Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

I realize for most members it is not practical to travel to Lancaster, Pa, but if you are in the area and have some time it might be if interest.

Want to see 10,000 28mm Napoleonic Figures fight it out on a table top. Then Lancaster, Pa is the place on December 1-4, 2005. The scenario will be Austerlitz.

All the details follow, and if you want to play, you need to sign up, but if you (and a guest) want to go and see the event, the coordinator, Pete Panzeri has extended an offer for free admission. Just identify yourself as a member of the email gaming group and if there is a problem ask for Pete, and if he should forget his offer mention my name to him. If you plan to go make a short reply to this, so I can let him know how many he might expect.

Pete is a regular military officer, and among other things the co-author of the Osprey Book on Little Big Horn. His wife, Jodie, runs a small gaming business, hence the reference to Jodiecon in the web address. I met them while they were stationed at Fort Monmouth, NJ teaching at what is locally called West Point Prep. I participated in two weekend extravaganzas there -- Gettysburg and Battle of Monmouth. Pete puts on a great event and his figures are outstanding.

The details are attached and there is more info at the web site.

.........................

If you missed Borodino'02, now is your chance.

AUSTERLITZ 2005

Go to www.JodieCon.org
and register fully to reserve your preferred player slot. (Please
don't delay. Austerlitz is smaller than Borodino and spots are going
fast.) Full Event information is below.

OR

If you just want to EXPERIENCE the CAMARADERIE, Napoleonic
Conference, side games, and vendors, but not the main Austerlitz
Wargame, then simply pre-register for just the 200th Anniversary
Conference (but be sure to order your Austerlitz Polo Shirt in
advance!)

Please pass this on to those who'll want to know.

"PLAY THE GAME!"

Pete & Jodie Panzeri
"PLAY UP! PLAY UP! AND PLAY THE GAME!"
MOTTO 50th US Infantry Regiment (VITA LAMPATA by Sir Henry Newbolt)


///////////////////////////////////paste////////////////////////////

Austerlitz 200th Anniversary Commemoration
Wargame and Historical Conference
1 - 4 December 2005
www.JODIECON.org
Lancaster Host Resort & Conference Center, Lancaster, PA 800-233-0121

* AUSTERLITZ'05 WARGAME SCENARIO:
Over 10,000 28mm OLD GLORY Figures
Carnage & Glory Onsite GM team by game designer Nigel Marsh
* Austerlitz'05 embroidered polo shirt & commemoration mementoes

* Austerlitz'05 Napoleonic Conference
* Napoleonic boardgame and Napoleonic miniatures Demo Games
* Exhibitor/vendor program
* Sunday Awards Brunch Program


TWO VERY IMPORTANT NOTES:

1. The AUSTERLITZ WARGAME starts at 7 p.m. THURSDAY 1 DEC and will
end
before noon on Sunday 4 DEC.

2. We URGE all Austerlitz'05 participants to PLEASE stay (with us) in
the Lancaster Host hotel. Your room-nights support the program, and
your proximity to the Austerlitz program is critical to event
success.

////////// REGISTRATION FORM //////////////////////

Register online at www.JODIECON.org or send form and check to:

JODIECON, 280 North High St. Suite 230, Columbus, OH 43215

* 4-DAY SCENARIO: $100 ____
* 4-DAY NON-SCENARIO/Conference: $20 ____
* 1-Day Non-scenario: $10 ____
* Exhibitor Badge & 12'x 12' Booth: $50 ____
Polo Shirt Size M, L XL. (2XL & 3XL add $3 & $4)
Each extra shirt $20 ____

TOTAL: $ _____


NOTE: AUSTERLITZ 2005 registration does not include Hotel
Accommodations. For Reservations contact the Lancaster Host at
717-299-8880. Be sure to request the "JodieCon Conference" rate $89
(1-4 occupants). If the associate does not recognize "JodieCon" just
mention "HMGS."

NAME:
EMAIL:

PHONE:
ADDRESS:


ARMY PREFERENCE
(Cite 1st & 2nd Choice. Your Polo will be in your Army Color:
Blue/Green/White]:
French ___ Russian ____ Austrian ____ No-Preference ____

Specific General:
Alternate:
[see player slots at www.jodiecon.org]


///////////////end///////////////////////////



Brigadier Sir Bob Breen KT

1st (The King's) Dragoon Guards
Commanding 71st Highlanders
Commandant, RMA

Are the rules Carnage and Glory? (guessing based on your post)

Looked at the pics from past Austerlitz battle. Looked on the small side. Was that just a small portion of the battle?

Bill Peters

[url="http://www.fireandmelee.net"]Fire and Melee Wargame site[/url]

<i>Orginally psoted by Bill Peters

Are the rules Carnage and Glory? (guessing based on your post)

Looked at the pics from past Austerlitz battle. Looked on the small side. Was that just a small portion of the battle?</i>

...........................

I'll take a crack at the two topics.

Carnage and Glory are the rules to be used. These were also the same rules used in the recent Antietam Miniatures event -- posted at the ACW club. It is a computer driven rules system in that all the unit record keeping is done in the PC not by removing figures from the table or using casualty caps/rings. (Note: having the PC keep track of unit info does sound familiar, doesn't it). I don't know exactly how the rules work, but my sense is that they are "similar" to the HPS games in that things are done in phases and unit results are immediate, but only the owner learns certain results such as how many men were lost if you are fired upon. I think the rules have been around for about 6-8 years.

The pictures of the previous Austerlitz event appear to have been held at Fort Monmouth. Those events had about 20-25 participants and there were probably two 6x15 tables. I also don't know if they used 15mm or 25 mm figures. The two events I attended at Fort Monmouth used 15mm and I know the recent events have used the larger 25mm figures.

The Borodino event had around 125 players and 750 sq ft of table top gaming terrain.

It looks like Austerlitz is set up for around 60 players.

I also can't recall if there was a previous notice about this, but given that only two commands are indicated as taken on the web site, I assume it is coming together quickly. But the guy organizing this and some of the others have done big games many times, so I would expect it to come off successfully.



Brigadier Sir Bob Breen KT

1st (The King's) Dragoon Guards
Commanding 71st Highlanders
Commandant, RMA

Sounds like alot of fun. The largest group I have played in was about 16-20 players. Weekend battles at a local game shop when I lived in LA.

Bill Peters

[url="http://www.fireandmelee.net"]Fire and Melee Wargame site[/url]

Carnage & Glory II is by far my favorite tactical Napoleonic rule set.

It is incredibly nice not to have to worry about such things as casualties or casualty caps. All the minis have to be is based the same way. The computer keeps track of everything.

See more about it here : http://home.att.net/~npmarsh/

Cheers,
Rick

Lieutenant Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord

Hopefully, people see the connection between playing with figures on the tabletop and using a PC to keep track of all the details as very similar to playing the HPS games in the 3-D mode.

If you recall in the first Star Wars moving they had a 3D holographic chess game. That is not completely movie technology. When they figure out how to replace the computer screen with holographic projector, we will all be playing with 10,000+ figures on a tabletop -- and we won't have to worry about painting them or putting them away! Of course at that point other games also gain new appeal [:)]



Brigadier Sir Bob Breen KT

1st (The King's) Dragoon Guards
Commanding 71st Highlanders
Commandant, RMA

While that may be so, the appeal of painting miniatures as a meditative experience will never go away, IMHO. The holographic game would be a new appeal for sure --and it should attract more folks to the hobby.

Yet it is something truly special studying uniforms and organizations along with unit histories... Put on some mood music with the world compartmentalized away from you and you're having some great Napoleonic fun.

When its all computerized, you have to rely on the research (or lack of) -of others. Some of which leaves a lot to be desired. French Ligne units with Legere uniforms or Prussian light infantry with Prussian line infantry uniforms comes to mind.

I'll buy the hologram games and enjoy them a lot, but I doubt that I'll ever give up miniatures. Its too much fun. Besides, with natural light and a good rule set, you can game with them even when there is a power outage. Try that with an HPS game and see how far you get. [;)]

Right now, we have <b><font color="orange">Les Grognards</font id="orange"></b> with its 3D Napoleonic battlefield on the horizon. (I dare say that it will be the closest we will get to the Star Wars thing for at least a little while.)

Lieutenant Colonel Rick Motko
1er Bataillon, 33° Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne
2eme Brigade, 11eme division
IIIe corps, Armée du Nord

my own experience is that there are many similarities among those that play historical games in different formats. Topics I would put in the "common" category include an interest in learning about the actual historical event and a willingness to discuss the "best rules" to represent the historical flavor of any period or engagement. At the mini events I attend, I think 10-15% of the flea market sellers and vendors are associated with books and other historical reference material. You can also use material from one format for others -- in particular HPS scenarios can be used to set up tabletop games.

Among the miniature players (as well as diorama builders) there tends to be more of an interest in uniform research, although that also occurs with modifications to the PC games.

There is also something very appealing to being around a terrained table top and interacting directly with others. It's also much easier to "explain" what is going on to those who are new to the hobby. And if you have children, it's can be a way to get them involved historical gaming.

On the other hand, miniature games require a significant commitment of time and space, and they can be slow moving.

As technology evolves the various formats can also change in their appeal. I have found it relatively easy to use the PC to create some large counters (printed graphics on cardboard or wood) with the foot print of miniatures and use them to try out a new set of table top rules or a new era. In particular it works well for naval games. There is also a site that does this for mulitple periods -- http://www.juniorgeneral.org/index.html

A large hex tablecloth and some oversized counters can also transform a board game into a "larger" experience. I've painted a race track on poster board and played Formula DE with Matchbox cars.

So the boundaries between boardgames, miniatures and PC games continues to evolve.

Brigadier Sir Bob Breen KT

1st (The King's) Dragoon Guards
Commanding 71st Highlanders
Commandant, RMA