"The Great Redoubt" Issue #10

The Official Journal of JodieCon 2002 Borodino

July 2002

For more information about Borodino 2002, see www.jodiecon.org

Hello! Time is getting short for Napoleonic fans who are anticipating the coming of September, and the great Borodino Event down at the Chamberlin Hotel in Fort Monroe, Virginia. Up and down the East Coast, both French and Russian generals are plotting, getting together for practice games, and making travel plans. We Russians have played a large practice game and even recruited our first female player.

Many of us are looking forward to Historicon 2002 on July 25-28 in Lancaster, PA. I'll be playing British General Packenham at the Battle of New Orleans on Friday night, and I hope to see some of you there. We may not do better than the historical side, but we can't do any worse!

In this issue you'll find the TGR Interview with Dr. Jim Birdseye, and some observations about the major British naval base in North America In The Tavern. Also a description of two new Napoleonic board games we've been waiting over a year to see. And Pete's PreBattle Analysis Guide, previously available only on the secret B02 Player Command Nets, and useful for planning any military battle! Its been a pleasure putting this newsletter together, and I like to think you've enjoyed it a bit along the way. Thanks for reading TGR.

THE TGR INTERVIEW: DR. JIM BIRDSEYE

(Dr. Jim Birdseye lists his bio activities as college professor, history teacher, founder of five local clubs in America and Europe, Rhineland Confederation Secretary, and HMGS MidSouth Board. As a convention organizer, he been involved in two Manheimercons, two Rhinecons, one Highland Games, ten Sieges of Augusta, one Cold War and the South, plus working on 30 HMGS-East conventions.

Dr. Jim will be preparing our JodieCon Borodino 2002 Historical Scenario. He has attended five Jodiecons, including Waterloo twice, Austerlitz, and took VMI Cadets to the Russian Front. He serves as Napoleonic Editor for The Courier and Assistant Editor for the Military and Naval History Journal. Jim also notes that 'I run games at whatever con I attend').

TGR: What do you enjoy most about the JodieCon experience from your own perspective?

JB: Being with friends and meeting new people. I enjoy introducing people to our hobby.

TGR: What are your favorite gaming periods? What do you like about the Napoleonic period?

JB: Napoleonic, ACW, Ancients, WWII, and just about anything else. What I like about the Napoleonic period is the color, uniforms, and the fluid nature of the combat.

TGR: What were the lessons you learned about designing or running a game from pervious Napoleonic games like Borodino 92, Waterloo, or Austerlitz?

JB: I have a scrap book on Borodino 92 that I will bring to the 02. It has dozens of photos and other info from the planning on. One of the big things that hinders the game is the information available to the players, which the actual participants did not have. The information overload includes the orders of battle, the ground, and even their own forces. The hardest thing to duplicate is the "fog of war." Some players cannot deal with mis-information, no-information, and inaccurate information.; others do well. I find it much more challenging to have to use some intuition.

TGR: What is your take on Napoleon? Was he Glorious or Evil?

JB: Napoleon was not evil, certainly not. He had more of a "right" to rule than George IV or most of the inbred aristocrats who opposed him. Napoleon was a great reformer, and the father of modern Europe, perhaps too intelligent for his own good. He produced the Code Napoleon, that is vastly superior to the folly and foolishness of the English system we use. He was a great motivator and leader.

TGR: What is your opinion of Russian Commander Kutuzov?

JB: Kutuzov was not on par with Napoleon, but was neither Fox nor Dotard.

TGR: It is still too early to talk about the specifics of the actual Borodino 2002 GAme Scenario itself. As the person responsible for creating it, what kind of factors do you take into consideration in general when you write such a scenario? How can futhre Game Masters make sure they do a good job on scenario construction, which is a crucial part of wargaming?

JB: Historical-Historical-Playability-Playability-KISS-KISS (Keep it simple, stuipid).

TGR: Why did the Russians refuse battle in the pre-Borodino phase of the campaign?

JB: A couple of reasons; command conflicts, and they were outnumbered Every day and mile that Napoleon marched into Russia, the Russians got stronger and the French got weaker. Why not let the road wear down the French and inflict casualties on their men and horses? Contrary to myth, I believe that most of the Russian generals understood the situation--they disagreed over the timing.

TGR: Why did Kutuzov line his boys up on the hilltops, in plain sight, at the start of Borodino? They then suffered a lot of artillery casualties. Was he trying to goad Napoleon into a combat?

JB: Kutuzov lacked the imagination of the younger officers, and his subordinates actually handled the deployment. Then again, Murat did the same thing with the French and Allied cavalry.

TGR: What is your capsule summary on Borodino the historical battle? What basdically happened there?

JB: It was a great battle--a great battle that pitted two social orders, two different ideologies, and two distinct nationalities against each other in an environment where the Russians had the advantage. Borodino was Napoleon's Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge.

TGR: If you had been the Game Master at the historical battle, how would you have adjudicated "Victory?": Who really won?

JB: Russians win if their army is still intact at the end of the day. The French can only win if they destroy the Russian Army; any other result has to be seen as a Russian victory--even a tactical draw. It is very unlikely that a decisive victory could have been won with a frontal assault.

PREBATTLE ANALYSIS GUIDE

(Pete sent this guide to the B02 Player Command Nets, to start the team discussions on planning for the Borodino battle in September 02. I am publishing it here because it can also beused with profit for any other game as well. The author is a former instructor at the United States Military Academy Prep School at Ft. Monmouth, New Jersey, and the author of several books and rules systems.)

1. TERRAIN: Terrain analysis based on the map. What is key terrain and decisive terrain, and why?
2. ENEMY FORCES: Perform a strength/weakness analysis based on the historical Order of Battle (OB). Discuss unit abilities. Identify the enemy Center of Gravity. Discuss what they can and cannot afford to lose or risk, and why.
3. FRIENDLY FORCES: Same as #2 above.
4. DECISIVE POINT: Finally, after identifying the above, it would be then best to try to identify what should be the "Decisive Point" of the upcoming battle (be it terrain, time, event, or combat power).

These are the four things your Army Commander needs in order to start working on his plan. The player acting as Chief of Staff for the side team should finalize the discussion with his own proposed answer for the Commander! Good luck.

NEW NAPOLEONIC BOARD GAMES ARRIVE!

Two new long awaited Napoleonic board games have finally come out! Both are revolutionary in their own ways of making the period accessible without going to the cumberous mega-game format. Armies of many nations march across the stage of history attempting to make the period come alive. I played the first design years ago and enjoyed it as Napoleon in a session run by the designer. This updated description of the first game is by champion gamer Pete Stein of my local club, Metropolitan Wargamers of Brooklyn.

The Napoleonic Wars Mark McLaughlin, GMT Games
$55, 2-5 players
(by Pete Stein)

The game is listed as 2-5 players, but it would appear to be a "the more the merrier" type of game. My description is based on the five player version.

Players represent a major power (France, England Austria, Russia and Prussia) during 1805-1814. Each country gets cards based on how many "key" districts it controls. Comparable to Paths of Glory, For The People, etc., the cards can be played either as tghe event on the card or as an operations card (Ops) which will let you move armies or build troops. Careds are played one country at a time in a set order, but at any time the person with the most carfds in his hand can jump in and play a card. Usually this will be either Frnace or England, since they generally have the most key districts.

Minor countries such as Denmark, Turkey, and Sweden also get cards, but they start the game neutral. The major powers can use Ops to woo these countries, to the point that they could become allied with somebody. That gives the country they are allied with more control over the minor country's actions. If a major power attacks a neutral, that country joins the opposite side.

The game starts with France alone (though Spain begins allied with her) vs. England, Russia, and Austria. Prussia begins neutral. After all the cards have been played for the turn, one by one each major country decides if it wants to join the other side. Maybe the Russians are tired of bailing out the Austrians. Maybe Russia has left its back door open to Prussia. Maybe Prussia wants to hang out and see what happens. England and France are forbidden to join forces, all countries must agree to the new ally--after that anything goes!!!

The winner of the game is the player who controls the country that added the most key districts during the game. Each turn represents two years, and there are five turns to the game. However, a die roll is made at the end of the turn to see if the game continues. Players may spend cards that would be used for the next turn to modify the die roll.

(Editor's Note: I've just seen this for the first time. Components include large flat multi-color cardboard counters, and 'stand-up' cardboard drawings with plastic bases of the major leaders--a la "We The People." Extensive designer, player, and game development notes are included. They mention that the unofficial name of this game among the development staff is "Oui, The People"--Charley)

Napoleon In Europe Glenn Drover, Eagle Games
$60, 2-7 players

This new company has issued a line of games with original 1/72 scale plastic pieces (yes, miniatures) that uses area movement on giant, beautiful 46" x 36" game boards! Napoleon In Europe provides appropriately colored French style pieces for seven nations which include mounted leaders in fore and aft hats, infantry, guard infantry, cavalry, heavy cavalry, artillery, and 3 colors of horses, with counters for naval squadrons and other game markers which also further modify troop types into light infantry, horse artillery, militia, and irregular cavalry.

Battles in the same area are fought on a tactical battle board which provides sections for center, both flanks, three middle grounds, reserve, and retreating (but still rally possible). Cards include Fate cards played immediately, Effect cards played when you like, and Innovation cards which must be purchased but last you the rest of the game. The latter may be used for their historical nations and years (provided on the cards) or as randomly drawable.

As in the other Eagle Games, NIE provides three levels of rules (Basic, Standard, and Advanced). It gives ten different secenarios1796-1820. Most of these can be played historically (Napoleon and his allies versus everyone else) or a-historically (free multiplayer diplomacy between the usual suspects plus Spain and Turkey).

The game includes a simple political/diplomatic system for declaring and ending wars and making allies. There is also a simple economic system for purchasing your troops. British victory conditions are expressed navally, and there are restrictions on how fast her army can grow, but Britain is the only country who can give away money! Russia and Spain have special attrition rules for invaders, and players can pay for uprisings in neutral areas or Vendee, Ireland, and the Don Basin. Neutrals resist invasions and naval interception and battle is included.

The tactical battle system is similar to the previous design American Civil War, but has many more troop types and options, with proper period rules for each. Different types of terrain can be used. The real key to these games seems to be the balence between strategic and tactical maneuvers. Leaders and cavalry for example function in both modes. So deciding how and when to fight a battle and how long to continue it are key decisions.

While I have not played this design yet and cannot review it as such, Napoleon In Europe appears to be a real game in itself, and not just a battle generator. However, it could be used as a strategic map campaign, and one could fight out the battle with mineatures in more detail, scaling each figure to perhaps a brigade. Having purchased all three Eagle Games designs so far (the first was War! Age of Imperialism whose topic is 19th Century empire building) I suggest purchasing one of the extra horse sets ($15) available, so you can simultaneously mount everyone in the game.

This is clearly Mr. Drover's most complete design so far. And since most scenarios can be played historically or a-historicially, and either way with varying numbers of players, you get a lot for your money. Or, if you don't have a life, you and your pals can try the full Campaign Game. Different levels of victory are carefully set out to judge performance, and various methods of game time limits are suggested (# turns, time, or rolling for sudden death "game ends this turn" toward the final play). As usual, graphics are outstanding, with box cover art by well known military artist Keith Rocco.

IN THE TAVERN: ON JOYOUS SOUNDS IN OLDEN TIMES

While Napoleonic sites in Europe itself are outside of many travel budgets, there are sites of that era not so far away. If you walked out of the nautical evening fog into a local tavern named SALTY'S on the wharf, with a pocket full of Loonies and Twonies to spend on brews like Double Diamond, Alexander Keith's India Pale Ale, or Garrison Barrackroom Brown, where would you be? Why Halifax, Nova Scotia, of course, Britain's answer to first French Louisbourg and later the seaports of the eastern United States. Here on the week after July 1 (Canada Day), you can hear the bagpipes every afternoon, advertising the evening's Military Tatoo which recreates the old military pagentry and music which has echoed down the centuries, as the popular army tune "Lily Bolero" of the Marlburian Wars became the 'Nottingham Ale" of later Colonial days. You'd be spending those Canadian one and two dollars coins where Canadian militia and British redcoasts once walked.

At the very top of the hill which the city is built on, fellow Borodino Russian player Bruce Fiolek led our party around The Citadel. Donning full unifiorm of red coat, kilt, bonnet, and white gaiters, and drawing his Enfield musket with white cross belts, he showed us the many areas of the large fortress as we watched recruits drilling, the pipe and drum corps playing, and the artillery crew fire off the Noon Gun. Bruce was dressed as a private in the British 78th Highlanders (Ross Shire Buffs), with their Gaelic motto "Cuidichn Righ" ("Save The King"). The story goes that a chief of Clan MacKensie saved the Scots king after his liege had wounded a stag while out hunting. When the enraged animal charged, the loyal chieftan cut of its head with one blow of his huge claymore blade!

The regiment served in many battles, mostly in the Napoleonic era: Netherlands 1794, Cape of Good Hope 1795, Assaye 1803, Maida 1806, Java 1811, Merxem (Antwerp) 1814, and Koosh-Ab (Persia) 1857. But its greatest reknown came under Sir Henry Havelock's campaign during the Indian Mutiny, when it became known as "the Saviors of India," helping to relieve Cawnpore and Lucknow, and winning eight Victoria Crosses in the process. Later on it was to garrison Halifax, and is so remembered by reenactors today as it existed in 1870.

One particularly interesting museum exhibit showed how the USA would have attacked the Citadel around the time of the American Civil War! With very strong harbor defenses, the Citadel is actually configured with extra bastions to repel a land attack from the landward side! Above the giftshop and cafe, a seperate army museum holds uniforms and weapons from all periods of Canadian military interest. One of the most unusual, the first submachine gun ever used in combat, the WW I German Bergman.

On a wooded coastal hillside in pretty Point Pleasant Park, stands an original Martello Tower, built 1796-99 by Prince Edward, fourth son of King George III. You can find another, with extensive fortifications and huge 19th century seacoast guns, out at the York Bastion, later the command center for making up convoys in both World Wars.

Although the US Navy never came, some Irish rebels based in the States did. The green jacketed Fenians, using ACW surplus military equipment and flags bearing the first use of the initials IRA, raided several border sites and battled with Canadian troops. We gamed out a Fenian raid with Ross McFarland, and got to see his amazing 54mm figure collection, parts of which he brings to HMGS Cold Wars most years. Ross also runs littlewars@yahoogroups.com, the 54mm figure discussion group. He casts his own figures or converts them, so that recognizing their original maker is quite a challenge. Ross also drove us around Peggy's Cove, a tiny fishing village, and one of the premier tourist attractions due to the beauty of the area. Good fish chowder is another of the local attractions.

The city's Maritime Museum is also worth a visit, chronicalling the community's long history with the sea. Where did they bury the survivors from the Titanic? No, you don't bury survivors. But the casualties from the geat tragedy rest in a Halifax cemetary, near a memorial to the Crimean War. Objects recovered fromt he wreck are in the museum, along with many other interesting nautical exhibits, from famous local boats to the local children's TV show "Theodore Tugboat" (a naval version of Thomas the Tank Engine).

This was my sixth trip to Canada after visits to Quebec, Montreal, Toronto, Niagra Falls, and Louisbourg. A very suitable installment for some descriptive virtual travelling, here In The Tavern!