Bücher von Alexander Hay

From Muskets to Rifles... is based upon C'est la Guerre: Fast Play Wargame for the Age of Muskets. This system was designed to provide a fast yet satisfying game play, not necessarily a "realistic" simulation of battle recreation. Bases or 'Units' in the game do not represent a certain number of men or artillery pieces but are abstract representations of force. From Muskets to Rifles... uses* a simple command structure to manage battlefield movement without dealing with morale or having the players issue orders,* a troop grading system so that better trained more effective troops can have an advantage over poorly trained less effective troops, and* a method to account for casualties and losses without an overly complicated accounting system. At the beginning of the 19th Century European armies were mostly armed with smooth bore muzzle loading muskets and bronze smooth bore muzzle loading artillery. These armies fought in dense formations of infantry, and they relied upon the gallant cavalry charging in mass to break enemy lines. Not so very different from the weapons and methods used two hundred years before. By the end of the 19th Century we see the introduction of machine guns, breach loading and bolt action repeating rifles, metal cartridge ammunition, accurate and powerful rifled artillery, and even the occasional airplane flying through the skies. We also see the mass production and industrialization of warfare that made these new technologies cheap, uniform, and abundant. This period of dynamic change, between the age of the musket and the 'modern' mobile warfare we see today, began at some point after the end of the Napoleonic Wars and came to its culmination during World War I. So that will be how we define the time period of 19th Century Warfare' - 1820s to 1910s.

The goal of Ancient Elements RPG is to create an OSR set of rules that conforms to the Primary Fantasy SRD 3.5 while maintaining some of the character and simplicity of Microlite20 so that standard 3.5 adventures and settings can be used without too much conversion. REVIEW: A well-considered variant on Microlite20 tastefully curated with neat houserules (even Grappling!). The author has made effective choices throughout. Liked it so much I bought the print version elsewhere. Nice job Alexander. Will be using it over the Xmas break. (DriveThruRPG) Sean W. - 23 DECEMBER 2022

As the technology of war advanced the musket became the great equalizer. If your troops would fire, the enemy would incur casualties, regardless of whether your troops were the better trained or the more experienced. The effect of a thousand poorly trained, ill commanded troops firing into a block of men should not be ignored. Therefore a simple system was developed to account for a unit suffering losses.In ancient battles the general is more important in combat, but in modern battles the chain of command is more important. C'est la Guerre uses a simple command structure to manage battlefield movement.In addition there is troop grading so that better trained more effective troops can have an advantage, and poorly trained less effective troops are at a disadvantage.C'est la Guerre accounts for casualties and losses without going into an overly complicated accounting system, and provides for a command structure without dealing with morale or having the players issue orders.REVIEW:C'est la Guerre is an excellent rules set that provides enough flavor of the Horse and Musket period for a good game, without bogging one down in the details that can make a game tedious. Anyone familiar with DBA or its derivatives will be able to get into things quickly. Play is fast....My first opposed game, with a former DBA player, took about ninety minutes, playing twelve complete turns, while bringing him up to speed.Armies vary in size, based on quality and type of troops. My Seven Years War Prussians fielded fourteen units. The opposing Russian list had twenty. Most will fall somewhere in between. We played on a 4x3 foot table, using 25mm figures.After setting terrain, and determine which edge each player sets up from, both players roll to see who will go first. This is followed by rolling a d6 to see how many initiative points you work with. Various action cost you points...moving a unit, rallying a unit, etc. you can maximize you efforts by moving in lines or columns, or using a 'command group' based around your command unit. Distance from 'command' means that an action costs more.After movement, both sides engage in fire, followed by melee. combat involves opposed dice rolls, modified by factors based on unit type and quality Results range from 'no result' to 'push back', flee or destroyed'. casualties may occur, which will induce negative modifiers to the unit involved.Musketry range is very short, which is good and proper. Close in, trade volleys, and have at it with the bayonet. The real challenge is moving into position to do some damage with the enemy trying to break your formations with artillery and skirmishing cavalry.Lists are provided for the major wars of the 18th Century, including the the Great Northern War, the Wars of Marlborough, the Jacobite Rebellion, the Seven Years War, the French and Indian War, and the American Revolution, and there is a Napoleonic List as well. By using the 'rifle ranges' included, I see no reason these rules could not be pushed to handle the Crimean War and US Civil War as well.I have found these rules to provide an enjoyable game, either solitaire, or face-to-face , and hope their will be an expansion for campaigns, which could be played over a course of several get togethers. Some lists for the French and English in India would also be most welcome.A fine value, every club should have a copy. (Steven P.)