The situation was Kutusov Turns to Fight and I was playing as the Russian against a human opponent. I had already suffered defeat at the hands of this opponent in a previous small scenario and that defeat prompted me to challenge him to the big battle. At 6:00 I decided to immediately redeploy my army. These dispositions are standard for me whenever I play Kutusov Turns to Fight. In the Utitza area I deployed militia to hold the woods on both the right and left flank of the town of Utitza. One Grenadier corp, one infantry corp, one independent grenadier division, around 2000 Cossacks, 96 cannon, and two cavalry corps (Platov and his boys) were also deployed in or redeployed to the Utitza area. The Grenadier and Infantry corp were deployed with two battalions per Brigade forward in line formation, one battalion to a hex, and a reserve containing two battalions in column formation, two battalions per hex. These battalions in column were deployed two hexes behind the units in line so they could not get attacked if cavalry hit the front line. 36 "B" cannon were deployed on the Utitza mound and the independent grenadier division was lined up in column in front of the mound as a screen.

In the Fleches area, I deployed one Infantry Corps, one Grenadier Corps, one Cuirassier Division, and 192 cannon. The infantry corp was deployed immediately behind the Fleches hill in square formation two battalions per hex. The Grenadier Corps deployed one division in the woods to the left of the Fleches while the remaining two divisions were deployed in column formation, two battalions to a hex, two hexes behind the battalions in square. The artillery was deployed in the Fleches and on the heights behind the Fleches.

The Great Redoubt had two Infantry Corps (6th and 7th), three Cavalry Corps, and 72 cannon near it. One division was set in the gully to the right of the Great Redoubt, two divisions were deployed to the left of the Great Redoubt, and one division had four battalions of line infantry in the blind hex inside the Great Redoubt and four line battalions near the two entrances. One Infantry Corps was deployed to guard the fords on the Kolocha. There was one division left to guard the first ford east of the bridge and one brigade was deployed at each of the other fords with three light infantry battalions holding down the ford farthest to the East. 36 Cannon were deployed to help guard the three fords farthest to the East and 48 Cannon were deployed to help guard the ford closest to the bridge. The Imperial Guard was not moved and the 4th Infantry Corps was moved into position as a strategic reserve in the depression area located to the left of the Great Redoubt behind the artillery batteries on the heights.

Naturally these dispositions take time, but once they have been completed the Russian line is nearly impossible to break. The battle began with the standard French artillery barrage on the Fleches. The French infantry immediately began to move forward toward the gullies in front of the Fleches and toward the woods on the left. I moved the 150 man Grenadier battalions forward into the first gully and retreated my skirmishers into the Fleches to guard the artillery. I had very few targets for my guns since the French infantry were all hiding in the gullies or heading for the woods. Some French cavalry was moved up in a successful attempt to clear the gully of Russian Grenadiers. I had formed squares, but my 150 man squares were all easily crushed by the French cavalry. My surviving Grenadier battalions fought some nasty fights with the French skirmishers that began to swarm toward the Fleches until they were finally killed to the last man. Although my Grenadiers were forced to give their lives for the Motherland their purpose was achieved. I delayed the French advance long enough to get my army deployed. While all this activity was going on I sent one division from the 6th Corps from the Great Redoubt to occupy the gullies located to the right of the Fleches. One line brigade was deployed in the gully immediately in front of the woods, one line brigade was deployed in the gully behind that one, and the light infantry were all deployed in the woods clump at the base of the Y as an anchor to their right flank. I then sent one skirmish battalion forward into the woods as a trip line to delay any French advance. All the skirmishers in front of the Great Redoubt were recalled to the rifle pits in front. Off on the right flank the town of Borodino was immediately evacuated and the bridge was blown.

After the French pushed my skirmishers out of the woods, the battle settled into a stalemate for about an hour while French skirmishers attempted to clear the gully to the right of the Fleches of the four battalions I had deployed there. He did not move up with regular line battalions for fear of getting obliterated by the artillery deployed on the heights behind the Fleches. All the while a furious artillery exchange was going on between the French batteries and my batteries. French artillery was set up to get flank shots on my batteries in the Fleches and they were starting to hit with good effect. In the Utitza area I deployed one unit of cossacks on the extreme left to watch for any devious Polish flank marches and waited for the Poles to arrive. A few Polish cavalry units came out of the woods and annihilated my cossack scouts, but when they pressed forward they were crushed in turn by my remaining Cossacks. A stalemate then developed on the far left because neither side wanted to move into charge range and risk getting hit by a counter charge. At this point I issued an official dispatch from Russian headquarters indicating that my troops were all in proper position to repel any French attacks. Le Empereur then announced that his troops were all in their staging areas and that the main assault was about to be launched. It was about 7 O'clock. Orders were passed to all my battalions to sharpen their bayonets and prepare for battle.

The drums could be heard in the distance as the mass of French infantry moved forward. French troops were beginning to build up in the gully in front of the Great Redoubt and some French artillery was positioned to get flank shots on my Brigade in the first gully to the right of the Fleches. The arrival of the artillery on that Brigade's flank forced me to abandon that position so I moved back to the second gully while still using the woods as my right anchor. I also decided that I had guarded the forward Fleches for long enough and moved my artillery out of harms way. I left the skirmishers in the Fleches with orders to hold to the last man. A few French cavalry charges were used to clear off the Fleches but they didn't get away without taking losses from the guns on the heights. Once the Fleches were cleared the French began to clear the woods to the immediate left. However, a stalemate developed once again as our forces faced off on opposite sides of the forest path. I had some artillery deployed in the woods in extended line so I could sweep the path with canister in the event of a French attack. All I saw though was a cloud of French skirmishers who respectfully remained on their side of the path.

Over near the town of Utitza one or two French infantry regiments emerged from the woods and tried to shoot the gap between the woods and the town while a cavalry charge was directed at the town itself. The infantry Brigade I had there acquitted itself well and stopped the French advance. I saw no sign of the Poles so I was beginning to wonder where they were. I spotted a few Poles moving back toward the Shevardino Redoubt, but I wasn't sure what to make of that. The battle at the "gap" continued to build and since I saw no sign of the Poles I moved two Grenadier Brigades from the left over to the gap and began to counterattack. French cavalry continued to charge from in front of the town in an effort to eliminate my artillery batteries deployed in the front lines but Platov finally arrived. Once I had some cavalry I would attempt to pin the French cavalry with ZOC and charge it with 1000 of my cavalry. Cossacks are especially good for this because they are equipped with Lances. French cavalry losses began to mount as my elimination tactics were used to good effect.

I now digress for a tactical analysis. My tactics are to use single battalions in a forward position and have them act as a sponge to absorb the shock of a French attack. Once they get hit I immediately reinforce with the fresh troops in column and either counterattack or strengthen the defences. Cavalry is used to counterpunch - especially against other cavalry. On almost every cavalry charge my French opponent made I managed to take away all their avenues of retreat and hit them with fresh cavalry units thus causing their elimination. At this stage of the battle I was still using my "D" batteries in forward positions. My opponent seemed to be leveraging me out of my defensive positions with artfully placed cannons and taking out my artillery batteries with cavalry charges initiated from hidden locations. The French attack was very methodical and my defence was designed to stop a mass rush of French infantry rather than a slow, sneaky, methodical advance. My artillery losses were getting to be alarming, but since his cavalry was taking heavy losses too, the victory points were balancing out. I was prepared to fight the entire battle in this low intensity fashion but the tactical situation was about to change.

While Le Emperor informed me that his attack was underway I saw no evidence of any large scale attacks. Once the left Fleche had fallen to the French, he moved his artillery to a position where he could bring fire to bear on my woods line along the path. He also set up a cavalry charge that would change the course of the battle. He used some Cuirassiers to charge along my line of artillery batteries on the heights to the rear of the Fleches. I saw it coming so I limbered all the artillery up but my losses were still heavy. Needless to say, none of his cavalrymen lived to fight another day but the damage had been done. A large force of skirmishers were also trying to advance between the Kolocha and the Great Redoubt under cover from the numerous artillery batteries in and around the town of Borodino. Finally I had enough!! I realized that I had been playing much to passively - especially since he had not really seized the initiative. I decided that no large scale attack was ever going to come, so I decided to pull all my artillery batteries located in the front lines and set them up in reserve. I replaced the lost batteries along the heights as best as I could and set my army in motion.

The division to the left of the Great Redoubt was called upon to do its patriotic duty and attack toward the edge of the plateau in front of the Redoubt. I also started to move the three cavalry corps onto the plateau and set the 4th Corp in motion over toward the left side of the Great Redoubt to support any attacks that I might make in that area. The French skirmishers moving along the Kolocha were reasonably contained by the Guard Marine Equippage skirmishers and the division I had deployed over there. My decision to switch to the offensive was made because I didn't want to allow my opponent to continue to set up cavalry charges and assaults with impunity. If I conducted a few local attacks it would make it that much more difficult for him because he couldn't plan all his attacks against a static defender. He would have to deal with my marauding battalions thus forcing him to dance to my tune.

Over near Utitza, I pulled my artillery battery out of its position in the woods and withdrew my militia from the path. No sooner had I done that than the French came swarming onto my positions. A full scale battle had developed in the woods between my militia and grenadiers and the French infantry sent to kill them. At the town of Utitza itself I still retained control and was definitely in the drivers seat at the gap between the town and the woods. More and more French regiments were sent into the fray, but my Grenadiers would not budge. The French were completely stymied in the gap.

While the situations in the woods and along the Kolocha were dangerous - they were not precarious yet. Nevertheless I put the Imperial Guard in motion and moved them a little closer to the Great Redoubt. I also decided that the most likely place the French Guard cavalry would go was to the Utitza area so I dispatched the Imperial Guard cavalry toward the Utitza mound. This was just a precautionary measure though because it would take them more than an hour of game time to reach the battlefield over there. I also decided to move the Imperial Guard artillery to the heights along the Kolocha so I could cover the road leading from the bridge with heavy flanking artillery fire. I then moved the 4th corps back to its reserve position in the depression area to the left of the Great Redoubt because it did not seem like the French in front of the Redoubt were very strong and I didn't want to use up my reserve if I didn't have to. The main pressure seemed to be along the Kolocha and in the woods to the left of the Fleches.

Once I saw the lack of French troops (about 3000 or 4000 Wurtemburgers) in front of the Great Redoubt I decided to sweep them off the hill and box in the French troops moving along the Kolocha. Over in the Utitza area, my two cavalry corps finally finished concentrating east of the town so I decided to put an end to the battle for the "gap". 10,000 Russian cavalry troopers prepared for battle. 7000 at the Great Redoubt and 3000 at the town of Utitza. They had been aching for some action all morning and now they got their chance. The bugles sounded and the thunder of hooves shook the ground as a solid wave of horsemen 8 hexes long swept forward in front of the Great Redoubt. No quarter was asked for and none was given. Several hundred French Cuirassiers were caught in the charge and massacred and most of the German infantry were scattered. 20 French artillery pieces were overrun and eliminated as well. Over at the town of Utitza the exhausted French infantry proved to be no match for the fresh cavalry sent thundering their way. Over 500 were eliminated from ZOC and several hundred more were cut down in the actual assault.

I sent the turn back to my opponent and didn't get a response for a few days. Finally he sent me an e-mail without a file attached declaring that he was throwing in the towel. It was 8:30 in the game and the final French casualties were around 5000 cavalry, 9000 infantry and 50 cannon. Russian casualties were around 1500 cavalry, 11000 infantry, and 120 cannon. While I do think the Russian player has an advantage in Kutusov Turns to Fight I don't think it is impossible to defeat them. I would rate this scenario to be 60% pro Russian. I am freely discussing this battle because it was my last complete game prior to my official retirement from NiR gameplay. I ended two games early due to incessant technical difficulties (I am on AOL and they were not).

Jon