LIMITS OF GLORY: 

BONAPARTE'S EASTERN EMPIRE

FROM

FORM SQUARE GROUP

The Prologue

Recently I first heard of this game's title - nothing more and I instantly headed over to BGG for enlightenment.  At that point the only message was "No discussions" and three photos.  Despite - or was it because of this lack of information - I determined to contact the company to see if they might provide a copy of the game to review.  But first I had a board wargaming convention to get to soon.  

A little later...I arrived at a venue near Coventry where PunchedCon 2023, a new board wargame convention which was started and held for the first time last year was being held for its second time!

Walking into the large gaming hall, I was surprised to see there was a person setting up a demo stand for Form Square Games, the future publishers of Limits of Glory: Bonaparte's Eastern Empire.  Not only was this person the publisher, he was also the game's designer, Andrew Rourke.  Several conversations with Andrew and his fellow gamer, Ray, and a play through of the game later and I was back home with a proto-type copy from the designer [many, many thanks] and straight on to BGG to post my first very brief impressions of the game and a promise to write a full review.  The rest, as they say, is history or rather this review of what, from now on, I shall for brevity's sake call Bonaparte.  And why Bonaparte and not Napoleon?  The answer is for historical accuracy.  The game is set in the period when he ranked as General of Division Bonaparte. His crowning of himself as Emperor Napoleon lies in the future.  This points to the fact that, though this may be considered a light game, it is one for which the designer seeks to create the right feel and historical verisimilitude for the period.

In The Beginning

The campaign in Egypt, for this is what the game portrays, is generally not widely known.  If it is, then the Battle of the Pyramids and the naval Battle of the Nile in 1798 [sometimes called the Battle of Aboukir Bay] along with the British landing three years later, also at Aboukir Bay, are the main and only events usually mentioned.  The other famous fact is that the French expedition led to the discovery of the Rosetta Stone, so important in the later deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphics.  My one and only board wargaming experience with this campaign has a map that is widely considered fairly off-putting and it was the map for Bonaparte that immediately grabbed my attention.  Here it is, remember that it is a proto-type and then read on.

Perhaps your reaction was similar to mine. It certainly grabbed my attention and my curiosity, but my impressions and reactions were mixed.  Its parentage was clearly a cross between Eurogames and more traditional board wargames..  The colours were strong, vibrant, perhaps even, dare I say, garish. And what had happened to the sea?  As I commented on BGG, it was a " strangely pale and un-blue sea. This turned out to have been a designer's typical nightmare, as Andy showed me a photo of the board's colours that went off to the printers with a lovely pale blue sea and came back with...well. a different colour."  Thank goodness, only the proto-type!  To emphasise the point my photograph here doesn't even give you an accurate representation of the printer's incorrect colour, turning it into a far more sludge-like one!!

The board, as you can see, is very simple, and mainly an area movement map of parts of Egypt, Syria and the Mediterranean.  But what was the purpose of that dominating numbered track and what are those cartoons dotted around and why are they there?  Answers to those two questions will come later.

In part, I'm trying to recreate for you my experience and what yours may be if you see and buy this game. I was intrigued, I was puzzled, I did want to know more. It didn't look like the normal game I would buy, despite being an avid board wargamer for 47 years and a similar Eurogamer for a mere 15 years.  Particularly, would it satisfy me to play as a grognard board wargamer and here I'm going to leap ahead, just in case you give up reading at this point, it did.  I was hooked! 

The game has its abstractions, but models the campaign surprisingly well. It provides both an historical feel with an exciting game and a system which has more unique features than I've come across in any game in a long time.  Even more unique features than in my previous recent review.

 The System

I'm going to start by looking at the two key points of the system.  The first is that the numbers 5 and 6 govern everything.  To move from one area to another whether on land or sea, you need to roll at least one 5 or 6.  

How many dice you roll depends on the those numbers you see printed in each area on the map.  Want to move from an area designated with the number 1, then you get just one dice to roll to achieve your critical numbers 5 or 6. That's a tough area to move from.  An area is marked with a 3, that's easier to leave because you've got 3 dice to roll and you only need the one 5 or one 6 to be successful.  In combat, want to inflict a hit on an enemy unit, yes roll a 5 or 6 and you've achieved a hit.  This time the number of dice you roll is always four.  So, you might inflict up to 4 hits.  Sounds all too simple.  Well, those basic rules couldn't be simpler or easier to understand - a feature generally of the rules in fact.  Despite this, there is plenty of subtlety incorporated, especially in the combat system. 

However, the second and even more important key feature of the game's system is Glory Points.  This will take a little longer to explain, but is just as easy to learn and apply.  It also explains the generic part of the game's title, Limits of Glory. This heralds that the game is the first in a series and the second game design is already underway. To understand more, we need to turn to the two sides' separate Leader Displays.  As the game is focused on Bonaparte, it's the French Display I'm going to use as an example.

Each Leader has two markers on the display.  The first time a Leader is placed on the map board, one Leader marker is placed directly on the map, while his other Leader marker is placed on the Glory Track after rolling for his Glory Points as indicated on the Display Chart.  Their purpose will be explained later as we move into the Sequence of Play.

A closer look at the Glory Track

Set-Up

Before all this, you will have set up the map with all the appropriate units on it and all other necessary charts and displays.  Besides the main map and the Leader Displays are two other Charts of very thick solid cardboard.  The first is the Events Clock and again a definitely new approach that I enjoy whole-heartedly.

The Events Clock

The other chart is the Combat one and, dare I say it, here is yet another unique approach.  In fact there are several original features embodied in this Chart that I'll discuss when exploring Combat.

Combat Chart

Sequence of Play

First of all there are three Phases to this game and it's important to note that this refers to three separate stages in the course of the game, not that there are three phases each turn.

The first stage is the Invasion Phase.  This is a brief "cat and mouse" section involving three French fleet markers of which two are dummies and one is the real fleet, commanded by Admiral Brueys, and one British fleet commanded by, of course, Nelson. The three French fleets set out respectively from Toulon, Genoa and Civitavecchia.  I love this stage of the game as the French player tries by how he/she manoeuvres the fleets to deceive the Allied player as to which is the real fleet, while endeavouring to reach the coast of Egypt without being discovered and, if possible, visit Malta en route and Nelson simply tries to intercept and discover the real fleet.

Nelson fails to reach me, before I'm about to disembark!

There are three possible outcomes;  [1] the French Fleet will be intercepted at sea [2] the French Fleet will be intercepted while disembarking the French troops in Egypt [3] the French Fleet will disembark without being intercepted.  Whichever happens, you move on to the Disembarkation Phase.

Disembarkation Phase

First, consult a chart that tells you what actions to take, how many troops Bonaparte lands with and where, as well as how many Glory Points to calculate for him, plus 2 VPs if you did manage to visit Malta. [I can't help adding that in the game I am using for photos, I managed to visit Malta, scoring 2 VPs, land without Nelson intercepting the French fleet, thus arriving with his maximum number of troops and chalked up 63 Glory pts for Bonaparte to use - one less than the maximum.]

Here he is having disembarked safely, by the way there are 26 infantry and one artillery unit in that stack!  It's a lot bigger than it looks.  I also love the counter to the right, Les Savants, and the attention that this game design gives to creating such an historical atmosphere.  These were a group of scientists and intellectuals that as the French player I have to get to the Valley of the Kings and maintain them there as part of achieving an automatic victory.  Frankly that's the easiest part, for the rest of an automatic victory the French only need to capture all the built-up areas that award VPs!! 

Other enjoyable narrative elements that add historical colour in this very brief Phase are the possibilities that you might have some Mamluks to fight or a Bedouin marker that causes a test that may mean a minor loss of Glory.  All these little details add so much flavour and enjoyment to this game with such simplicity and ease of rules.   After disembarking, it's on to the last and longest and most important Phase of the game.

Conquest Phase 

At the beginning of each turn in the Conquest Phase, an Event roll is made on this chart.  At first you will roll a single die and locate the Event on the Chart corresponding to the number rolled.  As the game progresses, certain Events will lead to an increasing number of dice [up to an eventual maximum of four] being rolled and added up to find the Event that has happened.  Some Events happen each time that number is rolled [indicated by the letter R after the number], others when rolled are replaced by a new Event.  This is an ingenious and engaging device that is another important factor in producing that historical ambiance.  It also creates a degree of linearity to events, while allowing some potentially never to occur while others may appear earlier than expected.  

Lurking among those Events is the one located at the crucial number 14 - roll this number and the Peace of Amiens occurs and the game immediately ends!  

But look carefully at the Event instructions; you need to have reached the maximum of rolling four dice before there is any possibility of the game ending, but, once it is a possibility, the tension starts to ratchet up.

After the Event roll, each Turn then proceeds with the French player always active first and the Allied Player active second. Each player's half of the turn begins with a Momentum roll of 4 dice and. like every other roll in this game. a 5 or 6 will gain you a Momentum marker and each payment of a glory point allows you to reroll a failed die.

A player's turn is very, very fluid, being a mixture of movement and combat.  An initial area will be chosen and, as described earlier, a number of dice are rolled according to the number in the area that you are attempting to leave.  A single roll of 5 or 6 is a success and rerolls can be attempted by spending glory points from the senior commander.  There is so much possibility for variation here.  For example, if there were three leaders and a number of units in the area, all could move into an adjacent area together or each leader could move into a separate area with or without accompanying troops.  If any moved into enemy occupied areas, then combat would have to take place in all such areas before any other further movement could be taken.  Provided a group has not failed in moving or combat, they can continue further movement and combat as the active player wishes.  Any failure results in one of the Momentum markers being placed in the area where the failure occurs.  Once all the Momentum markers gained by the first player at the beginning of their activation have been placed on the map, then their activation is over and the second player follows the identical process.

Above you can see the French steam-roller led by Bonaparte has momentarily been halted, while Menou has been dispatched to garrison the adjoining Cairo area.  Meanwhile on a different route seen below, Lannes is about to overwhelm a small leaderless force on his way ultimately for a massive confrontation with the Ottoman leader and a strong force at Acre.   

Obviously, the French player carries the burden of the attack from the beginning of the game onwards with generally superior leaders allowing the potential for major marches and magnificent victories to be won, but they get precious few reinforcements and attempting an automatic victory inevitably leads to separating some leaders and troops, while the necessary victory areas must be garrisoned with at least a leader, if not some troops.  Slowly the game is likely to begin to swing toward the Allied player whose automatic victory conditions are much less grandiose than the French ones.  He/she simply has to capture and retain control of Cairo and Alexandria until the end of a turn.

If neither player wins an automatic victory, then the game ends when Event 14 occurs and the player with most victory points wins.  Inevitably, this is the most likely way the game will end.  At the start of the game, the Allied player occupies all the victory areas and so has 25 VPs, while the French player has none. Slowly or swiftly, the French will start to capture and take control of those VP areas.  In a demo game that a friend played at PunchedCon, he was barely in the lead and desperately hoping for the ending Event 14 to be rolled.  In my current game, my huge initial success as the French has led me to gamble on splitting my forces and driving for an automatic win.  Probably hubris, but what satisfaction if I can pull it off.  Combats have decimated the Mamluks with barely a French unit lost.  Soon a contingent will be marching with the Savants to the Valley of the Kings, while Buonaparte will be hastening to Alexandria and Kleber with his subordinate leader, Lannes, are already about to capture Arish and then on to Acre and a very tough siege against the city manned by a substantial Ottoman force.  Meanwhile, My Allied opponent is lurking off the Egyptian coast and a fairly substantial Ottoman force and fleet has appeared in Rhodes!  The clouds of opposition are gathering! And there's no doubt that combat and sieges play a crucial and exciting part in the game, using the distinctively original Combat Chart and combat system.

This is a major element in the game and a favourite of mine.  Above all, it allows by the use of leaders' glory points significantly smaller French forces the ability to defeat much larger Allied ones and substantially adds to the concept of that Series title, Limits of Glory.  This is by far the most complex part of the game rules, but is very quickly and easily learnt.  The combat system begins by placing your Combat Pawn in the box where the total combat value of your troops on the top horizontal row of the chart intersects with the vertical column for nation and command.  [e.g. the Allied player cross-referencing 9 Mamluk value of troops led by a Mamluk leader would place their combat pawn in the box with the large number 17 and the information that a 6 will score one hit and a 5 will score none.]

Next, both players roll 4 dice.  Each player then decides whether to spend glory points rerolling failures and finally each player decides whether to spend glory points forcing their opponent to reroll successes.  If the total of the final 4 dice is equal to or greater than the large number in the box where your combat pawn is then you look at how many hits a 5 or 6 scores.  Yes, you did read that correctly - the number of hits scored by rolling a 5 or 6 varies.  Generally the French player will score more hits per 5 or 6 than the Allied player.  Even more unusual, however, is the rule that, if the total of your 4 dice is less than the large number, then you have scored no hits at all!!  As I keep emphasising, there is a lot of originality in this game design.  This game doesn't just have an historical feel and appeal, it has its very own distinctive game feel and appeal.  These were both very important factors in firing my enthusiasm for and enjoyment of Bonaparte's Eastern Empire.

On top of all that, there are those strangely familiar artists named in the credits: George Cruikshank, Isaac Cruikshank and James Gillray. If you haven't guessed who they are from the box art, then one look at the board and all the leader counters should do the job. They are the trio of cartoonists from the late 1700s and early 1800s whose satirical lampoons of the great and the good brought them to fame.  On the box is Bonaparte scrabbling to reach the top of the Great Pyramid, while on the board there's Nelson cracking the heads of tricolour flag-draped crocodiles.

Each cameo head and shoulder image on each leader counter is similarly drawn from the contemporary historical drawings of these three men. This game really is unique in so many different ways and this art work is just one more feature in that uniqueness.  The one major component that I can't fully comment on is the rule book, because as a proto-type I'm working from a simple, stapled booklet of black on white A4 pages.  What I can say is that the booklet is well organised in much the same order as I have followed in my review. The rules are clear and easy to understand, presented in what I would describe as a narrative format rather than the minutely regimented multi-case number format.  Layout with good sized print and spacing adds to that easy reading.

All in all, I hope I've been able to share my enthusiasm for everything about this game.  It's certainly one that I shall be adding to my collection with every intention of following the series and for those who might be heading to UK Games Expo this weekend, I'd strongly suggest dropping in on Four Square Games to have a good look at Limits of Glory: Bonaparte's Eastern Empire.  Otherwise, look out for information about the game's launch on Gamefound towards the end of June/beginning of July.

 

 

 Waterloo: Napoleon's Last Army

Featuring the Art of Keith Rocco

Research and Text by Paul L. Dawson

Published by

Lombardy Studios

 Cuirassiers, Hussars, and Dragoons oh my! That is not even mentioning the Chasseurs and Lancers. Of course, we also have to add in all of the different types of infantry and artillery. 

Naturally, the pictures in the book do not have the watermark. It is just so they are not passed about the internet. This picture is  Artillerie a Pied de La Garde

 This is a big coffee table sized book. However, unlike most books that size that are long on pictures and not very deep, this book is extremely informative while also being canyon depth. When you hold the book in your hand it has real heft to it. Then after you look at the picture on the cover you realize you might just have a treasure in your hand. Once you open it there is no more doubt. This is the definitive book on the dress and equipment of all the units of the L'Armée du Nord that Napoleon commanded in the 1815 campaign.

93e Regiment de Ligne Tambours

 This is what Lombardy Studios has to say about the book:

"64 original paintings portraying many of the French Army units at Waterloo

Over a decade of research and artistic rendering by Keith Rocco went into producing the paintings in this book

150+ photographs of historical artifacts from the holdings of three museums and seven private collections

Foreword by David Markham, President, International Napoleonic Society"

7e Dragons 1815 Chef dEscadron Marligne

 "176 oversize-format 9 3/8” by 13 1/2” large pages

128 pages featuring 64 Keith Rocco soldier paintings – 32 Imperial Guard and 32 Line units

Full color throughout

Fine high-grade, art quality paper

Facing pages feature descriptive text relating to the subject of the painting along with captioned photos of rare artifacts depicted within the artwork

An added plus: 28 more pages dedicated solely to beautifully photographed and captioned artifact photos

Illustrated Uniform Glossary in French and English

Index of units and officers that are portrayed in the book’s paintings

4 large horizontal battle paintings on 2-page chapter title spreads, including:

Plancenoit – Guard Infantry & Artillery chapter. A NEVER-BEFORE-PUBLISHED PAINTING OF THE IMPERIAL GUARD FIGHTING IN THE CEMETERY! The artist created this painting especially for this book.

Empress Dragoons – Guard Cavalry chapter.

The Great Gate of Hougoumont – Line Infantry & Artillery chapter.

Quatre Bras – Line Cavalry chapter."

Shako Plate and Cockade of a Grenadier in the 27th Line Infantry

 This is an absolutely amazing magnum opus for both Mr. Rocco and Mr. Dawson. Speaking of Mr. Dawson (historian, researcher, and author), he has put over two decades worth of time into this book. So, if you are keeping score this book has over thirty years of research put into it. Very few books can boast that claim.

Coat of the 25th Line Infantry Regiment Voltigeur Company

 Every page is a blaze of color and information. This book is a miniatures wargamer's treasure trove. Actually, I take that back. This is a treasure for anyone who has the slightest interest in the last French Army that Napoleon commanded. 

 This little tidbit of history is on page twelve:

"At Waterloo, the 3rd and 4th Regiments of the Foot Grenadiers attacked the Allied line in a final, futile attempt by Napoleon to break the British before the Prussians could tip the balance against the French"

 In 1815, the 1st and 2nd Regiments of Foot Grenadiers were the 'Old Guard'. The 3rd and 4th Regiments were the 'Middle Guard'.

Line Lancers Helmet

 The pictures that I have included are only a tiny amount of what you will find in its pages. To be honest, I am usually not impressed by books that have this many paintings and pictures. My tastes turn more to the books that are heavy on type and maps. So, even I was surprised how much this book enraptured me. Of course, for each Rocco illustration there is also a full page of information about the formation shown.

 I must admit that I have always had a soft spot in my heart for Cuirassiers. I have watched all cavalry charges on film innumerable times. However, if the charge includes those armored fellows, I am rapt to the screen. Oh, the 'Big Boots' or 'Gods' of the Imperial Guard are incredibly impressive but give me a Cuirassier charge any day. The pictures that Mr. Rocco has done of my favorite horsemen have left me in awe of his ability.

I had to add this picture of Mr. Dawson in the uniform of 'The Gods'

 I would definitely say run, walk, or crawl (or use your mouse) and head toward Lombardy Studios to pick up your own copy. You will not be sorry. Thank you, Mr. Lombardy, for allowing me to review this garden of Napoleonic delights. Now, please excuse me. I have to watch some War and Peace.

Robert

Lombardy Studios:

Welcome to Lombardy Studios - Lombardy Studios

Waterloo: Napoleon's Last Army Featuring the Art of Keith Rocco and Research and Text by Paul L. Dawson:

Waterloo: Napoleon's Last Army-The Art of Keith Rocco - Lombardy Studios

P.S. for you board wargamers the work is proceeding well on Mr. Lombardy's new Stalingrad game.

 The Battle of Novi August 1799

An Untimely Death

by

Acies Edizioni

 Alexander Suvorov is considered one of the greatest Russian Generals. He never had a chance to fight Napoleon, which might have been blessing for his legacy. Suvorov did, however, always win in battle against any of the other French Generals. All that Napoleon had gained in Northern Italy was lost to the Austro-Russians under Suvorov (Napoleon was in Egypt and the Middle East at the time). After Novi, Suvorov was ordered to Switzerland to help out the Austrians once again. Because of their defeat, he was trapped in the Alps by future French Marshal Andre Massena. He was able to extricate himself with minimal losses and for that was made the fourth Generalissimo of Russia. He died of disease shortly after. Barthélemy Catherine Joubert was originally part of Napoleon's earlier Italian Campaigns. He had been marked for greatness by Napoleon, and had he lived would probably have been made a Marshal. Unfortunately for him, he was one of the first French casualties of the Battle of Novi. Acies Edizioni has made games about two of Suvorov's battles, including this one.  They have also made other great games about obscure battles and campaigns in Italy. 

 

 

 This is what comes in the box:

One game-map

2 sheets of counters and markers

3 Player Aid Cards

Rule booklet

Historical commentary

The scale is 1 hour per turn, about 500 m. per hex,

Each strength point (SP) stands for 50-150 men for infantry

and cavalry (basing on their efficiency rating), and 3-5 guns.

Designer: Enrico Acerbi

Complexity: 3/5

Solitaire suitability: 4/5

 This is from Acies Edizioni about the game:

 "The war of the Second Coalition on the Italian front was becoming a nightmare for the French Republic. Defeat after defeat (Cassano d’Adda, Trebbia) the exhausted French army was pushed away from the northern Italy by the vigorous offensive of the Austro-Russian army led by Suvorov. For this reason, the Directorate decided to call another general, Barthelemy Joubert, at the head of the army. The Directorate ordered General Joubert to immediately attack Suvorov and to make every effort to free Tortona. On the morning of August 15th, the noise of the first shots of the battle of Novi begun to fill the air. Joubert rode to a little hill to better assess the situation. Few moments after his arrival, a bullet hit him in the chest, killing the young general almost instantly. An untimely death."

Contents

 I am always impressed by Acies Edizioni components for their games. The box is light compared to some and there are not many parts inside. However, what you do get is well worth your money. The Rule Booklet is made of almost hard stock, and it is in full color. It is only twenty-one pages long but has everything in the rules that you would expect from a Napoleonic game. The eighteen-page Historical Commentary is worth at least half of the game's price, if not more. There are three full-sized Player Aid Cards included and they are all double-sided. The first one has the setup for Scenario I on one side and the setup for Scenario II on the other. The second has the setup for Scenario III (the whole Battle of Novi), with the French setup on one side and the Coalition on the other. The last one has the Combat Results Table etc. and, on the flip-side has the Terrain Effects Chart. The counters are nice looking with small portraits on them. They are a little 'busy' compared to some others. The only thing about the components that you could complain about is the thinness of the counters. The Map is a thing of beauty. All of the terrain is easy to pick out and to know what each hex has for terrain. Kudos as usual for the Map. All-in-all, the components are up to Acies Edizioni standards. 

Game in progress

 This is the Sequence of Play (I wanted you to see the entire Sequence):

 "3.1. Game Turn

Each Game Turn is divided in 3 phases.

Each Phase is divided into various segments

according to the Command activation rules.

Each Phase must be resolved in the exact order

given below.

Any action taken out of sequence is a violation of

the rules.

A - Command Phase

This phase is divided in 3 segments:

A1- Orders

The Army/Wing Commanders may assign/

change Orders to Formation’s Leaders

(Generals). The command range of the Leaders

must be checked and “Out of Command”

markers must be placed on those units beyond

that range.

Each player places the Formation Chits, reverse

side up and one per box, on the Priority Track.

They then assign orders by selecting an Order

marker to place under each Formation Chit

keeping it hidden. The numeric sequence on

the Track dictates the sequence (alternating

between players) of each Formation’s future

activation.

In this segment “Independent Columns” can

be created. To do so, place the corresponding

Column or Brigade Chit on the Priority Track.

Their Leader should already be on the map.

A2- Weather

Specific rules manage the Weather during the

battle turns.

Note: In Novi this segment is not relevant, since

the weather was hot and clear throughout.

A3- Initiative

Each player rolls ld6 to check initiative (see

6.0). The initiative player will start the Action

phase (B) first.

A4- Initiative Commands

An independent (see A1 above) or Out of

Command General can try to change his Orders

performing an Initiative Check.

Roll 1d6 and if the DR is equal to or lower than

the General’s Initiative Value, that Order can

be changed.

B - Actions Phase

A player activates his first available Formation

(see A1).

Each Formation performs all of its Action

phase segments, before progressing to the next

Formation to be activated.

This Actions Phase will continue until all the

Formations have completed their actions.

Note: the 1st Player (Initiative Player) begins

with the Chit in Box 1 and activates the

corresponding Leader (and his Formation).

When this activation completes, the 2nd Player

activates his Chit in Box 1... the activation

sequence passes from one player to the other

until all Leaders has been activated.

The Action Phase is divided into 6 Segments.

B1- Reorganization and Rally

Players can attempt to reorganize their

Disordered or Routed units if their Formation’s

Order allows for it.

B2- Replacements and Reinforcements

The active player returns to the map, those

combat units belonging to the activated

Formation previously eliminated (see 12.0 and

13.0).

Reinforcements belonging to the active

Formation can enter the map in March Column

at this time, in the hexes specified by the

scenario’s rules.

B3- Movement

Activated units move according to their

Formation’s Orders. Artillery that moves must

be flipped onto its “Moved” side; it cannot

perform Bombardment when it is in this state.

Once the movement of all activated “In

Command” units is complete, individual “Out

of Command” units of the active Formation can

attempt to change their generic Defend Order.

B4- Bombardment

Artillery units of the active Formation, not on

their “Moved” side, can execute bombardments.

Use the Bombardment Table.

B5- Combat

Combat is resolved in a series of segments as

outlined below:

B5.1- Attack declarations

The player declares his attacks and place the

markers, “Attack” or “Attack?” according to

their Formation’s Orders.

B5.2- Retreat before combat

Some defending units (e.g., Light Cavalry)

may retreat before combat.

B5.3- Defensive Bombardment

The defensive player may perform a defensive

bombardment with any artillery units, if not in a

“Moved” state, present in those hexes declared

under attack.

B5.4- Assault

All Efficiency checks are performed and the

attacks are resolved on the CRT.

B6- End of Phase

The activated Leader counter on the map is

turned facedown, displaying the reverse with

the letter “A”, and a new Actions Phase begins;

the opposing Player now activates his first/next

available Formation in the Priority Track.

C - End of turn phase

When ALL Formations (both sides) have been

activated the Game Turn marker is advanced on

the Turn Record Track. All Leaders on their “A”

side and all artillery with on their “Moved” side

are flipped face up.

Then the new turn begins with Phase A."

 Hopefully this will show you exactly how much thought has gone into the rules. It should also show you how it was designed from the ground up to be a Napoleonic game, compared to some Napoleonic rules that seem more at home in World War II.

 Command and Control of your forces are the key to this game. There are no pigeons or wireless sets for you to convey your orders. These are some of the parts of a Napoleonic battle that Acies Edizioni has put into the rules:

Elan Attack - For French Generals with a value of 3 or higher.

Advance and Skirmish

March and Build

General's Initiative Check

Artillery in Melee

Cavalry Harassing

Cavalry Retreat Before Combat

Emergency Squares

 This list just scratches the surface.

 Once again Acies Edizioni, and the designer Enrico Acerbi, have given us a great Napoleonic battle to fight, even if it is almost unknown and it doesn't even have Napoleon present. Thank you Acies Edizioni for allowing me to take another of your Napoleonic period games for a spin. I enjoyed the game very much. Right now, you can get a great deal on some games bundled together. Please check them out.

Robert 

The Battle of Novi August 1799:

Novi 1799 | Acies (edizioniacies.com)

Acies Edizioni:

Acies edizioni (edizioniacies.com)

 Napoleon 1806

by

Shakos Games

 The Third Coalition was brought into existence by English money (subsidies) to defeat Napoleonic France. Prussia, oddly enough, had not joined it. The consensus of historians that they were biding their time until either side had given them enough of a bribe. They hadn't counted on Napoleon, and the completely trained and incredibly formidable Grande Armee. Before anyone realized what was happening, the Austrian General Mack (and 50,000 soldiers) were swept up by Napoleon without really a fight. This sent the Austrians reeling back to meet their Russian Allies. However, a little battle called Austerlitz put the Third Coalition down for a dirt nap. Prussia was just starting to think it would be a good idea to join the Third Coalition before it was no more. So with the Grande Armee and its roughly 200,000 troops sitting in Germany or nearby on the border, the Prussians came up with one hell of an idea. The Prussian court had a war party headed by their lovely Queen. This war party finally talked the King and his ministers to go to war with France virtually on their own. What was wrong with the drinking water in Berlin I guess we will never know. Russia had not concluded peace with France, so the Russians could help in the long run. The Prussian Army was led by octogenarians who had been weaned on Frederick the Great's battles. One of their youngest generals was Blucher, who was in his sixties. The Prussian staff seemed to have no idea of what actually to do. They staggered slowly toward the French border with no real plan. They also decided to split their army in two without having any idea of where the French were. The lion that was Napoleon had no trouble dispatching the sheep that were the Prussians. As a matter of fact, the 1806 Campaign is usually listed as the first blitzkrieg. The French went through Prussia like poop through a goose, probably only stopping at times to procure more maps of each new area they were rampaging through. This is one of those games where it is almost impossible to do as bad as your historical counterpart. The history being done, let us see what is in the box:

1 mounted game board 60 x 60 cm

1 rulebook

1 quickstart booklet

2 player aids (orders of battle)

2 player screens

2 sets of 36 cards

1 sticker sheet (54)

More than 220 wooden pieces

10 combat dice

1 cloth bag

  Opening up the box leads a person to exclaim 'C'est Magnifique! This is another European wargame that mixes a real honest to God wargame with a Euro game's look. The map is a beauty, and has a real historical feeling to it. The stickers are little pieces of artwork. They have the countenances of the Prussian King Frederick III and his various generals. These are countered by portraits of Napoleon and some of his Marshals. The two Orders of Battle are made of hard stock and are also a pleasure to look at. The Quickstart Guide is a very large four page fold out. It has a simplified rundown of this information on the first and fourth page:

Setup

How To Win

How To Play

How To Move

Fatigue

How To Engage In Combat

The middle two pages have a complete picture of the map and the Orders Of Battle and a Sample Card. The information needed for using the Orders Of Battle and Cards are also printed there. There are two Player Screens, one in blue, and one in gray. On the inside of the Screens are The Game Sequence and information on combat etc. The two Decks of Cards are also well done, and the Cards themselves do not feel flimsy. The manufacture of the wooden block pieces was done with excellent quality control. I found no mismatched sizes in the different pieces. The Rulebook is a work of art in itself. It is filled on most pages with colorful illustrations of what is being written about on the page. It is twenty-three pages in length. The actual rules take up fourteen pages. There is also a Short Scenario added for those who can only fit in time for a short game. A section called 'Rules For The Grognard' is added to add some historical flavor, and fog of war to the mix. Next is a section called 'Rules Of The Marshal"; this is a setup to play a tournament of the game. For conventions etc. this is a nice addition. What follows is a three page rundown of every Card and their meanings. The end of the Rulebook is a four part History Of The Campaign, and Design Notes. You also get a nice bag for the different pieces. The picture on it is a gold Napoleonic Eagle done on a blue background. The actual game pieces are a carbon copy of what you would find in Shakos Games 'Napoleon 1807' game. I will have a link to my review of that game below.

 The Sequence of Play is easy to remember:

Draw -  Each Player Draws Three Cards

Initiative - The Player With The Highest Value Card Wins

Operations - Movement And Combat

Recovery - Each Player Can Remove Fatigue From Some Corps

  The game rules allow for games to be played quickly. However, there is so much that a player can choose to do each turn that it can be a longer game. This totally depends on what depth each player wants to put into each of their moves. The Grognard Rules really add a lot to the game. These are:

Hidden Setup

Fog Of War

Cavalry Vedettes

 The Map is a point to point movement type. With the Order Of Battle Cards being hidden from play, your opponent will have no idea of what is in front of him strengthwise. The Cards Decks add to the 'friction' of war. While the French Grand Armee is still near its peak the Prussian Army, if not led as it was historically, can still give the French a run for their money. This game is another example of a designer wanting to have a game based in history, as much as possible, but still make it an excellent 'game', and a relatively easy one for two players to enjoy.

 Thank you very much Shakos Games for letting me review this beautiful and great playing game. It deserves to be right up with its brother Napoleon 1807 on your shelf. They have also come out with Napoleon 1815, so it is now a trilogy of games. I also had a chance to review their Saladin game. I will have the review in the links also.

Robert

Shakos Games:

Shakos | Historical board games

Napoleon 1807 Review:

Napoleon 1807 La Campagne de Pologne by Shakos Games - A Wargamers Needful Things

Saladin Review:

Saladin by Shakos Games - A Wargamers Needful Things

 Napoleon's Resurgence

The Spring Renaissance of the Grande Armée, May-June, 1813

War of Liberation, Part I

Lützen, Bautzen, Luckau, Königswartha, Weissig

"He could pass none of his wounded soldiers without being greeted with the cry of Vive l'Empereur! Even those who had lost limbs or who would die a few moments later made him this last tribute. He responded to their cheers by uncovering his head to them."

 To discuss Napoleon's 1813 Campaign we have to go back to the 1812 Campaign in Russia. Although Napoleon did take Moscow, this did not force Tsar Alexander I to make peace. No, Napoleon's 600,000 man army was not buried in the snows of Russia. Typhus and malnutrition had pared the army down to about 1/4 its size before the first snowfall. The Russian winter and army finished the process of turning this remnant into a shambling mass of men that in no way resembled an army. Napoleon had left the remnants of this great army to its own devices and headed back to Paris. One of the greatest minds in history was hell bent on creating another Grande Armée and returning Europe to the status quo of 1811. Napoleon was faced with a superhuman task. While still fighting the 'Spanish Ulcer', he had to create an army from almost nothing. It is a tribute to his genius that he was able to do it. True, the new Grande Armée was mostly green conscripts, the 'Marie Louises', but it was an army nonetheless. In a tribute to his skills Napoleon was able to field a larger army than the Coalition against him in the first part of the campaign in Germany. This game is listed as the 'Library of Napoleonic Battles Volume VIII. It takes us through the battles that were fought before the armistice in the middle of 1813. I want to take a bit of your time and give you a short bio about the designer. This was written by John Best:

"Kevin Zucker was with SPI back in the 1970s. Like many who went on to "greatness" as designers under the tutelage of JFD, KZ initially served SPI in the capacity of Managing Editor, half-way between Dunnigan's R&D and Simonsen's Art Departments.

OSG was initially named Tactical Studies Group, and the name was changed relatively quickly, to avoid any clash with TSR. He left the company in September of 1979; the company remained active for a few more months.

KZ has remained active in wargaming during the entire period. He did work for AH for one year: 1980. It is interesting to hear him speak about the reasons he had for revitalizing the OSG brand name at this, seemingly unpropitious, point in time. "My grandfather, who farmed 80 acres in Iowa, had an old red & black 1948 Dodge pick-up. As a kid, I asked him why he didn't get a new one: 'Because everybody knows this is me.'" And it is interesting to consider the list of all the original OSG games. There were a dozen or so: Napoleon at Bay, Panzerkrieg, Rommel & Tunisia, Napoleon at Leipzig, Dark December, Bonaparte in Italy, Devil's Den and Air Cobra prominent among them.

The Napoleonic titles such as Napoleon at Bay and Bonaparte in Italy were pathfinding designs that for over two decades have been hugely influential on many members of the wargaming community. OSG did some WWII games too including the J. A. Nelson design, Rommel & Tunisia. By the standards of today, the 28 page rulebook is, I suppose, a mere bagatelle. But for 1978, the whole presentation gives the impression of somebody going for Big Ideas and Very Serious Stuff."

 Operational Studies Group now publishes Napoleonic Wars operational studies (who would have thunk it). I have a good number of Mr. Zucker's older games, and they are some of my favorites. This game's focus is on the 1813 campaign which is by far my favorite campaign to game and read about during the Napoleonic Wars.

 Let us take a look at what comes with the game:

2 Maps 34"x22"

1 Map 17"x22"

1 Map 11"x34"

2 Maps 11"x17"

2 Counter Sheets (560 die-cut player pieces)

2 Booklets (System Rules and Study Folder)

17 Player Aid Cards (TRC x 6, Initial Setup x 6, Casualty x 2, Combat Results, Reorganization, and Weather)

5 Resource Cards (Adding the Cards, Combat Tables, Sequence of Play, Victory Worksheet, List of Cards Removed).

2 Card Decks (50 cards each)

Map of the early 1813 Campaign.

 Normally I would go right into an appraisal of the components. However, because of this game having multiple battles, I will post OSG's synopsis of three of the battles first.

"LÜTZEN, STRUGGLE FOR THE FOUR VILLAGES, 2 MAY

With the death of Marshal Kutusov on 28 April, there was no further obstacle to the Tsar’s fervent dream of dictating peace from the Tuilleries. The Allies marched boldly across the Elbe, not knowing Napoleon’s plans, his strength, or his location. They took up a position astride the road to Leipzig, the Emperor’s presumed objective. After a string of actions at Halle, Merseberg and Weissenfels, the two armies met on the field of battle at Lützen on the 2nd of May.

BAUTZEN, THE GUARD’S MOMENT OF TRUTH, 20-21 MAY

The Russo-Prussian army was nearly 100,000-strong, but Napoleon outnumbered them, and Marshal Ney was approaching with 85,000 reinforcements. Napoleon had planned to pin down his enemies and then trap them with Ney's troops. But the Bravest of the Brave ended up coming in on the flank, not far enough to oblige Wittgenstein to redeploy, and so no deadly “hinge” was formed in the enemy line. The Russians were defeated, but Napoleon’s army was at the end of its tether, and the pursuit cost him more men than the enemy. The Bautzen map is one and one half map sections: 33x34”

LUCKAU, GATEWAY TO BERLIN, 6 JUNE

Bülow’s Prussian Corps of 30,000 men marched south from Berlin, threatening French Communications with Dresden. Oudinot’s XII Corps and Beaumont’s cavalry were at Hoyers- werda on the 28th of May when some of Bülow’s force stumbled upon them. By the time Oudinot caught up with them again on June 6th Bülow had concentrated most of his Corps at Luckau, driving the French back with a loss of 2,000"

The game, in truth, comes with five battles. These are:

Lützen

Bautzen

Luckau

Königswartha

Weissig

 The game also has two Mini-Campaigns and a Campaign Game.

 The components of the game are completely top shelf. The maps are beautiful. They are also easy to read and the terrain is not difficult to discern for each hex. They are a cross between a period map and a new wargaming one. This marriage works extremely well in my eyes. The counters are also up to snuff. They are 1/2" in size. Some of them are blessed with small portraits of the French and Allied commanders. Their size may put some people off in this age of 1" counters, but to a grognard the hex and counter size are completely normal. The stacking limit is up to five units in a hex with a leader. This sounds like it might make the game stack heavy, but in reality this is not the case. The System Rules Booklet is twenty-four pages long. It is mostly in black and white, but does have colored play examples, etc. The Study Folder Booklet is also twenty-four pages long. It is split in half between information about the battles and campaigns, and a wonderful Historical Notes section written by Mr. Zucker. These notes are a concise and well done history of this part of the 1813 campaign. The Player Aid Cards, and the Resource Cards, are either blank and white or one color. They are easy to use and completely informative. The game comes with two Card Decks (one French, and one Allied). The decks are smaller than regular cards, but are just as sturdy and laminated, more on these cards later on. All of the components are what you would expect from a company with such a life span and pedigree. 

 So, we have a bit of a different animal here than most. Not only do you get the battles, but you can also play out the campaign. I am trying to think of another game that I own or have played that has this. Many games do a chain of separate scenarios and make a campaign game out of them, and very well at that. However, I cannot recall having one that you could play either of them on the same map at the operational level. One other thing that the game has that no other one has is a separate Battle of Bautzen. The Battle of Lützen has a few games on it. I know, I have all of them. Bautzen, on the other hand, is a glaring black hole in the gaming world. This battle, had Ney not turned petulant, might have saved Napoleon's Empire. Had Ney not felt slighted by Napoleon, who gave him Jomini as his Chief of Staff, the history of Europe would more than likely be much different. The Allies were setup on the Bautzen battlefield with Austria close to their left flank. Tsar Alexander I was adamant that Napoleon wanted to crush the Allies' left flank and push them away from Austria. In actuality, Napoleon wanted Ney to crush the Allies' right flank and actually force them into Austria. Austria herself was still on the fence about joining against Napoleon and was not ready yet to intervene. This would have forced Napoleon's father-in-law to either become a belligerent before he was ready or to intern the Allies troops. If Ney had one wit of operational sense he would have come in behind the Allied right as Jomini begged him to do. Ney became like a stubborn five year old and followed Napoleon's orders to a tee. This only pushed the Allies back and allowed them to escape the battlefield. Ney had forgotten Seydlitz's famous answer to an order from Frederick the Great "After the battle the King can do what he likes with my head, but during the battle will he please allow me to use it?". Yes, you can tell that I am an aficionado of the Campaign of 1813. 

 So, how is the game/simulation? In a word, excellent. I do have many of Mr. Zucker's earlier designs so the rules and playing were probably easier for me than most. When you compare some of the older games, 1809 and Napoleon at Bay, to the newer ruleset you get a very good idea of how the Napoleonic games from operational Studies Group have matured into what they are now. The ruleset has been worked on during the years and this game's rules are from version 7.34.This is not an easy game. Meaning, I certainly wouldn't use it to introduce an Axis and Allies player to real wargaming. In fact there are rules about:

Zones of Control

Leaders

Command

Hidden Forces

Cavalry Charges

Vedettes

Supply

Baggage and Pontoon Trains

Road March 

 Along with many other concepts. As I mentioned earlier, the game can also be played with cards. This is OSG's blurb about them:

"Due to the chaotic conditions of war the actions of units and leaders were always uncertain. Opposing generals rarely knew where the battle was boing to be, nor who was going to be there. The cards make such doubts a part of the player's calculations."  

I think I forgot to mention that the game is supposed to be played with all units and reinforcements hidden. Until you decide to uncover that genie's bottle, you will have no way of knowing what is in front of you. The French Imperial Guard could be right over that next hill. My favorite battles are Bautzen (of course), and Lützen. However, the Campaign Game is my favorite of all the different scenarios to play. I have played it with and without cards based on my mood at the time. Many thanks to OSG for letting me review this, I hate to say game, simulation of Napoleonic warfare at almost the end of the Empire. If you grognards have played some of the older games you owe it to yourself to get one of these newer volumes.

Robert

Operational Studies Group:

Napoleon Games – Operational Studies Group

Napoleon's Resurgence:

Napoleon's Resurgence – Operational Studies Group (napoleongames.com)