Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

<b><font face="Arial"><font size="5"><font color="orange">The June 2006 Gallery will knock your socks off!!</font id="orange"></font id="size5"></font id="Arial"></b>

http://www.battlefront.com/products/les ... nshot.html


Enjoy!

[:)]




Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!

Rick - well first, I had just gotten out of the shower so my sox were off already! Kind of cheated on that one! [:D]

Second, as a former (and perhaps future Napoleonics Battles) miniature player this game really has me interested. I must admit I do like 3d as long as it is easy to follow.

The game looks very realistic. I am hoping that it can deliver the goods as displayed. Nothing like alot of eye candy only to find that the PC does some odd things.

Following your line: since the BG and now HPS series is dated this game thus has alot of expectations to meet. As you have said alot our HPS games are out of date. Thus anything that comes along has a HIGHER expectation from the gamer.

And I honestly hope that it does a good job. Napoleonics is my second love in gaming right behind WW2.

Thanks for the link.

Bill Peters
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram and ... more to come)

[url="http://www.fireandmelee.net"]Fire and Melee Wargame site[/url]

It's looking better all the time and promises a good immersive atmosphere. My pc is hovering just above the provisional recommended system specs mentioned in the FAQ in the Battlefront forum. If I feel confident it will run well on my pc it'll be hard to resist buying it...[:D]

<center>[url="http://homepage.ntlworld.com/a.r.barlow/Napoleonic/nap.htm"]Lieutenant Colonel 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>

Well Antony, the easiest way to know for sure if your computer can handle the game is to download the Demo and try it out for free. I know for sure that I will not be able to have the game express in all of it's 3D glory. I will be using the 2D and maybe the 3D symbolic views.

At least the Scenario, Doctrine, and Map Editor will be available.

My pennies are being saved up as I type, so a new computer with better specs is in the plans. Right now, I'm about 70% there.

Good luck to you.


Bill,

We have to remember not to end up comparing apples to oranges and think that they're the same. We just won't be playing Les Grognards like we play the Tiller games. In LG, there are some things that it will be better off to let go of. You can micromanage if you want to, but the billing is that you really won't need to.

In LG, you are the army commander.

Historically, orders were given and the army commander had to wait and see if they bear any fruit. Its no different with LG because in LG. It will take time for your lower commands to put into action your orders if they do at all. You will have to read the reports coming into your HQ and act accordingly. You will even have to listen to regimental drum rolls to get an idea of what is happening if visibility is obscured by smoke, fog, or fire.

Great expectations indeed.

Do not get me wrong. I've always have maintained that there are aspects to the John Tiller Napoleonic games that are really great. I especially like the manuever aspects of the game. Moving an Armee, Corps, etc... over a HUGE map is simply terrific. A+ in my book.

Cheers,
Rick

Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Le Tondu</i>
<br />


Bill,

We have to remember not to end up comparing apples to oranges and think that they're the same. We just won't be playing Les Grognards like we play the Tiller games. In LG, there are some things that it will be better off to let go of. You can micromanage if you want to, but the billing is that you really won't need to.

In LG, you are the army commander.

Historically, orders were given and the army commander had to wait and see if they bear any fruit. Its no different with LG because in LG. It will take time for your lower commands to put into action your orders if they do at all. You will have to read the reports coming into your HQ and act accordingly. You will even have to listen to regimental drum rolls to get an idea of what is happening if visibility is obscured by smoke, fog, or fire.

Great expectations indeed.

Do not get me wrong. I've always have maintained that there are aspects to the John Tiller Napoleonic games that are really great. I especially like the manuever aspects of the game. Moving an Armee, Corps, etc... over a HUGE map is simply terrific. A+ in my book.

Cheers,
Rick

Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

I agree - from what you have said the game will be compared more to the Fields of Glory and other games where you issued orders more or less than micromanaged units.

For the guys that like to be armchair generals, if the AI is better than the HPS product then you will see folks saying SOMETHING in that vein. Its inevitable. And if its similar or worse folks will comment in that vein as well.

Agreed with you on this ... now to see how it all turns out.

Bill Peters
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram and ... more to come)

[url="http://www.fireandmelee.net"]Fire and Melee Wargame site[/url]

Pretty pictures but looks remarkably like Shogun, Rome or Sid's Gettysburg.
Please tell me that this wargame will not degenerate into a RTS click-fest.

Kolonel Sellick Davies,
III Bataillon Nassau-Usingen,
2nd Bde,

Sellick,

This game simply will not denigrate into a clickfest. It is a REAL time game in that one minute of your "clock on the wall" time will equal one minute of game time. At that speed, you get to experience the battle just like a real Napoleonic commander experienced it. I am certain you will be able to soar across the battlefield and make assessments much quicker than any event can unfold. There will be plenty of time there to look everywhere you want and then issue your orders and then sit back and watch them unfold.

Of course, there is an option to speed up the game 10X. I think that means one minute of game time will equal six seconds of real time at the fastest speed.

There will be different ways to play the game. You can keep the game camera at the Army commander's position (wherever it is on the battlefield) throughout the entire battle and deal with the battle through your subordinate's reports and what you can see. Now, if that isn't realism and immersion, what is?

You can soar above the battlefield and see things with the satellite view that we are all familiar with. You can insert yourself into any subordinate commander's position as well.

Is there a good fight going on someplace? You can be the regimental commander there if you want and micromanage that location. In this case, the AI will take over for the Army commander that you left.

Want to be the Army commander until you send in the your Guard for the coup de grace and take over the Guard commander's duties? It not will be a problem.

Want to just be a Brigade, Division, or Regimental commander for the entire battle? No problem there either. The different AIs will take over the other command positions.

One thing Les Grognards won't be is a movie of a real Napoleonic battle showing the myriad of different actions a human being can make. (Visual abstractions are a necessity with today's computers.) For instance a cavalry melee will show the two opposing units wade into each other's formation. Each trooper will then turn towards an opposing trooper and then they will start fighting. You will see casualties fall and when one side has enough of what is happening, you might even see them run away.

Les Grognards will be a totally different gaming experience than what we've experienced. It is a labor of love that is unfolding and I believe that will show itself through more than just pretty graphics. It really is quite something.

[:)]





Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Le Tondu</i>
<br />Sellick,

This game simply will not denigrate into a clickfest. It is a REAL time game in that one minute of your "clock on the wall" time will equal one minute of game time. At that speed, you get to experience the battle just like a real Napoleonic commander experienced it. I am certain you will be able to soar across the battlefield and make assessments much quicker than any event can unfold. There will be plenty of time there to look everywhere you want and then issue your orders and then sit back and watch them unfold.

Of course, there is an option to speed up the game 10X. I think that means one minute of game time will equal six seconds of real time at the fastest speed.

There will be different ways to play the game. You can keep the game camera at the Army commander's position (wherever it is on the battlefield) throughout the entire battle and deal with the battle through your subordinate's reports and what you can see. Now, if that isn't realism and immersion, what is?

You can soar above the battlefield and see things with the satellite view that we are all familiar with. You can insert yourself into any subordinate commander's position as well.

Is there a good fight going on someplace? You can be the regimental commander there if you want and micromanage that location. In this case, the AI will take over for the Army commander that you left.

Want to be the Army commander until you send in the your Guard for the coup de grace and take over the Guard commander's duties? It not will be a problem.

Want to just be a Brigade, Division, or Regimental commander for the entire battle? No problem there either. The different AIs will take over the other command positions.

One thing Les Grognards won't be is a movie of a real Napoleonic battle showing the myriad of different actions a human being can make. (Visual abstractions are a necessity with today's computers.) For instance a cavalry melee will show the two opposing units wade into each other's formation. Each trooper will then turn towards an opposing trooper and then they will start fighting. You will see casualties fall and when one side has enough of what is happening, you might even see them run away.

Les Grognards will be a totally different gaming experience than what we've experienced. It is a labor of love that is unfolding and I believe that will show itself through more than just pretty graphics. It really is quite something.

[:)]





Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

If the game is anything like Combat Mission then it will work. If its like Shogun then its going to be a problem.

We WONT know until it comes out. Trying to defend it to us is a waste of type. When it comes out we will play it and see if its going to work. If it does we will be the first to tell you Rick. If not then it will be just another RTS game. Great for small to medium sized actions but too much to handle for something like Waterloo, Aspern-Essling or Jena-Auerstedt. (using examples of battles that have several fronts)

The big thing is if the interface is easy to understand (and again we wont know until we try it), and if the screen is not blurred. That was my major beef with the RTS Austerlitz game that came out a couple of years back. I really wanted to play it but the interface was blurred.

Bill Peters
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram and ... more to come)

[url="http://www.fireandmelee.net"]Fire and Melee Wargame site[/url]

As long as it improves on their last effort.

<b><center><font color="red">
Captain
2nd Battlion
95th Regiment of Foot
II Corps
Anglo-Allied Army</font id="red"></center></b>


<center></center>

Thanks Bill & Rick for your respective insight to this forthcoming game.
Thank goodness it is not yet available as I am rather mellow[:o)] having just watched England win 1-0 in the World Cup. Might have Pay Paled!
hic hic...

Kolonel Sellick Davies,
III Bataillon Nassau-Usingen,
2nd Bde,

<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 />



.........We WONT know until it comes out. Trying to defend it to us is a waste of type. When it comes out we will play it and see if its going to work. If it does we will be the first to tell you Rick. If not then it will be just another RTS game. Great for small to medium sized actions but too much to handle for something like Waterloo, Aspern-Essling or Jena-Auerstedt. (using examples of battles that have several fronts)..........

Bill Peters


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

Bill,

Something that absurd cannot be ignored.

I am not giving a kneejerk response here when I say that you are absolutely wrong.

So much has been shared about this game that it is only the minor details that are not known. The big picture that I have written to Sellick about is not a minor part ---by any stretch of the imagination.

Bive us all a break man. Please. I really am not defending anything.

I am simply answering questions about a game that I have closely followed for nearly four years. A game that I was asked to be part of. A game that I dreamed about and wished for 10-11 years ago.

One thing that remains clear is that <font color="orange">Les Grognards will not be a clickfest -period.</font id="orange"> It doesn't take a college education to <font color="orange">know</font id="orange"> that. Think about it --please. A Napoleonic battle taking place in <font color="orange">real</font id="orange"> time. If you think that you will be rushed when you are giving orders as the Army, a Corps, a Division, or even a Brigade commander, you are missing it BIG time. You might be rushed if you try to give orders to every battalion and regiment on the battlefield (like we do in Tiller's games.) But not on those others levels.

Thank you so much for your interest in Les Grognards. Every one of your posts gives me a terrific opportunity to help spread the word.

Here are some of those recent screenshots:

This is one of my favorites. Austrian cavalry.





Some Russian cavalry.



Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Glyn Hargreaves</i>
<br />As long as it improves on their last effort.

<b><center><font color="red">
Captain
2nd Battlion
95th Regiment of Foot
II Corps
Anglo-Allied Army</font id="red"></center></b>


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

Improving upon the first effort has been a mission for the developer. He certainly seems to feel that he has.

[:)]

Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!

I see that a demo was mentioned in an earlier post. Where would one find the demo? I didn't see it on their site.

Major Dale Lastowicka
13th Light Dragoons
4th Cavalry Brigade
Cavalry Corps
Anglo-Allied Army

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="3" face="book antiqua" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by dalelast</i>
<br />I see that a demo was mentioned in an earlier post. Where would one find the demo? I didn't see it on their site.

Major Dale Lastowicka
13th Light Dragoons
4th Cavalry Brigade
Cavalry Corps
Anglo-Allied Army

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

Dale,
Yes sir. A demo will be released as the game goes gold. They're not quite there yet, but progress is clearly being made.

For any news about <font color="orange">Histwar: Les Grognards</font id="orange">, this is the place to check:

http://www.battlefront.com/products/les_grog/news.html

Through that link, you can access an overview of the game, screenshots, videos, information about their Map, OOB, and Doctrine Editors, and their discussion forum.

Cheers,
Rick
[:)]

Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord


Vive l'Empereur!

Yes Rick, the screenshots are all well and good. When the game comes out the consumer will give his view. Until then we have nothing to base a case for or against the game on except that the graphics look nice.

I am not being negative here and feel that "a break" is not neccessary. Its commercial product and doesnt deserve "a break." People pay out money for it and in that light it will get its due. If its a good game folks will say so. Have you ever heard of folks asking the consumer to give Ford or Chevy "a break." No. When you pay money for something you are not expected to give anyone a break.

Thusly has it been for me with Eckmuhl and Wagram. I didnt expect a break and I dont think that your Les Grognards folks expect one either.

If its just another clickfest then that will be said about it as well. And if its the greatest thing since popcorn then that will be said about it as well.

All of your hype on the game is like a father saying that his unborn son is going to be the President of the United States some day. A great dream but reality can sometimes be sobering.

I honestly wish them well and hope that the game lives up to the hype you are giving it. For me I am going to let the game come out, listen to reviews and comments from folks that play this sort of game more than I and then decide whether to shell out the bucks for it.

I will definitely download the demo and try it out and wont make a final judgement based on just that much. For me its going to have to come across as a good or great game for me to plunk my money down on it. Just like those that will or will not buy an HPS product.

Bill Peters
HPS Napoleonic Scenario Designer (Eckmuhl, Wagram and ... more to come)

[url="http://www.fireandmelee.net"]Fire and Melee Wargame site[/url]