Little Wars

At least eight cavalry in formation must charge. Against extended-order infantry from over two feet, cavalry lose one per five infantry and infantry lose one per sabre, improving to three per sabre under one foot; against close-order infantry the ratios reverse. Equal cavalry-vs-cavalry on level ground is a coin toss, the loser losing three-quarters and retiring.

If the charge starts at a distance of more than two feet, the cavalry loses one man for every five infantry-men charged, and the infantry loses one man for each sabre charging.

Each player has two strings, two feet and six inches long. Infantry move a foot or less, cavalry two feet or less. A gun moves with its crew: two feet if at least four cavalry accompany it, otherwise one foot.

An infantry-man may be moved a foot or any less distance at each move. (II) A cavalry-man may be moved two feet or any less distance at each move.

Infantry change from fours to two ranks or to extension in half a move; cavalry change formation in half a move and mount or dismount in one; artillery limber or unlimber in half a move. No arm can fire and move in one move.

To change from fours to two ranks = half a move. To change from two ranks to extension = half a move.

In the movement-cost table for infantry, boarding boats takes two moves for every twenty men embarked and landing takes one move for every twenty men. Moves are spent from the unit's normal movement allowance. Transport and supply wagons have their own slower road rates in the same section.

To embark into boats = two moves for every twenty men embarked at any point. To disembark = one move for every twenty men.

Prisoners are disarmed and may be moved by the captor; one man within six inches can escort up to seven. Killing the escort liberates prisoners, who must return to their own back line to rearm before fighting again. Prisoners count toward scoring for both sides.

Prisoners may be sent under escort to the rear or wherever the capturer directs, and one man within six inches of any number of prisoners up to seven can escort these prisoners

A gun is captured when no man of its side is within six inches and at least four enemy men have moved up and passed its wheel axis in the direction of attack. Until then it is disputed and cannot fire or move. A captured gun then follows all the rules of the captor's own guns.

A gun is captured when there is no man whatever of its original side within six inches of it, and when at least four men of the antagonist side have moved up to it and have passed its wheel axis

Every six moves players surrender one packet of food per thirty men, forage per six horses, and ammunition per thirty infantry that fired for six consecutive moves, which must be within six feet of infantry or eighteen of cavalry. Unsupplied troops are out of action after six moves, infantry without ammunition cannot fire, and surrounded forces surrender four moves after eating their last horse. The extensions also suggest one supply wagon per fifty men within six moves.

The players must give up, every six moves, one packet of food per thirty men; one packet of forage per six horses; one packet of ammunition per thirty infantry which fire for six consecutive moves.

Destroying a railway bridge takes R.E. two moves and repairing it ten; culverts and road bridges one move to destroy and five to repair. Two men lay a contact mine in six moves that destroys everything within six inches; infantry entrench in four moves at two men per inch. Commencement of works is noted to an umpire or in a sealed note.

To destroy a railway bridge R.E. take two moves; to repair, R.E. take ten moves.

A gun in action may fire up to four shots per move, being swung, elevated and aimed by hand. Men knocked over or made to lean so they would fall are dead; a shot that touches but does not topple a man kills him only if it has not already killed one; ricochets and rolling shots also kill. The gun must be left pointing in the direction of its last shot.

When men are knocked over by a shot they are dead, and as many men are dead as a shot knocks over or causes to fall or to lean so that they would fall if unsupported.

A brass screw in the muzzle flies and stays where it falls; half (rounding up) of the men within three inches are dead, a gun wholly inside the radius is destroyed and one partly inside disabled for two moves. Men behind a wall, house or entrenchment are unharmed. Rifle fire is simulated by one shot per five stationary infantry in line.

Half, or, in the case of an odd number, one more than half, of the men within three inches of this shell are dead

A gun is in action only if at least four men of its own side are within six inches; otherwise it can neither move nor fire. It may move or fire in a move but not both. After firing two men must be placed at the end of its trail, and when moved it is placed trail forward and four men must move with it.

A gun is in action if there are at least four men of its own side within six inches of it. If there are not at least four men within that distance, it can neither be moved nor fired.

Time per move is about one minute per 30 men plus one minute per gun (e.g. 7 minutes for 110 men and 3 guns), reduced as the battle progresses. The mover waits a yard behind his back line until 'Go' and must stop instantly at 'Time', with warnings at two minutes, one minute and thirty seconds. An interval of four or five minutes follows for tidying and consideration.

He then proceeds to make his move until time is up. He must instantly stop at the cry of "Time."

A player must move or fire his guns before moving his men, with no exceptions. Melees are then adjudicated after the move is over, in extra time between moves.

In making his move a player must move or fire his guns if he wants to do so, before moving his men. To this rule of "Guns First" there is to be no exception.

After the Country is made and sides chosen, players toss for the first move and put down their men along their back lines. Thereafter each player in turn moves every soldier and moves or fires every gun. Guns may not fire before the first player's second move.

We arranged to move in alternate moves: first one moved all his force and then the other

At the end of a move, men in contact plus all within six inches form a melee. Equal numbers: all on both sides die. Unequal: if the smaller force is not isolated, each of its men kills one enemy and dies; if isolated, the forces kill man for man until one is double the other, and the remainder become prisoners (nine against eleven gives seven dead each side and two prisoners). The charging player chooses which men die or are captured.

If they are equal, all the men on both sides are killed.

A body is isolated if it has fewer than half its own number of friendly men within a move of it; otherwise it is supported. Supported inferior forces trade man for man; isolated ones lose prisoners. Isolated bodies may also surrender at any time.

A man or a body of men which has less than half its own number of men on its own side within a move of it, is said to be isolated.

Fight to the Finish scores 100 for victory, 10 per gun, 1.5 per cavalryman, 1 per infantryman, 0.5 per own man held prisoner and 0.5 per prisoner taken; drawn if both fall below fifteen men. Blow at the Rear is won when three men reach the enemy back line, forcing a six-move retreat. The Defensive Game pits a two-thirds strength defender against an attacker who must reach the back line with a quarter of his strength.

you score 100 for the victory, and 10 for every gun you hold or are in a position to take, 1-1/2 for every cavalry-man, 1 for every infantry-man still alive and uncaptured

Each player should handle about a hundred men and three guns; with teams one could have a general controlling the campaign with divisional commanders. The Kriegspiel appendix envisages each arm entrusted to a particular player.

with a team of players and an extensive country, one could have a general controlling the whole campaign, divisional commanders, batteries of guns, specialised brigades

With a curtain both players deploy simultaneously unseen. In the extensions, soldiers stay in lidded boxes moved as units at double or treble move rates behind cavalry scouts; a box's contents must be revealed when an enemy scout comes within ten feet, and boxes may be dummies or skeleton forces.

keeping the soldiers in their boxes with the lids on, and moving the boxes as units. (This boxing idea is a new one, and affords a very good substitute for the curtain

Casualties are individual figures toppled by shot or allocated in melee. There is no wound or morale system; forces simply dwindle until victory, a draw under fifteen men each, or surrender.

When men are knocked over by a shot they are dead

The core rules use no randomiser apart from coin tosses for set-up and first move. Shooting outcomes come from the physical behaviour of toy projectiles; melee from comparing numbers. Dice appear only in an optional handicap and the appendix uses a coin toss for equal cavalry clashes.

Either the numbers taking part in the melee on each side are equal or unequal.

The Country is arranged by one player chosen by coin toss, and the other then chooses which side to fight from. It must be disturbed as little as possible, nothing may be moved to aid gunfire, and accidental disturbances are restored after the move.

The Country must be arranged by one player, who, failing any other agreement, shall be selected by the toss of a coin. (2) The other player shall then choose which side of the field he will fight from.

Recommended proportions are 20-25 infantry and 12-15 cavalry per gun. One variant has each player pick 150 points secretly behind a curtain, counting infantry 1, cavalry 1.5 and guns 10. A handicap option dices for 12 reserved men per side.

he counted infantry as 1 each, cavalry as 1-1/2, and a gun as 10, and, taking whatever he liked in whatever position he liked, he made up a total of 150.