Maurice Lite PDF

Maurice Lite. v1.0.
Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa
Free Lite Introductor y Version
Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa
1. Bases and Units

Basing
Bases for infantry (INF) and cavalry (CAV) figures should be roughly squarish, that is: not too much wider than they are deep. If your bases are very shallow and rectangular, you may wish to double-rank them and call two of them a single base for purposes of this game. Any bases from a square to a 3:2 rectangle should work fine. Artillery (ART) bases should be the same width as infantry or cavalry bases, and as deep as needed for the artillery model. (With large figures, this can mean that artillery bases are long, deep rectangles.)
Base Widths (BWs)

All game measurements are made in BWs. One BW should be approximately the frontage of one of your INF or CAV bases. You may round or adjust as needed. (For example, if your INF bases are 40mm X 30mm rectangles, then you could establish a BW as 40mm, or perhaps round-up to 50mm or 2, or round-down to 1.5, etc.) You should make some measurement sticks, marked in BW. There are no half BWs or fractional measurements. If a rule ever requires you to halve an odd number of BW, then round up to the nearest whole number. The game is designed to be played on a standard rectangular table. When using base-widths of 40mm (1.5 inches) or smaller, a 6 X 4 table will do nicely. When using large figures or base-widths of 50mm (2 inches) or more, an 8 X 5 or 8 X 6 table may be necessary.
Markers
A base is a stand of miniatures with infantry, cavalry, or artillery figures. All other figures used in the game are Markers. The players will need to create some Disruption Markers, that can show levels of disruption between 1 and 4. The players will need some Smoke markers. A typical cotton puff is ideal for this purpose. Each player will need one marker for his army commander (CinC). It should be @1BW square. Markers are not bases; they do not exist for purposes of combat, shooting (they cant be targets), distance to the enemy, etc. It is necessary to measure the distance from the CinC to his units, so is he is there.
Active and Passive

The game is played in rounds. In each round, one side is Active and the other side is Passive. The active side makes things happen: activating units, moving, resolving actions, etc. Generally the rounds follow an IGO/UGO pattern, alternating so that Player A is active, then Player B is active, then Player A again, and so on. In these rules, references to your round or you have the round mean: you are the active player. (For example: the British player is active in this round. The French player will have the next round.) Line
Unit Sizes and Formations
INF and CAV units always have four bases. ART units are always one base each. INF and CAV units are always in one of three formations: line, column, or massed. A unit in line has all of its bases abreast, in flush contact as a single line. A unit in column has all of its bases lined up one behind the other in a single column. A unit in massed has two bases in the front rank and two precisely behind them in the second rank. The massed formation is used only by cavalry. Because it has only one base, an artillery unit does not change formation. It is always in artillery formation. Whats in the Full Game
The complete Maurice game features both regular and irregular units (the latter being typical of middle-eastern or east-European armies). Players can choose National Advantages that enhance the capabilities of their units in various formations, for example adding an ability for infantry to use Massed formation. Units also have different qualities ranging from green conscripts to elite guards. In the complete game, the CinC is not the only officer on the table; the army also has Notables that represent aristocrats whose high social rank entitles them to certain kinds of subordinate commands, where their skills may or may not be to your liking. If they prove too troublesome, you can expend some of your political influence to sack them and hopefully replace them with more agreeable fellows. The game scale is flexible, so the rulebook offers guidelines for scaling up or down, to represent different sorts of historical scenarios, from the small engagements of the American Revolution, to the huge struggles of the War of Spanish Succession, the Austrian Succession, and the Seven Years War.
Column
Line
Near the Enemy and In Contact

Near the Enemy means: any portion of your unit within 4BW of any portion of an enemy unit. Being near the enemy is measured as the crow flies in a direct line through any kind of terrain except impassable, and even though other enemy or friendly bases. A unit that touches any enemy unit, is in contact with the enemy. Likewise, a rule that requires contact between friendly units, means: touching in some way.
Front, Flanks, Rear

Trace imaginary lines parallel to a units front and flanks, called the Front line and Flank Lines. Something forward of your front line is to the front of your unit. A reference to something directly in Front of your unit means something to the front, which is also inside the two flank lines. If a rule requires you to move only directly forward, then it means: straight ahead without turning in any way. Something behind your front line is considered to the flank of your unit. If it is also inside the two flank lines, it is directly to the rear. Moving directly backward means backing up, perfectly straight, without any turns.
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Fro
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To t he
Fr
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Directly in Front Front line
Flank line
Flank line
he To t
Flanked
An enemy unit that has half or more of its bases completely behind your front line and no part of any base directly in front, is to your flank. Otherwise, the unit is to your front.
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To
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A unit is flanked if it has an enemy unit in contact and to its flank. There is no functional difference between being attacked in the flank and in the rear.
Disruption (DISR) and Broken

During the game, usually as a result of enemy fire or combat, units acquire Disruption (hereafter DISR). This is marked upon a unit by placing a DISR marker, showing the appropriate level (i.e., number) of DISR for the unit. If, for example, a unit acquired one DISR, and then was fired upon again and acquired another, the DISR marker is changed to show 2. When a units level of DISR exceeds its number of bases, that unit is Broken. It is removed from the table. That means that an infantry or cavalry unit breaks when it acquires its fifth DISR. An artillery unit breaks when it acquires its second DISR. Units may sometimes break as a result of combat, regardless of their level of DISR.
Forces
Every unit in the army belongs to a Force, even if that force is just a single unit. A force is a grouping of units legally linked together, that the active player has chosen to do something with. There is no limit on the number of units that may comprise a force, however there are several limits on how units may be linked as a force. Units must be in forces that are homogenous. That is: all-INF, or all-CAV, or all-ART. Units may be linked as a force only if they are in the same formation. (All in columns, for instance, or all in lines, etc.) All units of a force must be in terrain that has the same effect upon their movement. (All in open terrain, for example, or all in difficult terrain.) They do not have to be in specifically the same terrain type; two units in woods and one in rocky ground, for example, could be a single force, as all are in difficult terrain. G F In order to be legally linked as a force, units must be B H within 2BW of any other unit that they may legally form a force with. C
A
Within the limits described above, a forces composition can change throughout the game. A player might break off a single unit from a force and act with it as an individual, oneunit force, and then he might end a round with that unit linked to other units and thus now part of a new force.
If it werent for the bit of woods, these three CAV units could comprise a force. They are all CAV, all in the same formation (massed), and all within 2BW of one other unit in the force. But unit G is partially in woods, while F and H are in open terrain. And units F and H are too far from each other to form a force together. So the player is stuck with three one-unit forces.
Units A-D may comprise a single force. They are all INF units in line formation, and all within 2BW of another unit of the force. Unit E is an INF unit, and within 2BW, but in a different formation, and thus may not be part of the force.
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Directly to the Rear
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2. Prepare for Play

Setup
For this lite version of the game we recommend a very simple setup process. Each player rolls a die, and any ties are re-rolled. The higher player will set up the board. He may set up a number of terrain features up to the combined number of their two die rolls, but at least as many as the higher of those two rolls. (So if the players rolled a 4 and a 3, then the winning player sets up anywhere from 4 to 7 terrain pieces.) The size and shape of terrain pieces will be dictated by the players collections. Let good sportsmanship prevail. We recommend that you do not set up any towns or cities, nor any major rivers, on your table. The full Maurice game has rules for fighting in urban areas, crossing bridges, etc., but these lite rules do not. After one player has set up the board, the other player may then choose which side of the board he wants for his setup area. Draw two lines parallel to the long edges of the board, thus dividing the board into three equal regions. The players each set up their armies in one of the areas close to a long edge, leaving the middle region without troops from either side. The player who rolled higher may choose whether he sets up first or second.
Army Size and Army Morale

For this lite version of the game, players must decide for themselves how many units of each type they wish to play with, and how they shall balance the opposing sides. A typical game might consist of 2-5 artillery units, and then perhaps a dozen units of infantry or cavalry, divided as the players prefer and their collections permit. This introductory game is intended to teach you the basic game mechanics, not to manage tournament play. So just discuss it with your opponent and arrive at a good number of units. Each player counts the number of units in his army and divides it by two, rounding up any fraction. The result is his army morale number. During the game, each time he loses a unit (each time a unit is broken), he subtracts one from this number. When the number reaches zero, his army morale has broken, and he has lost the game.
Deal the Action Cards

When using this lite game, players should download the free set of action cards available from the HONOUR website. These cards are much more limited in number and scope than the cards available for purchase for the full game, but they are entirely sufficient to play the lite game. The two players will need only one set of cards. Print them out to cardstock and prepare the deck. Having set up the table and the armies, temporarily remove the two Reshuffle cards from the deck, then shuffle the action cards and deal six cards to each player. After dealing cards to each player, return the Reshuffle cards to the deck and shuffle again, then place the deck face-down beside the table (i.e., nobody should start with a Reshuffle card in his hand.) Roll a die to determine which side will play the first round. Re-roll ties.
Whats in the Full Game

Maurice includes a very full-featured setup system. The players draw a battlefield card that gives them the general terrain type of the region in which they are fighting. That card informs them of the types of units that give them a scouting advantage in that environment (cavalry on the open plains, for instance, irregular infantry in the mountains, etc.) Each army calculates its scouting score and then rolls to determine who has outscouted whom. The player who won the scouting has advantages in the choice of terrain, and in the order and parameters of setting up the battle. One player is the invader and the other is the defender. The choice of these roles has a great impact upon your starting hand of action cards, as well as the size of your setup zone and the options you have within it. During the setup, both sides place objective markers to represent their armys line of communications. The defender must also place a battlefield objective that he must defend. Control of these objectives is crucial to army morale and thus victory. The full game features a more detailed system in which units of different types have different effects upon the armys morale. Events also occur, resulting from card-play, that can affect army morale. Once broken, a unit can be replaced only as green conscripts in future battles, although all units have the chance to be promoted in quality for their service on the battlefield. Thus the army changes slowly from game to game as some units improve, some are shattered and replaced by conscripts, and some new units are recruited. Finally, the scouting units and the particular terrain environment will have an effect upon pursuit after the battle, thus determining whether a victory translates to some decisive moment in the campaign.
3. The Action Cards

Most game activities are performed by players using Action Cards (often simply referred to as cards. Players should print out the free action cards from the HONOUR website; these are enough to create one deck for a two-player game. Action Cards are drawn from a deck by players and kept in each players hand, concealed from his opponent. The enemy always has a right to know how many cards you have, but not their contents. When action cards are played, they are discarded, face-up There is a single discard pile for both players. Unless otherwise specified by scenario or national advantage, a player may never end a round with more than ten cards in his hand. He may draw cards during the round that put him over this limit, but before the round ends, he must choose cards to discard, to bring himself back under the limit.
Banners and Effect Text

Every card has a banner with the cards title. Beneath the banner is a block of text explaining the cards specific effects, when played for modification or interrupt, or in some cases, when played for some other event.
Span
In the upper left corner of each card is a purple box with a number. That is the cards Span: the maximum distance in BW from the army commander that this card may be used to activate a force. (For example, a card with a span of 8 could be used to activate a force up to 8BW from the CinC.) A player may use multiple cards for a single activation, adding together their Spans until his activation is legal. (For example: the active player wishes to activate a cavalry force to March. That force is 17BW from the CinC. The active player could declare an activation and then play a card with a Span of 12, followed by a card with a Span of 6. Their total, 18, is sufficient to activate the cavalry force.)
Modifier Symbol
If a card has a modifier symbol in the right of its banner, then it may be played as a modifying card. There are five modifying symbols: The crossed swords modify a Charge action. The bugle modifies a March action. The cannon modifies a Bombard action. The blue flag modifies a Rally action. The musket modifies Volleys.
Charge March Bombard Rally Volleys
Each player may play a maximum of one modifying card in a round. He may only play a modifying card if it has the correct symbol for the type of action that he has chosen, or that the enemy has chosen. (For example, only cards with the crossed-swords symbol may be played to modify in a round in which the active player has declared that he will charge.) Not all cards have modifier symbols. Only those which have a symbol may be played for modifiers. A player may never play more than one modifier card in a round.
Interrupt
A card with the tricorne symbol in its banner is an interrupt card. It may be played by the active player as a normal activation card, using its span. But it may also be played by the passive player, interrupting some action or activity in the active players round. In that case, it is played for its effect, as described in the text. (For example: the Unexpected Delay card can be played as an interrupt by the passive player, to complicate the active players activation.)
Interrupt

Aside from more action and event cards, the full card pack includes Mandatory cards that represent random game events such as changes in the weather condition, accidents or incidents that affect morale, and other what-ifs. The full card deck also includes all the Notable cards, the Battlefield cards, and the National Advantage cards, by which players can customize their historical or fictional armies.
The Anatomy of the Cards

Span
If played for Activation, this card has a Span of 8.
The Banner
The cards title is written in the banner.
The Effect Text

If you use this card for its effect (in this case, as a modifying card), then the text here explains the effect of the card. If you use this card for Activation, then the effect is irrelevant.
Modifier Symbol
The musket symbol indicates a modifying card; one whose effects may be used to modify volleys. If the active side declared volleys for this round, then either player could play this card to modify.
An Interrupt Card
The passive player may interrupt the active players round by playing this card for its effect.
An Event Card
If the active player chooses to play this card as an event, he acts upon the effect text. Or he could opt to use this card for a different purpose, such as its Span of 12.
4. The Basics of Play

The game is played in alternating Rounds, with side A playing the first round, side B playing the second, side A playing the third, and so on. There is no set limit to the number of rounds in a game. Rather, the players play rounds until they run out of cards, at which point if neither sides army morale has yet broken Nightfall has occurred, and the game has ended in a draw. In each round, one side is Active, and the other is Passive. When you see a reference to your round or having or playing a round, it means: you are the active side.
Volley Phase
The active player begins the round by declaring whether or not there will be a volley phase. If he opts not to have one, then there will be no small-arms or canister fire in this round. If he does invoke the volley phase, then eligible active-side units will fire, and eligible passive-side units will return fire, in that order.
The Sequence of a Round:

1. Volley Phase - if active player chooses, resolve volleys - choose Pass, Event, or Action - draw card(s), if eligible - resolve the event or action 2. Active player picks one Command Choice
Command Choice
After resolving any volleys for both sides, the active player then must declare his command choice for the round. He may Pass. He may play an Event. Or he may play an Action.
3. Active side may move the CinC
Passing
A player may opt to pass his round. Doing so allows him to draw three new cards from the deck, then his round is over. A player may pass even when there are no cards left in the deck. If there are no action cards left in the deck and the two opposing sides pass, one after the other in two consecutive rounds, then night has fallen and the game ends, regardless of how many cards remain in their hands.
Play an Event
A player may play a card with the E event symbol as an event, and thus follow the action described on its text. After that, his round is over.
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Action / Choice Charge March Rally Bombard Pass Play an Event Card Draw none 1 2 2 3 none
No action. Round ends. Play card for the Event. One force is activated.
Play an Action
Most commonly, the active player will choose to play an action. There are four types of action: Charge, March, Rally, and Bombard. The active player chooses a single force, declares that he will activate it to do one of those actions, and then plays the appropriate card(s) to activate it. A player may not choose an action if there is no way for his army to do it. (He may not choose to Bombard, for example, if he has no artillery, etc.)
Notes
Card Play
Play card(s) whose Span distance to the CinC.
Draw New Cards

The active player declares his choice of activity for the round, then - if eligible - he draws more cards from the deck. He then carries out his choice of activity. He may use cards that he just drew, as part of that activity, if he wishes, but having drawn new cards he may not change his mind about his choice. A player who chooses to pass his round draws three cards. Choosing to Rally or Bombard allows the player to draw two cards. Choosing to March allows the player to draw one card. A player who chooses a Charge action, or an Event, draws none.
Activating a Force
When a player declares that he will be playing an action, he draws new card(s) from the deck, before he has to say, specifically, which of his forces will be activated, or what cards he will use to do it. For example: he says I am going to March, and then draws a card. He then declares which force will march, and he can use the card he just drew, if he wants, to activate that force. That means that he can use the new cards for activation, but not for anything else in this round. (For example: if he declared a Rally action, drew two cards, and suddenly found he had the excellent Valeur et Discipline card, he could not play that card for effect, because it is an Event, and he already committed to an activation instead. He could of course use that card for its span, in his rally activation.) The active player designates a legal force, declares that he will activate it to do one of the four actions (Charge, March, Rally, or Bombard), and then must play a card or cards from his hand, whose Span equal or exceed the distance of that force from the CinC. The distance from the CinC to a force does not have to be a straight line. The active player may trace the line so as to avoid enemy units, but the line may not pass within 1BW of any enemy unit. (Imagine the line to be the width of any handy piece of string.) A B C
CinC 11BW
Activating Forces
The British player has two forces: one comprising three units of infantry, very close to the CinC, and a force comprising three units of cavalry, 11BW from the CinC.
Activating the cavalry force would require a card or cards with a span of more than 11. Note that the cost to activate a force is measured from the CinC to the closest unit in that force. He decides instead to activate the infantry force to March, and plays a card with a span of 4, to do so. He could choose to activate just part of a force. For instance, he could activate units B and C together as a force, and march them somewhere else. That would leave A behind, as its own force for some future activation.
The Risk of Bluffing

If a player declares an action and then draws a card and finds that he does not have cards in his hand with a sufficient span to carry out that action, then he must discard all of his cards. His round ends immediately. Whats in the Full Game: Multi-Player Options
Although your friends can help, this introductory version of the game is designed as a simple 1-on-1 experience. The full Maurice offers three ways to do multi-player games: 1. A doubles option allows for two complete allied armies on each side, thus a four player (2-on-2) game. 2. The Succession Wars campaign system allows any number of players to divide into camps. Your camp plays the enemy camp, in a variety of configurations. 3. The simplest ad-hoc way of doing it - which was frequently done during play testing - is to have two have two players on each side, rather than one, running the army together in a way that they can agree upon.
Playing Modifying Cards

After having declared an action and played a card or cards to make it happen, each player may play an additional card to modify that action. Unless otherwise specified by the card, the active player must declare whether or not he will play a modifying card for his action, before the passive player has to decide whether or not he will do so. A player must play a modifying card before either player takes any action that would be affected by that card. For example: the active player played a card to activate a cavalry force to Charge. He then played the Thunderous card to modify his charge action. The passive player waits until just before the active player begins rolling to resolve combats, and then he plays the For the King card to modify one of his defending infantry units. If the card permits, players may play modifying cards in the volley phase (cards with the musket symbol.) Each player may play only one modifying card of each symbol in a round. For example: the active player might invoke a volley phase, then play a card to modify it, then choose a March action, and play a card to modify that. But he could not play two modifying cards for his volley phase, or for his march action. An Event may not be modified.
Playing to Interrupt
During the active players round, the passive player may have an opportunity to play a card to interrupt him. Any card with the interrupt (tricorne) symbol can be played as an interrupt. In most cases the effect of playing the card for interruption is described in the effect text, as are the instructions for when exactly the card may be played. For example: if he plays the Rough Going card as an interruption, the passive player must do so before the active player moves any units, and then the active players units will treat difficult terrain as impassable in that round. The passive player may never play more than one interrupt card in a round. (If he chooses to interrupt the active players volley phase, for instance, then he cant also interrupt his action.) He may, however, play both an interrupt card, and modifying cards, if the situation permits. Even if the passive player plays an interrupt card that allows him to do something out of the normal sequence, nonetheless the active player must still announce first whether or not he will be playing any modifying cards. An Event may not be interrupted.
No Cards?
If he starts his round with no cards, then the active player must pass. If he starts his round with no cards, and there are no cards remaining in the deck, then the players round consists of deciding whether or not to invoke volleys, followed by passing (without drawing cards.)
Activation Foiled by the Enemy

It is possible that the active player might attempt to activate a force, but then be prevented by the passive player. (For example: he might have only one or two activation cards, and he announces that he will activate a force to March, but then the passive player plays the Unexpected Delay interrupt card, which adds 8BW to the activation distance. The active player doesnt have enough cards with an adequate span to carry out his action.) In such cases, the active players activation attempt fails. He loses whatever card(s) he already played for the failed activation. The cards he already played, and the passive players interrupt card, are all discarded, and the round ends.
Minimum Activation Cost

The advanced rules introduce notables, staff officers, and other things that can reduce the distance between the CinC and the force he wishes to activate. It could even theoretically reduce that distance to zero or less. Nonetheless an activation always costs at least one card. (Obviously if the distance is effectively zero, then a card with any span number will suffice to activate.)
Reshuffle
The action deck includes two Reshuffle cards. When a player draws one, he must immediately reveal and act upon it. The players count the number of cards in the discard pile. If there are fifteen or more, then all discards are reshuffled into the action deck, and the replenished deck is placed face down. The reshuffle card is then removed from the game. If, however, there are not yet fifteen cards in the discard pile, then the reshuffle card itself, and only it, is reshuffled into the action card deck. The discards remain as they are. In either case, after having drawn the reshuffle card, and either removed it or reshuffled it, the active player may now draw a new card to replace it.
The Smoke Marker on Artillery

Artillery units may fire when activated by a bombard action, or during a volley phase, but not both in the same round. In either case, when artillery units fire, players should place smoke markers on them. A cotton puff works nicely. The smoke puff marker serves to remind the player that he may not move the artillery unit. If the artillery fires again in a subsequent round, the smoke marker simply remains in place. The presence of the smoke marker does not hinder the artillery from shooting. It has no effect on the artillerys ability to rally, or to defend itself in combat. It only prevents the artillery from moving. The active player may remove the smoke markers from any/all artillery units in a force by activating it to March. The artillery force does not move, but its march removes the smoke markers. With no smoke marker, the artillery may now be activated to march again in a later round, and may thus move. An artillery unit may thus fire canister during a volley phase, then be activated to march in that same round, and thus remove its smoke marker. In the players next round, he could once again activate it to march, and then move it. (Unless it acquired smoke again, by shooting again in the volley phase.)
5. Terrain
For purposes of these lite rules, players should agree before setting up their units, on the types and effects of terrain: which types of terrain will be difficult for movement and bad terrain for combat, which will offer cover, and so on.
Difficult Terrain and Bad Terrain

If a terrain type is difficult for certain unit types then it affects the movement of those units if they move even a tiny portion of their bases through or into it. If any portion of a base passes through difficult terrain, then the entire unit is considered to be moving through difficult terrain, and its movement is penalized accordingly. Typical examples of difficult terrain are: rocky ground, forest, marshes, being on or crossing over trenches, sunken roads, or other linear obstacles, and streams and small rivers. If a base is in a type of terrain that is unsuitable for its doctrine or training, then the unit is said to be in bad terrain in the event of shock combat. If any fraction of a base is in bad terrain, then the whole unit is considered to be in bad terrain. Any type of terrain that would be difficult for a units movement, is considered bad terrain for it, in combat. (For example, forest or marsh for an infantry unit.)
Cover
When fired upon by the enemy, or attacked in combat, a unit has cover if all of the enemys fire or attack comes through or across terrain that gives cover. If it is not clear whether the enemy fire or attack is coming through or across the cover, then ask: is it possible to draw a straight line from any point of the enemy units front, to any point of my unit, without passing through cover? If the answer is Yes, then your unit does not have cover. Typical examples of terrain that provide cover are: forests, walls and trenches.
In Water
A unit is said to be in water if any portion of its bases are in a river or stream, marsh, pond, or any other body of water, including a ford. A base on a bridge is not in water.

Maurice includes a more sophisticated look at terrain, including towns and man-made structures, and provides rules for hard cover as opposed to soft cover.
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6. Movement
When a player activates a force to March or Charge, the units of that force may move. The specific additional rules for charging will be addressed in Chapter 8. This chapter will explain how to move units in general.
Movement Allowances Column Cavalry Infantry 16 12 Open 8 Massed, Line 8 4 Difficult 2 Near Enemy 4 4
Movement and Formations
A units movement depends first upon its formation. All units have a basic Movement Allowance, based upon the formation in which they begin the round. That allowance is expressed in base widths, and represents the Artillery ability of the unit to move that distance. (For example: if your movement allowance is 4, then your unit can move 4BW.) A unit may always opt not to move at all, or opt to spend less than its full movement allowance, unless it charges.
Movement and Terrain

Infantry and Cavalry units that move through difficult terrain are not slowed by it, but rather suffer 1 DISR for moving through it. An infantry or cavalry unit acquires a DISR no matter how much difficult terrain it passes through in its move, even if only a bit of one of its bases passes through it. The DISR is applied at the moment in the round that the unit first enters or moves through the difficult terrain. A unit that is only one DISR from breaking may not move through difficult terrain. (It may never be broken by moving.) If a unit has reached the point where it can not move through difficult terrain due to disruptions, then you will have to find another solution: leave it behind and move the rest of its force on, or Rally the force, or find an easier path in open terrain. An artillery unit that moves through difficult terrain does not acquire a disruption.
Interpenetration
No unit may ever move through enemy bases. In some cases, however, units may move through friendly bases. This is called interpenetration, and it may involve a penalty. Any unit may move through markers on the table, whether friendly or enemy, without penalty. Artillery units, and all units in columns, may interpenetrate, and be interpenetrated, without penalty to themselves. They might still cause disruption, however, to other units, if they interpenetrate those units. INF and CAV units in line or massed formations acquire a DISR each time they interpenetrate, or are interpenetrated. As with difficult terrain, a unit may not be broken by interpenetration. If either the moving unit or the stationary unit would be broken by the DISR caused by interpenetration, then the interpenetration is not permitted. In any case, a unit must have enough movement allowance remaining to carry it completely through the friendly unit. A player may not stack units, or leave any base sitting on any friendly base.
Examples of Interpenetration:
A regular infantry unit in line formation passes through a regular cavalry unit in column. The infantry acquires a DISR. The cavalry, being in column, does not. A regular infantry unit in massed formation passes through a regular infantry unit in line. Both acquire a DISR. An artillery unit passes through a cavalry unit in massed formation. The artillery unit suffers no penalty. The cavalry unit acquires a DISR.
Moving in Columns
A unit moving in a column is always only one base wide (either a single-based artillery unit, or a column.) If players need to determine whether a moving unit passes through terrain or has enough space to move around or between other bases, they should imagine a movement path for that base. The unit moves only in the direction of its front base edge, but that base may twist or turn in any direction, any number of times. Imagine a snaking path, always 1BW wide. A column that moves near the enemy may not move more than 4BW. If it began its move greater than 4BW from the enemy, and moved near the enemy, then the columns move may not total more than 4BW. If it already moved more than 4BW, then the column cant come near the enemy.
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Movement in Line and Massed Formation

Units in these two formations are strictly limited to only four kinds of movement. They may move directly forward. They may move directly backward (known as retrograde movement.) And they may Wheel while moving, either while moving forward or backward.
Retrograde
A unit that moves backwards in line or massed formation has only half of its normal movement allowance. A unit may never combine both forward and backward movement in the same round.
Wheeling
Wheeling can be done while moving either forward or backward. It has no special cost in movement allowance; the distance traveled by the unit while it wheels is simply counted as movement spent. A unit wheels forward when one corner of its forward edge remains stationary while the other corner moves, measuring the distance of movement as it goes. A unit wheels backward when one of its rear corners remains stationary while the other end of the unit moves backward. A unit may combine wheeling with forward movement in any number of ways and any sequence. It could wheel, then move forward, then wheel some more, and move forward some more, etc, as long as the unit never spends more than its movement allowance. It may do the same with wheeling and retrograde movement. (But may never move in such a way that it combines forward and retrograde movement.) 3BW 2BW 1BW 1BW 2BW 4BW
Wheeling
Because it is near the enemy, the cavalry unit has a movement allowance of 4. It spends the first 1BW wheeling to the right, and then moves forward two more BW. Then it wheels for one more BW, this time to the left. Note that although it wheeled from two different corners, the cavalry unit always used forward movement. It never combined forward and retrograde movement. The infantry unit wheels 2BW backwards. Even though its right rear corner did not move, it has covered 2BW because of the movement of its left corner. The movement is measured by the portion of the unit that moves the most.
Cavalry Movement in Line or Massed

A cavalry unit in line or massed formation has a movement allowance of 8, as long as it does not come near the enemy at any point of its move. If it begins near the enemy, or would come near the enemy, its movement allowance is 4. If it has already moved more than 4BW and any more movement would require it to come near the enemy, then it must stop.
Artillery Movement
An artillery unit is never in a column, line, or massed formation. It has only one movement allowance, and only when it is activated to March. Artillery forces may never be activated to Charge. An artillery unit has a movement allowance of 8BW, under ideal circumstances. However, two conditions might apply, either of which would reduce its movement allowance to 2BW: difficult terrain, and ending a move near the enemy. If the artillery unit will move through any difficult terrain, then its total movement may not exceed 2BW. Artillery units do not acquire DISR when moving through difficult terrain. If the artillery unit begins the round near the enemy, the active player may move it up to 8BW, as long as it ends no longer near the enemy. If, however, he wants to move the artillery in a way that would result in it still being near the enemy at the conclusion of its movement, then its total movement may not exceed 2BW.
If the artillery unit begins the round not near the enemy, and the active player wishes to move it near the enemy, then its total movement may not exceed 2BW.
Smoke
When artillery shoots, it must be marked with smoke. The smoke marker may be removed by activating the artillery specifically for that purpose, as a March action just to remove the smoke. For example, a player fires canister with his artillery in the volley phase. He thus marks the bases with smoke. He may activate the artillery force to march in that same round, but doing so only removes the smoke marker. In a later round - assuming they dont shoot again - he may then activate them to march, at which point they may move.
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Artillery Near the Enemy

The French artillery unit began its round only 1BW from the Austrians. The French player wants to move it. He may move up to his full 8BW, as long as he ends no longer near the enemy. Thus he can retreat in the face of the enemy. He may move up to 2BW, if he wants to stay near the enemy. Thus he could slide to his right, as shown. But he could not move around the enemys open flank, and end still near the enemy, since that requires more than 2BW of movement. Note that he could make a move of that nature, if the Austrian flank really was that wide-open, but he could not end with the artillery near the Austrians.
NO
YES
Changing Formation
A unit may change formation only when activated to march. Units may not change formation when activated to charge. A unit may change formation, prior to moving in any other way, and then it may move. It may not change formation after it has moved in that round.
YES
There is no cost in movement points for a formation change from a column; only the restriction that it must be done before the unit moves. Any other kind of formation change requires all of a units movement points: the unit may change its formation, but then not move for the rest of the round. Armies marched to the battle in long columns, and then turned those columns into lines by means of a series of platoon wheels, so that men ended facing perpendicular to their original line of march. You will use the same procedure to change from columns to lines, or vice-versa. The rules for formation changes depend upon the size of bases that you use. If your bases are perfectly square, then it is very easy. Each base turns 90 degrees left or right to face the new direction, and the column becomes a line. When changing from line to column, the process is reversed. If your bases are wider than they are deep, then the line will end up having a longer footprint than the column had. Turn one base in the column 90 degrees to the left or right. It must end perfectly perpendicular to the other bases. Then you will have to line up the rest of the bases, extending the direction and footprint of the unit accordingly. If there is no space to extend the units footprint, then it cant change formation. When changing from line to column, this process is reversed, by choosing one base in the line, turning it 90 degrees, and then accordioning the other bases to form it into a column. If your bases are drastically wider than they are deep, then you may have some problems when a long series of units in columns wishes to form a line of battle abreast. Ideally, each unit can move, change into a line, and then the next unit would move to follow it, change into a line, and so on, until the line of battle is formed flush. But if your bases do not permit this with ease, then you should consider rebasing your figures. (There, I said it....)
Changing Formations: Moving Bases

A column changes to a massed formation by either (A) taking the two rearmost bases of the column and moving them up flush, alongside the two forward bases, either to the right or to the left, or (B) doing the same with the forward bases, alongside the rear bases. A massed formation changes to a column by placing two bases either on the left or the right behind the two others. A unit in line formation may change to massed formation by choosing either two bases to the left, two to the right, or one from each end, and then placing them behind the other two. A unit in massed formation may change to a line by taking its two rear bases and moving them alongside its two front bases, either one on each side, or two on one side. It could alternatively choose its two front bases, and move them alongside the rear ones.
Some Examples of Formation Changes involving Massed formation.
13
Changing Formation in Difficult Terrain

If a formation change requires bases to enter or leave difficult terrain, then a unit acquires 1 DISR for moving in difficult terrain. No unit may be broken by changing formation in difficult terrain. If the disruption would break any unit, then the change of formation may not be done. Remember that the DISR is applied at the conclusion of all movement for that unit; thus a unit that changes formation in one bit of difficult terrain, and then moves through another bit, suffers only 1 DISR.. Bases may interpenetrate their own, or other friendly units while changing formation, as long as they end in a formation that is not overlapping any friendly units. Interpenetration might also result in disruption, as described on page 10.
About-Face
Cavalry units may make an about-face prior to moving on a march action. Before moving the unit, the active player announces that it will about-face, and he turns every base in the unit backwards, without changing any bases footprint. Then he may move the unit. A unit that about-faces must end its move not near the enemy. If it cant do so, then it may not about-face. A unit may not about-face and change formation in the same round. Infantry units may not make an about-face. No unit may about-face if its force was activated to charge.
Moving the CinC

The CinC has no movement allowance. He may be moved any distance and direction, as long as he does not move through any enemy bases. The active player may move his CinC at the conclusion of his round, after passing or completing the action he has chosen. Thus: after marching all his units, or after all fire is resolved, or after all combats are resolved, or after all rallies are resolved, etc. The army headquarters is a ponderous affair. It does not just pick up and move. Aides must roll up maps and paperwork, servants must transport the Great Mans personal effects, mistresses must be provided for, hunting dogs, musical instruments, and the culinary staff must all be in their proper places. As a result, whenever he wishes to move the CinC, the active player must discard any one action card, with any span. The CinC marker may not move until the proper time in the phases sequence. However, since he is a marker and not a base, you may leave units sitting on him temporarily - assuming your figures permit the indignity. You must end the round, however, with no units sitting on the CinC, otherwise he is displaced. Since you may move the CinC until after all other units in the round have moved, there is no reason he would be displaced by your own units, unless you deliberately allow it to be so, by choosing not to move him (or by not having a card to spend, to move him.)
Displacing the CinC

The CinC marker is displaced if a round ends in which friendly units are sitting on him, or at any time when enemy bases move through him. A displaced marker is moved 1BW in any direction, to any place not overlapping any bases, friendly or enemy. If there is no such safe spot, move it another 1BW. Keep moving the marker in 1BW increments until it finds a safe spot. A CinC may be displaced any number of times in a round. These lite rules have no officer casualty tests. However, at the end of any round - friendly or enemy - in which the CinC is displaced, the owning player must discard one card from his hand. If he has no cards, then his army loses one morale point instead.
The March Action

The active player designates a force, declares that he wants to activate it to march, and plays a card or cards whose span is sufficient for the CinC to activate it. When a player activates one of his forces to march, he may move any and every unit in that force, in any sequence he wishes. He may not, however, move them into contact with the enemy (i.e., they may not charge.) There is no precise limit regarding how close opposing bases may come, when they are not allowed to touch. As long as both players are clear that there has been no contact, then the active base may stop a couple of millimeters away from the point at which it would be prohibited. Good sportsmanship should prevail! An artillery unit that has a smoke marker may not move. The active player may remove the smoke marker from all the artillery units in one force by activating that force to march. In this case, however, the artillery force does not move, but in fact its march is simply to remove the smoke. The active player may modify his march action by playing a card with the bugle symbol.
March

The complete game includes irregular units with special abilities in rough ground (although they are very vulnerable in the open.) Armies may have certain national advantages that permit them to move in additional ways, such as Oblique Order, or the Cadence advantage, which permits units to move first, and then deploy into a new formation.
14
7. Volley and Bombardment

The words shooting and fire are used interchangeably in this book. Fire can occur at either of two times in any given round.
The Volley Phase

At the beginning of his round the active player can decide whether or not to invoke a volley phase. If he does, then any/all of his eligible infantry and artillery units - anywhere on the table - may fire. The fire is never mandatory; he may always pick and choose which units he wants to shoot. The active sides units shoot first and resolve the effect of their fire. Then the passive player may do the same, firing any of his eligible infantry and artillery units. (If the passive player uses the First Fire interrupt card, he can reverse this sequence and shoot first.) If the active player chooses not to invoke a volley phase in his round, then no passive units may fire. In the volley phase, artillery units fire at short range (canister) only. If not already marked with smoke, then they must be, after firing. Artillery units that fire in the volley phase may not be activated for any action in that same round. Shooting in the volley phase may be modified by either or both players, using cards with the musket symbol.
Volley
Bombard
Bombardment
A player may choose a Bombard action, which activates a force of artillery to fire at long range (bombardment) only. He may modify the fire of his bombarding units, using cards with the cannon symbol. Note that a player may invoke a volley phase in his round, in order for his infantry units to fire, and then choose a bombard action, so that his artillery units can bombard. He may not, however, activate any artillery units, if they already fired in the volley phase. He could potentially shoot with some of his artillery in the volley phase, and then activate others in the round. The artillery force that he activates, however, may not include any units that fired in the volley phase. Volleys and bombardment use the same procedure. They differ only in sequence, the limitation of range, and the fact that bombardment is an action, for which a force must be activated, whereas volleys are a free phase that occurs across the whole table.
Who May Fire?

Infantry and artillery units that have a valid target, may fire. The enemy unit being fired upon is called a target unit. Each firing unit counts the number of bases that may fire upon any given target. No base may fire if any portion of that base is in water. No artillery base may fire if it is even partially in woods. Each active unit may shoot only once per round. Units in column formation may not fire.
The Sequence of Fire

The shooting player declares the sequence in which his units may fire. He should choose either Left-to-Right, or Right-to-Left, moving across the board, and trying as faithfully as possible to proceed in that order. All of his shooting units roll against their targets, trying to score hits on them. As hits are scored, mark them temporarily with dice. Then after all the shooting units of that side have rolled to hit, go back - in any order the shooting player desires - and re-roll those hits, attempting to convert them into disruptions. Units that take sufficient DISRs might break. In a volley phase, the active player fires first, and then passive player shoots back. He also chooses a direction, and proceeds in the same manner, although his units might be a little beat-up, given that they have taken some disruptions, or perhaps even been broken before he gets his chance to shoot. If firing artillery at long range on a Bombard action, only the activated units on the active side may shoot.
The Range of Fire

All volley fire is done at short range: up to 4BW from the front of the shooters base. This is the range at which infantry fire musketry and artillery fires canister. All bombardment is done at long range, which begins after 4BW from the front of the shooters base, and extends out to 16BW. Infantry bases always fire only at short range. Artillery bases fire with different effect, depending upon whether they are firing in the volley phase, or being activated to bombard.
Short Range: 4BW
(Musketry)
Short Range: 4BW

(Canister)
Volley Phase
Long Range: from 4-16 BW

(Bombardment)
15 Priorities for Firing:

1. Short range directly ahead. 2. Other short range target within 45. 3. Long range (artillery only).
Fire Zones and Prioritizing Targets

Each base of a firing unit has a fire zone. This is the area, 1BW wide, and extending a distance equal to the shooters range, in which it may attempt to hit an enemy base, as long as at least a fraction of that enemy base is in the zone. If you have a ruler as wide as one of your bases, it will make a handy template for artillery fire. Otherwise, you could make a cardboard template 1BW wide and up to 12BW in length.
If there is any question about which bases fire upon which targets, the active player should lay down the template for his fire zone so that it lies perfectly to the front of his shooting base. The first base that the template falls upon, even fractionally, is either a friendly base or an enemy base. If it is a friendly base, then the shooter may not fire directly ahead. Otherwise, the closest enemy base that falls even partially under the template is the unit which must be the target of the fire. If the shooter either cant fire directly ahead, due to the presence of a friendly base, an obstruction, or simply a lack of targets, then he may angle the fire zone template up to 45 degrees to the left or right. An artillery unit may not bombard if it has any eligible targets at short range. 1 2
The French unit is firing upon the British unit. French bases B, C, and D all have a base within range and directly in front, so they have no difficulty determining their targets. French base A has no enemy base directly in front, so it can angle its fire up to 45 degrees. Thus it could choose to fire either upon the cavalry, or on the infantry. The French player could therefore shoot at both targets (one die against the cavalry and three against the infantry), or concentrate all four of his dice agaisnt the Britsh infantry.
The French are resolving fire from Left to Right. French base A has a friendly unit (the cavalry) intruding a bit into its fire zone. Since a friendly is directly in front of it, closer than the enemy, French-A cant shoot straight ahead. It may, however, angle its fire a bit to the right and still hit British unit 1. French base B fires straight ahead to hit British-1 Note the fire zone for French base C. A portion of British-1 is directly to Cs front, and is closer than any portion of British-2. Thus base C must fire at British unit 1. French base D fires straight ahead to hit British-2. Thus the French player rolls three dice against British-1 and one die against British-2.
Obstructions
Certain types of terrain constitute obstructions if they appear in the shooters fire zone. They may or may not also give cover to the target. Woods, entrenchments, and walls are obstructing terrain. A unit on a hill is not obstructed as long as the shooter can see it. If the shooter cant see a base, because it is on the opposite side of a hill, then he cant shoot at that base. Players will need to specify prior to the game, whether and where hills have crest lines, behind which units are concealed, or whether a unit just behind the crest can be seen. The presence of any friendly infantry, cavalry, or artillery base in the fire zone, closer than the (enemy) target, prevents fire at any range. If any portion of obstructing terrain, no matter how small, is in the shooters fire zone, prior to the target, but does not completely block the fire zone, then it is considered a partial obstruction. The fire zone ends 1BW after the obstructing terrain appears.
1BW
Partially Obstructed
The French artillery fires at the British infantry. A portion of woods appears in the French fire zone, partially obstructing it. From the first point at which those woods appear, the fire will only penetrate another 1BW, and therefore the French player can not shoot the British. There is no way for the French to change the angle of their fire zone to avoid the woods altogether, and still hit the British.
16
B A
Fire and Cover

A target has cover if it is completely in terrain that provides cover, or if it is behind cover that stretches across the entire fire zone of the shooter. A unit does not have to be perfectly or directly behind terrain in order to get cover from it; it only needs for the covering terrain to block the shooters entire fire zone, prior to reaching it. When you lay down your fire zone to determine which enemy base is the first target in that zone, you will note at that time whether or not that base has cover. It is possible that a unit might be shooting at an enemy unit, and some target bases have cover, while others dont. The shooters dice should be rolled separately (instead of just as a handful) if different ToHit numbers result.
1BW
Shooting from Behind Cover

A base may be in open terrain while shooting from behind a linear obstacle like a stone wall. If we were able to scale the wall properly, it would be only paper thin. But most players miniatures collections have walls that are at least several millimeters thick, meaning that we have to imagine that the shooter is simply behind the cover, and the fire is not really passing through the wall. In other words, the shooters own wall is not an obstruction in his fire zone.
British-A is the closest target directly to the French shooters front, and therefore must be the target. He is behind the stone wall (note that he doesnt have to be perfectly flush behind the wall), and thus the French shoot with the penalty for firing upon a target with cover. If A did not exist, the wall would still be a partial obstruction, and thus the French fire penetrates only another 1BW, and cant quite reach British-B. If B had been a little closer (less than 1BW behind the wall), and there was no British-A, then the French fire could reach B. Since B is not entirely behind the wall (i.e., the wall does not completely intervene between shooter and target), then B would not have cover. Finally, consider that if the British were shooting, A would apply a penalty because he is not perfectly behind the wall. The wall intervenes across his entire fire zone, before reaching the French, and thus the French would have cover, too. If the British moved up to be perfectly flush behind the wall, they would have cover, and the French wouldnt.
Rolling To Hit
An artillery unit firing canister rolls two dice when shooting. In all other circumstances, a unit rolls one die per shooting base. In each case, a die that scores equal or greater than its To Hit Number, scores a hit on the target. The basic To Hit number is 4+. However, certain conditions can modify a shooting die. Although modifiers are cumulative, a natural roll of six always hits, and a one always misses. A die is modified with +1 for each of the following that apply: if the target is a dense target - a unit in column or massed formation. its fire enfilades the target (the entire shooting base is behind the front line of the target base.)
Shooting
2 dice Canister per base 1 die All Others per base
A die is modified with -1 for each of the following that apply: The shooter applies a -1 modifier to his roll if his shooting unit has DISR equal or greater than half his number of bases. That means that an infantry unit with 2 or more DISR, or an artillery unit with one DISR, suffers this disrupted shooter penalty. The shooter applies a -1 modifier to his roll if the target base has cover. A shooting base applies a -1 modifier to hit if it is in bad terrain.
Basic To Hit 4+ Modifiers

DISR shooter vs Cover Bad Terrain Dense Target Enfilade
Roll to Disrupt
As he fires and scores hits on enemy units, the shooting player should mark those hits temporarily with dice. After he has finished all of his rolls to hit, he then goes back, in any order he wishes, to re-roll all the hits on each target unit to determine whether or not they cause disruptions. This second roll is called rolling to disrupt. The roll to disrupt an infantry or cavalry unit is 4+. The roll to disrupt an artillery unit depends upon what kind of fire it was hit by. If the hits were caused by musketry or canister (i.e., in the volley phase), then they disrupt on rolls of 4+. If they were caused by long-range bombardment, then they disrupt on rolls of 6. Disruptions are placed on the target unit immediately. In some cases this might break the unit. Disruptions are cumulative. A unit that already had one DISR and suffered two more from shooting, would now be marked with three. Whats in the Full Game
Maurice differentiates between the fire abilities of different quality units, with elites being more able to withstand punishment than green conscripts. Irregular units are dangerous in rough terrain and towns, where regular units firepower is greatly compromised, but they are no match for a regular unit, trading volleys in the open. Artillery units are best-suited for bombarding enemies with cover or in built-up areas, but also have certain considerations, given the terrain and ground condition.
-1
+1
Roll To DISR
INF or CAV target is:
4+
To Disrupt ART target hit by:
4+ Musketry, Canister 6
Bombardment
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8. Charge
Charging is the only way for the active player to bring his units into contact with the enemy. The active player designates a force, declares that he wants to activate it to charge, and plays a card or cards whose span is sufficient for the CinC to activate it. At least half of the units in the force must be able to charge (i.e., it must be possible for them to contact the enemy with a charge move.) He then moves all the units of the force. The charging units must adhere to the additional restrictions imposed upon charge moves. Having moved all of his units, there are now opposing units in contact. The players resolve combats. Units can take disruptions or break, and some active units might fall back.
Combat
Limitations on Charging Units.

Prior to moving a unit, the active player must determine whether or not the unit is eligible to charge. Infantry and cavalry units may charge, with the following limitations: A unit that has been activated to charge may not change formation. No unit may charge in a column formation. Cavalry may not charge into woods, nor charge any base that is completely in woods, nor contact an enemy base if doing so contacts that base on an edge that is completely in the woods. 4BW Infantry may not charge enemy cavalry. A unit may not charge if it has four disruptions. An active unit may not charge an enemy unit that was not visible to it, at the start of the active players round. If a unit charges through difficult terrain, then it acquires 1 DISR, applied prior to resolving the combat. A unit may not interpenetrate any unit while charging. Charging the enemy is also called attacking him. The enemy unit defending against the charge is the target of the charge. The result of each charge will be a combat, in which the charging unit is on the attacking side, and the target unit is on the defending side. 3BW 2BW 1BW
Charge Move
The French cavalry wheels 1BW and charges the British infantry. The total length of the charge move is 4BW. The charging unit stops at the moment of contact, regardless of the angle. It never squares up or adjusts thereafter.
A charging unit must move its full movement allowance until it contacts the enemy. A charge must end in contact with a target unit. If the active player desires, a charging unit may begin its move by making a limited wheel forward, no more than 1BW. After this wheel, the remainder of the charge move may only be directly forward to contact. As with normal movement, any distance traveled in the wheel is subtracted from the remaining movement allowance for the charge move. The wheel itself is not the charge. A unit cant contact the enemy while wheeling. It may only contact the enemy with straight-ahead movement, after completing any wheel.
The Non-Charging Units in a Charging Force

When a player activates a force to Charge, at least half of the units of that force must be able to charge the enemy, and must charge the enemy. Other units in the force may move, without charging, but those units may not number more than half of the total number of units activated. Typically, other units move so that the force is not broken up, and that units can remain close and in mutually-supporting positions. The non-charging units of a charging force must obey all normal movement rules, and may not come into contact with the enemy. In addition, they may not use any retrograde movement at all.
The French player wants to activate this large force of six infantry units to Charge. Four of the French units (A-D) have enemy directly in front of them and within 4BW, and are eligible to charge. The French player could activate this entire force of six units to charge, and units E and F could still move up in support, because they - as noncharging units in a charging force are not more than half of the total number of units activated.
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Contacting the Enemy

A charging unit may only contact the enemy with its (the charging units) front edge. It may never charge in a way that its flank or rear edges come into contact with the enemy. If its charge move would bring it into contact in that way, then it may not charge. In a situation where multiple defenders can be physically contacted by the same attacker at the same moment, the active unit may charge them all. Otherwise, the active unit must stop at the moment it contacts the first enemy unit in the path of its charge move. It is possible for more than one charging unit to contact the same defender, even on the same side of the defending unit. There is no limit to the number of attackers on one defender.
Engagement
An attacking unit is engaged with every defending unit that contacts its front edge. If - and only if - it contacts at least one enemy on its front edge, then it is also considered to be engaged with every other enemy unit that is directly to its front and within 1BW. An active unit is attacking every passive unit that it engages. A defending unit is engaged with every unit that is attacking it.
The French activated a force of four cavalry units to Charge. Units A, B, and C, all charged British unit 2. They all contact it. French-A is engaged with British-2. And because he is in contact with one defender to his front, French-A is also considered to be engaged against British-1, who is directly in front of him and less than 1BW away. French-B is engaged only with British-2. French-C is engaged with British-2, and also with British-3, who is directly in front of him and less than 1BW away. French-D is not in physical contact with any enemy units. Therefore he is not engaged with anybody, even though British-3 is directly in front of him and less than 1BW away. From the British perspective... British-1 is engaged with French-A. British-2 is engaged with French A, B, and C. British-3 is engaged with French-C.
Some Quirks of Engagement

Occasionally you will encounter situations where an attacker is within 1BW of a passive unit that it obviously could not engage. Differing base sizes can also create some odd engagements. The examples in these illustrations have assumed a square figure base, or at least one that is as deep or deeper than it is wide. If you play with bases that are wider than deep, you will have to adopt a house rule that covers the situation when two passive units are packed tightly, one perfectly behind the other, and the one in front is attacked. (The one in the rear is within 1BW, but obviously not engaged.) A simple test involves the attacker choosing any one base from his unit, and then drawing imaginary lines from each of its front corners. Those lines can be at any angle, but must remain directly in front of the base. If both lines can touch an enemy unit, without first passing through any other unit from either side, and if the enemy is within 1BW of the attackers front, then the attacker can engage that unit (assuming he meets the other criteria for engagement).
1 2
1BW
The French unit charged Austrian 1. He is therefore also less than 1BW from Austrian 2. It is impossible to draw lines from any base of the French unit to any part of Austrian 2, without one of those lines first hitting Austrian-1. Therefore Austrian 2 is not engaged.
1 2
1BW
In this example, the French unit overlaps just enough to engage Austrian-2, as well as Austrian-1.
19
Flanked
A passive unit may be flanked only by an enemy that physically touches its flank or rear edge. An attacker can still engage a defender whose flank is within 1BW of the attackers front, but the defender is not considered flanked unless the attacker touches the defenders flank or rear edge. 2
The French cavalry charged into contact with Austrian-2. Austrian-1 is within 1BW and directly to the front of the French unit. The French unit is also entirely behind Austrian-1s front line. Nonetheless, the French do not physically contact Austrian-1. Thus, the French cavalry is engaged with both Austrian units, but neither will be flanked.
Cover
As with shooting, a defending unit can have cover if the terrain in question intervenes completely between the attacker and the defender. That is: it is impossible to draw a straight line from the attackers front edge to the defending unit, without passing through that cover. The defending unit doesnt have to be in perfectly flush or contiguous contact with the cover; the cover merely has to be between him and the attacker.
The French charged into contact with Austrian-2. Austrian-2 is partly in the woods, but since the portions of his unit that are directly to the front of the French are all in the woods, he gets cover. (The woods intervene between the attacker and defender.)
1
2
Austrian-1 is engaged because he is within 1BW of the attacker. There is a stone wall between them. Neither side is perfectly behind or in contact with that wall, but because it completely intervenes between the attackers front and the defender, it provides cover to the defender, Austrian-1.
Combat Score
Every unit that is engaged in combat must calculate its Combat Score. This is done by considering three things: 1. Its basic combat value. 2. Any modifiers, including those from national advantages, notables, or modifying cards. 3. A die roll. A unit begins with a basic combat value, depending upon its type. That value is modified, as follows: An infantry unit on a higher elevation than all enemies receives a +1 modifier. A unit receives a -1 modifier for each disruption marked on it. A unit receives a -2 modifier if it is even partially in bad terrain. An attacking unit receives a -2 modifier if it is attacking an enemy infantry or artillery unit that has cover. It suffers this penalty even if it is also attacking other enemies that do not have cover. An infantry or cavalry unit in a column formation, or any unit that has been attacked on its flank/rear - regardless of whether it has also been attacked on its front - is a Vulnerable Unit. It receives a -6 modifier. A unit receives a variable negative modifier for being outnumbered (see below.)
Combat Score
Basic Combat Value
6 INF or CAV 1 Artillery

Combat Modifiers
+1 INF on Higher Elevation -1 -2 -6 -? ?

per DISR in Bad Terrain
-2 Atk v. INF, ART w/ Cover

Vulnerable Unit Outnumbered Modifying Card Plus Die Roll
20
Outnumbered
Whether attacking or defending, a unit might receive a modifier for being outnumbered if it engages multiple enemy units. If it engages more than one enemy, then for each of those enemies that engages only it, the unit receives a -1 modifier. Enemy artillery units do not count toward outnumbering your unit. (You may engage any number of them without penalty.) Only enemy infantry and cavalry are counted as units for purposes of outnumbering.
B
The Austrian cavalry charged and contacted one French cavalry unit, thus engaging the second one, too. The Austrian unit is outnumbered and has a -2 modifier, since both enemy units engage only it.
Three Austrian units charged two French units. French-A is engaged with Austrian 1, which engages only it, and with Austrian-2, which engages both French opponents. French-B is engaged with Austrian-2, and also with Austrian-3, which engages only it. Both French units are therefore outnumbered; each is engaged against two enemies, one of which engages only it. Thus each French unit has a -1 modifier.
Other Modifiers
The play of modifying cards by either side can also modify a units combat score. In each case, the card specifies how and under what circumstances its play will modify the combat resolution. The range of effects provided by cards is too broad to be summarized here. It is important, in the interest of clarity and good sportsmanship, for both players to be clear about the potential effects of any cards, prior to rolling any combat dice. No matter how many negative modifiers apply, a units basic combat value is never modified below zero.
Roll a Die and Add

Your units combat score is the total of its basic combat value, its modifiers, and the score of one die. As each player calculates his units combat scores, he should mark those scores on each unit, temporarily, using dice. (For instance, if a unit has a combat score of 8, then he should put two dice, with their total showing 8, beside that unit.) It does not matter which side calculates combat scores first, nor which units. They are all calculated and marked, prior to resolving any combats.
Resolve Passive Units First

In any order he likes, the passive player checks each of his units. He compares the combat scores of his unit to the scores of all active units that are engaging it. If any engaged active units combat scores are double or greater than the passive units score, that passive unit breaks and is removed from the table. If any engaged active units combat scores are greater than - but not double - the passive units score, then the passive unit suffers 2 DISR. That, also, might break it, in which case the passive unit is removed from the table. All other passive units whose scores are equal or greater than the scores of all the active units that engage them, suffer 1 DISR. If that breaks them, remove them from the table.
Resolve Active Units

After all passive units have been resolved, the active player proceeds in any order he wishes, checking his units. An active unit receives 2 DISR if any defending units engaged against it, and still on the table, scored equal or higher than its score. If this breaks it, remove it from the table. Otherwise, an active unit receives 1 DISR. If this breaks it, remove it from the table.
Combat Results 1. Resolve Defender
Attacker Doubles Attacker Greater Defender Defender Broken Defender: 2 DISR Defender: 1 DISR
2. Resolve Attacker
Defender Attacker: 2 DISR
Fall Back
All attackers still in base contact with the enemy now Fall Back. If an active unit is no longer in contact with the enemy, it does not fall back, even if it was within 1BW and/or engaged with the enemy.
Otherwise Attacker: 1 DISR
Attackers still in contact Fall Back
21
A Complete Example of Combat Resolution

The French charged with three units.
A French-A is partly in the woods, and thus in bad terrain. It contacts Austrian-2, and is also engaged against Austrian-1. Note that Austrian-1 is mostly behind a stone wall, but... 1 alas, not entirely. It is possible to draw a straight line between the French front and the Austrians without passing through that wall. Thus, Austrian-1 does not have cover. (Neither does Austrian-2, since the woods are not entirely between it and the French. Austrian-2, also, is in bad terrain.)
B C 2 3
French-B contacts Austrian-2, but is too far away (more than 1BW) to engage any other Austrian unit. French-C contacts Austrian-3, and is engaged against all three of the Austrian artillery units. (Note that C isnt outnumbered because he engages only one enemy INF or CAV unit. The ART units dont count.) The players now calculate their combat scores for each unit.
And the Outcome... Final combat scores are shown in red. Austrian-1 easily outscored all enemies engaging it. It takes 1 DISR. Austrian-2 outscored French-A, but not French-B. Thus it takes 2 DISR. Austrian-3 tied its only attacker, French-C, so it takes 1 DISR. The Austrian artillery is having bad day, however. Austrian 5 & 6 were doubled by French-C and thus break immediately. Austrian-4 was outscored, taking 2 DISR, which is enough to break an artillery unit, so it is also removed.
A
6
B
10
C
1
2
7 9
Now we turn to the French units. French-A was outscored by both enemies it engaged, so it takes 2 DISR. French-B outscored all defenders that it engaged, so it takes 1 DISR. French-C tied Austrian-3, so it takes 2 DISR. The French managed to sack the Austrian artillery park, but accomplished little else.

Maurice considers a number of possibilities in combat, due to the different qualities of units (Elites are better than Conscripts), and the different types (irregulars are vulnerable in the open, but in their element in rough terrain.) Some units can attempt to Evade and avoid combat resolution altogether. There are also provisions for those last armies of the late 17th century that still retained the pike. Your armys national advantages will have a profound effect upon your combat performance, and your willingness to take risks with units that - if destroyed - return in your next game as green conscripts (having been rebuilt from the cadres.) Finally, the presence of Notables in your army, often commanding various forces, will have an effect upon combat, since their rashness or caution, or their special abilities can mean the difference between victory and defeat.
22
Falling Back
Attacking units have to fall back from combats if they are still in base-contact with a defending unit after all combats have been resolved. If he has multiple units that must fall back, the active player may choose the order in which he moves them. The defender never falls back. Infantry units always fall back 1BW. Cavalry units fall back 2BW. A fall back is movement directly backwards. If a unit ends its fall-back move sitting on a friendly unit, then it must keep falling back until it reaches open ground. Each friendly unit that is interpenetrated by a friendly unit that falls back through it, suffers 1 DISR. This could conceivably happen to the same unit more than once, as multiple friendly units fall back through it. The falling-back unit itself takes 1 DISR for each friendly unit through which it falls back. A unit may break as a result of additional disruptions incurred when falling back, or when a friendly falls back through it. A unit may never fall back through an enemy unit. If a unit has to fall back through terrain that is difficult for it, then it suffers an additional 1 DISR. This can break a unit. A unit that cant fall back the full distance due to the presence of enemy units or impassable terrain, is broken. A
2BW
British unit A must fall back. As a cavalry unit, its mandatory fall back distance is 2BW, directly backwards. That would, however, leave it sitting on British unit B. So unit A must keep falling back until it reaches open ground, at which point it stops. In the meantime, it causes an additional DISR to itself and to unit B.
9. Rally
A player uses the rally action to remove disruptions from the units in one force. After activating a force to rally, the active player may now make a rally roll for each unit in the force, in whatever sequence he wishes. For each unit, the player rolls a number of dice equal to its current number of disruptions. Each die that meets the Rally Number, succeeds in removing one DISR. Each die rolled to rally suffers a -1 penalty if the unit in question is in bad terrain. If the unit is presently not near (within 4BW of) the enemy, then each die applies a +1 modifier. Cards, officers, and national advantages may provide other modifiers. Regardless of modifiers, rally rolls of 1 always fail, and rolls of 6 always succeed.
To Rally 4+ 5+
Infantry Cavalry, Artillery
Modifiers
In Bad Terrain Not Near Enemy
-1 +1
Rally
23
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Whats the Correct Sequence if Both Sides are Playing Modifying Cards?
As a general rule, the active player must play modifying cards for his actions, before the passive player may do so. In every case, a player must play a modifying card before he or the enemy takes any action(s) that that card could modify - whether or not it will. For example, if the active player charged, then he may move his charging units first, but prior to resolving any combats he must declare whether or not he will play a modifying card with the crossed-swords symbol, modifying the combat results for any unit. After he declares one way or the other, the passive player must now declare whether or not he will play a modifying card for combat. After both sides have declared, then they can resolve the combats. Another example: the active player invoked a Volley Phase. The passive player wishes to play the Thick Smoke modifying card to penalize his opponents shooting. He asks the active player, Are you going to play any modifying cards for your shooting? and then after getting the answer, he says, Im playing this card to modify your shooting. (Because the Thick Smoke card modifies the enemys shooting, the passive player would have to play it before the active player rolled any dice to hit.)
2. Can the Passive Player Interrupt and Also Play a Modifying Card?
Yes. Remember that a player is limited to only one modifying card of each symbol per round. The tricorne that symbolizes Interrupt, is different from the other symbols that modify other actions. Thus you cant interrupt the active player more than once in a round, but you could interrupt him, and then also modify the upcoming combat or shooting. Sometimes the interrupt can change the order in which the players must declare their modifying cards. For example, the active player might invoke a Volley Phase, and then the passive player could immediately interrupt him with the First Fire card. That means that the passive side will shoot first, and thus in this rare instance, the passive player would have to declare first, whether or not he will play any modifying cards for his shooting.
3. Whole large forces sit around and do nothing! They should be allowed to move!
Of course theyre allowed to move. You just chose not to move them. The choice was always yours; you could have made them a priority, but you chose not to. Oh, I know that you felt you had no choice; if youd moved that cavalry force, then you wouldnt have been able to do the Bombard action, and you really needed to do that, and then the enemy presented his flank to you, so you had to use that Charge action, and.... But it was your choice all along. Youre the one who put your army into a situation in which events accelerated and consumed all your attention and effort, and you felt that you couldnt risk tearing yourself away from that action until it reached a climax, preferably in your favor.
But its ridiculous that the cavalry just sits in reserve doing nothing, while some other part of the army is heavily engaged!
Gamers often claim to want historical accuracy, which usually means that they want the miniature battles to resemble the descriptions of battles that theyve read in books. The overriding characteristic of historical battles was a pacing in which a portion of the army was heavily engaged for a considerable length of time, while other portions were not engaged at all, either deliberately held in reserve or simply not attacked by the foe and not given orders to attack the foe. But when is the last time you saw a wargame that looked like that? In most wargames, every unit of the army moves out to attack on Turn 1. And why not? There is usually no incentive to keep a reserve, or to make a preparatory bombardment, and there is limited time to finish the battle, so its in everybodys interest to get the whole army moving and keep it moving every turn, adjusting and re-adjusting every unit every turn. One of the traditional conceits of wargaming is that when you have your turn, you can do everything, everywhere, simultaneously. If its the movement phase, then your whole army can move. If its the combat phase, then you get to resolve all pending combats simultaneously, and so on. Is it really historically accurate to expect that your cavalry on the flank would be able to move, at the exact same convenient time that your infantry was getting into a fight in the center, just because you wanted it to? And that it would be possible to do both of these things, simultaneously, before the enemy reacted to either of them? Im not saying that one way of representing battle events is historically superior to another. Im just saying that constant, predictable simultaneity is not the way that this game does it.
Thank You For Trying Maurice Lite

I hope you have fun and learn the basics of the game. If you enjoyed this introductory version, you will definitely enjoy the full Maurice game, available from the online store at: www.sammustafa.com. (COMING IN 2012). As well as additional rules and options, as described in these yellow boxes throughout this document, the full game also includes historical scenarios and guidelines for creating your own, as well as the complete Succession Wars campaign system, created specifically with Imagi-Nations in mind. (Although you can also use it for historical armies.) Be sure to pick up the full Maurice card pack, as well, so you can take advantage of all the games features.

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Maurice Lite. v1.0.

Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Free Lite Introductor y Version

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

1. Bases and Units

Base Widths (BWs)

Active and Passive

Unit Sizes and Formations

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Near the Enemy and In Contact

Front, Flanks, Rear

Directly in Front Front line

Disruption (DISR) and Broken

Directly to the Rear

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

2. Prepare for Play

Army Size and Army Morale

Deal the Action Cards

Whats in the Full Game

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

3. The Action Cards

Banners and Effect Text

Charge March Bombard Rally Volleys

Whats in the Full Game

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

The Anatomy of the Cards

The Effect Text

4. The Basics of Play

The Sequence of a Round:

3. Active side may move the CinC

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Draw New Cards

The Risk of Bluffing

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Playing Modifying Cards

Activation Foiled by the Enemy

Minimum Activation Cost

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

The Smoke Marker on Artillery

Difficult Terrain and Bad Terrain

Whats in the Full Game

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Movement and Formations

Movement and Terrain

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Movement in Line and Massed Formation

Cavalry Movement in Line or Massed

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Artillery Near the Enemy

Changing Formations: Moving Bases

Some Examples of Formation Changes involving Massed formation.

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

Changing Formation in Difficult Terrain

Moving the CinC

Displacing the CinC

The March Action

Whats in the Full Game

Maurice Lite. v1.0. Copyright 2011 by Sam A. Mustafa

7. Volley and Bombardment