{"id":1052,"date":"2012-04-29T13:22:04","date_gmt":"2012-04-29T13:22:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=1052"},"modified":"2012-04-29T13:22:04","modified_gmt":"2012-04-29T13:22:04","slug":"napoleonic-play-test-yesterday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=1052","title":{"rendered":"Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A handful of HAWKs got together yesterday to game. \u00a0We ran a scenario with 1813 Prussians. \u00a0Actually I ran it twice, because the first run was a blowout after less than two hours, so we reset and started over.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1054\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1054\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8602.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1054\" title=\"IMG_8602\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8602-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"French chasseurs and infantry advancing toward Prussian columns (photo by Chris Palmer)\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8602-300x225.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8602-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8602.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1054\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">French chasseurs and infantry advancing toward Prussian columns (photo by Chris Palmer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In this play test, I wanted to try out three things:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A new artillery rule<\/li>\n<li>Command and control for the Prussians<\/li>\n<li>A lot of cavalry in a battle.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1055\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1055\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8603.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1055\" title=\"IMG_8603\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8603-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Masses of Prussians advancing (photo by Chris Palmer)\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8603-300x225.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8603-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8603.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1055\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Masses of Prussians advancing (photo by Chris Palmer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Artillery rule: \u00a0Napoleonic rules design requires a careful balance between infantry, artillery, and cavalry as well as column, line, and square to get the proper &#8220;paper-scissors-rock&#8221; feel. \u00a0I was feeling that artillery was under powered and didn&#8217;t seem to have a large impact on the game. \u00a0I couldn&#8217;t figure out why the artillery seemed fine in the ACW version of <em>Look, Sarge, No Charts<\/em>, but that it felt wrong in the Napoleonic version. \u00a0In conversations with Sam Fuson and Dave Wood, I finally realized that it was about &#8220;formations.&#8221; \u00a0Neither the WWII version nor the ACW version have explicit representation of formations. \u00a0In the ACW version, a hit at long range merely accrues a morale check, not a hit. \u00a0I added a rule that says that long-range artillery (only!!) fire against columns or squares results in a hit as well as a morale check. \u00a0The math was okay, but I wanted to see how this worked on the tabletop. \u00a0I tried to test this two weeks ago at HAWKs night, but the way the scenario developed there was little long-range fire. \u00a0Yesterday we had a chance to really try it out. \u00a0The consensus was positive, so that&#8217;s how the rules will be written.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1056\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1056\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8605.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1056\" title=\"IMG_8605\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8605-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Prelude to a swirling cavalry engagement with Prussian and French lights (photo by Chris Palmer)\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8605-300x225.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8605-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8605.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1056\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Prelude to a swirling cavalry engagement with Prussian and French lights (photo by Chris Palmer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Those of you familiar with the Napoleonic Wars will know that the structure of the late-war Prussian army was three battalions to a regiment and three regiments to a brigade. \u00a0This gives a Prussian brigade nine battalions, closer to a French division. \u00a0This means that pitting a French division against a Prussian brigade involves about the same number of battalions, but the French have three order dice and the Prussians only one. \u00a0If the number on the Prussian order cube doesn&#8217;t come up on a card before the end of the turn, nothing in the whole brigade (division) acts. \u00a0That seemed okay, but on the other hand if the card is drawn, the whole brigade (division) acts at the same time. \u00a0This had two outcomes in the game: 1) in the attack, it was easier for the Prussians to manage their forces and 2) it took a Prussian player a long time to complete his activation.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1057\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1057\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8606.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1057\" title=\"IMG_8606\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8606-300x196.jpg\" alt=\"French brigade retreating up and over a small ridge (photo by Chris Palmer)\" width=\"300\" height=\"196\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8606-300x196.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8606-1024x672.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8606.jpg 1243w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1057\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">French brigade retreating up and over a small ridge (photo by Chris Palmer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In our second game yesterday, we added a regimental commander for the Prussians. \u00a0I was afraid this would give them too much tactical flexibility, but it didn&#8217;t seem to do so. \u00a0In fact, by having four dice for the brigade (division), one for each regiment and one for the brigade commander, it actually seemed to reduce the synchronization of the Prussian attack. \u00a0 I&#8217;m pretty sure that&#8217;s how I&#8217;ll write the rules; however, while a Prussian brigade commander has a morale rating of 4 (typically), I think that I&#8217;ll make commanders of Prussian line and reserve regiments 4&#8217;s but landwehr regiments 5&#8217;s.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1058\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1058\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8607.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1058\" title=\"IMG_8607\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8607-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"French guard cavalry never really got into the fight (photo by Chris Palmer)\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8607-300x225.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8607-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8607.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1058\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">French guard cavalry never really got into the fight (photo by Chris Palmer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Finally, since I had finished a lot of Prussian cavalry recently, I wanted to put a lot of cavalry on the table and see how that worked. \u00a0I think the effect was about right. \u00a0When the French launched their brigade of six hussar and dragoon regiments at the French cavalry division of three chasseur regiments, there were a couple of turns of swirling melee before the Prussians broke through. \u00a0It seemed about right. \u00a0in the second running, the French cavalry was stymied by a line of Prussian squares. \u00a0A couple of French artillery batteries caused some damage, but there was no infantry to send forward to break the squares. \u00a0The effect was good, I think.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1059\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1059\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8608.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1059\" title=\"IMG_8608\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8608-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Aerial view of the retreating French brigade (photo by Chris Palmer)\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8608-300x225.jpg 300w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8608-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/IMG_8608.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1059\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aerial view of the retreating French brigade (photo by Chris Palmer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In summation, I&#8217;m pretty happy with the rules the way they are shaping up. \u00a0The play test games have been fun. \u00a0It is most gratifying to hear people who have sworn off Napoleonics games say they really like these rules.<\/p>\n<div class='shareinpost'><ul class=\"socialwrap row\"><li class=\"iconOnly\"><a  rel='nofollow'  target='_blank'  title='Share this post : Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday on Linkedin'  href='http:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fbucksurdu.com%2Fblog%2F%3Fp%3D1052&amp;title=Napoleonic+Play+Test+Yesterday&amp;summary=A+handful+of+HAWKs+got+together+yesterday+to+game.+%C2%A0We+ran+a+scenario+with+1813+Prussians.+%C2%A0Actually+I+ran+it+twice%2C+because+the+first+run+was+a+blowout+after+less+than+two+hours%2C+so+we+reset+and+started+over.%0D%0A%0D%0A%5Bcaption+id%3D%22attachment_1054%22+align%3D%22aligncenter%22+width%3D%22300%22+caption%3D%22French+chasseurs+and+infantry+adva'  ><img  src='http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/images\/blank.gif'  height='32' width='32'  class='image-32' alt='linkedin'  style='background: transparent url(http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/default\/32\/sprite-feb-32.png) no-repeat;padding:0;margin:0;height:32px;width:32px;background-position:-1122px 0px'   \/> <span class=\"head\">Share on Linkedin<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"iconOnly\"><a rel=\"_self\" href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=1052&feed=rss2\" title=\"Follow this post : Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday comments\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/images\/blank.gif\" height=\"32\"  width=\"32\" style=\"background: transparent url(http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/default\/32\/sprite-feb-32.png) no-repeat;padding:0;margin:0;height:32px;width:32px;background-position:-1782px 0px\" class=\"image-32\"  alt=\"rss\" \/> <span class=\"head\">Subscribe to the comments on this post<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"iconOnly\"><a  rel='nofollow'  target='_self'  title='Print this post : Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday for reading later'  href='javascript:window.print();'  ><img  src='http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/images\/blank.gif'  height='32' width='32'  class='image-32' alt='print'  style='background: transparent url(http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/default\/32\/sprite-feb-32.png) no-repeat;padding:0;margin:0;height:32px;width:32px;background-position:-1716px 0px'   \/> <span class=\"head\">Print for later<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"iconOnly\"><a  rel='nofollow'  target='_self'  title='Bookmark this post : Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday'  href='javascript:window.bookMark(\"http%3A%2F%2Fbucksurdu.com%2Fblog%2F%3Fp%3D1052\", \"Napoleonic+Play+Test+Yesterday\", BrowserDetect.browser);'  ><img  src='http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/images\/blank.gif'  height='32' width='32'  class='image-32' alt='bookmark'  style='background: transparent url(http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/default\/32\/sprite-feb-32.png) no-repeat;padding:0;margin:0;height:32px;width:32px;background-position:-132px 0px'   \/> <span class=\"head\">Bookmark in Browser<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"iconOnly\"><a rel=\"_self\" href=\"mailto:?subject=Buck&#039;s%20Blog%20:%20Napoleonic%20Play%20Test%20Yesterday&amp;body=This%20is%20the%20coolest%20blob%20every.%20%20Buck%20Surdu%20is%20extra%20spiffy%20swell.%20%20http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=1052\" title=\"Tell a friend about this post : Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/images\/blank.gif\" height=\"32\"  width=\"32\" style=\"background: transparent url(http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/share-and-follow\/default\/32\/sprite-feb-32.png) no-repeat;padding:0;margin:0;height:32px;width:32px;background-position:-363px 0px\" class=\"image-32\"  alt=\"email\" \/> <span class=\"head\">Tell a friend<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"clean\"><\/div> <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A handful of HAWKs got together yesterday to game. \u00a0We ran a scenario with 1813 Prussians. \u00a0Actually I ran it twice, because the first run was a blowout after less than two hours, so we reset and started over. In this play test, I wanted to try out three things: A new artillery rule Command &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=1052\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Napoleonic Play Test Yesterday<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wargaming"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1052","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1052"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1052\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1061,"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1052\/revisions\/1061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1052"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1052"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1052"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}