I'd argue that the condition of the ground was a major factor in Napoleon's defeat. Artillery when used as anti-personnel is aimed very low, the aim being to skip a projectile along the earth like a flat stone on water. You can imagine how terrible that might be against massed infantry. On that day, the ground was muddy and soft, cannon balls didn't skip, but sunk making them much less effective. Could artillerists with more experience have compensated in time - or would even they have been stymied by that surface? I've no idea.