Cavalry worth

[MWT]

Our group has gotten into the period pretty heavy with LAOKs. Our problem is that Cavalry is beginning to see little or no use. Infantry, especially those with Platoon Fire simply roll a 6 and send them packing.

Neither Disorder nor Shaken effect the number of dice a unit throws, consequently British and Prussian infantry send Cavalry away no matter what their (the infantry's) status. Most guys who do take Cavalry simply take it to get additional skirmishers on the table.

Should disorder or shaken nullify Platoon Fire? Should Cavalry receiving a disordering 6 not be automatically thrown back, but maybe have to take a test to close?

Mike

[Cubster]

Cavalry is tough to use right, their greatest weapon is their manoeuvrability, not their sabres. Stop charging them at formed infantry and you'll find them sticking around a bit longer.

Keep them for harrassing the flanks, neutralising enemy cavalry, threatening artillery, driving off skirmishers and butchering broken infantry.

[MWT]

Unfortunately we have found playing 28mm that even a 12x6 allows for little room to escape Musket fire and get around flanks

Mike

[Cubster]

I recommend choosing a room to sacrifice. Ask yourself how much do you really need a kitchen?

[Big Al]

Our group has gotten into the period pretty heavy with LAOKs. Our problem is that Cavalry is beginning to see little or no use. Infantry, especially those with Platoon Fire simply roll a 6 and send them packing.

Neither Disorder nor Shaken effect the number of dice a unit throws, consequently British and Prussian infantry send Cavalry away no matter what their (the infantry's) status. Most guys who do take Cavalry simply take it to get additional skirmishers on the table.

Should disorder or shaken nullify Platoon Fire? Should Cavalry receiving a disordering 6 not be automatically thrown back, but maybe have to take a test to close?

Mike

I don't have LAOK, but do play BP. Any unit that is shaken or disordered shoots with a -1 modifier to the dice. That doesn't stop them rolling a 6 and the modifier doesn't affect that. You could introduce it as a house rule, though, so that a disordered unit cannot cause disorder when shooting. I wouldn't apply it to a shaken unit though.

[clivethecelt]

Cubster wrote:

Cavalry is tough to use right, their greatest weapon is their manoeuvrability, not their sabres. Stop charging them at formed infantry and you'll find them sticking around a bit longer.

Keep them for harrassing the flanks, neutralising enemy cavalry, threatening artillery, driving off skirmishers and butchering broken infantry.

Very good point; that's true for HC too, I think - and worse for Lt Cav: very hard to use them effectively, I find; work well in the "gadfly" role, for threatening flanks or the rear/baggage train. Do Hvy Cav fare any better as "crunchers" in LAOK?

[Big Al]

Keep them for harrassing the flanks, neutralising enemy cavalry, threatening artillery, driving off skirmishers and butchering broken infantry.

Unfortunately, BP and HC doesn't allow you to use cavalry for butchering broken units as they are removed when they get a broken result on the break test. Come to mention it, that is effectively what happens in most wargame rules, so cavalry is rarely used on a wargames table for this.

[Cubster]

No fair.

[BigMike]

So broadly speaking Cavalry does what it did for the majority of military history - float round the flanks looking more dangerous than it actually was.
and of course looking much more impressive and dashing than the normal infantryman

[clivethecelt]

Like the old DBA adage, "Dances like a butterfly, stings like a butterfly ..."