Updated Biblical Cheat-Sheet

HERE is a cheat-sheet for the core of my adapted rules for fighting biblical-era battles with 10mm miniatures.

They are based on Neil Thomas's rules in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming, but you will need that book for specific points not covered here, and in general for how the rules operate on the tabletop.

Some of the adaptations are a result of my studying the period, and of how I like a wargame to work, with some adapted from Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame books.

MOVEMENT

Open-order cavalry, light chariots: 24cm

Close-order cavalry, heavy chariots, camelry: 20cm

Open-order infantry, auxiliary infantry: 12cm

Close-order infantry: 8cm

Turning more than 30° from straight-ahead costs half the movement allowance, except for open-order troops, camelry and light chariots, who are not penalised.

Variation: when a unit tries to use at least 75% of its movement allowance, roll a die, a 6 meaning 25% is added to the distance covered, a 1 meaning 25% is deducted.

MISSILE RANGES

Foot bows and slings: 24cm

Mounted bows: 20cm

Javelins: 8cm

Archers as well as javelinmen can shoot at attackers who make contact after having started more than 8cm away.

HITS

5+ on a die scores a hit. If it is not saved, use the following table:

Quality of unit hit  Lose base  Fall back 3cm

Elite                            1-2             3-6

Average                      1-3             4-6

Levy                            1-4             5-6

A unit that cannot fall back, either straight or within 30° of straight back, eg it is blocked by impassable terrain, by enemy troops or by friendly troops not in open-order, or it would leave the battlefield, loses a base.

A unit in a melee whose opponent falls back may follow up and immediately force another round of hand-to-hand fighting, provided the player's unit suffered fewer hits than its falling-back opponent.

MORALE

The general's unit receives a +1 modifier when testing morale.

If the unit is destroyed, every friendly unit in line-of-sight tests its morale immediately; every other friendly unit tests its morale at the start of the army's next turn.

Scene from a battle fought between Egyptians and Hebrews in late-2024 using Thomas's unmodified rules

Biblical Update - Casualties

HITS from shooting and in melees are inflicted on a roll of 5+ (rather than 4+ under Neil Thomas's biblical rules).

This obviously reduces the number of hits, but under my adaptation it is no longer necessary to score four hits to remove a base.

Instead, if a hit is not saved, roll a die:

Quality of unit hit  Lose base  Fall back 3cm

Elite                            1-2             3-6

Average                      1-3             4-6

Levy                            1-4             5-6

A unit that cannot fall back, either straight or within 30° of straight back, eg blocked by impassable terrain, by enemy troops or by friendly troops not in open-order, or would leave the battlefield, loses a base.

A unit in a melee whose opponent falls back may follow up and immediately force another round of hand-to-hand fighting, provided the player's unit suffered fewer hits than its falling-back opponent.

The overall effect of these changes is to speed the game, and in particular to stop melees dragging on, as they otherwise have a tendency to do.

A melee in rocky ground during the Battle of Palm Hill

Biblical Update - Movement

MY rules are very much based on Neil Thomas's biblical ones in Ancient & Medieval Wargaming, but the movement section has considerable input from Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame.

At the start of each turn, dice to see who has the initiative, higher score moving first. If the army has a great general, add one to the roll; if the army has a poor general, subtract one.

The higher score moves first, ie the winner does not have a choice in the matter, and the winning player picks a unit of his army to start with, and it moves, shoots, tests morale, etc, before a second unit does likewise, and so on.

Open-order cavalry and light chariots can move 24cm; close-order cavalry, heavy chariots and camelry, 20cm; open-order infantry and auxiliary infantry, 12cm; close-order infantry, 8cm.

Turning is free to open-order troops, light chariots and camelry, but other troops that deviate more than 30° from straight-ahead lose half their allowance.

When a unit tries to use at least three-quarters of its allowance, roll a die: 6, add 25% to the distance covered; 1, subtract 25% from the distance covered.

For example, a unit of close-order cavalry wants to turn to its flank and advance 8cm. Close-order cavalry have a normal movement allowance of 20cm, but since the unit turned more than 30°, its allowance is reduced to 10cm, and since 8cm is more than three-quarters of 10cm, a die is rolled. It lands as a 1, meaning the unit, perhaps because of an unexpected obstacle or confusion about the order, only covers 6cm.

This rule should not be enforced when the result would be ridiculous, eg a unit sent to defend a wall or line a river bank should not be made to move across the wall or into the river as the result of a 6 being rolled.

Assyrian close-order cavalry

*Amended 4/4/26 to make clear that open-order cavalry, as well as open-order infantry, light chariots and camelry, can turn more than 30° without losing any of their movement allowance.

Biblical Update

MY long-term major project of fighting battles from the Bible with 10mm-scale figures is progressing nicely.

There is still a fair bit of painting to do, but I have been reading and researching the period, and, importantly, have settled on a ruleset.

I will be using Neil Thomas's biblical rules from Ancient & Medieval Wargaming, but incorporating ideas from Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame, as well as modifications of my own.

You will need both books to fully understand the concepts, but especially A&MW.

Here I want to discuss how the armies will be organised.

Under Thomas's rules, an army always consists of eight units, and each unit almost always consists of four 40x20mm bases, aligned in two ranks of two bases.

I like this approach, especially for the pre-classical ancient period, when information on army sizes is very limited, and usually very biased.

In addition, knowledge of unit organisation and tactics are usually extremely limited - guesswork is the order of the day.

So normally I will follow Thomas, albeit reserving the right to vary unit numbers when I feel it is necessary.

In my experience the rules work perfectly well with more units on the table, and with rival armies fielding different numbers of units.

Thomas has nine types of unit for his biblical armies.

Five are on foot: heavy infantry, biblical infantry, heavy archers, auxiliary infantry and light infantry.

Four are mounted in one way or another: heavy cavalry, light cavalry, heavy chariots and light chariots.

I have discussed before why I disagree with some of the terms he uses as I think they can be inappropriate and confusing.

For example, Thomas's heavy archers often have neither shields nor armour - the defining criterion for them is that they fight in close order.

Below I list Thomas's nine types of troops, my names for them, how many figures there should be per base, and the basic characteristics of each type.

THOMAS'S NAME     MY NAME                 FIGURES

Heavy infantry            Professional infantry       6

Well-drilled, fulltime, close-order, often with heavy protection, ie shield and body armour.

Biblical infantry          Biblical infantry              6

The great bulk of close-order melee infantry.

Auxiliary infantry       Auxiliary infantry            4 

Disciplined melee infantry, but in looser formation. They move quickly, and are a match for biblical infantry (but not professional infantry) in hand-to-hand fighting in, and are especially effective in difficult terrain.

Heavy archers           Close-order archers           6

Bows in close-order formation. Do not carry shields, but can have full mail armour, but can also have just medium or light protection.*

Light infantry            Open-order infantry          2

Skirmishers equipped with bows, slings or javelins.

Heavy cavalry           Close-order cavalry          3

Usually melee troops. Often, but not always, protected with shield and body armour, and the horse may have protection too.

Light cavalry             Open-order cavalry          1

Mounted version of open-order infantry.

Heavy chariots           Heavy chariots                 1 (plus crew)

Chariots designed for close combat.

Light chariots             Light chariots                   1 (plus crew)

Chariots designed for shooting, usually with bows.

*Troops have heavy, medium or light protection, needing a saving throw to negate a hit of 4+, 5+ or 6 respectively.

Six units of javelin-armed open-order cavalry - figures from Newline Designs

Summing Up Our Refight Of Wörth

THE original Battle of Wörth saw the Germans suffer about 10,000 casualties, a third less than the French.

This was in stark contrast to Spicheren and, to a certain extent, Wissembourg/Weissenburg, where, although the Prussian-led armies were victorious, they suffered high casualties.

Our refight of Wörth started slowly, but as German, especially Prussian, reinforcements reached the battlefield, the casualty rate swiftly climbed.

It ended with a German victory, but with strength-points lost only just higher for the French, although the latter lost two complete units to the Germans' one.

Reg and I agreed the refight seemed quite realistic, despite the toy-soldierish nature of the affair, and it was certainly enjoyable, a testament to the rules, based largely on those of Neil Thomas, but with a major input from the writings of Bob Cordery.

Wörth - Turn Seven

Situation after six turns

I roll for reinforcements, but fail to bring the final Bavarian infantry brigade to the table.

Both my guns are still masked by friendly troops. There seems no point in manoeuvring the forward, Prussian gun, but I order the other gun to advance, although the gunners do not respond (I roll a 2 for activation - one less than is required for non-Prussian Germans).

My four-base infantry south of Niederwald finish crossing the Sauer, advance two hexes and fire at the two-base French infantry, but a -1 modifier for shooting in the same turn as moving means no hit is inflicted.

My two-base infantry bayonet-charge the same French unit, but only the French inflict a hit, and it becomes the compulsory loss of a strength point.

My three-base infantry north of Niederwald are ordered to charge the French infantry directly ahead, but fail to activate, and so shoot instead. However, their morale is clearly shaky as they fire wildly, causing no damage.

The Bavarian infantry are similarly unsuccessful in shooting at the French opposite them.

I next choose to fight the melee between my lancers and the French gun crew in Frœschwiller. I roll a 4, which, thanks to the lancers being cavalry in hand-to-hand combat with artillerymen, is enough to score a hit, despite a -1 modifier for the French being in cover. MacMahon fails to score a hit, but the hit his men suffer can be resolved as withdrawing a hex, and this is what he chooses.

This means the artillerymen, with their gun, leave Frœschwiller, and my unit immediately occupies the village, and initiates another round of combat. Again I score an unanswered hit, and this time MacMahon accepts the loss of 1SP, rather than have the unit retreat to the edge of the battlefield, where it would inevitably suffer another round of meleeing.

My unit directly west of Wörth, now that the cavalry are not blocking its line-of-sight, can shoot at the three-base French northwest of Niederwald. A hit is scored thanks to the +1 modifier for my unit having more than 3SP, and the hit causes the compulsory loss of 1SP.

The other Prussian infantry west of Wörth cannot advance, but the Prussian unit that arrived on the battlefield last turn advances two hexes.

The French are hanging on, but time seems to be against them

MacMahon, perhaps hoping to get the bad news over first, starts with the ongoing artillery-v-cavalry melee, and his men duly suffer another hit, without being able to inflict one in return, and it becomes the compulsory loss of 1SP, meaning the French have lost a second unit.

The infantry melee south of Niederwald is inconclusive.

The three-base French west of Frœschwiller fail to activate, and so have to settle for shooting at the Bavarian infantry (MacMahon explained that he had hoped to have them melee with my lancers). However, there is good news for the French when his men score a hit, which eliminates the Bavarian infantry's last strength point.

The two-base French west of Niederwald advance obliquely right to take partial shelter behind the wood, from where they shoot at the nearest Prussian infantry. MacMahon rolls a 5, but -1 modifiers for having moved, and for having fewer than 3SP, mean no hit is scored.

The four-base infantry west of Niederwald turn and advance a hex, getting them off the edge of the battlefield, and shoot at the same Prussian target, this time scoring a hit. My men have nowhere to withdraw, meaning I must accept the loss of 1SP.

Another bloodthirsty turn - each side lost 3SP - means the French, in addition to losing two of their six units, have lost exactly half of their starting strength points, while the Germans have lost a relatively modest one unit and 10SP (out of 38)

With defeat inevitable - an army is beaten once its starting total of strength points or of units falls below 50% - MacMahon concedes.

Wörth - Turn Six

Situation after five turns

I roll for reinforcements, receiving a brigade of Prussian infantry.

Neither of my guns can fire as both are masked by friendly troops.

My three-base unit south of Niederwald fires at the two-base French, but I roll a 1. The other Prussian unit south of Niederwald spends this half-turn crossing the Sauer.

My three-base unit north of Niederwald shoots at the French directly ahead, scoring a hit, which proves to be the compulsory loss of a strength point.

The infantry in Wörth leave the village, and line up to shoot at the same French unit, but another 1 means no damage is done.

The infantry east of Wörth pass through the village, but have no suitable target as they are partially masked by the ongoing cavalry melee.

The Bavarian infantry in the northwest charge the French nearest them, but the melee is inconclusive.

I leave my artillery where it is.

Finally, the cavalry melee is also inconclusive.

The Prussian attack is gaining momentum

The French gun does not have a target, so MacMahon orders it to swivel within Frœschwiller in the hope of having a clear line-of-sight next turn.

The infantry south of Niederwald shoot at my three-base unit opposite them, scoring a hit, which I choose to resolve as the compulsory loss of 1SP, rather than have the unit fall back into a river hex.

The three-base French immediately northwest of Niederwald shoot at the Prussians advancing on them, scoring a hit which becomes the forced loss of a strength point.

The four-base unit northwest of Niederwald fails to activate as a 2 is rolled.

In the infantry melee the French score a hit, which I choose to resolve as making my men fall back a hex (my men fail to score a hit in return). MacMahon orders his victorious unit to follow up their success by occupying the vacated hex (this does not require an activation roll), so instigating another round of meleeing. This time both units inflict a hit. MacMahon has a choice as how to resolve the hit his men suffer, and decides to let them fall back a hex. I also have a choice, but since falling back would take the unit off the battlefield, I suffer the loss of 1SP.

In the cavalry melee, my men score a hit, and do not suffer one, and the hit is resolved as the compulsory loss of 1SP, meaning the French hussars become the first unit eliminated. My men occupy the vacated hex, and initiate a round of hand-to-hand combat against the French artillery in Frœschwiller. However, despite my unit receiving a +2 modifier for being cavalry fighting artillery, I fail to score a hit thanks to rolling a 2, as there is a -1 modifier for the enemy being in cover. MacMahon rolls a 5, but a -2 modifier for being artillery fighting cavalry means the French also do not score a hit.

A relatively bloodthirsty turn means the French have now lost 8 strength points (out of a starting total of 22SP) and one unit, while the Germans have lost 7SP, having started with 38SP

Wörth - Turn Five

Situation after four turns, looking from above the Prussian-controlled east bank of the Sauer, with Bavarian reinforcements arriving from the north

I do not receive any reinforcements this turn.

My rearward artillery fire at Frœschwiller, but I roll a 1. My forward artillery fire at the infantry next to Frœschwiller, but again I roll a 1.

The Bavarian infantry in the northwest corner of the battlefield shoot at the French infantry nearest them, scoring a hit - just - with a 4. The hit is resolved as either the loss of a strength point, or falling back a hex, and MacMahon chooses the latter.

The Bavarian lancers advance to the outskirts of Frœschwiller.

My Prussian infantry south of Niederwald shoot at the two-base French opposite them, but the die lands as a 2.

The Prussians in Wörth shoot at the French infantry beside Frœschwiller, easily scoring a hit, which is resolved as the French falling back a hex.

The Prussians in the river hex emerge and shoot at the only target in range, the French artillery in Wörth, rolling a 5. There are -1 modifiers for having moved and for the target being in cover, but a +1 modifier for having more than three strength points, so a hit is scored, which is resolved as the compulsory loss of 1SP.

The brigade behind Frœschwiller remains where it is. Really I should have ordered the unit in Frœschwiller to advance, so the other brigade could enter the village.

Finally, my rearward infantry on the left flank start to cross the Sauer.

The crunch point of the battle seems near

The artillery in Frœschwiller fire at the Bavarian infantry, but without effect.

The French infantry south of Niederwald shoot at the Prussians nearest them, but also unsuccessfully.

The hussars charge the Bavarian lancers, but soon think better of it after failing to score a hit in the melee, while suffering one themselves. The hit is resolved as the compulsory loss of 1SP.

The three-base French infantry move so as not to block the line-of-sight of the unit next to them, and turn to shoot at the Bavarian infantry, but miss.

The unblocked infantry fire at the same target, scoring a hit, which I choose to resolve as the loss of a strength point, rather than have the unit leave the battlefield (Reg and I, after a quick conflab, agreed the unit would not be able to re-enter).

Finally, the other full-strength French infantry brigade advances to shoot at the Prussians who have just crossed the Sauer. A roll of 5 is enough for a hit, despite a -1 modifier for moving. The hit is resolved as the compulsory loss of 1SP.

With both armies losing 2SP this turn, the French have lost 6SP and the Germans 4SP

Wörth - Turn Four

Situation after three turns

I receive reinforcements in the shape of Bavarian lancers, who arrive beside the River Sauer on the north edge of the battlefield, ie on the right of the photo.

My rearward gun fires at the French artillery in Frœschwiller, scoring a hit, which MacMahon this time chooses to resolve as being unable to take action this turn.

My other gun successfully fires at the hussars, but MacMahon lets the unit fall back a hex rather than lose a strength point.

The Bavarian infantry shoot at the French infantry nearest them, but a 2 is insufficient despite a +1 modifier for being at full-strength.

My infantry south of Niederwald continue their shooting match with the French unit there, scoring a hit which becomes the compulsory loss of 1SP.

The infantry in Wörth shoot at the French directly ahead, scoring a hit thanks to the +1 modifier for being at full-strength. MacMahon again gets to choose how to resolve the hit, and he lets the unit fall back diagonally left to the only hex open to it.

Both my recently arrived brigades on the east edge of the battlefield activate and advance two hexes.

Finally, my infantry in the river hex have to remain there for this turn.

The French are outnumbered on the battlefield by nine units to six, and there are still two more German units - one Prussian, one Bavarian - that could arrive after marching to the sound of the guns

The French artillery cannot fire this half-turn, but the three-base infantry next to them move forward so as again to shoot at my unit in Wörth, although without success.

The four-base infantry facing the Bavarian infantry shoot at the latter, scoring a hit which becomes the compulsory loss of 1SP.

The hussars, unable to reach a target this turn, take shelter behind Niederwald, but the four-base infantry beside them fail to activate.

Finally, the French south of Niederwald fail to score a hit on the Prussians opposite them.

With both armies losing a strength point this turn, the French have now lost 4SP and the Germans 2SP

Wörth - Turn Three

Situation after two turns

I roll for reinforcements, receiving a brigade of Prussian infantry, who arrive on the battlefield beside the long-barrelled gun, which shoots at the French artillery in Frœschwiller. There is a +1 modifier for being at full-strength, but a -1 modifier for the target having cover, but these prove irrelevant as I throw a 6. To resolve the hit, MacMahon rolls a 5, giving him the choice of losing a strength point or being unable to fire in the French half-turn. He chooses to lose 1SP.

My Prussian gun advances a hex to beside Wörth, and so be in position to shoot next turn.

The infantry in Wörth shoot at the French directly ahead. A roll of 3 is just enough to score a hit as there is a +1 modifier for being at full-strength. The resolution throw allows MacMahaon the option of having the unit fall back, rather than lose 1SP, and that is what he chooses, another die-throw indicating the unit retreats to behind Frœschwiller.

My left-flank forward infantry exit the river hex, and shoot at the French south of Niederwald, rolling a 6, and so easily inflicting a hit, despite having moved. The hit is resolved as the compulsory loss of a strength point.

The other infantry crossing the Sauer and emerge on the west bank, north of Niederwald, and shoot at the French in Frœschwiller. There are -1 modifiers for firing while moving and for the target having cover, but +1 modifier for being at full-strength, and that proves vital as I roll a 5. MacMahon has a choice as to how it is resolved, and decides the best thing is to give up shooting rights this turn.

The Bavarian infantry in the northwest of the battlefield successfully activate, and shoot at the three-base French infantry beside Frœschwiller. However, a roll of 2 is insufficient, despite a +1 modifier for having the full 4SP.

Finally, the Prussian infantry that arrived last turn, fail to activate (I rolled a 1).

A successful half-turn for the German cause in that I inflicted the loss of 2SP, rendered the French artillery unable to fire this turn, and got units across the Sauer

MacMahon orders the three-base infantry south of Niederwald to shoot at my men approaching them. However, the die lands as a 2.

He then successfully activates the hussars, who emerge from behind Niederwald to charge my infantry that have just crossed the Sauer near Wörth. In the melee the cavalrymen receive a +1 modifier for being mounted troops fighting infantry, while my unit gets +1 for having 4SP. We both score a hit, and both hits are resolved as losing 1SP or falling back a hex. We both choose to fall back a hex. That takes my infantry into a river hex, which they will have to spend next turn in before trying to leave it.

The three-base French behind Frœschwiller move so as to shoot at my men in Wörth, but roll a 1.

The four-base infantry beside them shoot at the Bavarians, but also roll a 1.

The remaining infantry unit, west of Niederwald, fails to activate.

After three turns the Germans have lost 1SP and the French 3SP

Wörth - Turn Two

Situation at the end of turn one

I roll for reinforcements, receiving a brigade of Bavarian infantry from the north, and a brigade of Prussian infantry from the east. I then roll to determine at which hexes they enter the battlefield. For the Bavarians, this can be any of the six hexes on the north row between the Sauer and the west edge of the battlefield. I roll a 1, meaning the extreme west hex. For the Prussians it can be any vacant hex on the east edge of the battlefield, and I roll a 3, putting them directly opposite, but six hexes away from, the most southern French unit. Neither of my two new units can move or shoot until next turn.

My non-Prussian gun again fires at the French artillery in Frœschwiller, but I again roll a 3, which has no effect. My other gun has no target, so I successfully activate it, and the crew advance with their gun two hexes (Prussian aggressive use of artillery was a hallmark of the Franco-Prussian War from its early stages).

My right-flank infantry also activate, and enter Wörth (there is no penalty for crossing the river if using the village to do so), and shoot at the French directly ahead. I roll a 6, which is easily enough to score a hit, especially with a +1 modifier for being at full-strength, and despite a -1 modifier for having moved. My opponent rolls a 2 to resolve the hit, meaning the first French strength point is lost.

My other two advancing infantry units enter the Sauer, where they will have to remain next turn, unable to shoot, before emerging on the far side.

The Prussians are advancing boldy, much as they did in the real battle, without too much regard for minimising casualties

MacMahon starts with his artillery in Frœschwiller, which shoot at my newly arrived Bavarians. He rolls a 2, which is never going to be enough, even without a -1 modifier for having a French imperial crew.

The three-strength infantry behind the artillery shoot at my men in Wörth, but fail miserably with a 1. The infantry next to them shoot at my Bavarians, but also roll a 1.

The French south of Niederwald no longer have a target in my three-strength unit as the thick wood obstructs their line-of-sight, but MacMahon successfully activates them, so the unit can move and shoot. However a 2 is rolled.

MacMahon does not try to activate the hussars, and the infantry adjacent to them fail to activate.

At the end of turn two both armies have lost 1SP

Wörth - Turn One

Looking from behind the Prussian lines

I start by ordering my non-Prussian gun on the right flank to fire at the village of Frœschwiller, on the far side of the River Sauer, and specifically at the French gun positioned in the village. I roll a 3, which is increased for my unit being at full-strength, but decreased for the target being in cover, so I narrowly fail to score a hit.

My Prussian gun shoots at the French infantry directly ahead, rolling a 5. This is increased for the crew being Prussian, and for the unit being at full-strength, so a hit is easily scored. General MacMahon (aka 'Reg') rolls a 5 to determine the effect of the hit, which means he can choose to lose a strength point OR retreat a hex. He selects the latter, and, since a direct fallback is obstructed by a friendly unit, the infantry retreat obliquely to their left.

I successfully activate all three of my infantry units on the battlefield, and each advances two hexes, with one unit reaching the outskirts of Wörth, and the other two the east bank of the Sauer. However, being German infantry with a weapon range of three hexes (rather than French with a range of four), none of the units has a target to fire at.

Situation after the German half-turn

MacMahon starts by ordering the infantry unit that fell back, to advance on Wörth, but it refuses to move (French troops need a 3 to activate, and a 2 was rolled).

He then orders the unit that was directly behind it, and is now in line-of-sight of my Prussian gun, to move south a hex, which it wisely does.

The only French unit that has enemy within range and line-of-sight is the infantry unit south of Niederwald. It shoots at my men who have reached the bank of the Sauer, and rolls a 6 - easily enough, even without the bonus for being at full strength. To resolve the hit, I roll a 3, meaning the compulsory loss of a strength point.

First blood to the French

Wörth-Specific Rules

REINFORCEMENTS

The French start with their full force on the table - four brigades of infantry, one of cavalry, and a gun.

The French in position, with the gun in the village of Frœschwiller, ie in the same hex, and so enjoying cover

The Germans start with both guns on the table, but only three brigades of infantry

Three brigades of Prussian infantry will arrive from the east, and two brigades of Bavarian infantry and one of cavalry will come from the north.

At the start of the second and subsequent turns, dice for each off-table unit: 5+ means it arrives this turn, and should be placed on the table at the start of the turn, but will be unable to further move or fire until the next turn.

No units in this scenario are elite - partly because the small number of units would give elite ones a disproportionate effect.

But also because the French are partly demoralised following early reverses in the war, and the Germans because I am already allowing them a higher proportion of Prussian troops than they actually had in the battle.

The French gun naturally counts as French imperial artillery. My crew with the long-barrelled gun are non-Prussian German; my other crew are Prussian.

TURNS

I consider a turn to encompass 45 minutes of action. The fighting at Wörth started around 10am on an August day, which left about 11 hours before darkness would bring a halt, so the refight will last a maximum of 15 turns.

Weather was not a factor.

Wörth - The Rules

WE have been very pleased with the rules, which are based around Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame series of books, in particular the late-19th century rules from his original publication, The Portable Wargame (Eglinton Books, 2017).

I am using 54mm toy soldiers on a Hexon II grid, formed of hexes 100mm across, from Nottinghamshire-based Kallistra.

You will need Cordery's book to understand the brief summary of my rules that follows.
I have changed a few of his concepts - sometimes to fit in with how I like a wargame to work, sometimes adapting ideas from Neil Thomas's Wargaming Nineteenth Century Europe, and sometimes to give the rules a more-distinct flavour of the Franco-Prussian War.
The summary below mainly covers the changes I have made to Cordery's core rules, and below that I give my reasons.

UNITS
Type                                                           Strength Points Move Weapon Range
French Infantry                                                      4                2             4
German Infantry                                                    4                2             3
Cavalry                                                                  2                3             0

French Imperial Artillery                                        4                2             6
French Republican & Non-Prussian
German Artillery                                                    4                2             9
Prussian Artillery                                                   4                2            12
There is no separate commander figure as I think the huge numbers of men involved in battles of the Franco-Prussian War would make such a figure disproportionate.
VICTORY (replaces Exhaustion Point)
An army is defeated once it loses more than half of its strength points OR more than half of its units.
TURN SEQUENCE
Turns are alternate (aka IGOUGO). Defender goes second. If neither side is obviously on the defensive, dice for who goes first in turn one, continuing with alternate half-turns.

Phases:
1. Artillery fire.
2. Move activated units. To be active, a unit needs to roll a minimum die score.
Prussians and Garibaldi Redshirts: 2.
Others, including non-Prussian Germans: 3.
Elite: +1. Poor: -1.
3. Rifle fire (available to inactive as well as active troops).
4. Resolve melees.

So Player A, for example, first fires any guns he wishes to shoot. Then, taking each unit in turn, he can try to activate it if he wants to move the unit. That unit can then shoot, whether it has activated or not, unless, naturally, it has contacted an enemy unit and so initiated a melee. Player A continues until he has activated/fired all his units, or at least the ones he wishes to activate/fire. Then it is Player B's half-turn.
ARTILLERY FIRE (guns that fire cannot also move that turn)
Line-of-sight firing only.
Roll a die, needing 4 to score a hit.
Prussian: +1
French Imperial: -1
Target in cover: -1
Firers have more than 3 strength points: +1
Firers have fewer than 3 strength points: -1
RIFLE FIRE
Roll a die, needing 4 to score a hit.
Firers moved this turn: -1
Target in cover: -1
Firers have more than 3 strength points: +1
Firers have fewer than 3 strength points: -1
MELEEING
A melee occurs when a unit tries to enter a square occupied by an enemy unit.
Both units roll a die, needing 4 to score a hit (if, with modifiers, the score is 8 or more, two hits are inflicted).
Attacking in flank or rear: +1
Being attacked in flank or rear: -1
Enemy uphill: -1
Enemy in cover: -1
Unit is infantry or artillery with more than 3 strength points: +1
Unit is infantry or artillery with fewer than 3 strength points: -1
Unit is cavalry with fewer than 2 strength points: -1
Unit is cavalry fighting infantry: +1
Unit is infantry fighting cavalry: -1
Unit is cavalry fighting artillery: +2
Unit is artillery fighting cavalry: -2
Unit is infantry fighting artillery: +1
Unit is artillery fighting infantry: -1
A unit that wants to break off from a melee (as opposed to withdrawing as the result of a hit) must move in a straight line directly away and end its turn with its backs to the enemy.
RESOLVING HITS
When artillery suffers a hit from firing and it is resolved as "lose a strength point or withdraw one square," this is replaced by: lose a strength point or be unable to fire or move next turn.
ALL OTHER RULES
As in The Portable Wargame, unless a scenario requires a rule to be modified.

THE THINKING BEHIND THE CHANGES
UNITS
Cordery uses strength points of four for infantry, three for cavalry and two for artillery. I have debuffed cavalry and upgraded artillery to make them in line with my reading of the Franco-Prussian War.
Weapon ranges are largely based on Thomas's figures.
I have removed the ability of cavalry to fight dismounted with rifles and/or carbines as that basically did not happen in the Franco-Prussian War, at least not at division or brigade level.
TURN SEQUENCE
Prussian staff work was ahead of its time, which is why Prussian units are more likely than most other units to activate. Garibaldi's Redshirts showed similar abilities.
ARTILLERY FIRE
Cordery's artillery need a 5 to score a hit, but guns using line-of-sight get a +2 modifier, meaning they only need a 3. I am exclusively using line-of-sight because howitzers were largely anonymous in battles involving many tens of thousands of troops, so it would make sense if my artillery only needed to roll a 3. I am making it 4 because I have also added modifiers for a unit's strength points, so an artillery unit at full strength, ie with four strength points, gets +1, which means it only needs to roll a 3 to score a hit. I have introduced modifiers for the number of strength points because it seems strange that a unit at full strength can fight as effectively as a unit with only one strength point remaining.
The modifiers for Prussian and French imperial guns represent the quality of the guns and the respective armies' use of said guns.
RIFLE FIRE
Cordery's units need a 5 to score a hit. But units that have not moved get a +1 modifier, meaning they only need to roll a 4. I prefer to to say units need a 4 (the same as for artillery) to score a hit, but with a -1 modifier for having moved.
MELEEING
Cordery has units meleeing when they are in adjacent squares. But at the scale of my battles, I think combat in adjacent squares should be determined by firing, with melees taking place when a unit tries to enter a square occupied by the enemy.

Summing Up Our Refight Of Charles Grant's Battle Of Kadesh

THIS was a decisive victory for the Hittites, with the Re corps swept from the battlefield, much as its real-life predecessor was in 1274 BC.

In the real battle, fighting continued, with the Hittites attacking Pharoah's camp and the Amun corps, both sides eventually claiming to have triumphed.

But that part of the action was not in Grant's scenario, which ended rather indecisively with the Hittites having lost more than a third of their chariots, although Re also suffered many casualties.

My opponent and I agreed our refight was a lot of fun, and, although it may be immodest of me to say so, my modified version of Neil Thomas's biblical rules from Ancient & Medieval Wargaming resulted in what felt to us to be a realistic encounter, considering the situation of the two forces, and an enjoyably fast-paced one.

Battlefield at the end, with two of the four remaining Egyptian units facing imminent elimination

Kadesh - Turn Five

Nightfall is four turns away, so will probably come too late to save the Egyptians

I win the dice-off (5-1) to decide who goes first, and start by sending my elite heavy chariots on the Hittite left into the Carchemish biblical infantry. One die per base, plus one more for being chariots in the first round of a melee, means eight dice for my men, and I score two hits. One is saved; the other resolved as forcing the Egyptians back 3cm.

They are then charged my other left-flank heavy chariots, whose eight dice also score two hits, none of which is saved, and both result in the Carchemish losing a base. That means two morale tests - they pass one, but fail the other, losing a third base.

The Carchemish fail to score an unsaved hit in either melee.

The Kush archers are charged by my two-base heavy squadron, which receives three dice per base, plus the usual chariot charge bonus, meaning eight dice in all, but only one hit is inflicted, and that is resolved as forcing the bowmen back 3cm.

The Kush's four dice score two hits, but both are saved.

Outside the walls of Kadesh, my three-base heavy squadron charges Pharoah's Royal Chariot Squadron. Being heavy chariots against light, my men receive three dice per base, plus the die-per-base bonus for being chariots in the first round of a melee. I score two hits. Neither is saved, but the Egyptians again do not lose a base, instead falling back 6cm.

The Egyptians receive one die per base, plus the bonus die-per-base. Reg scores two hits. One is saved, and the other forces my Hittites back 3cm - a chariot stand-off!

The isolated Ka archers are shot at by the Allied light squadron nearest them, losing a base, and a second base to poor morale.

My other light squadron wheels and shoots at the same target, but without success.

Finally, two heavy squadrons - one with three bases, the other with one - close in on the Ka.

Bird's-eye view of the battlefield

With defeat inevitable, and three-and-a-half turns before nightfall can intervene, Reg concedes.

 

Kadesh - Turn Four

This turn could conceivably see the Egyptians fall below half-strength (in units) and so lose the battle

Reg wins the dice-off (6-2) to determine who goes first.

He starts with the ongoing melee between the two-base Karnak biblical infantry and my one-base heavy chariot squadron. I do not score a hit, but the Egyptian unit (or, rather, Reg on its behalf) continues with incredible dice rolling, again getting two 6s. However, one hit is saved, and the other 'only' results in the charioteers being forced back 3cm. The Karnak cannot follow up as, although my men were forced back, they did not actually lose that round of fighting since no base was eliminated.

Pharoah's Royal Chariot Squadron, menaced by two Hittite squadrons, heads towards the Orontes, then swings round and shoots at my elite squadron, scoring a hit, but it is saved.

The Ka archers shoot at the Hittite squadron nearest them, scoring two hits. One is saved, but the other causes my men to lose a base, although the charioteers' morale remains steady.

The Kush archers shoot at the chariots nearest them, scoring two hits, one of which is saved, and the other resolved as causing my squadron to fall back 3cm.

Finally, Reg leaves the Carchemish biblical infantry where they are,

The Egyptians are hanging on, but now it is the Hittites' go

I start by ordering my right-flank elite heavy chariots to turn and charge the Egyptian light chariots. Despite losing half their movement allowance for turning, my men are just able to reach the enemy, with Reg cursing himself for having been so careless as to allow this to happen.

Heavy chariots roll three dice per base against light chariots, and there is the die-per-base bonus that chariots always get in the first round of a melee. That means 16 dice in all, and I manage to roll four hits, only one of which is saved. However, all three remaining hits are resolved as forcing the Egyptians back, rather than losing bases, and so they withdraw 9cm.

Meanwhile, Pharoah's squadron in the melee receives one die per base, plus the die-per-base bonus, and Reg rolls three hits, two of which are saved, but the third causes my men to lose a base.

I send my furthest-right heavy chariots to try to outflank the Ka archers.

Meanwhile, one of the Allied light-chariot squadrons advances on the Ka from the front and shoots, but without inflicting casualties.

The other Allied light squadron veers right and shoots at the Karnak biblical infantry, scoring three hits, only one of which is saved. The remaining two are both resolved as the loss of a base, which means the Karnak become the fourth Egyptian unit to be eliminated.

My two-base heavy chariots opposite the Kush archers are able to tack left and charge the bowmen. They receive three dice per base, plus one more per base for being chariots in the first turn of a melee. I roll two hits - one is saved, and the other is resolved as the Kush falling back 3cm.

King Muwatalli II and my elite heavy chariots on the Hittite left, opposite the Carchemish biblical infantry, should be able to charge them, but move-variation causes the squadron to lose 25% of its movement allowance, meaning the charioteers come up just short.

However, the other heavy squadron opposite the Carchemish suffer no such misfortune, and so, despite starting from further away than my elite squadron, crash into the Egyptian infantry. My men receive one die per base in this match-up, plus the die-per-base bonus for being chariots in the first round of a melee, and score two hits, but both are saved.

The Carchemish roll one die per base, scoring a hit, which is not saved, and is resolved as forcing my men back 3cm.

Fighting is getting close to the outskirts of Kadesh

Kadesh - Turn Three

All Hittite chariots have now crossed the Orontes

View from Kadesh

I win the dice-off (3-1) to determine who goes first, and start with my far-right chariots, which charge the Amarna, and this time, since the javelinmen are less than 8cm away, there is no question of defensive fire.

Heavy chariots against open-order infantry receive three dice per base, and there is an extra die per base for this being the first round of a melee. I score five hits, only one of which is saved. Three of the hits are resolved as the loss of a base, and the fourth forces a 3cm withdrawal. However, a morale test has to be taken for each base lost, and, although the Amarna, despite being levy, pass two of the tests, the third causes the unit to lose its final base, meaning the Egyptians have now lost two of their eight units.

My light chariots opposite the Ka archers shoot at the latter, scoring a magnificent three hits. One is saved, but the other two are resolved as forcing the Ka back a total of 6cm.

I next choose to resolve the ongoing melee involving the Karnak biblical infantry. Both sides receive one die per base, and there is no bonus to my charioteers as this is not the first round of hand-to-hand-fighting. I score two hits with my four bases, and the Karnak, despite only having two bases, score a hit. None of the hits is saved. The two I inflict are resolved as forcing the Karnak back 6cm, but the one hit my men suffer causes the loss of a base.

My other squadron of light chariots shoots at the Tharn biblical infantry, scoring two hits, none of which is saved. One hit causes the loss of a base, the other forces the Tharn to withdraw 3cm, but they also fail a morale test, losing a second base.

The unfortunate Tharn are then charged by the three-base Allied heavy chariots that just failed to make contact with them last turn. I roll 5, 1, 1 - one hit; Reg rolls 4, 4 - no hits. However, Reg has better luck by rolling a 6 for the saving throw, meaning the Tarn escape further harm.

Of the three squadrons that have just crossed the Orontes, two veer left, and one heads towards Pharoah's Royal Chariot Squadron.

With the second wave of Hittite chariots about to join the action, things are looking grim for the Egyptians

Reg orders Pharoah's chariots to shoot at the elite Hittite chariots bearing down on them. The Egyptians score two hits, but I save them both.

The Ka archers return fire at the Allied light chariots that forced them to fall back earlier this turn. The Ka score two hits, and neither is saved. Both are resolved as forcing my men back 3cm, ie 6cm in all, which can be done, without bumping into friendly troops, although they have to deviate slightly, but less than 30°, from moving straight back.

The Karnak biblical infantry are ordered to attack the chariots that have just forced them back. Reg rolls 6, 6 - two hits! One is saved, but the other causes the loss of a base, and a further base is lost when my men, apparently surprised by the Karnak's audacity, fail a morale test. But first my men get to roll three dice for having three bases in a melee against biblical infantry, and a further three dice for it being the first round of a new melee. I roll only one hit, and it is saved, so the fight between these two units has unexpectedly swung in favour of the infantry.

The other chariots-v-biblical-infantry melee continues, with the Tharn inflicting no hits, but suffering two, neither of which is saved, and both cause the loss of a base, thus eliminating the Tharn, and meaning the Egyptians have now lost three units.

A slight consolation for the Egyptians is that the elimination of the Tharn gives the Kush archers a clear sight of the Hittite squadron that destroyed the Tharn. Reg succeeds in rolling two hits, of which one is saved. The other causes the loss of a base, but the charioteers' morale holds firm.

Finally, the Carchemish biblical infantry pivot slightly to better face the fast-approaching Hittite chariots, but otherwise can do no more than await their fate.

The Egyptian Re corps is getting swept away, rather as happened in the historical battle (the one fought in 1274 BC, that is, rather than Charles Grant's refight)

Kadesh - Turn Two

Situation after turn one

Reg wins the dice-off (2-1, after a 2-2 tie) to see who goes first, and starts by ordering the Amarna to hurl javelins at the Hittite squadron bearing down on them. A hit is scored, and is not saved, but is resolved as my men falling back 3cm.

The Egyptian chariots shoot at the same target, also scoring a hit, but it is saved (I rolled the minimum necessary for heavy chariots, a 4).

The Ka archers shoot at the light-chariot squadron nearest them, but unsuccessfully.

The Karnak biblical infantry turn and advance on the furthest-forward Hittite squadron. Thanks to changing their direction by more than 30°, their 8cm move is halved, and, despite getting a move-variation bonus (Reg rolled a 6), they cannot quite make contact with my chariots.

On the extreme right of the Egyptian line, the yellow-shielded Carchemish biblical infantry turn slightly inwards (less than 30°) and advance, but drag their heels, only covering 6cm (thanks to move-variation).

The Kush archers next to the Carchemish shoot at the heavy-chariot squadron to their front, rolling 5, 5, 3, 2 - two hits. One hit is saved, but the other is resolved as the loss of a base - the first Hittite casualties.

That means a morale test has to be taken, and since the squadron is of average quality, I need to roll 4+ to avoid losing a further base, and I do roll the bare minimum.

Finally, the Tharn biblical infantry advance 8cm.

My chariots should have some juicy targets in the coming half-turn

I start with my lead squadron wheeling to charge into the Karnak biblical infantry.

Both sides get one die per base, but my men receive an extra die per base for being chariots in the first round of a melee. I score two hits to the Egyptians' none. One of the hits is saved, but the other is resolved as the loss of a base. This forces a morale test, which results in another base being lost.

My squadron facing the Amarna javelinmen charge them, but, because the charioteers were forced to fall back 3cm at the start of this turn, the charge covers more than 8cm, which means the javelinmen are allowed defensive fire. They score two hits, neither of which is saved, but both are resolved as the squadron falling back 6cm - no casualties, but the charge does not strike home.

The righthand Allied light chariots wheel slightly and shoot at the Ka archers, inflicting a hit, which is not saved, and the Ka are forced to withdraw 3cm.

The other Allied light chariots shoot at the Tharn biblical infantry directly to their front, also inflicting a hit, but this time it is saved.

The heavy-chariot squadron that lost a base earlier this turn, swerves towards the Tharn with the intention of charging them. The Tharn are just within 10cm of my unit, but move-variation (on top of losing half the normal move allowance for turning) means my men only cover 7.5cm, and so come up just short.

Finally, my reserve wave finishes crossing the Orontes.

Very much not the bloodthirsty half-turn I expected

Kadesh - Turn One

The starting position, with the Egyptian Re corps having just spotted the approaching massed chariots

Reg orders all his units to turn to face the Hittite attack.

Bowmen, even those in open order, cannot turn and shoot, but open-order troops armed with javelins have no such restriction, so Reg sends the Amarna forward 12cm. His move-variation die lands as a 6, which means they advance a further 25%, ie 3cm, but this is still not quite enough to put them in range of the leading Hittites (firing measurements are taken from the front-centre of the shooters' bases).

However, Pharoah's Royal Chariot Squadron, being formed of bow-armed light chariots, can turn, advance and shoot, and is in range of the leading right-flank Hittites (under my modified version of Neil Thomas's biblical rules, mounted bows have a range of 20cm).

But the shock of having been suddenly confronted by an enemy thought to be many miles away seems to affect the charioteers' aim as they roll 4, 3, 2, 1 (5+ is required for a hit).

Situation after the Egyptian half-turn

I start my half-turn by sending the Allied heavy squadron in the first row to charge the Kush archers.

The distance between them is such that the chariots would fail to reach the bowmen if a move-variation roll of 1 occurred, but I avoid that, and only troops armed with javelins are allowed a special round of defensive fire when being charged, so we get straight down to the melee.

Heavy chariots against open-order infantry receive three dice per base, and they roll an extra die per base in the first round, so that means 16 dice in all. I manage a very pleasing eight hits, none of which is saved (Reg fails to roll a single 6 - the score needed for troops with light protection).

Enough of the hits are resolved as losing a base to ensure the Amarna are wiped out, but before they are removed from the table, they get to roll their melee dice - one per base. However, they inflict no hits.

My right-flank Allied light squadron in the front row manoeuvres away from the Egyptian javelinmen, and shoots at the Karnak biblical infantry, scoring one hit. It is not saved (Reg rolls one short of the 5 required by troops with medium protection), and is resolved as the Karnak falling back 3cm.

The other front-row Allied light squadron advances a short distance and shoots at the Tharn biblical infantry, but fails to score a hit.

The Allied heavy squadron in the second row moves forward to the left (straight ahead is blocked by friends). Since that involves deviating more than 30°, it loses half its movement allowance, meaning the squadron advances only 10cm, but this is boosted 2.5cm thanks to move-variation.

The Hittite heavy squadron in the second row turns and advances towards the Egyptian javelinmen. They cannot reach the latter, but hope to get support next turn from the Hittite reserve, which I order to start crossing the Orontes.

A hole has been punched in the Egyptian line