Working through some solo wargaming rules for the ECW

During this past week, I have resumed playing some English Civil War (ECW) games for to two reasons. Firstly, my interest in the period was reignited after reading "Pike and Shot Tactics 1590-1660" by Keith Roberts (refer to an earlier post for my takeaways from this book). Secondly, I am experiencing issues with my left hip which means I need to avoid sitting down too much, but standing at my wargaming table doesn't put any strain on my hip, funny that, and is the one and only upside of this situation.

The ECW units see the light of day. These are Hinchliffe models some 50 years old and repainted.

The constraints placed upon the ECW commander with deployment of their armies and the difficulty of manoeuvre of those armies on the battlefield, has got me thinking about the suitability for solo gaming of this period and whether or not I could construct some decision tables to direct the opposing army in a  wargame?

The rest of this post and some following posts will provide more details of my progress, and the pitfalls I encounter, as I work through this. Any comments and advice are most welcome.

However, prior to starting to create the decision trees, I had to modify the rules of the "D3 ECW" game (see tab at top of blog). I opted to use an I Go, You Go, approach as it seems more suitable for utilising decision tables, since the decisions will mainly involve movement such as charges, while shooting is directed at the nearest enemy, and melee automatically takes place between engaged units. Additionally, I reduced the number of infantry and cavalry units to between 5 and 6, along with a few smaller dragoon and artillery units which are eliminated with half the hits of larger infantry and cavalry units. This was to simplify and reduce choices. Finally, I limited the number of units permitted to move to the score of a D3 dice. As I continue with these posts, I will provide the updated rules.

A cavalry unit on the left with two bases, a dragoon unit with one base, and an infantry unit with two bases on the right. The cavalry and infantry represent brigades when the number of units is reduced in the games.

A test game underway

In the process of developing the decision tables, the top level table operates at the army level and establishes whether the army is in an attacking, holding, or retiring position. Once this status is determined, the corresponding decision table for the army's status is used to determine the actions to be taken on the tabletop.

The army level decision table determines which corresponding decision table is used to move troops on the tabletop.

To help in the creation of the second set of decision tables, I have been playing a number of ECW games and noting down my decisions (hopefully the right ones). While taking notes, I discovered that I had more of a prioritised list of actions rather than a decision tree, and these actions quite naturally followed the game's sequence of play. The priorities on each list varied depending on the army's status. Although there are no dice rolls involved in choosing between actions, it may appear somewhat mechanical. However, the variability lies in the number of move actions taken, which is determined by a D3 dice roll.

I am using filing cards to make notes. One card for each decision table (or priority list).

Example of Army Level Decision Table

Here are details of the decision table for army level status as they currently stand. There are sure to be updates, but it is a starting point.

The army will Hold its position if any of the following apply:

• It is the opening turn of the battle.
• It is outnumbered when just counting infantry and cavalry units, or has no cavalry units
• It still has multiple artillery units who are able to engage the enemy at a distance.
• It holds the objective it was tasked with taking.

The army will Attack if any of the following apply:

• It has more cavalry units
• It is yet to hold an objective it was charged with taking.
• It equals or outnumbers the enemy when counting infantry and cavalry units.

The army will Retire if any of the following apply:

• It is outnumbered and has fewer than two infantry or cavalry units.

Example of Decision Table for Hold

Here is an example of the Decision table used when at the army level it is in a Hold position.

Note - During the movement phase the number of moved units meet the score of a rolled D3 dice. Units that just pivot, do not count against the D3 score.

During the movement phase apply to units in the following in order:

1. Any unit facing a possible charge can pivot to face the most imminent threat if permitted to in the rules.
2. Dragoons and commanded shot units, if not already within shooting distance of an enemy unit, will advance to harass infantry or advance to cover and harass cavalry.
3. Cavalry units, unless they have a terrain advantage, will charge other enemy cavalry within range.
4. Cavalry units that have come under attack from infantry will charge the infantry if the enemy infantry have taken 50 percent hits, else they will retire.
5. Infantry will hold their position.

During the shooting phase:

1. Artillery shoot at the nearest infantry or cavalry unit. They do not shoot at dragoons, commanded shot, or other artillery.
2. Dragoons and commanded shot units will shoot directly ahead at the closest enemy unit.
3. Infantry will shoot directly ahead at the closest enemy unit.

During the melee phase:

1. If a unit is permitted to pivot to face an enemy unit, or units, then face the greatest threat.

As I progress I will print out these lists and glue them to filing cards so I can easily select the card associated with the army status. 

Anyway, that is all for this post and there will be more in the next post about the Attack and Retire decision tables.