I have played several times, Bonaparte in Italy and The Emperor Returns, in two months with Mario and Francois. We had great fun. But do you know somebody that has won with the French at The Emperor Returns? We have played 2 times The Emperor Returns with 3 players, each time it was a different French player. Of course we have played with Hidden move but also with Bonaparte in Italy update rules (with one exception: vedettes). The updates work fine unless perhaps for the movement cost of the river. [Editor's Reply: Was it the concensus of all the players that the French could not win? Since now I haven't found any French winner. But I have to think about a new strategy. I hope to be able try it soon. [Editor: On the other hand, was the challenge historical? Yes is it. [Editor: How close did the French get to achieving their historical result? Were they able to get that close to Bruxelles or Ghent? What objectives were aimed at? Last time, Mario wasn't able to move beyond Mons. And I was stopped between Braine le Conte and Hal. My last move was to retreat on Tournai in the hope to separate Blucher from Wellington during their advance. Unfortunately I have made a mistake after a victory and I was surrounded at Ath. Mario was able to save his army 2 times with the guard commitment. In fact each time the French were beaten when Bluecher and Wellington linked together. [Editor: Why were Wellington and Blücher able to link up each time? Each time because Napoleon was unable to destroy one of them. [Editor: Are you sure you are using the correct rules for Allied pre-invasion turns? Note they can only force-march until the border is crossed. Yes we used the correct rules. In fact each time the French have attacked the British first. But unfortunately for Napoleon, he was unable to cause a lot of losses in the British ranks. Most of the time the loss was equal. Next time Francois Bernier will be the French. P.S. About Napoleon's Game, you can find on my web page the historical notes related to the cards. Here is a link with the first part: http://epopee-imperial.napoleonicwars.com/historicalnotesha.htm Back to OSG News August 2000 Table of Contents Back to OSG News List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 2000 by Operational Studies Group. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com