The Saturday night gaming scene here in South Jersey has been hot lately. So John Burke, Kirby, and I went to Tom's house to blow the dust off his long dormant gaming table. The occasion was a chance to play test Tom's home grown Napoleonics rules. They are based on Age of Reason with modifications borrowed from other games (like Valmy) and Tom's fertile imagination. The battle was set up as a French attack against the Prussians. John and Kirby played the Prussians while Tom and I took the good guys...I mean French.

John deployed his infantry brigade on the Prussian right while Kirby put his brigade on the left occupying a hill. Kirby's cavalry went out on the left flank on a mission to find and attack Tom's cavalry. Tom's infantry brigade was sent to pin Kirby's brigade on the hill while I took my two infantry brigades to attack John. The rules allow for rapid infantry maneuvers with a freedom of movement that is impossible under Valmy rules. I used this to my advantage and tried to go around John's flank.

Kirby Counter Attacks

He reacted by immediately trying to re-deploy to face my advance. But I was able to catch him before he was in position and he was forced back to try and form a new line. So I sent one brigade around his left flank and the other made a sharp right turn to go after the other flank. At this point a large gap had developed between John and Kirby's lines which prevented Kirby from coming to John's aid. I used my 2:1 manpower advantage and rapid column advances to keep John off balance. He was never able to stabilize his lines and when I got my Legere into his rear area the situation was hopeless.

Meanwhile, in the latest installment of the ancient Tom & Kirby rivalry, the French and Prussian cavalry charged each other. One clash led to a bloody melee that lasted several turns. The other was a Prussian victory that sent Tom's cherished lancers off the table. Unfortunately the victorious Prussian cavalry found themselves way out of command and had to gallop back to their own lines. Suddenly Tom decided to send his infantry up the hill. His lines charged up after Kirby's artillery while Kirby counterattacked. Tom's charge stalled in front of one battery and got chewed up. The other charges also were halted and Kirby came rumbling down the hill in a successful counter charge. By now it was well after 2 AM and we called the game. We declared it a draw, with the French successful on one half of the board and the Prussians having the advantage on the other.

I really enjoyed this battle and Tom's rules. I have often complained that the Napoleonic games I have been involved in were too large, dominated by guns or cavalry, or too slow. This game was none of these. I was finally able to execute an attack with my infantry carrying the day. The most enjoyable part of the game was being able to maneuver my brigades to an advantage against the enemy. I'm not too familiar with this period but I felt like I was using the famed French Impulse System at last. I hope Tom will continue to work on his rules.