Here are my thoughts on period specific rules for using Black Powder for the SYW.
Since everyone I play with is familiar with Warfare in the Age of Reason, and our armies are built for that set of rules, I'll use that as a common touchstone.
Unit Size
Standard Infantry: 12 figures. Small is 6, Tiny is 3 and Large is 18.
Standard Cavalry: 6-8 figures. Small is 4, large is 9-12.
Since cavalry 'standard units' represent squadrons, one can opt to mass 'units' from the same regiment into larger 'units' (think the Bayreuth Dragoons at Hohenfriedberg). This can be done during the game but the units must be within 6" of another and it costs a move to organize the squadrons into a mass.
Formations
Use of Mixed Formation and Attack Columns are not allowed. Squares are allowed but no one gets the 'form square' rule for charge reactions.
Unit Ratings
Cuirassiers HTH 9 Morale 3+ Stamina 3 Special:heavy cavalry D3
Guard Cuirassier HTH 10 Morale 3+ Stamina 3 Special: heavy cav D3, Reliable
Heavy Cavalry HTH 9 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 Special: Heavy cav D3
Dragoons HTH 8 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 Special: Heavy Cavalry +1
2nd rate cavalry drop HTH by 1, no heavy cavalry bonus for melee resolution and add 'unreliable'. Freikorps dragoons or hussars add 'marauder' too.
Hussars HTH 7 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 special: skirmish, marauder
Elite Hussars HTH 8 Morale 3+ Stamina 3 Special: skirmish, marauder, reliable,
Freikorps hussars HTH 6 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 Special: skirmish, marauder, unreliable
Guard Infantry HTH 7 Shoot 4 Morale 3+ Stamina 4 Special: Reliable, Elite 4+, First Fire
Veteran Infantry/Grenadiers HTH 7 Shoot 3 Morale 4+ Stamina 4 Special: Reliable, Elite 4+, First Fire
Line Infantry HTH 6 Shoot 3 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 Special: First Fire
Garrison/Militia Infantry HTH 5 Shoot 3 Morale 5+ Stamina 3 Special: Unreliable,
Freikorps Infantry HTH 5 Shoot 3 Morale 4+ Stamina 2 Special: Unreliable, Marauder, skirmish
Jaegers HTH 5 Shoot 3 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 Special: sharpshooter, skirmish, marauder
Pandours HTH 6 Shoot 3 Morale 4+ Stamina 3 Special: skirmish, marauder
National Rules
This is the tough part. Prussian drill was quite good and allowed them to keep up platoon vollies in a fire fight longer than their opponents. Some have argued to give Prussian musketeers a Shooting factor of 4 instead of First Fire. Perhaps just the older musketeer regiments? For the 1st Silesian War/ first phase of the War of Austrian Succession the Prussian cavalry should be pretty bad, perhaps 2nd rate but good by the SYW.
Austria, France and Britain all pretty bog standard.
Russians give their infantry the 'steady' rule and stamina 2 for their artillery.
Reichsarmee would be all 2nd rate infantry and cavalry. Grenadiers equivalent to everyone else's line.
Staff Ratings
Prussia; Frederick 10, Ziethen 9, everyone else 8.
Austria; Browne, Nadasty, Hadik, Loudon 8, most 7, Daun and Archduke Charles 6.
England and France; mostly 7s. Marshall de Saxe could be an 8 or 9 but was he around in the SYW? I can't think of any real superior generals for either army.
Reichsarmee; given the tangled staff and organizational problems they'd be 6s.
Russia; a few 7s but mostly 6.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
.JPEG)
.jpg)
I think you will have serious problems with those low-end ratings. 7 or lower need not come to the battlefield. I'd be more inclined to rate everyone as 8; if you allow Frederick a rating of 10, then you should add "commander leaves battlefield" as his main Blunder.
ReplyDelete"Some have argued to give Prussian musketeers a Shooting factor of 4 instead of First Fire"
ReplyDeleteOf course, there was a battle (I am having a senior moment) when the Prussian infantry were supposed to attack with shouldered muskets.
One last thing. It was Daun who beat Frederick at Kolin.
ReplyDeleteI've started with the staff ratings as described in the BP rulebook. But yeah, maybe just a below average =7, average = 8 and above average = 9 might be better.
ReplyDeleteAn idea I had in the shower this AM was a random die roll for generals; a d6 roll to give a spread between 6 and 10 depending on the army. As you point out, Daun who was notoriously slow to react, did get the lead out and move on his interior lines at Kolin. Or maybe that day he was rolling a lot of 4s and 5s on his command dice?
But nothing's engraved in stone yet. Since I've read mostly about the Prussians that's what I know best.
My friend with the Reichsarmee has the old WRG SYW army lists which might give some better (or maybe just diferent?) ideas to troop ratings. Although how we translate some of those into BP terms is hard. I found translating the WAoR troop ratings problemmatic too.
Drill is so important in the 18th century but there isn't a direct correlation in BP. So do we reflect better drill with higher shooting or more responsive to command rolls or easier to shake off disorder or what?
Well, actually the superbly drilled special rule, which makes the advance of troops in line more dependable, is a good direct match.
ReplyDelete"Since I've read mostly about the Prussians that's what I know best."
Have you looked at Duffy's Frederick the Great: A Military Life? It gives proper credit to his opponents and his subordinates.
As a general rule, I think you get a better game not by tying the commander's hands by cutting down his Staff Value (I find 8 all round works quite well) but by using a combination of ratings and special rules to work with the raw material. The Austrian general in the 1st Silesian war for example is then faced with balancing the use of his reliable and superior horse and his indifferent infantry, rather than just cursing his luck and being unable to use either.
ReplyDeleteAnother