Commands & Colors: Napoleonics Expansion #3 – The Austrian Army Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Battalion Mass
  • Battalion Mass Counters
• Tactician Card Notes
  • Call Forward Reserves
  • Infantry Forward Leader
• Austrian Units
  • Austrian Line Infantry
  • Austrian Light Infantry
  • Austrian Grenzer Light Infantry
  • Austrian Grenadier Infantry
  • Austrian Militia Infantry
  • Austrian Light Cavalry
  • Austrian Light Lancer Cavalry
  • Austrian Heavy Cavalry
  • Austrian Cuirassier Heavy Cavalry
  • Austrian Foot Artillery
  • Austrian Horse Artillery

Battalion Mass

Battalion Mass Counters

These counters are used to designate an Austrian line infantry unit that is in a square formation unique to the Austrian Army.

In 1807, Archduke Charles created the Battalion Masse (hereafter referred to as Battalion Mass). The Austrian line infantry was trained to form a solid square, which differed from the traditional hollow square. The solid square was a dense formation that could be formed quickly by closing the intervals between the companies and having the men on the sides and the rear turn to face outwards.

Note: In the interest of uniformity of play, the 1805 scenarios allow the Austrian player to form Battalion Mass with his Line Infantry units. Whatever advantage accrues to the Austrian player from the Battalion Mass is factored out in other ways.

When a player chooses to have an Austrian line infantry unit form Battalion Mass, the attacking cavalry player will not select a Command card at random from the hand of the player. Instead, a Battalion Mass counter is placed on the infantry unit's hex to indicate the unit is in square. All other unit in square rules will still apply to the infantry unit in a Battalion Mass square.

The total number of Battalion Mass counters that may be used in a scenario at one time is limited to the number of Command cards the Austrian player has at the start of a battle.

Note: The infantry in square track and the numbered counters are still used to track all other Austrian infantry units (Light, Grenzer, Grenadier and Militia) that have formed square on the battlefield. See the core Infantry Square rules section for complete Forming Square and Combat details.

Tactician Card Notes

Call Forward Reserves

There are only 2 options.

1. Move the unit onto a hex with a lone leader (leader hex can contain any terrain hex).
2. Move onto a hex that is adjacent to a leader, but this hex cannot have any terrain feature or be occupied by another unit.

NOTE: An infantry square may not move.

Tactician Cards: Call Forward Reserves, Infantry Forward Leader, Inspired Infantry Leader, Leader Orders a Fall Back, Light Infantry Skrimish, Short Supply will not allow an infantry square to be moved.

Infantry Forward Leader

An ordered Infantry unit with an attached Leader, may move 1 additional hex more than its ordered movement. The unit may still battle, if eligible.

EXAMPLES:

• An ordered Infantry unit may normally move 1 hex and battle, but when an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is played on the unit with an attached Leader, the unit may move 2 hexes and battle. When an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is played on a light Infantry unit with an attached Leader, the unit may move 2 hexes and battle or has the option to move 3 hexes and not battle.
• An ordered Infantry unit, with an attached Leader, when ordered by a "Bayonet Charge" Command card may normally move up to 2 hexes and melee, but when an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is played on the unit with an attached Leader, the unit may move up to 3 hexes and melee.
• An ordered Infantry unit, with an attached Leader, when ordered by a "Force March" Command card may normally move up to 2 hexes and battle, but when an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is played on the Infantry unit with an attached Leader, the Infantry unit may move up to 3 hexes and battle.
• An ordered Light, Grenadier or Guard Infantry unit, with or without an attached Leader, when ordered by a "Force March" Command card may normally move up to 2 hexes and battle, but when an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is played on a Light, Grenadier or Guard Infantry unit with an attached Leader, the unit may move up to 3 hexes and battle.
• An ordered Infantry unit, with an attached Leader, when ordered by a "La Grande Manoeuver" Command card may normally move 4 hexes and not battle, but when an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is played on the unit with an attached Leader, the unit may move 5 hexes and not battle.
• An ordered Austrian Line infantry or Militia Infantry unit is limited to only move 1 hex and battle when ordered by a "Bayonet Charge" or a "Force March" Command card, but when an "Infantry Forward Leader" Tactician card is also played on an Austrian Line infantry or Militia Infantry unit with an attached Leader, the unit may move 2 hexes and battle.

Austrian Units

Unit entries as printed in the source. Ranged and melee dice, movement and morale are reproduced as the source gives them.

Austrian Line Infantry

• Map ID code: LN
• Blocks in Unit: 5
• Movement in Hexes: 1
• When an Austrian Line Infantry unit is ordered by a Force March or Bayonet Charge Command card, the unit may only move a maximum of 1 hex.
• Battle:
  • Range Standing: 1 die per block
  • Range Moving: dice equal to 1/2 number of blocks, round down
  • Melee and Battle Back: 1 die per block
• Morale: Retreat 2 hexes for each flag
• Notes: An Austrian line infantry unit will form a solid square, called a battalion mass. To form a square does not require a Command card to be placed on the Austrian Infantry in Square track (see Section 4 below).

Austrian Light Infantry

• Map ID code: LT
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 1 and combat or 2 and no combat
• Battle:
  • Range Standing: 1 die per block, plus 1 die
  • Range Moving: dice equal to 1/2 number of blocks, round down, plus 1 die
  • Melee and Battle Back: 1 die per block
• Morale: Retreat 1 hex for each flag
• Note: The Austrian Light Infantry units represent the battalions of Jaeger (hunter) light infantry.

Austrian Grenzer Light Infantry

• Map ID code: GRZ
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 1 and combat or 2 and no combat
• Battle:
  • Range Standing: 1 die per block, plus 1 die
  • Range Moving: dice equal to 1/2 number of blocks, round down, plus 1 die
  • Melee and Battle Back: 1 die per block, no saber hits except vs lone leaders
• Morale: Retreat 2 hexes for each flag
• Note: The Grenzer units were the light regiments traditionally stationed on the Hungarian frontier to prevent incursions from the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans.

Austrian Grenadier Infantry

• Map ID code: GR
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 1
• Battle:
  • Range Standing: 1 die per block, plus 1 die
  • Range Moving: dice equal to 1/2 number of blocks, round down, plus 1 die
  • Melee and Battle Back: 1 die per block, plus 1 die
• Morale: May ignore 1 flag, if unit does retreat, retreat 1 hex for each flag

Austrian Militia Infantry

• Map ID code: MI
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 1
• When an Austrian Militia Infantry unit is ordered by a Force March or Bayonet Charge Command card, the unit may only move a maximum of 1 hex.
• Battle:
  • Range Standing: 1 die per block
  • Range Moving: dice equal to 1/2 number of blocks, round down
  • Melee Standing and Battle Back: 1 die per block, no saber hits except vs lone leaders
• Morale: Retreat 3 hexes for each flag.

Any Austrian infantry unit that moves one or more hexes and engages in ranged combat, battle with one-half the number of blocks rounding down. (5 and 4 blocks = 2, 3 and 2 blocks = 1, 1 block = 0). Light, Grenzer and Grenadier units will add one die to the total number of dice allowed to roll.

[Source note: the printed sentence above begins mid-thought ("...engages in ranged combat, battle with one-half the number of blocks rounding down"). It is transcribed as printed; the source does not supply the missing words.]

On charts there is a bold typo: Austrian Militia are just like other nations in range fire. They have a range of 2 hexes.

Austrian Light Cavalry

• Map ID code: LC
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 3
• Battle:
  • Melee: 1 die per block
• Morale: Retreat 1 hex for each flag
• Notes: May retire and reform when melee attacked by infantry or attacked by infantry/artillery Combined Arms.

Austrian Light Lancer Cavalry

• Map ID code: LNCR
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 3
• Battle:
  • Melee: 1 die per block
  • An ordered Lancer unit rerolls all dice with flag results one time for additional unit symbol hits, sabers or flags against any defending unit except Cuirassiers.

Players must note the number of initial hits and flags rolled in the initial melee and add the initial numbers to the number of hits and flags rolled on the reroll. The total number of hits and flags rolled are then applied to the defending unit. A defending Lancer unit will not reroll flags when it is battling back. When a First Strike Command card is played on a Lancer unit a Lancer unit will reroll flags.

• Morale: Retreat 1 hex for each flag
• Note: May retire and reform when melee attacked by infantry or attacked by infantry/artillery Combined Arms.

Austrian Heavy Cavalry

• Map ID code: HC
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 2
• Battle:
  • Melee: 1 die per block, plus 1 die
• Morale: Retreat 1 hex for each flag
• Notes: May retire and reform when melee attacked by infantry or attacked by infantry/artillery Combined Arms.

Austrian Cuirassier Heavy Cavalry

• Map ID code: CU
• Blocks in Unit: 4
• Movement in Hexes: 2
• Battle:
  • Melee: 1 die per block, plus 1 die
• Morale: May ignore 1 flag, if unit does retreat, retreat 1 hex for each flag
• Notes: May retire and reform when melee attacked by infantry or attacked by infantry/artillery Combined Arms. Ignore one hit when attacked in ranged combat by infantry.

Austrian Foot Artillery

• Map ID code: FA
• Blocks in Unit: 3
• Movement in Hexes: 1 and no combat
• Battle: See artillery combat section in core game rules.
• Morale: Retreat 1 hex for each flag

Austrian Horse Artillery

• Map ID code: HA
• Blocks in Unit: 3
• Movement in Hexes: 1 and combat, 2 hexes no combat
• Battle: See artillery combat section in core game rules.
• Morale: Retreat 1 hex for each flag

Austrian Leader

• Map ID code: Star
• Movement in Hexes: 3 if alone; if attached to a unit it moves as the unit.
• Battle: If alone, it may not battle. If attached to a unit it will modify the number of dice a unit will roll when a Leadership card is played: unit rolls one additional die.
• Morale:
  • If alone = none (must retreat after surviving a melee attack, and will attempt to escape through enemy units, if retreat path is occupied by enemy units)
  • The unit, a Leader is attached to, may ignore one flag, if unit does retreat, Leader must retreat with unit.