The brand-new rules folders are in print and available for $7 (plus $3 airmail overseas). After our last progress report we spent two more weeks refining the project. Chris Moeller and Dan Raspler put their heads together and re-worked Jay Olsen's draft 2.09 (the result became LGE 2.1, the published version). Jay then worked his magic on the index, reducing it to two pages by leaving-out case numbers of more than two digits. We released the new folders at Origins over the July 4th weekend. On 5 July we emailed 72 the electronic copies. Some folks with PCs were unable to open some or all of the files, so we decided upon another mailing in Word for Windows (see the top of this newsletter). WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN THE 2ND EDITION The new rules book is 48 pages, with a dramatic new full-page illustration on the front cover by Christopher Moeller. The front and back cover are heavy cardstock, and the back cover contains the Political Display and Enforced Peace Record, which you can cut-off and use as a player-aid. This will leave the full-page Table of Contents as the back cover of the book. Of the book's 48 pages, pages 2 through 28 are devoted to the rules, and the remaining 20 pages include the two-page index, the displays, contents, scenarii, and another 14 pages of game notes. The Historical Notes are a complete narrative of the Napoleonic Wars in all of six pages! Includes: Economic Roots of the War, The Third Coalition Develops, The Danube Campaign of 1805, The Campaign of 1806, The Continental System, British Subsidies, Events in Spain, The Invasion of Portugal, The Strategic Situation, Russia, The Russian Campaign, 1813, 1814: Napoleon at Bay, 1815: The Campaign of Waterloo. The Designers Notes describe the genesis of the design along with ten common myths about the Napoleonic Wars: Troop Quality, the Duration of Actual War, Surrender, France Against All, Unhistoric Alliances, the Monarchs Determination to Overthrow Napoleon, Detailed Combat Systems in Strategic Games, the Battle of Trafalgar, Living off the Land, and Zones of Control. The Players Notes discuss Victory Points, the British Victory Formula, French Strategy and Victory Formula, and Diplomacy. The Two New Scenarii provide the set-ups for 1809 - as France was about to go to war with Austria while a full-scale war raged in Spain - and the 1812 situation, which *demands* to be played. The New Rules The combat resolution system did extend playing-time considerably. To remedy this we have provided a new "strategic" battle resolution system that takes about one minute to perform (5.616). We have provided a lot more detail to the rules, as well as incorporating the frequently asked questions into their place. But beyond all that, the 2nd Edition brings out the hidden dimensions that were there all along, dimensions normally revealed only after several playings. The players,' designers, and historical notes are provided to help point up some of these hidden dimensions. Price: $7 including handling and shipping within the U.S. Overseas customers please add $1.50 surface or $3.00 airmail postage. NOTE: IF YOU PURCHASE LGE DIRECT FROM US, THE 2ND EDITION RULES WILL BE INCLUDED at the regular price of $48. If you purchase LGE in a store, make sure it has a silver label that says "NEW EDITION." FIRST READERS COMMENTS ON LGE 2ND ED From: "John Baker" Q) 4.24 Trade Embargoes.... Do you have to be at war to impose a trade embargo? A) Gee, You're probably going to be; but technically, no. Q) 3.45 Portuguese Units .... The Portuguese corps start created on the map? A) Yes. [NOTE: If your "Editor's Notes" slip is NOT dated 6/29/99, ignore the following.] Q) My other questions come from the Editors Notes correction sheet! "5.213 change to 5.123 .... I do not have a 5.213 that I can find... A) Yes, that correction actually made it into the printed copy, so ignore it. "2.22 add..." (One extra Cavalry Division may be contained in each Division...) Assume you mean Corps... A) Yes. "5.619 change..." 5.619 is Victory, Retreat, and pursuit... Assume you mean the DRM modifier rule in 5.617 A) Yes. I am sad that my copy is set up... I am going to a convention in Phoenix this weekend and cannot take my copy of "Emperor's War". I am hoping someone brings theirs! Thank you in advance for your consideration! Keep on gaming. Back to OSG News July 1999 Table of Contents Back to OSG News List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 1999 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