Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)
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New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
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Author:  Bill Peters [ Fri May 04, 2012 8:26 am ]
Post subject:  New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Campaign 1814: Gathering of Eagles was just released this morning. You can read about it here:

http://johntillersoftware.com/Napoleoni ... n1814.html

This game covers the events of 1814 which occurred in northeast France. I chose to concentrate my efforts there instead of add in the obscure events in Belgium, Holland, the Rhine and Lyon. The Battle of the Mincio is included from the northern Italian area. Otherwise all of the famous actions from 1814 are covered. (given time I will add in the actions of Augereau at Lyon and other actions as I get more time and some authors release new books on the campaign)

We just put the finishing touches on the game yesterday and it has a bunch of great things to offer.

Go to the website, read the press release and download the notes and lists from the various links to see what comes in the game.

I want to thank our Playtesters for being so loyal to the project. We all learned more about the campaign by taking on this project together.

Special thanks to David Guegan who helped me with the large Paris map (and also St. Dizier - that one may have missed the Notes file, David, and it will get in for the update). Paris was a blast to work on. See my comments about the map in the Notes.pdf file.

This was my sixth game released with John Tiller and def. more enjoyable than the rest. The process was smoother, the artwork was pretty much done (Mark and Joe added in four new icons for the game). As usual I just did not have time to add in the 300 "what-if" situations that my imagination conceived but hey, there is always the update.

The major thing about this game for me was to memorize the battles chronologically and to know them in detail. I had never really studied this campaign much until last June when I started work on the game. I read through some EIGHT texts on the campaign plus numerous other works online and of course the OB files. Online articles on Paris, Reims, etc. also gave me insight into the locations of the battles.

Ok, trivia time:

1. This officer was killed by an artillery round fired by the same gunner that killed Gen. Moreau at Dresden. Can you name him.

2. This location for a famous battle in 1814 saw John I of Burgundy killed on its bridge in 1419 while parlaying with the French. Can you name this town?

3. This city, a location of one of the battles, has a famous cathedral where the kings of France were coronated for centuries. Can you name this city?

4. Which battle came first: Vauchamps or Montmirail?

5. Name the leader of the Army of Silesia for the Battle of Paris. Note: Blucher was sick and Gniessnau did not take his place ...

6. These French soldiers were among the many in Spain that wore brown curate cloth uniforms, and fresh from Spain, made a dramatic impact on the battles that included Mormant and Montereau, which was their introduction to the campaign. Can you name these soldiers and some of their leaders?

7. Lastly, which of Napoleon's brothers is best known for leaving the Battle of Paris around noon leaving instructions to eventually give up the city?

I hope you guys enjoy the game. We really had a blast playtesting it and I grew to enjoy it A LOT and it WILL be one of the games I play over and over again.
Author:  SLudwig [ Fri May 04, 2012 8:53 am ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Two games released close to each other! This is awesome Bill. I can't wait to download this one tonight!!

HPS systems just keep getting better and better, but that is because the whole team is devoted to the cause, it is a labor of love.... :mrgreen:
Author:  Bill Peters [ Fri May 04, 2012 9:40 am ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Your serial code and download path are in your Inbox sir! <SALUTE>

You do not have to buy a copy. Its on me! :mrgreen:
Author:  Gary McClellan [ Fri May 04, 2012 9:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Am downloading this puppy now :) I was stunned to see that we had a new game that quickly. :shock: :lol:
Author:  SLudwig [ Fri May 04, 2012 10:10 am ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Wow....thanks Bill! :D I look forward to getting at it tonight, to see it and so I can write some advertisements on it for the various forums....

I have been pleased with the series & system for a while now, especially with all the marked improvements, not only just game engine, but graphics too. :)

Plus playtesting really opened my eyes and gave me a whole new respect for what goes into it all, it is not just some flash in the pan put together, like so many other games. The replay ability is endless.... 8)
Author:  Bill Peters [ Fri May 04, 2012 10:52 am ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Gary McClellan wrote:
Am downloading this puppy now :) I was stunned to see that we had a new game that quickly. :shock: :lol:


Yes, me TOO!!! :mrgreen:

Started work on it in June 2011 concurrent with Campaign Leipzig. I was managing THREE playtest teams at the same time and working with Mark on the graphics too. That was a ton of fun.

The artwork from the 1813-14 set helped speed things along. I just needed to have Mark move one icon (the Leipzig set had an incorrect icon - the Baden Foot arty icon was in actuality the horse arty - for 1814 and the Leipzig update this is corrected - new foot arty icon goes in correct place) and have him get Joe to build four new ones. A handful of new leaders were added in.

This was the quickest that I have ever done a full project but again the artwork was already 99.9 percent finished and that really saved me on time.

If all goes well I could conceivably put out two more projects this year. One for sure. That second one may have to wait for 2013.

2012 will be a good year for the Nap series. Keep your eyes peeled for more new games!

Big time kudos to Mark and Joe for their help on this one. The new screens for the game look great! I love the subdued blue campaign screens. And they got the icons I needed to me very quickly. In March, Mark was really swamped with things. By early April everything was in place. New campaign screens were done by mid April and the graphics team was done with their part in the product.
Author:  Warren Bajan [ Fri May 04, 2012 1:36 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Speaking of artwork, if you are using my units.bmp file for Campaign Leipzig, it is fully compatible with the 1814 game.
Author:  Colin Knox [ Fri May 04, 2012 4:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Wow! Thanks Bill and team this is one of the most fascinating campaigns of the period will get my copy in due course.
The way Napoleon tried to stave of the defeat was very aesthetic. :mrgreen: can't wait to give it a go
regards
Colin
Author:  Paladin851 [ Fri May 04, 2012 5:33 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Warren Bajan wrote:
Speaking of artwork, if you are using my units.bmp file for Campaign Leipzig, it is fully compatible with the 1814 game.


Excelent...thanks Warren
Author:  SLudwig [ Fri May 04, 2012 6:23 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Got 'er up and running Bill....looks awesome, the Paris scenario is very intriquing based on the rules. I assume all the rules in the PDF are enforced by the game engine itself?
Author:  Bill Peters [ Fri May 04, 2012 8:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
No Scott, it is up to the players to track the capture of the VP objectives. The time they are taken and so on.

(For those that do not have the game yet the VALUE of the objectives in the Battle of Paris (HTH only) scenario - #99 - is actually a TIME - if the Allies capture the objective by the TIME value then they gain full value - 250 VPs - for the objective - if they take it later they get HALF value - 125 VPs - and of course if they never take it they get 0 VPs - an objective that is shown as "1200" means that it really is a TIME of 1200 and thus if the Allies take the objective by that time - 12:00 PM - they get the full value for it)

I put together a sheet that the players print out and fill in during play. Or they just make up their own chart if they like. And some guys will not like the rules concept and will just come up with their own way of doing things.

This rules doc was something I have wanted to do for some time. AND frankly it was needed. The battle saw the French basically retreat back into the city, cross over to the Left Bank and march out along the roads with the city capitulating the next day. So how could the French possibly hold off the Allies and a city fight was not what happened anyway.

I put quite a few of the map tags on myself but David Guegan was instrumental in helping me place the gate tags and several other POI. I did research into when something was actually there and the names of places changed during the Revolution and afterwards. The Arc de Triomphe for instance was under construction at this time AND the Ourcq Canal was not connected to the Seine by this time.

Folks can knock Napoleon all they want. The French people truly benefited under his rule. Civil projects were built that are still helping out today! If only he had played the statesman better and worked with the Austrian demands .... Europe might be a much different place than it already is due to his civil measures.
Author:  Tim Cavallin [ Fri May 04, 2012 11:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
1814... YES!! My second favorite campaign after 1813. I've been reading a ton of 1813-14 of late. Right now I am in the midst of Leggiere's book that covers post-Hanau to late-January 1814... what an interesting read! I always did wonder what was going on during that window of time.... the actions in Holland between Bulow and Macdonald was very interesting.

Anyway, I just purchased and downloaded my copy of 1814! Looks good!
Author:  MCJones1810 [ Fri May 04, 2012 11:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Very good to see you climbing onto the 1814 train so quickly, Tim. When you get a brief moment, please add your rank, unit and army affiliation to your signature so that we can get to know you even better. :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
Author:  Bill Peters [ Fri May 04, 2012 11:17 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Tim - I thought you were in the French army and if so if you want to try out a scenario with me let me know. I need an 1814 game. I can suggest some balanced situations for both of us to enjoy.
Author:  Colin Knox [ Sat May 05, 2012 12:09 am ]
Post subject:  Re: New John Tiller Software Game - Campaign 1814
Hi Bill well done mate looks fantastic. Does it include large map scenarios that are really campaigns like in Jena?
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