Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

Tim Goodwin and I are playing #04a_1. The Battle of Auerstedt - Variant #1. We both decided to play using the Manual Defense Phase form of play - 6 files per turn.

Its going pretty quick. We get in a turn about every other day. Sometimes slower due to work but all in all I like it better. I get to pick my targets for Defense Fire.

There are some drawbacks which we are all aware of (no countercharge or formation change) but all in all for smaller to medium actions I like this form of play better than the Single Phase.

So far Davout is watching as the Prussians deploy. We have had only minor skirmishing after 14 turns (0910) but as the Prussians come up I am sure that Tim will venture out to fight.

Bernadotte starts arriving in this version of the battle at 1100. Going to make for a more even fight.

Will put up another report after Bernadotte has arrived.

Colonel Bill Peters
Armee du Rhin - V Corps, Cavalerie du V Corps, 20ème légère Brigade de Cavalerie, 13ème Hussar Regiment
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram, Jena-Auerstaedt and ... more to come)

Hi Bill
I like MDF too. Its quite good for big battles to like Wagram.
Although there are more files the phases are simpler to think through and its more realistic I think. It's no good where there is a lot of marching though.

Salute!

General de Brigade Knox
Baron de l'Empire
2e Regiment Gardes d'Honneur (the regaled pheasants)
La Jeune Garde
CO. 1er Brigade, III Division Cavalerie Legere, III Corps Armee du Nord
http://www.aspire.co.nz/colinknoxnwc.htm

Hey! How about an optional ability to switch between Single Phase and MDF in a single game? That way when the action is slight, files are reduced, when the action heats up players can slow it down.

Colonel Al Amos
1erè Brigade Commandant
2ème Division de Dragons

Good idea Al. The single phase does offer one thing which is really good though. I like how an artillery battery might fire several times at an approaching assault in the single phase option. In MDF they fire once when the unit is adjacent although the fire is generally more deadly.

On balance I like how Artillery can control a zone if massed and deployed carefully in the single phase game. It would be great to have a melee phase that allowed the embedded melee concept to be an actual phase.

Helga drinks here please.
Salute!


General de Brigade Knox
Baron de l'Empire
2e Regiment Gardes d'Honneur (the regaled pheasants)
La Jeune Garde
CO. 1er Brigade, III Division Cavalerie Legere, III Corps Armee du Nord
http://www.aspire.co.nz/colinknoxnwc.htm

Yes, the advancing fire doesnt exist in the MDF.

Now if we could just get ADF added to MDF in that regard ...

You would get to fire and eat your cake too. [8D]

Colonel Bill Peters
Armee du Rhin - V Corps, Cavalerie du V Corps, 20ème légère Brigade de Cavalerie, 13ème Hussar Regiment
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram, Jena-Auerstaedt and ... more to come)

<font color="red"><blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Colin Knox</i>
<br />It would be great to have a melee phase that allowed the embedded melee concept to be an actual phase.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote"></font id="red">

<b>I'll certainly drink to that.</b>

Major John Sheffield
<font color="orange">1st Btn/91 Regiment of Foot <font color="yellow">
[Argyllshire Highlanders]</font id="yellow">
6th British Brigade/4th Infantry Division/<b>
II CORPS / </b></font id="orange"><b><font color="red">ANGLO-ALLIED ARMY.</font id="red"></b>


<font color="yellow"> "Among these respectable warriors, the Scotch [Scots] deserve to be particularly commemorated; and this honourable mention, is due to their discipline, their mildness, their patience, their humanity, and their bravery without example."

"On the 16th and 18th of June 1815, their valour was displayed in a manner most heroic." </font id="yellow">
<font color="red">Viscount Vanderfosse.</font id="red">

What I dont want is the ACW series "fix" (called Optional Melee Phase) which is to have all movement and fire done in one phase and then the Melee Phase put in after it. I would be against such a move ....

The Embedded Melee concept is good. Not a complete fix but better than what the ACW series got.

Colonel Bill Peters
Armee du Rhin - V Corps, Cavalerie du V Corps, 20ème légère Brigade de Cavalerie, 13ème Hussar Regiment
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram, Jena-Auerstaedt and ... more to come)

I agree Bill I am thinking a 'resolve melees option' that allows you to go through and do the melees and then go back to your move with further ones prevented or just finish up. So just like embedded melee. A big code change I guess so not likely to happen. Still the games are great as is anyway.
A round here please Helga.

General de Brigade Knox
Baron de l'Empire
2e Regiment Gardes d'Honneur (the regaled pheasants)
La Jeune Garde
CO. 1er Brigade, III Division Cavalerie Legere, III Corps Armee du Nord
http://www.aspire.co.nz/colinknoxnwc.htm

I second the following:

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Bill Peters</i>
<br />What I dont want is the ACW series "fix" (called Optional Melee Phase) which is to have all movement and fire done in one phase and then the Melee Phase put in after it. I would be against such a move ....

The Embedded Melee concept is good. Not a complete fix but better than what the ACW series got.

Colonel Bill Peters
Armee du Rhin - V Corps, Cavalerie du V Corps, 20ème légère Brigade de Cavalerie, 13ème Hussar Regiment
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram, Jena-Auerstaedt and ... more to come)




<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

Lieutenant Pieter Geerkens
VII Saxon Corps
22ème Division,
2ème Brigade,
Anger Grenadier Battalion

"Even in the attack, [I found] the spade is the equal of the rifle." - Erwin Rommel

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Colin Knox</i>
<br />I agree Bill I am thinking a 'resolve melees option' that allows you to go through and do the melees and then go back to your move with further ones prevented or just finish up. So just like embedded melee. A big code change I guess so not likely to happen. Still the games are great as is anyway.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote"> It would be great to see something like that. However, it would need to be coded so that skirmishers could be meleed at any time during the turn and outside the melee phase (simulating them withdrawing in the face of the advancing enemy - they could even get a defensive shot in and then just be placed back with their parent units). Otherwise you are back to the bad old days of battleground when supermen skirmishers could block all movement and prevent an attack on the main battle line. But for now the embedded melee rule works out fine so long as both players are prepared to work with it.

<center>[url="http://homepage.ntlworld.com/a.r.barlow/nwc/nwc_personal_record.htm"]Brigadier General Antony Barlow[/url]
~ [url="http://www.geocities.com/anglo_allied_army_stats/Anglo_Allied_Army_Cavalry_Corps.htm"]2nd British (Union) Brigade, Anglo-Allied Cavalry Corps[/url] ~
~ [url="http://www.geocities.com/militaireacademie/dragoons.html"]4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards[/url] ~
</center>

Actually just melee them in the melee phase and then walk through the gap.

Colonel Bill Peters
Armee du Rhin - V Corps, Cavalerie du V Corps, 20ème légère Brigade de Cavalerie, 13ème Hussar Regiment
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram, Jena-Auerstaedt and ... more to come)

I've moved away from the embeded melee phase lately, as the slower movement and no ZOC changes have reduced the need for it, but I found it not hard to police when I was using it, so don't think a major formatting change would be worth it. I used the "on screen results" when moving, switching that ption to "off" for the melee phase. In adddition to not driving me crazy with waiting for opportunistic fire from skirmishers etc, it made for a clear distinction between melee and movement phases.

Lt Colonel Neville Worland
Chef d'Etat-Major
Ier Corps de Réserve de Cavalerie
Army du Nord