the crest of a hill waiting for them. Cue a Brit volley or two while the French try to deploy, then disperse from the Brit charge. I would think trading volley for volley with the Brits, they'd hold their own. Perhaps it depends on the rules set?

@seanhejnal246 3 жыл бұрын

If playing the lost gem, Valmont to Waterloo, the order mixed IS a real formation and should be used. Above average musketry to disorder the enemy line followed by a charging column. If the columns fail n get driven back, then the advancing enemy faces defensive fire in line. This formation at batalion level is usually backed by the brigades second line which fills the gaps and counter attacks. Linear armies have great difficulty facing this due to command distances n unfavorable modifiers in columns.

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

I agree. Unfortunately the way the turn sequence works you charge then fire. Similar to artillery, I did a video where I recommended having an artillery phase before moving for that reason

@54032Zepol 3 жыл бұрын

FOR THE EMPEROR!!

@ankerboi 3 жыл бұрын

I like that you are long winded 😆🤘🏼

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Ha. Thanks..? 😂

@dupeesfashionconsultant4204 3 жыл бұрын

R.I.P. general Andy 😇.....look at general Andy, standing there like a stone wall.....wrong war but it's the most badass military nickname quote so its fitting

@Robin-fp6sx 3 жыл бұрын

Ah! French again...good, good. :)

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

They do put the Napoleon in Napoleonic :D

@geebards 3 жыл бұрын

I'd like to hear why you think Black Powder doesn't well provide for the Order Mixed. I don't have an opinion on this BTW.

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

I'll deffo do a video on it, it's just the way the rules interact with each other tbf

@thekameleon9785 3 жыл бұрын

Hi there! Please help me with my qeustion. I already have loads of 1/72. My french are based 6 figures a base. With 6 bases per unit. My allied 8 figures a base. With 4 to 5 bases make a unit I can still play this game right out the bat? Thanks alot.

@samb2052 3 жыл бұрын

If the bases are the same size, the number of figures on each base doesn’t matter.

@trevorwoolson3860 8 ай бұрын

If you check the rulebook 2ndED it states it doesn’t matter how many or how few you have per base as long as the entire unit equals to the small, regular, and large unit frontages!

@dustindinwiddie8511 3 жыл бұрын

@crapphone7744 2 жыл бұрын

It's easy. Al la bayonnette! En avant. Don't care who they are, don't care how many of us there are, en avant!

@marclamontagne3252 3 жыл бұрын

I thought an attack column gave you a +2 to morale save? So a mixed formation attack column is -1 to hit with a 2+ morale save.

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

+2 to your strategy rating, +1 to your save. You do get the -1 to be hit if in mixed formation though. Guard would get a 2+ save in attack column as they have a 3+ normally

@marclamontagne3252 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the quick response! Ah okay, I must have read that wrong in the core rules. Been loving your videos. Just got into the game.

@henrikluffe3089 3 жыл бұрын

can french line infantry in assault column deploy skirmishers ahead of the column?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

They certainly can! You can either deploy your light companies or even a battalion of light infantry in skirmish order

@Johnny-Thunder 2 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming And if they do, do they benefit from both the 1+ to save when in attack column and the enemy's -1 to hit when firing at skirmishers?

@drjumbo1809 3 жыл бұрын

I'm very confused. Why not use their speed and superior numbers to outflank the enemy?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

They would do on the strategic level (that is Corps and armies), the best example being Ligny just before Waterloo. That's where Napoleon's genius was at it's best. But sometimes you've just got to go head on too, like Borodino or Wagram

@drjumbo1809 3 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming In the circumstances you mentioned, you advised that one should send three battalions against a single British one in a game of Black Powder. I've inferred that means the French force is often substantially larger. Couldn't Archduke Charles' method, extending his line to outflank and gain numerical superiority there, also work then?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

@@drjumbo1809 absolutely. Part of the skill of the french commander in this situation is to gain a local advantage, perhaps pinning the line in place on the left, then massing on the right

@romanscho 7 ай бұрын

Where do you find in the rules, that a French attack column gets a free move when an order test is failed? As far as what I can find that only counts for march columns and limbered artillery, nothing about attack columns there.

@romanscho 7 ай бұрын

Page 34, Free Moves.

@neilmoulden5323 3 жыл бұрын

The order mix is a bit of a wargaming myth. I believe it comes from the very early revolution period where they would mix raw volunteer battalions with old army battalions. By 1809 the French normally attacked in massed columns. This happened at Wagram with the French center and most other large battles. Still a very useful video for those playing Black Powder.

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Absolutely, and that's why I'll give Warlord a pass as we've only seen the rules for the late period

@neilmoulden5323 3 жыл бұрын

It will be interesting to see how they handle the early period with it's mix of styles.

@bravo2287 3 жыл бұрын

What is the scale of your French figures?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Those ones are 28mm Perry

@bravo2287 3 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming I first started Napoleonic tabletop wargaming with 15mm. I painted the entire 1812 Prussian Army including all landwehr regiments.

@drjumbo1809 3 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming have you ever tried 6mm?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

@@drjumbo1809 I have. Just before lockdown I had a game of Blucher with the Storm of Steel channel (he was kind enough to let me win!). Its definitely a good option for those with limited space and money, but a huge part of the appeal of wargaming for me is the spectacle, and 6mm just doesnt scratch my itch

@drjumbo1809 3 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming you can get more models on the table with 6mm though. I've written a ruleset for brigade or divisional level that I play with units where one model represents 10 men. I've gone for historical accuracy over just about everything in this hobby, but there are still moments of spectacle during my games that are worth remembering!

@seanhejnal246 3 жыл бұрын

Valmy....

@onetwothreefourfive12345 3 жыл бұрын

Step 1) Run away

@MarekKrassus53 3 жыл бұрын

So the point system generally doesn't make sense in this game. One British battalion will destroy two French ones, which cost the same points, without any problems. :( France must always have a large advantage in numbers to win the clash with the opponent?

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

Really yes, I think the french are over costed, although the french commander can strive to achieve local superiority in numbers. We saw in the battle using the starter armies how effective that can be

@MarekKrassus53 3 жыл бұрын

@@NapoleonicWargaming I understand. So it is probably the most difficult army of all the most important.

@romanscho 7 ай бұрын

It seems that the british with their steady line an first fire have an advantage against a French mixed attack column. But in fact it is far more likely that the french win a 1 on 1. I did a series on tests on that. 65 % of times the French won. Even when the British charged the skirmish screen to force it back into the formation (that is allowed), then fire close range with first fire, you still hardly score any wounds on the French. Once in hand to hand the morale save +1 again is extremely strong.

@MarekKrassus53 7 ай бұрын

@@romanscho Generally, the British infantry should disorganize the French with their 4 shooting dice and then launch a bayonet charge (steady line). In melee combat, the French have no defense bonuses, and the British have an advantage from the very beginning. I'm trying to figure out how to stop the Russian combat column, which is formed by a large battalion.

@romanscho 7 ай бұрын

An attack column does have the morale save +1 bonus in hand-to-hand too, it only states “unless hit by artillery” you don’t get it. Or where do you find that it does not count for hand-to-hand?

@davidsmall2944 3 жыл бұрын

Never happened in real life so why make it different in a game as this isn't correct

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

It wouldnt make for a very interesting game if the French could never win though would it?

@francoantonelli7723 3 жыл бұрын

How do you get 3 to1 to the French over the British? The points are almost the same! Certainly you might get 8 French over 6-7 British. The British fire better, fight better, have better morale blah blah blah.. Black powder and many many other rules treat the British as super soldiers.....

@NapoleonicWargaming 3 жыл бұрын

And that unfortunately is a limitation of the points system. I'd recommend the 'attacker' in any scenario need at least, at the very least, double the points of the defender.

@davidsmall2944 3 жыл бұрын

This is BOLLOX MATE THE FRENCH IN REAL LIFE NEVER BEAT THE BRITISH INFANTRY

@alexgaelsotorodriguez3870 3 жыл бұрын

Walcheren disaster, Battle of the Coa River, battle of Bussaco, battle of Fuengirola, Second Siege of Badajoz, Siege of Burgos

@C.Bastien 3 жыл бұрын

You're not very good at history, am I wrong?

@davidsmall2944 3 жыл бұрын

@@C.Bastien no you are wrong during the NAPOLEONIC Wars the British never lost a major battle against the FRENCH OR ITS ALLIES !!

@historypunkwargames4760 3 жыл бұрын

@@C.Bastien guys guys I think this is joke let's chill were history lovers here

@IronWarrior57560 3 жыл бұрын

@@davidsmall2944 you can't lose a battle if you wait on your island and let Prussia and Russia do the dirty work