Schwimwehr, the Third!

The battle commences with an opening salvo from the Rotenburg artillery. 'Salvo' though probably implies more of an impressive roar than the actual sound made by the artillery, which is more akin to a losing entry in a squirrels-only yodelling contest. One of the batteries is masked by the Rotenburg infantry, and so it is just a single battery that can fire. It aims for the enemy irregulars and misses, of course. Hitting the target would set a dangerous military precedent that might require every battery in the armies of Mittelheim to inflict damage upon the enemy: imagine the work that that might generate for artillerymen everywhere. Furst Saxe-Peste uses the time to try and acquire more initiative

                     

(Below) The Vulgarian gunners return in kind, concentrating their fire upon the enemy infantry. This too has no effect, the Vulgarian artillery maintaining solidarity with their brother cannoneers in the opposing army. General Rentall, though, is able to spend the time acquiring more stratagems.

 

Still, the guns generate an impressive amount of smoke, an effect that many would argue is reward enough for the enormous sums of money spent training, equipping, and sustaining the artillery arms of the respective belligerents.

(Below) The Rotenburg infantry advances. At this stage, they march directly forward, a manoeuvre that most, though by no means all, Mitteleheim troops are reasonably well-versed in. When they are closer to the Vulgarian battle-lines, Saxe-Peste will order his troops to oblique to the left in order to avoid the marsh and bring his muskets to bear against the enemy cavalry.

(Above, at the bottom) It looks like this might be quite a restful battle for the Rotenburg cavalry. The landgravial mounted arm “hold themselves in reserve, ready to intervene at the decisive moment”. As any experienced observer of warfare in Mittelheim knows, this is just a euphemism for exploring their cavities with their fingers.

  

                                
            
(Above) A view of the Rotenburg infantry lines. -  regular troops to the front and conscripts to the rear. Ahead, the Vulgarian cavalry gird their loins - and what loins they are. TheVulgarian horse are of an excellent quality. Whilst the Voivoidina Carmilla's Horse are trained, the Regiment Karnstein are elite, and von Ruthven's Osterberg Cuirassiers are guard. In addition, all of the Vulgarian cavalry are 'Cavaliers'. If only they had the Rotenburg cavalry to fight against instead of the enemy infantry. But Rentall is too experienced a general to trust his mounted arm with any role that doesn't just have cheese and pickle in it.