The battle of Ligny 16th june 1815

During the 100 Days campaign, Napoleon's primary strategy was to prevent the Allied forces from joining together and posing a significant threat to his goal of capturing Brussels and forcing a peace deal. Time was crucial, and he aimed to defeat the armies of the Seventh Coalition one by one with a surprise attack. Marshal Ney was sent to Quatre Bras to block the Allied troops and the road to Brussels, while Napoleon simultaneously attacked the Prussian army at Ligny.

The Prussians held a strong defensive position, protected by the Scheld and Meuse rivers and occupying the towns of Sombreffe, Ligny, and Saint Amand La Haye. The bridges at Saint Amand and Ligny played pivotal roles in the Prussian defense. As the French army, capturing the bridges and surrounding towns is crucial for breaking through the Prussian defensive line. The Prussian army must hold their positions and strategically deploy their reserve corps.

With the entire French Imperial Guard present at Ligny, eager to fight for their Emperor, Ligny marked Napoleon's final military victory. Although the Prussians lost the battle, they were not defeated; they retreated in good order, positioning a rearguard in Wavre to halt the French advance as the remaining Prussian forces joined Field Marshal Wellington at Waterloo.

Print Build Play's Battle of Ligny is a complex game with numerous obstacles for both sides to overcome in order to achieve victory. The added challenge of playing with only two generals per side increases the difficulty of this battle.

Commanders

France
Emperor Napoleon, Marshal Grouchy
Reinforcements alternative timeline
Marshal Ney

Prussia
Field Marshal Blucher, Field Marshal von Gneisenau

Reinforcements alternative timeline
Field Marshal Wellington

The Battle of Ligny begins with Napoleon initiating the first moves. At the 12th turn, the Prussian reserve corps is activated, allowing 4 units of choice per turn to enter the battlefield from the north marked by the black arrows. At the 15th turn, a brief thunderstorm halts the battle, giving both sides a 15-minute break to reorganize their armies by moving units within their respective range. Micromanagement within squares is crucial during this stage. The battle resumes at turn 16 with the Prussian army opening the second part of the battle.

In the alternative timeline, the Duke of Wellington arrives with reinforcements from Quatre Bras through the town of Brye at turn 26, and Marshal Ney arrives with his forces at turn 27 through the town of St-Amand Le Hameau. 

It should be emphasized that as soon as reinforcements are eligible to join the battle according to the timeline events, players may augment their forces strategically; however they are limited to add only 4 units of choice per nation using one action point.

Requirements and order of battle

In order to play the battle of Ligny historically you need to purchase the following nations: France and Prussia. To play the alternative timeline you can add England, United Netherlands and Brunswick to the list. 

Game content digital download package

The battle map of Quatre-bras comes as a downloadable package in JPEG files, featuring a high-quality battle map size  89x147cm or 33x59.5 inches poster.

Printing
For the best results, we recommend printing the package at a local professional printer store as the colors may vary when printed from the screen. Print the battlemaps on a 150-200gr or 40-54 lb poster print. For a sturdier feel, you can print the battle map directly onto materials like foam board or on Frontlit PVC Banner. For printing at home, you can utilize online resources like "Posterizer Online." This tool allows you to efficiently segment both maps into tiles for easy at-home printing. Simply choose your preferred format and configure the layout.