Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

Guys,


What is the best way to use the square formation besides in the defense of Cavalry? Does it work in an Infantry v. Infantry situation? I know its no good vs. Artillery and its used to defend against charging Cavalry, but what else?? Thanks!!

The Square is invaluable versus cavalry, but suffers when meleed by infantry. It does have the advantage of not having a flank when fired on for morale check purposes.

The square is a really good defensive formation when not playing embedded melee and assumming you dont have multiple infantry melees ticked

Its 6 zoc's enables you to slow down penetration/blitz attacks by intelocking your zones of control. It also has no flank like Mark says.

This tactic is better in earlier titles such as Waterloo as the vp loss for infantry casualties is way low.

Later titles such as Leipzig, Jena and Austerlitz have a much higher cost for infantry losses.
Making it an essential formation for cavalry defense but less of a useful one for slowing down a blitz attack. As infantry attacks in column vs square can be deadly. As can close range horse artillery fire, which is likely to deploy close due to the lack of threat posed to it from a square (as oppossed to a column)

A further use of the squares mulitple zocs is where you have a weakly held sector and not many units to prevent enemy penetration of your line. Using squares in this situation will create a delay allowing you to bring operational reserves up. Or contract away from the relevant area.

Salute!

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Marechal Knox

Prince d'Austerlitz et Comte d'Argentan
Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur

"What is history but a fable agreed upon"

Put a battery or two within a square and it gets the job done. When the arty is horse, you can even do a slow advance allong the front. hehehe....

Does putting arty in a square, negat the effectiveness if squares vs. cavalry?

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no

No - For HPS Games
Yes - For BG Games

Another House Rule mayhap?

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Brigadier Sellick Davies,
III (Peninsular Corps),
6th. Div.,
10th. Br. Bde.,
40th.(2nd. Somersetshire) Regt. of Foot