War-Chess or The Game of Battle

In response to one of my recent blog entries about putting wargames rules onto my Kindle, Steve-the-Wargamer contacted me with details about some rules that were already available online. He subsequently wrote a blog entry about what he had already found.

One of the books Steve-the-Wargamer included on his list was WAR-CHESS OR THE GAME OF BATTLE. It was 'invented' by Colonel Charles Richardson who published the rules in book form in 1866. As I am interested in the history of wargaming (and early wargames in particular) I searched for more information about the book ... and discovered that a spiral-bound A5-size photocopy reproduction was on sale in the UK for a very modest sum. I bought a copy ... and it has just been delivered by post!

The game is in fact quite simple. There are two sides; The Attacking (or Invading) Army and the Defending Army.

The Attacking Army has:

• Four figure that each represent a Light Infantry Regiment;
• Five figures that each represent a Infantry of the Line Regiment;
• Two figures that each represent a Cavalry Regiment;
• Two figures that each represent an Artillery Battery;
• One figure (a wagon) that represents the 'Supply Train'

The objective of the Attacking Army is to capture the Citadel.

The Defending Army has:

• Four figure that each represent a Light Infantry Regiment;
• Five figures that each represent a Infantry of the Line Regiment;
• Two figures that each represent a Cavalry Regiment;
• Two figures that each represent an Artillery Battery;
• One figure that represents the 'Citadel'

The objective of the Defending Army is to prevent the capture of the Citadel.

The rules are similar to chess in that each type of 'piece' has different movement. For example:

• Light Infantry can move one, two, or three squares directly forward, right or left obliquely, and one or two squares in any other direction.
• Infantry of the Line can move one or two squares in any direction.
• Cavalry can move one, two, or three squares in any direction.
• Artillery can move one, two, or three squares diagonally.

Each type of 'piece' also has different fighting abilities. For example:

• Light Infantry, Infantry of the Line, and Cavalry can 'take' Light Infantry, Infantry of the Line, Cavalry, and Artillery.
• Artillery can 'take' Artillery. It cannot 'take' Light Infantry, Infantry of the Line, or Cavalry, but can 'block' them.

Unlike in chess, in War-Chess the board does not have its squares set out orthogonally; instead they are set out diagonally.

What immediately struck me about the layout of the board is that it would seem to combine some of the advantages of a hexed grid with those of a traditional orthogonally-organised squared grid ... and I wonder why orientating the grid diagonally has never occurred to me before.

I think that I might have to lie down in a darkened room for an hour or two as this 'revelation' has given me pause for thought regarding quite a few of the wargame design ideas that I currently have whirling around in my brain!