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What makes up the Field of Fire range in musket warfare? The 1/3 foot move in Pub Battles is perfect and based on a ton of good data and research.  It is interesting to note where it comes from. Veteran officers of the era put together the data for Kriegsspiel which is as follows:  

Skirmish lines posted 100-300 paces out to the front.

Musket range:  100-400 paces.

So firing range measured from the front of a block, extends out 200-700 paces. 

You also need to take into account that the enemy block has a skirmish line out to their front, with a musket range projecting out from there.  So double those totals.  That gives us an engagement range of approximately 1,000 paces.  Yep, that’s about a half a mile.  That distance can be closed on foot in 10 minutes.    

This is also backed up by the battle maps of the era.  Where did they draw their battle lines and deploy?  Most are about 1,000 paces away.  It was standard practice of the day and no coincidence. 

There is another very good reason for this distance.  Canister range just so happens to be 800-1,000 paces.  All infantry units in Pub Battles at this scale are assumed to be carrying a complement of artillery with them.  So there ya go. 

The rules of Kriegsspiel state this but it is also common sense:  no unit is going to stand around under canister and skirmish fire for an hour and a half.  It just didn’t happen. 

This is also why the FoF doesn’t vary for the American Civil War.  It is mostly driven by canister and skirmishers, which was about the same.  At this scale any difference is negligible. 

I don’t have any good evidence for this but I also suspect that command reaction time played a role in this distance.  From 1,000 paces, the enemy can close with you in 10 minutes.  That’s just about enough time to shout out a couple of quick orders to rush up reserves or something.  Any closer and there would be no time for anything!  It would be like trying to box while standing 4 inches away from your opponent.   You need a little breathing room in a fight.   

Strange how such a key factor in war is completely left out of most military board games:  Fog-of-War.  It would be like playing Poker with all the cards dealt out face up on the table.  I suppose you could play it that way but it wouldn’t really be Poker anymore.

This is a simple example of how critical the difference can be.  Howe and Cornwallis move onto the board in Brandywine.  Howe’s HQ comes flying around our flank.

With perfect intell, this move is ridiculous.  We can see this is just Howe.  He has no troops.  There is no threat.

Now let’s throw in a Hidden Reserve Card.  The enemy can hide forces attached to this HQ behind the screen.  Right now, we don’t have any eyes on Howe.  What does he have?  For all we know, it could be anything!  It could just be his HQ.  There could be nothing behind it.

We have to actually march somebody over there that can see Howe.  What will they find when they get there?

They see just 1 Dragoon.

Fine, but what is behind them?  We still can’t see.  It could be 2 elite infantry brigades backed up by artillery support!

It could be 2 Dragoons ready to speed all around behind us.

Or, it could be nothing.  Just 1 Dragoon.

Look at all the problems and decisions this forces on us.  At the very least, we MUST send at least 1 unit over there to investigate.  That unit that could have been fighting elsewhere.  

Next, we are going to need to engage and probe to find out what the extent of this force is.  There is another lost turn.  At what point do we decide we need to send more units there?  How many?  What if we send to little?  Too much?  Too late?

Is this a weak distraction?  A moderate attack or the main effort?  There are many uncertainties here.  Many unknowns.  It’s like a mystery.  What other clues do we have to indicate what the enemy is up to?

Now we are struggling with real command issues.  Real poker.

Is Syria our generation’s Spanish Civil War?

[yop_poll id=”1″]

I meant to write up a full report in our Blog for what happened in our Mega Supremacy game.  It was an incredible success.  Jim Owczarski over at Grogheads did a great interview with us a few weeks ago on it.  It was such a great interview and discussion that  I  forgot all about reporting on the game myself!

So if you haven’t seen it yet, check it out!  You can find it here.

Excellent questions about Mega-Supremacy and Pub Battles.  It is a very interesting discussion about big multiplayer games and the future of our hobby/industry. 

They run a very good site on gaming also.  Lots of good info here on Kriegsspiel.  You will find lots of other cool things here. 

Pub Battles Strategy Guide

The traditional turn format of I-GO-YOU-GO is very neat and orderly. The turn sequence actually helps organize your thinking.  Handy but that is not the way the real world works. 

Pub Battles forces you to think like a real commander. Real battlefields are chaotic.  Imagine a flurry of reports coming in real time, explosions, musket fire, smoke, orders going out.  Half the time you don’t even know where your own troops are, little lone the enemy.  (In Pub Battles, each Command moves in random order as their chit is pulled.  Your HQs can roll to alter this sequence.)

Just like the real world, Pub Battles are a chaotic mess. This realism is good and exciting.  For new players, it can be overwhelming.  Where do you even begin?  Just like in the real world, you can often find yourself running from one emergency to the next.  You are constantly putting out fires with knee jerk management, always 1 step behind.  It is great if the enemy is doing this.  This is exactly the situation you want to create for HIM. 

You need to be much more ….premeditated. Here are some tips to help keep you on the right track.

Before each turn, look at each Command. What would happen if the enemy moves first?  Is that a total disaster or can you deal with it?  Now what if the good guys move first?  How much hurt will this put on the enemy?  Do you want to move first or last?  How important is this right now? 

In many ways, Pub Battles is like Poker. There is hidden intel.  In many ways it is like a random, chaotic street fight.  New players often overlook the fact that it is also a lot like Chess.  You must keep your eyes firmly fixed on 1-2 moves ahead.  Where is this going?  Where do you want it to go? 

Who has already moved? This is really key.  The enemy command in front of you that has NOT moved, is very different from the one that HAS moved.

Now that you know who needs to go first or last, should you roll now for HQs? No.  Big mistake.  Just sit tight.  Bide your time.  Let’s see who comes out of the chute first.  Maybe it’s you!  You got first move naturally.  Great!  If the enemy doesn’t like it and tries to roll, there is a good chance they miss.  That gives you intell.  You know what the enemy wanted and you know he’s not happy.  If the enemy jumps ahead of you, you can still have the last say by jumping ahead of him.

Notice what happens if you jump the gun and roll to go first?  You just wasted your roll. If the enemy jumps ahead of you now, you have no chance to alter.  You wasted it!   

Sit up and pay attention if the enemy starts rolling to change a chit pull suddenly. That means they are in danger.  They don’t like the way it came down.  If the enemy doesn’t like it, that means you do!  Do what you can to counter their changes.  If this threat wasn’t on your radar, you better start asking yourself why?  What would happen if the sequence stays as it is?  What is the enemy so afraid of?  What can you do to maximize their pain? 

Move First When:

• The enemy is spent. Move to engage them. This will force them to fall back or fight you on unfavorable terms.
• Critical terrain is currently unoccupied.
• The enemy can block off routes of escape.
• You can move up to block a key route of the enemy’s escape or attack.

Move Last When:

• You plan on falling back but want to delay the enemy. Just make sure you can still get out!
• When expecting an enemy attack. If he goes first, you can commit support afterwards.
• When attacking prepared positions, so the enemy cannot react.

If you do move last, try to think ahead to the next turn. What could you do with a double move?  Try to setup the first blow now.

If your artillery is in a separate command, try to get them to move right before your attacking command moves. That way you can contact the enemy defenders before they can Rally. Also the defenders may flat out run, so you can occupy their good terrain without a fight. 

If you must attack first, make sure you guard your flanks! Attack all the defenders in the line.  If you can’t, you will need an extra piece on your flanks. 

If you attack last, you don’t have to worry about this technically. You can make isolated attacks.  Just keep in mind what could happen if the enemy moves first next turn.  🙂

This is a lot to think about for each command isn’t it? Yes, that’s why Pub Battles works even better with a live player for each command.  Then each player can really focus on just their part of the front.  You can also add in written orders, which opens up a plethora of communication problems.  Now you’re really in command.