"Wargaming Nineteenth Century Europe 1815-1878 " Topic

"Neil Thomas presents a set of fast-playing rules for wargaming the conflicts that reshaped Europe in the period 1815-78. This often-neglected period includes such significant conflicts as the Crimean War, the Italian Risorgimento, the wars of Bismarck's Prussia against Denmark, Austro-Hungary and France and ends with the Russo-Turkish war. Tactically, it saw armies struggle to adapt Napoleonic doctrines to incorporate important technological advances such as breech-loading rifles, greatly improved artillery and the first machine guns.

A selection of generic scenarios, covering flank attacks, pitched battles and meeting engagements, is supported by army lists for twenty-eight different armies. There are also twelve historical scenarios, ranging from the Battle of the Alma in the Crimean War to Sedan in 1870, the decisive battle of the Franco-Prussian War, each with historical background, deployment map, orders of battle and any special rules for that engagement."

See here
link

Amicalement
Armand

Nice find. Some of my favorite wars.

Merci, Armand. C'est formidable.

Not a new set of rules but one for which I have an overview of the mechanisms. If interested, see:

link

I have a review and game on my Blog (Leadhead PhD). A good introduction to the period and a fast play game, as a first stepping stone to more complex games and a deeper exploration of the period.

Glad you like it guys!. (smile)

Amicalement
Armand

I have just played scenario 1 from Neil's book and I must say how much I enjoyed the rules. They played every easily with few grey areas (e.g. I assumed that retreating 12cm/inches after losing a melee ignored any obstructions on the way back – which isn't clear in the rules. It is surprising how much is actually packed into the simple ruleset where everything is covered, after careful reading. It is good that Neil takes time to explain his mechanisms in detail. The only thing I have changed is where an infantry or cavalry unit loses 3 bases it cannot attack or go forward anymore but may retreat and defend if attacked. I had a cavalry unit with one bases charging around rather suicidally at one stage in the battle which didn't feel right somehow, but that is about the worst I can do to tinker, and also I liked your review Armand. Thanks. Peter

I like these rule.
One question -do people use the ranges etc for all base sizes. I do 28mm on 90mm bases and double everything.
This would include the 30cm squares on the scenario maps which i assume are based on 15mm base sizes.
Any thoughts?

I am not sure it matters much. I use our 42mm shiny toy soldiers on 100mm bases and just convert the cms to inches for both movement and ranges. The main thing is to be consistent and keep the ratios the same thoughout.

Gaming some of the lesser known wars has become easier in recent years