2
Bonaparte at Marengo
1. Quick Start
One way to learn the game is by reading the
rules straight through from cover to cover and
then playing it. This is not, however, the only
way. A different approach is to mix reading and
playing. The following is a suggested way to
mix them:
(1) Read sections 2 through 3. These introduce the game.
(2) Read sections 4 and 5. These explain the
playing pieces and game board. The pieces are
simple, but the game board is not and it is helpful to look at it while reading about it.
(3) Set up the game by following the steps
in section 6.
(4) Play the first two turns for each side,
reading sections 7 and 8 – on the sequence of
play and movement – while doing so. Neither
side should attempt to attack on these two turns
(this is just for ease of learning: it is not a rule).
(5) Play the third and subsequent turns for
each side. From this point on, either side may
attack. On making a maneuver attack, read section 9. On making a bombardment attack, read
section 10. On making an assault, read section
11. On making a retreat, read section 12.
sections 1-5 • quick start, game equipment, introduction to play, playing pieces, game board
At the start, the map is controlled by the
French player, but his forces are scattered; some
are on the map at start but others enter later. The
Austrian army is concentrated, but must enter
the map from an entry point on the west edge,
and attempt to destroy the French pieces and
drive east to take control of the map.
Because many of their pieces are in play at
the start, the French are stronger at the beginning. However, the Austrian pieces will enter rapidly, and by the middle of the game the
strength advantage will have shifted to them.
Towards the end of the game, the last French
reinforcements will arrive and may, depending
on relative losses, give them back the advantage
over the Austrians.
4. Playing Pieces
The playing pieces represent the French and
Austrian armies at the battle. They are wooden
blocks, 1½" x ¼" x ¼" in size. The pieces that
represent the French army are blue. The pieces
that represent the Austrian army are red. Some
example pieces are shown below:
(6) When the first losses are inflicted, read
sections 13 and 14 on morale and victory conditions.
(7) Try to keep the game going until all the
rules have been read. After that players should
feel free to start over or continue the game,
whichever they prefer.
One side of each piece has symbols to indicate its type and strength. That side is called the
piece’s face.
2. Game Equipment
for infantry pieces
for cavalry pieces
for artillery pieces
The game equipment consists of:
• 80 wooden playing pieces. These represent the armies that fought at the battle
of Marengo. Color identifies them as
French or Austrian, and symbols on
them identify their type and strength.
• One 22" x 30" game board. The game
board is a map of the Marengo battlefield, with various play aids along the
edges. Symbols on the map determine
how pieces may move and fight.
• Three markers for record-keeping.
• Two copies of the twelve-page rules
booklet.
3. Introduction to Play
Bonaparte at Marengo is a two player game.
One player controls the French pieces and the
other controls the Austrian pieces. In the game,
each player attempts to defeat the other by eliminating his pieces and controlling territory.
The game is played as a series of 16 rounds,
each representing an hour of the day of the battle: June 14, 1800. In each round, the two players take turns moving their pieces and attacking
those of their opponent.
There are three types of symbols:
The number of symbols on a piece indicates
its strength: one symbol for each strength point.
Of the three example pieces above, the top piece
is a three-strength infantry piece, the middle
piece is a two-strength cavalry piece, and the
bottom piece is a one-strength artillery piece.
Usually, only the player who owns a piece
is entitled to see its face. This normal state is
called face-down. (Note: this is not necessarily
literally face down – players who sit on opposite sides of the board will usually prefer to keep
their pieces’ faces towards themselves, which is
convenient and suffices to hide them from their
opponent.)
In some situations, the opposing player has a
right to see the face side, and in those situations
the face side is turned towards the ceiling. This
is called face-up.
At the start of his turn, a player is permitted to do an out of sight “shuffle” of his pieces
which are together in the same place on the map;
this allows each player a way to restore secrecy
for any pieces that earlier had been face-up.
For the mutual convenience of both players
in keeping the faces of their pieces hidden, here
are some courtesy suggestions:
• If a player needs to leave his seat or
change his position so that he would be
able to see the faces of his opponent’s
pieces, he should give his opponent notice beforehand so that his opponent can
hide the faces of his pieces by turning
them literally “face-down”.
• A player should refrain from handling
the pieces of his opponent.
• A player should not handle pieces from
different places at the same time. This is
to avoid the suspicion that pieces might
have been secretly swapped in the process.
When a piece has to be reduced in strength
as a result of an attack, it is removed and another
piece of the same type – but a lower strength – is
put in its place. For this reason, in addition to
full-strength pieces, the game also includes lowstrength replacement pieces. As a convenience,
a few spare full-strength pieces are provided as
well. Because of this, don’t be alarmed if after
setting up the game, pieces are left over; there
are supposed to be pieces left over.
A full-strength infantry piece represents
about 1600 men and any battalion guns attached
to them. A full-strength cavalry piece represents
about 1000 troopers. A full-strength artillery
piece represents about 40 guns and their crews.
5. The Game Board
Most of the game board consists of a map
of the battlefield. Some space on the edges is
devoted to play aids.
The map portion of the game board is divided into polygons to regulate movement and
combat. These polygons are called locales. The
faces of the polygons are called approaches.
An example of a locale with three approaches is shown below:
4
The symbols used that define locales are as follows:
Bonaparte at Marengo
sections 5,6 • game board, setting up the game
is an approach. Approaches
can be either narrow (as wide
as one piece) or wide (as wide
as two pieces). Printed on each
approach are various symbols
showing the effects of terrain
on movement and attacks into
that approach.
is an infantry attack penalty. For each
of these in an approach, infantry attacks against pieces defending the approach are reduced in strength by one.
is an cavalry attack penalty. For each
of these in an approach, cavalry attacks
against pieces defending the approach
are reduced in strength by one.
is an artillery attack penalty. For each
of these in an approach, artillery attacks against pieces defending the approach are reduced in strength by one.
is an impassable approach. Pieces cannot move in either direction across an
approach with this symbol.
is a cavalry-obstructing approach.
Cavalry is restricted in attack or defense of an approach with this symbol.
An example of how pieces can be positioned
in a locale is shown below:
4
6
(Pieces are face-up for illustration only.
In the example above, the infantry and the
cavalry pieces are blocking the top approach
into the locale, while the artillery piece is in reserve in the center. For clarity, pieces blocking
approaches should be oriented the same way as
the approach. Pieces in reserve may be oriented
any way the player owning the piece desires (the
orientation of reserve pieces is strictly a matter
of convenience – it has no effect on play).
Except on the edges of the map and around
areas of impassable terrain, approaches are always found in opposing pairs, as shown in the
example below:
4 is the capacity of the locale. This the
maximum number of pieces the locale
can hold (in this case, four).
The example locale above has three approaches
and a capacity limit of four pieces. The top approach has an infantry attack penalty of one, is
cavalry-obstructing, and has an artillery attack
penalty of one. The left approach is impassable.
The right approach has an infantry attack penalty of one and a cavalry attack penalty of one.
In addition to the symbols representing terrain effects, a few special symbols are present in
some locales. These are as follows:
indicates that French pieces are
in this locale at the start of the
game. The number of symbols
indicates the number of French
pieces that start in that locale
(see section 6 for details).
indicates that the locale is a
game objective. There are
three colors of stars: red, green,
and blue (see section 14 for details).
Locales define the positions of pieces. A
piece that is in play can be in one and only one
locale at any one time – a piece may not straddle
locales.
Within a locale, pieces can be either in the
middle of the locale, which is referred to as being in reserve, or they can be across one of the
approaches, which is referred to as blocking
that approach.
3
Opposing pairs of approaches are the boundaries between adjacent locales. It is only through
pairs of opposing approaches that pieces can
move or attack between locales. Locales on either side of an approach pair are referred to adjacent locales, and for each approach in the pair
the other approach is referred to as the opposite
approach. Similarly, the locale containing the
opposite approach is referred to as the opposite
locale. It is well worth noting in this context that
the combat penalties for approaches in opposing
pairs can be different from each other: in the example above, cavalry attacking from the upper
approach to the lower would do so at a strength
penalty of one, but cavalry attacking from the
lower approach to the upper would not be under
any strength penalty.
Some locales are connected by roads. Roads
are depicted on the map as thin red or brown
lines. Red lines denote primary roads. Brown
lines denote secondary roads. Roads affect the
movement of pieces: pieces can be moved farther in a turn if they are moving along a road.
Additionally, pieces moving along primary roads
are exempted from the command limit (see section 8 for details). An example of a locale with a
road passing through it is shown below:
In the above example, pieces could enter or
leave the locale by road through either the left
or bottom approaches, but not by the right approach because the road does not cross that approach.
There are other markings on the map showing hills, woods, marshes, rivers, streams, sunken roads and towns. These are cosmetic and do
not affect play. (The effects of the depicted terrain are incorporated into the sizes and shapes of
the locales and the terrain penalties on the locale
approaches).
On the edges of the game board are the following play aids:
• Time Track. This is for keeping track of
the current round.
• Morale Track. This aid is for keeping
track of morale – see the demoralization
rules (section 13) for details.
• French “At Start” Display. This shows
the French pieces that are deployed on
the map at the start of the game.
• Reinforcement Displays. These show
Austrian and French pieces that enter
the game as reinforcements, and show
where and when they enter. There are
four such displays: one Austrian and
three French.
Note: Players accustomed to traditional war
games may be surprised by the absence of dice,
combat results tables or terrain effects tables.
Combat is resolved by a comparison of strength,
and terrain effects are designed into the map itself.
6. Setting up the Game
To set up the game, players should do the
following:
(1) Put a marker on the 6:00 AM space on
the Time Track.
(2) On the Morale Track, put down two
markers for tracking the morale levels of the two
armies. The starting locations for those markers
are printed on the track itself.
(3) The players should get out the game
pieces and sort them into the following groups
(pieces should be face-up while this is done):
• A group for the pieces in the French “At
Start” Display.