Kriegsspiel, a timeless classic

From the you did what file...I participated in a traditional game of Kriegsspiel with a number of enthusiaists located outside of Kansas City, MO, by way of a mode that could never have been envisioned when first written in the "dark days" following the final fall of Napolean, the internet.

The multi-player game is umpired, and double blind. The scenario brief is extremely vague, and was played on the long fought over map centered on the City of Metz, along the Moselle River. We, RedFor, (consisting of me and the force commander, an army officer currently stationed in Hawaii) were told that we had cleared the enemy of our side of the river, and the river line was being held by cavalry forces. Our force had also cleared the city of Metz except for a few dead-enders in some outlying forts. The time was around 1905. Our mission was to clear the remaining enemy forces from Metz.

Our opponent commander was the third person hooked up by IRC, playing from Vermont. His subordinates, two others, and the umpire and two assistant umpires were colocated in MO, which was ok, because friendly commanders can only communicate with each other in the scope of the game. The units representing those commanders would have to either colocate or as in my case along the rail lines issue a 10 word message via the wire comms located at a railroad station. Aside from that, a player knows where his units begin, then provides orders and intent to the assistant umpires who pass that info on to the umpire who adjusts his map and adjudicates any combat per the rule set. This along with the delay in the effects of orders leads to some interesting situations.

The Red CO commanded those red forces already fighting in and around Metz. My 8x Bn, 4x Cavalry Squadrons, and an artillery battery were entrained and made its way on may along a rail line leading toward Metz. The Red CO made an assumtion that the enemy was holding Metz by a thread, and that made be holding on for a relief force. Red CO wanted to seize a bridge crossing to the SW from Metz called Ars sur Moselle, and rush my force across to intercept any such relief force.

As it turned out Red Forces were rebuffed by Blue Forces at Ars sur Moselle, however both sides initially withdrew. Then Blue Forces attack from the extreme north after crossing the river at a fording site. My forces are odered off train and to advance to contact to the north. With cavalry squadrons screening to the front, my battalions advanced in an echelon right formation hoping to meet the enemy the then flank him to his left.

At this time the initially checked souhtern Blue force makes itself known on our side of the river. Hey, this could be some type of little Stalingrad. Two battalions are stripped from me to move southwest to make a stand against the southern enemy force. It was about at this point the nature of 1905-ish communications and how the game replicates that takes its toll. The is a dictated 30min delay in having orders acted upon. Think an event causes the change in orders, the order is expressed, given to a runner/messenger, who then makes his way to the subordinant, probably under fire. The subordinant commander receives the order, and then has to act upon that order. No small feat in reality.

As for my advance/attack. My force's screen quickly made contact with what would turn out to be two squadrons of Blue cavalry, my forces further to my right continued to advance and eventually, yet ineffectively flanked the enemy. In the end, my main force was hung up on the enemy's flank screen. He did dilute his force somewhat by peeling two infantry battalions to hold off my two marauding cavalry squadrons in the extreme north. During all this, the nemy continued to push relatively unimpeded against Metz, just as in the south.

It was a fun game, interesting. In the end, the force ratio was 18 Blue inf BNs to 12 Red, 9 Blue cav squadrons to 6 Red, 2 arty batteries to 2 arty batteries.

Here is an image of the end of the battle as it appeared on the umpires map.

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