España 20: La Guerra Peninsular Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• • Guide to Using the Rules
  • Introduction
    • Nationality Legends
    • About the Napoleonic 20 Series
  • Components
  • Initial Deployment
  • Sequence of Play
    • General Rule
    • Game Turns
  • Random Events
    • General Rule
  • Movement
    • General Rule
    • Procedure
    • Restrictions and Prohibitions
    • Terrain Effects
    • Zone of Control Effects
    • Effects of Other Friendly Units
  • Zones of Control
    • General Rule
    • Effects on Combat
    • Night Game Turns
  • Reaction Phase
    • General Rule
    • Countercharge
    • Disengagement
  • Combat
    • General Rule
    • Procedure
    • Other Combat Considerations
    • Explanation of Combat Results
    • Dispersed and Routed Units
  • Rally
    • General Rule
    • Procedure
    • Placement of Rallied Units
  • Reinforcements
    • General Rule
  • Army Morale
    • General Rule
    • Recording Morale Points
    • [12.3] Guard Units
  • Passing ("Truces")
    • General Rule
  • Night Turns
    • General Rule
    • Additional Activities
  • How to Win
    • General Rule
  • Optional Rules
    • [16.1] Fog of War: Hidden Units
    • [16.2] Cavalry Penetration
    • [16.3] Artillery Support
    • [16.4] Additional Rally Locations
    • [16.5] Reduced Units
    • [16.6] Splitting and Building Up a Unit
    • [16.7] Special Units
    • [16.8] Fatigue
    • [16.9] Leaders
• Exclusive Rules
  • Bailén 20: El Desastre de Dupont
    • Introduction
    • Components
    • Initial Deployment
    • Sequence of Play
    • Random Events
    • Movement
    • Combat
    • Reinforcements
    • Army Morale
    • Passing ("Truces")
    • Night Turns
    • How to Win
    • Optional Rules
    • Alternative Scenarios
    • Bailén 20: Designer's Notes
    • Bailén 20: Historical Notes
  • Arapiles 20: La Batalla de Salamanca
    • Introduction
    • Components
    • Initial Deployment
    • Sequence of Play
    • Random Events
    • Movement
    • Combat
    • Rally
    • Reinforcements
    • Night Turns
    • Optional Rules
    • Alternative Scenario
    • Arapiles 20: Designer's Notes
  • Bussaco 20: La Insensatez de Masséna
    • Introduction
    • Components
    • Initial Deployment
    • Sequence of Play
    • Random Events
    • Combat
    • Reinforcements
    • Army Morale

Guide to Using the Rules

When new game terms are used for the first time, they appear written in dark red lettering so they can be located quickly.

This rulebook is organized into important "Rules" sections, identified by large green CAPITAL letters, and represented by the number to the left of the decimal point (for example, Rule [4.0] is the fourth Rule). These Rules explain the objective of the game, its components, the game procedures, how a game is set up, and how it is won.

With each Rule there can be "Cases" that provide an additional explanation of that Rule's concept or procedure, or that restrict the application of a Rule through exceptions. Cases (and Subcases) are an extension of a Rule, with which they are associated by the way they are numbered. For example, Rule [4.1] is the first Case of the fourth Rule; Rule [4.1.2] is the second Subcase of the first Case of the fourth Rule.

Important information is written in red text. Blue boxes contain examples. Gray boxes contain designer tips and notes.

Introduction

Napoleonic 20 is a series of wargames that recreates operational-level battles during the Napoleonic Wars, using roughly 20 counters per side in each battle (often fewer). These Standard Rules explain the general mechanics and system that apply to the whole series. Each game has its own set of Exclusive Rules, which explain how to carry out initial deployment as well as including any particular rule that applies to that battle or campaign.

Scale: each unit represents anywhere from a division to an army corps (approximately between 8,000 and 20,000 men with their equipment). Each hex represents between 800 and 1,600 meters. The Exclusive Rules of each game may include additional detail.

Nationality Legends

Units are printed for the following nationalities, among others depending on the battle: French, Spanish, Swedish, British, Russian, Prussian, Turkish, and Austrian.

About the Napoleonic 20 Series

By: Joseph Miranda, Lance McMillan, and Alan Emrich

For Joe Miranda it was quite a challenge to design a realistic game of a large campaign with only 20 units on the map. Choosing the Waterloo campaign as a starting point, this game system reached Alan Emrich of Victory Point Games in 2007 and became the first published game, Waterloo 20. Joseph's goal was to give players an overall picture of the campaign, emphasizing the key decisions that shaped its development: which direction to advance, how to deal with the changing fortunes of war, and evaluating the wisdom of pressing constant attacks versus attrition and the loss of troop morale.

System Design Elements

Based on the use of large formations (corps or divisions), the Napoleonic 20 system highlights the key operational elements of that period. Movement capacity is low to prevent players from making unrealistic flanking maneuvers, reflecting the importance of using roads and forced marching to improve mobility.

Combat values are also low, allowing the use of differentials on the Combat Table, which is simple and provides a wide variety of results for an attack. The range of results can vary from a non-decisive result, to causing Rout (simulating with a die roll the distances that units could cover in their flight before recovering), or to Disperse a unit (when it has not been completely destroyed but is not effective again until it Rallies).

The Napoleonic 20 system also emphasizes the vital importance of morale. Essentially, Morale must be considered a resource that must be managed carefully: if your Morale drops to zero, you will lose the battle!

Morale is a vital asset that can be spent at critical moments to help you achieve decisive results in battle by means of forced marches, assigning reserves, or rallying troops.

Finally, the Napoleonic 20 system also includes random events that help "tell the story" of the battle while adding an important element of uncertainty.

Players have to think intuitively about what might happen, considering how "the fog of war" can affect which routes their troops should follow, when they should commit their best units, and where they want to fight the decisive battle.

Random events in these games create a delightful puzzle that can frustrate a "perfect plan," create unexpected opportunities, and generally provide a great and varied gaming experience.

History of the System's Development

When Alan Emrich began developing Waterloo 20, he knew he was not making just one game (Waterloo 20), but a new system (Napoleonic 20) for an entire series of games. He turned Joe's original Random Events Table design into a small deck of cards. To give armies more "directionality," Alan added Objective Hexes to the maps. He also created new Optional Rules for Fog of War and unit Remnants, improving the game concept to make it more robust.

Then Alan took the decisive step and created a general design for the series' second game, Jena 20, and from that moment the floodgates opened. This series' success is owed to good evolution: new terrain types were added for different battles (small rivers, redoubts, escarpments, etc.), and new unit types (artillery, Optional Rules for Militia, Cossacks, Light Infantry, etc.), and the rules gradually expanded to better capture the "feel" of warfare during the Napoleonic period.

All of this has been overseen by Lance McMillan, the series' developer since the second game. Entrusted with the "vision" of Napoleonic 20 (and designer of several games in the series), Lance never forgets that any proposal must keep in line with keeping the game simple, fast, and above all fun. His development philosophy is that the games in the series are first and foremost games, and simulations second. This premise has been maintained in every game of the series, from VPG's earliest releases, through the titles published by GMT under license, up to the new version 4.0... and Lance has developed them all!

Components

The Game Board: the board shows a map representing the area where the battles/campaigns took place. A hexagonal grid has been superimposed to regulate the movement and position of the pieces.

The Game Pieces: the game pieces are made of cardboard and come in two basic types: units and markers. Units represent the actual troops and military leaders who took part in the original campaign and carry the following information:

• Combat Strength is the value a unit has when it enters combat.
• Movement Allowance is a measure of the unit's speed and endurance; basically, it is the maximum number of open-terrain hexes the unit can move in a single Movement Phase.

Markers are also included to indicate a unit's current status (e.g. Routed or Fatigued), each army's morale level, the time of day, and other information.

Event Cards: the cards include the name of the battle and the event (if it is common to both sides) or events (if there is one for each side) on their upper portion. Individual Events affect the player who drew the card. Dual Events are specific to the player who drew the card: the events for the French Player are the ones placed above, while the events for the Allied Player are the ones at the bottom.

Charts, Tables, and Game Records: the Game Turn Record is built into each game's board. It shows the passage of time during the battle, measured in Game Turns. The Morale Record indicates the number of Morale Points each side currently has available. The Combat Results Table is used to resolve attacks. The Terrain Effects Chart explains how the characteristics of the map's different terrain types affect movement and combat during the game. Additional tables and reminders are included on the Player Aid sheet.

Initial Deployment

Each player selects a side. The French Player will control all French units while the Anti-French (Allied) Player controls the other units (allied or coalition).

Card Preparation: select the cards that belong to the battle being played. Cards whose battle name is printed in red are placed face up in the Discard Pile (these cards will not enter play until the deck is shuffled for the first time). Shuffle the rest of the cards to form the Event Deck and place it next to the Discard Pile with the cards face down.

To complete deployment, follow the Exclusive Rules for the battle being played.

Sequence of Play

General Rule

The game proceeds through successive Game Turns in which both sides alternate carrying out their Player Turn. During a player's turn, they may move their units (the opponent may react by moving their Cavalry units) and resolve combats. At the end of the last Game Turn, the winning side is determined (see [15.0]).

Game Turns

Each Game Turn is divided into two Player Turns, a First Player Turn and a Second Player Turn (the Exclusive Rules of each battle determine who the first player is). Each Player Turn is divided into a series of Phases. The term "Active Player" describes the player who is currently carrying out actions during a Phase.

First Player Turn

1. First Player Event Phase: the First Player takes the top card of the Event Deck and reveals it [5.0].

2. First Player Movement Phase: the First Player may move all, some, or none of their units, as desired, respecting the limits set by the Movement Rules [6.0], Zones of Control [7.0], and Terrain Effects [6.5 and 6.6].

   Reinforcement Arrival: the First Player may place reinforcements on the map if available [11.0].

3. Second Player Reaction Phase: the Second Player may perform a Reaction Maneuver with all, some, or none of their eligible Cavalry units [8.0].

4. First Player Combat Phase: in whatever order desired, the First Player may use their units to attack enemy units [9.0].

   Recovery: after resolving all attacks, eligible Routed units recover [9.6.2] and Fatigue [16.8] and In Contact [8.2.4] markers are removed.

   Truce: if the First Player did not Force March during their Movement Phase and was not involved in any attack during the Reaction Phase or Combat Phase, the First Player may, if eligible, receive a Morale Point for resting this turn by declaring a "Truce" [13.0].

5. First Player Night Operations: only if it is a Night Turn, the First Player may Rally Dispersed units [10.0]; adjust their side's Morale for the capture of Lines of Communication ("LOC") and Objective hexes; recover one Morale Point [14.0]; hide all their units; and add Dummy units to the map when using the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1].

Second Player Turn

6. Repeat Phases 1 through 5, swapping the roles of first player and second player.

7. If it is a Night Turn, shuffle the Event Deck together with the Discard Pile to form a new Event Deck.

Sudden Death Turns

8. On certain Game Turns, marked with a red "stop" symbol containing a die on the turn record, the battle has a chance of ending earlier than scheduled. At the end of these turns, the Second Player rolls a die and, if the result is less than or equal to (≤) the number shown on the die symbol, the game ends immediately and the winner is determined. If the roll is greater than the value shown, the game continues with the next Game Turn.

Random Events

General Rule

Events represent all those unpredictable happenings of war that affected the development of these campaigns.

At the start of each Player Turn, the active player reveals the top card of the Event Deck and immediately applies the corresponding event. If the card is a Dual Event, only the event belonging to the active player's side is taken into account (e.g. blue if the active player is French). The event corresponding to the other player is completely ignored.

Ignored Events might occur later, when the Discard Pile is reshuffled together with the Event Deck.

Shuffle the Event Deck and the Discard Pile together whenever specifically indicated by an event and always at the end of every Night Game Turn. A specific event may occur several times in the same game unless the card specifies otherwise.

Some Event cards include the instruction "Keep this card." The player who draws this event must keep the card face up in front of them. Normally its effect applies that turn or a later one, and it must be discarded after use, or at the end of a period of time (e.g. at the start of the next Night turn), whichever comes first.

Movement

General Rule

During their Movement Phase, the active player may move as many units as desired. Units may move in any direction or combination of directions.

Procedure

Units move one at a time, following a path of hexes adjacent to one another. Upon entering each hex, the unit spends one or more Movement Points from its Movement Allowance.

Restrictions and Prohibitions

[6.1] Strict Sequence. A player's units may only move, voluntarily, during their own Movement Phase or Reaction Phase [8.0], never outside these phases of the sequence of play. Units may also move as a result of combat, but this is not considered "movement" as such; it is a "Retreat" or "Advance" movement, which have their own specific Rules, different from normal movement.

[6.2] Speed Limit. During the Movement Phase, a unit may not exceed its Movement Allowance, with the exception that a unit may always move 1 hex (provided it does not enter a prohibited hex or cross a hexside with prohibited terrain), even if it does not have enough Movement Allowance to pay the full cost. Units may spend all, part, or none of their Movement Points. Unused points cannot be accumulated from one turn to the next, nor transferred to other units. Unused Movement Points are lost.

[6.3] Enemies. A unit may never enter a hex containing an enemy unit.

[6.4] No "Turning Back." All moves are considered final once the player releases the unit being moved. Players may not change their mind and make a different move after letting go of the unit counter. This Rule must be strictly observed! During these campaigns, it was common for units to be sent in the wrong direction at decisive moments of the battle, causing disastrous results.

Terrain Effects

Normally, units spend one (1) Movement Point to enter each hex, regardless of the type of terrain it contains. Additionally, the following special Cases apply:

[6.5] Rough Terrain. Units that enter a Forest, Marsh, or Escarpment hex must stop immediately, losing any unused Movement Points (even those gained through Forced March [12.2.1]). Units may leave this type of hex on their next move, but if they enter another hex of this type, they must stop again.

[6.6] Roads. A unit using road movement (i.e. moving directly from one hex to another connected by a road) does not have to stop in Rough Terrain [6.5]. A unit that makes its entire move through hexes connected by road receives one additional (+1) Movement Point that turn. For example, a Cavalry unit with 3 Movement Points, if it moves only through hexes connected by roads, could spend 4 Movement Points that turn.

Zone of Control Effects

[6.7] Stop. A unit that enters an enemy Zone of Control [7.0] must stop immediately, losing any unused Movement Points (even those gained through Forced March [12.2.1]). A unit is not affected by the Zone of Control of friendly units.

[6.8] Lock. Units may voluntarily leave a Zone of Control only through the Disengagement procedure [8.2], or at Night [7.7]. Generally, most units leave an enemy Zone of Control by Advancing or Retreating after an attack [9.7 and 9.8].

Effects of Other Friendly Units

[6.9] No Stacking. A unit may move through hexes occupied by friendly units (at no additional Movement Point cost). However, it may not end the Movement Phase stacked in the same hex as another friendly unit.

Zones of Control

The six hexes surrounding a unit constitute its "Zone of Control" (abbreviated "ZOC"). Hexes adjacent to an enemy unit (where its ZOC extends) are called "Enemy Zone of Control" hexes (abbreviated "EZOC").

General Rule

During Day Game Turns, units that begin their Movement Phase in an EZOC cannot move during that Phase, and units that enter an EZOC during their Movement Phase must stop immediately [6.7].

All units exert a ZOC at all times regardless of the Phase or Player Turn. Markers do not exert ZOCs. A ZOC is not affected by the presence of other units, whether friendly or enemy. Therefore, the presence of a friendly unit does not prevent an enemy ZOC in that hex from affecting other units attempting to use that hex during their movement. A ZOC extends into all terrain types, except Fortification and Redoubt hexes. Furthermore, ZOCs do not extend between adjacent City/Fortification/Redoubt hexes (i.e. hexes in a built-up area). A ZOC extends across all hexside types, except Major River hexsides.

[7.1] Major River Hexsides. ZOCs do not extend across Major River hexsides, nor are units separated by a Major River hexside considered "adjacent" for the purposes of these Rules. The exception to this can occur when a bridge or ford crosses the Major River hexside (see below).

At a Major River hexside with a bridge/ford (i.e. one crossed by a bridge or ford symbol), the phasing Player determines, case by case, whether ZOCs extend across it. Specifically, this means that:

• During the Movement Phase, the active player's units may ignore EZOCs that cross a Major River via bridges or fords, allowing their units to move without stopping in that hex [6.7], or to voluntarily move away from it [6.8].
• During the Reaction Phase, the reacting (non-active) player's Cavalry units may Countercharge [8.1] or Disengage [8.2] from enemy units across that Major River hexside with a bridge or ford.
• During the opponent's Reaction Phase, the Active Player's units may choose to Maintain Contact [8.2.4] with enemy units disengaging from the opposite side of a bridge or ford.
• During the Combat Phase, the active player's units may attack enemy units across a bridge or ford that crosses a Major River, but are not obligated to do so.

[7.2] Multiple Zones of Control. Both friendly and enemy units may exert their ZOC over the same hex. There are no additional effects if several units project a ZOC onto the same hex. Normally, if a given unit is in a hex controlled by the enemy, the enemy unit is also in a hex controlled by the opponent, so both units are equally affected and "locked" in the opponent's ZOC.

[7.3] Movement Cost. Units do not spend additional Movement Points to enter or leave an EZOC.

Effects on Combat

[7.4] Combat Obligation. During the Combat Phase, all of the active player's units located in an EZOC must attack one or more adjacent enemy units, and all of the opponent's units exerting those EZOCs must be attacked [9.1].

[7.5] Effects on Retreats. Units may Retreat into a hex containing an EZOC, but doing so requires a Hazardous Retreat check [9.7.4].

[7.6] Effect on Advance After Combat. EZOCs never affect Advance After Combat [9.8]. Units Advancing After Combat may enter or leave EZOCs freely.

Night Game Turns

[7.7] ZOC Effects at Night. During a Night Turn, EZOCs function opposite to the way they do during the day. That is, units may not enter hexes with an EZOC (these hexes are prohibited), but they may leave these hexes freely. Consequently, such units are not Locked [6.8] during a Night Turn.

Reaction Phase

General Rule

A player's Reaction Phase takes place during the opponent's Player Turn. Any of their Cavalry units that begin the Reaction Phase adjacent to an enemy unit may be selected to Countercharge or Disengage (or Penetrate, if using Optional Rule [16.2]). Reaction is voluntary; a player is never obligated to react with their Cavalry units and may simply remain in the hex and defend normally.

Countercharge

[8.1] Seizing the Initiative in the Attack. Cavalry units that are not Routed may make a special "Countercharge" during their Reaction Phase (only during this Phase, not during the normal Combat Phase) against enemy units adjacent to the countercharging Cavalry (i.e. the Cavalry does not move before initiating the Countercharge). The player performing the action becomes the "Phasing Player" and is considered the "Attacker" in those combats.

• [8.1.1] Good Order Requirement: a Cavalry unit that is Routed (has a Rout marker) may not perform a Countercharge.
• [8.1.2] Unsettling the Enemy: a Countercharge follows the general Rules of combat for the most part [9.0], but because it is used to disrupt the enemy's concentration and coordination before their attack, the following modifications apply: [8.1.3] to [8.1.5].
• [8.1.3] Selective Attacks: unlike normal combat ([9.1] and [9.2]), units performing a Countercharge do not have to attack all enemy units that are exerting an EZOC [7.4] on them. Instead, they may make a "Selective Attack," attacking all, or only some, of the adjacent enemy units. Some Event cards also grant this Selective Attack capability to certain units, to simulate their special behavior. Several Cavalry units may combine to make a "Selective Attack" on a single enemy unit if they are all adjacent to that unit. After the Countercharge attack, normal Advance After Combat [9.8] follows, including the requirements to roll on the Controlled Advance Table. Normal combat between the enemy unit(s) and the countercharging unit still takes place during the following enemy Combat Phase.
• [8.1.4] Strength Bonus: the Combat Strength of units performing a Countercharge is doubled, except when the Countercharge is made against enemy Cavalry units.
• [8.1.5] Standing Firm: in a Countercharge, if the defenders win, they may not Advance After Combat [9.8]. They are too busy taking cover or reforming after forming square.

Disengagement

[8.2] Cavalry "Retreat Before Combat." A Cavalry unit that begins its Reaction Phase adjacent to an enemy unit, even if Routed, may withdraw from combat via "Disengagement."

• [8.2.1] Timing: a unit may only disengage during its Reaction Phase.

• [8.2.2] Blocking: a Cavalry unit may not disengage if it is in the ZOC of an enemy Cavalry unit.

• [8.2.3] Procedure: a Cavalry unit disengages by moving to an adjacent hex that is empty, not prohibited, and not enemy-controlled. The Disengagement move then ends. If no other route is available, it may move through hexes with friendly units that are not in an EZOC to reach an empty hex. If this happens, it must move an additional hex until it is no longer stacked with any friendly unit.

• [8.2.4] Maintaining Contact: an enemy unit adjacent to the disengaging unit may maintain contact with it. The enemy player moves the unit maintaining contact into the hex just vacated by the disengaging unit (similar to an Advance After Combat [9.8]) and places an "In Contact" marker on that unit.

  Effects: while a unit has the "In Contact" marker, the following effects apply to it: it loses its ZOC; its Combat Strength is reduced by 50% (rounding up), both attacking and defending (this does not modify any Terrain benefit it should receive when defending); it may not Advance After Combat.

  Combat while In Contact: note that the unit maintaining Contact must attack the Disengaged unit during the next Combat Phase (due to the requirements of Rule [9.1]), and that the attack will be carried out at half strength (due to the second point in the list above). Careful consideration should be given to whether it is necessary to occupy an empty hex before moving to Maintain Contact.

  Recovery: the player automatically removes all "In Contact" markers from their units at the end of the opponent's Combat Phase.

[8.3] Cavalry Penetration. See Optional Rule [16.2] for an additional option during the Reaction Phase.

Combat

General Rule

During the Combat Phase, regardless of the strategic situation, the active player is called the attacker and the non-active player is called the defender in each attack (i.e. during the resolution of each individual attack).

The active player must declare all the attacks they wish to initiate that Phase before resolving any of them. Then each individual attack is resolved, one at a time, by rolling a die and consulting the Combat Results Table to determine its result.

Procedure

For each attack, the player must follow these Combat Sequence steps in order:

A. The active player designates their own attacking unit(s), as well as the adjacent enemy unit(s) that will be attacked.

B. The Combat Strength of all attacking units is added together. If Optional Rule [16.9.5] is in use, check whether they are under Command. The active player may spend a Morale Point to assign reserve troops [12.2.3] and increase the total strength by one (+1).

C. The Combat Strength of all targeted defending units is added together. The greatest applicable terrain effect for the defenders' location is added. The defender may now spend a Morale Point to assign their reserves to the attack [12.2.3] and increase their total defense strength by one (+1).

D. Check the Special Troops units participating in that attack: Elite (–) and Unsteady (–), see Optional Rule [16.7.4].

E. The total defense strength is subtracted from the total attack strength. The result is the Combat Differential, expressed as a positive, negative, or zero number.

F. Consult the Combat Results Table (CRT) and resolve the attack using the Differential Column obtained in Step E.

G. Roll a die, and cross-reference the die result with the corresponding Differential Column to determine the result of the attack [9.6].

H. Apply the Combat Results immediately, including Retreats [9.7] and Advances [9.8] after Combat.

[9.1] Mandatory Combat. During their Combat Phase, all of the active player's units that are in an EZOC must make an attack. If the active player chooses a unit that is not in an EZOC (e.g. a unit in a Redoubt hex), then all enemy units in that unit's ZOC must be attacked.

• [9.1.1] Attacker's Benefit: the active player determines which units will attack which enemy defending units, in whatever combination desired, as long as: A) all friendly units in an EZOC take part in an attack, and B) all enemy units in friendly ZOCs are, in turn, attacked [9.2.1].
• [9.1.2] Limitations: no unit may attack more than once in its Combat Phase, and no enemy unit may be attacked more than once per Combat Phase.

[9.2] Pre-Designation of All Attacks. At the start of the Combat Phase, the active player must identify their own units that will attack and the adjacent enemy units that will be attacked (to ensure that all adjacent units are attacked in accordance with the following Subcases) before resolving any individual attack.

• [9.2.1] Combats with Several Defenders: when one of the active player's units is in the ZOCs of more than one enemy unit, it must attack all enemy units that are not designated to fight in some other attack during its Combat Phase. Example: if a unit is adjacent to two enemy units, it must attack both!

• [9.2.2] Combats with Several Attackers: attacking units located in two or more hexes may add their Combat Strengths together and make a single attack, provided that all of them are adjacent to all of the opponent's defending units. Therefore, attacks may include several attacking and/or defending units.

  Soak-off Attacks: when organizing a series of combats, the active player may assign their units such that some attacks are carried out with low differentials so that other adjacent attacks can be carried out with more favorable differentials. This is a common wargaming technique called "soaking off."

[9.3] Unit Combat Strength. A given unit's Combat Strength is always indivisible; its value cannot be split between different combats during a single Phase, either for attack or defense.

Artillery Bonus. Artillery units, when included in the game, represent the large and unwieldy artillery guns that were massed into Grand Batteries to break enemy lines. An attacking Artillery unit's Combat Strength is always doubled. Artillery units use their normal (printed) Combat Strength when defending in a battle. Artillery units can never Advance After Combat [9.8].

Terrain Effects on Combat. Defending units benefit from the terrain in the hex they occupy (the place where they are attacked) or the hexsides through which they are attacked.

[9.4] Defender Bonuses. Add the Combat Strength value for the defender's hex or hexside to their total strength, as indicated on the Terrain Effects Chart.

• [9.4.1] Single Bonus: terrain bonuses in combat are not cumulative. The defender in a combat receives only one terrain bonus, whichever is most advantageous (for the defender) among those available.

• [9.4.2] Multiple Bonuses: when two or more defending units are involved in a single attack, and they receive different terrain bonuses (i.e. different effects on the Combat Differential), the entire attack is resolved using whichever individual effect is most beneficial to the defender.

• [9.4.3] Attacker's Terrain: the terrain of hexes occupied by one or more attacking units has no effect on combat, with this important exception related to EZOCs [7.0]. An attacking unit in a Fortification or Redoubt hex, OR in a City hex that is adjacent to an enemy unit in a City, Fortification, or Redoubt hex, OR across Major River hexsides (even with a bridge or ford) from an enemy unit, is not required to attack from these hexes or across these hexsides. If these units choose to attack from any of these positions, they must fully apply the Rules described in [9.1].

• [9.4.4] Garrison Forces: some Napoleonic 20 games feature hexes that intrinsically contain Garrisons. Generally, these positions are indicated on the map with a small flag representing the side that controls the Garrison, resisting the enemy's efforts to enter those hexes.

  Unless otherwise indicated in the Exclusive Rules, Garrisons generally have an intrinsic Combat Strength of zero (0), meaning they do not contribute to an attack, but their defense strength is modified by any terrain bonus inherent to their hex! For example, a Garrison in a City hex should have a strength of 1 when defending in battle.

  The following describes how Garrisons function when their hexes are unoccupied; if a friendly unit occupies them, the Garrison should be completely ignored!

  • [9.4.4.1] Garrison Characteristics: a Garrison alone in a hex has the following characteristics: it exerts a normal ZOC; it cannot attack; it cannot move or Retreat; reserves [12.2.3] cannot be assigned to battles in which only Garrisons take part; friendly units may move freely and/or occupy the same hex as the Garrison (that is, a player's units may stack in the same hex as their Garrisons); enemy units may not enter hexes occupied by a Garrison, except by Advance After Combat, when those units attack.
  • [9.4.4.2] Covered Retreat: when an attacking unit is repulsed by combat from a hex that also contains an intact Garrison, the victorious defending unit(s) may not Advance After Combat. This overrides the normal Advance After Combat rule, since the Garrison is covering the friendly unit's withdrawal after the failed attack.
  • [9.4.4.3] Routed and Dispersed: when a Garrison hex contains a friendly unit, and that unit is forced to retreat out of the hex due to an enemy attack, the victorious enemy units may Advance After Combat into that Garrison hex. In this case, the Garrison is considered to be included with the defending unit and will suffer the same fate as that unit. If, for any reason, a victorious attacking enemy unit does not immediately Advance onto the Garrison hex, the Garrison is unaffected and remains intact.

Other Combat Considerations

[9.5] Voluntary Differential Reduction. The active player, when attacking, may voluntarily reduce the Combat Differential of any battle during Step F of the Battle Sequence, and resolve it at a lower differential. It can be stressful to commit a single strong unit to attack another, much weaker unit and risk an Exchange (I) result, as shown on the adjoining table.

Explanation of Combat Results

Once a combat result is determined, it is applied immediately, including any Retreat and/or Advance After Combat, before resolving the next battle of that Phase.

[9.6] Battle Results. The following lists the various combat results and their effects on the units involved in the battle:

• AD: Attacker Disperses. All attacking units in that combat Disperse [9.6.1]. The defender Advances After Combat [9.8].
• AH: Attacker Routs. The defender rolls a die for each Routed unit (one at a time). The attacker moves each unit back the number of hexes rolled and places a Rout! marker on the unit, on its appropriate side [9.6.2]. The defender Advances After Combat [9.8].
• AR: Attacker Retreats. The attacker retreats all attacking units in this combat one hex [9.7]. The defender Advances After Combat [9.8].
• DD: Defender Disperses. All defending units in this combat Disperse [9.6.1]. The attacker Advances After Combat [9.8].
• DH: Defender Routs. The attacker rolls a die for each Routed unit (one at a time). The defender moves each unit back the number of hexes rolled and places a Rout! marker on the unit, on its appropriate side [9.6.2]. The attacker Advances After Combat [9.8].
• DR: Defender Retreats. The defender retreats all defending units in this combat one hex [9.7]. The attacker Advances After Combat [9.8].
• I: Exchange. First, all defending units Disperse [9.6.1]. Then, among the attacking units that took part in the combat, the attacker must select for Dispersal a number of units whose combined Combat Strength Points is at least equal to the defender's total Combat Strength Points. For this purpose, printed Combat Strength Points are used, discarding modifications from terrain, events, etc. Note that if the defender's Morale is not reduced to "0" (i.e. the attacker did not win the game, per [15.0]), the attacker may be forced to Disperse units whose strength is greater than the defender's if there is no other alternative (i.e. you cannot "make change"). The attacker may, if desired, Disperse a stronger unit than necessary. This can happen when a weaker unit is considered more valuable by the attacker. Afterward, if any attacking units survive, the attacker may Advance After Combat [9.8].
• SE: No Effect. Neither side Disperses, Retreats, or Advances as a result of the battle.

Dispersed and Routed Units

• [9.6.1] Dispersed Units: a unit that Disperses in combat is removed from the map and set aside. It may later attempt to Rally and return to play [10.0].

• [9.6.2] Routed Units: after survivors have Retreated [9.7], Routed units receive a Rout! marker showing the color of the side to which the current Player Turn does not belong.

  Effects: while a unit has a Rout! marker on it, all of the following effects apply:

  • It may only move to continue Retreating (indicated by the "R" on the marker, in the position of the Movement Points). That is, any Movement Points spent must be in accordance with Rule [9.7]. It may always choose not to move and remain in the same hex.

  • It does not exert a ZOC on adjacent hexes.

  • If it is a Cavalry unit, it cannot perform a Countercharge or Penetrate during the Reaction Phase (but it can Disengage).

  • Its Combat Strength is reduced to 50% (rounding up), both attacking and defending. This does not modify any Terrain Combat Strength bonus when defending.

  • If all of a player's units participating in a battle have a Rout! marker on them, the player cannot spend a Morale Point to assign reserves for the battle [12.2.3].

  • It cannot Advance After Combat.

  • It will Retreat and Rout again normally, if forced to do so.

  • [9.6.2.1] Elite Unit Routed: when an Elite unit (–), i.e. a unit with its Combat Strength printed in red, Routs, subtract two (-2) from the Rout die roll to reduce the number of hexes it must retreat. Defensive Positions: units in a Fortification or Redoubt hex subtract one (-1) from the Rout die roll to reduce the number of hexes they must retreat [9.7.2.2]. If the modified result is less than one (<1), the result is changed to "Retreat" (this is cumulative with the Elite unit modifier).

  • [9.6.2.2] Recovery from Rout: at the end of the active player's Combat Phase, all Rout! markers of their side's color are automatically removed (blue if French player, gold otherwise), except those in an EZOC. Rout Turn Reminder: the Turn marker is flipped between French blue and Allied gold, to help players remember which color Rout! markers have been placed (opposite color) and removed (same color).

[9.7] Retreat After Combat. "Retreat After Combat" occurs when a combat result forces a player's unit(s) to retreat, whether as a result of a Retreat (AR or DR) or a Rout (AH or DH). The player must immediately move each affected unit the corresponding number of hexes from the hex it occupied during the battle (i.e. its "battle hex").

• [9.7.1] No Movement Cost: Retreating is not considered normal movement. Retreating units count the hexes they cross in their movement regardless of terrain (including Escarpment, Forest, etc., where retreating units are not required to stop).
• [9.7.2] Retreat Restrictions: if a unit cannot retreat while meeting the following restrictions, the unit Routs instead of retreating:
  • [9.7.2.1] Terrain Effects: units may not Retreat off the map, into prohibited hexes, or across Major Rivers (except via Bridge or Ford hexsides).
  • [9.7.2.2] Defensive Positions: units in Fortification or Redoubt hexes may Retreat one hex less, at the controlling player's choice.
• [9.7.3] Retreat Hex Priority: whenever and wherever possible, a unit must Retreat into and through empty hexes that are not in an EZOC.
• [9.7.4] Hazardous Retreats, Case 1 – Enemy ZOC: if it is not possible to retreat per the previous point [9.7.3], it is possible to Retreat into/through an EZOC and even end the Retreat in an EZOC. If this is done, a die must be rolled for each EZOC hex entered. With a result of 1, 2, or 3 the unit Disperses [9.6.1] in that EZOC hex; with a result of 4, 5, or 6 it continues Retreating normally without Dispersing. Friendly units do not negate EZOCs for Retreat purposes.
• [9.7.5] Hazardous Retreats, Case 2 – Crossing Rivers: when a unit Retreats across a Minor River, or across a Major River via a Bridge or Ford, a die must be rolled in the hex before crossing the river. With a result of 1, 2, or 3, the unit Disperses [9.6.1]; with a result of 4, 5, or 6, it continues Retreating normally without Dispersing. If several hazards are encountered in a single hex while retreating, a roll must be made for each of them!
• [9.7.6] Friendly Units: if no other route is available, a unit may Retreat by moving through hexes occupied by friendly units. If the Retreat would end in a hex occupied by friendly units, it Retreats one or more additional hexes so that it does not end up stacked with a friendly unit. This means additional rolls if these hexes involve Hazardous Retreats, such as EZOCs or Rivers!
• [9.7.7] Priority Direction of Retreat: as long as Rule [9.7.3] (Retreat Hex Priority) is satisfied, and whenever and wherever possible, a retreating unit must do so in a way that brings it closer to a friendly Line of Communication (LOC) hex (see each game's Exclusive Rules). The player may choose which LOC hex to retreat each of their units to, if more than one is available (regardless of distance). This is a prioritized list of criteria for selecting each hex during the Retreat:
  1. Is there an empty hex with no EZOC available? If so, the unit must Retreat there; if not...
  2. Is there an empty hex with an EZOC available? If so, the unit must make a Hazardous Retreat into that hex; if not...

[9.8] Advance After Combat. Victorious units, whether attacking or defending, generally may Advance After Combat. Units must meet the following requirements to do so:

• [9.8.1] Immediacy: the decision to Advance After Combat or not must be made immediately after resolving the combat, before taking the next action. If not executed immediately, the opportunity to Advance is lost.
• [9.8.2] Who May Advance? With the following limitations, some or all victorious units that took part in the battle may Advance After Combat.
  • Artillery units and Routed units (see [16.8.2], "Effects of Fatigue," for Exhausted units) can never Advance After Combat.
  • Infantry units may only Advance one hex, into the hex originally occupied by the defeated unit(s) at the start of combat.
  • Cavalry units may Advance several hexes along the Retreat Path [9.8.5], but never more hexes than their printed Movement Allowance.
  • Demoralized units with their Movement Allowance printed in yellow (–) [16.7.5] might refuse to Advance After Combat.
• [9.8.3] Units That Must Advance: generally, Advancing is at the choice of the winning player. However, if one or more victorious Cavalry units took part, the winning player must roll a die on the Controlled Advance Table (with a -1 die roll modifier if any of the victorious Cavalry units is "Heavy," i.e. has a Combat Strength of 2 or greater).
  • If Advance Control is Maintained, there is no effect, and those units may advance normally or remain in place, as their owner sees fit.
  • If Advance Control is Lost by the Cavalry, then at least one victorious Cavalry unit must advance into the empty hex.
• [9.8.4] How to Advance: Advancing After Combat is basically a "free move" and, like Retreating, is not normal movement. Units do not spend Movement Points or stop due to Terrain Effects [6.5] when Advancing After Combat, but they cannot Advance into Prohibited hexes (i.e. hexes they could not enter with normal movement) or across a Major River (except via a Bridge or Ford). Units also ignore enemy Zones of Control when Advancing.
• [9.8.5] Pursuit: when an enemy unit Retreats as a result of combat, it leaves behind a specific path of empty hexes called the "Retreat Path." If this path crosses a hex containing a friendly unit [9.7.6], the Retreat Path ends right after that unit through which the Retreat passed. If a unit Disperses, then the hex it occupied at the moment of Dispersing is the end of its Retreat Path. If a victorious Cavalry unit is the first unit to Advance into the empty hex originally occupied by the defeated unit(s), it may continue Advancing along the Retreat Path up to its printed Movement Allowance. After any Cavalry unit Advances After Combat (whether mandatory or voluntary) and a Pursuit takes place, if the defeated unit's hex is still empty, then another attacking unit involved in that combat may (at its owner's choice) Advance After Combat into that hex, if allowed to Advance [9.8.2].

Rally

General Rule

At certain times (for example, during Night turns or due to specific Event card effects), a player may attempt to "Rally" their Dispersed units.

Important: Rallying has nothing to do with removing Rout! markers; that process happens automatically [9.6.2.2].

Procedure

For each Dispersed unit attempting to Rally, roll a die applying all appropriate modifiers listed on the Rally Table on the Player Aid sheet. Note that the decision to spend a Morale Point [12.0] to increase the chances of Rallying must be made before rolling the die, but it also applies to all Rally rolls made on a specific occasion (for example, for all Rally attempts of a single Night turn). Consult the Rally Table and apply the result immediately. See also the Reduced Units Optional Rule [16.5].

Placement of Rallied Units

A newly Rallied unit is placed on any empty friendly Line of Communication (LOC) hex. If none is available, or the player does not wish to place it on the map at that time, the Rallied unit remains Dispersed; the player may attempt to Rally it later (see also Optional Rule [16.4] for other additional Rally hexes).

Reinforcements

General Rule

Players may receive additional units throughout the game — these units are known as "reinforcements." Reinforcements appear during the player's Movement Phase, at the location indicated by the instructions set out in the Exclusive Rules.

Variable Reinforcements. Some battles show "Variable Reinforcements" in their deployment instructions, or have units that enter play through Event cards. Each Variable Reinforcement unit requires a separate die roll on its scheduled arrival turn. If the roll succeeds, it enters play normally that turn. If it fails, that unit's arrival is advanced one turn forward on the Game Turn Record, and another roll may be made during its next Movement Phase (and so on until it finally arrives, or the game ends).

Procedure. When reinforcements arrive, they must be placed at their specific map edge (the one for their side's color), as indicated in the Exclusive Rules.

[11.1] Initial Movement. Reinforcements received are placed next to the map edge. When they enter the first hex of the map, a Reinforcement unit spends its Movement Points normally, according to the Terrain Effects Chart. Units entering along a Road may benefit from the road movement bonus.

[11.2] Order of March. When more than one Reinforcement unit appears in the same hex during the same Movement Phase, they line up off the map, one behind the other, with the "lead" unit placed next to the map edge. To simulate a column "order of march," each unit in the line spends one more Movement Point than the previous one to enter the map that turn.

[11.3] Entry Timing. Reinforcements may arrive at any time during the owning player's Movement Phase. Once on the map, they are considered normal units in play for all purposes.

[11.4] Blocked Entry. A reinforcement unit may not enter a hex occupied by an enemy unit; it may enter a hex with an EZOC, but must stop immediately per the EZOC Rules [7.0].

[11.5] Delayed Entry. A player may voluntarily delay the entry of reinforcements from one Turn to another, entering on a later turn (or not at all). This is what a player must do when a reinforcement's entry area is blocked by enemy units. In any case, when a reinforcement enters play, whether on its scheduled turn or a later one, it must do so in the indicated entry area.

Important: the idea of reinforcements placed directly at the map edge is strictly a concept. Until they enter the map, reinforcements have no effect on the game (i.e. off-map units have no ZOCs, cannot attack enemy units, etc.).

Army Morale

General Rule

Each side begins the game with a number of Morale Points as indicated in the deployment instructions of the Exclusive Rules. Morale Points represent the level of motivation and command ability during the campaign. Players may use Morale Points to enhance their movement, combat, and rally operations.

Recording Morale Points

Morale markers are used to indicate each side's Morale Points on the Morale Record.

[12.1] Gaining/Losing Morale Points. Consult the Morale Table (on the back of the player aid sheet) for the specific game events that increase and decrease Morale Points. In general, an army loses morale when its units Rout more hexes than their Movement Allowance or, worse, Disperse and are removed from the map (if a unit that has Routed also Disperses, only 1 total Morale Point is lost). Dispersing enemy units is a good way to gain Morale Points.

If two or more morale-affecting events occur simultaneously, first add up the positive morale changes and then subtract the negative morale changes that must be applied.

• [12.1.1] Maximum Morale: a side's Morale value cannot exceed ten (10); any excess is lost.
• [12.1.2] Morale Destroyed: if a side's Morale value reaches zero (0), that side immediately loses the game. If this happens to both sides at once, the result is a draw.

[12.2] Spending Morale Points. A player may only spend a single Morale Point on a given action (i.e. nothing "costs" two or more Morale Points), and only for these purposes at the appropriate time:

• [12.2.1] Forced March: during their Movement Phase, the player may spend a Morale Point to increase the Movement Allowance of all their units by one (+1).
• [12.2.2] Rallying: when the player attempts to Rally units, they may spend a Morale Point to add a modifier of plus one (+1) to all Rally rolls made at that time (if more than one).
• [12.2.3] Assigning Reserve Troops to a Combat: during Steps B and C of Combat resolution, the attacker and defender respectively may spend a Morale Point and add one (+1) to their side's total strength in that Combat.
• [12.2.4] Committing the Guard: during their Movement Phase, before moving the Guard into a hex from which it can attack an adjacent enemy unit, the player must spend a Morale Point unless either side has only 1 Morale Point [12.3.1].

[12.3] Guard Units

Certain units, known as "Guard" units (–; identifiable because their Movement Allowance is printed in red), were typically kept in reserve and used only at critical moments of the battle.

• [12.3.1] Committing the Guard: players must spend a Morale Point before moving the Guard into a hex from which it can attack an adjacent enemy unit (i.e. "committing the Guard"). The player must make this expenditure each time they move a Guard unit into such a hex.

  Exceptions: there is no cost to commit the Guard if it is already in an EZOC at the start of the Movement Phase (the Guard is considered already committed). A Guard unit has no Morale cost to Advance After Combat [9.9] (again, it is considered already committed). There is no cost to commit the Guard if one side has only 1 Morale Point (this would be the critical moment of the battle when the Guard is expected to enter the fray).

• [12.3.2] Le Garde Recule: if an attacking Guard unit cannot Advance After Combat (for example, if it was not victorious or did not survive an Exchange (I) result, see [9.6]), its side loses one Morale Point (-1). The Guard unit doesn't actually have to Advance, it merely has to achieve victory and be capable of advancing to avoid this penalty. This Morale adjustment for the Guard is in addition to any other factors affecting that combat's morale.

Passing ("Truces")

General Rule

After the first Night Turn, during any subsequent Day Turn, IF the player has units on the map, AND if the player does not make Forced Marches, and there is no combat die roll [9.0] during their opponent's Reaction Phase or their own Combat Phase, THEN the player gains one Morale Point (+1) at the end of their Player Turn if either of the following conditions is met:

A. Their side has fewer than 6 Morale Points, — OR —

B. Their side does not have more Morale Points than their opponent.

Night Turns

General Rule

After carrying out their Random Event Phase, during their Night Turn, each player applies the following Rules:

• Speed Limit: all Movement Allowances are reduced to one (1) Movement Point. This point may be increased, as usual, through Roads and/or Forced Marches. Reminder: unless specifically prohibited (e.g. by an Event card), a unit can always move at least one hex (as defined in [6.2]) even if other combined reductions might reduce Movement Allowance to zero or less.
• ZOC Effect: at night, EZOCs work opposite to the way they do during Day Turns. This means units cannot enter hexes with an EZOC (such hexes are prohibited), but they can leave EZOC hexes freely — consequently, such units do not remain Locked (as in [6.8]) during a Night Game Turn. This is a good way to get out of enemy ZOCs. In fact, units can disengage at night.
• No Combat: the Reaction Phase is skipped and there is no combat during the Combat Phase of Night Turns.

Additional Activities

The following "Night Operations" are skipped during Day Turns (i.e. non-Night Turns). They are carried out, in order, only during each player's Night Operations Phase.

1. Rally: the player may attempt to Rally their Dispersed units [10.0].
2. Enemy Morale Loss for Captured Terrain: if the player physically occupies an enemy LOC and/or Objective hex (i.e. of the opposing side's color), the corresponding morale-loss effects apply as set out in the Morale Table.
3. Morale Recovery from Rest: a side may increase its Morale Value by one Point (+1) for resting overnight.
4. Hide: when using the Fog of War Optional Rule, at this point the player may re-hide (flip face down) their units and place their Dummy pieces on the map [16.1.3].
5. Reshuffle: at the end of the Second Player's Night Turn, the cards in the Discard Pile are reshuffled with the Event Deck.

How to Win

General Rule

Each side has its own victory conditions based on Morale values:

The French Player achieves a Decisive Victory if, at any time, the Opponent's Morale is reduced to zero (0) and French Morale is equal to or greater than one (1).

The Anti-French Player achieves a Decisive Victory if, at any time, French Morale is reduced to zero (0) and their own Morale is equal to or greater than one (1).

The Anti-French Player achieves a Marginal Victory if, at the end of the game (i.e. after the last Game Turn), the Anti-French side's Morale Value is at least 1 point higher than French Morale.

Any other result is a Draw.

Optional Rules

Players may use these Optional Rules in any combination they see fit.

[16.1] Fog of War: Hidden Units

Players place their units face down at all times (including during deployment). Units may be freely examined by their owner, but not by the enemy, for whom they remain hidden until "revealed." Hidden units otherwise act normally in every other game situation.

[16.1.1] Revealing Hidden Units. A face-down unit is revealed:

• At any time its owner wishes.
• If a Guard unit is hidden, the moment a Morale Point is spent to "Commit the Guard" [12.3.1], that unit must be revealed.
• At the end of each Movement Phase of a Day Turn, if the player has a revealed (face up) Cavalry unit adjacent to a hex containing face-down enemy units, all those hidden units are revealed.
• When an enemy Cavalry unit attempts to move during its Reaction Phase to Disengage [8.2] or Penetrate [16.2], and the active player wants to prevent the maneuver with a hidden friendly Cavalry unit, that hidden Cavalry unit must be revealed.
• After all attacks have been declared during the Combat Phase (i.e. designating which units attack which enemy units, possibly hidden), all units involved in the combat are revealed.
• Advance After Combat is not allowed when an Attack reveals that only a Dummy was involved. If there is no actual combat, there is no Advance.

[16.1.2] Re-Hiding Units. Units placed face up remain revealed until the end of their owner's Night Turn, at which point all their face-up units are flipped to begin the new day face down.

[16.1.3] Dummies. Each side has one or more "Dummy" pieces among its counters. Unless otherwise specified, Dummies are not deployed on the map before the start of the game.

A hidden Dummy may be placed on the map per turn, if available, together with any new Reinforcement or newly Rallied unit (these units are also hidden). The units arrive stacked and at least one of them must be moved during the Movement Phase to avoid overstacking [6.9].

All available Dummies (i.e. those not currently hidden on the map) may also be placed when units are re-hidden (generally at Night [14.0]). They are placed in hexes containing friendly units that are not adjacent to enemy units, and then the owner must immediately relocate one of the two stacked units (i.e. the real unit or the Dummy) to an adjacent hex that is likewise not adjacent to an enemy unit.

A Dummy moves like a Cavalry unit (with a Movement Allowance of 3). But moving only 2, it will be possible to keep it hidden among your Infantry units! The instant a Dummy is discovered, it is removed from the map (at no Morale cost). Dummies can be removed and reintroduced into play any number of times.

When attacks are declared [9.2], include hidden Dummy units! This declaration of attacks must comply with the mandatory combat requirements [9.1]. This means players can use their Dummies as "feints" to create fake attacks!

When units are revealed per [16.1.1], Dummies cause enemy units to be revealed. With this capability, Dummies become "scouts." Until revealed, Dummies behave like real units and control the hex they occupy (for example, an enemy Objective or LOC hex).

[16.2] Cavalry Penetration

During the Reaction Phase, the non-active player's Cavalry units may move through EZOCs under certain circumstances.

Procedure. Cavalry Penetration occurs (only) during the unit's own Reaction Phase, as an action available to Cavalry units that are not Routed. The Cavalry must begin the Reaction Phase adjacent to an enemy unit. It may then move to another hex that is also adjacent to an enemy unit (even moving from a hex in an EZOC to another belonging to the same unit, if desired), but must then stop and end its movement during this Phase, and cannot perform a Countercharge.

Penetrating Cavalry may not have a Rout marker on it, nor be in or enter the ZOC of an enemy Cavalry unit.

This movement is, in every respect, the opposite of Disengagement [8.2].

[16.3] Artillery Support

Artillery batteries were often detached to shore up threatened parts of the battle line.

• [16.3.1] Defensive Support: if no attack [9.2] has been declared against an Artillery unit, add one (+1) to the strength of all friendly units defending in its ZOC (if there are currently any). This benefit costs no Morale Points and applies during both the Combat and Reaction Phases.
• [16.3.2] Bombardment: Artillery units may attack across a Major River and other prohibited hexsides by means of Bombardment. Bombarding Artillery units may do so alone or in combination with any other friendly unit, using their normal (printed) Combat Strength (not doubled as in [9.3]). When bombarding, Artillery units enjoy a certain immunity to adverse combat effects: all AD or AH results are treated as AR. If an I result occurs, bombarding artillery cannot Disperse to satisfy the losses incurred [9.6]; if the Artillery unit is attacking alone using bombardment, treat an I result as a No Effect result.

[16.4] Additional Rally Locations

In addition to empty LOC hexes, Rallied units [10.0] may be placed in a "Rally hex" that meets all of the following conditions:

• It must be an empty City, Fortification, Redoubt, or Objective hex of its own side (i.e. a "natural rally point").
• It must be at a "safe distance" of at least 4 hexes from the nearest enemy unit AND must be closer to its nearest LOC than to the nearest enemy unit (i.e. it must be "a safe point behind your lines").
• It must be able to trace a path of hexes to its nearest LOC without passing through hexes occupied by enemy units. This path can be of any length, but cannot pass through hexes that contain or are adjacent to an enemy unit, or across Major River hexsides without a bridge or ford (in other words, that hex must not be "isolated behind enemy lines").

[16.5] Reduced Units

Dispersed units may return to play as smaller, reduced-strength formations called "Remnants."

• [16.5.1] Partial Rally: when a player makes a Rally check for an Infantry unit (only for this unit type) and rolls a "Remnants?" result, they have the option to partially Rally that unit as follows: remove the Infantry unit for which the roll was made (i.e. it is permanently removed from the game), and receive ("Rally") a generic strength-1 Remnant unit in its place.
• [16.5.2] Remnant Units: Remnant units act as normal Infantry units except that, if they Disperse, they cannot be Rallied. When they Disperse, they return to the pool of available Remnant units, ready for future reuse.

[16.6] Splitting and Building Up a Unit

Before moving, during their Movement Phase, a "full" Infantry unit (only this unit type, with a Combat Strength of 2 or more) may be exchanged for (i.e. "split into") two Remnant units, if available, at a cost of 1 Morale Point. Conversely, at the end of the Movement Phase, two Remnant units may stack together and be exchanged (i.e. "combined") for one lost "full" Infantry unit, recovering 1 Morale Point.

• [16.6.1] Splitting: a player must have two unused Remnant units available in order to split a full Infantry unit. Remove the Infantry unit being split from the map and place it with your lost units (i.e. it cannot be Rallied). Replace it in its hex with two Remnant units. These newly placed Remnant units may move and fight freely that same turn. There is a cost of one Morale Point (-1) to split a unit this way. If a hidden full Infantry unit is split, a Dummy (if available and Rule [16.1] is in use) may also be placed in the stack of two (also hidden) Remnant units when they are formed.
• [16.6.2] Building Up: any two Remnant units of the same nationality may end their own Movement Phase stacked together (an exception to Rule [6.9]). When they do, they are removed from the map and replaced by the weakest lost full Infantry unit of the same nationality; this unit may take part in combat that same turn. There is a benefit of one Morale Point (+1) for building up a full Infantry unit this way.

[16.7] Special Units

Some games include special unit types with unique capabilities marked by their Combat Strength and/or Movement Allowance printed in a distinct color (not black).

These cases are already part of the Basic Rules:

• All units with their Movement Allowance printed in red (–) are Guard units (they must be "Committed" to attack with them, [12.3]).
• Infantry units with their Combat Strength printed in red (–) are Elite units (-2 to Rout rolls, and +1 to Rally rolls).

Note that not all Guard units are Elite, nor are all Elite units Guard. This Optional Rule introduces these new Cases:

• [16.7.1] Elite Units' Impetus Bonus: whenever any Elite unit (–) takes part in an attack, roll a die (for each Elite unit) to see if it benefits from "Impetus." This roll is made during Step D of the Combat sequence. Apply a modifier of plus one (+1) to the roll for each of the following criteria that applies:

  • If the unit is also a Guard unit (–).
  • If the player spends a Morale Point to Commit a Guard unit to that same attack [12.3.1].
  • If the player spends a Morale Point to assign Reserves to this battle [12.2.3].
  • If either side's current Morale level is one.

  If the modified result is six or more, that Elite unit receives an Impetus bonus of +1 to its Combat Strength for that battle; if the modified result is less than six, there is no effect. If several Elite units (–) take part in a given Combat, it is possible to receive more than one Impetus bonus. However, it is important to note that Impetus is never checked when units are defending, only when attacking.

• [16.7.2] Light Infantry: Infantry units with their Movement Allowance printed in green (–) are Light Infantry units. They act as normal Infantry units in all respects except: they may Disengage as described in Case [8.2] (i.e. if they are not in the ZOC of an enemy Cavalry unit). As an exception to Case [6.5], Light Infantry units do not need to stop in Rough Terrain hexes (e.g. Forest, Escarpment, and Marsh). Instead, they may simply spend one Movement Point to enter each of these hexes and keep moving.

• [16.7.3] Cossacks: Cavalry units with their Movement Allowance printed in green (–) are Cossacks. They act as normal Cavalry units with the following exceptions: as an exception to Case [6.5], Cossack units do not have to stop in Rough Terrain hexes (e.g. Forest, Escarpment, and Marsh). Instead, they may spend two Movement Points to enter these hexes and continue moving. If a unit enters a Rough Terrain hex with only one Movement Point remaining, it enters and must stop as usual. During the Reaction Phase, Cossacks cannot Countercharge [8.1] or Penetrate [16.2]. During the Reaction Phase, Cossacks can Disengage from the ZOCs of enemy Cavalry units (as an exception to Case [8.2.2]).

• [16.7.4] Unsteady Troops: units with their Combat Strength printed in yellow (–) are considered Unsteady. When an Unsteady unit takes part in a Combat, a die must be rolled to see if it Weakens. This roll is made during Step D of the Combat Sequence. Subtract one (-1) from this roll if their side's current Morale level is lower than their opponent's. If the modified result is greater than one (>1), that Unsteady unit Holds Firm and there is no effect. If the modified result is less than or equal to one (≤1), that Unsteady unit Weakens and its Combat Strength is reduced by one (-1) for that battle only.

[16.8] Fatigue

Continuous combat tires troops and degrades their performance over time. This is shown using Fatigue markers and this Optional Rule.

Fatigue Levels. This is the list of the five Fatigue levels provided:

0. Fresh (no marker) 1. Ready (green marker) 2. Tired (yellow marker) 3. Exhausted (orange marker) 4. Spent (red marker).

Procedure

• [16.8.1] Wear: each unit participating in a combat (attacker and defender) increases its Fatigue Level by one (e.g. from having none to placing a Ready marker on the unit; or flipping a Ready marker to its Tired side; or replacing a Tired marker with an Exhausted marker; or flipping an Exhausted marker to show its Spent side). If a unit is already at Spent level, there is no further effect; it simply remains Spent.
• [16.8.2] Effects of Fatigue: when Fatigued (i.e. has a Fatigue marker), a unit is affected as follows:
  • Ready: the unit is unaffected.
  • Tired: the unit does not receive movement bonuses if a Forced March [12.2.1] is carried out.
  • Exhausted: the unit suffers the Tired penalty, AND a -1 penalty to its Movement Allowance (e.g. if it is an Infantry unit, its Movement Allowance is reduced to "1," and a Cavalry unit's would be reduced to "2").
  • Spent: the unit suffers the Tired AND Exhausted penalties, AND cannot voluntarily enter EZOCs, even during Advance After Combat.
• [16.8.3] Recovery: at the end of the Combat Phase, each of the active player's units with a Fatigue marker on it that is not adjacent to an enemy unit reduces its Fatigue Level by one level (even during a Night Turn). A unit with a Ready marker on it removes the marker to represent that it is Fresh again.

[16.9] Leaders

The smaller unit counters with their "Combat Strength" printed in purple (–) are Leaders. Leaders represent the command structure needed to coordinate offensive action across the battlefield. These units do not have a "Combat Strength"; instead of Combat Strength, their purple value is called Command Range.

Leader Deployment. Optional Leader Rules can be found in the initial deployment instructions, highlighted in purple.

• [16.9.1] Command Range: a Leader's Command Range (–) is the radius, in hexes, within which it exerts control over attacking friendly units, reflecting its command authority. Terrain features and/or the presence of enemy units or enemy ZOCs have no impact on a Leader's Command Range.

• [16.9.2] Leader Movement: Leaders move like Cavalry units, with the following exceptions: Leaders move through Rough Terrain hexes [6.5] as if it were Clear terrain. Leaders may voluntarily leave EZOCs [6.8], provided they do not move from one EZOC hex directly to another. As an exception to Rule [6.9], Leaders may end the Movement Phase stacked in the same hex as a friendly unit and/or any number of other friendly Leaders (i.e. Leaders "stack freely").

• [16.9.3] Leaders and Zones of Control: Leaders do not exert ZOCs, nor are they required to attack enemy units [7.4]. A Leader not stacked with a friendly unit in an EZOC must retreat one hex immediately; if after that mandatory retreat it is still in an EZOC and not stacked with a friendly unit, the Leader Disperses [16.9.6].

• [16.9.4] Leader Reaction Movement: Leaders, by themselves, do not perform Reaction Movement [8.0]. A Leader may accompany a friendly unit it is stacked with during that unit's Reaction Movement. Leaders do not affect the Countercharge Combat Strength of Cavalry units.

• [16.9.5] Leaders in Combat: during the Combat Phase, Leaders "coordinate attacks" by providing Command to units within their Command Range. Units within a Leader's Command Range are considered Under Command, while those that are not are considered Out of Command.

  Procedure. When calculating total attack strength during Step B of the Combat Sequence [9.0], check whether the attacking units (only these) are "Under Command." Attacking units are Under Command, and their total attack strength is unaffected, if any of the attacking units are within the Command Range of one of their Leaders. Attacking units are Out of Command, and their total attack differential is reduced by one (-1), if none of their attacking units are within the Command Range of any of their Leaders. There is no additional benefit for having more than one (or even all) attacking units Under Command, or for having several Leaders exert their Command Range over the attacking units. Command has no effect on a unit's ability to defend. Command only affects attacking units in a Combat. A Leader may provide Command to multiple Combats within its Command Range during the same Combat Phase. Whether a unit is Under Command or not (its "command status") is determined at the moment each Attack is resolved. Should an adverse combat result cause a Leader to Disperse or Retreat such that its Command Range no longer covers a unit involved in a subsequent Attack, that attack is carried out Out of Command. A Leader stacked with a friendly unit that Advances After Combat [9.8] may accompany the unit (or not). A Leader stacked with a friendly unit that is forced to Retreat must accompany that unit for the entire duration of its Retreat. If that unit Disperses during the Retreat due to a failed Hazardous Retreat roll [9.7.5] and [9.7.6] or upon reaching an LOC [9.7.8], then the Leader also Disperses (see below). Leaders are not affected by the Combat Fatigue rules [16.8].

Exclusive Rules

This section contains the Exclusive Rules for the four battles included in España 20: Bailén 20: El Desastre de Dupont, Arapiles 20: La Batalla de Salamanca, Bussaco 20: La Insensatez de Masséna, and Talavera 20: La Preparación del Vizconde Wellington. These games also use the Napoleonic 20 Standard Rules above. Therefore, the complete rules needed to play these games are found by combining the two documents. In case of conflict, these Exclusive Rules replace the Standard Rules.

Bailén 20: El Desastre de Dupont

Introduction

Bailén 20 simulates the July 1808 campaign in Andalusia, Spain, at the start of the Peninsular War, which culminated in the Battle of Bailén. The defeat and capture of French Army General Pierre Dupont by a Spanish Army commanded by General Francisco Castaños was widely regarded at the time as the sign of the end of the era of French invincibility.

Components

The Game Board: the board is 43 x 56 centimeters, depicting part of the Guadalquivir Valley in Andalusia, Spain, where the campaign took place.

Game Pieces: blue units are French, and yellow units are Spanish (or "Anti-French").

Special Units: there are no Elite or Guard units in this campaign. However, see Special Rule [16.11] for an exception related to the Garde Marins marker. If Optional Rule [16.7] is used, the following special units come into play:

• Light Infantry: the 2 Spanish units with their Movement Allowance in green (–).
• Unsteady Troops: the 2 Spanish units with their Combat Strength in yellow (–).
• Road-Bound Units: the French Supply Train unit with its Movement Allowance in white (–).

Additionally, see the Exclusive Rules for other Special Unit types unique to this campaign: [16.7.7] Irregulars, the two Spanish units with their Combat Strength in white (–), and [16.7.8] Swiss Mercenaries, the three French units with their Combat Strength in blue (–).

Initial Deployment

After determining which side each player controls, set up the Standard Scenario as follows:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Morning of July 15 space (Turn 1), showing the Anti-French side.
• Place the French and Spanish Morale markers on space "7" of the Morale Record.
• Per the Standard Rules [3.0] (Card Preparation), place the Event card with the red title (#03, Resistir en Andalucía) face up in the Discard Pile and use the rest to form the initial Event Deck. Optionally, the special Napoleonic 20 Event card (#13, Crescendo de Tambores) may be added to the Discard Pile.
• Place the Special Retreat marker on hex 2302 (La Carolina), showing its "Organized Retreat Allowed" side (see [6.11]).
• Place the French Depot/Supply Train unit on hex 0207 (Andújar), showing its "Depot" side (see [6.12]).

French Deployment. Important: all French units deploy on the map face down (i.e. showing their hidden side), even if the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1] is not in use.

The French player deploys the following units: Barbau (4-2), Gobert (3-2), Vedel (3-2), Frescia (1-3), Remnant (1-2)* (representing the Liger-Belair brigade), Dupont (0-5), and three Dummies (-3).

...as desired, but they must be deployed such that there is at least one, and no more than two, unit(s) on or adjacent to each of the six French deployment hexes (marked on the map with blue diamonds), and all French units must be deployed north of the Guadalquivir and Almodóvar rivers: 0207 (Andújar), 2309 (Linares), 0709 (outside Villanueva), 2302 (La Carolina), 1306 (Bailén), 1512 (Mengíbar, across the river).

Finally, place the French Garde Marins marker near the map as a reminder that it is available at the start of the game [16.11].

Spanish Reconnaissance. Immediately after the French player finishes deploying their units (above), the Spanish player rolls a die to determine the number of French units that can be revealed due to prior pre-game reconnaissance efforts: 1 = none; 2, 3, or 4 = reveal 1 French unit; 5 or 6 = reveal 2 French units.

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the three French Remnant units that were not deployed and any French Dummy that was just revealed (above). The Frere (3-2) unit is also set aside; it may arrive as a reinforcement via an Event card.

Spanish Deployment. Important: all Spanish units deploy on the map face down (i.e. showing their hidden side), even if the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1] is not in use.

The Spanish player deploys the following units: Reding (4-2), La Peña (3-2), Coupigny (3-2), Felix-Jones (2-2), Cruz-Murgeon (1-2), Valdecaños (1-2), two Dummies (*-3), Castaños (1-5).

...as desired, but they must be deployed such that there is at least one, and no more than two, unit(s) on or adjacent to each of the four Spanish deployment hexes, plus Game Turn box 3 (arriving as Reinforcements from across the river). These five locations are marked on the map with yellow diamonds.

Even if the Fog of War Optional Rule is not in use, the Spanish player may deploy Dummies to satisfy the requirement of at least one unit at each location. All Spanish units deploy south of the Guadalquivir and Almodóvar rivers: 0110 (Arjonilla), 0710 (Villanueva), 1313 (Mengíbar), 2313 (east side of the map), Turn 3 (Game Turn Record).

Spanish Unit Reserve. Set aside the four Spanish Remnant units and one Dummy.

Fog of War. If using the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1], skip this step and begin the game. If not using that Rule, reveal all units and remove all Dummies before starting the game.

Sequence of Play

The Spanish player is the First Player.

Random Events

On the first Game Turn, skip the Spanish player's Random Event Phase.

[5.1] Swiss Desertion. French units with their Combat Strength printed in blue represent units that include Swiss mercenary contingents. Under certain circumstances, these mercenaries can desert. Use the following procedure to determine if this happens.

Procedure. When the French "Swiss Desertions" event is drawn, check both sides' Morale levels. If (and only if) the Spanish Morale level is currently higher, flip the French Morale marker to its "Swiss Desertion" side to indicate this event has occurred (it can only happen once per game). The instant this occurs, and for the rest of the game, the following conditions apply:

• The corresponding counters with yellow Combat Strength replace the French troops with blue Combat Strength. Treat these units as Unsteady [16.7.4].
• Apply a modifier of minus one (-1) to all Rally rolls for any French unit with yellow Combat Strength (this negative effect of the Swiss desertion is only canceled if the French player spends a Morale Point to boost their Rally rolls [12.2]).

During the battle, on the 19th, Swiss troops of Barbau's division deserted en masse toward the Spanish, who had employed their services in previous centuries.

Movement

[6.10] Coordination Problems. During each turn of the first day, both sides are limited to moving only the number of unit "groups" indicated by the current Game Turn number (for example, on Turn 1, only a single group may move; on Turn 2, up to two groups may move, etc.). A group of units is: any individual unit plus friendly units adjacent to it at the start of its Movement Phase. Remove this restriction for both sides during the first Day Turn of the second day (i.e. Game Turn 6).

[6.11] Abandoning Andalusia. The French player begins the game able to carry out an Organized Retreat, indicated by placing the Organized Retreat marker on hex 2302.

Starting on Game Turn 4, or any turn thereafter, provided the Resistir en Andalucía event has not occurred (see below), the French player may authorize an Organized Retreat at the start of their Movement Phase.

Procedure. Place the "Organized Retreat Authorized" marker on French LOC hex 2302. For the rest of the game, the French player may remove one of their units from French LOC hex (2302) at the start of their Movement Phase. For each unit removed this way, add one (+1) to the French Morale level. The effect is that this unit has "left the map." Remnant and Supply Train units may retreat to gain this benefit, but not Dummies.

Important: once the French player has begun an Organized Retreat, they may no longer declare a truce to recover Morale [13.0].

Resistir en Andalucía: if the French player reveals the Resistir en Andalucía event for the first time after ordering an Organized Retreat (above), the Resistir en Andalucía event has no effect. Do not roll for the Frere unit; instead, it is removed from the game.

If the French player draws the Resistir en Andalucía event for the first time before ordering an Organized Retreat (above), flip the Special Retreat marker to its "Retreat Prohibited" side (see the image) as a reminder that the French player has permanently lost the opportunity to order an Organized Retreat, and begin rolling for the Frere unit on that turn.

The French "Supply" Unit

[6.12] French Supplies. This unit, generically called the "Supplies unit," represents the stockpiled supplies and accumulated loot of the French forces operating in Andalusia. On its "Depot" side, it acts as a combination of an LOC and an immobile Garrison; on its "Supply Train" side, it becomes a road-bound unit trying to flee from the Spanish.

[6.12.1] The Depot: while showing its "Depot" side, this unit is treated as an immobile garrison at Andújar (hex 0207) with a Combat Strength of one (1). As such, all rules associated with Garrisons apply (see [9.4.4]), and other French units may stack with the Depot. In addition, the Depot has these special characteristics:

• For the purposes of Rule [9.7.7] it is an alternative to the French LOC. Units that end their retreat on the Depot do not Disperse, per Rule [9.7.8]; they can only disperse if they do not complete the required retreat distance when they reach the Depot hex. Having the Depot in play grants the French player one additional Morale Point for Resting during the Night turn (per Rule [14.0], Step 3).

[6.12.2] Forming the Supply Train: at the start of each French Movement Phase, beginning on the turn immediately following the turn on which the French player declares they are starting the Organized Retreat [6.11], the French player must check whether the Depot has been loaded and the Supply Train unit has been formed (i.e. the counter has been flipped).

Procedure. On the first turn after the French player has ordered the Organized Retreat, a roll of 6 allows the Depot counter to be flipped to show its Supply Train side; on later turns, a roll of 4, 5, or 6 allows the Depot counter to be flipped to show its Supply Train side (other results have no effect; the Depot remains unchanged and the French player must roll again until the wagons are finally loaded). Once the Supply Train is in play, this unit cannot become a Depot again. All of this is summarized in the Supply Train Formation table on the map.

[6.12.3] The Supply Train: when the supplies unit is a Supply Train, it is actually a road-bound unit [16.7.6] with a Combat Strength of zero (0). The Supply Train cannot stack with other units, stops functioning as an alternative LOC hex, and provides no additional Morale when Resting at Night. If it successfully retreats off the map, the Supply Train increases French Morale by 1 as other units do.

[6.12.4] Capturing the French Supplies: if a Depot falls due to an Enemy Attack [9.4.4], or is Dispersed as a Supply Train, the consequences are the same for the elimination of this unit: French Morale is reduced by two points (-2), and Spanish Morale is increased by one point (+1). This Supplies unit cannot be Rallied and does not re-enter the game if Dispersed.

Combat

[9.7.7] Priority Direction of Retreat. Spanish units must retreat toward one of the three Spanish LOC hexes on the east, west, and south edges of the map (hexes 0110, 1614, and 2313). French units must retreat toward the French LOC hex in the northeast corner of the map (hex 2302) or, if in play, the French Depot unit in hex 0207 [6.12.1].

Reinforcements

[11.6] Spanish Reinforcements. Any Spanish unit(s) assigned to enter as reinforcements during deployment always enter play as a group, and do so no earlier than Game Turn 3.

Procedure. To determine whether the Spanish Reinforcement unit(s) arrive that turn, roll a die at the start of the Spanish Movement Phase and compare the result with the following (this is also shown on the Game Turn Record):

• During the first two days (Game Turns 3 to 10), a result of 6 brings the reinforcements in via Entry Area A on the west edge of the map.
• During the third day (Game Turns 11 to 15), a result of 5 or 6 brings the reinforcements in via either Entry Area A or B.
• If the roll occurs on the fourth or fifth day (Game Turns 16 to 24), a result of 4, 5, or 6 brings the reinforcements in via any of Entry Areas A, B, or C.

The Spanish player chooses the Entry Area (when more than one option is available), and all their Reinforcement units must arrive that turn and through that same Entry Area.

If the Spanish Reinforcement unit(s) do not arrive that turn, advance one turn on the Game Turn Record and roll again on the next turn to see if the Reinforcements arrive.

Voluntary Delay: if the roll succeeds, the Spanish player has the option to delay the entry of their unit(s). If they do so, they simply advance the unit(s) one turn on the Game Turn Record and continue rolling to attempt their arrival on later turns (i.e. a successful roll cannot be "banked" for later automatic entry).

Entry Movement Bonus: on their turn of arrival, Spanish Reinforcements receive a special +1 bonus to their Movement Allowance (this can be combined with a Forced March).

[11.7] French Reinforcements. The French Frere (3-2) unit may enter play via Entry Area Z, but only after the Resistir en Andalucía event has occurred. Use its Unsteady counter if the Swiss Desertion event [5.1] has occurred.

The Frere unit, which initially formed part of Dupont's Corps, had been detached on support operations to the north. The Resistir en Andalucía event assumes that high command has ordered Frere's division to rejoin Dupont's Corps.

Army Morale

[12.4] Capture of the French Supplies Unit. See [6.12.4].

Passing ("Truces")

[13.1] March or Die. After authorizing an Organized Retreat [6.11], the French side can no longer gain Morale from a "Truce" on their turn.

Night Turns

Spanish Objective Hex: Andújar (hex 0207). French Objective Hex: Bailén (hex 1306).

[14.1] Anticipating the Battle. On the first Night Game Turn (Game Turn 5) only, the Spanish increase their Morale value by one additional point (+2 total), due to Rest Recovery [14.0]. The French side also receives an extra Morale increase, but only if the Depot is still on the map.

[14.2] French LOC. The French LOC at hex 2302 counts as 1 Morale Point by itself. (This is different from the usual amount shown on the Morale Table.) Dupont's lines of communication from Madrid crossed the Sierra Morena, and were dangerously exposed.

How to Win

Because of the unusual strategic conditions in Andalusia during this campaign, the standard victory conditions must be modified as follows:

• The Spanish player achieves a Decisive Victory if, at any time, French Morale is reduced to zero (0) and Spanish Morale is one (1) or more. This was the historical result.
• The Spanish player achieves a Major Victory if, at the end of the game, the French Supplies unit has been eliminated by the Spanish player (i.e. it is no longer in play, nor has it left the map via an Organized Retreat) and the Spanish Morale Value is at least one Point higher than the French Morale Value.
• The Spanish player achieves a Marginal Victory if, at the end of the game, the Spanish side's Morale Value is at least one Point higher than French Morale.
• The French player achieves a Decisive Victory if, at any time, Spanish Morale is reduced to zero (0) and French Morale is one (1) or more.
• The French player achieves a Marginal Victory if, at the end of the game, the French Supplies unit is still on the map (or has left the map via an Organized Retreat) and the French Morale Value is at least one Point higher than the Spanish Morale Value.
• Any other result is a Draw.

Optional Rules

[16.7.7] Spanish Irregulars: the Spanish Infantry units Cruz-Murgeon and Valdecaños have their Combat Strength printed in white, indicating that these formations are Irregular Troops. Undisciplined, poorly equipped, and poorly led, these formations were easily disorganized and lost cohesion during battle. To simulate this, these units function as normal units in all respects with these exceptions:

• They are treated as Unsteady units (–, see [16.7.4]).
• They cannot be Rallied [10.0]. If they Disperse, they are permanently removed.
• If Routed, add two (+2) to their Rout rolls (in this respect, they behave opposite to Elite Forces).
• When an Irregular unit receives a Retreat result (AR or DR), a Rout marker must be placed on it. Note that this is not an actual Rout, so it does not cause a Morale loss, although Rout restrictions still apply.

Irregular units generally require more time to recover after a setback.

[16.11] The Garde Marins. Dupont had a small detachment of elite Imperial Guard Marine Infantry (Garde Marins) under his command. It has the following special use:

Procedure. Once per game, during Step B or C (as applicable) of a single combat, the French player may discard the Garde Marins marker to assign these troops to that combat.

Effect: when assigned, this marker adds one (+1) to total French strength in the battle; this has no Morale Point cost and can normally be combined with Assigning Reserve Troops [12.2.3]. In addition, for that battle only, the French player may choose any French unit involved in the battle to act as an Elite unit for purposes of Rout [9.6.2] and Impetus [16.7.1].

Alternative Scenarios

Two additional scenarios are provided: a Historical Deployment scenario, and one covering the Battle of Bailén (only the clash of units after the maneuvers preceding the battle).

[17.1] The Historical Deployment Scenario. Players who wish to use the historical deployment of both armies should use this setup instead of Rule [3.0] described above.

Once sides have been determined, set up the Standard Scenario as follows:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Morning of July 15 space (Turn 1), showing its Anti-French side.
• Place the French and Spanish Morale markers on space "7" of the Morale Record.
• Per the Standard Rules [3.0] (Card Preparation), place the Event cards with red titles face up in the Discard Pile (including card #13, Napoleonic 20, if selected for use) and use the rest to form the initial Event Deck.
• Place the Special Organized Retreat marker on hex 2302 (La Carolina), showing its "Organized Retreat Allowed" side [6.11].
• Place the French Depot/Supply Train unit on hex 0207 (Andújar), showing its "Depot" side [6.12].

French Deployment. Deploy French units in the following hexes or an adjacent hex:

• 0207 (Andújar): Barbau (4-2), Frescia (1-3), Dupont (0-5)
• 1306 (Bailén): Vedel (3-2)
• 0709 (outside Villanueva): two Dummies (*-3)
• 1512 (Mengíbar, across the river): Remnant (1-2)* (*representing the Liger-Belair brigade)
• 2309 (Linares): one Dummy (*-3)
• 2302 (La Carolina): Gobert (3-2)

Finally, place the French Garde Marins marker near the map as a reminder of its availability at the start of the game [16.11].

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the three remaining French Remnant units and any Dummies that are removed (if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1]). The Frere (3-2) unit is also set aside; it may arrive as a reinforcement via an Event card.

Spanish Deployment. Deploy Spanish units in the following hexes or an adjacent hex:

• 0110 (Arjonilla): La Peña (3-2), Felix-Jones (2-2), Castaños (1-5)
• 0710 (Villanueva): Coupigny (3-2)
• 1313 (Mengíbar): Reding (4-2)
• 2313 (east edge of the map): Valdecaños (1-2) and one Dummy (*-3)
• Game Turn 3: Cruz-Murgeon (1-2)

Spanish Unit Reserve. Set aside the four remaining Spanish Remnant units and the Dummies if using the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1].

[17.2] The Battle of Bailén Scenario. This scenario focuses only on the intense combat action that took place on July 19, providing a short (and not particularly balanced) introductory game that ignores the maneuvering before the day of battle.

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Morning of July 19 space (Turn 21), showing its Anti-French side.
• Place the French Morale marker on space "4" of the Morale Record, showing its "Swiss Desertion" side; place the Spanish Morale marker on space "5" of the Morale Record.
• Select and set aside the Dragoons & Cuirassiers card. Then find the two Event cards with blue titles and place them, face up, in the Discard Pile. Then shuffle the rest of the cards (optionally including card #13, Napoleonic 20) to form the initial Event Deck. Finally, place the Dragoons & Cuirassiers card on top of the deck, so it will be the first event revealed in this scenario.
• Place the Organized Retreat marker on hex 2302 (La Carolina). See Rule [6.11].

French Deployment. Place the following French units in the indicated hexes:

• 0706, 0805, and 0906 (arrange these units as desired among these hexes): Supply Train (0-1), Barbau (4-2), Frescia (1-3), Dupont (0-5)
• 2003: Vedel (3-2)
• 2302 (La Carolina): Remnant (1-2)* (*represents the partially rallied remnants of Gobert's division; the Gobert unit is not used in this scenario)

Finally, place the French Garde Marins marker near the map as a reminder of its availability at the start of the game [16.11].

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the three remaining French Remnant units and the Dummies if using the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1]. The Gobert (3-2) and Frere (3-2) units are permanently removed from the game in this scenario.

Spanish Deployment. Place the following Spanish units in the indicated hexes:

• 0207 (Andújar): Felix-Jones (2-2), Castaños (1-5)
• 0208: La Peña (3-2)
• 1106: Reding (4-2)
• 0701: Cruz-Murgeon (1-2)
• 2309 (Linares): Valdecaños (1-2)
• 1108: Coupigny (3-2)

Spanish Unit Reserve. Set aside the four remaining Spanish Remnant units and the Dummies if using the Fog of War Optional Rule [16.1].

Special Rules:

• The Spanish player is the first player, but their first turn, Game Turn 21, is skipped entirely. Therefore the game begins with the French half of Game Turn 21 and the Dragoons & Cuirassiers card is revealed.
• Also on the first turn of this scenario (Game Turn 21), the French receive a free Forced March (i.e. at no Morale Point cost).
• The French side gains one Morale Point (+1) the first time any French unit enters Bailén (hex 1306).

Victory Conditions:

• The Spanish player wins if, at any time, French Morale is reduced to zero (0) and Spanish Morale is one (1) or more. This was the historical result.
• The French player wins if, at the end of the game (i.e. at the conclusion of the last Turn), the French Morale value is at least one Point higher than the Spanish Morale Value.
• Any other result is a Draw.

Bailén 20: Designer's Notes

The designer of the Napoleonic 20 system, Joe Miranda, represents Napoleonic battles across a wide range of scope and scale: from the "cut and thrust" of a large tactical clash between several divisions, to the closing maneuvers of an operational campaign between powerful armies.

Bailén 20's contribution to the series is a large tactical game at operational scale and scope. It covers the decisive phase of the campaign at the division level with a scale of roughly 1 mile (a little over 1.8 kilometers) per hex. Historical purists will have noticed the bridge near Mengíbar (1412/1512), which was in fact a barge crossing the river, but for playability it is treated as a bridge, which we thought was the simplest way to show it on the map.

The opposing armies present an interesting setup: Dupont's force of 25,000 men was mostly a collection of second-rate soldiers: foreign battalions, reserves, and provisional units. Castaños's force from the Spanish Army of Andalusia numbered 35,000 men, and although largely untrained, they were enthusiastic and eager to enter battle. It was therefore a fairly even clash even after accounting for the number and quality of the forces engaged.

Despite its significance, the Bailén campaign has tended to be overlooked. The decisive defeat and surrender of an entire French army in open battle shattered the myth of Napoleonic invincibility at the time. This, combined with the defeat of Junot's French army in Portugal later that same year, led the French to abandon Spain south of the Ebro River, and ultimately required Napoleon's own intervention to stabilize the situation on the Iberian Peninsula after these disasters.

Bailén 20: Historical Notes

Following the suppression of the "Dos de Mayo" uprising against the French, General Pierre Dupont was sent to occupy the Spanish region of Andalusia. In early June 1808, he crossed the mountains into the Guadalquivir Valley with about 13,000 soldiers (Barbau and Frescia), who easily overcame the symbolic resistance of the newly-raised Spanish Army at Alcolea and then sacked Córdoba.

While Dupont held around Córdoba, the Spanish General Francisco Castaños hastily created the "Spanish Army of Andalusia," built around a small group of professional Spanish (regular) soldiers, which quickly grew to 30,000 enthusiastic (but largely poorly trained) recruits.

Isolated and facing growing resistance, Dupont withdrew to the safety offered by the mountains. Encouraged by the arrival of about 11,000 reinforcements (Vedel and Gobert), Dupont halted his retreat at Andújar and established a defensive position along the Guadalquivir River. Underestimating Dupont's strength, Castaños planned an offensive to drive the French out of Andalusia.

Thus the game begins...

Day One (Game Turns 1-5). Castaños began with a demonstration of force against the French at Andújar (Barbau and Frescia) with his Felix-Jones and La Peña divisions. Further east, Coupigny was sent to cross the river at Villanueva, while Reding attacked the barge crossing at Mengíbar (Liger-Bellair, the 1-2 Remnant unit). Meanwhile, the irregulars Cruz-Murgeon and Valdecaños threatened the French flanks.

At Villanueva, an overly cautious Coupigny failed to press his attack against the French (a Dummy) holding the crossing. Reding's attack at Mengíbar was repulsed when Vedel arrived from Bailén to help the beleaguered Liger-Bellair brigade. Meanwhile Dupont, alarmed by Castaños's show of force, sent Vedel's division to Andújar, leaving the weakened Liger-Bellair brigade alone to hold Mengíbar. Vedel force-marched his men through the night, arriving at Andújar on the afternoon of the 16th.

Day Two (Game Turns 6-10). Throughout the 16th, Castaños and Coupigny continued their skirmishing, and Valdecaños occupied Linares. At Mengíbar, Reding resumed his attack, crushing the Liger-Bellair brigade and establishing a secure bridgehead on the north bank of the Guadalquivir. Gobert then reacted by moving his division from the north to counterattack, but at dusk he fell mortally wounded and his division routed. Reding chose not to pursue the French troops, and rallied his men at the barge crossing. General Dufour (Gobert's successor) rallied his men at Bailén and fell back toward La Carolina.

Day Three (Game Turns 11-15). With his left flank turned, Dupont ordered Vedel's exhausted troops back to Bailén to block Reding. On arriving he found the town undefended; Vedel, in response to rumors that a Spanish force (Valdecaños) was threatening French communications at La Carolina, sent his forces toward La Carolina to meet this threat.

Day Four (Game Turns 16-20). During the 18th, Coupigny finally crossed the Guadalquivir to join Reding. Together, they advanced to find Bailén undefended. These Spanish divisions now stood between the two halves of Dupont's Army: Barbau, Frescia, and the Supply Train at Andújar, and Vedel with the remaining units around La Carolina. Almost without realizing it his army had split in two; finally Dupont ordered Andújar abandoned and fell back to Bailén during the night.

Day Five (Game Turns 21-24). As Dupont's column approached the Rumblar that morning, the Spanish divisions of Felix-Jones and La Peña pursued it, Cruz-Murgeon's irregulars threatened from the flank, and, ahead, Coupigny and Reding held their position outside Bailén. The nearest help was Vedel's division, which set out on a cautious march from La Carolina toward Bailén.

Desperate to force his way through to Bailén, Dupont ordered a series of piecemeal attacks. Throughout the morning and a scorching afternoon, the French tried several times and failed to break through the Spanish line. Vedel finally arrived at dusk and began an attempt to attack the Spanish rear, but by then it was already too late. Exhausted, low on water, his Swiss troops deserted en masse and, with the Supply Train under attack, Dupont sought to negotiate with the enemy.

After lengthy negotiations, Dupont surrendered, handing over not only his own troops but also Vedel's and the various French outposts as far as La Carolina. Castaños had won the greatest Spanish victory of the Peninsular War.

In game terms, Dupont waited too long to begin his Organized Retreat, and spent too many Morale Points on fruitless forced marches, leaving his corps vulnerable for the final battle.

Arapiles 20: La Batalla de Salamanca

Introduction

Arapiles 20 simulates the clash that took place in Spain in mid-July 1812. One player controls the Allied Army (British, Portuguese, and Spanish) under the command of Sir Arthur Wellesley (Marquess and later Duke of Wellington), while the other player manages the French Army of Portugal under the orders of Marshal Auguste Marmont (Duke of Ragusa). Although their forces were roughly equal in size, the Allies achieved a decisive victory and were able to advance on Madrid, while the remnants of Marmont's Army escaped complete annihilation in a hurried retreat.

Components

The Game Board: the board is 43 x 56 centimeters, depicting part of the province of Salamanca, where the campaign took place.

Game Pieces: blue units are French. Red units are British and yellow units are Spanish (or "Anti-French").

Unit Names: units are identified by the names of their commanders, with the following exceptions: Dragoons = Light Dragoons; Joseph = Joseph Bonaparte; Nord = Armée du Nord (Army of the North).

Special Unit Types: the following units are Elite forces (–) for the purposes of Rout (-2 die roll modifier [9.6.2.1]) and Rally (+1 die roll modifier [10.0] and the Rally Table):

• Allies: Alten (2-2) and Pakenham (3-2)
• French: Clausel (4-2)

If Optional Rule [16.7] is used, the following special unit types come into play:

• Light Infantry: British units with their Movement Allowance printed in green (–).
• Unsteady Troops: the Spanish unit with its Combat Strength printed in yellow (–).

Initial Deployment

After determining which side each player controls, set up the Standard Scenario as follows:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Morning of July 21 space (Turn 1), showing its Anti-French side.
• Place the French and Allied Morale markers on space "8" of the Morale Record.
• Per the Standard Rules [3.0] (Card Preparation), place the Event card with the red title (#18, "¡Soltadlos!") face up in the Discard Pile and use the rest to form the initial Event Deck. Optionally, the special Napoleonic 20 Event card (#13, Crescendo de Tambores) may be added to the Discard Pile. French Morale starts at 7 if Optional Rule 16.10 (the March of King Joseph) is used; the French player must make this decision now, during initial deployment.
• No units are deployed at the start of the game. Instead, all units arrive as Reinforcements at the entry hexes of their own color, distributed along the map edge in "order of march" [11.2] as described below:

Allied Reinforcements. All Allied reinforcements enter the board via Area Z.

• Turn 1: Alten (2-2), Campbell (4-2), Cole (3-2), Leith (3-2), and Wellington (3-5)
• Turn 2: Clinton (3-2), Hope (3-2), Bradford (1-2), and Pack (1-2)
• Turn 3: Cotton (2-3) and España (2-2)
• Turn 6: Pakenham (3-2) and Dragoons (1-3)

Allied Unit Reserve. Set aside the four Allied Remnant units, and the three Allied Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1].

French Reinforcements. All French reinforcements enter the board via Area A.

• Turn 1: Maucune (3-2), Brennier (2-2), Thomas (2-2), Curto (1-3), and Marmont (2-5)
• Turn 2: Clausel (4-2), Sarrut (3-2), Bonet (3-2), and Boyer (2-3)
• Turn 3: Foy (3-2) and Ferey (3-2)
• Turn 6: Joseph (4-2) — arrives via Area B only if Optional Rule [16.10] (The March of King Joseph) is used.
• Turn 7: Nord (2-3) — entry via Area Z is possible; see Rule [11.6] for details.

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the four French Remnant units, and the three French Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1].

Sequence of Play

The Allied player is the First Player.

Random Events

Both sides' Random Events are skipped on the first Game Turn. Events begin to be revealed normally starting on the Allied player's second turn.

Movement

[6.7.1] March and Countermarch. On the first day of the battle (only, Game Turns 1 to 5), the first unit belonging to each side that enters an EZOC causes its own side a loss of one (-1) Morale Point. From then on, all units enter EZOCs normally.

Both armies had been marching along parallel routes, often within sight of each other, for several days, with both commanders unwilling to engage the enemy prematurely.

Combat

[9.7.7] Priority Direction of Retreat. Allied units must retreat toward one of the two Allied LOC hexes located on the north or west edge of the map. French units must retreat toward one of the two French LOC hexes located on the east edge of the map.

[9.7.2.1] Shallow Streams. In this battle, Minor Rivers are treated as Clear terrain for Combat purposes only (i.e. they do not provide the usual defensive bonus shown on the Terrain Effects Chart). The movement point cost to cross them is not modified, and retreating across these hexes remains a Hazardous Retreat Case [9.7.5].

Rally

[10.1] French Rally. Throughout the battle, a modifier of minus one (-1) applies to all French Rally attempts. Short on supplies during the campaign, and beset by a confused command structure, French discipline was severely tested during the battle.

[10.2] Spanish Fragility. When the Allied player attempts to Rally the Spanish unit, the +1 Rally bonus never applies (even if a Morale Point was spent to do so). Furthermore, this unit cannot make a Partial Rally [16.5.1] or Split [16.6.1]. The morale of the Spanish troops was very low during this battle.

Reinforcements

[11.6] Chauvel's Riders. The French Nord unit might enter play as a Reinforcement unit.

Procedure. Starting with the Morning turn of the second day (i.e. Game Turn 7), the French player rolls a die to determine the status of the Nord unit.

Armée du Nord Table. On the second day (i.e. Game Turns 7 to 12), the following results apply:

• 1, 2: permanently eliminate the Nord unit; do not adjust the French Morale record.
• 3, 4: delay the Nord unit; place it in the next Game Turn box and roll again on that Turn.
• 5, 6: the Nord unit arrives via Entry Area Z (yes, the Allied Area!); see [14.1].

On the third day (Game Turns 13 to 17), the following results apply:

• 1: permanently eliminate the Nord unit; do not adjust the French Morale record.
• 2, 3: delay the Nord unit; place it in the next Game Turn box and roll again on that Turn.
• 4, 5, 6: the Nord unit arrives via Entry Area Z (yes, the Allied Area!); see [14.1].

Wellington was worried about the possibility of the French Army of the North falling upon his rear.

Night Turns

Allied Objective Hex: Calvarrasa de Arriba (hex 1112). French Objective Hexes: Salamanca (hex 0205) and Los Arapiles (hex 1407).

[14.1] Alternate French LOC. Hex 0901 is considered a French LOC only if (and only for) the French Nord cavalry reinforcement unit once it has entered play [11.6].

[14.2] Allied LOCs. The Allied LOCs (hexes 0103 and 0801) each subtract 1 Morale Point for the Allied player if occupied by the enemy (this is different from what the Morale Table specifies). Wellington was very dependent on his rigid lines of communication running back to Portugal.

[14.3] Rest Recovery. On the first Night turn (i.e. Game Turn 6), neither side recovers Morale for resting that night (i.e. both players skip Morale Recovery during the first Night turn). A sudden storm on the afternoon of July 21 caused chaos in both camps.

Optional Rules

[16.1.3] No Dummy: if playing with the Fog of War rules, the Spanish unit cannot be selected to generate or receive a Dummy.

[16.6] Independent Brigades. The British units Bradford and Pack are Independent Brigades. This means they act similarly to Remnant units (e.g. they cannot be Rallied). As indicated by their blue Combat Strength, they also have a special ability: once per game, the British player may remove one of them to provide its "Support" to a nearby friendly unit taking part in a battle, as follows:

Procedure. During either player's Combat Phase (but not the Reaction Phase), if an Independent Brigade is adjacent to a British (not Spanish) unit taking part in a battle, then the Allied player may permanently remove that Independent Brigade from the game (without adjusting the Allied side's morale level) to add one (+1) to their side's total strength in that particular battle.

• The Independent Brigade cannot be in an EZOC or itself be participating in a battle in order to use this ability.
• If both Independent Brigades are able to meet the above conditions, both may provide their Support to the same battle.
• This Independent Brigade Support is in addition to Assigning Reserves [12.2.3] or other strength bonuses provided by Event cards that may affect that battle.

[16.9.6] Marmont Wounded. There is a chance that the commander of the French army, Marshal Auguste de Marmont, may be wounded (and permanently removed from the game).

Procedure. If Marmont (the Leader) Disperses, he is automatically wounded. If at any time Marmont is forced to Retreat (for any reason), the French player must roll a die to determine whether Marmont is wounded.

Marmont's Fate Table: 1, 2: permanently eliminate Marmont; do not adjust the French Morale value. 3-6: no effect; Marmont Retreats normally.

If Marmont is eliminated, immediately place the Clausel Leader unit two (2) Game Turns ahead on the Game Turn Record to arrive as a reinforcement on that turn. When it arrives, place the Clausel Leader unit in the same hex as the French Elite infantry unit of the same name, if in play; otherwise, it arrives as a normally Rallied Leader unit [16.9.7].

[16.10] The March of King Joseph Bonaparte. During initial deployment, the French player may make the irrevocable decision to request reinforcements from King Joseph Bonaparte. If this option is chosen, French Morale must be reduced to 7 and this procedure applied:

Procedure. Starting on Game Turn 6, and on every subsequent turn until this unit enters play, the French player rolls a die and consults the King Joseph Bonaparte Arrival Table to see if the Joseph (4-2) Infantry unit arrives that turn as a Reinforcement. If it does, it enters play via Entry Area B and the French immediately gain one (+1) Morale Point. If the unit does not arrive that turn, it moves to the next box on the Game Turn Record and the die is rolled again on the following turn to check for the King's arrival again.

King Joseph Bonaparte Arrival Table. Game Turns 6 and 7: 1-5, the King does not arrive this turn; 6, the King arrives this turn (see [16.10]). Game Turn 8 and later: 1-4, the King does not arrive this turn; 5, 6, the King arrives this turn (see [16.10]).

This option allows players to examine the campaign effects of King Joseph Bonaparte (Napoleon's brother) arriving with the vanguard of his army to support Marmont during the battle.

Alternative Scenario

This scenario represents a short contest that provides a good introduction to the Napoleonic 20 game system.

After determining which side each player controls, set up the Alternative Scenario as follows:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Afternoon of July 22 box (Game Turn 9), showing its Anti-French side.
• Place the French and Allied Morale markers on space "5" of the Morale Record.
• Prepare the Event deck as follows: 1. Set aside the Event card with the red title (#18, "¡Soltadlos!"). 2. Place the Event cards with blue titles (#16 and #24, "Órdenes Confusas" and "¡Por Dios, Que Lo Haremos!") face up in the Discard Pile and use the remaining cards with black titles (optionally including card #13, "Crescendo de Tambores") to form the Event Deck. 3. Finally, the Event card with the red title (#18, "¡Soltadlos!") set aside earlier is placed face down on top of the Event Deck; it will always be the first card revealed in this scenario.

Allied Deployment: 1006: España (2-2); 1210: Campbell (4-2); 1106: Cotton (2-3); 1306: Hope (3-2); 1109: Pack (1-2); 1307: Clinton (3-2); 1110: Alten (2-2); 1403: Pakenham (3-2); 1202: Wellington (3-5); 1407: Leith (3-2); 1208: Bradford (1-2); 1502: Dragoons (1-3); 1209: Cole (3-2).

Allied Unit Reserve. Set aside the four Allied Remnant units, and the three Allied Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1].

French Deployment: 1013: Foy (3-2); 1410: Brennier (2-2); 1513: Boyer (2-3); 1605: Thomières (2-2); 1609: Clausel (4-2); 1706: Curto (1-3); 1312: Ferey (3-2); 1509: Bonet (3-2); Turn 11: Clausel (1-5); 1607: Maucune (3-2); 1611: Sarrut (3-2).

French Unit Reserve. The Nord (2-3) Cavalry unit and the Marmont (2-5) Leader unit are not used (both are permanently eliminated). Do not use the Joseph (4-2) Infantry unit [16.10] in this scenario either. Set aside the four French Remnant units, and the three French Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1].

Special Rule. The Allied player is the First Player, and the Allied Random Event drawn on the first turn of this scenario is always Event card #14 ("¡Soltadlos!").

Victory Conditions:

• The Allied player achieves a Decisive Victory if, at any time, French Morale is reduced to zero (0) and Allied Morale is one (1) or more. This was the historical result.
• The French player achieves a Decisive Victory if, at any time, Allied Morale is reduced to zero (0) and French Morale is one (1) or more.
• The French player achieves a Marginal Victory if, at the end of the game (i.e. at the end of Game Turn 17), the French Morale Value is at least one Point higher than the Allied Morale Value.
• Any other result is a Draw.

Arapiles 20: Designer's Notes

Salamanca is generally considered one of Wellington's most impressive victories. With roughly balanced forces, he managed to inflict a severe setback on the French.

After days of marching along parallel routes, and at times with both armies separated from each other by less than two kilometers of open terrain, Wellington concentrated his forces preparing to cross the Tormes River at Salamanca. Marmont mistakenly assumed that the British still intended to retreat toward their lines of communication and was caught by surprise when Pakenham's division suddenly fell upon the head of his long marching column and began to roll it up.

It undoubtedly helped the British that their attack coincided almost exactly with Marmont and his second-in-command being wounded (causing a lack of leadership in the French army for several hours), but fundamentally it was the soundness of Wellington's battle plan that paved the way for victory.

Like their historical counterparts, in the Standard scenario (Advance to Contact) players need to decide early on whether to force-march their units to secure the best defensive positions or conserve their morale for the coming engagements. Because this scenario offers the possibility of developing different strategies, the game often unfolds differently from what happened historically, but players still face the same uncertainties that Marmont and Wellington encountered.

The Alternative Scenario (Historical Battle) starts with the beginning of the British attack. This is a much shorter scenario, and aims to highlight how potentially risky Wellington's plan was, and to confirm that it was his skill (and luck) that led him to be considered one of the great commanders of history.

The Optional Rule for the March of King Joseph Bonaparte [16.10] offers players an interesting alternative to the Standard Scenario.

During our research for the development of this game we found a number of discrepancies between different sources. I would like to extend special thanks to both Jack Gill (whose knowledge of this period is remarkable) and Eduardo Pérez (who provided us with invaluable help with his overview of the battlefield) for helping us sort it all out.

Bussaco 20: La Insensatez de Masséna

Introduction

Bussaco 20 recreates the battle that took place on September 26, 1810, during the Peninsular War. One player leads the French army invading Portugal under the command of Marshal André Masséna, while the other leads the Anti-French forces made up of the British army and the reconstituted Portuguese army under the orders of General Sir Arthur Wellesley, Viscount of Wellington.

Components

The Game Board: the board is 43 x 56 centimeters, depicting part of Portugal, where the campaign took place.

Special Terrain: there are 2 unique terrain types represented in Bussaco 20, with the following special effects:

• Steep Slope Hexsides: unlike regular Hill hexsides, these hexsides give the defender a +2 Combat Strength bonus (instead of the usual +1) when attacked exclusively from hexes at a lower elevation (downhill).
• Clear Trail: units moving along contiguous Trail hexes may move one hex directly from an EZOC hex to another EZOC hex, provided the enemy units are downhill. That is, a unit defending at the top of a hill against a unit located at the bottom of the hill receives a Movement Allowance similar to Penetration [16.2]. Note that units cannot use the Trail to leave an EZOC (Disengagement), only to move from one EZOC hex to another, always following the Trail.

Game Pieces: blue units are French. Red units are British and Portuguese (or "Anti-French").

Special Unit Types included in Bussaco 20:

• Elite Troops: both the British Craufurd and Spencer units, with their Combat Strength printed in red (–), are Elite for purposes of Rout (a -2 die roll modifier [9.6.2.1]) and Rally (a +1 modifier on the roll [12.2.2]). They also benefit from Impetus if Optional Rule [16.7.1] is used.
• Light Infantry: the British Craufurd unit, with its Movement Allowance printed in green (–), is Light per Rule [16.7.2].
• Unsteady Troops: the Portuguese Hamilton and Lecor units, with their Combat Strength printed in yellow (–), are Unsteady [16.7.4].
• Independent Brigades: the Portuguese Campbell, Coleman, and Pack units, with their Combat Strength printed in blue (–), are Independent Brigades [16.7.8].

There are no Guard units in Bussaco 20. Unit name abbreviations used: Cav. = Cavalry | Res. = Reserve | Ind. = Independent.

Initial Deployment

After determining which side each player controls, set up the Standard Scenario as indicated:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Morning of September 26 space (Turn 1), showing its French side.
• Place the French Morale marker on space "6," and the British Morale marker on space "7" of the Morale Record.

French Deployment. The French player deploys the following units in the hexes specified below:

• 1011: Montbrun (2-3)
• 1210: Marchand (3-2)
• 1211: Soult (1-3) + Masséna (0-0; "Indisposed")
• 1212: Heudelet (4-2) + Reynier (1-5)
• 1312: Merle (3-2)
• 1410: Mermet (3-2) + Ney (0-5)
• 1411: Lamotte (1-3)
• 1310: Loison (3-2)

Masséna was "Indisposed" with his mistress at the start of this battle.

French Reinforcements. The French player deploys the following units on the Game Turn record:

• Turn 1: Clausel (3-2), St. Croix (1-3) + Junot (0-5); Area A
• Turn 2: Solignac (3-2); Area A
• Turn 4: Reserve Artillery (2-2); Area A

Optionally, Junot and his red-striped VIII Corps units may enter the game via an alternate route along the Boialvo trail, entering the map later via Area B (see Optional Rule [16.10]).

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the three French Remnant units, the two French Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1], and Masséna (1-5; "Engaged") if using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9.2].

Allied Deployment:

• 0410: Hill (3-2)

• 0708: Leith (3-2)

• 0809: Hamilton (2-2)

• 0907: Picton (2-2)

• 1007: Spencer (3-2) + Wellesley (3-5)

• 1106: Craufurd (2-2)

• 1206: Coleman (1-2)

• 1305: Campbell (2-2)

• 1006: Pack (1-2)

• 1306: Cole (3-2)

If Optional Rule [16.10] is used, these units are deployed in the Boialvo box, from which they may enter play as Reinforcements.

Allied Unit Reserve. Set aside the three British Remnant units, and the two British Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1]. Remove the Fane (2-3) and Lecor (2-2) units from the game unless Optional Rule [16.10] is used, in which case those units are deployed in the Boialvo box.

Sequence of Play

The French player is the First Player.

Random Events

On the first Game Turn, skip the French player's Random Event Phase. The French event, More Concerned with Venus than with Mars, has a special additional effect when using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9.2].

[5.1] Command Coordination. The French had great difficulty making their numerical superiority count in the battle. To reflect this situation, the following rule is used:

All French units in this campaign belong to one of four specific Army Corps, as indicated by the colored band across the middle of the counter that contains that unit's commander's name: 2nd Corps (Reynier) = Blue; 6th Corps (Ney) = Yellow; 8th Corps (Junot) = Red; Reserve Corps (Masséna) = White.

In addition, at the start of the game, the French Leader Masséna is deployed in the village of Cordiera (hex 1211) as "Indisposed" (i.e. with a Command Range of 0 and a Movement Allowance of 0) — this applies even when the Optional Leader Rule [16.9] is not used.

Procedure. During each French Player Turn, at the end of the Event Phase (after resolving that turn's event, unless it is A Moment of Clarity or More Concerned with Venus than with Mars, in which case this procedure is skipped and the card's event takes priority), the French player must roll a die and compare the result with the following table to determine which of their Corps will be "Active" during that turn.

French Command Coordination Table: 1, 2 = Only units of one Corps will be Active this turn. 3, 4, or 5 = Units of up to two different Corps will be Active this turn. 6 = Units of up to three different Corps will be Active this turn.

With an unmodified die roll of 6 (red): Masséna becomes "Engaged"; change his Leader counter.

Die roll modifier: -1 if Masséna is "Indisposed." Treat results less than 1 as 1.

During the French Movement Phase, only units belonging to the Active Corps may move normally and voluntarily enter EZOCs that turn. Units of Inactive Corps suffer the following restrictions during that French Player Turn:

• Their Movement Allowance is reduced by one (-1).
• They cannot enter EZOCs; if they began that turn already in an EZOC, they are unaffected and must continue participating in combat normally.

In addition, whenever the French player rolls an unmodified 5 or 6 (the red results in the table above), the Masséna Leader is no longer "Indisposed."

• If using the Optional Leader Rule, replace his "Indisposed" Leader counter (0-0) with his "Engaged" counter (1-5) per [16.9].
• When the Optional Leader Rule is not used, simply remove the Masséna counter from the map and his "Indisposed" -1 die roll modifier no longer applies.

If the French player's Event card is A Moment of Clarity or More Concerned with Venus than with Mars, no roll is made on the French Command Coordination Table. The events on those cards take priority over these Rules.

A Moment of Clarity: when this event occurs, all French units are Active that turn. In addition, the French player may Force March with all units of any one Corps without paying the usual Morale cost.

More Concerned with Venus than with Mars: when this event occurs, no French unit is Active that turn. In addition, immediately place the "Indisposed" Masséna counter (0-0) in Cordiera (hex 1211) if it is not already in that hex. The -1 die roll modifier on the French Command Coordination Table becomes effective again.

[5.2] British Caution. The Allied player must roll a die at the start of their Movement Phase; the result determines the maximum number of Allied units that may move that turn.

Procedure. During the Allied player's initial turns, at the end of the Event Phase (after resolving that turn's event), the Allied player must roll a die and compare the result with the following table to determine how many of their units may move that turn.

Allied Command Coordination Table: 1 or 2 = up to two Allied units may move that turn. 3, 4, or 5 = up to three Allied units may move that turn. 6 = up to four Allied units may move that turn.

This restriction disappears completely if any of the following happen: a French unit carries out an attack, or any French unit crosses a Steep Slope hexside, or Game Turn 5 is reached.

Combat

[9.8.7] Priority Direction of Retreat. French units must Retreat toward one of the two French LOC hexes on the east edge of the map (hexes 1414 and 1614). Allied units must Retreat toward one of the two Allied LOC hexes on the west edge of the map (hexes 1201 and 1801).

[9.8.8] Distracted Masséna. Important: this Rule should only be used when not playing with the Optional Leader Rule [16.9]! Whenever the French player makes an attack involving exclusively Reserve Corps units (with white identification bands, including Remnant units, see Rule [5.1]), a -1 adjustment always applies to the final Combat Differential for that Battle. If any unit from another Corps is involved in the attack, this adjustment does not apply.

Reinforcements

[11.6] Unit Arrival Location. French reinforcements enter play via Entry Area A on the eastern edge of the map. If the Optional Boialvo Road Rule is used (see [16.10]), reinforcements for both sides may arrive via Entry Area B.

Army Morale

[12.8] Organized Retreat. At any time, if the Allied player's Morale level is lower than the French player's current Morale level, and there is a French unit occupying Palheiros (hex 0707) OR the Convent of Bussaco (hex 1105), then the Allied player may declare that they are "Authorizing an Organized Retreat" (place the Organized Retreat Authorized marker near the Allied LOC hexes).

Once authorized, and for the rest of the game, at the start of each Allied Combat Phase, the Allied player may voluntarily remove one British or Portuguese unit (not a Remnant or Dummy) that is in an Allied LOC hex (i.e. 1201 or 1801). The Allied player may therefore remove up to a total of two units per turn this way (provided they are in different Allied LOC hexes). This operation simulates these Allied units leaving the map, marching toward Lisbon.

For each unit removed this way, add one (+1) to the Allied Morale level. However, the Allied player can no longer achieve a Decisive Victory after authorizing an Organized Retreat (i.e. the best they can achieve is a Marginal Victory, even if the Allied player manages to bring French Morale down to zero). If the Allied player cannot see a way to achieve victory, authorizing an organized retreat could, at least, avoid a defeat.

Passing ("Truces")

Important: either player may declare a "Truce" starting from Game Turn 1.

Night Turns

French Objective Hex: Cordiera (hex 1211). Allied Objective Hex: Convent of Bussaco (hex 1105).

Optional Rules

[16.6] Independent Brigades. The Allied units Campbell, Coleman, and Pack are Independent Brigades (with blue Combat Strength) that function like normal Remnant units (e.g. they cannot be Rallied). Additionally, being Portuguese units, they are considered Unsteady units for purposes of Rule [16.7.4].

[16.9.2] Masséna's Apathy. There are two versions of the French Leader Masséna: "Indisposed" (0-0), and "Engaged" (1-5). Only one version of Masséna can be on the map at a time.

Effects: Masséna begins the game "Indisposed" in the village of Cordiera (hex 1211). While in this state, Masséna cannot move and can only command units stacked with him at Cordiera (his Command Range is 0). When "Engaged," Masséna may act according to the normal Leader Rules.

Status Change Procedure. Whenever the French player rolls on the French Command Coordination Table [5.1], an unmodified roll of 5 or 6 immediately allows the "Indisposed" Masséna counter to be replaced by the "Engaged" Masséna counter (if it is already in play, there is no effect). While "Engaged," on any later turn in which the French event is More Concerned with Venus than with Mars, the Masséna counter is replaced again by the "Indisposed" counter and returned to Cordiera (hex 1211). The counter is not moved to Cordiera, it is simply picked up and placed there, regardless of where it was when the event occurred.

There is no limit to how many times this exchange between the different versions of the Masséna counter can repeat (returning it to Cordiera and then leaving again). As a reminder, on any turn in which Masséna is "Indisposed," the French player applies a -1 modifier to the die roll when consulting the French Command Coordination Table.

[16.9.5] French Leaders in Combat. With the exception of Masséna, French Leader units can only provide Command to units of their own Corps. Masséna, as the overall commander, is able to provide Command to any French unit.

[16.10] The Road to Boialvo. The French player may choose to send Junot's 8th Corps around the Allied left flank via the Boialvo road to the north. To simulate this, the following Rule is used:

Procedure.

1. After initial deployment, but before play begins, the French player takes the 8th Corps March marker and secretly selects the route these units will take to enter play (Clausel, Solignac, and St. Croix, plus Junot if using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9]). The French player places this marker, with the selected route face up, directly under the Game Turn marker (to hide this decision from the Allied player).

2. The Allied player then decides whether they wish to withdraw either (or both) of their units located at Boialvo (Lecor and Fane) to join their main army at Bussaco. If they do, take the unit(s) and place them on the Game Turn record on the Turn 6 box. Treat these units as Variable Reinforcements [11.0] that arrive according to the following scheme:

   Allied Command Coordination Table: 1, 2, or 3 = the unit is delayed; roll again next turn.* 4, 5, or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area B.

   * Once any unit of the French 8th Corps enters play via Entry Area B (never via Area A), any Allied units still on the Turn record are immediately and permanently eliminated (Morale is not adjusted if this happens).

3. The French player then reveals the 8th Corps March marker. Treat these units as Variable Reinforcements (per Rule [11.0]) that arrive according to the following scheme:

   March to Bussaco: these French units are placed on the Turn 1 box and the March to Bussaco marker is placed at Entry Area A as a reminder that the units will arrive there.

   French Bussaco March Reinforcement Table: 1, 2, or 3 = the unit is delayed; roll again next turn.* 4, 5, or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area A.

   March to Boialvo: these French units are placed on the Turn 8 box and the March to Boialvo marker is placed at Entry Area B as a reminder that the units will arrive there.

   French Boialvo Road Reinforcement Table: 1 = the unit is permanently eliminated (no Morale adjustment is made). 2, 3 = the unit is delayed; roll again next turn. 4, 5, or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area B.

   Die roll modifier: -1 for each Allied unit still in the Boialvo box. Results less than 1 are treated as 1.

In any case, when the Optional Leader Rule [16.9] is used, Junot automatically arrives together with the first unit of his Corps to enter play.

[16.11] Portuguese Steadiness. British commanders had serious reservations about the reliability of their Portuguese allies, as reflected in this Optional Rule.

Procedure. In addition to treating all Portuguese units with yellow and blue Combat Strength as Unsteady [16.7.4], regular British units could also be Unsteady! During Step D of the Combat Sequence, check the Allied Morale level. If it is currently less than or equal to French Morale, all non-Elite British units are treated as Unsteady, but the -1 penalty is not applied to these British units when rolling on the Unsteady Units in Combat Table.

Once any British (not Portuguese) unit rolls a 6 on its Steadiness check, this Rule no longer applies for the rest of the game. The worth of the Portuguese troops is thereby officially proven on the battlefield.

In summary: British Elite units (the Spencer and Craufurd divisions) never have to make a Steadiness check. Other (non-Elite) British units check steadiness only if Allied Morale is less than or equal to French Morale, but the Morale modifier does not apply to them. The Allied player stops having to check the reliability of British units for the rest of the game once a 6 is rolled on any British Steadiness check. Portuguese units always have to check their steadiness (unless exempted by an Event card).

Bussaco 20: Designer's Notes

History of the Battle. In some respects, Bussaco was a battle that should never have happened. After winning a costly victory against the French at Talavera on July 28, 1809, Wellesley found himself nearly abandoned by his Spanish allies, and over the course of the following year was gradually forced to retreat toward Portugal. If Marshal Masséna had pursued the small 50,000-man Anglo-Portuguese army more closely with his superior force of 65,000 men, it is unlikely Wellesley would have had time to regroup and prepare for a new battle.

But Masséna was working from extremely inaccurate maps (the cartographer had never visited Portugal and had basically just compiled all available information about the country). As a result, the French army proceeded to take "the worst road in all of Portugal" in its attempt to cut off the British retreat to their base at Lisbon. Masséna ended up arriving almost a week after the Anglo-Portuguese, which gave Wellesley time to rest and reorganize his forces. To gain even more time (to evacuate the fields and force the French to advance through a "scorched earth" landscape), he had his army take up defensive positions near the Convent of Bussaco, along a rugged twelve-kilometer ridge crossing the road to Lisbon.

Once he arrived at Bussaco, Masséna handled his preparations for the battle very poorly. Instead of reconnoitering the British positions and directing the deployment of his army on the ground, he wasted most of the first day enjoying the company of his mistress at a local inn, shouting the occasional order to his aide through a closed door.

The battle began on the morning of September 27, but Masséna's control over his army's actions was clumsy. He first sent Ney's 6th Corps, and then Reynier's 2nd Corps, up the steep hill in uncoordinated frontal assaults. No preliminary bombardment was made (even though the French enjoyed almost a 2-to-1 superiority in artillery), nor was any attempt made to outflank the formidable British position. Finally, after suffering 4,000 casualties, against only 1,200 British casualties, Masséna put an end to the slaughter.

The next day, Masséna did what he should have done from the start: he sent scouts to find a route to flank Wellesley's position. About twelve kilometers to the north they discovered a mountain road to the village of Boialvo. Masséna then shifted his forces to fall on the British flank, but it was already too late... Wellesley had already resumed his retreat the night before. Within a few days, the British had positioned themselves behind the Lines of Torres Vedras on the outskirts of Lisbon, creating a triple belt of fortifications that made the approach to Lisbon nearly impassable. Masséna's opportunity to crush the Anglo-Portuguese army in open battle had been lost.

Bussaco was effectively the high-water mark for the French in the Peninsular War. In the middle of winter, after losing nearly half his army to hunger and dysentery, Masséna was forced to admit defeat and retreat back into Spain. After a final battle at Fuentes de Oñoro in May 1811, he was relieved of his command and replaced by Marshal Marmont. It was the last time Masséna held a field command.

Game Design. The modification to the "Truce" rule (allowing a Truce to start on the first day rather than waiting until the second) was included to reflect the fact that both armies spent almost the entire first day resting after long marches (the last British units arrived in the area the night before). The early turn restrictions on British movement were necessary to prevent an unlikely early British attack on the French, something Wellesley never considered because he did not know from which direction the bulk of the French troops were approaching.

The Command Coordination and Masséna's Apathy Rules are crucial to telling the story of Bussaco. With a larger army, made up mostly of veteran troops, there is no reason Masséna should not have won this engagement. However, at no point did he show any of the talent that made him famous. Put simply, Masséna's heart was no longer in it: he wanted to retire and enjoy the fortune he had amassed over his long career. Players may try playing the game without the Command Coordination Rules to appreciate just how dangerous a situation Wellesley had put himself in, had he faced a more capable opponent.

The Portuguese Steadiness Optional Rule deserves special mention: it deliberately exaggerates the questionable condition of the Portuguese troops. Historically, they performed magnificently at Bussaco, and for the rest of the Peninsular campaign, Wellesley considered them fully equal to their British counterparts. However, some sources agree that before this battle most British officers were worried — in some cases absolutely convinced — that their Portuguese comrades-in-arms would simply run away at the sound of the first artillery salvo. We designed this Rule to try to capture some of that sense of doubt.

A sidebar in the original rulebook, quoting R. F. Delderfield's "Napoleon's Marshals," describes the atmosphere among the French command during the battle: Masséna, at 51, had little interest in campaigning and wanted to retire; he had lost the sight of one eye two years earlier when Marshal Berthier accidentally shot him during a hunting display in the Emperor's presence, and Napoleon had persuaded him to accept the command of the Army of Portugal by appealing to their old friendship. He spent much of the first day of battle at an inn in Cordiera with his mistress, an eighteen-year-old ballet dancer from the Paris Opera, Henriette Leberton, shouting orders to his aide through the closed door of the room. The march through Portugal was painfully slow, partly because of the commander-in-chief's preoccupation with his mistress, who had stayed in Salamanca during the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo but now followed the advance on horseback; at one point, when she felt very fatigued, the solicitous Masséna kept the army motionless for a week. Relations between the marshal and his immediate subordinates deteriorated: Ney, already disgusted with the campaign, was furious when Masséna asked him to escort the lady to lunch. Things stood at this point when the British made a stand on the Bussaco ridge — there was a path around it and they could have been dislodged by a flank attack, but Masséna made no move to attempt it. Ney's fiery temper led him to suggest a wild frontal assault up the rocky slopes, defended by the finest marksmen in the world. The result was disastrous: by the end of the day the French counted five thousand men and two hundred fifty officers dead, wounded, or captured. The British continued their retreat toward Lisbon and the French followed, with an indignant Masséna refusing to give up the pursuit and take his army back to Spain. Ney, who had urged the suicidal attack, now protested the assault on so strong a position, which he considered to have been an act of stupidity. Masséna said nothing; he was not an easy man to provoke.

— Lance McMillan

Talavera 20: La Preparación del Vizconde Wellington

Introduction

Talavera 20 recreates the battle that took place from July 27-28, 1809, in and around the town of Talavera de la Reina during the Peninsular War. One player leads the French Army of Spain under the command of Napoleon's brother, Joseph Bonaparte, King of Spain; the other player leads the Allied armies of Great Britain (under Sir Arthur Wellesley) and Spain (Captain General Gregorio de la Cuesta).

Components

The Game Board: the board is 43 x 56 centimeters, depicting part of the province of Toledo, where the campaign took place.

Special Terrain: there are three unique terrain types represented in Talavera 20, with the following special effects:

• Steep Slope Hexsides: unlike regular Hill hexsides, these hexsides give the defender a +2 Combat Strength bonus (instead of the usual +1) when attacked exclusively from hexes at a lower elevation (downhill).
• Streambed Hexsides: these hexsides differ from Minor River hexsides in that crossing them only costs +1 Movement Point, and they provide no defensive bonus, nor do they trigger a Hazardous Retreat check when units Retreat across them.
• Basilica and Gardens (hex 1111): this hex, located on the outskirts of the town of Talavera, is treated as a Redoubt hex [9.7.2.2] for all game purposes.

Game Pieces: blue units are French. Red units are British (Anti-French) and yellow units are Spanish (Anti-French).

Special Unit Types included in Talavera 20:

• Elite Troops: the British Craufurd unit, with its Combat Strength printed in red (–), is Elite for purposes of Rout (a -2 die roll modifier [9.6.2.1]) and Rally (a +1 modifier on the roll [12.2.2]). It also benefits from Impetus if Optional Rule [16.7.1] is used.
• Light Infantry: the British Craufurd unit, with its Movement Allowance printed in green (–), is Light per Rule [16.7.2].
• Unsteady Troops: the Spanish Alburquerque, Iglesias, Portago, and Zayas units, with their Combat Strength printed in yellow (–), are Unsteady [16.7.4].
• Madrid Garrison: the French Guarn.Madrid unit, with its Movement Allowance printed in red (–), is a Guard unit, but is not an Elite unit [12.3].

Unit name abbreviations used: Cav. = Cavalry | Res. = Reserve | Guarn. = Garrison | Lat'r-Maub. = Latour-Maubourg.

Initial Deployment

After determining which side each player controls, set up the scenario as indicated:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Night of July 27 space (Turn 9), showing its French (blue) side.
• Place the French Morale marker and the Anglo-Spanish Morale marker on space "7" of the Morale Record. The Anglo-Spanish marker should show its Redoubt Built side.

French Deployment. The French player deploys the following units in the hexes specified below:

• 1205: Ruffin (3-2) + Victor (2-5)
• 1305: Reserve Artillery (2-2)
• 1306: Lapisse (4-2)
• 1406: Villatte (4-2)
• 1307: Sebastiani (4-2)
• 1407: Leval (3-2) + Jourdan (?-5)
• 1408: Latour-Maubourg (2-3)
• 1508: Madrid Garrison (3-2) + Joseph Bonaparte (0-5)
• 1309: Milhaud (1-3)

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the three French Remnant units and the three French Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1]. Also set aside the Merle (3-2), Delaborde (2-2), Mermet (2-2), Kellerman (2-3), and Soult (1-5) units, which are potential Reinforcements that might appear via events.

British Deployment. The British player deploys the following units in the following hexes:

• 0905: Hill (3-2)
• 0807: Payne (1-3)
• 1005: Mackenzie (2-2)
• 1108: Campbell (2-2) + Redoubt marker
• 1006: Sherbrooke (4-2)
• 0909: Wellesley (3-5)

British Unit Reserve. Set aside the two British Remnant units and the two British Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1]. Also set aside the Craufurd (2-2) unit, which is a potential Reinforcement that might appear via events.

Spanish Deployment. The Spanish player deploys the following units in the hexes specified below:

• 0909: Bassecourt (2-2)
• 1010: Portago (2-2)
• 1009: Iglesias (2-2) + Cuesta (1-2)
• 1011: Manglano (2-2)
• 1109: Alburquerque (1-3)
• 1111: Zayas (3-2)
• 0910: Henestrosa (1-3)

Spanish Unit Reserve. Set aside the two Spanish Remnant units. Note that the Spanish have no Dummies to use with the Fog of War Rule [16.1].

The French were nervous that General Venegas's army of 20,000 Spanish soldiers might march on Madrid while the French garrison of that city was away fighting at Talavera. Historically, this was the reason the French ended the battle instead of continuing the fight, just as they were gaining the upper hand.

Sequence of Play

The French player is the First Player.

[4.1] #8 Variable "Sudden Death" End of Battle. If the Rumors of Venegas event occurs after Game Turn 7, the Sudden Death marker is placed one turn ahead on the Game Turn record showing the side with the die showing "1." At the end of that turn, a die is rolled to see if the game ends (per Rule [4.0] #8); if the game does not end, the Sudden Death marker is flipped to show the side with the die showing "3" and placed on the corresponding box for the next Game Turn. This roll is repeated, at the end of each Turn, until the game ends or the last Game Turn is completed.

Random Events

On the first Game Turn, skip the French player's Random Event Phase.

[5.1] French Command Confusion. French command organization was a disaster due to a poorly defined chain of command and responsibility, which made it very difficult for it to bear the full weight of its army at certain moments in the campaign. To reflect this, use the following rule:

Procedure. All French units in this game belong to one of four specific Corps, identified by the color of the band in the center of the counter: 1st Corps (Victor) = Green; 2nd Corps (Soult) = Blue; 4th Corps = Orange; Reserve Corps (Joseph Bonaparte) = White. The French 4th Corps has no assigned commander, and only Joseph Bonaparte or Jourdan can command those units.

During each French Player Turn, at the end of the Event Phase, the French player announces that one of their Corps will be "Active" that turn. Only units of the Active Corps may freely enter an EZOC during the French Movement Phase. Other units belonging to Inactive Corps that begin the Movement Phase in an EZOC are unaffected by this rule (e.g. they must take part in combat as usual, during the French Combat Phase, and do not count toward the one-Corps limit).

• If Casa de Salinas (hex 1508) is occupied by a French unit at the end of the French Event Phase, the French player may also Activate one individual unit that is not part of the Active Corps that turn. Important: when using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9], the Joseph Bonaparte Leader must also occupy Casa de Salinas to receive this benefit!
• Or, if Casa de Salinas (hex 1508) is occupied by the French Madrid Garrison unit at the end of the French Event Phase, the French player may Activate up to two Corps that turn (if using the Optional Leader Rule, both the Joseph Bonaparte and Jourdan Leaders must also occupy Casa de Salinas to receive this benefit!).

Combat

[9.2.3] Coordination Problems. Mutual distrust between Wellesley and Cuesta hampered the ability of the British and Spanish armies to act together. Therefore, and only when not using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9], the Allied player may carry out one "Combined Attack" (i.e. a battle in which both British and Spanish units take part, attacking the same French unit) per Allied Combat Phase without penalty; additional Combined Attacks that turn suffer a -1 Differential reduction during Step D of the Combat Sequence.

[9.4.5] Redoubt of the Pajar de Vergara. Hastily built just before the battle, the redoubts atop the Pajar de Vergara (hex 1108) were positioned such that they would provide no advantage to the French if they captured that position. Consequently, the defensive benefits of the Redoubt marker (in hex 1108) apply only to Allied units. Note that French units still receive the defensive benefits of the Hill hexsides surrounding that hex, but it is not a "Defensive Position" for the purposes of [9.7.2.2], and therefore Allied ZOCs extend into that hex.

[9.4.6] Assault on the Walls of Talavera. Although in poor condition, the medieval walls of Talavera represented a daunting obstacle. To reflect this, when a player has, at the start of their Combat Phase, units adjacent to an enemy unit occupying Talavera (hex 1011), the following procedure must be followed:

Procedure. After declaring all their battles [Rule 9.2], but before resolving any of them, the active player must choose one of the following options affecting all units adjacent to an enemy unit occupying Talavera (note that units do not need to be assigned to attack Talavera, it is enough that they are adjacent to it):

1. The active player must reduce their Morale level by one point (-1) and carry out an attack against the enemy unit occupying Talavera normally during that Combat Phase, or
2. Immediately Retreat all units adjacent to Talavera as if they had just suffered an AR result from combat.

[9.8.7] Priority Direction of Retreat. French units Retreat toward the French LOC hex located on the east edge of the map (hex 2210). British units Retreat toward the British LOC hex located on the west edge of the map (hex 0111). Spanish units Retreat toward one of the two Spanish LOC hexes located on the south edge of the map (hexes 0614 and 0914).

Reinforcements

[11.6] Soult's March. The entry of Soult's 2nd Corps is a two-step process, requiring the Soult's March event card to be revealed twice.

• The first time the Soult's March event occurs, place the four 2nd Corps units, and their Leader Soult (if using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9]), in the Plasencia box. This indicates they can now be selected as future Reinforcements.
• The second time the Soult's March event occurs, place these 2nd Corps Reinforcement units two (2) turns ahead on the Game Turn record (for example, if it is currently Turn 12, place them on the Turn 14 box). Starting with the French Movement Phase of that turn, the French player rolls a die for each of these units (and the Soult Leader) on the Soult Arrival Table (below).

Note: under certain conditions (associated with the Allied player revealing the Craufurd Approaches card) the 2nd Corps units may need to restart this process before they can enter play (see Rule [11.7] below).

Soult Arrival Table: 6 = the 2nd Corps unit arrives as a reinforcement via Entry Area A. (Yes, A.) With any other result, advance that unit on the Game Turn record and repeat the above procedure again each turn until it arrives.

Die Roll Modifier: each subsequent time the Soult's March event is revealed, the French player adds one (+1) to the roll for the arrival of 2nd Corps units during the next French Movement Phase only (for example, the rest of the 2nd Corps units would arrive that turn on a 5 or 6).

[11.7] Craufurd Approaches. The first time the Craufurd Approaches event occurs, the Allied player checks the status of the French units belonging to Soult's 2nd Corps:

• If any 2nd Corps unit is already on the map, this event is ignored for the rest of the game and the Craufurd unit is permanently removed (Allied Morale is not adjusted).
• If the 2nd Corps units are on the Game Turn record, they are returned to the Plasencia box; then, the Craufurd unit is permanently removed (Allied Morale is not adjusted).
• If the 2nd Corps units are in the Plasencia box, they are removed from there and set aside (they could return to this box if the Soult's March card is revealed); then, the Craufurd unit is permanently removed (Allied Morale is not adjusted).
• If none of the above conditions apply, roll a die on the Craufurd Arrival Table (below).

Craufurd Arrival Table: 6 = the Craufurd unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area A. With any other result, place the Craufurd unit on the Game Turn record and repeat the above procedure each turn, until the Craufurd unit arrives or is permanently removed (see Rule [11.7]).

Army Morale

[12.2.1] Forced March. The Allied player must pay to Force March each of the two Allied armies separately (i.e. for all British units or for all Spanish units). By spending two Morale Points, all Allied units of both armies increase their Movement Allowance by one (+1) that turn.

[12.2.2] Rally. Likewise, the Allied player must pay to Rally each of the two Allied armies separately (i.e. for all British units or for all Spanish units). By spending two Morale Points, all Allied units of both armies increase their Rally rolls by one (+1) during that turn.

[12.3] The Madrid Garrison. Although the French side must pay one (1) Morale Point to commit the Guard when moving its Madrid Garrison unit into an EZOC (see [12.3.1]), this unit is never subject to the effects of Le Garde Recule [12.3.2].

[12.4] Spanish Discipline. When attempting to Rally Unsteady Spanish units (those with yellow Combat Strength), if French Morale is currently higher than Allied Morale (determined before the Allied player spends Morale Points to modify Rally attempts), the Allied player must apply a -1 modifier to the die roll. If the Allied player spends 1 Morale Point to improve their Spanish Rally attempts while this penalty is in effect, the two effects simply cancel each other out.

At Talavera, Wellesley considered the discipline of the Spanish forces appalling. Some Spanish formations panicked and fled after the first musket volley from their own side.

[12.8] Escape to Lisbon. Starting on the turn on which the French 2nd Corps units are placed on the Game Turn record, or any turn thereafter, the Allied player may declare that they are "authorizing an Organized Retreat" (place the Organized Retreat Authorized marker near the two Spanish LOC hexes).

Once authorized, and for the rest of the game, at the start of each Allied Combat Phase, the Allied player may voluntarily remove one British or Spanish unit (but not a Remnant or Dummy) that is in a Spanish LOC hex (i.e. 0614 or 0914). The Allied player may thus remove up to two units (in total) per turn this way (provided they were in different Spanish LOC hexes). These Allied units are assumed to be "marching off the map" (toward Lisbon).

For each unit removed this way, add one (+1) to the Allied Morale level.

Wellesley was extremely worried that Marshal Soult might maneuver to cut the Allies' line of communication back to Portugal — or worse, fall upon the rear of the Allied Army.

After declaring an Organized Retreat, the following restrictions apply for the rest of the game:

• When checking whether an Unsteady Spanish unit (those with yellow Combat Strength) falters in Battle, it suffers a -1 penalty to the roll (cumulative with any other die roll modifier).
• British units must Retreat toward one of the two Spanish LOC hexes on the south edge of the map; the British LOC at hex 0111 may not be used.
• Spanish units can no longer be Rallied [10.0]; any of their units that Disperse are permanently removed.
• The Allied player no longer gains Morale from passing (i.e. there is no Allied benefit from "Truce" [13.0]).
• The Allied player no longer gains Morale from Resting during Night Turns [14.0].
• The Allied player cannot achieve a Decisive Victory (i.e. the best they can achieve is a Minimal Victory, even if the Allied player manages to bring French Morale to zero).

Passing ("Truces")

[13.1] No Truces. When playing the Basic scenario (only), players cannot declare a Truce turn during the day of July 28 (i.e. Game Turns 10-15). This restriction does not apply when playing the Alternative Scenario [17.0].

Night Turns

French Objective Hexes: Cerro de Medellín (hex 1005) and Talavera (hex 1011). Allied Objective Hex: Cazalegas (hex 2010).

Important — Allied Rest Recovery: the Allied side increases its Morale by two (+2) points per Night (instead of one) if a Spanish unit (only, not British) occupies Talavera (hex 1011).

[14.1] Critical LOCs. As an exception to the Standard Rules on Morale Loss due to Captured Terrain (Step 2 of the Night Operations phase), enemy occupation of the British LOC (hex 0111) or the French LOC (hex 2210) individually is sufficient by itself to cause the loss of only one Morale Point. However, per the Standard Rules, the French player needs to occupy both Spanish LOCs (0614 and 0914) to make the Allied player lose another Morale Point.

[14.2] Night Attack. Once per game, on any French Night Turn, the French player may declare a Night Attack (flip the French Morale marker to show its Night Attack Performed side, as a reminder of the use of this unique ability). To carry out a Night Attack, follow this procedure:

Procedure.

• Designate one (1) French Infantry unit as the attacker. It carries out its usual Night movement but, as an exception to Rule [14.0], this unit may enter an EZOC (although it cannot move directly from one EZOC to another).
• During the French Combat Phase (normally skipped) of that Night Turn, the designated French Infantry unit (only that unit) may make a selective attack [8.1.3] against a single enemy unit.
• The Battle is resolved normally, except that only the French player may Assign Reserves [12.2.3].
• The attacking unit must Advance After Combat if the defender's hex is left unoccupied.
• Important: as part of the Night Attack, the French player skips the usual Rest Recovery step during their Night Operations Phase that turn.

On the night of July 27, General Ruffin's division attacked the Allied position on Cerro de Medellín, catching the British defenders of the King's German Legion by surprise. They were not driven from the hilltop because two of Ruffin's three regiments got lost in the dark.

How to Win

[15.1] Victory Conditions. In addition to the usual Victory Conditions, the following Victory levels must also be considered:

French Marginal Victory. If at the end of the game, French Morale is at least one (1) point higher than the Allied Morale value and French units occupy either Talavera (hex 1011) or Cerro de Medellín (hex 1005), the French player achieves a Marginal Victory.

Allied Decisive Victory. If at any time during the game, an Allied unit (other than a Leader, Remnant, or Dummy) leaves the map through hex 2210 (i.e. marches on Madrid), the Allied player immediately achieves a Decisive Victory.

Optional Rules

[16.10.1] Cuesta. The Spanish Leader unit, Cuesta, can only provide Command to Spanish units, never to British units. In addition, Cuesta's Movement Allowance is only 2 (instead of the usual 5 for most Leaders). Permanently remove the Cuesta Leader unit if, for any reason, it has to Retreat.

Frail and in poor health, Cuesta was unable to walk unaided, let alone ride a horse. Instead, he moved about the battlefield in a large, cumbersome cart pulled by mules.

[16.10.2] Wellesley. In addition to being able to provide Command to all British units, each turn the British Leader Wellesley may also provide Command to any one (1) Spanish unit.

[16.10.3] King Joseph Bonaparte. The French Leader Joseph Bonaparte is subject to the effects of the Napoleon Broken Table [16.9.6].

In addition, if he provided Command in a Battle, Joseph Bonaparte and the unit he is stacked with must Advance After Combat, if possible. This advance replaces any advance otherwise required by uncontrolled French Cavalry that also took part in that same Battle.

[16.10.4] Marshal Jourdan. The French Leader unit, Jourdan (who acted as military advisor and chief of staff to King Joseph), has a Questionable Command Value (?). Basically, he has a Command Range of 0, but he might become Distracted and fail to issue an order!

During Step D of the Combat Sequence (i.e. after Reserves have been assigned), together with any Unsteady unit check [16.7.4], Impetus [16.7.1], etc., a roll is made to check whether Jourdan is Distracted:

Jourdan Distraction Table: 1, 2, or 3 = Distracted by other duties; no Orders are issued. 4, 5, or 6 = Remains focused on the battle and successfully issues Orders.

Failure to issue Orders may trigger the penalty described in Optional Rule [16.9.5], consisting of a -1 reduction to the Attack Differential.

Marshal Jourdan was annoyed and offended by his "babysitting" duty for the inexperienced Joseph Bonaparte (Napoleon's brother, appointed King of Spain). Joseph often ignored Jourdan's advice or overruled any order issued in his name.

[16.10.5] The King and I. When stacked together in the same hex, the Joseph Bonaparte and Jourdan Leaders are treated as a single Leader, with a combined Command Range of one (1), and Rules [16.10.3] and [16.10.4] are ignored.

[16.10.6] Marshals Victor and Soult. The French Leaders Victor and Soult can only provide Command to units of their own Corps (indicated by their green and blue colors). Note there is no Commander for the French 4th Corps (therefore only Joseph Bonaparte or Jourdan can provide Command to those units).

The French 4th Corps had no assigned Leader unit; its commander, Lefebvre, was sent to Germany without a replacement having been named. General Sebastiani was theoretically responsible for the Corps, but lacked staff support and spent most of his time commanding his own division.

Alternative Scenario

All the Exclusive Rules of the Standard Scenario apply together with the new ones included below.

[17.1] Full Battle Deployment. This is a longer game representing the Spanish retreat and the French pursuit during the initial phase of the campaign.

After determining which side each player controls, set up the scenario as indicated:

• Place the Game Turn marker on the Dusk of July 26 space (Turn 1), showing its French (blue) side.
• Place the French Morale marker on space "7" and the Anglo-Spanish marker on space "6" of the Morale Record.
• Per Standard Rule [3.0] (Card Preparation), use the Talavera 20 cards to form the initial Event Deck; the red-titled Event cards Soult's March and Craufurd Approaches are placed face up in the Discard Pile and the rest are used to form the initial Event Deck.
• Place units on the map or on the Game Turn record (when they enter as reinforcements [11.0]) as indicated below. Reinforcements arrive at the map-edge Entry Area indicated.

French Reinforcements. The French player begins with no units on the map. The French army enters play as Reinforcements:

• Turn 1, Area B: Milhaud (1-3) and Latour-Maubourg (2-3)
• Turn 2, Area B: Ruffin (3-2), Lapisse (4-2), Villatte (4-2) + Victor (2-5)
• Turn 2, Area C: Sebastiani (4-2) and Leval (3-2)* a roll must be made to check entry [18.1]
• Turn 3, Area B: Reserve Artillery (2-2)
• Turn 5, Area B: Madrid Garrison (3-2) + Joseph Bonaparte (0-5) + Jourdan (?-5)

French Unit Reserve. Set aside the three French Remnant units, the three French Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1]. Also set aside the Merle (3-2), Delaborde (2-2), Mermet (2-2), Kellerman (2-3), and Soult (1-5) units, which are potential Reinforcements that might appear via events.

British Deployment. The British player deploys the following units in the hexes specified below:

• 1007: Campbell (2-2)
• 2010: Payne (1-3)
• 1707: Sherbrooke (4-2)
• 1108: Hill (3-2) + Wellesley (3-5)
• 1610: Mackenzie (2-2)
• Sentry marker: showing its No Sentry side

British Unit Reserve. Set aside the two British Remnant units and the two British Dummies if playing with the Fog of War Rule [16.1]. Also set aside the Craufurd (2-2) unit, which is a potential Reinforcement that might appear via events.

Spanish Deployment. The Spanish player deploys the following units in the hexes specified below:

• 1411: Zayas (3-2)
• 1811: Bassecourt (2-2)
• 1511: Iglesias (2-2)
• 1912: Alburquerque (1-3)
• 1611: Portago (2-2) + Cuesta (1-2)
• 1811: Henestrosa (1-3)
• 1711: Manglano (2-2)

Spanish Unit Reserve. Set aside the two Spanish Remnant units. Note that the Spanish have no Dummies to use with the Fog of War Rule [16.1].

Sequence of Play

The French player is the First Player.

Random Events

And yes, on the first Game Turn the French player's Random Event Phase is skipped.

Zones of Control

[7.8] Precarious British Security. As a temporary exception to General Rule [7.0], when a French unit enters the ZOC of a British Infantry unit (only, not Spanish or British Cavalry units), there is a chance the French unit will not have to stop due to that unit's EZOC (it might still have to stop for other reasons, such as running out of Movement Points, etc.). To determine this, roll on the following table:

British No-Sentry Table: 1, 2 = the French unit stops moving (as normal) and this Rule no longer applies; it is assumed the British have learned their lesson and post sentries properly for the rest of the battle. Flip the British No Sentry marker to show its Sentries Posted side as a reminder. 3, 4 = the French unit stops moving (as normal); some British soldier has spotted the French movement and raises the alarm. 5, 6 = the French unit does not need to stop; if it has remaining Movement Points, it may continue moving; the British do not notice the French advance.

This was the British Army's first major campaign in Spain, and inexperienced officers and NCOs often failed to post sentries properly. On occasion French formations were able to approach British positions completely undetected — once nearly capturing Wellington himself! In the Standard scenario, the British have already corrected this deficiency, so this Rule does not apply there.

Combat

[9.8.7] Redoubts. Once per game, during any Allied Night turn, the Allied player may build a Redoubt using the following procedure.

Procedure. At the start of the Allied Night Movement Phase, the Allied player may place a Redoubt marker on any Clear hex occupied by a British (not Spanish) unit (i.e. "build a redoubt"). Flip the Allied Morale marker to show its Redoubt Built side as a reminder. The unit that built it may not move that turn and the Allies recover one Morale Point less that night (i.e. only 1 instead of the usual 2, see Rule [14.0]).

Effect: once placed, the Redoubt marker cannot be moved; it remains in that hex for the rest of the game and that hex is considered Redoubt terrain, except for French units, which receive no defensive benefit from this redoubt.

In the Standard scenario, the British have already built this redoubt atop the Pajar de Vergara (hex 0811) and therefore Rule [9.8.7] has no effect there.

Scenario Special Rules

[18.1] Where Is the 4th Corps? The French 4th Corps reinforcements at Entry Area C (Sebastiani and Leval) do not automatically enter on Turn 2. Instead, the French player rolls for each 4th Corps unit on the Arrival Table during the French Movement Phase to check whether it arrives that turn. The roll required for a unit to arrive changes by day.

4th Corps Arrival Table:

• July 26 (turns 2 and 3): 5 or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area C.
• July 27 (turns 4 to 9): 4, 5, or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area C.
• July 28 (turns 10 to 15): 3, 4, 5, or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area C.
• July 29 (turns 16 to 21): 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 = the unit arrives as a Reinforcement this turn via Entry Area C.

With any other result, advance that unit on the Game Turn record and repeat the above procedure each turn until the unit arrives.

Die roll modifier: add one (+1) if the French player carries out a Forced March that Movement Phase.

The 4th Corps was scouting General Venegas's army to the southeast. Once it became clear that Venegas was not willing to fight, the 4th Corps units moved to join Joseph's advance.

[18.2] General Retreat of the Spanish Army. At the start of the scenario, the Spanish forces are conducting a General Retreat. As a result, Spanish units (only, not British) are affected as follows:

• Spanish units located east of the Alberche River must move at least one hex, if possible.
• All Spanish units, regardless of location, must move as if they had a Rout marker (see Rule [9.7.7]).

What this means is that the Allied player may choose not to move a Spanish unit west of the Alberche River; but if they do move it, it must be moved as if it had a Rout marker on it.

The General Retreat ends, and these restrictions terminate permanently, at the start of the Allied Player Turn in which the following are all true:

• All Spanish units on the map are west of the Alberche River, and
• A Spanish unit (only, not British) occupies the Basilica (hex 1111), and
• A Spanish unit (only, not British) occupies Talavera (hex 1011), and
• If using the Optional Leader Rule [16.9], the Spanish Cuesta Leader unit also occupies Talavera (hex 1011).

[18.3] The British Rearguard. British units begin the scenario deploying to cover the retreat of their Spanish allies. As a result, the Allied player cannot move British units (only Spanish units can move, but following Rule [18.2] above) during the Allied Movement Phase until one of the following situations occurs, lifting this restriction:

• All Spanish units have crossed to the west bank of the Alberche River (between hexes 1611 and 1905), or
• A French unit enters the ZOC of any British unit, or
• Game Turn 4 is reached (these restrictions end automatically at that point).

Talavera 20: Designer's Notes

In June 1809, following victories at Roliça and Vimeiro, the Anglo-Portuguese army advanced into Spain for the first time, intending to help the Spanish retake Madrid. Wellesley's advance surprised the French, and Victor's 1st Corps, which had been watching Cuesta's army, had to fall back toward Madrid.

On reaching Talavera, Cuesta and Wellesley argued over how to proceed. Wellesley refused to continue on to Madrid until the Spanish delivered the supplies promised for his army. Cuesta, however, insisted on continuing the advance alone, worried that Venegas's army (a rival for control of the Junta) might enter the capital before him.

After losing a clear-cut action at Alcabón on July 26, Cuesta retreated with Victor and Joseph Bonaparte pursuing closely. Positioned to cover Cuesta's retreat, the British troops were caught by surprise by the arrival of the French on the 27th. Wellesley himself came close to being captured when French troops unexpectedly appeared and overran his headquarters at Casa de Salinas. Finally, the Allied forces fell back from the high ground of Cerro de Medellín in the north toward Talavera to the south.

A night attack by Ruffin's Division against Cerro de Medellín caught most of the British troops asleep. Two of Ruffin's three regiments got lost, but the third reached the summit and only a costly counterattack forced them back. While these preliminaries were underway, the British built a small redoubt on the Pajar de Vergara.

On the morning of July 28, the initial skirmishing ended and the battle began when French cavalry charged the southern part of the Allied lines, defended by the Spanish. A musket volley meant to drive off the cavalry alarmed the inexperienced Spanish troops, many of whom fled the battlefield shouting "Treason!" (believing their British allies had just fired on them). Curiously, aside from that scare, the French never made any serious attack against the southern part of the Allied line where the Spanish forces were deployed.

The initial French attacks against Cerro de Medellín and the Pajar de Vergara inflicted severe casualties on the Allied defenders, but failed to take these key positions. A subsequent French attempt to march around the Medellín high ground to the north was thwarted by Campbell's division, supported by Spanish troops.

The Allied counterattacks, for their part, were poorly executed. Sherbrooke's division advanced dangerously between the French lines without flank support and suffered heavy losses trying to extricate itself from the French.

French Infantry hurled itself against the redoubt at the Pajar de Vergara several times, but the Spanish troops, supported by Campbell's division, defended it bravely.

Although he was beginning to gain the upper hand, Joseph Bonaparte accepted a brief truce sometime in the late morning. While both sides recovered their dead and wounded amid the heat, Sebastiani's Corps prepared to resume the attacks on the Pajar de Vergara. After the truce expired, when Sebastiani's attack was repulsed, Joseph Bonaparte received a message. He was informed that Venegas had set out from Toledo and was marching on Madrid.

Joseph Bonaparte quickly gathered his staff to decide with his commanders what to do. Although Victor urged him to continue the fight, Joseph feared losing control of the capital and ordered his army to retreat. The fighting died down and, during the night, the French began their march toward Madrid.

Although Joseph Bonaparte abandoned the battlefield, Wellesley was also forced to withdraw, since Soult was threatening to cut his lines of communication. To avoid another large-scale battle, the British retreated to Portugal.

For his part, Cuesta would suffer a serious defeat just a few days later, on July 31, at Puente del Arzobispo (another crossing over the Tagus River). With his army battered, and Wellesley in Portugal, he had no choice but to retreat, ending Spanish hopes of retaking Madrid in 1809.

Key Design Aspects. Forces that were not actually on the field (Soult and Venegas) had a great influence on the Battle of Talavera, and it was necessary to find a way to simulate their effect. Likewise, there were significant orders and important chain-of-command problems affecting both sides that needed to be properly represented; on the "Allied" side, the Spanish and British simply did not trust one another; and on the French side, Joseph Bonaparte was inexperienced, had a difficult relationship with Jourdan, and one of his Corps lacked a Commander to lead it. the required retreat distance when they reach