Review Rebuttal:

Grande Bataille, Grande Victoire

by J. W. Brown, Absinthe Press

I cannot let the review of Grande Bataille, Grande Victoire (#57) go without clarifying a few points put forth by the reviewer. Before I do so, I must say that GB,GV is meant to give the average "gamer" a reasonable framework in which to learn more about the said (Franco-Prussian War - ED) era.

The fact that it has been streamlined purposely, into a game for "easy play" has inevitably left the structure somewhat open-ended. this is standard for games designed in this fashion. There are those of us, many in fact judging from all the letters I have received, who just wish to be given the nuts and bolts - who want to game i an easy going, gentlemanly manner. I believe the reviewer has missed the spirit in which the rules were written and intended to be played.

It is true that the cavalry is penalized in this game, but not overly so. Historically, cavalry that massed to charge infantry in this era had to be LUCKY to pull off a successful charge. Well, as in history, you'll have to be lucky in GB,GV. What's further, the casualties inflicted in this game reflect a downgrading of a unit's overall performance. It is a well known fact that during baaftle a cavalry unit is much more fragile in performance than is infantry. As for skirmishers, I'm also inclined to withdraw them under certain circumstances, which by the way the rules do allow for certain elite types can evade. Skirmishers will make a fight of it, yes, if you put them in that situation, your option.

At the very least you can rout the unit away. the point made about frontages is really misguided here. Is not 14/16yds approximately one inch? The reviewer's methodology is faulty in that there is more to finding a frontage than using the OPTIMUM firing formation and then approximating the frontage to 40 or 50 yards.

Since when do units consistantly fire at an optimum? The reviewer seems to have a real problem with the idea of averaging. My frontages and ranges are well within the bounds of reason. talk of this nature is cheap considering it makes little or no difference as to the enjoyment of the game! Also, no mention was made of the supplemental edition to be released in early '93 it will include advanced rules and much more. Lastly, GB,GV was not designed for competitive play, i.e. tournaments, or for "rules lawyers" both of which I abhor. These rules and gaming in general, for me, should be used as a tool to furthering an individual's knowledge of an era. The rules work well as written, they are not perfect, I'll be the first to admit, but for those who wish to be given challenging situations with the basic tools they work just fine.

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