Simple Napoleonic Rules

Last played Napoleonics with Die Fighting II & enjoyed the system but it does take a lot of work to get going & because of the way dice & the many different choices & combinations available, there's no way I can play solo. This started my quest for simple rules that could be used as a pick up game &/or be easy to do some add-ons for solo play.

Unfortunately, the simplest rules I could find - Simplicity in Practice by Neil Thomas - are for the Horse & Musket period well before Napoleon. Undeterred, I set out to see if I could "complicate" the rules just enough to reflect the Peninsular War without losing the essence of simplicity which makes SIP such a good set.

The Simplicity in Practice rules were published in Battlegames & a good review of them plus some ideas for making the maths work out a bit better can be found at

https://johnswargames.wordpress.com/2010/12/26/simplicity-in-practice/

which I only discovered today & was pleased to realise that I had already thought about & adopted some of the ideas put forward there.

COMPLICATING SIMPLICITY

Using Neil Thomas’ Simplicity in Practice Horse & Musket rules & his article “Keeping it simple” as a guide, I have attempted to add on what I feel is necessary for Napoleonic wargaming in the Peninsular War

The original rules are VERY simple

They are intended for a 90cm x 120cm (3’ x 4’) table

All units are in Line, INF/CAV 4 bases wide, ART 2

Minimal troop types: INF; Light INF (Skirmishers); HC; DRG; LC; ART

Units are Eliminated upon reaching 4 Demoralisation Points

IGO/UGO Turns 1. Move 2. Fire. 3. Melee

MOVE Standardised at 10cm (4”) & 20cm (8’) for mounted, with differences being in the deductions for Turning, difficult terrain & Road moves

No unit can Move & Fire in the same Turn

Only one unit can be engaged by a single unit in Melee

Even with the changes I have made, it’s possible to make up an A5 Rule booklet of 3 pages & a large print A4 Quick Play Sheet of 2 pages fixed back to back for ease of reference so these rules really are simple to use but deceptively so as I think they are quite nuanced while still being somewhat brutal. I think rules of this type benefit from larger games in multiple lines – more like real warfare than most wargames, in my opinion. They are certainly quick to pick up & quicker to play. 

THE CHANGES

I’m sure everyone will have differing opinions on what I’ve changed & why. I’m pleased with the results so far & will continue to tinker all the while keeping the KISS principle in mind.

Here we go:

I added COLUMN for infantry & cavalry 

Columns can Wheel 45^o& Move ½ or Wheel 90^ono further move in a single Turn 

They can Fire with the front 2 bases

They claim +1d6 for Impetus when Charging but suffer when being Fired upon

This makes them more mobile & harder hitting than Line but more vulnerable to Fire

Units in Column of Route (only allowed on Roads) cannot Fire & are Enfiladed if Shot at (they are particularly packed in) & Flanked if contacted

*****

I added Napoleonic LIGHT INFANTRY, trained specifically as such & capable of fighting in CO the same as Line Infantry but able to deploy the whole unit in Skirmish Order when they can move 6” & are not subject to any restrictions in manouevre. 

Skirmishers can Move & Fire in the same Turn (unless they are Rifle-armed)

I do have several units of Voltiguers Réunis based only as Skirmishers as they were the batallion light companies deployed specifically to skirmish, as are my British Rifle units.

*****

I added RIFLES giving them a longer range of 8” & gave them +2d6 when firing up to 6” when skirmishing

+1d6 when in Close Order or up to 8”. Should make up for the fact that they cannot Move & Fire in the same Turn (too slow to reload)

Also, British RIFLES tend to be Elite so, if using the RALLY rule sugggested below, they stand a better chance of losing DP so staying on the field longer

*****

With the extra move rates, I had to increase Musketry range from 4” to 6” so advancing infantry in Column will still have to take at least 1 shot before contact

*****

LANCERS needed to  be different from other LC so have an Impetus in the Charge to reflect their weapon

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I kept the maximum range for Artillery as 16” seeing this as effective range & any fire from beyond not deemed to be enough to cause Demoralisation. ART still have 3 x Musketry range & seem to work well

*****

HORSE ARTILLERY needed to be catered for with its faster move/manouevre & ability to spring into action & fire so I gave them the same move rate as HC/DRG in Column & allow them to UL & Fire in the same Turn

*****

There should be some differentiation in Terrain types

WOODS: INF ½; CAV/ART n/a 

STEEP HILLS & LINEAR OBSTACLES: INF -1”; HC/DRG & ALL ART ½ 

STREAMS: All except SK ½ 

RIVERS: Only crossed via bridges or fords

MARSH: Impassable to all

TOWNS garrison 1 INF/SK unit who spread out to occupy the whole area which is counted as the unit’s base for measurement & Interpenetration purposes. 

They have Cover & can Fire out of any side with all bases

CAV/ART can not end a move in a BUA but may move along 1BW Roads between BUAs

Like Squares, Units defending a Town that lose a Melee take only 1DP & do not Retreat 4”

*****

MEASUREMENT

While I still refer to all moves in inches, I actually use a measuring Stick graded in 20mm segments which means my 3’ x 4’ table is really 45” x 62” near as dammit 4’ x 5’

*****

MOVE

INF LINE & ART                  4”        HC/DRG LINE                                                 8”

INF COLUMN                      6”        HC/DRG COLUMN & HORSE ART          10”

SK                                           6”        LC                                                                   12”

                        

FORMING SQUARE            A must for Napoleonic Warfare.                    

Takes a full Move to form a Square in its own Active Phase but if Charged by Cavalry roll 1d6

+1 per 2” moved by CAV      -1 per INF DP

+1 if testing unit is Elite         -2 if testing unit is Green/Militia

-2 if Charged from Flank         -4 if Charged from Rear 

Need 6+ to form Square          

Squares cannot move or fire (at least not enough to cause Demoralisation Points)

If a Square loses a Melee it takes only 1DP & does not Retreat

Victorious CAV wraps around the Square, Column becoming Line

CAV rolling 4+ can “flow around” a Square instead of Meleeing for 0DP  

SKIRMISHERS EVADE

Instead of standing to receive an attack by close order troops, Skirmishers may attempt to Evade

Roll 1d6 (Elite+1: Flank or Rear Attack -1)

If attacker moves ½ move or less to contact  3+ to EVADE 1d6+3”

If attacker moves >½ move to contact           2+ to EVADE 1d6+2”

Because I don’t want to rebase my DFII armies & my Skirmishers are bases on 20mm round bases, 2 per base & because I just like the look of them, SK units fire & fight with 1d6 per PAIR of bases

MANOUEVRE

PIVOTING vs WHEELING Initially, I just didn’t like the “pivot on the centre of the unit” thing so changed it to a more conventional Wheel as above. While researching Napoleonic tactics I came across the very manouevre I had dismissed so now allow it for Line but the Wheel still looks & feels right for Columns

CHANGE OF FORMATION was not needed in the original rules. With different formations allowed it takes a full move to Change Formation – 2 to Reform back to CO for a unit deployed as Skirmishers

RETIRE I allow units to Retire ½ speed facing 

ABOUT FACE is also allowed. Costs ½ move & Column can wheel 45^obefore or after the About Face

INTERPENETRATION Skirmishers remain the only formation that can move through/be moved through by friends. Any Retreat that would cause Interpenetration of CO troops results in the unit being Destroyed

FIRE

Units may either Move OR Fire EXCEPT non-RIFLE SK who can do both in any order & Horse ART who can UL & Fire

Each unit rolls 4d6 to score Hits (only 2d6 in Column for reduced frontage) 

There is a Saving Roll of 4+ for units in Cover & the more Hits the greater chance of inflicting a single (possibly 2) DP

INF front rank only, SK 2 ranks

Units always Fire at a single Target (except when being Charged frontally by 2 units when they will split their Fire equally between them)

Range/Arc of Fire (45^o) is always measured from the front centre of the Firing unit to the nearest part of an enemy. If ANY of the Target unit is within Range & Arc of Fire, the whole Firing unit shoots with ALL d6

Overhead Fire is allowed only by ART & only to or from different elevations & then only if the friendly unit is >3” from the guns & >3" from the Target

ADVANTAGES

+1d6 

per Battery of 12pdrs

RIFLES in Close Order

SK RIFLES @>6”

+2d6 

SK RIFLES up to 6”

Dense Target = Column, Square or Enfiladed

ROLL TO HIT           INF    3+        SK       4+        ART    4+                    

Depends on the Firing unit & takes no account of Target Order. This may seem strange but remember, DP reflact “Demoralisation” not Disruption or Casualties as such. Units in looser order tend to get demoralised easier as they are not subject to the same amount of control as those in close packed ranks

When the #Hits is known, roll 1d6 to Inflict DP

1 Hit = 5+; 2 Hits = 4+; 3 Hits = 3+; 4 Hits = 2+

Anything >4 Hits = automatic Hit, roll for remainder (so 7 Hits would inflict 1 Hit & roll for 2 Hits = 4+)

MELEE

Kept the rules that SK/ART can never Charge into Melee; INF cannot Charge CAV

TO CONTACT an enemy, the front centre of the Charging unit must be able to reach & touch some part of the Target & in a Flank Attack the front centre of the Charging unit must start & finish from a point behind the Target’s 90^ofront arc; in a Rear Attack the front centre of the Charging unit must start & finish from a point behind the Target’s 45^orear arc

MULTIPLE UNIT MELEES. Now that the smaller frontages of Columns make it more likely 2 units could contact a single enemy in Melee, I borrowed the idea from Maurice making ALL units involved in a Mell roll their dice & compare totals to each other. In this way, it is possible for the outnumbered unit to beat one enemy (causing it to lose 2DP & Retreat 4”) whilst losing to another enemy (& having to take 2DP & Retreat 4” itself)

It is not possible for a unit to get >2DP in a single Turn

TO FIGHT each side rolls 4d6 but gains d6 for Modifiers. I have changed this in a few ways

1. Reduced the #d6 for advantages fron 2d6 to 1d6 EXCEPT for Flank/Rear contacts

2. Added advantage of +1d6 for Column Impetus when Charging

3. Added advantage of +2d6 for Close Order troops contacting Skirmishers/Deployed Artillery in the open

4. Added advantage of +2d6 for Infantry in Square vs Cavalry

5. Added advantage of +2d6 for Cavalry contacting Infantry that failed to form a Square

6. In SYW Infantry often stood in Line to Fire on Charging Cavalry so the original rules give the advantage to the Infantry but in the Napoleonic Wars Infantry was at a disadvantage when Charged by Cavalry & usually tried to form Square to defend, so the advantage goes to the Cavalry vs Infantry in the open & not in Square 

So now we have:

ADVANTAGES

+2d6 

SQUARE vs Mounted
Mounted vs INF not in Square

Charging Flank/Rear/Column of Route 

+1d6 

IMPETUS

INF/CAV vs SK/UL ART in Open

HC/DRG vs LC

DRG vs LC

Defender’s Terrain Advantage

>Friends within 4”

Fewer DP than eney

INF vs INF Defending with SAME #DP

COMPARE TOTALS & Loser takes 2DP & Retreats 4”

Rather than “toss a coin” for the rare DRAW in a Melee, both sides will take 1DP & remain in contact with Column shaking out into a Line

UNITS DEFENDING TOWNS & SQUARES that lose a Melee take only 1DP & do not Retreat 4” 

DEMORALISATION POINTS

Once again, these are not Disruption or Disorder points & they do not represent Casualties in a direct way but reflect the deteriorating state of Morale endured as a result of all these & more

The orginal rules are brutal (I like brutal) but as I wanted to depict different troop status such as Elite, Green/Militia, I wanted units to have the opportunity to RALLY

This is a Move/Manouevre & costs a whole Turn & may not result in any reduction of DP

Roll 1d6 for each DP +1 for Elite; -1 for Green/Militia RALLY on 5+

UPDATE FOR 2020 See my post Ultimate Napoleonic Rules

C18th Century

I have been using the Maurice rules for my C18th battles for some time now.
They are an incredible set of rules, using a card system for a lot of the feel of the period.
I'm only miffed that, because of the card play, it's difficult to play solo - you can't play poker solo, can you?

Anyway, I hope to post more on this subject - with photos - very soon, as I have made the laborious leap from 2 x 15mm SYW in Flanders armies (Prussian & French) to 2 x 10mm WAS in Italy armies (Spanish & Austrian) with more to come - French on the way, Pragmatic Army next (possibly Jacobites to fight the Hanoverians in Britain?) Prussian & Russian to follow, with the Ottoman Empire as the cherry on top...

Maurice Lite rules are available free on t'internet but in their full glory they are MAGNIFICENT!
Trust me, I'll prove it anon...

Europa in RRtK

Europa      

This is my fantasy campaign world. It is set in fictional High Middle Ages where the historical widespread use of Magic has warped the development of the nations in the known world.

Some nations have developed more slowly than in our reality, others more quickly.

The discovery of gunpowder was kept a jealously guarded secret, controlled by The Guild of Artillery, a mercenary organisation, based in the Alps, who also supply the Swiss Mercenaries with primitive Hand- Gonnes. Only the Chinese, who have been taken over completely by the Golden Horde have their own form of Artillery, in the form of Rockets.

In this world, the Roman Empire is long gone, its last remnants smashed by the rise of Islam. Once an mighty unified empire, the massive edifice of Islam has a broken up into three Allied realms, albeit under the fiction of an Empire.

In the west, the Almohad Provinces are comprised of al-Andalus in the south of Spain & the northern coast of Africa, up to Tunis & the borders of the Ayyubid Sultanate, which reach to Jerusalem, where the eastern Emirate of the Seljuqs, Abbasids & Arabians, holding the sacred sites, dominate. 

Byzantium has long been overrun & the Balkans Greece & Bulgaria are now part of the Seljuq Emirates

The Seljuqs now border Krakovia & Muscovy in the north & the Golden Horde in the east.

The Almohads border Castellia to the north & the Papal States across the Mediterranean.

The three regions of Islam, in theory, constitute the Islamic Empire, but they act separately. 

The Sultanate comprises the main central region & is ruled by the Sultan. The other two Emirates are technically parts of the Empire but have a large degree of autonomy & wage war independently. The only limit on them is that they will not attack each other or the Sultan. The exception to this is Civil War under the rules for Succession.

It is assumed that the Sultan will have declared his successor prior to his death. This is the “rightful” heir but there is a chance that there is another claimant to the throne. On the death of the Sultan, roll 1d6 for each of the other two nations. If a 6 is rolled by either or both, they are assumed to declared themselves Sultan & the Empire will plunge into Civil War. The “rightful” heir will always use the Sultanates’ Army with the Rebel Sultans(s) using in their respective, Emirate armies.

Krakovia is a conglomeration of Poland, Lithuania, Bohemia & Hungary.

Muscovy rules the Russian Duchies.

Altengard regards itself as an Empire, but in reality is a confederation of city states, duchies, principalities & such, each of which elects an “Emperor”. It covers, roughly, the area of our Holy Roman Empire, the German states, Switzerland & Northern Italy.

The Pope now rules all of the rest of Italy, Corsica, Sardinia & Sicily, as the Papal States. 

There is tension between the use of Magic & Technology in this universe & when the possibility of magical items or other summonings are introduced, the absence of non-human races does not seem a problem.

RRtK modifications

Many months later, I have rekindled my desire to fight RRtK - I have 3 lifetimes of lead ready to be painted & incorporated into my gaming life.

The main thing is to mine my old Hordes of the Things Armies for any useful models.

I decided to modify RRtK's WInd Maidens as Sky Riders, using Kallistra's Ratman Aerial (I think) as an aerial fleet (complete with ping-pong ball balloon) to flesh out the Mercenaries.

I nicked a few of the (let's be honest 12mm) Kallistra models, particularly the War Wagons for my "Polish" Krakovia etc to bulk out my 10mm Fantasy World, which I have codified into my Europa Universe - see future posts for that.

Still want a (mainly) human universe, divergent from history as we know it around about 1,000 CE
with some Magic but a lot of Steampunk stuff thrown in too.

Good luck, I say!

Summer Hols! Brilliant!!

Back now, so more wargames shenanigans...

I got into WW2 with Peter Pig's Abteilung & enjoyed those rules but needed to be able to play solo so went for THW Nuts! Big Battles. Actually a Company level game so unlikely to have more than a Battalion per side anyway...

Any road up... here's a few pics of last night's face-to-face game. Lots of questions for THW forum but overall quite happy with the rules. Of course, I will have to tinker with them somewhat...

The German attack from their Left. They had dithered instead of immediately attacking the ruined village on their Right & baulked at traversing the woods on their Left whilst causing congestion in their Centre, down the road.

 The British counter-attack swarmed across the hill to be halted by enemy fire.

A Troop of Pumas sweep around to stall the British advance. Brits forced to flee from sandbagged positions by overwhelming enemy fire. Plenty more occupying the ruins, though...

Pz IVs in the foreground ready themselves for an attack on the ruined village which was eventually successful as their infantry stormed the buildings, forcing the Brits out.

German Left turns in on itself to meet the British counter-attack. The Bocage proves difficult to negotiate.

All in all, not a bad game but fraught with questions. I am still struggling to adapt my Abteilung orbats & basing to Nuts! BB but will persevere. As far as I can, I am determined to make as many periods as possible Solo-friendly & thus more readily available to me at any time of the day or week.

I will return to this period/ruleset.

Altengard vs Krakovia

Here's an AAR for a recent game - I unpired it, so don't blame me for the deployments or orders for either side.

Altengard is my Holy Roman Empire analogue. 

Krakovia is Poland-plus (including Tabors & with the Winged Husars making an early appearance… my world, my rules)

ALTENGARD           Attacker  WR2+1 for Captain 

2 Imperial Knights                                            

1 Imperial Mounted Crossbows                    

4 Mercenary Light Cavalry                            

2 Imperial Spears                          

2 Imperial Crossbows                                                      

2 Brabançon Spears                                      

2 Brabançon Crossbows                                                  

1 Mecenary Pikes                        

1 Mercenary Hand-Gonnes          

Mercenaries:

Brethren

1 Captain (Brother Knight Commander)

1 Black Brethren       

1 Order Spears                            

1 Order Crossbows                      

                 

1 Varangian Warriors                 

                 

TOTAL:    21 units +1 Captain     513pts

KRAKOVIA              Defender  WR3+1 for Captain 

4 Winged Hussars     

3 Vilnian Horse                             

3 Bohemian LC                            

2 Town Militia           

2 Tabors                                         

Mercenaries:

White Company

1 Captain  

1 Knights

1 Longbows

3 Varangian Warriors

TOTAL:19 units +1 Captain        550pts

Altengard
Right: Mercenary Pikes/Hand-Gonnes with Varangian Warriors.
Centre: Brabançons in front, Imperial Spears in support.

Centre: Brabançons in front, Imperial Spears in support.
Left: The Brethren Contingent, Imperial Knights & Crossbows, backed up by all the Light Cavalry.

Facing them, the bulk of the Krakovian Horse, Vilnians to the fore, Winged Hussars behind, hold their Right while the Town Militia & the Varangians hold the woods in the Centre.

The Krakovian Left Centre is held by their Tabors, with the White Company & LC hold the Left flank (more LC in Reserve, behind the woods)

Altengard open with an attack on their Right.

Vilnian Horse move to intercept.

Altengard LC swarm around the rear of the Vilnian Hose while the heavies charge to the front, causing a Rout with the Krakovian Horse destroyed between the Altengard hammer & Anvil.

Meanwhile the rest of Altengard's army slowly advances.

The Winged Hussars advance to contest their Right, supported by the LC Reserve (moved from the centre to the flank)

The Mercenaries engage each other causing confusion.

The Centre comes to the crunch with the Varangians counter-charging from the woods.

Krakovia's Right is dispersed

Altengard fail to make an impression in the Centre & fade on both flanks, so throw in the towel, leaving Krakovia safe for now.

I had given the Krakovian Town Militia a higher Armour Class for their Pavises, but this makes them too resilient in RRtK. 
In future, I will lower their AC but allow them to count Cover vs Missile fire due to the same large shields. 
This would obviate their need to deploy in a wood & would help them to use their devastating firepower to greater effect in the open. 

The Terror effect of the Hand-Gonnes was never utilised. Nor was the fact that the Pikes were impervious to frontal assault by Mounted.
The Undisciplined Winged Hussars typically fought well but ended up all over the place & unable to regroup.

The early loss of Altengard's C-in-C (Z makes a habit of leading from the front) was mitigated by the Brethren's Brother Knight Commander taking over - albeit all to briefly as he too soon succumbed to fate as his unit was Routed from the field, severely hampering Altengard's command & control & eventually costing them the battle. 

Suffice it to say, I'd've done things differently (engage smug-mode)

Keep the Table Tidy: Playing Aids

You might have noticed that I like devices - any gadget or gizmo I can use to keep up the flow of the game & keep me focussed on the little metal chaps giving their all for glory down there on the table-top, rather than being constantly interrupted by the mechanics of the thing.

I have written about my loathing of clutter & use of Hidden Markers & Poker Chips as shown again below. I make up Movement sticks for ease of use & store all of these (1 per General) off-table on a conveniently upturned RUBox lid from the army in question.

All this stuff takes a short time to make up & is then ready for the forseeable future.

I hate rummaging through rule books mid-game & why do rules writers have no talent for producing a comprehensive Cross-Referencing Index or even a Quick Play Sheet that has what I need on it, in the order I need it? It's almost as if they can't read my mind & anticipate every single situation that a confused wargamer might find himself in!

With that in mind, I always produce my own reference material. I have a Codex on my computer where I have tried to gather all info on a particular subject (Melee, Shooting, Charging, Pursuit - all that) in one place, each to a seperate file, even duplicating info where necessary so that I can walk through any situation that turns up. That & a home made Index for the Rules (my one criticism of RRtK is that it has many typos in the Historical lists & the Index often gives the wrong page for the rule in question - but I can live with that) makes for really quick reference when in need. 

With some games - particularly the ones where I play against real live opponents - I have, in the past, produced large print sheets of info which I magnetically attack to a large whiteboard so we can all reference the phases as they are played through. For RRtK, I made a smaller version on my iPad but the technology just confused my lazy opponents.

For RRtK, I came up with old-school crib-sheets. Everything I need to know during a game (except any rule misunderstanding - my opponents are competitive, perhaps overly so, that's why I enjoy solo so much) is listed on a crib-sheet, pasted to a stout A4 card & relevant to each army.

Each General gets the crib-sheet for his force (which has a list of Mercenary Stats on the back in case he is using them) plus a Reaction Test crib-sheet with Melee troops Reaction on one side & Missile troop on the other - just flip it over & you are good to go. Magic is dealt with on a third. 

In this way, all phase-to-phase info is at the fingertips of the General (off-table, of course - clutter at your peril in my presence) at all times so the flow of the game is as unimpeded as can be.