"Field of Battle" Topic

Hi…..

Can anyone give me a run down of these rules for ACW and even Napoleon era war games.

Check these links (some of which have further links to battle reports…)

TMP link

link

TMP link

SYW game played with Piquet:Field of Battle --> link

Nap game played with Piquet: Field of Battle --> link

…and another:
link

..and another:
link

..and still another:
link

Napoleonic FOB game run at a convention:
link

Report of an ACW game using Field of Battle that I ran at Historicon 2007:
daveswargameblog.blogspot.com

Yahoo! Group for Piquet games, including Field of Battle:
link

--Dave

Piquet is a generic way of handling the biggest problem in warfare.. the C&C aspect. Thus, each 'era' has little
tweaks (gun ranges, special weapons, etc) that go with it,
but the overall rules are the same..

FOB is a 'simplified' or '2nd generation' Piquet.

That said.. I've been able to 'walk thru' a book on
Chickamaugua and explain all the actions in FOB terms..
ie. the actual battle could be viewed as a battle report
for an FOB game. That impressed *me* anyway..:-)

Thanks for all the links Dave. So do you guys like the system. Are they fast play or are they very detailed? I prefer not to have rules be to detailed as they risk becoming tedious.

Not detailed .. in fact, quite simple.

Once you know the basics, they play fast.

LOVE the system. It's because of FoB I've gotten into AWI, Napoleonics and Sudan War……

I like the system too. It gives you a bit more predictibility than regular PK but still leaves a lot of chaos in the game. If there were one set of rules I could play for this era, FoB would be it.

Ive read that in the original Piquet at times players can become inactive. And one side over runs the other. Does this happen in FOB as well or has this been modified in FOB.

Moose Head, that has indeed been modified in FoB. Both sides get similar amount of initiative, compared with totally variable amounts in regular Piquet.

FOB is a great game and addressed some of the issues that some people had with original PK. I was a fan of the system from the very beginning, but I think FOB is a very good evolution of the system.

Thanks for the help guys. Im looking for a system that covers all the eras mostly though Napoleon and ACW. So i was looking at this system. Another question i read on the yahoo group that cavalry might be too weak. Is this really a problem or perhaps a misunderstanding of the rules?

I doubt very much that it a misunderstanding of the rules. Rather, I think it's a misunderstanding of the historical use of Napoleonic cavalry.

Dave so you think the cavalry is well represented in the game?

I enjoy FoB quite a bit and I agree with Spqrdave. You can't use cavalry in FoB like FOW armor and go tearing around the battlefield bashing everything willy-nilly. You will run out of cavalry very quickly that way.

You first soften up the enemy properly with artillery, work your cavalry into a favorable position and when the enemy is weakened then let them go forward.

Yes, the rules are simple but they still do a fine job of representing the problems of command on the black powder battlefield.

It was my thread over on the Yahoo! group. The problem happened when my brother (who isn't a Rank and File gamer) made an ill advised charge with some Cavalry. He was expecting them to run roughshod over the infantry they charged (like they do in the movies), not taking into account that the Infantry was loaded and ready to volley fire. When his Cav unit was shot to pieces he didn't understand why his charge failed.

In my opinion, his charge was ill-timed, and really, with proper handling, Cavalry units can be very effective. Buy FoB…you won't be sorry….

Ahhhhh ok perfect. I will buy the set and give them a go. Do they work just as well for ACW?

Yep, we have played several ACW games with them. Great set with the proper FEEL. There is also a FREE ACW tool that allows you to generate stats for your units (Artillery, Infantry and Cavalry) based on the theater and year of the War. Excellent little tool available at the Yahoo group. I wouldn't use another set for most of my battles between 1700 and early WWI.

Thanks,

John

Moose Head,

I think that FoB gives a good Napoleonic combined arms feel, not just that it represents cavalry well on the table. Rules appreciation is such a subjective subject (hmmm, interesting grammatically, no?). What I do appreciate with FoB is that a player needs to make tactical decisions based not on predictability but on proper (and I use that term hesitantly) combined arms tactics. Of course, my view of proper combined arms tactics is, I'm certain, much different than that of many others. Predictability for me is a huge turn-off in rules systems. This is probably why PK systems appeal to me. PK (and FoB) does not, as many believe, introduce chaos into a game. Instead, it introduces un-predictability. Not the same thing at all.

cheers,

Dave

Spqrdave…

Thats a great response and thank you. Thats exactly what im looking for. I play crossfire For the WWII theatre and i like how it encompasses quite the same thing as what you described for FOB. I was just worried with this set about the inactivity of players and how one side can over run another side. But i was told that this problem has been solved so im defintely picking up the rule set.

Thank You.

The problem of one side being inactive for a long time that was a possibility in the original Piquet system has been removed from FOB.

The problem of one side being inactive for a long time that was a possibility in the original Piquet system has been removed from FOB.

Well -- depends on how you to define "a long time". True, it's nothing like in Classic Piquet, but you can still have 11 card runs where your opponent gets lots of Moves and Firepowers while you get Lulls and Melee cards.

An 11 card run is the absolute extreme, and after dozens of games I have experienced it twice.
Each side gets the same amount of inititaive, but, due to the quality and obvious randomness of drawing from a card deck, not neccessarily the same opportunities.
I admit, I play these rules pretty much exclusively and find it hard to play other rules.

I dont know much about Piquets' games other than they are card driven. What level Regimental, brigade are these rules written for? I have looked around and cannot find this info. Thanks in advance for any help.

Each unit represents about a Battalion. You can run each as a regiment if you prefer.

Thanks,

John

Thanks John.

I really didn't enjoy these rules the last, and only time, I played them. I have played other Piquet variants as well and didn't really like them either.

We were playing Napoleonic and to be honest I didn't feel like I was playig a Napoleonic game. I was playing a game, for sure, but it just didn't feel like it.

Our gaming group has taken these rules (and their WWII version) to our hearts and they are the only set we play now. They are often frustrating and annoying (when the cards you need to deliver that killer blow just or plug a gap in your line just won't turn up), certainly challenging (you have to keep your overall plan pretty flexible as you will rarely be able to put your plan into action as you totally desire) but this adds to the realism as you are only able to control the battle in some phases and are reacting in others. We have all thoroughly enjoyed our games and found it really is a case of making fewer mistakes than your enemy and seizing the opportunity (it will arrive at some point) to gain victory.

These rules won't suit everyone, especially those who prefer to have greater control over their toys, but each to his own. If you don't want to play games that are predictable from deployment then give them a go.

Anyone used FoB for Franco Prussian Battles?

Results?

The rules author (Brent Oman) playtested FoB with FPW games (28mm figs) so they must work. He also recently ran an 1859 Franco-Austrian game. Pics are on the Piquet Yahoo! group in the Files section (not the Photos section). --> link

(Note-the files that DON'T say "WWII" are the Franco Austrian War pics).

I'm currently basing up my old 15mm FPW figs for FoB. I'll need to paint more Prussians, tho'

Yeah, a group of us are starting on our FPW and APW 15mm figs. Of course, that's between the WWI and Naps and AWI for Field of Battle.

:-D

Love the rules!

Thanks,

John