""One-Hour Wargames" Design Limits Listed" Topic

Interesting ideas.

In my own rules, roads are only a bonus to wheeled vehicles. So, chariots, carts, wagons, etc. Otherwise, infantry and horse get no extra movement bonus.

My reasoning is that the units are only moving as fast as the slowest unit in their administrative unit IE Brigade, division, wing, etc. Besides which, units on roads were ORDERED to keep to one side so as to allow room for wheeled vehicles such as messengers and units moving to the rear on the road, wouldn't disrupt the flow of traffic.

I am currently looking at using Neil Thomas' One Hour Wargames rules as a base for a convention game with Alexander vs Porus on a large table.

Mostly, I want a set of rules that is quick to learn and understand, needs a minimum time of briefing, and that I could, conceivably, license buy and send the portion I am using as a pdf to the players ahead of the game for them to read and get a handle on.

Overall I like these rules, and I will reread your own mods a couple times and comment later on when I have had a chance to comprehend all of them

Thanks for the post!

Thanks for sharing your OHW ideas with us. I'd like to print them out and have a really good look at them.

Thanks for sharing, I look forward to digesting this over the weekend.

"In my own rules, roads are only a bonus to wheeled vehicles. So, chariots, carts, wagons, etc. Otherwise, infantry and horse get no extra movement bonus."

You must live in a city :) Walking along a road is less effort allowing you to travel faster. A road also allows guys to travel at uniform pace -- allowing formations to be maintained.

A road is hugely easier than cross country. Even a trail is significantly faster. "Open" ground will grow up to waist deep grass by midsummer.

What I mean when I say "roads are only a bonus to wheeled vehicles" is that formations of troops won't be moving faster on roads than troops in fields, normally, because you don't want to get caught out ahead of your supports.

Wheeled vehicles don't move well or quickly, normally, over open ground, at least not faster than a walking man.

Our games normally start with to sides deployed and battle imminent. Why then go trotting down the road? You want to advance when everyone else does, or not at all, and a road or track, while nice for commercial traffic, will restrict formations to maybe 4 across, or 6 maximum.

You cannot use a road while deployed in line, or phalanx, or as a mob.

The only time a road is useful for moving troops or wheeled vehicles, is when it's been raining and the fields are poor and the ground soggy, OR, when you are not expecting an encounter with the enemy and are moving from one place to another.

BUT, when within a day's march or so of the enemy, units would start to deploy into a base formation, leaving the roads open for couriers, wheeled vehicles, etc. Troops can march across country in column pretty much as easily, and as quickly as on a road. The only times it becomes problematical are when there are fences or hedgerows in the way, the weather has turned bad, or there are lots of other impedimenta like small streams, creeks, rocky ledges, etc.

It makes sense. I think we are both talking about the same thing. I am merely stating that roads, with very few exceptions, shouldn't "help" movement on the battlefield.

While maneuvering towards deployment areas, on campaign, etc, then yes, it does make things easier, but not as much as you might think. If the ground is firm or has only seen light rain, then the foot can travel as easily, or more so, on ground than on the road, regardless of whether the surface is paved, hardened, etc.

If there is a very soft ground, then yes, it makes sense to stick to the road(s).

As to Longstreet, he had to countermarch 2 divisions and redirect the route so that delayed his actual deployment for more than a couple hours. It was about 3pm before his attack actually got underway.