David Billieres wrote:
The french campaign ! perharps the better figthed by Napoleon...
Bill do you plan some changes on the game engine ? like the defunt talonsoft counter charges, or another surprise ?
Good question for Rich Hamilton/John Tiller. I add in what ideas I can and the counter charge rule is NOT high on my own personal list of wants and needs for the game engine.
My desires run more like this:
Artillery Low/No Ammo optional rule - similar to the infantry format. In order to be resupplied they would have to recover one level at a time via the same procedure that is used for recovering from Disorder. This would stop the nonsense we have of batteries firing all game long. There would be a percentage added into the PDT file for both low ammo and resupply (two separate values). The existing supply wagons would not be used in the resupply process.
Artillery Capture Rule - similar to ACW series.
Artillery Spiking Rule - ditto
Night Movement Rule - movement at night is subject to Disorder for units in column. Similar to the Panzer series rule. Based on morale.
Surrender rule - a unit that is "No Ammo" AND Isolated would surrender based on a morale check. Thus militia would not hold out to the end. Any unit that is Isolated would be marked with the usual Isolated status but each turn the number would increment. Each turn a Surrender check would be performed. Skirmishers should not be able to Isolate a unit. The more turns isolated the more chance of surrender. Units in Chateau hexes would have a +3 morale bonus added to their roll or be exempt from the roll (though they did surrender on occasion).
Squares ZOC rule - squares should not have ZOCs. Cavalry "swirled" around them all the time. It occupies it's hex and that is it. This would also stop folks (like me) of going into square to hold down a front. It was a very confining formation and no offensive projection of the unit's men could stop others from moving by it.
Square break rule - in the 1814 campaign the Empress Dragoons broke no less than 3 squares in one charge. These were squares - not units that Disordered trying to form square. Rule: in cavalry vs. infantry in square battles the square can be broken on a 1 percent chance and the cavalry will then get the charge bonus. That is about the number of squares that were broken in the wars. And with such a low number not many folks are going to try and break a square. But it could be done.
Artillery Fire Range Highlighted - Toolbar button or menu item - would be nice to be able to see at a glance the artillery range for any battery in the game.
Ships - similar to the ACW, EAW and M&P series. Long overdue.
And I will not argue or defend these ideas. If you have a better idea send it to Rich H./John Tiller. These are my own personal list of wants and desires.
If I went with an Auto Square or Counter Charge rule I also would stop playing the "anything goes" crowd in this club permanently as I know how the games basically would be run. Really dumb moves would happen to try and trigger the events. But I am more or less moving away from those style of players anyway so perhaps after I see my higher priority items added in these two could be added too. But frankly I have two more games to do for the series and then that's it for me. Off to do something different.
I want to know the ameliorations or changes the players want...
-bonus move for elite troops (bonus for changing formations, or better movement) to represent more cohesion and training.
-possibility to light cav to go skirmishers with no melee but little harrasement fire...