Trin Tragula posted:

Woods block line of sight and provide spotting cover to units inside them. (Mistakes like this are why the normal rules say that spotting is something that's done to you, not something that you do - it's very easy to overlook the conditional that's in effect at t'other end; if you calculate from the unit being spotted, you just go "oh, he's in the wood" and remember he's hidden.)

thatbastardken posted:

Good formating, but you're taking the wrong route north. Please check with Staff Officer Slim Pickens for remedial orienteering.

Comrade Koba posted:

Général de brigade Comrade Koba

Orders for 52nd Brigade

Brigade will enter the field deployed in the formation below:


Brigade will then march towards La Cote, as indicated by the arrow. Cavalry company will move ahead of the main column and scout the advance.

sullat posted:

Unless I am mistaken, brigade HQ does need to be near the brigades in case orders need to be altered on the fly. If you don't stay within 8" of your mans, you can't order them around.

xthetenth posted:

If we do not spot enemies west of Saint Croissant, we will continue on as such, west until the junction and then as far north as possible:
(Other officers, is there a potential location east of Croissant for enemies that should get me to punch out rather than continue and bank on being faster than them?)

xthetenth posted:

Turns Three, Four and Five go as such:



Three is going as far west along the road and then north, trying to get in that yellow rectangle where I can see if enemies are coming from Bois de Gooneville, in which case I remain in marching order, and back off hard the next turn, moving south and dropping into Operation Merde. We will probably be in range so we will be shouting racial epithets as we do so. (Staff officers, is there another case to remember here?)

In turn four, we drop into battle order and turn five the positions pictured, sending that attached cavalry company out towards La Oeuf. The cavalry companies should turn into infantry and entrenched infantry as fast as is practicable.

We will be on defense in this position, and the standing orders apply.

quote:

Operation Merde!

We will engage in unspecified fallback behavior for an officer and a gentleman does not plan for anything but success at the sabrepoint (or bullet, I can't go on a charge with half artillery can I?)

Slim Jim and others, I'm planning to fall back where they can have me if they really want me badly enough to get me they can have me and then realize that I've traded well with my arty and they're now under the guns of Clemenceau, where do I go to do this? I'm not going to take a stupid risk here, because Horse Arty is ludicrously useful sounding for overwatch on the offensive

my dad posted:

Predictions:

6th Division mostly just sits there and does nothing because of overcaution, primarily to be blamed on me. Causes a lot of panic among the German team because of what could have been, but is a huge wasted opportunity. The Germans will redeploy into combat stance in safety, unless they're specifically ordered to march into Croissant from the East, no matter what happens. Maybe they'll bayonet charge into our defensive formations, but I doubt it. Hilarious for the observer thread, no doubt, either way.

22nd Division shells the crap out of anyone trying to to enter Croissant from the East, but fails to capitalize on the West because of a deployment error and incomplete orders.

We are at serious risk of losing the game if the enemy objective is Quatreprouts because we've got nothing on Dejeneur ridge. The cavalry debacle may prove to be a saving grace since it may be possible to send them to secure it.

We are in an advantageous position to move in NE, their telegraph, and block their roads.

thatbastardken posted:

I think (based on how some orders are interpreted) 6th is going to be in a really strong position to dictate german behavior. They can't ignore a division strength formation on their southern flank. the trick will be to make sure we don't overcompensate for our perfectly reasonable caution and charge onto german lines, especially with their superiority in machine guns. if 22nd is able to re-orient and bring their attacking brigades into a line between the boche and the SW corner that should ease your concern in that regard.

the boldest move would be to rush 6e cav to Faibleimpot along the W edge and win the game that way, but I don't like the associated risks.

Trin Tragula posted:

Loel posted:

Map for illustrative purposes. Brigade to stay in place.

Lucky 99th

Artillery when firing: Fire at all targets in range
Infantry/MG: Fire at all targets in range
When an enemy company Breaks Off or Retreats Suppressed: Do not pursue.
Break off automatically when: Stand to the last man

(Adjust placement as needed so cannons can fire, they take priority)

my dad posted:

e: I am genuinely worried we will lose to the Germans just waltzing into what I'm guessing is their objective in the SW completely unopposed on the West. But, our resources are limited, and I see no way to put up an adequate fight there with what we have.

Also, Slim Jim Pickens Slam Jam Packens, I'm worried that you're being overly cautious to some degree, since the Germans will be shooting our guys anyway, and it doesn't really matter if the guys they're shooting are yours or someone else's. Then again, you are a reserve brigade, so the caution may prove to be prudent.

Trin Tragula posted:

I advise getting a stiff drink before reading this. You may need it.

Right then. Do you know what this is?



This, my friends, is a giant German artillery park which has spent the past few turns bumblefucking around trying to get into positions where they're not masking each other's fire. Guess what they just finished doing? If you said "unlimbering", well, you win the right to take cover.

....

And then the German guns open fire en masse, and nobody hears anything else for quite a while.

sullat posted:

Here is the proposed defensive line... any critiques? If the infantry gets too far ahead of the guns, they'll be pulverized without recourse.

Bacarruda posted:

Lost contact with 96th Brigade. Believe brigadier has been killed and brigade dissolved.

98th Brigade continues attack on Saint Croissant.

97th Brigade heading for Dejeunner to take up a reverse slope defence. Guns remaining on Clemenceau to provide fire support.

99th Brigade is holding fast. The 155mm and the 75mm that went missing haven't turned up yet. We can hear artillery tractors coming down the road from the east - so they may arrive in the next hour.

6th Cavalry is falling back to the Leo Oeuf.

Germans have a brigade just south of the Bois de Gooneville advancing south. One more brigade plus a small cavalry brigade in Saint Croissant. I see three more German brigadese. One on the Ferme Confit, one in the Ferme de Beuerre, and one on the Pasteur Ridge's northern road.

Each brigade has 12 infantry, 4 MG, and a brigade HQ. There are 4 howitzers in the Ferme de Confit and 4 more on the extreme north-west edge of the Pasteur Ridge. Their bicycle troops appear to have gone to ground and are digging in on La Sanglante Femme.

Bacarruda posted:

He's under standing orders from me to use the cav for scouting.

And General Mon Pere regarded it as enough of a risk to justify it. In an emergency, we can send a runner to get them into position to help 99th Brigade.

If we need more men, now it the time to call for reinforcements.

my dad posted:

The same reason we sent infantry to La Cote while we expected the enemy to be nowhere near it. The risks posed by the alternative are too great to allow. For an example of what happens when you don't think like this, please look at the German force, turns 1 to now.

Scouting is utter garbage if the information it provides is too late to actually do anything about it.

my dad posted:

Yes, that is an expenditure of resources which I consciously chose to make.




Ideally, 22nd will let the waves of German soldiers break on their wall of artillery. However, for them to do that, 6th needs to keep their artillery line covering Bois du Baguette, otherwise the enemy has an avenue they can use to sneak up on Loel's guys for a bayonet charge. We're currently besieging St. Croissant and in a position to brutally punish any enemy advance there. We have two weaknesses:
First is the risk of enemy moving over La Oeuf and presenting a threat from there is one. Sending that infantry there solves this problem in two ways, and depending on circumstances and luck, may help us elsewhere as well. First of all, we have a good ambush to spring on the Germans if they attack and we are in a position to actively protect what I am assuming is a possible enemy objective. Second, if the enemy learns that our infantry is there, they can't discout the option that we're doing a flanking maneuver of our own, and have another threat to consider and react to. Finally, seeing them leave might make the enemy think that our center is weakened, and push into a fortified ridge backed by a lot of artillery, and die. A lot.
Second weakness is not really being ready to receive more of a push on our NE without our reserves breaking, and taking the artillery with them. I made the mistake of assuming German reinforcements would take a significant amount of time to arrive, and we're about to pay for it. I am still considering whether I should press the panic button and try to stop the reserve brigades from advancing, or to let them go and hope for the best, while exploiting their advances elsewhere somehow.


Still waiting on tbk to make a post about what he knows and what he needs and then I'll start issuing orders.

my dad posted:

As an aside, thanks for taking the time to criticize plans, and propose alternatives. Even though I disagree with you most of the time, our plans have been consistently improved by incorporating the results of your thinking. Hell, I generally like the Entente team as a whole. Yeah, we need to work out some issues (use the preview button, ya goons ), but playing the game with y'all has been quite fun so far.

Slim Jim Pickens posted:

Slam Jam Packens, 120e Reservistes Brigade

Preliminary orders.

T+0-T+4


120e brigade has received orders from 6th Division headquarters! The eager reservists are elated to hear the news. The boche have been surprised and put on the backfoot! The order for advance is given!

120e Brigade will promptly switch to the attack. Infantry shall adopt the above formation, while erring for the benefit of allowing artillery the 2' gap.. The brigade will attempt to carry the artillery into each successive position detailed on this map.

Should boche artillery remain on Pasteur ridge during this movement, we shall attempt to attack it so long as the it does not entail cresting the ridge and revealing ourselves to the enemy in the surroundings of Ferme de Beurre

The 2 farthest most infantry companies must, at any cost of detour, enter Nainville and cut the telephone wires.

During the march, no companies may crest Pasteur ridge at any point, delays are acceptable to adhere to this order.

T+4(?)-T+6(?)


(It should take two turns between the last pictured brigade position and the one pictured here)

If our artillery companies tire and must limber up, the rest of the brigade will proceed on with marching orders, until any positions within this map are achieved, at which point the brigade will defend.

Again, two infantry companies must, at any detour, enter Bouclecourt and sever telephone wires before rejoining the brigade.

The brigade will defend once any units achieve this position, and attempt to unlimber artillery.

Once artillery is unlimbered, the brigade will switch to Attack, and adopt positions like so.

T+6(?)-T+7(?)


If 2 or more enemy brigades are spotted in range after this move, the 120e brigade will switch to Defend, Break off at 1/2 casualties

If otherwise, 120e Brigade will Attack

When sighting an enemy on Attack stance: Stop and defend
When attacking the enemy: Use rifle fire
When an enemy company Breaks Off or Retreats Suppressed: Do not pursue the enemy
Break Off automatically when: 1/2 casualties are taken

sullat posted:

So they manhandled the arty from the farm up to position last turn. They may have orders to scoot around just out of range picking off infantry companies to force morale checks.

my dad posted:

Just in case I don't get around to formally issuing orders:

6th division: Hold the line. Maybe posture with something near Nainville, but don't get in enemy artillery range. A lot hinges on those enemy brigades being kept where they are (or being sent on a suicidal attack on your gunline). Keep someone on top of La Cote for reasons of line of sight.

22nd division: Follow the general plan for which I posted the pics. Important notes: Keep pressure on the enemy without endangering your brigades more than absolutely necessary. Consider moving your command chit after issuing orders. All towns are within 4 turns away from one-another, so you can do a shout&scoot without leaving your division leaderless. The job of the reserve brigade is to destroy any enemy attempt to set up artillery overwatch near Bois de Haute, hamper enemy attempts to send troops to Faibleimpot, and in conjunction with our move near Dejeneur, create the illusion that we're actually pushing for Saint Croissant from the West. Obviously, this is being done to allow the BEF and the other reserve a clear path towards our primary objective without giving the enemy too obvious of a hint about our intentions. Ideally, incomplete line of sight our enemy has of our troops will make them think that we're fully comitted to the fight in the center now.

my dad posted:

Loel posted:

Should I move some infantry to fill the gap near the woods, or keep them where they are?

sullat posted:

Adjusting my formation to stick this little rifle company up to Baguende to hide out and keep an eye on things from the top of the hill. All other companies are to shoot at the enemy if he pokes his ugly head out, or, failing that, keep digging in! The little rifle company can also dig in once he reaches baguende.

All current standing orders remain the same.