Waterloo Refight - Waddington's Solo Book Game to Tabletop

The Worthington, Waterloo Solitaire Book Game just keeps on giving good fun games and by now must have repaid its cover price to me. Having converted it to tabletop via using Warlord Games Epic Scale Napoleonics it has become a big favourite of mine. It is one of those "one hour magic" wargames, creatively fun, not overly taxing but yet satisfying is a non trivial way (see below, the original cover of the book depicts the frantic fighting around Hougoumont): 

I present it in the style of a certain Airfix Waterloo Wargame Set (all Red-British, Blue-French and even Black-Prussian [although you would have to add them yourself later from the Airfix product line]) for those of a certain 1970's "as a young kid" age (see below, I remember having one of these in 1975 courtesy of my two older brothers - as a youngster I honestly did not know what to make of it at the time, or how precious it really was): 

Meanwhile our Napoleon [Renko] prepares to meet his Waterloo - note, poker chits represent Napoleons command capability and time, once you have spend all your chits you have no more command capacity or time left, a beautifully elegant system): 

Napoleon is taking no chances and the KGL are evicted from Le Haye Saint in brutal fashion (see below, after a desultory few turns of bombardment with the British successfully hiding on the reverse slope d'Erlon's 1st Corp are ordered to attack. A ferocious British Cavalry charge decimates the infantry attack, but the survivors still manage to storm the Sand Pit and take the famous farmhouse at the point of the bayonet [Napoleon had a huge sigh of relief on that one]): 

Reilles II Corp was now set upon Hougoumont the key to opening the door to Brussels. Despite taking losses too this savage infantry fight went well for the French (see below, Napoleon took care but spent time in reinforcing both battered Corps from his Reserve [good move as Prussians were starting to appear in the woods on his right flank]. Reformed the French Infantry performed excellent "combined arms" attacks that "broke" poor old Picton): 

With time running short it was the turn of the Imperial Guard to help smash the last remaining British and Dutch-Belgian infantry formation on Wellington;s right flank. The Young and the Middle Guard perished in the attempt, but it was the Old Guard who carried the day for Napoleon, with precious little time to spare on the clock - or rather a very small pile of poker chits remained (see below, the British retire [rout] to Brussels, but it was "a close run thing"): 

Another great game and Abba will now have to pen alternative lyrics for their song, as (still) Emperor Renko Napoleon reigns! 

Note: In the true SCRUM vein of "continuous improvement" (as no wargaming project is ever truly finished) - I think I need to add some pretty national flags per formation. I should also paint the Riflemen units Green instead of Red. I need to substitute a unit of Epic Highlanders into the British line of battle and likewise substitute in some Epic French Imperial Guard units into their line of battle. Perhaps also named movement trays for all the Corps too. All can be done in good time!

Waterloo done the Airfix Way with Phil Sabin

Following on from Bob Cordery's example (in his Wargaming Miscellany blog) post, I too have to pay tribute to Phil Sabin's latest completed project (and anybody painting 450 Airfix 20mm [1/72 in old money] old school wargaming figures gets my respect). Waterloo - The Dunnigan way (which to teh man's credit, originally created as a free wargame) with a few new Sabin tweaks added: 

In Phil's own words: 

Coinciding neatly with the release of Ridley Scott’s new blockbuster movie on Napoleon, I have just posted the 450 significantly improved 2^nd edition of my own much-downloaded tweaks for Napoleon at Waterloo, together with a video illustrating and explaining my changes and showing a complete game using my new bespoke 3D playset with 450 painted Airfix figures, each representing around 400 real troops or 50 cannon.  

You may find the tweaks and video at https://boardgamegeek.com/filepage/199517/simple-rules-tweaks-greater-realism and https://www.youtube.com/@philipsabin1653 respectively.  

Please share both links as widely as possible on other relevant board and miniatures gaming for a (together with the link to Charles’s book at  https://www.usmcu.edu/Outreach/Marine-Corps-University-Press/Books-by-topic/MCUP-Titles-A-Z/Wargaming-Waterloo/), so that other enthusiasts are made aware.

Our discussions of Charles’s ideas in his article and book provided the main impetus for me to create the 3D playset (using figures I first painted decades ago) and to revisit my original 2020 tweaks.  Although the amendments proposed by Charles and myself coincide in several areas, our approaches are rather different, as is discussed in the thread below on ‘Tweaking Published Games’.  Charles mostly takes the existing game system as read and focuses on more literal modelling of aspects such as the size of the farm garrisons, the tractability of woods and the times at which various contingents became available.  I have used much more of a ‘design for effect’ approach, by playing the game repeatedly and introducing successive tweaks and constraints so that it comes closer to the historical course of events as regards aspects such as the differences among the three combat arms, Wellington’s reliance on  defensive terrain,  the fatal impetuosity of British horse, the long resistance of the farmhouses, the French cavalry charges, the progress of the Prussian advance and the time represented by each turn.  Charles rather surprisingly leaves the original Anglo-Allied forces mostly unchanged, whereas I have shifted and combined a number of Wellington’s units to yield a far better model of his forces.

It is interesting to compare my own tweaks and illustrative refight with those provided by Charles on pp.137-48, 157-58 and 299-300 of his book.  Both offer better simulations than does the original game, but their significant differences show the highly personal and individualistic nature of wargame modelling, which Peter Perla rightly compared to creating a painting of the real phenomenon.  Our respective contributions give us plenty to discuss in this forum if desired.  Besides the thread I mentioned above, newcomers may like to browse the other threads below on ‘Simulation vs. “Glorified Chess”’ and on ‘Esdaile’s Analysis of Waterloo Sims’ to see the extensive discussions we have had already.  I hope that our contributions (including the inspirational sight of my figure version of the game) will encourage some of you to revisit this classic design and to tweak it in your own preferred style.  After waiting patiently in their box files for decades, my bespoke miniatures have already seen extensive action during my many playtests, and I look forward to using them in plenty of future refights, perhaps with Bondarchuk’s 1970 movie playing in the background for added atmosphere!

The final word from this Blog: 

Just those two screenshots make it mouth watering for me, what Phil has done in the rules, explained in the video makes it cool! Respect for completing a nice little project!

Waterloo 1815

The second December 2021 major historical battle refight was none other than Waterloo itself, the big wargaming granddaddy of them all, played under Sam Mustafa's Blucher rules. Myself, I am an inexperienced but enthusiastically keen Blucher player (with a grand total one play-test game under my belt) so I was really appreciative of some old hands "on-side" to assist me. I was playing "Allied" (aka British) and hopefully we expected to see some Prussian colleagues appear at some point to supplement our Dutch and Germanic comrades in arms. "When" was shrouded in the scenario designer's "Fog of War" card turning "chilling suspense" mechanic. To win the French had to hold at least three out f four of the Victory Points (Frischermont, Papelotte, La Haye Sainte and Hoguemont) at the end of any one of the Allied turns (which stops the French player from ignoring one half of the battlefield). 

My part of the line was on the Allied left, from Frischermont, Papelotte to behind La Haye Saint, hence the focus of my few snapshots there which quickly developed into a fierce cavalry combat, one the Allies "had to win" (see below, the French push hard at Frischermont with a whole corps of infantry and a cavalry corps in support, they clearly hope to sweep round the Allied left [while Papelotte off camera to the right is being invested by French artillery]): 

The highpoint of the French cavalry attack was to make a bold and audacious charge that was left "high and dry" as Allied committed its cavalry reserves, including horse a flanking unit of artillery. However because of this sacrifice, the French infantry was given the clear run in to assault Frischermont, a costly soak-off for sure (see below, the Allied success was still costly in strength points and commitment of "key" reserves): 

Frischermont is assaulted by the French infantry corps, but the French are beaten back at heavy cost to both the defending garrison and the attackers. The garrison is now critically weak and the Allies know that the French will come again, they have to. The stout hearted British (as there are Scottish in the mix here) infantry ready themselves for an inevitable bayonetted counter-attack with full highland swirl (see below, this is the end of "thin read line" that cannot allow itself to be curled up from its flank, the only remaining chance of reinforcements are Prussians "when" [or "if" the come]): 

To buy the garrison some time it is now the turn of the British cavalry to charge forward, in order to finish off the remains of the French cavalry and more importantly pin the French infantry into a static defensive square formation, though in so doing so, paying a "blood price" for this gallant gesture (see below, still no news from the Prussian - where are they? Grouchy seems to be doing his job properly today!): 

Across to the Allied centre and right of the battlefield a huge cavalry flanking attack to the far right of Houguemont has come nought, both sides fighting themselves to a standstill. The heavy French infantry attack is commencing at Hoguemont proper, La Haye Sainte has been pounded mercilessly by the Imperial French Artillery Reserve - its garrison being destroyed and now La Haye Sainte is occupied by British infantry, with a French infantry assault bearing down on them. Papelotte is also being assaulted after the garrison was bombarded by yet more French artillery. The battle is reaching a "critical moment" (see below, note how more French cavalry tussle with the Allied cavalry near Hoguemont to allow the infantry clear line of attack to go in):  

Frischermont is taken by the French infantry but they are immediately thrown unceremoniously back out again by a bloody British counterattack, lead by Pictons "devil's handmaidens" the Highlanders, Picton falls mortally wounded in teh front line as the last French cavalry unit is destroyed. The left Allied flank has now been successfully stabilised, but at a high cost (see below, off camera Papelotte was attached, it falls to the French infantry but Maitland's Guard follow the Scots fine example and quickly retake Papelotte - still only 'bad news' from the Prussians as Grouchy is seemingly stopping their arrival on the battlefield):   

Hoguemont was attacked and lost, but retaken by Allies the following turn, a literal blood-bath and the French are exhausted on the Allied right flank. This means with the advancing passage of 'game time' "night is coming" for the Allies and will arrive well before any reinforcements from Blucher (Wellington did say he would take "either" in the film). With this in mind Wellington now orders a central infantry advance to stymy the dangerous French infantry attacks from taking any of the four strongholds, as tomorrow he will surely be joined by the whole of Blucher's forces for sure (after Blucher gives a sound telling-off to Scharnhorst and Gneisenau for prevaricating on this day). Note: La Haye Sainte had fallen but it too had been retaken by spirited counterattack, the French Artillery Reserve was now "out" of ammunition and being hastily withdrawn and the French Imperial Guard was as yet still uncommitted on Napoleon's baseline (see below, with less than a hour of daylight even if the Guard is committed it will not be able to achieve the three VPs required): 

Night falls and Napoleon retires conceding the battlefield and his fate. A great game, an Allied win, even without Blucher. All told this was my fourth full blooded attempt at a Waterloo refight and I think it pulled it off best, partly because of the rule-set (Blucher) and partly because of the attitude of the players themselves. A spledid day out .. I will play more of Blucher in 2022 methinks .. perhaps in Epic Scale though ;) 

Command Magazine #11: Hougemont "Rock of Waterloo"

I have always wanted to play this classic early Command Magazine game, "Hougemont: Rock of Waterloo" (some say the early Command Magazine games were the best). I had the chance to bring it 'out of the packet' to play with some wargaming friends the other day in a "get our collective heads round the rules and play test of mechanics" mode. By the end we were getting there but I am sure another read through is required to fully grasp the colour and "hex terrain" considerations. It played well though (see below, a mere thirty years old and still ready to play fresh out of the bag with the counters still in mint condition):

There are plenty of French (see below, three waves of them in fact):

And pitiful few British, Nassau and Hanoverian defenders (see below, these are the reserves released or rather drip fed into the action):

The original on the board units are eight British Guards at the back and twelve German lights sent forwards (see below, top marks if you can spot them all - extra counters are their leaders):

Please excuse the angle of the photograph but the French move from a released row, to a advancing row and then to the board proper. You literally see them coming towards you from afar - with nothing you can do about it (see below, "Thousands of them Sarge!")

Given the numbers a column tried to run round the outside of the board but were caught by a neat game mechanic of off-table artillery - losing 50% of their number (though note, casualties is not one of the victory conditions - capturing objectives is). The other Frenchies chase the Germans away from the hedge they were defending and further into the woods (see below, there is a nice little game mechanic which is a defender reaction (when within eight hexes) in the attackers phase, which allows the defenders to fire and move (back) first so they are simply not "overrun"):

Trading space for firing works well until you run out of space to trade. The German troops are now pushed back as far as they can go. The French have taken enough casualties for Napoleon to commit another "wave". Whereas the British have not quite convinced Wellington of their dire state - this will come soon). The "other" Allied defenders are roving Howitzer batteries lobbing [guessing where the French troops are going to be with an interesting scatter rule] down air and ground burst (see below, only turn two out of ten and it is looking tight for the Allied troops):

We stopped there so we could re-read the fortification rules of the Chateau and 'a thing or two about gates'. There is plenty of chrome and flavour yet to come. I like the thought of transferring this to the tabletop with miniatures somehow!

Napoleonic Project: The Peninsular War

"Reading the war": 

Following on from reading Simon Scarrow's classic "set of four" Welloington/Napoleon historical fiction based on fact books I have been seduced by the charms and intrigues of the Napoleonic War period, in particular the Peninsular Campaign aka the Spanish Ulcer, which was the start of the unravelling of the Napoleonic Empire (see below):

The interest is the beguiling way the Peninsular War started off so innocuously small but ended up with incredibly big battles of huge consequences for all of Europe, also because  it seems so "peculiarly British in character" but mainly because the outcome of the campaign hung on a knife edge and could so easily have swung either way so many times. Wellington risked ruin if  he lost but a single battle.

The influence of Wellington or conversely the lack of Napoleon's influence seems most acute. My reading continues apace, but I have decided to test my colour palate and painting skills on some Victrix 28mm British fellows. The aim is to have at least enough for a Sharp Practice scenario or two (which means I best bother to get the rules in the first place) before deciding as to whether or not I should go hardcore and get a 15mm  British, Portuguese and Spanish army. As a quick start I have some 2mm "Napoleonic Blocks" (from "Irregular Miniatures") that could be fast-tracked into use.

A project well worthy of time spent on it in 2016 ;)

"Two Hundred Years Ago" .. there was a little battle called Waterloo

So I decided to divert some of my wargaming time towards reading about it, albeit in the context of historical fiction (see below):

Four chapters in and it seems a good read :)