Napoleon At Bay

Overview

Napoleon at Bay is an operational level, two player simulation of the Campaign in northern France in 1814. Faced with an enemy more than twice its size, the French forces under Napoleon expertly employed interior lines in its defence. It engaged each of its enemies in turn, whilst holding off superior numbers in other locations from behind rivers and almost succeeded in defeating them.

System

The game is played on a huge 44"x34" mapboard, and counter density is very low. Much of the game is spent marching forces towards a critical point of battle. The player best able to anticipate that, and able to concentrate the greatest force quickly will usually emerge winner.

The emphasis of the game is in a system of Administrative Points(APs). Each turn, each Army receives a number of APs, which can be used to perform an army's functions, such as issue of movement commands. Forces without movement commands move under the initiative of their commanders. This can prove to be very unreliable, except for very exceptional leaders. Furthermore, accumulated AP levels affect the amount of attriction forces take when moving.

Comments

Napoleon at Bay is definitely not a game of furious action. Much of the game is spent in maneuvering for position. Skirmishes may occur frequently between smaller forces, but the final climatic battle will be the result of the marching decisions made many turns ago.

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