Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

I am trying to understand the rationale for why units in extended line cannot form square? Is it a game engine limitation or is is a design choice?

Lines formed into squares very quickly even if a large regiment or in two ranks.

Within the game, taking two turns or 30 minutes of game time to form square makes extended line a very poor choice if your opponent has cavalry.

Jagger,

In HPS Waterloo, and I just tried this to make sure, you can have a unit in extended line go into square.

I had a 900 man unit go into extended line on turn 1 then on turn 2 I clicked the extended line button which regrouped the bn into one hex and used 5 movement points. I then clicked on the square button, and the unit formed square using another 5 movement points.

To make very sure, I just did it with two other units, and that sequence of keystrokes worked each time.
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BTW you can come out of square (using 5 MPSs) and go into line (using 5 more MPs) in one turn as well.

Colonel (ret) Al Amos
1er Dragoons
AdN

Thanks Al. You are right. For some really dumb and unknown reason, I assumed we could only make one formation change per turn.

Jagger,

The HPS Napoleonic engine is hard-coded to use 1/2 the unit's mps to change formation. (Wish that would change.)

I have accidentally unlimbered and limbered a battery in one turn. [:D]

Colonel (ret) Al Amos
1er Dragoons
AdN

And here is something that some players may not know:

If in Square and you want to go into Line push the Change Square button on the toolbar.

If in Square and you want to go into Column then push the Change Line/Column button on the toolbar.

This for those that thought that there was a sequence that you had to go through to get into one formation or the other.

Its not one of those intuitive things. I cant find documentation on this. If anyone else does please copy the text and note which file it was found in and the heading of the page.

If noone finds anything in the Help files on this I will have John Tiller add it in. I also didn't see anything on the Square toolbar/menu selection in the Formation section of the User.hlp file.

Here is the section on Formations from the Movement page of the User.hlp file:

"Formation
Infantry units may move while either in Line, Column, or Square formation although movement is more efficient in Column. The formation of Infantry units may be changed using the Change Formation function of the Command Menu. Artillery units must be Limbered in order to move. Non-Horse Artillery cannot fire in the same turn that it unlimbers or changes facing. Formation changes are performed using the Change Formation function of the Command Menu. Cavalry and Leaders are always Mounted."

Nothing is said about the toolbar or about the above ability to pick the formation you want to go into from Square.

Oberst Wilhelm Peters
2nd Kuirassiers, Reserve Korps, Austrian Army
[url="http://www.acwgc.org/acwgc_members/burr/Austrian%20Army/Bill_Peters.htm"]Officer Battle Dossier[/url]