WATERLOO 1815 :
NAPOLEON'S LAST BATTLE
What I found intriguing was how two games both aiming for a tactical representation of conflicts separated in time by a mere 40 years can take such distinctly different paths to simulating the combination of infantry, cavalry and artillery tactics. From solidly hex and counter routines, we turn in Waterloo 1815 to that granddaddy of wargaming: the kriegsspiel blocks. Their origins were in military training for Prussian and German officers and the traditional blue and red suits well for the two armies at Waterloo.
Perhaps the best known, recent manifestations of this format have been Rachel Simmons' Napoleonic games on Marengo and Austerlitz [and the ACW game Guns of Gettysburg]. However, these latter games did little more than use the blocks with a whole slew of innovative ideas on how to manage terrain and engage in combat. Trafalgar Editions' product is much closer to its historical origins.
Its dynamic box art depicting Ney's cavalry charge in the last hours of Waterloo has an immediate visual impact. Opening the box reveals a very good mounted map in two sections providing a splendid impression that focuses attention on the basic contours of the landscape.
Fortunately you can download a copy of the rules from BGG [BoardGameGeek] and these proved very serviceable and especially helpful in allowing me to make notes directly on to them, while I've been working on playing the game and preparing this review. Unlike many gamers who are perfectly happy to annotate and highlight rule books, I just cannot bring myself to do this.
My first surprise and slight disappointment was that there is no orders system and that essentially we are in an igo-ugo format, where one player moves and attacks and then the other player does the same. Leaders provide little more than a morale boost to the unit they are attached to. However, the fairly close proximity of the units and the very obvious historical aim of both sides to ultimately survive and annihilate the other really renders an orders based game unnecessary.
As for the lack of such things as chit-pull systems and initiative die rolls that tend to be de rigeur in so many current board wargames, these were soon forgotten in the simple pleasure of manoeuvring the wooden units and enjoying the visual delight of the experience. If you look at the handy reminder of the turn sequence below, you'll also see the typical intermeshing of attacker and defenders' actions that mean that both players are engaged in the action throughout the turn.
The Artillery Defensive Fire Phase and the following Artillery Fire Phase is an excellent rendering of the artillery duels familiar in the Napoleonic period. This fire is conducted by units at range from the enemy and is a very straightforward process.
Movement follows with all units that you want to come into contact with the enemy having to decide whether to engage them in melee at the beginning of their move. I like this element of planning and decision making so simply built in. By these means preparation for both melee and cavalry charges are handled smoothly and then executed after the next Phase which is Musketry Fire. Movement itself is carried out using a series of small cardboard measuring sticks called UMs [standing for Unit Movement].
Just as the artillery fired before movement, infantry now engage after the movement phase in musketry fire with the Defender's Phase again preceding the Attacker's Phase. A very good idea is that Defending artillery can decline to fire shot in the Artillery Phase in hopes of firing more deadly canister during the Musketry Phase. Such fire takes place between units that are within half a UM or in contact, but not marked for subsequent melee .
Finely, musketry fire between units that are in contact and marked for melee is the fore-runner to executing the melee or what the game dramatically calls bayonet assault. Overall, fire and combat is well conceived with a definite logic and verisimilitude. As units approach, there is the decision whether to engage in musketry duels and for how long or plunge in swiftly to attempt a bayonet assault. Whatever you decide, the fire and combat chart is remarkably easy to use with each dice result's outcome being contained on a single line, with the non-highlighted result being applied to fire combat and both non-highlighted and highlighted being applied to melee. This is a method that I've not experienced in any other game and works very well.
Central to all these elements of the game is morale and unquestionably morale is the heart of this game, being the stand-out feature on infantry and cavalry blocks. Virtually all other data is on separate small, handy Army cards for the Allies, Prussians and French. These give tables of modifiers for all three types of units referenced by such things as formation, full-strength and half-strength units, infantry in squares, unlimbered artillery etc.
So far so good, only the organisation of the information in the rule book brings an element of complexity and difficulty. In part, I think this is because of a real desire to be thorough, but the outcome is that details tend to be repeated or amplified and sometimes aren't quite where you might have expected to find them.
A good example of this is the section on the capabilities of the three different arms: infantry, cavalry and artillery. Understandably we get quite a significant amount of information about such things as line and light infantry, guard infantry elite and, of course, the French Imperial guard, as well as three types of cavalry and foot and horse artillery. But there is also considerable depth supplied in the section on artillery dealing with canister fire, artillery concentration and line of sight which you would expect to find appearing in later sections of the rules.
A further help is having the patience to play through the two additional mini-scenarios that are presented on very attractive glossy card. Both provide partial elements of the big picture with small unit density and a limited play area.
Scenario 1: The Prussians Are Coming in fact gives an object lesson in what the French player is likely to face in the later stages of the game and a good exercise to prepare for that. Scenario 2: Attack on the Allied Centre is another good lesson both in learning the rules and experiencing a focal point in the big picture.
I know how hard it is to hold back from plunging in to the whole shebang at one fell swoop, but it is worth applying yourself to these smaller sections so that when you do move on to the full scale battle, you should be ready to gain maximum enjoyment with minimum rule checking.
As is expected with any game today, there are a selection of additional elements. For me cards introducing Random Events always appeal. I know the old style Random Events tables used to do a very acceptable job, but the very attractive artwork of cards, plus there extra flexibility in using them is always an added draw.
Follow Us