For those of you unfamiliar with System 7, it is a set of rules and counters for simulating Napoleonic warfare. The rules come from GDW's Fire and Steel rules, modified to reflect the reduced scale of the System 7 counters. The counters are used to represent the units in play, rather than the lead figures usually found in miniatures. They are much less expensive than equivalent numbers of figures and occupy less storage space. Unit identification is printed right on the counters, which, if dropped, will not break. In appearance the counters are very pleasing. The basic uniform color is used for the counter, and the predominant facing color is used for a small stripe down the left side of the counter. The result is quite attractive and colorful, with none of the effort of painting large numbers of figures.

The rules themselves are quite good at simulating Napoleonic warfare. While a bit loose in some parts, the rules cover all the important aspects of fighting for the period. The system is well suited to multi-commander play, especially if a limited communications rule is used. An experienced player can handle up to a division of troops, but this requires a considerable effort. A half dozen players can fight a good- sized battle, without requiring too much space or time.

When discussing tactics, the desired end result is, of course, victory. I have found that there are two basic kinds of victory - victory by morale and victory by destruction of the opposing player's forces. At first these may not seem very different, but a victory by morale can occur with relatively few losses.

Due to the fear of disaster morale rule, the loss of a few key units will render the other units of that side useless. Many units will take morale moves, and intact units will get blocked out by the panic-stricken rabble rushing past. This can often be precipitated by a sudden cavalry charge against a vulnerable unit, such as a deploying artillery battery. The destruction of the vulnerable unit will cause others nearby to check morale, possibly triggering a chain reaction in the rest of the army.

The cavalry units involved in the initial action can then soundly trounce some of the nearby shaken units, and soon the enemy's position has completely deteriorated. This method wins battles but does little damage to an enemy force. In a campaign situation, it probably would be indecisive.

Victory by destruction of the enemy's forces is more satisfying. It is also more difficult to achieve, requiring a careful coordination of your forces and use of some of the elements of victory by morale. To destroy a large portion of the enemy army, it must be trapped. You must place units behind enemy lines and prevent his escaping to accomplish this.

A breakthrough is required to get units behind enemy lines. An attack similar to that in victory by morale is used, but the bulk of the enemy forces must be engage in this case. If not engaged, the enemy could use nearby units to plug the hole, or simply withdraw as in a victory by morale. If the enemy units are engaged, breakthrough can be exploited to trap and destroy the engaged units.

Classical Battles

This is the principle of classical frontal battles - engage the enemy along the entire front, draw in his reserves, then break his line with your own reserves at some weak point, and then destroy the relatively immobile engaged units. The other classic battle, the flank attack, is more difficult to achieve without strategic rules and movement or a referee. Players will generally see each other's forces and counter each other's threats, and the edge of the playing area can often be used as an artificial flankguard.

As mentioned earlier, a decisive victory can only be won by careful use of your available forces. Below, I will discuss the use of the three basic arms - infantry, cavalry, and artillery - and the formations and uses for each.

Infantry

Infantry is the common denominator of Napoleonic warfare. Usually the most numerous troop type present, infantry represents the staying power of the army. The basic formations available to infantry are line, column, and square. Lines can be handy to screen units from artillery fire and can use their superior firepower to good effect, especially in favorable terrain.

Lines are terribly vulnerable to melee, unless the terrain negates the enemy's rank bonus. Therefore a line must maul an approaching unit, or be crushed. Since several columns can attack on the same frontage as one line, a line may be confronted with more targets than it can effectively engage. Careful handling will allow a line to fire at an approaching unit and then shift to column for melee, getting the benefits of both formations.

Column is the most common and useful formation for most nationalities. Column of companies gives the highest possible melee factor, and grenadiers in the back rank plus national modifiers give the best possible morale. The drawbacks to a column are low firepower and vulnerability to artillery. Low firepower is not particularly serious, as a unit within musketry range is also within one or two moves of melee contact. Vulnerability to artillery fire is one of the things you have to live with when using columns.

Careful use of obstructing terrain and less vulnerable formations as screens can lessen the effect of artillery. Column of divisions can also be used to reduce casualties while still maintaining a reasonable melee strength and morale.

Squares are only useful where the situation is so open that an enemy attack could come from any direction. In any other case, columns are preferable, both in terms of morale and melee strength.

Skirmishers may be formed by certain infantry types. Skirmishers may be used to great advantage in rough terrain, but care must be taken skirmishers caught in the open are vulnerable to heavy casualties and the associated morale problems.

The question of whether to detach elite companies from a battalion confronts commanders of most nationalities. Generally, detaching is not advisable, as it weakens the battalion in both morale and strength. The gains do not usually warrant this. Four to six battalions must be weakened to gain two elite battalions, and it is doubtful that these elite battalions make up for the weakening of so many line battalions. In some cases, such as severe terrain, the detached units may be the most effective forces available, but this is not generally the case.

One last thing to keep in mind with infantry is the instantaneous ability to about-face. This is a great help in maneuvering units in tight spots or in retreats.

Cavalry

Cavalry is the glamorous branch of the army. Everyone loves to sit back and watch the thundering hordes trample the enemy to dust. In actual practice, this is very difficult to achieve. Cavalry is a very forward oriented force. Its large formations and inability to about-face make it difficult to pull back. Once committed in battle, it is often stuck there. Therefore the timing and preparation for a cavalry charge are very important.

Cavalry uses morale as a primary weapon. After the first turn of melee, where charge bonuses give an edge to cavalry, infantry in melee with cavalry will tend to suffer fewer losses and eventually defeat the cavalry. For this reason, cavalry should generally engage infantry only when position or previous losses in the infantry make success likely. A few rounds of artillery preparation are often a good way to achieve this. Horse artillery is ideal for this, as it can keep up with the cavalry.

Artillery

Artillery is often the deciding factor in a battle. A look at the rules shows that as long as the artillery is within effective range, it can dish out casualties faster than anything else. One thing to keep in mind with this is that within the effective range there is no difference between guns of different calibers. If you have an edge in heavy guns, you can use this to leave your opponent with maximum range shots while your artillery is within effective range. Conversely, if you have lots of light guns, get them up into effective range as soon as possible.

Horse artillery, when available, is simply delightful. It can either move or fire in a turn, requiring no time to set up. This often enables you to get off the first shot, or retreat without warning, along with its other abilities. Properly handled, horse artillery can pave the way for a breakthrough attack. The guns can gallop up for close range bombardment and then pivot out of the way as the cavalry charges home.

Prolong guns are also useful weapons, but they have some drawbacks as well. While providing additional firepower, they are also small units, vulnerable to destruction. This can lead to all sorts of nasty fear of disaster morale checks, just for the loss of four figures. It does not pay to expose them recklessly, due to this very reason.

One final rule of thumb with artillery is to keep as many of your guns as possible in action. Any guns not firing are not causing enemy casualties. While not many guards units have been released yet, they warrant mention. Falling into the general categories discussed above, guards have several additional advantages and disadvantages. Guards have better morale, and often higher melee strength, but loss of a guards unit causes fear of disaster checks for the entire army. Care should be taken to employ them carefully, not carelessly. Guards can be best used as final reserves or breakthrough forces. As the best troops available, they have the highest chance of success.

Guards can also be used to hold ground that no other unit could. An example of this is the battle of Aspern- Essling (which preceded Wagram). In this battle, Napoleon had his guard hold the open ground between the two villages for which the battle is named. In this position, they were pounded all day by the Austrian artillery (up to 200 guns). Line regiments would have broken under such treatment, leaving the center open. The Guard, while taking horrendous casualties, did not break, holding the center all day. Such use of guards is not recommended - you simply can not afford to lose so many fine soldiers on a regular basis.

National characteristics also deserve a few comments. Units should generally try to take advantage of the favorable bonuses they receive for certain formations. For the French and Austrians, this means columns. The same applies to the Russians, with the additional note that Russians should never bother to use line - they are such lousy musketeers that it seldom pays. While the British and Portuguese have bonuses for line, they still can not melee in line, except in favorable terrain.

However, the morale bonus they receive for being in line helps prevent disaster in case miscalculation causes a unit to be caught in line.

System 7 is a welcome addition to the realm of miniatures gaming. The rules and counters are easy to use and present a good simulation of Napoleonic warfare. While the large battles of the era are impossible without lots of players, space, and time, many small historic battles can be refought. Napoleon's Italian campaigns provide many such battles of 10,000 to 20,000 men per side, easily managed by two to eight players.

For those of you out there who do not have System 7 or Fire & Steel, take a look at it some time. For those of you who do own it, enjoy!