Battle at St Xavier the Indomitable
The Germanic confederation was launching a series of probes to open new fronts against the Franco Spanish alliance.
One such probe was through the pass that opened out at the ruined monastery and squalid hovels of St Xavier the Indomitable. Overnight the Germanics had filed out of the pass on to the paths that ran either side of the ruin, which sat atop a rocky outcrop.
As first light dawned the low grade alliance garrison sounded the alarm as they saw the Germanic columns marching down the paths ready to storm the ruin and hovels.
The ruin itself was safe from direct assault but the hovels were on the lower end of the outcrop and guarded only by a dilapidated stone wall. That would be where the confederation hammer would fall.
As in past games the main force commanders were elsewhere leaving junior officers of varying abilities as commanders in the scenarios. Lieutenant Julio Iglesias, the Spanish officer was particularly downcast. After being on the staff of the inspiring Spanish commander Capitain Jose Fernando de Sagras Y San Miguel he was unhappy being detailed to guard a ruin and a few houses that looked more like cow sheds.
Why had the enemy not been detected earlier? – answers in parenthesis (it’s a demotivated garrison force, if they were any good they’d be in the field army). Was everyone asleep? (yes apart from those in the local whorehouse). Why am I here (this is either an existential question unable to be answered without reference to philosophy or refers to some tricky situation that brought disrepute onto de Sagras y San Miguel’s staff office and may have involved the commandantes donkey).
The French commander for his part manned his guns with the ill assorted selection of crews he’d been allocated. The old pieces under his command were to prove no match for the fine confederation artillery.
For their part the confederation had Prussian/ Brunswickers marching in fine formation and some raggedy barbaries they’d hired from Sheik Yahbooty.
Dawn broke to the combined sound of the cockerel crowing on the dung heap and the loud wails of Igelsias, ‘we’re surprised/outnumbered/ outgunned’ went out the cry.
His pessimism was matched by the fine gunnery which raked the French guns, immediately disorganising one gun.
Over several turns there was fire backwards and forwards though the Germanics always got the better of it and for the alliance troops to step into that area of the monastery was a death sentence.
The Germanics were callous with their barbary allies again.
‘Just go up to those walls and see if anyone’s awake’ they instructed the barbaries. The alliance managed some severe salvos which drove the barbaries and then the Prussians back.
Iglesias’ troops were as unhappy to be under his command as he was to command them and this was showing in their sketchy morale. At the first sign of casualty they fled their positions only to rally and return.
For their part the confederation were making slow progress as the day passed. They shot a lot but had not assaulted the position.
The Prussians had a reserve up their sleeve and sent forward a cavalry reserve to race to take the fast depleting position.
As night was falling the Spanish were clinging on but the Germanics were still not near to talking the position. The French commander and his guns had been long lost to counter battery fire. Everything depended on Iglesias. True to form he fled the field with an almost full strength unit just as dusk was falling, even though there were still Spanish units defending.
As darkness fell the Germanics still hadn’t taken the monastery so the gallant defenders had delayed the Germanics sufficiently to win the day- although according to Iglesias it was really a loss!