"Strategy and Tactics 1866 Koeniggraetz- anyone play them?" Topic

I picked this set of rules up at Games of Berkeley two days ago and give it a run through yesterday. The ruleset came with a copy of Strategy and Tactics magazine, with everything required to play included, chits and rules, basically. I was intrigued by them- the game has a few interesting systems, especially a mechanism of flipping the chit to represent step loss, which intrigues me for use in my own rules. That said, the combat resolution system used was really janky and difficult to use-a whole lot of "apply this result, but not if x happens, then ignore the parenthetical result [unless factor y]. Etc. Probably they bit off more than they could chew with these given the compacted format of the rules. There were also definitely some blind spots- no decrease in artillery effectiveness over range, for instance.

I did find the artillery rules to be quite interesting though. Arty was quite powerful, and maybe this is a reflection of 1866 as opposed to 1812. It's effects were different from most games though- bombardment mostly has the effect of forcing back brigade-sized elements and disrupting them, so that they have difficulty getting to contact. They rarely did any appreciable damage however- units in this game tend to fight until they are forced to retreat or route.

Another interesting feature is unit recovery. Units in this game are never actually destroyed. Even when removed from the board they are placed on the turn counter, which moves in 90 minute increments. At the started of each turn and number of "destroyed" units may role for morale, and if successful, they can re-enter the board either next to the army supply train marker, or else at the local units army command marker. I've never seen a reinforcement/recovery rule that worked like this, and it really seemed to work properly. It was the feature of the game that seemed most original and well-done.

These rules also mentioned that there is an earlier, Napoleonic version out there. Has anyone ever played that set? I'd be interested in hearing how it might compare.

Prussian artillery was neither powerful nor effective. The Austrians dominated with that arm. They were usually close to the battleground unlike the Prussians. Austrian brigades were decimated in combat. Even when they win. The needlegun would shoot them up. Captured were also high. Combined with some nationalities like the Italians who would just surrender after minimal losses.

Thanks

John

I am suprised by your comment about Italian troops, I have not run across any sources that indicate that they were more prone to surrender. I would be interested to hear on what you base your comment.

The Prussian artillery in the S&T game is almost a non-factor- the Austrian guns are rather ferocious though.

Speaking of prisoners. In most historical miniature war-games prisoners are a non-factor, but in these rules they're much more common. First, each command has an HQ that every unit uses to trace a "safe path of retreat" back to. If this path is blocked, the unit fights at a reduced rate, must roll for movement, and has a serious morale penalty. Furthermore, if you successfully attack you get an advance move, and if the attack was "coordinated" meaning that multiple troops from different hexes took part on the attacking side, then those coordinating troops also get an advance on the flanks. This means that troops can advance quickly over the safe retreat paths of enemy units, cutting them off from their HQs. This can then result in prisoners being taken- it's relatively easy in these rules for a brigade to get cut off and forced to retreat. Prisoners have the effect of slowing down the Prussian advance which really can be a bother because in this battle speed is of the essence for the Prussians.

I think its really quite an interesting system, and some of the rules it uses would certainly make good additions to a model war-game.

The Prussian infantry are overpowering in the game- the Austrians don't have much of a chance there. The Austrian's strength is really in their artillery and field position. Even with that, the Austrians main goal in the battle is to avoid being totally destroyed, so they can attempt to dictate better terms of their surrender.

This is a much superior game, the Austrians actually have a pretty decent chance to win, IF they reorganize on the during the first turn and move on from there.

link

There is also a newly released boardgame from Compass Games, entitled "1866".