Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

Hi folks ... It has been awhile since I bought an HPS game and I have been considering Jena.

My question is: When playing the campaign games are all the scenarios mega-turn and mega-unit monsters?

I favour smaller and shorter games, such as the Russian campaign.

No offence to anyone by the way. Thanks for designing the new games.

Regards, C

Hi there,

The game has a number of smaller scenarios, the most famous being the Auerstadt battle, but also portions of the Jena engagement and other, hypothetical engagements.

The main "Campaign" does entail a huge scenario, but the game also includes shorter "campaigns" covering the immediate run up to the twin battles of Jena/Auerstadt. These short campaigns have a number of small scenarios, again, including hypothetical battles that might have occurred if Napoleon had chosen an alternative line of advance.

I would add that Jena has become my favorite game because it departs in several key ways from all of the previous HPS titles. <i>Inter alia</i>, the stacking totals have been drastically reduced (1600 inf/553 cav), the basic cav unit is now the squadron rather than the previous "regiment" and the time scale has been reduced to 10 minutes/turn, with a corresponding reduction in the movement rates. Taken together, these changes make it much more difficult for an attacking force to simply "blitz" through a smaller opponent, making rear-guard actions, at last, a meaningful option for an out-numbered defender.[8D]

Regards,

Paco

<i>Maréchal</i> M. Francisco Palomo
<i>Prince d'Essling, Grande Duc d'Abrantes et
Comte de Marseille
Commandant - Ecole Militaire
Commandant - Division de Cavalerie de la Vieille Garde </i>

I must agree with the Marechal. The Jena engine is the best so far placing more emphasis on firepower and manuever and less on blitz shock action. I prefer it to all the others now.

The large map twin battle of Auerstedt/Jena is my favourite scenario in all of the HPS games. I don't really play the big campaign games much as I like the historical battles and this game offers lots of options around Jena and Auerstedt as well as some smaller actions and some hypothetical stuff.

In short I can't wait for HPS's next title! But in the meantime this would be the one I would buy first if I were choosing.

Salute

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

I too must concur and for the same reasons as detailed below. One or two things may need a bit of tweaking but I'd give it top place in the series.

Remember you can get a 5 for 3 deal at HPS as I recall. Buy and enjoy.

Generaal
2de Brigade
2de Nederlandsche Div
I Corps
Anglo Allied Army

No offense taken! I designed the scenarios for the game and yes, the campaign game does offer a large scenario to start with but if you play the Alternate campaign its been reduced in length and in some cases size. The follow-on scenarios are a mix from two corps to a side to larger actions.

NRC has some large campaign situations and I would say that Jena is very much the same size or in some cases smaller. Very comparable indeed.

The stacking amount will soon be increased to 1800 men to accomodate some issues that I have found which are unhistorical, mainly the fact that the French have a very hard time stacking more than one battalian at times. In a recent game with Tomasz his Prussian stacks were mobile forts. Rather than reduce the stacking to make it where only one battalian for the most part can stack I am bumping it up to a point that Rich H. and I discussed: 1800 men. This allows for 600 cavalry.

Some features new to you:

1. 10 minute turns - I am adding in 15 minute turn versions for the scenarios you see in the Scenario Dialog (those that are in the main game directory) in the next update which I am finishing off this week. The reduced movement rates for the 10 minute turn is why alot of the guys that spoke out here like this game. You cannot swing around the flank of your opponent as easily.

2. Cavarly in the OB is by Squadron. They all breakdown into two platoons.

3. No Melee Elimination - this game brought in this feature. Its optional but when used allows surrounded units to live for the next turn and possibly be rescued. When used with the Isolation rule we believe it offers the best of both worlds: possible elimination but entire brigades (as demonstrated in a replay we showed John Tiller) do not dissappear in one turn. This feature is now in the rest of the series because of the urging of my playtesters and myself.

4. Morale/Command/Leadership ratings that I believe portray the French and Prussian/Saxon armies of the period. The French have alot of extra leaders to help them to remain on the line. Their morale is generally less than that of the Prussians but their Command control values are better. The Prussians on the other hand will fight a bit longer but once they disorder will not recover as quickly. When they rout their leaders will not help them to recover as well as the French. Thus the Prussians can stand and fight, they have very good cavalry but if they do get attacked and disorder are going to be harder to recover than their opponents.

I hope you add Jena to your collection. The main and alternate campaigns are 8 branches deep and offer you a nice tour of the area between Jena in the west, near Berlin in the north, near Dresden in the south and Gorlitz and Frankfurt am Oder in the east. I put more work into this title than in the other two I have done combined.

Lieutenant 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)

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