Solo Test 321 Fast Play Napoleonic Rules 5.0

 

Norm’s blog http://battlefieldswarriors.blogspot.com/2021/05/shadow-of-eagles-new-napoleonic-rules.html has been trying out new rules with a simple small scenario. A regular infantry unit advances against another such unit on a hill. It fires once and charges. I decided to try this same thing using the free 321 Fast Play Napoleonic Rules 5.0. they can be found here https://chasseuracheval.blogspot.com/p/321-fast-play-napoleonic-rules.html

Here in Maine, away from most of my stuff, all I have is some 15mm Seven years War figures. So the Prussian IR 13 Itzenplitz decided to storm the gentle hill held by Austrian IR 29 Loudon. Both are rated as regular, no national modifiers to complicate things. Both have morale of 3, needing to score that or less to get hits firing or in melee. Then those hits need 4+ to convert to disorder. Units roll a die for each stand not disordered. When all stands are disordered, the unit routs and is removed from the table, first dealing out disorder to nearby friends. The last hit from fire needs to be checked again before the unit routs. Defenders losing a melee must check morale; if they fail, they rout.

This test presumes the attacking unit is in control. Even with a competent division CO, there is a 1 in 3 chance that the unit will not be in control; hence unable to advance. It would bog down in a firefight.

 

On to the first test. Note that I have extremely limited terrain here and this is on the dining room table.

Note the attacker gets to move and then fire first. The designer says in a game with combined arms the defending artillery will get more licks on the attackers as they close. No big guns here though.

If a disorder result from shooting would rout a unit, the shooter must try to convert again.

Think I left some conversion dice out of one of the pictures. Well, that was fast. And unsatisfying. Dice can do the strangest things. The major leading that battalion - I think his wig is on fire!

 

It was short, so here we go again. 

This result was more satisfying, two rather beat-up units and an opportunity for whoever has reserves.

 

The rules have some interesting features. I find them a tad too laconic and would like more explanations, perhaps even an example. But the price is right. So far, I plan to stick to Shadows of the Eagles, Keith Flint’s new set of rules. Those do require coughing up some dough. But the combat resolution is faster. Shadows has all units the same size, where 321 allows large, normal and small units.