Campaign Rules

Timing and Scale

The game begins in the early spring of 1801 by the Trossian calendar.  A full year consists of three seasons of three months each, which will be specified as follows:

1. Early Spring
2. Mid Spring
3. Late Spring
4. Early Summer
5. Mid Summer
6. Late Summer
7. Early Autumn
8. Mid Autumn
9. Late Autumn

After the Late Autumn turn ends, the armies must go into winter quarters.  Winter quarters can be built in any province, but all replacement units must begin the Early Spring phase in a town controlled by the player.

The total value of the lands, ports, and towns shall be tallied, and the player can replenish his forces from that pool of points.  Units bought this way will spawn in his capital city and be available for orders in the following Early Spring turn.

Therefore, each phase lasts approximately one month.  Movement rates are as follows:

• Infantry and artillery move one province per phase
• Mounted move two provinces per phase
• Couriers move four provinces per phase
• An entire move along a road adds one province to any unit's speed
• Army defeated in the field retreats to an adjacent province for free
• An army victorious in the field must spend one full phase stationary to reflect resupply, burying the dead, and reorganization

On the issue of Generals and Detachments:  AN ARMY WITHOUT A LEADER IS HIGHLY VULNERABLE TO THE ENEMY.  An army without an HQ will not move to contact an enemy force, but may be attacked.  An army that loses its last HQ will either hunker down and wait for orders or will march to the nearest Home City for safety.  

The Battles

Battles shall be played out on tabletop via Rod Humble's 2 by 2 Napoleonics (available online here).  Note that the actual battles fought will depend entirely on the make-up of the forces that meet on the strategic map.  The orders of battle that fight on the tabletop will therefore not be constrained by the points and scenarios given in Rod's rule  set.  

At the start of the game, each Kingdom will receive a full census of the forces available for the coming campaign to include naval forces and couriers available.  Forces will be personalized for each Kingdom, although the players are free to organize their forces as they see fit.  They can create as many detachments as they desire.  All units must begin the Early Spring phase inside a town province.  

The one hard limitation on forces is the real-world consideration of how many stands of each type of figure are available.  The tabletop armies have been assembled using army packs available from Irregular Miniatures, and as such no force can march with more units than those detailed on the Nations Page.

Allied forces can march and arrive to battle at the same time, presenting an opportunity for large battles, and for treachery on the tabletop as well!

Post Battle Sequence

For the winning army:

• The winning army remains in the province where the battle was fought.
• Dice for all units destroyed during the game.  On a 1 or 2 the unit has suffered sufficient casualties and is eliminated from the game.  (Guard and HQ units get a -1 to this roll, militia +1.)
• Dice for units remaining on the tabletop at the conclusion of the battle.  Units are eliminated from the game on a roll of 1.
• Dice for units forced off the table by routing.  (Eliminated on a 1.)

For the losing army:

• The losing army retreats by one province.  If the army has no safe line of retreat, it is destroyed as a fighting force.
• Dice for all units destroyed during the game.  On a 1 to 3 the unit has suffered sufficient casualties and is eliminated from the game. (Guard and HQ units get a -1 to this roll, militia +1.)
• Dice for units remaining on the tabletop at the conclusion of the battle.  Units are eliminated from the game on a roll of 1.
• Dice for units forced off the table by routing.  (Eliminated on a 1 or 2.)

For a draw:

• Both armies must retreat one province and cannot move in the following phase.
• Dice for all units destroyed during the game.  On a 1 or 2 the unit has suffered sufficient casualties and is eliminated from the game.  (Guard and HQ units get a +1 to this roll, militia -1.)
• Dice for units forced off the table by routing.  (All units eliminated on a 1.)

Naval Considerations

Navies can be in port or at sea.  Each port can hold a maximum of two navies, and each navy consists of both transports and ships of war.  A single navy can transport up to 20AP worth of units at a time.

• Navies can take four actions per phase as follows:
• Enter a new ocean province
• Move from port or coastline out into the sealane (consider the ports and coastlines as a separate sea-lane that can only be entered via the adjacent ocean space)
• Embark/Disembark up to 20AP worth of troops at a friendly port
• Embark/Disembark 10AP worth of units at a non-port province (includes landing at besieged port provinces)
• Couriers and HQ do not count as an AP for loading purposes

As this is a miniature wargame, naval battles are outside the scope of the rules.  Navies in port are protected by the guns of the city and cannot be attacked.  Navies in port when a port province is conquered will be captured by the conquering army.  Any units loaded onto a ship when a port is besieged automatically disembarks for the battle/siege.

When two navies occupy the same sea space, a battle will ensue (subject to other considerations as ruled by the umpire.)  A simple d6 will be rolled for each navy, with the highest score inflicting significant casualties on the loser.  The losing navy will retreat one sea lane, and must dice for unit survival with one roll for each unit, and any result of 1 indicating a loss of that unit.

The four northern sea lanes marked with a snowflake thaw late and freeze early.  Navies cannot enter these sea lanes in Early Spring or Late Autumn.  Navies that are present in these lanes in Late Autumn are presumed lost at sea with all hands.

Messengers

Players assume the role of the King of one of the nations liberated by the death of the Trossian Emperor.  As such, they are assumed to remain inside their capital city, and shall direct their generals via messages sent by couriers.  Couriers can move through enemy territory, but with each province entered, there is a 1 in 6 chance of failure to pass through.

Couriers who fail to pass through an enemy province roll as follows:

• 1: Captured!  Messages/plans fall into the hands of the controlling player.
• 2-5: Killed and messages lost.
• 6: Captured!  False messages/plans fall into the hands of the controlling player.  This may mean the player gains automatic initiative on the next battle, or the message delivered to the wrong player, as judged by the umpire.

Couriers can travel by horse or by ship, and freely convert back and forth at any coastal town (not just at port towns).  The assumption here is that couriers are resourceful individuals who usually pass for locals and are not above stealing a small fishing vessel if that's what it takes to get the message through.  Couriers travelling by sea can freely pass through unoccupied sea lanes, but are captured when trying to slip through an enemy held sea lane in the same manner as horse-riding couriers.

Siege Works

Every city possesses a garrison of troops that will defend the city from invasion

To take control of a province, 20AP worth of troops must spend a full phase (three months) in the province pacifying the populace.  Movement and battles negate this for one month - even cavalry patrols who attack in strength will ruin the attempt at pacification.

Sieges can extend through the winter, but the winter quarters requirements mean the besieging army cannot spawn replacements.  The besieged town or port does generate 4AP or 6AP as normal, even when besieged.

Ports do not count as besieged unless an enemy navy occupies the adjacent sea lane for the duration of the siege.  If a port siege lasts through the winter, the blockade must be lifted as the navy returns to port of the winter.  However, the limited shipping during winter months increases the siege cost by one phase.

Recruiting

Over the course of the campaign year, units will suffer attrition as they fight battles.  Forces can only be replenished during the first campaign season by events arising from Chance Cards.  Otherwise, troops are replenished over the winter months and appear in any controlled city province at the start of the Early Spring (unless over-ruled by Chance cards).

A national treasury receives AP after the Late Autumn as follows:

• 2AP for each province it controls
• 4AP for town province it controls 
• 6AP for port province it controls

In addition to the troop costs in the rules, players may purchase the following:

• 1AP to recruit a messenger
• 10AP to build a navy

Troop costs from the rules:

• 4AP: HQ (Required for every detachment)
• 2AP: Light or Line Infantry
• 3AP: Heavy Infantry (aka Elite Line Troops or Grenadiers) 
• 3AP: Light or Heavy Cavalry
• 3AP: Foot Artillery

AP not spent must be banked at a player's controlled cities.  If that city is lost to a siege, then those AP are captured and may be spent the following winter by the capturing player.  If a city that holds AP is under siege during the winter months, those AP may only be spent to recruit forces in that city.

Chance Cards

At the start of every game year, the umpire will roll 1d10 for each nation, the result indicating the game turn in which that nation is subject to the results of a Chance Card.  On a roll of 10, the umpire shall roll twice, ignoring any additional results of 10.  Chance cards can be both harmful and beneficial, or can be negated by conditionals.  For example, a card might specify that a random port town has succumbed to plague and only counts for half a resource during the winter - if the player does not possess a port at that time, the card has no effect.  Other rule conflicts will be dealt with by the Umpire as they occur.

Edit Log

14 September 2020: Removed 'Horse Artillery' as an option for recruiting.  All artillery is classed as foot artillery.  This was done for practical considerations - the army packs purchased for the game were designed for SYW rules and only included one style of artillery.

16 December:  Added details to courier use and port city rules.