Game 3 vs Ottomans

Friday evening saw what was a pretty decent meal bearing in mind the restaurant was serving pretty much every non-italian wargamer in the country at a group meal. A pasta course, salad, bread, a rather strange kebab-like concoction that may have included some liver and then fruit salad was all washed down with a significant amount of red wine, as the waiting staff lost track of how many bottles we had had on our table. This was then followed by a rather over-large bottle of Peroni on a small bar local to our hotel, just in case there was any danger of incomplete inebriation that evening.

After a prompt Italian 8-30 start at 9-30, and a re-draw due to more dodgy software, I wasn't playing a Spaniard but another Italian, this time with Ottomans. 

The Ottomans attacked and quickly forced my Lh screen on my left to withdraw as they reinforced their LH with cavalry (O), further reinforced my the mini command, whilst effecting a firework-display-like redeploying of the Cv (S) front rank to cover the front of the Serbs. The janissary block, stiffened and encouraged by a Art (S) stood firm. 

The Lithuanian wagons rolled forwards, and the cavalry dismounted and started to unpick by now overly- busy Janissary block.

Poor pips led the firework display to grind to a halt, and then start to fizzle out in the face of a determined Teutonic charge straight up the middle. The ottomans were finding that they had no real answer to the Wagons on both sides of table, other than spending pips to try and reposition the Art (S). 

With the Ottomans struggling for pips, the Serbs quickly formed column and redeployed with a rare roll of 6 pips, putting them in a position to put pressure on my right.

As the last of the Janissaries fell I started throwing in elements to claim that vital last element in their command to break them - but to no avail! 

The wagons and blades are causing havoc on my left, but on my right I am under severe pressure from the Serbs and having taken losses trying to finish off the Janissaries my large cavalry command starts to look fragile, and teeters on the edge of defeat. In the meantime the Teutonic boss goes alone attempting to claim a touchdown by fighting single-handedly through about half the Ottoman army, nearly reaching the Serbian Bw (I) until he is finally dragged down by a Lh at the 237th attempt!

The Ottoman right finally (finally!) falls to a Wagon blitzkrieg, but the Teutons fail the General-dead dice roll despite only needing a 3, and its in the balance ! 

The (defenders - mine) last bound sees possible 9-1 either way, with both sides needing one element. A combination of poor pips and the failure of a demoralized Lh to run down a lone psiloi saves the ottomans, and one of the last Lithuanian cavalry survives a 2-4 combat vs a Serbian knight to save me. 17-15 to me, with losses of 49% to 30%

Don't worry lads - I've got a plan!!

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