A small town in Quattri Formaggi...

Brigadier Charmant mustered his troops at the Formaggian shore after a series of successful raids against the seaports. He's had three galloper guns, five battalions of skirmisher infantry and three large hussar squadrons, the famous Hussards Bleus included.

He had good reconnaisance - despite his old age, he was a cunning light infantry officer, just the man the Glambrian court needed for the job. Therefore he knew well that Condottiere Lasciato was marching against him with five battalions of line foot, four guns, three dragoon and one cuirassier units - whether they were oversized squadrons or small regiments, he could not tell.

The general has observed the ground for a time now (and dug all the loot under the roots of a large tree, just in case): to their right, a river flew into the sea in a narrow estuary. There was an abandoned fort on the other bank, and a bridge crossed it right before the fort. Ahead of them was a town whose name he couldn't learn as all the inhabitants had fled. The town was obviously built around the crossroads that tied the sea and land routes both together. There were plough fields around the town, but the ground was dry so it did not hinder movement. To their left (or northward on the shore) was one hill with a spot of forest at its foot, and to their right, next to the river and south of the town, another. Over the town's fields another, much thinner forest grew, with a small village past it.

The enemy reached their sight in marching order, but the general did not wish to risk his fewer troops to exploit it: he counted on winning enough time until the Formaggians made a mistake.

That mistake came soon enough as the Formaggians fumbled to form a line deploying from marching columns, while their cavalry, attempting to keep up with them, came within arms' reach to the Glambrian lines, still in column formation. 'The fact that the old Formaggian general wants to end the battle fast would cost him dearly', the Brigadier remarked.

One foot unit took shelter in the town while the rest poured fire onto the Formaggian cavalry. Miraculously, they did not break. 'I wonder if these are the best the Chancellorette could send', Charmant sneered. He had the artillery battery maneuver closer to the river.

The Formaggian right deployed much more successfully, but the two cavalry units became disordered as they entered the woods.

The foremost cavalry unit seemed totally lost and in confusion. They marched forward, received a volley...

Then they pranced back.

The Glambrian hussars met head on with the Formaggian regular cavalry, and lost a unit in the first clash. They were led by the Brigadier's second-in-command, Messire de Pouf.

Formaggian regular infantry poured into the town, but the Glambrians held their ground. The elusive light infantry pestered their opponents a great deal fighting on the streets and inside the buildings. General Charmant, now determined to strike the enemy, launched his reserve battalions into the fray south of town.

The cavalry unit on the left finally fell to its fate: they had seen the approaching enemy and fled the field. Only one group of dragoons remained.

In the confusing fight for the town, a Formaggian battalion of foot was lost as well.

On the Glambrian left, the famed hussars countercharged and caught the Formaggian cavalry in the flank, capturing them. 

Now the Formaggian infantry had to change facing to avoid the cavalry's fate. Luckily their commander-in-chief was close and the maneuver was simple enough to be conducted in time.

A brave Formaggian unit finally cleared the streets of Glambrian looters. 

The Formaggian focus on their threatened right was the opportunity General Charmant was looking for. The skirmishers wheeled, catching the remaining dragoon unit in the open and sending it home.

With a second pivot, the light infantry arrived at the rear of the Formaggian foot that managed to change facing just in time...

The Formaggian knight of Lasciato, in a desperate move, launched the infantry towards the shore, with one battalion covering their flank. But that battalion had an open flank right where the Hussards Bleus stood. Miraculously (again) the result was not a general rout, but a battle that took many casualties on both sides.

The dragoons on the left stood the fire for a while, then ran for it. They crashed into the Formaggian artillery. The infantry on the right flank, believing from the noises that Glambrian reinforcements sacked the artillery train, also routed, taking their officer corps along. By sunset, the field was clear and Brigadier Charmant was the master of it.

Notes: A Maurice solo game with two very different armies. The Glambrian victory, although somewhat costly, was mostly down to the Formaggians' bad luck. It is quite challenging to plan for one side in Maurice, but to do both requires another approach.
The second deck had a very few cards (about ten) before Reshuffle was turned, but the Formaggian morale dropped well before the first half of the last deck. It was a really unfortunate day for the Alliance.