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Wednesday, 2 September 2026

Another progress report about my Portable Belle Époque Wargame rules (3)

As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, the significant changes I am making to THE GATLING'S JAMMED rules from THE PORTABLE COLONIAL WARGAME book are as follows:

  • Machine guns a treated like artillery and have their own fire phase.
  • The number of units a general can activate each turn is subject to a degree of randomness that depends upon their ability.
  • A timescale has been introduced.

The section that deals with the third of these currently reads as follows:

Timescale

  • The game day is divided into eight daytime turns and a night turn.
  • Each turn represents the time taken for two activation cards (one for each side) to be turned over and the relevant activations to take place.
    • Dawn (6.00am to 8.00am)
    • Early morning (8.00am to 10.00am)
    • Late morning (10.00am to Midday)
    • Noon (Midday to 2.00pm)
    • Early afternoon (2.00pm to 4.00pm)
    • Late afternoon (4.00pm to 6.00pm)
    • Early evening (6.00pm to 8.00pm)
    • Late evening (8.00pm to 10.00pm)
    • Night (10.00pm to 6.00am)
  • Battles usually start at dawn, but players may wish to randomise the start time.
  • No fighting is allowed during the night turn and therefore not activation cards are turned over.
  • Units may move once during the night turn without needing to be activated but may not move into a grid area that is adjacent to the front, flank, or rear of enemy unit.
  • During the night turn, units that have not been destroyed may regain a lost Strength Point (SP) by rolling one D6 die per unit.
  • Elite units add 1 to their D6 die score and Poor units deduct 1 from their D6 die score.
  • Results:
    • D6 die score = 5 or more: The unit regains 1 SP.
    • D6 die score = 4 or less: The unit does not regain any lost SPs.

12 comments:

  1. Another interesting addition to the PW Bob, and a further modification that I will need to try next time I play a suitable game.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maudlin Jack Tar,

      As before, any constructive feedback is welcome.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  2. I like these simple timing rules, especially the idea of the automatic activation and recovery potential during the Night move.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WEK 3,

      I ‘borrowed’ this idea from an earlier set of PW-related rules that I wrote when I was interested in fighting battles along the lines laid down in SHAMBATTLE.

      All the best,

      Bob

      PS. That’s given mean idea for a new YouTube video!

      Delete
  3. Interesting developments. I've used a similar time scale for turns in my big battle and 3x3 Portable Wargames but the number of turns in a day varies by season.
    For winter I use dawn, morning, afternoon, dusk and night.
    For spring and fall: dawn, early morning, late morning, early afternoon, late afternoon, dusk and night.
    For summer, dawn, early morning, late morning, noon, early afternoon, late afternoon, dusk and night.
    This was done to reflect the changing amount of daylight with the seasons.
    I had a variable start time as well, roll 1d6: 1-3 turn one, 4-5 turn two and 6 turn three. If it was an encounter type scenario I reversed it, 1 turn one, 2-3 turn two and 4-6 turn 3. Bad weather could also delay the start of the battle. The second day, if any, started on turn one, unless delayed by weather.
    I hope you find the above ideas useful., I'm looking forward to further developments.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark Cordone,

      I hope add seasonal variations for the length of the 'day' in due course.

      I like your variable start time mechanism ... a lot! I may well - with your agreement - copy it for inclusion in the latest iteration of the PW rules.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  4. A long day for the Lads hope they get a few brew breaks 😀

    ReplyDelete
  5. What scale are you aiming these rules at?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Conrad Kinch,

      I am using them with my collection of 15mm figures mounted on DBA-sized bases.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete

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