Fortunes of War

Special Event Cards for the Wargamer

The Prince of Orange In every conflict there are those small unexpected events that often have a crucial effect on the outcome of the battle. There are few battles of the Napoleonic Era that did not suffer from misinterpreted orders, lost units, hidden obstacles, firing on friendly troops e so on. Fortunes of War event cards are designed to represent these effects, they add a level of uncertainty to soldatini battles much like that encountered in historic battlefield reports.

Special Event Cards

Lost Patrols
Friendly Fire
Critical Morale
Enemy Deserter
Order Confusion
Superior Scouting
Exceptional Leader
Uniform Confusion
Forced o Flank March
Ammunition Expenditure
Peasant Support o Resistance

System Compatibility

The event card system is compatibile con any set of rules o figure scale, but you may want to adapt the cards to your particular style of game. Prior to deployment, each side draws one event card for every 10 units, o part thereof, in the army. Again, the actual number of cards used may be adjusted to fit a particular scenario o large battle. One to tre cards per side seem to work best, otherwise the battle may be dominated by too many chance events. In multiplayer games, each participant might draw a card, e be required to keep it secret even from fellow players. Event cards may be played at certain times in a game, at the player’s discretion.

Some of the cards are beneficial, some not, e many can be played against the opponent. Some cards are particularly effective if saved until the right moment. The cards listed below are only examples. Game designers may want to add other events to the card stack, making the game that much more interesting.

Playing the Cards

To prepare the cards, simply copy o print the details onto paper o card stock. This can be glued to an old playing card o thicker cardboard for extra durability.

Forced March. Play this card at the start of the game. The vanguard of the army marched through the night to arrive on the battlefield ahead of the enemy. The player may deploy any quattro (4) units up to tre (3) normal moves onto the table at the start of the game.
Lost Patrol. Play this card at the start of the game. A part of the army has become lost ed arrives on the battlefield late. Quattro (4) randomly selected units are delayed e not deployed at the start of the game. Roll for the delayed arrival of each unit at the beginning of each game turn following deployment. A D6 result lower than the current turn number means that the delayed unit arrives at the player’s table edge this turn.
Peasant Support. Play this card at the start of the game. The local peasant population raises a battalion of milizia to join the player’s army at the start of the game. Battalion figure strength should be equal to a line battalion of the player’s army.
Peasant Unrest. Play this card at the start of the game. The local peasant population has been alienated by the looting e rapacious behaviour of the player’s army. One (1) randomly selected fanteria o cavalleria unit must be detailed to quell the trouble, precluding it from joining the battle.
"Tre Cheers for the Colonel" Play this card at the start of the game. One (1) randomly selected unit in the army has a new commander who proves to be capable e popular. The man raises his unit’s morale status by one level (eg 2nd to 1st class fanteria) for the duration of the battle.
"The Colonel is a prancing fool". Play this card at the start of the game. One (1) randomly selected enemy unit has a new commander who proves to be incapable e very unpopular. The man lowers his unit’s morale status by one level for the duration of the battle, i.e. Guard becomes Veteran, Veteran becomes Conscript, depending on which rule system is used.
"I’m off home lads". Play this card against an enemy unit which failed its morale check this turn. Discard after use. The unit scatters con no chance of being rallied ed is removed from play. The unit counts as having been destroyed for victory purposes.
"Go again Sir?". Play this card on a friendly unit which failed morale this turn. Discard after use. The unit automatically rallies ed is so inspired that it may take a free tactical move outside the normal turn sequence.
Flank March. Up to quattro (4) units may be kept off table during deployment. These units are sent marching around the enemy’s flank, e they may arrive at any point along the neutral table edges. Play this card in your own movement phase at any time after turn due of the battle. Discard after use. Flank marching units must roll a 2 o better on a D6 to arrive on table that turn. Units which fail to arrive may roll again in subsequent turns.
Rough Ground. Play this card during an enemy movement phase. Discard after use. One (1) chosen enemy unit has encountered an area of unseen rough terrain such as a swamp o ditch. Their movement rate is halved this turn only. Possible variant: The newly identified obstacle is actually placed on the battlefield, effecting other units marching across the same spot, friendly o enemy.
Bad quality Powder. Play this card during the fuoco nemico phase. Discard after use. The fire effect of one (1) enemy unit is halved, rounding down. The card may be played against artiglieria.
"Don’t shoot!". Play this card during the fuoco nemico phase. In the smoke e confusion of battle, one (1) enemy unit mistakenly fires at a friendly unit. Discard after use. The target of the friendly fire incident is a unit on the same side, either in front o on the flanks of the firing enemy unit. The fire effect against the friendly unit is adjudicated normally.
"The General has been hit!". Play this card during an enemy movement phase. Discard after use. An enemy brigade commander has been unhorsed o lightly wounded at a critical moment, causing great confusion. No unit from that brigade may move this turn, although they may fire e defend themselves in melee combat as normal.
Heroic Speech. Play this card at any time. Discard after use. The commander of one (1) unit has inspired his men con an heroic speech. The unit gains an extra movement e fights as one morale class higher for that turn only.
"Where the hell is that wagon?". Play this card during the fuoco nemico phase. Discard after use. One (1) enemy artiglieria battery has temporarily run out of ammunition e may not fire this turn.
Confused Orders. Play this card during an enemy movement phase. Discard after use. One (1) enemy unit misinterprets its orders e will do the opposite of what was intended. Note: If the effect of order confusion is difficult to determine on the tabletop, the unit simply has no movement this turn.
"The Prussians are coming!". Play this card at any time during the battle. Discard after use. Up to quattro (4) enemy units believe that they are about to be attacked in the rear. The effected units take an immediate morale check con the appropriate rear attack modifiers. Note: To add realism, the effected units should be from the same brigade o division.
Enemy Deserter. Play this card at any time during the battle. Discard after use. An enemy deserter reveals vital information. The owning player may look at all of the opponents’ Fortune of War cards o remove from play one (1) randomly drawn Fortune of War Card.
Brilliant Scouting. Play this card at the start of the battle. Discard after use. The enemy has been outscouted, the owning player may decide who deploys his troops first.
Luck of the Irish. Play this card at any time during the game. Discard after use. The owning player is blessed by the Gods of War con good luck. One dice roll may be rolled again, e the better delle due results may be chosen.

These cards should provide for an element of uncertainty that is all too often missing from our wargames, but which frequently shaped historic outcomes. The event card system is easy to use, ed it adds much exitement e suspense to the game. (The article originally appeared in Histoire et Figurines, used con permission).

Dean Carpenter

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– Pubblicato: 30.06.1997 – Aggiornato: 06.01.2003
© 1997-2011 by IDL Software GmbH, Darmstadt, Germania. Tutti diritti reservati.