What does a For King or Empress SYW game look like?

[Prince Henry of Ohio]

Battalions of 10mm Prussians break through the Russian lines, storming the works and winning the battle

My friends and I got together to play an interesting scenario using the newly-released For King or Empress rules for the Seven Years War. I was commanding an Austrian relief force seeking to break through the Prussian lines and relieve our Russian allies. The Prussians had them trapped and outnumbered behind their works.

My mounted on the flanks drove off the attack by the Prussian horse, and we were poised to swing inward and threaten the Prussian infantry. They very aggressively surged forward and bloodied the noses of our line of fusiliers and grenadiers. I was beginning to sweat that I might snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and lose my center line when a messenger on a frothing horse arrived. He brought the ill news that the Russians had been attacked and defeated, their lines recoiling from their works and fleeing through a woods at their rear.

I took that as an omen, and withdrew, my checking the advance of the Prussians, and allowing my battered Austrian infantry to escape. Although we were winning in our sector of the battle, the Russians broke early and we called it an evening.



My buddy Keith took scads of pictures of the battle. Check them out here:
http://s1378.photobucket.com/user/orcafinn/library/Game%20Reports?sort=3&page=1

[Prince Henry of Ohio]

More photos from our game the other night of For King or Empress...



The players ready for the clash on the tabletop



The Russian army deployed behind their works, awaiting relief from their Austrian allies



The Austrians (my wing) marching to their aid



The Austrians close in on the hated Prussians, as the Prussian artillery opens fire



To give us time to rescue them, the Russians stay behind works and await the Prussian assault



Austrian and Prussian cavalry strike the first blows on our side of the table



Much to our surprise, we drive the enemy horse off on both flanks!



Meanwhile, my ally Joel (standing) is under assault by the Prussians



The Prussian battleline seems undeterred by the works and plows right in



The Prussians have breached the works and are beginning to overrun them!

With my ally defeated, I pulled back to prevent it from being a total Prussian victory. Quick to play -- took us about 2 hours to play. Feel free to ask any questions...!

[FifteensAway]

Okay, first things first - that guy in the blue with the M-cup should have to play his next came with whatever arm is attached to his dominant hand tied behind his back for ruining the overall table shot! 

And while I'm not a fan of the monotone bases on that playing surface (just personal taste so feel free to ignore), I do like the figures.  What manufacturer, please?

Did the rules give a tactical flavor or just a fast playing 'game'? 

Thanks for posting, either way.

[jambo1]

Looks like pendraken 10mm SYW range, lovely looking game. Looks like it is a really good game.

[Prince Henry of Ohio]

Those are indeed Pendraken 10mm's. I like how my friend Steve arranges his bases with troops, officers, standard bearers and such. Yes, I'd flock them, too -- but everyone has their tastes. Thanks for the nice comments.

Fifteens: This is not just a "who rolls better?" dice game. There is a definite tactical element. I set up my battle line to win on the flanks against his cavalry knowing full well his infantry was better. When the director yelled "Cut!", my gambit had paid off -- I had the advantage against my opponent. However, with my Russian ally in full retreat, there was no point in continuing the attack.

What's more, with generals having different ratings and abilities via the cards, as CnC, you have to take the reliability of your wing commanders into account. The poorest rated generals on the field in our game were my own Austrians (1 Average, 1 Poor). It had a definite effect on the game, much to my Russian ally's chagrin! I like the way that some generals are simply better commanders than others, and able to marshal their forces and move them to the point of attack more successfully -- much as we read in the histories of the time.

For a slight advertisement, at only $8 for a PDF download, we priced the rules for people to check them out and give them a whirl. We're not trying to get rich selling them for $50+ a hardbound copy like seems to be the norm in wargaming nowadays. We're just a bunch of wargamers wanting to share those rules we've played for years and had fun with, and maybe get a little cash for that next batch of figs that caught our eye...haha! 

[jambo1]

Yep love the way he bases them and I rather like the no flock as well!! $8 for the PDF is really good too, certainly interest me.

[Prince Henry of Ohio]

Thanks! I hope you are happy with the purchase. Feel free to ask any questions you may have...

Prince Henry of Ohio