After years of admiring the notion of playing Napoleonics, my now 64-year-old Dad’s day had finally come. I had my fully painted Black Powder 2nd Edition force – British vs French at Waterloo – and I invited him to come down and play. Except, rather than the vast fields of Waterloo, we were at a table in Bad Moon Café in London, UK. A match spanning generations, years in the making. A match up foretold in the stars. Destiny had befallen us! Father versus Son. Who will reign victorious?
This was to be my first game as a player, and my first game as a teacher. I was up for the challenge. Here’s how it went down – and hopefully gives you an insight into the complexity of the game and how Black Powder generally works on the tabletop.
The Setting:
An open plain with some rubble-strewn buildings scattered across it; there were few places to hide as the two armies lined up to face one another. My determined French army, controlled by me, Colonel Con, and the British being overseen by Commander Dad.
The British spot an oncoming detachment of French soldiers accompanied by cavalry. They want to destroy the British cannon! Why is the cannon so precious? Because it is! Why do the French want to destroy it? Because I said so! Why do they only have 6 turns to do it? Because our table was only reserved for 3 hours! Now that we have the nitty gritty out of the way, here’s how it went down…
Turn 1
French: The French began a swift forward advance. The commander allowed everyone to move of their own accord, except for the Old Guard who listened well and got a double move, straight towards the central building, and the furthest back line infantry unit, which failed to hear the order and thus stayed put. No one was in range of the fortified British lines or that pesky cannon, so it was over to the redcoats.
British: The redcoats responded in turn by pushing out and opening a blanket of musket and rifle fire upon my cavalry, as well as plummeting cannonballs on the heads of the French soldiers. The cavalry took a whopping, rendering them disordered and unable to do much at all, given that they cannot shoot rifles. Things were heating up already, and the impending close proximity of the units meant carnage was just around the corner.
Turn 2
French: French army’s turn. The Old Guard moved securely into some ruins and took a couple of poorly aimed shots out at the 95th Rifles. Some line infantry listened very well to their commander, granting them 3 actions. This allowed them to swoop around the left flank towards the British foot soldiers. The cavalry, unable to move or shoot, dawdled where they were and acted as a fine screen to my rear soldiers, who were intent on getting to the cannon.
British: The British shot at the cavalry again with the 95th Rifles and Hanoverian line infantry, rendering them broken – destroyed! Off the table they went. Not a great start for the French, but a strong result for the British, who no longer needed to concern themselves about the Chasseurs à Cheval and their various scary special rules.
Turn 3
French: While all the commotion with the cavalry was going on, the French had snuck around the left of the British and caused a ruckus by charging a unit of line infantry which had been on guard to stop any passers-by. This panned out as neither of us expected, as after retreating from losing the hand-to-hand fight, the British were forced right to the table edge. If they lose again and are forced to retreat, it’s bye-bye time as they’ll be counted as having fled the battle!
British: Meanwhile, the Old Guard had left the building to block the way of the Hanoverians. Whilst greater in number, the Hanoverians are inferior in hand-to-hand, so they smartly kept their distance and opened up their muskets on the enemy, wounding the Old Guard, but not stopping them. The British cannon was now turning to face the battle that was happening on the flank, anticipating that it may be face-to-face with a crowd of angry Frenchmen sooner than expected. The 95th Rifles set up inside the central ruins and took shots out of windows, doors and nooks and crannies in the walls at the French Old Guard, who, unfortunately for the Chosen Men, brushed off their rifled musket balls with hearty rolls of a dice. British line infantry moved to block direct access to the cannon.
Turn 4
French: The French were now pushing down the table, closer and closer to the cannon. The clock was ticking – just 2 turns left. The flanking French had been victorious in battle and were now turned and poised to run full speed at the objective, despite being slightly afraid of its potential to do insane levels of damage at close range. The Old Guard kept the Hanoverians busy, while the infantry moved to meet the British protecting the cannon. With an almighty charge! the French engaged the British’s last line of defence in front of the cannon, which was now turned away to face the flanking French.
British: The cannon tore into the advancing French, almost knocking them off their feet, but they stood their ground! The line infantry who had been standing in front of the cannon struck their hardest with their bayonets, but could not hold. They perished in the face of the French charge, leaving the cannon exposed. The 95th Rifles dove out of the building right in front of the cannon’s barrel. Whilst this prevented the cannon from shooting due to close proximity of friendly units, it meant the now encroaching French couldn’t shoot or charge in their next turn.
Turn 5
French: The French infantry, now faced with a brave band of 95th Rifles, charged in to show them what for. We knew the 95th Rifles could shoot, but what we wanted to know is: could they stand? (A little Sharpe reference there for any like-minded fans.) It turns out, they couldn’t stand. They are great at long-distance harassment, but not so good in close combat. To add to that, their status as a “small unit” meant they were just overpowered by the larger French infantry unit. Now, from the cannon’s rear, the recently victorious French infantry raised their muskets and, in a triumphant cloud of smoke and powder, put the cannon down.
British: The British had sadly failed to protect the cannon in the final strides of turn 5. With only the Hanoverians left, it was a French victory.
Post-Game Thoughts
What a cracking game. It’s simple to learn, complex to master. The game took us a total of around 2 hours and 40 minutes to conclude. The units on both sides reflect one another closely enough that we were quick to learn what dice rolls we each needed to pass the various tests, such as orders, shooting, morale, and break tests. My Dad, who had never played a tabletop wargame outside of perhaps one game of Warhammer about 10 years ago, was able to pick it up with ease, and the game ran smoothly throughout.
I’ll admit, I did put a lot of time into studying the rules prior to the game, which was essential for it to run as smoothly as it did. I had tabbed the rulebook for quick reference, and it really did come in useful. However, there was certainly no “teacher and student” dynamic here. It was an even, fast-paced, and enjoyable first foray into Black Powder 2nd Edition. It left me wanting to add more to my collection and even put the fire in my Dad to explore a collection of his own.
Two things that stuck out to me were how easy it was to teach and how quickly my Dad was able to pick it up. As I’ve emphasised again and again in my trilogy of Black Powder 2nd Edition blogs, this isn’t Warhammer – and it shows. That’s not to criticise Warhammer, but to highlight that the culture and entry bar for Warhammer doesn’t carry across to other tabletop wargames, and I therefore highly recommend branching out and exploring. This game was far more focused on the placement of your units rather than the contents of the units themselves. How you stack and line up your army will determine how you fare on the field, but even then, don’t underestimate the roll of the dice! No matter your plan, the odds are always up for shaking things up. While there wasn’t any “gotcha” moments, the tide of battle can change any time and that element of the unknown adds good thrilling edge to the game. It tests your self-belief in your own strategy. Have you got a solid plan? Have you really thought it through? I’ve definitely found a new hobby in Black Powder 2nd Edition, and I can’t wait for my next match!
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