Republic to Empire: Wargaming the Wars of Napoleon Bonaparte
(BP1256)
Brought to you by the same team behind Beneath the Lily Banners, the book combines the writing of Barry Hilton with the creative talents of illustrator and designer Clarence Harrison. The book is lavishly illustrated with over 200 original photographs shot especially.
150 pages of full colour with 210 photographs of some of the finest wargaming models around. The rules come with a six sided gate-fold full colour play sheet on thick gloss finish card.
The rules require no rebasing of collections. Unit basing is immaterial as long as it follows the general conventions of tabletop gaming. Republic to Empire can be used for all scales although they are primarily written for 28mm scale Divisional to Army level games.
Unit sizes can vary from 16-60 for infantry and 10 – 60 for cavalry. The game play is smooth and free flowing with minimal need to refer to the main text once concepts have been mastered. New players usually pick up the key mechanisms within three to four game turns.
The rules contain comprehensive detail on:
Scales – Creating your Army – Setting up the game – Command – Orders – Exploitation – Formations and Movement – Terrain effects – Skirmishers – Play Sequence – Artillery – Shooting – Charging – Close Combat – Resolve – Fighting in Built up Areas.
The text is laid out in a way that separates:
Background information on concepts
Core rule mechanisms
Examples of mechanisms at work
There a 10 page fully illustrated example game from the 100 Days Campaign with full detail from orbat construction to conclusion.
Special rules sections to cover adaption for the Revolutionary Wars Period and the 1812 War in North America are also included.
Some comments on Republic to Empire:
'The superb presentation and wonderful pictures might lead the casual observer to believe that Republic to Empire is the equivalent of a coffee table book – a visual spectacle to be admired. And so they should be but there is far more than that! The rules are very well researched, clearly explained and most importantly, eminently playable. They are admirably suited to big battles but also to smaller games. Barry has introduced mechanisms designed to reduce the all-seeing and instantly reactive abilities of the wargamer while rewarding initiative and forward thinking. This development really does help reflect the realities of the tactical battlefield of the time. Suffice it to say that this is NOT just another set of Napoleonic rules – it represents a real step forward in reflecting Napoleonic warfare on the wargame table'
Charles S. Grant
Osprey
