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A Set of Miniature Rules for the Horse and Musket Period in 10mm Table of Contents Introduction... 3 Game Mechanics... 3 Game Scales... 3 Game Turn... 5 Infantry, both Line and Light... 6 Infantry Organization... 6 Infantry Manoeuvre Formations... 6 Cavalry, Both Heavy and Light... 8 Cavalry Organization... 8 Cavalry Manoeuvre Formations... 8 Changing Manoeuvre Formation... 9 Other Units Command and Logistics... 10 Musketry Fire... 10 Line Infantry Fire... 10 Summary of Firing Procedure... 11 Light Infantry Fire... 11 Cavalry Charge Fire... 12 Heavy Cavalry Breakthrough... 12 Defensive Charge Fire... 12 Melee Combat... 12 Artillery... 13 Artillery Organization... 13 Artillery Manoeuvre Formations... 13 Roundshot Artillery Ammunition... 14 Shell Artillery Ammunition... 15 Rifled Shell Artillery Ammunition... 16 Canister Artillery Ammunition... 16 Command And Control... 17 Morale and Élan... 18 Terrain and Weather Effects... 20 Terrain Effects... 20 Visibility, Night and Cover... 22 Line of Sight/Fire... 23 Engineers and Pioneers... 23 Engineer Organization... 23 Field Defences... 24 Anti Personnel Obstacles... 25 Demolitions... 26 Pontoon Bridge Building... 27 Campaigning... 28 Designer Notes... 29 2
Introduction These rules were derived from The War Game by Charles Grant and though not quite the same they are inspired by the thought of this great man. The intention is to develop a fast fun set of rules with no paperwork, readable in under an hour and of less than a mere 30 pages. I hope my small contribution provides something you will enjoy. Players will find that the emphasis had been placed on the American War of Independence and American Civil War. This was done to get the particular troop types of that conflict vetted in these rules. There is no reason why these rules cannot suffice for any European war of the same period. A basic set of war game rules must provide a vehicle for troop movement, a procedure for deciding combat and a method for accounting for the results of combat (casualties and routed units). Laid over all this, the war gamer must be confounded with command and control issues and logistics problems. All this must be done without unduly complicating the rule system and maintaining game playability and realism. You will require one three foot measuring tape, one 10 sided die and two 6 sided dice per player to play this set of war game rules. You will need to make one artillery template as well. You will also require a game table, which is discussed below and finally, miniatures, which is discussed throughout. Game Mechanics The game mechanics are how the game uses a number factors to simulate real events. These factors include measurement, probability and representative ratios. The first step in creating a war-gaming system is to set values in miniature to represent the real world norms. There must be some connection to reality without making the game area required too large for the average war gamer. Game Scales The Table - War gaming is played on a table of some sort. You can use the dining room table when it is not so employed or develop purpose built table in some location. Your table can be full time if you have the space or maybe part time where you set it up for a battle or event. In these post modern days many gamers do not have the space and use either a floor or join a war gaming club that shares their historical interest. My table is full time and measures six by nine feet. Ground Scale - The second ratio is the representation of the historical ground to the gaming surface (your table or what have you). This is known as Ground Scale and is the relationship of the game table in inches to actual ground in yards. In our game, ground scale is relative to the size of the game scale and is given in the chart below. Time Scale - The last ratio is the representation of the historical time to the game turn. This is known as Time Scale. In our game, time scale is given in the chart below. Time and Ground Scale Measurement Game Scale One Inch 20 Yards One Turn 4 minutes Troop Scale - The next part of war gaming is representing the actual historical troops and campaigns in scale. Scale is done by creating a number of representative ratios of game to real life. In particular, we need to think of three ratios; Game Board to Actual Ground, Game Turn to Actual Time and Miniature Figure to Actual Soldier. This soldier representation is called troop scale and is the first of our standard war game scales to be introduced. 3
Troop scale is the representation of the historical troop strength to the number of miniature models. Troop scale is related to number of men in a unit and is usually represented by stands of figures. Stands are small bases with one or more figures mounted on them. Stands are the basic manoeuvre unit of our game, while figures are the basic casualty-counting unit. Troop Scale and Stand Size Stand Size Unit Type Figures per Stand Real Men in Game Scale 1 x ½ inch Infantry 2 figures 40 men 1 x 1 inch Cavalry 2 figures 40 men ½ x ½ inch Dismounted Cavalry 1 figures 40 men ½ x ½ inch Artillery crewmen 20 men ½ x ½ inch Skirmishers 1 figure 20 men ½ x 1 inch Artillery Commander 1 Mounted Officer Battalion Commander ½ x ½ inch Brigade General 1 Foot General Brigade 1 x 1 inch General 1 mounted General 1 mounted flagmen Division/Corps/Army Not Based Artillery 1 model 1 Section 1 x 2 inch Limber 1 model 2 Limber 1 x 2 inch Caisson 1 model 2 Caissons 1 x 2 inch Supply Wagon 1 model 2 wagons 1 x 3 inch Pontoon Wagon 1 model 2 wagons Artillery Guns are not based so that they can be limbered and unlimbered. Players should consider leaving a long edge on the basing at the rear of artillery limber bases to set the cannon on when it is limbered to that limber. Basing Units - Basing units must take in account the ease of player use and the need to account for game statistics. Thus basing must let the player move his unit easily and provide a means to account for casualties, movement, facing and morale. Given above were the basic basing sizes, given below will be the addenda to that will be allowed to make up a given unit. Certain of amount figures in a unit are considered to be skirmishers and thus based like artillery crew. The following symbols legend is appropriate for use in this section Foot Symbols Legend Mounted Private Private Musician Regimental Officer Standard Bearer Musician Regimental Officer Standard Bearer General General Wagon Horse Limber Draft Horse Cannon Base 4
Game Turn A Turn is the equivalent of one minute of real time for each player in each phase, thus a game turn is four minutes of real time. At the beginning of the turn each player rolls a die with the highest roll deciding who shall go first and be known as the first player. Each turn is divided in phases that consist of the following: Move Phase During the movement phase the following actions are conducted in order, first player first then the second player: a. Change Formation; b. Construct field works and complete demolition; c. Move units that are moving this turn; d. Move units that are moving and firing then move again; and e. Make any charge movement. Finish this phase by conducting all initial routs that are the result of charge. Fire Phase During the fire phase, fire combat is conducted in the following order: a. Conduct Artillery fire, first player first then the second player; and b. Both players conduct musketry fire for those units that have not used move and fire according the musketry rule. Melee Phase Conduct all melees that were the result of movement. Finish this phase by conducting all initial routs that are the result of melee. Morale Phase Check morale of units as necessary, first player first then the second player. Finish this phase by conducting all initial routs that are the result of failed morale checks. Turn Sequence Phase First Player Second Player 1. Change Formation/orders 2. Construct Field works First Player Move Phase 3. Demolition 4. Move Units Conduct Defensive Fire 5. Conduct fire and move 6. Conduct charges Second Player Move Phase Conduct Defensive Fire 1. Change Formation 2. Construct Field Works 3. Demolition 4. Move Units 5. Conduct Fire and Move 6. Conduct Charges First Player Artillery Fire Phase Conduct Artillery Fire No Action Required Second Player Artillery Fire Phase No Action Required Conduct Artillery Fire Joint Musket Fire Phase Conduct Musket Fire Conduct Musket Fire Joint Melee Phase Conduct Melee Conduct Melee Joint Morale Phase Conduct Morale Checks Conduct Routs Conduct Morale Checks Conduct Routs 5
Infantry, both Line and Light The marching speed of 18 th and 19 th century infantry is said to be a 28 inch pace giving a marching speed of 80 yards per minute. This may seem to be slow but it must not be overlooked that this pace is carried out by long lines of marching infantry trying to keep formation. This rate of 80 yards to the minute we shall take as the basis for the various moves our infantry will make, and so we transfer it to the war games table. What better than that we adopt a distance of four inches to represent infantry movement in line on the table. Of course, infantry do not always move about in line on the war games table, indeed the formation most often used is column. For this formation, we shall say that infantry move at four inches as the formation is tighter and easier to move in. All line infantry of the period used the advance fire close technique to one degree or another. Thus, when in line infantry may advance two inches then fire then advance another two inches or they may advance four inches without firing. Units that move and fire may not fire in the upcoming fire phase. Next line infantry will make the final charge to close with the enemy. The charge is made at double time speed over the last 100 yards of ground, thus a charge move is done at five inches and no firing may be done during the charge. Charge moves cannot be made very frequently indeed only once every ten turns. The second type of infantry of the period was light infantry that were formed as either a separate corps of soldiers or were a company integral to the line infantry regiment. Whether Jaeger, Pandours, American Indians, United States Sharpshooters, light infantry or free corps, these light troops fought differently than the line infantry. These troops were expert marksmen and able to make use of cover and do not expose themselves as much as line infantry. Light troops do not use any formation other than skirmish in the attack and column to road march in. At all times, light infantry move at a six inch movement distance. Infantry Organization 18 th century Infantry are organized into battalions of 20 figures; 1 Battalion Colonel, 1 Colour Sergeant, 2 Subalterns and 12 Infantrymen, 2 grenadiers, 2 light infantrymen (eight companies of two figures each). Infantry regiments consist of two battalions and a regimental headquarters of one Colonel, one Drummer, and two Colour Sergeants. Infantry regiments in turn are organized into brigades of two regiments plus a brigade commander on horseback. 19 th century infantry was organized in two ways; regulars and volunteers. The regulars were organized into regiments of three battalions (each battalion organized as 1 Battalion Colonel, 1 Colour Sergeant, 2 Subalterns and 16 Infantrymen (eight companies of two figures each) and a regimental headquarters of one Colonel, one Drummer, and two Colour Sergeants. The volunteers were organized into regiments of ten companies. These volunteer regiments have a one Colonel, one Drummer, and one Colour Sergeant, three Subalterns and twenty other ranks (ten companies of two figures). Brigades consist of four infantry regiments. Infantry Manoeuvre Formations There are five basic manoeuvre formations that infantry units can use. Infantry must be in a manoeuvre formation if they are to move and/or fire. March Column Manoeuvre Formation - March column manoeuvre formation is the basic formation for marching troops to take advantage of road movement. March column formation is longer than it is wide. Troops in column may fire a maximum of two ranks in the unit to the front and none to the flanks and rear. March column formation is always two figures wide to be able to fit on game board roads. 6
Direction of Travel For example; a regiment of 20 figures with be two figures wide by 10 figures deep in column formation. Only the two front ranks of two figures each may fire. Line Manoeuvre Formation - Line manoeuvre formation is the basic formation for firing troops to take advantage of their fire combat power. Line formation is wider than it is long. Troops in line may fire all figures in the unit to the front and none to the flanks and rear. Infantry may charge in line formation. Direction of Travel For example; a regiment of 20 figures with be 10 figures wide by two figures deep in line formation. Both ranks of 10 figures may fire. Attack Column Manoeuvre Formation - Attack column manoeuvre formation was very popular amongst the French (Napoleon make it famous). Basically, a cross between column and line it was wider than column and thicker than line. Troops in attack column may fire a maximum of two ranks in the unit to the front and none to the flanks and rear. Infantry may charge in attack column formation. Civil war infantry only use this formation when attacking fortifications as part of a much larger Division or Corps attack. Direction of Travel For example; a regiment of 20 figures with be four figures wide by five figures deep in attack column formation. Only the two front ranks of four figures each may fire. Skirmish Formation - Skirmish formation is an open order formation that is practiced only by light troops. Basically, the light troops are deployed an open order line in front of the main infantry formation to snipe at enemy troops and draw fire away from the main infantry body. Skirmish troops are represented by single figure stands deployed 1 inch away from each other in loose lines forward of the main infantry formation. Direction of Travel Note the distance between stands and the position of Signals and Command stands, infantry use skirmish formation in front of the main body of infantry and in country not suited to close formations, such 7
as woods. All Infantry and cavalry stands may skirmish. A skirmishing cavalry stands can be mounted or dismounted. Indigenous troops such as guerrillas and natives always act as light infantry and may never assume any formation other than skirmish. Square Manoeuvre Formation - Square formation is a closed order formation that is practiced only by infantry as a defence against cavalry. It was a rarely practiced formation during the American Civil War and thus if used must take twice as long to execute. All figures face out and away from the center and a unit may not move while in square formation. Rout Formation - Rout formation is a formation imposed on a unit by the end results of failed morale check and as such is not a manoeuvre formation. A unit in rout formation has its stands moved away from each other and is not in any semblance of any other formation mentioned above. Units in rout formation may not fire. Cavalry, Both Heavy and Light The pace of cavalry varies with the speed off the horse. Cavalry at the walk, in column formation, move at 120 yards per minute or in war game terms six inches. The walk is used for long marches to reduce wear on the horses; it is also used for cavalry to stay in support of infantry. Therefore, cavalry move in line at a rate of 120 yards per minute or six inches in war game terms. The next pace of cavalry is the trot. The trot is used to move cavalry around the battlefield in support of the battle. The trot is conducted at 180 yards in column and 160 yards in line or in war game terms, nine inches and eight inches, respectively. Light Cavalry can move a little faster during the trot, say, ten and nine respectively. In the American Civil War Confederate cavalry move at light cavalry pace and Federal Cavalry move at heavy cavalry pace. The last pace is the charge, which is conducted at 220 yards or eleven inches. Charge moves cannot be made very frequently indeed only once every ten turns. Cavalry Organization The cavalry were composed of Heavy Cavalry (Dragoons, Cuirassiers and Lifeguard) and Light Cavalry (Hussars, Lancers, Cossacks, free corps and Light Dragoons). 18 th century cavalry regiments consist of 1 Colonel, 1 Colour Sergeant, 1 trumpeter, 2 Subalterns and 16 troopers (four squadrons of 4 figures). Cavalry brigades contain four regiments plus a mounted brigade commander. 19 th century cavalry regiments were organized into 1 Colonel, 1 Colour Sergeant, 1 trumpeter/bugler, 3 Subalterns and 12 troopers (three battalions of 2 squadrons of two figures each). Cavalry brigades contain four regiments plus a mounted brigade commander. Cavalry Manoeuvre Formations There are three basic manoeuvre formations that cavalry units can use. Cavalry must be in a formation if they are to move and/or fire. 8
March Column Manoeuvre Formation - March column manoeuvre formation is the basic formation for marching troops to take advantage of road movement. March column formation is longer than it is wide. March column formation is always two figures wide to be able to fit on roads. Direction of Travel For example; a cavalry regiment of 16 figures with be two figures wide by eight figures deep in column formation. Line Manoeuvre Formation - Line manoeuvre formation is the basic formation for firing troops to take advantage of their combat power. Line formation is wider than it is long. Troops in line may fire all figures in the unit to the front and none to the flanks and rear. Cavalry must be in line formation to make a charge. Direction of Travel For example; a cavalry regiment of 16 figures with be eight figures wide by two figures deep in line formation. Only both ranks of 16 figures may fire. Mount/Dismount - Cavalry may dismount, form line or skirmish and fire their carbines as infantry. In order to mount or dismount, the cavalry unit must use their full movement allowance to mount/dismount and they must dismount or mount in area not under fire leaving their horses with horse holders. Dismounted cavalry act as light infantry and have all light infantry abilities while dismounted including skirmishing. Horse Holders - Only three of every four figures may dismount; the remainder is considered the horse holders and must stay to the rear where the unit dismounted holding the empty mounts. The Regimental command group can dismount or stay mounted at the owning players discretion. If horse holders are dismounted, the mounts are considered to have run away and the cavalry unit may not mount again in that scenario. Rout Formation Rout formation is a formation imposed on a unit by the end results of failed morale check and as such is not a manoeuvre formation. A unit in rout formation has its stands moved away from each other and is not in any semblance of any other formation mentioned above. Units in rout formation may not fire. Changing Manoeuvre Formation Regardless of the formation or type of unit, the unit requires the use of movement allowance to change formation. No fire may take place during a formation change. Units change formation at the during the movement phase before or during other movement. Changing formation is achieved by making drill movements; these movements are called Turns on the March and/or Change Facing. Turns Turns are changes in the direction of the unit s formation while it is moving. Turns are made during the movement phase and require twenty-five percent of the unit s movement allowance for 9
each forty-five degree change in direction. It is possible to move execute a turn and move the remaining movement allowance. Simply declare the direction of the turn measure the angle relative to the current direction and pay the movement allowance penalty to turn. Finally place the unit in the same formation but facing the new direction. Turns can be one of; Right Oblique (right 45 degrees), Left Oblique (left 45 degrees), Right (right 90 degrees), Left (left 90 degrees) or About Turn (180 degrees). Regardless, each forty-five degrees cost twenty-five percent of the unit movement allowance. Face Facing is the changing of direction of a unit that has not moved. Facing is used to bring a unit from column into line and from line into column. Facing is completed in 90 degree increments and requires the unit s full movement allowance to complete. Example; a Unit in line can be faced right by turning all stands 90 degrees to the right or left then massaging the result by placing the unit s stands into a neat column or line formation as applicable. The key difference between turns and facing movement is that in the turn, the formation may not change, while during the face, the formation must change. Other Units Command and Logistics General Officers, Supply trains, Pontoon trains and supply wagons are always in column formation but move at the same rate of the unit they are attached to up to their maximum movement allowance. To summarize find the movement chart below: Movement Capability Chart Type General Light Light Heavy Foot Horse Infantry Wagon Infantry Cavalry Cavalry Artillery Artillery Line 8 6 4 8 9 0 0 8 Column 9 8 7 9 10 0 0 9 Double Time 0 7 5 0 0 0 0 0 Walk 7 0 0 7 6 6 6 6 Trot 0 0 See Above See Above 0 0 See Above Charge 12 7 5 12 11 0 0 0 Musketry Fire Moving across the battlefield is important in order to bring units into contact with one another so that they can fire at each other and defeat the enemy. As far as firepower goes doing this period it was relatively simple time as all sides used either the smooth bore or rifled musket in various calibers as appropriate. Later rifled repeater rifles were available in numbers to the Federal American cavalry of the Civil War. As to effectiveness, the smooth bore was useful to 150 yards at best. The rifled musket has a useful range of 300 yards. Carbines have a range of half their bore type. Repeaters have a range of 200 yards. Firing was done by volley for all but light infantry and skirmishers who fired independently. Line Infantry Fire In war game terms of one inch equalling 20 yards, smooth bore musket range is a maximum of 7 inches but in order to account for increased firepower at closer ranges we divide our musket range into 3 extremes; close under 40 yards, normal 41 to 80 yards and extreme 81 to 140 yards. Rifled weapons have a range extreme of close under 80 yards, normal 81 to 140 yards and extreme 141 to 150 yards. 10
With range determined we have to consider hit probability. Consider one battalion firing at another, given the vulgarities of range and smooth bore accuracy not every shot will find a target. Thus the musket effect will be a factor of the size of the target, the number of firers and the range of the musketry. Thus, formed units of figures under a single commander will fire as a group at a group at a given range extreme. For administrative purposes firers are divided into groups of six figures in a firing unit (for elite units like grenadiers use four figures). Range and fire groups we have discussed, accuracy will be a factor of fate, which will be represented by a die. We will assign one die to each group of six figures firing. Next the die or dice for the firing unit are thrown. The total of all dice is the number of figures the target unit loses. This however is modified for range, first volley and cover. If this is the first time that unit has fired at that target in that location, then it is considered a first volley which is much more inaccurate than usual. If the firing unit is firing into the flank of the target unit then double the final casualty number up to the number of figures in the maximum range of the firing unit. There is a table at the end of the Firing procedure summary to account for these modifications. Use the following procedure to fire: Summary of Firing Procedure a. Players announce who is firing at whom. Players throw one die to determine the order of firing for each unit conducting musketry duel; with equal throws the volley is simultaneous; b. The winning player throws one die for each firing group of six figures. The total is the unmodified number of figures lost by the target; c. Deductions for range, cover and volley are made on the following table: Range In Deductions For Musketry Fire Smooth Bore Rifled Bore Repeater Ordinary Volley First Volley Ordinary Volley First Volley Ordinary Volley First Volley Inches Open Cover Open Cover Open Cover Open Cover Open Cover Open Cover 0-2 2 3 1 3 1 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 3-5 3 4 2 3 2 3 1 2 1 2 2 1 6-8 4 5 3 4 3 4 2 3 2 3 3 2 9-10 0 0 0 0 4 5 3 4 3 4 4 4 11-13 0 0 0 0 5 6 4 5 0 0 0 0 14-15 0 0 0 0 6 7 5 6 0 0 0 0 d. The deductions are applied to the unmodified dice roll to get the final number of figures lost by the target unit; e. Next add the increased casualties for any flanking fire attempt for the final number of figures lost by the target unit; and f. If the firing was not simultaneous, the target unit may now fire its surviving figures at the firing unit or another target as previously selected. Light Infantry Fire Light infantry fire independently per six figures at either a unit or a selected figure as applicable, thus the following tables are used to determine casualties caused by light infantry and skirmisher fire. There are five cases of light infantry fire and two cases of line infantry firing at light infantry. 11
Light Infantry and Skirmisher Fire Chart Case Die Roll to Kill at Range 0 to 8 8 to 10 10 to 15 Light Infantry Versus Line Infantry and Cavalry 5 or 6 6 6 Light Infantry Versus Generals, Artillerymen or Pioneers 6 Light Infantry Versus Line Infantry and Cavalry under Cover 6 Light Infantry Versus Light Infantry in the Open 5 or 6 6 6 Light Infantry Versus Light Infantry under Cover 5 or 6 6 Line Infantry Versus Light Infantry in the Open 4, 5 or 6 5, 6 6 Line Infantry Versus Light Infantry under Cover 5 or 6 6 6 Cavalry Charge Fire During a cavalry charge, the troopers discharge their pistols or shotguns just before crashing into the infantry line. Thus at this moment in the game complete a fire procedure on the musketry chart at close range, first volley with one die per twelve troopers and apply the results to the unit receiving the charge. This Cavalry charge fire is conducted on the smooth bore chart regardless of year and unit. Heavy Cavalry Breakthrough Sometimes when heavy crash into an infantry line a breakthrough is achieved by sheer weight of horseflesh pressing the line. This is a rare event but should be diced for; roll one die if a six is rolled there has been a breakthrough. All figures whose bases touch the bases of the cavalry are considered casualties and there is no need to roll for melee. In addition, the unit receiving the cavalry charge is split in half and the cavalry unit is placed between the two halves. The receiving unit is also considered routed without having to check morale. Elite or veteran units receiving a charge get a 1 die roll modifier and militia or poor units receiving a charge get a +1 die roll modifier. Defensive Charge Fire During a charge, the unit that is the target of a charge may fire defensively if it has not fired already in the turn. Thus at this moment in the game complete a fire procedure on the musketry chart at close range, first volley with one die per six figures and apply the results to the unit making the charge before it advances into melee. Melee Combat A melee is a simulation of hand to hand combat. There is much that happens during hand to hand combat but we shall keep it simple. Once two units (one friendly and one enemy close together and touch bases) a melee is declared. The total number of figures whose bases touch is totalled on each side. One die is assigned to each six figures (one die for each four elite figures). The dice are thrown and the results are compared. The difference in the results is the number of figures the side with the lower total dice roll loses to a maximum of the figures whose bases touch enemy figure bases. There are modifications to the dice roll, as follows: Melee Dice Modifier Case General present in melee (base touching) Attacking across a wall, fence or field works Attacking Downhill Versus Heavy Cavalry Versus Light Cavalry Result on Dice Roll Add 5 the side possessing Deduct 4 from Attacker Add 4 to Attacker Add 8 to the Cavalry side Add 4 to the Cavalry side 12
Post Melee, units involved in a melee that has been concluded must rest for two turns before taking anymore offensive action. They may defend if attacked in melee normally. Artillery For the period in question, there are three types of field artillery; howitzers, rifled cannon and field guns. Two types are smooth bore, the first is a short barrelled weapon with a high trajectory designed to fire roundshot and shells. The third is a longer barrelled weapon with a flatter trajectory designed to fire roundshot, shell and canister. The second is a rifled weapon designed to take advantage of the longer ranges of rifled technology. Artillery move at the rate of light infantry (special type of field artillery called horse artillery move at the cavalry pace but may not charge). In order to move artillery must be limbered or towed by a special wagon called a limber and horses. In order to fire artillery must be unlimbered or emplaced with crew in attendance. It takes one turn to limber and unlimber. Whenever the number of crew per gun falls below half the gun may fire only every second turn. Artillery Organization Within this war game all artillery are organized into batteries of two guns, two limbers and six artillery crewmen (three per gun) and one officer. There is a special kind of artillery served by infantry is often part of the regimental headquarters of an infantry regiment. These regimental gun platoons consist of four artillery crewmen, one limber and light howitzer. Regimental guns did not exist after 1812. Artillery battalions consist of two to 4 batteries and artillery brigades consist of four to 6 batteries. Guns of the period were classed by weight of shot in pounds. During the period in question four, six and eight pounders were the standard field guns, while four, six and twelve pounders were the standard howitzers. Four pounders have a range of 400 yards, six pounders have a range of 500 yards and eight pounders have a range of 600 yards, twelve pounders have a range of 1200 yards and rifled field artillery have a range of 1800 yards, these are the effective ranges not the maximum range. Howitzers have a range equivalent to three-quarters of the field gun of their weight of shot. Howitzers may not fire Rifled shot or canister. Artillery Manoeuvre Formations There are two basic formations that artillery units can use; limbered and unlimbered. Artillery must be in a formation if they are to move (limbered) and/or fire (unlimbered). Limbered Manoeuvre Formation - Limbered formation is the basic formation for artillery to take advantage of road movement. Artillery in limbered formation has their cannon hooked up to limbers and ammunition stowed in wagons. Artillery may not fire in limbered formation but they may move in column using road movement and cross-country movement. Direction of Travel Unlimbered Formation - Unlimbered formation is the basic formation for artillery to fire. Artillery in unlimbered formation has their cannon emplaced and ready for firing with ammunition ready and limbers sent to the rear. Unlimbered cannon may not move (Exception; four pounders with crew of four maybe pushed 20 yards per turn that they do not fire). Cannon may be adjusted to face another direction in a turn provided they do not fire, each turn they may be moved 45 degrees from their current facing. 13
Direction of Enemy It is important to note that in this game all artillery fire is conducted one gun at a time not full battery fire, so a battery may fire twice but both guns of the battery can only fire at the same target. Roundshot Artillery Ammunition Roundshot is a solid iron sphere that was driven down range with the intention of causing casualties or destroying property by its mass. Thus, roundshot will cause casualties amongst the target it is fired at and will cause casualties beyond the target until it comes to a stop. We thus need a measuring device to determine where the roundshot will land once it travels beyond the target. Use the following device: X A B C a b c a b c a b c The stick is made of what-have-you and is 30 inches long. The coloured sections in Group A are 4 inches long, in Group B are 2 inches long and Group C are 1 inches long. Thus section X is 9 inches long. A is called the Near Target group, B is called the Mid Target group and C is the Far Target group. First, resolve the roundshot fire for the target actually shot at using the chart below. Roll for each figure on the following table: Roundshot Kill Chart Group Die Roll to Kill Near 4, 5, 6 Mid 5 or 6 Far 6 Thus having determined the target where the roundshot will land, lay out the measuring stick with the left hand side of X section closest to target location and run the stick out in a straight line past the target in line with the direction of fire. If a roundshot is diced into the yellow section, it will bounce subsequently into the other two yellow sections along the stick prior to coming to a stop. First, you must determine where a roundshot firing at the target will land in the first group at that range. This is done with an targeting die roll; one or two equals red, three or four equals yellow and 5 or six equals olive. Next roll for the result for all figures under the rolled for colour in each section on the chart above. Roundshot fired by howitzer at any range does not bounce and strikes only the modified aimed at target. Use the shell template below to determine the target. Use the shell procedure below to determine where the shot will land. 14
Shell Artillery Ammunition The shell is a roundshot that is hollow and filled with gunpowder. It has hole in one end for a fuse. The fuse is cut to various lengths depending on distance to be travelled so that it explodes near or on the ground. The concussion of the explosion is the main killing effect as there is little shrapnel effect from the very thin shell. Thus, the radius of the explosion is the main killing ground. The high angle trajectory of the shell combined with the natural effects of windage will cause a deviation in the exact point the lands. This combined effect will cause a shell to fall short, left, right or long of the purpose target. This effect is highly variable do to the fact that there was no possible way to account for the natural weather effects and the vulgarities of black powder. This template shows how this could happen: Left Under X Over Right In the template above X is the intended point of aim. To account for this we need to use another template, one that follows this possible chance of round landing askew. Use the following template called the shell burst indicator: 2 Direction of Fire from Gun 3 6 5 4 The template above is four inches in diameter with a two inch diameter inner circle. The template is used by placing the six over intended target point. Next roll one die with the roll indicating where the round will actually land; a one rolled on the die represents a dud or misfire and no further action is required. Next adjust the six to the actual point of impact rolled. 15
With the template adjusted to the new point of impact, all figures inside the inner circle are considered to be in the burst radius of the shell explosion. Use the following table for each figure in the inner circle of the template: Shell Burst Kill Chart Dice Roll Effect 1, 2, or 3 No Effect 4, 5, or 6 Casualty Casualties are rolled for one figure at a time. Rifled Shell Artillery Ammunition The rifled shell is a conical shot that is hollow and filled with gunpowder. It has a hole in bottom for a fuse. The fuse is cut to various lengths depending on distance travelled so that it explodes near or on the ground. The concussion of the explosion is the main killing effect as there is little shrapnel effect from the very thin shell. Thus, the radius of the explosion is the main killing ground. The high angle trajectory of the shell combined with the natural effects of windage will cause a deviation in the exact point the lands. This combined effect will cause a shell to fall short, left, right or long of the purpose target. For rifled shells use the same template. Shells designed for rifled artillery are more effective at killing so use the following template: Shell Burst Kill Chart Dice Roll Effect 1 or 2 No Effect 3, 4, 5, or 6 Casualty Canister Artillery Ammunition Canister is a shot of smaller balls grouped into a case or glued together with resin. When fired the balls break apart and spread in a cone pattern out from the gun to attack all personnel within the cone regardless which side they are on. 3 inches 4, 5, 6 kills 5, 6 kills 6 kills 3 inches 4 inches 6 inches The template is used by placing the apex of the template at the barrel of the gun firing and extending the template out in a straight line from the barrel. The figures that are found to be inside the various sections of the template are rolled for on one die with the numbers inside the template corresponding to the number on the die needed to kill. Again the three sections of the template are named (in order) close, normal and long. Graphically, it presented as follows: 16
Canister Kill Chart Section Die Roll to Kill Close 4, 5, 6 Normal 5 or 6 Long 6 chart: Rifled artillery are not as effective as smooth bore when firing canister. For rifled artillery use this Rifled Canister Kill Chart Section Die Roll to Kill Close 5 or 6 Normal 6 Command And Control Command and control is exercised by commanders of Armies, Corps, Commands (early war Confederate term for Corps) Divisions and Brigades (which are the basic organizational formations above unit level) by being given one of three basic orders - Attack, Defend or Reserve. The commander figure must restrict himself to the normal command distance 150 yards of his units. Each of the basic orders has the following effects on units under the command of a formation commander given that order. Defend - The commander must deploy his units in a defensive posture around his location facing the known enemy or enemy board edge. The commander may move to rally units, but must return to his assigned position after completing this task. Units under defend orders can only move towards or change face towards visible enemy when it comes within range of them. Attack - A formation commander with attack orders will advance on a known enemy. The commander must advance on a stated line of advance. Similarly when orders change it is often easier to just state the 'line of advance', this system should make it difficult to abuse the knowledge of the enemies plans. In fairness, this order must be written down and known to the umpire or be challengeable by the opposing player. The commander must follow this line and must advance at least half his maximum movement allowance along it each turn. The commander has the option of halting (one turn only) or varying the speed of his advance, but not changing its direction. The formation may not react to nonvisible enemy. Reserve - Formations in reserve may not move or fire at all and all units are assumed to be limbered or in march column formation. They will suffer the penalties described above if 'caught' in such formations by the enemy. The advantage of being in reserve is that such formations can automatically change its orders and react to the commanding generals wishes. Normally a maximum of one in three formations (minimum one) may start the game in reserve. Changing Orders - Orders may only be changed by commanders to their own subordinates only and in reaction to events that the formation commander or higher commander can see. Higher commanders may only try to change one subordinate formations order each turn, if they are not in Reserve. Changing orders is attempted at beginning of the movement phase. The command must roll his command value on one die or less to change orders for a subordinate. The command value is probably best assigned based on the abilities of the historical generals performance. Assign a die roll modifier in ranges of one to six (six being the best and one being the worst) depending on the ability of the General Officer. Messengers Messengers are treated as cavalry except that they have no combat or morale capability. A messenger figure should be indicated by writing messenger on the figure base or picking a figure in a non-combat pose with no weapons in his hands. 17
Messengers move in the movement phase from their headquarters General to lower echelon commanders subordinate to that Headquarters by touching bases with these lower echelon commanders. By this method, the orders changes described in Command and Control are delivered. If a messenger is meleed with his messages maybe captured and read by the enemy. Messages can be intercepted, use this chart any time a messenger is meleed with: Messenger Combat Chart Die Roll Result 1 Missed Him messenger is step back and unaffected, he may continue on his route. 2-5 Turned Back messenger is picked up and placed next the headquarters General who sent him. Messenger may try again next turn. 6 Captured messenger is removed from table and the new order is revealed to enemy player Morale and Élan Next we come the morale. Morale is the sum total of the willingness of the soldiers of a unit to fight. Morale is affected by a host of factors; however, in our game we shall consider the three most important. Morale is affected in this game by; control, casualties and fate. Control is the presence and effectiveness of leadership on the field of battle good leaders can keep a unit fighting longer than bad and the death of leaders can quickly lead to panic among the fighting troops. Thus we have to create a system to account for leadership presence. To this end we assign each leader a point value of one for battalion and lesser officers and two for the regimental commander. In the volunteer regiments, the regimental commander is worth three points and the three subalterns are worth one point each. This gives us a total of 8 points of leadership. We have to assume that troops expect to take some casualties therefore we build in some leadership presence redundancy by requiring that leadership for morale purposes is calculated at 6 points. Leadership is calculated positively on the number of officers left not the number lost. The second factor in our unit morale is casualties. With growing dead and wounded and no success foreseeable at the soldier level, soldiers will become more and concerned with self-preservation (especially when combined with leadership losses). This will be reflected by assigning a total to losses amongst the units rank and file. Thus when one-sixth of the unit is lost deduct one point. When a quarter of the other ranks or enlisted men are lost deduct 2 points. When fifty percent of the other ranks are lost the unit must be retreated to the friendly player board edge regardless of the state of the unit morale. There it may be combined with other fifty percent units to form new units that may return to combat after four turns. The last factor in morale is the unpredictable elements of luck, chance or fate. This is simulated by a roll of the single die. Now none of this makes sense until you establish a baseline morale index for units. This is what we will now do. Taking a regular unit of good quality as the base unit and using the same range of number as there is on two dice, we get the following: Unit Morale Index Élan Index Militia 9 Poor 8 Green 7 Regular 6 Veteran 5 Elite 4 18
To illustrate let us take the following examples. Then we will discuss repeated morale failure. First, a regular unit in good order with two battalion officer casualties, one sixth of its other ranks lost and a fate die roll of four. The regular unit has a morale index of six. The officer casualties of battalion officers is 8 2 = 6 leadership points. One sixth of the other ranks lost equals 1 modifier and the fate roll is 4, thus: Morale Index 6 1 + 4 = 9 The result of nine is higher than the morale index of six; therefore, the unit passes its morale check. Second a green unit in good order with the regimental commander and two battalion officer casualties, one sixth of its other ranks lost and a fate die roll of three. The green unit has a morale index of seven. The officer casualties of the regimental commander and battalion officers is 8-2 2 = 4 leadership points. One sixth of the other ranks lost equals 1 modifier and the fate roll is + 3, thus: Morale Index 4 1 + 3 = 6 The result of six is lower than the morale index of seven; therefore, the unit does not pass its morale check. Next, an elite unit in good order with the regimental commander and two battalion officer casualties, one sixth of its other ranks lost and a fate die roll of three. The elite unit has a morale index of four. The officer casualties of the regimental commander and two battalion officers is 8-2 2 = 4 leadership points. One sixth of the other ranks lost equals 1 modifier and the fate roll is + 3, thus: Morale Index 4 1 + 3 = 6 The result of six is higher than the morale index of four; therefore, the unit passes its morale check. Finally, a regular unit in good order with the regimental commander and two battalion officer casualties, one quarter of the other ranks lost and a fate die roll of four. The regular unit has a morale index of six. The officer casualties of battalion officers is 8 4 = 4 leadership points. One quarter of the other ranks lost equals 2 modifier and the fate roll is 4, thus: Morale Index 4 2 + 4 = 6 The result of six is equal to the morale index of six; therefore, the unit passes its morale check. Probably the most important thing to note here that the better the unit quality the more casualties it can sustain and the longer it can fight. For units that fail a morale check they are turned about immediately and each movement phase they must move to the maximum movement allowance possible to the friendly board edge, this is called a rout. They may not be in any semblance of order and may not fire on the enemy. 19
Each successive turn the player owning a routing unit may attempt to rally the unit by applying an additional cumulative 1 rout modifier to the rally attempt to simulate panic. Taking our green unit from above it is one turn later and the unit is routing. This unit had the regimental commander and two battalion officer casualties, one sixth of its other ranks lost and this time a fate roll of 2. The green unit has a morale index of seven. The officer casualties of the regimental commander and battalion officers is 8-2 2 = 4 leadership points. One sixth of the other ranks lost equals 1 modifier and the fate roll is + 2, first turn of routing adds an additional 1 penalty, thus: Morale Index 4 1 +2-1 = 4 The result of four is lower than the morale index of seven; therefore, the unit does not pass its morale check and continues to rout. Next turn this green unit would test at a rout modifier of 2 and so on until it reached the rout modifier of 4 when, if it failed, the unit is immediately removed from the board. So why the rout modifier? Panic tends to cause panic and panic spreads rapidly. Once panic takes hold, it is very hard to stop it. However there is one positive modifier to all this if a General Officer touches the base of a routing unit he may add a +1 modifier to any morale check. Morale Modifiers Type Modifiers Rout First Turn -1 Rout Second Turn -2 Rout Third Turn -3 Rout Fourth Turn -4 General Officer Present +1 Terrain and Weather Effects Terrain is one of the most important factors in battle. The proper use of terrain in defending a position can lead to success as the improper use can lead to drastic failure. Terrain affects not only the way we fight but the movement of troops as well. A commander must know and understand the ground he is to move over and how it will effect his movement and the type of equipment he can use. Terrain adds or subtracts to the movement point allowance of a given unit by a percentage. Different units have different movement capabilities based upon their historical type of movement mechanism. Terrain rules reflect this historical factor. Terrain also affects intervisibility and cover that units find themselves in. Terrain Effects Terrain affects movement in the following ways: Road - Roads, both paved and dirt are considered open ground in combat purposes. Units in that are limbered or in column formation may use their road bonus movement allowance on roads. During periods of rain and mud all dirt roads should be considered open ground and do not receive road bonus to move along a road. Any unit moving along a road for its full movement allowance gets a road bonus of forty yards or 2 inches in movement rate. Forest - Forest is all groupings of trees and is considered soft cover in combat. Forest is considered a line of sight/fire obstacle, thus visibility is one-half the stated scenario visibility in a forest. 20
Forest has no effect on personnel movement if skirmishing. Personnel in other formations reduce their movement allowance by fifty percent. There are two sub types of forest: a. Forest with undergrowth the best way to simulate undergrowth is to combine the effects of Forest and Scrub into one. In effect, undergrowth is scrub inside a forest. b. Orchard an orchard is a forest where the trees are lined up in neat rows. There is no undergrowth. The rows of trees provide natural lines of sight and fire, thus no reduction on visibility is necessary. There is no protection from overhead sighting attempts. Swamp - Swamps have soft, watery ground that affects movement while a figure is moving in it. Swamps provide cover to infantry but not to cavalry. Swamps are not line of sight/fire obstacles. Cavalry, Infantry and skirmishers pay fifty percent of their movement rate. Wheeled vehicles may not enter. Hill - Hills are an obstacle to line of sight/fire, yet the occupation of hilltops can be a benefit to line of sight/fire. Cavalry, Infantry and skirmishers pay twenty five percent of their movement rate. Wheeled vehicles pay fifty percent of their movement allowance. Scrub - Scrub provides an obstacle to line of sight for personnel figures only. Personnel must be within twenty-five yards of one another to spot another figure. Cavalry, Infantry and skirmishers pay twenty five percent of their movement rate. Wheeled vehicles pay fifty percent of their movement allowance. Field - Fields are similar to scrub in terms of height and cover advantages so use the scrub rule but simulate fields. In the wintertime, fields are considered open ground. Shallow Water - Shallow water obstacles consist of small streams that provide no cover. Cavalry, Infantry and skirmishers pay twenty five percent of their movement rate. Wheeled vehicles pay fifty percent of their movement allowance to enter and fifty percent to leave as well they pay fifty percent to move across. Deep Water - Deep-water obstacles have steep banks that act as a trench for personnel units only as far as a cover is concerned. Movement-wise, cavalry, Infantry and skirmishers pay fifty percent of their movement rate. Wheeled vehicles pay fifty percent of their movement allowance to enter and fifty percent to leave as well they pay seventy five percent to move across. If deep water is specified in a scenario as extra deep no one may enter deep water except by boat. Open Ground - Flat open ground is free of contours and vegetation and provides no obstacle to line of sight. All units using open ground move at the normal overland movement rate. Buildings Buildings perform an aesthetic function in the game and may not be entered into by any game figures. Buildings do act as a line of sight/line of fire obstacle. Combat in towns is implemented using skirmishers, as formed bodies would not work. Walls/Fences Walls/fences provide cover to figures who occupy a position directly behind it. Walls are not a line of sight/fire to a figure directly behind it, but are a line of sight/fire obstacle to a figure not behind the wall/fence, but attempting to sight pass the wall/fence. Walls/fences require fifty percent of an infantry movement allowance to cross. Cavalry pay twenty five percent of their movement allowance. Wheeled vehicles may not cross a wall/fence except at a gate. Hedges hedges provide cover to figures who occupy a position directly behind it. Hedges are not a line of sight/fire to a figure directly behind it, but are a line of sight/fire obstacle to a figure not behind the hedge, but attempting to sight pass the hedge. Hedges specified as high are considered a line of sight 21