Good game this with lots of decision points and two protagonists that appear similar but are actually somewhat diverse in aims and makeup.
British have stronger Regular forces but the terrain inland prohibits effective use of these chaps.
French commanders on the whole are just that bit better (ie easier to activate) than bulk of British counterparts and this can be key to effective campaigning and use of resources.
French have a lot of Indian tribes as allies and as such they can mount a lot of troublesome raids into British territory (Norman was unlucky with initial raids) meaning Kings men need to build plentiful Stockades and Forts (these are additionally key to mounting any meaningful campaigns into the hinterland as they secure and offer supply lines).
Loss of General Johnston early in war was bit of a disaster for Brits as he is really only conduit to use Indian tribes friendly to the Crown.
I did send Wolfe on a venture towards Quebec but failed to get enough reserves to him to mount an attack against Montcalm (cards with high enough value and a Naval symbol are required which I failed to draw often enough).
With a couple of victories in field battles and raids Norman accumulated enough Victory Points in a couple of turns to make it difficult for me to thwart him especially with poor card draws.
Fun stuff and I think this would be a very good game for a real time or face to face encounter.
Final positions at end of scenario
Wolfe on approaches to Quebec awaiting reserve force from Louisbourg that never arrived............
The Victory Point track in all its horror
Still have Pbem game of Paths Of Glory ongoing and am hoping Norman up for another venture onto Vassal with any game he cares to select (To the Victor the Spoils)
Great looking game! I have read an article on Vae Victis, a french magazine, this game seems to be excellent!
ReplyDeletePhil.
I've got to look into Vassal a little more. Of course, I'd also need time to play ;)
ReplyDeleteThis does look a great game. Well done to Norman!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ray, but Gary is being generous by not revealing the full extent of the French luck in the last turn. I had a card "Courier Intercepted" which I played early - this allowed me to pick a card from Gary's hand. The card I drew was "Surrender" which allows a player to capture a fort under siege intact without an assault - this is very useful as it allows you to take a fort in a single impulse and get VPs immediately rather than over several turns when you can potentially suffer losses or be driven off by a relief force. Gary as the British would no doubt have used this against Hudson Carry North (or even Quebec - not sure on the rules on this) and gained several victory points through it, perhaps even more if I had decided to fight a pitched battle and lost before the siege.
ReplyDeleteWith the "Surrender" card I stole I could see a way to get extra VPs without risking too much. Take the fort at Hudson Carry South, level it and use my newly recruited Indians to raid (another lucky card draw - Gary's Indian influence in that area had been lost with the death of Johnson many cards before). My Indians got lucky with a successful raid through the only gap in the stockade line Gary had left (I guess because there were no Indians in that area until the very late in the game). The Indians still needed to roll a 5 or 6 for a successful raid and another VP, but I managed it - more luck!
As Gary says, the two sides play very differently. I think the game is slightly easier for the French as they can build up some VPs early on then sit back and react to the English moves. With a bit of luck in the last turn and Gary not able to draw high enough cards to activate his generals, I managed to hang on, but the game (especially in the middle) could have gone either way. Great stuff, and thanks to Gary for the game - there was even a short truce when the 2 generals met at Reading to discuss wargaming in general, but hostilities resumed soon afterwards. :-)
Norman