Napoleonic tabletop wargaming

Wargamers Arsenal

with over 26 000 napoleonic tabletop figurines to choose from, Wargamers Vienna are playing the rule-set “In the Grand Manner”. One figurine represents 20 actual soldiers, cavalry 1:30, artillery 1:2, all in 28 mm.

The rules we use are slightly modified In the Grand Manner (ITGM) originally drafted by Peter Gilder and since reissued and rewritten by Mike Ingham and Gerry Elliott. They are geared at fighting large battles on large tables with multiple commanders and 25/28mm Napoleonic tabletop figurines. Gerry has also written his own set of Napoleonic rules (In the grandest Manner – ITgrM) for 10mm figures and also very large tables and truly humunguos numbers of figures as he uses 108 for ONE french btn..

The key features are:

Simultaneous movement.
No order system (with several players per side (we’ve had battles in Vienna with 2 to 5 player per side) command confusion arises naturally).
Firing and melees based on fire tables.
INF btns. use roster sheets to keep track of casualities.
Cavalry Melee uses buckets of dice.
3d6 Morale rolls.
Normally, we use a non-playing umpire.

The basic sequence of play runs:

Advance clock.
Do compulsory moves (retreats, routs, pursuits).
Declare charges, chargers then targets test morale with 3d6 and some modifiers trying to pass a number based essentially on how many chaps you’ve ‚lost‘ (dead, wounded, run away, gone to ‚bring some more ammo‘). INF can’t charge CV.
Move charges and charge responses (INF can’t countercharge, CV can,
INF could retreat or rout from a charge).
Normal movement (even numbered turns left to right within your command, odd turns right to left).
Skirmisher Fire.
Artillery Fire.
INF Fire.
Defenders shoot at chargers (there is no support fire by other units – the socalled ‚hyperspace rule‘).
CV vs. INF incl. Breakthroughs.
Melees (both CV fights and INF melees could last for three rounds resolved one after the other with the possibility for reinforcement in each round and a morale test at the end of each round for the losing side).
Morale tests (for seeing routing friends and taking casualities) this includes Rallying from
Rout/Retreat.

I used to think that they were user friendly and clearly written compared to say Newbury Fast Play, WRG Napoleonic, etc. I still think so but nowadays there is a myriad of rules to select from. Of course, the modern gamer seems to want to finish games in a couple of hours. ITGM is designed for weekend-long games, 10 – 12 hour long battles which will last from 16 to 24 turns, sometimes longer. Naturally, if one side gets really trounced than the game can be called sooner.

The rules have a strong ‚napoleonic‘ feel, rewarding combined arms and mass as well as the best use of terrain. The ‚quality‘ of your little tin soldiers plays a role, even an important one – particular for breakthrough roll of CV vs. INF and morale – but is not the overwhelming focus. Combined arms and mass are usually more relevant. There is an element of command control as you need your generals within command distance (12“, normally) in order to declare charges and reinforce melees. Also they give you an extra +1 on your morale rolls.

Napoleonic tabletop figurines — Erzherzog Karl (Charles), Elite Miniatures

Skirmishers are both a nuisance and the best shooters on the table, they can even soak off a few casualities thus improving your chances of surviving the approach into charge reach. But usually, they are gone pretty quickly as they operate in very small batches.

Infantry run the full spectrum from useless (Spanish, Turks, Militia) to the real Mc Coy (Guard or the 95th Rifles in Open Order). But remember the best Guard btn. can usually be burried under a wave of Militia! Artillery rules the battlefield if well sited. But it is a bit fragile since batteries have a much smaller no. of gunners than btns. have grunts. Also a lucky counterbattery roll could destroy a gun severly weakening its fire.

Cavalry, particular Lancers, Cuirassiers or Guard Heavy, can dominate a sector for a time riding down lines or columns but usually bouncing off squares. Of course, that can render those vulnerably even to the weakest INF trundling along the side of the horses. Regimental charges on guns can get into these with uniformly fatal results. Even Light CV can be useful in ‚soaking off‘ a btn. when the infantry clash is about to start or massed against artillery. However, as you’d expect they are totally inept in villages or woods which usually are liberally sprinkled on a napoleonic battlefield as CV don’t fire in ITGM.

Our collection is in large part from these three great producers of Napoleonic tabletop figurines:

French Army

Our French army: Left Flank a lancer brigade; heavy cavalry: cuirassiers and carabiniers, in the back: guard cavalry; reserve artillery; guard divisions; and here: 8 infantry divisions containing 9 battalions each.