Houserules Napoleonic III

Reviewed by Bill Rutherford

By Brian F. Stokes

At first glance, the thing that strikes the reader is organization. The sixteen-page table of contents and seven-page index are indications of the author's emphasis on clarity. He is, of course, caught in the dilemma of detail versus playing time. In the introduction he explains that this is a simplified version of previous Houserules and says, "…the goal of getting a game 'done' in one sitting has become far more important than trying to capture every specific nuance of every weapon, every soldier, every general."

Even so, this is a detailed set of rules. At 96 pages of text and 24 pages of appendices and charts, beer and pretzel players may find it a bit daunting. That said, however, it is an excellent set of basic rules. There are no concepts of telescoping time or cards to determine the sequence of play. What Brian has done is construct the in-house rules that we all wrote when we started wargaming. What makes his different is that he has gone on to do the research and add the detail that we never got around to. Fortunately, he is an excellent writer and organizer. His rules are clear, concise, and understandable.

To give you an idea of how the rules work, let's take a quick look at three things that set rules apart; fire, melee and morale. Both fire and melee are handled in a similar fashion, here. A chart assigns a combat value to each unit and dice are rolled, depending on the number of figures in the unit. Casualties depend on beating the modified combat value. Morale is much the same with a chart generated basic morale rating. The player uses one chart to adjust for the number of casualties and another for situational modifiers. Then he can roll the dice. In the morale section overview, Brian wrote, "This is one of the 'biggies.' Everything done on a battlefield has one purpose-to destroy the opponent's will to fight."

Needless to say, morale is checked often. Finally, a few words about movement. It is sequential. More important, though, is a unique feature to differentiate the fast moving French from lumbering others. "Each unit is assigned a speed in movement points…" The points can be converted to inches depending on what ground scale you're using. Then, there's a chart that outlines how much of the movement is required to change formation. There is much more to these rules, such as special sections on engineers, cavalry control for the British and special weaponry.

All in all, this is a well-crafted and well-organized set of rules. Brian has given much attention to detail. In addition, there is a wealth of information in the army organizational charts, which are included. It is a bit overly dependent on charts for my taste, but I must confess to being one of those beer and pretzel players who prefers hearing the roll of dice to the shuffle of statistical charts. Our local wargaming club has two and half-hours each week to run a complete game.

I doubt we'll be able to use Brian's rules. Having said that, though, I would recommend purchasing Houserules, Napoleonic III. First of all, if you like detail, you'll enjoy reading it even if you never play it. If you're not a detail person, you still might want a copy. Brian has done a great job of explaining how things work and why he made them the way he did. Consequently, if you're starting on a set of your own houserules or maybe already have some that need improving, this is a good place to start. Not only is it an example of how gaming systems should be written, but Brian has already ironed out some of the thornier problems of transposing Napoleonic battles onto the tabletop. At $24.95, it's well worth the investment. Available from Brookhurst Hobbies 12188 Brookhurst St., Garden Grove, CA 92840. (714) 636-3580 www.brookhursthobbies.com -

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