Each turn represents the activity of 1 day, and 1 inch represents 100 yds, though this ground scale can be varied depending on the forces available. These amendments give all distances in yds.

If the siege is part of a campaign then the make-up of the forces involved will be determined by the circumstances of the campaign. Any Cavalry included in the defenders forces are treated as described below.

For each bastion depicted on the table the Defender gets:

1 unit of engineers (including sappers and miners)

2 units of heavy guns;

2 units of foot.

The foot will be of a typical type, and units will be in a typical proportion, for the nation concerned.

If enough units of foot are present then the Defender will also receive units of medium guns in the correct proportion for the nation concerned. E.g. GNW Swedes might get 1 x unit of guns per 4 units of foot, while GNW Russians might get 1 unit per 4 units of foot.

In addition the Defender receives an Officer of a typical type as C-in-C. (Other officers may be present if a campaign is being waged)

For each Bastion depicted on the table the Besieger gets:

6 units of foot (of a type appropriate to, and in proportion for, the nation concerned);

2 units of cavalry (of a type appropriate to, and in proportion for, the nation concerned);

units of medium guns in proportion for the nation concerned;

In addition the Besieger receives an Officer of a typical type as C-in-C. (Other officers may be present if a campaign is being waged)

A Siege Train attached to the besieger (or the defender if the campaign allows) is made up of:

4 units of engineers (sappers and miners).

4 units of heavy guns;

4 units of siege mortars;

The besieger (and the defender, in a campaign where he has them) may dismount cavalry as follows:

Dragoons dismount as regular foot with the strength of the original mounted unit, but firing as Irregular muskets;

Other cavalry dismount as regular foot with the strength of the original unit, but firing as obsolete weapons.

Mortars are treated as heavy guns but cannot fire at short range or long range. Hence they can only target troops between 800 - 1600 yds away. They do not require a direct line of sight to the target, as they fire high trajectory shells over intervening obstacles. They may fire over troops or terrain on the same or higher level, providing friends are not within 200yds of the target or firers. The target counts as obscured if it is not in direct line of sight. Mortars ignore 1 point of cover because of the high trajectory.

Engineers are treated as a single base of foot, with a strength of 1d6. Engineers may not fire and if they lose a melee while not in contact with a friendly unit, will be lost automatically. If in contact with a friendly unit, then they are treated as part of that unit for morale etc. If the unit it is with gets a "*" result, then the engineers lose 1 strength point. Engineers are required to allow foot to construct trenches, mines etc.

The fortress is placed by the defender (usually on the short edge of the table) and no terrain can be rolled for in any 2' square of the table it occupies, not any 2' square of tabel adjacent (either linearly or diagonally) to those it occupies. Terrain is rolled for as normal for the rest of the table sections and placed by the defender. If a stream is rolled it is not placed, but the 'ditch' of the fortress is made 'wet' as the stream will have been diverted into the fortress to provide water and aid in its defence.

Terrain plays little part in the game, other than as a source of 'forage' for the besieger, or if a relief army arrives during a campaign game.

The glossary below should explain all the terms used in these amendments.

The attached 'fortress section' illustrates the typical structure of a fortress of the time.

All units are assumed to be in deployed formation throughout the siege. No limbers are placed on the table during the game.

The Defender must deploy within the boundary of the covered way, or that portion of it depicted on the table.

Heavy guns/mortars must be placed in a Bastion and may not be moved during the game;

Medium guns may be placed in a Ravelin, on the Curtain Wall, or in the Town and may be moved during the game;

Foot (and any battalion guns) may be deployed on the Covered Way, in the Ditch (if it is dry); in a Bastion, in a Ravelin; on the Curtain Wall, or in the Town;

Engineers may be deployed as foot;

Mounted cavalry may only be placed in the Town.

The capacity of different parts of the fortress are described below:

A Bastion may hold 2 units of heavy guns/mortars and a unit if foot;

A Ravelin may hold 1 unit of guns and 1 unit of foot;

A section of the Covered Way may holds 1 unit of foot and any battalion guns;

A section of the Curtain Wall may hold 1 unit of guns and 1 unit of foot;

The town houses any remaining units held in reserve by the Defender.

The Besieger deploys beyond the maximum range of the fortress guns (3200yds), though for a quicker game it can be determined that the defender is short of ammunition and so only employs his guns at Medium range. In this case the besieger deploys beyond that range.

Foot are laid out in a shallow arc so that each is 3200yds from the covered way. A line of field works is laid out immediately outside this ring of troops to represent the 'lines if circumvallation'. These will serve as permanent field defences (cover =1) should a relief force arrive as part of a campaign;

All horse are placed outside these lines (unless dismounted, in which case they take their place among the foot) where thay are assumed to be employed foraging for materials and supplies. These materials will be essential to progressing the approaches;

All guns and engineers are placed with the foot.

The Defender is assumed to have 'Hold' orders for the purposes of morale etc., though units involved in a 'Sortie' are assumed to have been given 'Attack' orders.

The Besieger is assumed to have 'Attack' orders for the purposes of morale etc., and during any 'Assault'.

The Beseiger always takes the first bound, with turns then alternating between him and the Defender.

Replacement (only for turns 1 to 14)

Forage/Clearing obstacles (Besieger bounds only)

Relief (Defender bounds only)

Sortie (Defender bounds) or Assault (Besieger bounds)

Firing

Entrenchment

Repair

Movement

Mine/Countermine (Besieger bounds only)

Any Defending units in the Town and any Besieging units in the lines of circumvallation regain 1 strength point. This can continue until the unit is at full strength if the unit remains in these areas for enough turns.

This replacement only takes place for the first 16 turns of any game. After this time any reserves or medical interventions are judged to have been exhausted.

Any units currently shaken are automatically rallied wherever they are on the table.

Every unit of cavalry not dismounted is assumed to forage for materials for construction of the approaches etc. The number of units of foraging x 2 is the maximum number of new trench sections that can be laid out later in the turn.

Every unit of engineers deployed in any wooded or built-up terrain adds 1d6 to the number of new trench sections that may be constructed, though after 12 turns the terrain piece must be removed opening up new fields of fire. Engineers employed in this way may be targeted by the fortress unless attached to a foot unit.

The material for trench sections can be accumulated from turn to turn if the players have no objection to keeping records.

This is only an issue in a campaign game where the relief army moves to aid the besieged.

There is no requirement for either player to announce a sortie or assault during a turn.

A sortie is an effort by the Defender to disrupt the activity of the besieger by attacking the approaches.

An assault is an attack by the besieger on a strategic location, usually on, or inside, the covered way. Both are typical PoW engagements lasting no more than 5 turns, during which the siege sequence is suspended and the usual rules for firing, initiative etc. are applied, with one or two modifications.

Sorties/Assaults occur at night or when the weather reduces visibility, so once one is announced visibility/line of sight is reduced to 400 yds. As the visibility has similar effects on both sides, the PoW effects of Dusk/Dawn on Initiative are ignored.

Any Sortie/Assault generates an officer to command it whose characteristics are randomly determined. At the end of the attack he merges back into the army to be randomly characterised again at the start of any future attack. This officer is placed anywhere the player wishes to begin the attack and then moves as normal.

This officer rolls 1d6 to determine how many bounds he may take before the enemy discovers the attack and surprise is lost. However, if a unit contacts or fires upon an enemy unit then surprise is lost and the sequence of alternating bounds begins as in PoW.

Units employed in the attack begin from their current locations where, presumably, they have been massed during the previous turn, and move during the Sortie/Assault according to normal PoW initiative and movement rules. However, where they occupy trenches or defences and are therefore not in base contact with one another, they may still be moved as a group during the first bound, so long as no unit moves further than its deployed movement distance and they end the turn in a group formation or in adjacent trench/defence sections.

Movement is according to normal PoW rules, but is limited to S2 once the Glacis is reached. A 'wet ditch' counts as S3 for any unit (of either side) during a sortie/assault, though the defender can move from the covered way to a ravelin or bastion; or from a ravelin to the curtain wall via raised walkways that allow normal rates of movement. These walkways are easily withdrawn or destroyed so an attacker can never use them.

This is blocked by any trench it passes through, but not by the fortress parapets of the covered way, a bastion or ravelin, or the curtain wall. Both trenches and parapets stop any overshoot, units in these defences may be fired at, but there is no overshoot beyond them.

Units in the ditch may only be fired on by other units in the ditch, in a ravelin or bastion, or on the curtain wall, which have a line of sight.

Foot do not get the benefit of enfilading fire, however, they may fire at units in adjoining trench/parapet sections from the side, irrespective of facing. Any unit would have the choice of firing out of its front face as normal or firing out of its side face at such a target. This fire is conducted as skirmish fire, given the smaller numbers of troops involved.

Retirements from fire along a trench/parapet is always away from the enemy along the trench line. Troops only retire out of the trench if attacked from the front/rear, or run out of trenches, at ahich point they retire towards the 1^st parallel.

The end of any sortie/assault can be declared by the player who began it, but the enemy need not halt if he thinks he has gained the upper hand. A sortie could lead to an all out assault on the fortification if the besieger sees an opportunity. However, such an assault is unlikely to succeed unless the C-in-C moves up to the fighting and brings his initiative to bear on the battle necessary. This must be achieved by use of initiative to move the C-in-C from the 1^st parallel along saps and parallels to the fighting. If the trenches are damaged then he may not reach the fighting.

If the players agree to a cease fire then units move directly away from any enemy until they are 200 yds apart. If a foot unit is still in this location during the entrenchment phase of the next bound (not the one in which the sortie/assault took place), then they my place a trench section where they stand, even if that is not continuous with an existing trench section.

Fire is conducted much as in PoW but with some modifications.

Range and line of sight is determined from the middle of the section of wall the unit is defending, not from the centre of the unit's base. In the case of a Bastion or Ravelin, either face/flank of the structure can be fired from in this way, though only 1 unit can fire from any one face/flank of a bastion, even if two units are deployed there.

As above.

Artillery fire occurs first. Battalion guns are not fired until their parent unit fires (below), but medium and heavy guns and mortars fire at this stage. Medium guns must target enemy units, but heavy guns or mortars may target either enemy units, or the fortress defences to cause a breach.

Troops on the covered way, in a bastion or ravelin, or on the curtain wall gain 2 points of cover.

Troops in trenches gain 1 point of cover.

Damage to trenches: Any 6 rolled for the d6 casualty result due to fire on units in a trench causes one section of trench in the target group to be destroyed. The same is true of an empty trench section

Enfilading Fire: This is fire which runs down the length of a trench or parapet without touching either side. Any unit targeted by enfilading fire counts as formed (1R).

The covered way and the ditch cannot be breached by fire, they must be taken by assault, progressive entrenchment which cross them, or destroyed by a mine. Each face/flank of a bastion or ravelin and section of curtain wall begins with 15 strength points. These are eroded by fire as if they were a unit. When targeted the firing unit (or group) gets 2R for casualty calculation (the walls are, after all, immobile sitting ducks!)

When a section reaches zero strength it is judged as a 'practicable breach' up which enemy units can move as if clear terrain, and which confers no effective cover to defending units. A successful breach usually resulted in the defender seeking 'surrender with honour'.

Musket (and battalion gun) fire follows artillery fire and is carried out just as in PoW. It has no effect on fortress defences.

Fire along trenches/parapets As above but retirements are as below.

Any unit suffering casualties must test morale as in PoW with the following modifications (these modifications also apply to morale tests taken during a sortie/assault):

Steady regular foot in adjoining trench or fortress sections get +1 for each flank adjoining;

Artillery in a section of trench/fortification adjoining steady friends get +2 for each flank adjoining.

Morale results (these do not apply to morale tests during sortie/assault)

Steady - as in PoW

Shaken - as in PoW

Retire shaken - the unit will immediately retire to the parallel further from the fortress if there is room there. Otherwise it moves to the next parallel out or the lines of circumvallation. The unit also loses 1 strength point to desertion.

Rout - as for 'Retire shaken', but the unit also loses half it's current strength points as deserters slip out into the country-side, away from the siege.

Trenches comprise:

Parallels arranged to parallel the fortress defences. There are typically 3 parallels termed 1^st, 2^nd & 3^rd, each progressively closer to the fortress, the 3^rd located close enough to the covered way to allow an assault on it.

Saps connecting the successive parallels and running at right angles to the fortress defences, though they invariably zig-zag to deny the defender enfilading fire (see below).

Batteries built at the end of (usually) short saps which are the only place, other than a bastion or the lines of circumvallation, from which Heavy guns and Mortars can be fired.

Counter-approaches dug by the defender, starting from the covered way, as a means of trying to out-flank the besieger's works, or otherwise disrupt them.

All trench sections are the same length as the frontage of a deployed foot unit and deep enough to accommodate it. Batteries are deeper to allow units of artillery to fit. As many artillery units may be placed in a battery as will fit in the frontage of a foot unit.

Trenches are laid out beneath any troops that have remained in place since their previous movement phase and did not take part in a sortie/assault. If a unit retreats or routs from a line intended to form a trench during a previous phase, then the line is contracted so that the trench sections will remain continuous. The movement required to do this is done immediately a unit deserts the line and costs no initiative.

Batteries require two foot units to be placed one immediately behind the other, but they still count as a deployed target if fired upon. If either unit retires from the line then the battery cannot be completed. Batteries also require the equivalent foraged material to two trench sections to build.

Saps cannot be built from the face of a battery once it is completed, though a parallel can be built from the sides of a battery.

Counter-approaches can be built in the same way but with resources foraged from within the town. Each engineer unit produces the material for 1 trench section per turn that it is placed in the town. This may not be accumulated from turn to turn, as the townspeople will only give up their buildings if there is an immediate need. They will not allow demolition simply to store material.

An engineer unit placed on a damaged section of wall, bastion or ravelin can repair damage to the fortifications equal to 1d6 up to a maximum of its current strength points. This repair does not require material from the town, instead making use of the rubble provided by the attacker! Engineers on the fortifications are subject to fire.

An engineer unit in a damaged trench section can repair it if they survive the enemy's fire phase.

Movement (other than during a sortie/assault) does not require initiative. The 24 hr turn means that any unit can be re-deployed anywhere within their own lines as the player wishes.

The Defender may re-position units anywhere within the line of the covered way, or any counter-approaches. However guns must end the movement phase in a battery dug as part of a counter-approach, or within the lines of the covered way as limited by the 'Deployment' section of these amendments.

Heavy guns may not be moved from their original bastion, though strength points may be transferred from one heavy artillery unit to another to reflect the concentration of surviving gunners to meet a particular threat. The strength of a heavy artillery unit may never exceed that with which it began the game.

The Besieger may re-position units anywhere within their approach works, and may transfer cavalry units from foraging to the lines by dismounting them. Similarly engineers may be transferred from the clearance of woods/towns to the approaches as required. However, guns and mortars must end the movement phase in a battery or beyond the 1^st parallel.

No artillery unit may be placed in the ditch unless a battery is dug to accommodate it. The besieger's artillery may not occupy any part of the fortress that the defender could not initially deploy guns in at the start of the game.

No unit can be moved to a new location within the approaches unless there is a continuous and intact trail of trenches from its stating point to the new location.

To dig trenches units are laid out in flank contact in the position the trenches are required, and if they survive to the next entrenchment phase then trenches are placed, with the unit placed in them. Such a line of units may have shallow angles between them so that the parallels can follow the approximately circular line of the fortress defences. If a unit retreats or routs from a line intended to form a trench (during the fire phase or as a result of a sortie/assault, then the line is contracted so that the trench sections will remain continuous. The movement required to do this is done immediately a unit deserts the line and costs no initiative.

This is extremely difficult to accurately simulate without an umpire to keep notes on the exact position of mine/countermines. The system below abstracts the process but gives a sense of the imperatives facing each side.

The Besieger can explode a number of mines equal to the number of surviving engineer units at some point during the game. Only 1 mine can be exploded in any 1 bound. E.g. If 4 engineering units are currently surviving, then the player could plan to explode a mine on each of the next 4 bounds. However if, during the next bound, one of those engineer units is lost, then one of those 4 planned explosions will have to be abandoned.

The besieger identifies a point within 'mining distance' of his most advanced parallel as the planned site for the mine.

Mining distance = 25 yds x the number of completed sections of trench in that parallel.

(this reflects that the longer he has been digging in that parallel, then the longer he could have been mining from it and the further the mine tunnel would have extended)

The besieger then rolls 1d6 to determine how far from the planned location the tunnel has diverged:

1 = nearer the centre of the town

2 = further from the centre of the town

3 = left

4 = right

5 & 6 = where planned

He then moves the point of explosion 50yds in that direction.

There is a chance that the Defender has placed a countermine close enough to the besieger's mine to cause a collapse and stop the explosion of the mine. This chance is equal to half the number of surviving engineer units (rounded down) on a d6. Hence, if there are 2 surviving engineer units in the bound when the mine is set to explode, then rolling 1 on d6 will abort the explosion, though the besieger still counts as having used up one opportunity to mine. If the defender only has 1 engineer unit then they are too busy with other duties to supervise any counter-mining!

A successfully exploded mine creates a crater with a minimum diameter of 50yds. The Besieger can extend this diameter by announcing his intention to mine, but not exploding it for up to two additional bounds. Each bound delayed increased the diameter of the mine by 50yds and the damage caused, but also creates additional opportunities for the defender to counter-mine successfully. During the delay no further mines can be announced (all the besieger's efforts are judged to be focussed on charging the one already announced.

E.g. the besieger announces his intention to set off a mine and works out the actual location of the centre of the explosion he also announces that he will employ the maximum of two additional bounds placing additional charges. The defender had three engineer units and so rolls d6 looking for a 1. He rolls 2, so the mine is still intact. During the next besieger bound he rolls 4 and the mine survives. Though he also loses an engineer unit during the thrid turn, he still has 2, so there remains 1 in 6 chance of thwarting the mine attempt. He rolls 1, and the besieger's mine comes to naught! If the defender had not been so lucky, then a crater 150yds across would have been created.

A section of bastion, ravelin, curtain wall or unit (with any part of its base) within the crater is attacked with 50 casualty factors for every bound of mining. I.e. in the example above the original bound plus the two bound delay would yield 150 casualty factors applied to any unit whose base was within the crater as well as to any section of fortification.

Any section of covered way or ditch within the crater is destroyed and becomes 'clear terrain' for purposes of assault/sortie.

All sieges are expected to result in victory for the besieger sooner or later. The defender can only win the game by so delaying the fall of the fortress that the besieger is judged to have lost any strategic initiative in the campaign of which the siege is a part.

The besieger wins outright if he occupies all the bastions on the table. Failing that the following points are totalled for each side:

The higher the difference between the scores the more significant the victory.

The diagram below summarises the basic design of a fortress of the time. Judicious magnification on a photocopier will also allow it to be used on the table-top.

Contact me by clicking here Richard Holling