Snappy Nappy 1814 Campaign in a Day - Sunday April 28, 2019

 Napoleon and his staff are returning from Soissons after the battle of Laon,

 by Jean-Louis Ernest Meissonier  (Image from Wikimedia commons)

La Patrie en Danger!

An 1814 Snappy Nappy Campaign-in-a-Day
by Russ Lockwood

In January of 1814, the 300,000 troops of the Armies of Silesia and Bohemia flowed over the frontiers and into France, chasing the battered remnants of Napoleon's army. Outnumbered and outgunned, Napoleon yet believed his fortunes could change.

Behind the scenes, diplomats negotiated the fate of the Emperor and his Empire. Spain teetered on accepting a peace that would secure France's southwestern border and end the British offensive over the Pyrenees. Meanwhile, the Austrians, Prussians, and Russians squabbled even as Schwartzenberg, Blucher, and Alexander pursued their not yet vanquished foe.

A New Grand Armee

Napoleon issued new orders to call up troops -- 936,000 conscripts to fill out decimated units, 150,000 National Guardsmen, and recalling old veterans to the colors. He counted on an upswell of French patriotism to help toss the foreign troops out of France. With a battlefield victory or two, Napoleon would once again be in a position of strength when it came to negotiate another peace.

History, however, would find only an estimated 120,000 conscripts who answered the call. Despite flashes of maneuvering brilliance and a half-dozen rapid victories against various parts of the Armies of Silesia and Bohemia, the odds proved too great for Napoleon. Paris ultimately fell, the marshals ended their support, and Napoleon was sent off to Elba.

Napoleon's maneuvers during the 1814 campaign in France

1814 Snappy Nappy Campaign-in-a-Day

For SnapCon VII, we present the 1814 Campaign-in-a-Day using the Snappy Nappy rules. A dozen tabletops represent the area roughly from Paris to Verdun, with up to 22 players and 3 army C-in-Cs as commanders of the campaign. Unlike most miniatures games, the table edge is not the end of the world -- Players move their troops across the terrain, often from table to table, praising (or cursing) the fog of war about what lies on the next table over.

Map of the Theater of War (for illustrative purposes only, almost certainly NOT the map that Russ will be using!)

WHEN: Sunday, April 28, 2019. Briefing starts at 10:30am, campaign starts at 11:00, and wraps up by 5pm.

WHERE: The Portal, 60 Hilliard Rd, Manchester, CT (next to Hartford, CT)-- a full-service game store with a back room and 20 tables, more tables in the main area, and a three-story hobby store across the street.

COST: None. No fees. Free parking.

RULES: Snappy Nappy. Beginners welcome. Rules taught. Each player is a Corp commander. Each unit is roughly a brigade.

WHAT TO BRING: Yourself and other gamers. We provide all troops, terrain, charts, and so on.

SIGN UPS: We ask that you sign up in advance so we know how many to expect. Walk-ins are welcome, but first signed up, first served. :)

If you wish a particular command (French, Prussian, Austrian, or Russian) or even a particular C-in-C (Napoleon, Blucher, or Schwartzenberg), or no preference, e-mail me direct: 
Russ Lockwood 
lockwood161@comcast.net

PREPARE?

I recommend Peter's blog BlundersontheDanube (Google it) for recaps of all previous Snappy Nappy campaigns in a day.

I also recommend heading to Alan's Snappy Nappy Yahoo Group for 10 years worth of SN discussions, errata, and so on. You'll find the SN Quick Reference Sheet with all the charts.

And, I recommend heading to Little Wars TV for their review of Snappy Nappy -- they used a multi-table campaign game for their evaluation.

WRINKLES: We always put in a wrinkle or two for greater fog of war. For example, game commanders and units are often swapped so you can make your own plans.

Here's another one: For this SN Campaign, Napoleon's call to arms was more successful than it historically was… Another? Sorry, that will be revealed at game time…

HISTORICAL COMMANDS adapted for the game:

French

* Napoleon C-in-C: ?
* Mortier (Imperial Guard): ?
* Ney (Young Guard): ?
* Victor (II Corp): ?
* Marmont (VI Corp): ?
* MacDonald (IX Corp): ?
* Gerard (XI Corp): ?
* Oudinot (VII Corp): ?
* Pully (XVI Corp): ?
* Pacthod (XIV Corp): ?
* Rusca

Prussian
* Blucher C-in-C: ?
* Olssuliev (9th Russian Corp): ?
* Scherbatov (6th Russian Corp): ?
* Lieven (11th Russian Corp): ?
* Tuchkov (10th Russian Corp): ?
* Yorck (1st Prussian Corp): ?
* Kleist (2nd Prussian Corp): ?

Austrian
* Schwarztenberg C-in-C: ?
* Wrede (5th Bavarian Corp): ?
* Gyulai (3rd Austrian Corp): ?
* Frederich (4th Wurttemburg Corp): ?
* Colleredo (1st Austrian Corp): ?
* Wittgenstein (6th Mixed Corp): ?
* Rajewsky (Grenadier Corps): ?

QUESTIONS AND SIGN UPs?

lockwood161@comcast.net
(Put '1814 SN Campaign' in the subject line)