"Sharp Practice - First Look" Topic

I had my first ‘proper' game of Sharp Practice yesterday, having had the rules lying around for years: in the vein of better late than never, please see link as 28mm Perry French and Austrians slug it out in a small encounter.

Interesting post and observations. I've only ever played SP v.2 and have to say I like it a lot, from what I understand there are a number of significant changes from v.1 to v.2 which may have resolved some of the issues you may have had. I suspect v.2 benefits from the experience of players and the evolution of the Lardies thinking on rules and mechanics.

I daresay you are right and v2 is better. I will try and have a look at it at a show if I get the chance. Not that I dislike v1 in any case!

Well, that was unexpected! Very cool, but unexpected. I own Sharpe Practice as well, and they seem a fine set of rules, just difficult for me conceptually, particularly the idea of these small bands of troops moving about in formation. I love the idea of Napoleon skirmish, it's just tough for me as Napoleonics is so much more grand in my mind's eye (which is why I love your 6mm stuff so much).

Nevertheless, excellent skirmish, thank you for sharing.

V/R,
Jack

Thanks Jack. I put this on the table because I had just finished putting the trees on CD bases so I might as well chuck together a quick game!

There is a lot to take in for me on the conceptual side of these rules, and I am still working lots of it out in my head. As I mentioned in my notes, there is definitely an argument that the rules are really better thought of as 1:5 or 1:10 skirmish rules, rather than 1:1 – but then there might be an argument for doing the whole thing in 6mm instead and put it back to 1:1…whatever, there is a lot to like in there, good fun stuff.

…just difficult for me conceptually, particularly the idea of these small bands of troops moving about in formation.

I am in two minds about this. I am pretty sure that most fighting would be done in loose order, but since I was made to march to the NAAFI in formation in the late 1990s, I guess it is possible that small foraging parties might well move about in formation too and might decide to fire in line in the right circumstances…but I genuinely don't know.

Certainly, and don't misunderstand, I'm not questioning your decision to do it, or even if it was actually done in real life, just the idea that the rules certainly encourage it. If I recall correctly, they devoted quite a few pages to a close order drill manual!

And again, I'm not able to say whether that's appropriate or not, just that when I tried playing it felt like simply ‘bath-rubbing' real Napoleonics.

I've enjoyed others in this vein, such as The Sword and the Flame, Song of Drums and Shakos, and Rebels and Patriots, but they are much more gamey.

I don't have the figures for it, but I could definitely see doing Napoleonic skirmishing with large groups in loose order, as a part of a larger battle, and I would love to do something similar for War of 1812, or some pirate-type stuff, I just don't seem to have much imagination for it and worry it would become too ‘samey' and I'd lose interest…

V/R,
Jack

And again, I'm not able to say whether that's appropriate or not, just that when I tried playing it felt like simply ‘bath-rubbing' real Napoleonics.

Ah, I see what you mean. Yes, there might be an element of that perhaps. I think my own game was too small to quite feel like that but with more groups made up into formations then perhaps it would. It might not have a feeling too dissimilar from Charge!

I don't have the figures for it, but I could definitely see doing Napoleonic skirmishing with large groups in loose order, as a part of a larger battle, and I would love to do something similar for War of 1812, or some pirate-type stuff, I just don't seem to have much imagination for it and worry it would become too ‘samey' and I'd lose interest…

I will see if I can dig out Flintlock & Ramrod. IIRC, it was designed for that kind of thing…