The Principles of War
FAQ
Version 1.0 Last Updated April 6th, 1998
Aaron Liebling
(aaron@addesigninc.com)
Note: This version of the FAQ contains no graphics and is basically just a collection of the information at this point. PLease let me know if you prefer this, or if I should go through the trouble of adding a nicer background or some images.
Table of Contents
1. About the FAQ
2. What is PoW/NPoW
3. What scale is PoW
4. What about counters?
5. What are the basic mechanics
6. When can a unit (as opposed to an officer) sight an enemy
7. How does a unit deploy from column formation
8. When does a unit disengage from HtH if it wishes to and is able
9. How does an officer's free move when in base contact with a unit work
10. Why can an average officer have a 6 initiative and a good officer only 5 (optional rule)
11. For artillery, does the limber miniature disappear when the gun is unlimbered
12. Where can I buy PoW
13. What other games are similar to PoW
1. About the FAQ
This FAQ arose out of my need for some clarifications when my group started playing Principles of War (PoW).
There are really two kinds of questions that I attempt to answer. First, questions by those who have not played PoW or Napoleonic PoW (NPoW) and are considering it as a system to play. Second, the rules are rather general on a number of points. These are issues that were probably common sense to the author but my group (and others) have found need for clarifying.
If you have other questions or feedback about current questions and answers, please let me know. I welcome submissions, comments, and just about anything else. Also, I'd like to thank Tony Barr and Ray Rangel for their helpful answers. I also recommend rec.games.miniatures.historical and The Colonial Wargaming Page as wonderful resources for all sorts of historical gaming including PoW.
Aaron Liebling
2. What is PoW/NPoW
Principles of War is a set of miniature wargaming rules published by The Victorian Military Society (The author is T. M. Penn). The core PoW rules target regular and colonial conflicts the 19th century. Most people using them seem to be focusing on the colonial aspect, though we hope to do the Crimea as well. NPoW is the Napoleonic version of PoW.
This FAQ is based on the original PoW rules, as I have not played NPoW.
3. What scale is PoW
The basic infantry unit in game turns is the battalion (anywhere from 800-1500 men depending on the type of troop). Ground scale is 1 inch = 100 yards. For 25mm, it is suggested that 1 unit equal a company and that all ranges be doubled.
4. What about counters?
Some kind of markers are helpful in play (for marking units as shaken if nothing else). Personally, I have the number of each unit written on the bottom of the unit, and keep track of their status in a notebook (for denoting shaken status, I actually have little casualty bases, with dead Zulus, Brits, etc...), but having good looking counters on the table is nice and eases the bookkeeping a bit.
Ray Rangel has provided a .pdf file containing the counters he uses. They are very attractive, and I may even take to using them! He notes that he tried to match the color to the Medium Blended Turk used to Flock GeoHex, but the color was optimized for an Epson Stylus (his printer). The file is: counters.pdf and is 189K or so.
5. What are the basic mechanics
Officers roll for random initiative points each turn (based on their ability). These points are then used to activate units for various actions. Unit strength is kept track of on paper, not based on the number of castings in a unit. Whenever damaged, a unit must make an initiative roll (d20) based on the amount of damage they've taken and their starting strengths. Morale effects are shaken, retire shaken, and rout. Routed units are removed from play (after retreating).
6. When can a unit (as opposed to an officer) sight an enemy
Although clearly stated in the rules, if one looks only at the quick reference card, this may be unclear. A unit sights a target at the range at which an officer would automatically sight the target. On open terrain with no modifiers, for example, an enemy will be sighted and identified by a unit at a range of 12".
7. How does a unit deploy from column formation
It does not matter how a unit deploys from column to line formation (i.e. off the center base, the front base, or the rear base) as long as no base of the unit moves more than the allowed movement of the unit. So as long as no pont of the unit moves farther than the allowed movement of the unit, the unit may deploy off any of the bases.
8. When does a unit disengage from HtH if it wishes to and is able
During its movement phase. A unit can only disengage if it has enough movement to disengage from the unit(s) it is in contact with.
8. How does an officer's free move when in base contact with a formation work
The officer gets exactly that - "a free move". He may move his full movement allowance as long as he ends the move in base to base contact with the formation he received the free move from. This is very useful in keeping an officer within command range of other units.
10. Why can an average officer have a 6 initiative and a good officer only 5.
This seemed silly to us (and to some others I've spoken with). Consistency is very important in the game, but why should a good officer gain it at the expense of maximum performance?
Our optional rule:
We have played that a good officer rolls a d6 just as an average officer, but with a +1. The maximum initiative for the officer is still 6, so the average score of the good officer simply rises. E.g., 1's are treated as 2's, 2's as 3's, etc...and both 5's and 6's are treated as 6's.
11. For artillery, does the limber miniature disappear when the gun is unlimbered
The general answer we've figured out is NO. Treat the whole section of gun and limber as one unit (with two bases, much as regular infantry has three bases). When unlimbering, the gun must be in front of the limber and when limbered, the limber must be in front of the wagon. Remember that no part of the unit can move farther than the maximum unit movement allowance (take this into account when getting the gun in front of the limber or vice versa).
While it may seem thata limber + gun takes up a lot of space (over 500 yards), this makes sense when you remember that an artillery unit represents a few guns as well as limbers, caissons, etc... This interpetation may be at odds with the rules which state (pg.11), "Batteries can be represented by a gun and limber or as deployed with a firing crew.", but it seems more logical and plays well.
12. Where can I buy PoW
PoW and NPoW are available directly from this website www.principlesofwar.com/powshop
13. What other games are similar to PoW
There are a number of Colonial games out there, though none that seem to target it in exactly the same way as PoW. Here is a quick listing fo some: