Dominion of Freedom

When I first posted about Dominion of the Spear and Bayonet, I suggested that one could use it for a different kind of colonial war - the American Revolution. The author Steve concurs. Anyway, I decided to try a battle.

Set Up

I rolled to help determine the army makeups. I came up with:

• Continentals - 4 skirmishers, 1 cavalry, 1 artillery
• British - 1 line infantry, 2 grenadiers (elite bayonets), 1 artillery

I decided that the Continental infantry would be skirmishers, although ambushers may have been better.

The Battle

A British column (red) marches through the American countryside. The Continentals plan to ambush the redcoats. But the British get wind of it, and attack first.

The grenadiers (center) charge the "hidden" Continental guns. A whiff of grapeshot stalls the attack. Then Continental skirmishers hit the head of the column. Firing accurately from cover, the skirmishers wipe out the British line infantry.

The British bring up their guns. Their cannonade has no effect. But now Continental skirmishers hit the rear of the British column, dispersing the British cavalry.

Those same skirmishers then wipe out the grenadiers coming up from reserve.

And then the Continental guns finish off the last grenadiers.

The British column is in shambles. A Continental victory!

Notes

• That was fun, especially since I was rooting for the Continentals.
• It always helps to roll well. The Continentals kept rolling 5s and 6s vs. the British 1s and 2s.
• I wanted to model the stereotypical Revolutionary War battle - the British regulars in the open in rigid lines while the American shoot at them. That's why I made the Continental infantry skirmishers rather than line infantry. I could have made them ambushers also.
• I made the grenadiers melee infantry because I envisioned them going in with the bayonet.
• I probably should have added some terrain, just for looks. In my mind, I envisioned the Continentals attacking out of woods.
• I also want to change my battle board. The brown was for battles in dryer regions, such as the Eastern Roman Empire. I need a greener board for more temperate climates.
• With the success of today's experiment, I now plan to use Dominion for a mini-campaign - the Battles of Lexington-Concord. I have the campaign structure sketched out; just need to get it on the board.