Over the years, I've taken part in several what Wargame Developments term 'road movie' wargames ... and thoroughly enjoyed them. These always involved a team of players co-operating with each other to get from A to B whilst the umpire (what role-players would call a game master) presented them with a series of problems, events, or scenarios that they had to deal with.
For example, during a 'road movie' game involving a German battlegroup retreating from a Russian offensive in 1944, they discovered that they had to cross a frozen river and didn't have any bridging equipment. At the same time, a Russian armoured column was closing in on them, and a group of partisans were thought to be in a nearby forest. The umpire took on the role of non-player characters and actually performed the function of a plumpire (player/umpire).
Some time ago – and thanks to Big Lee's (i.e. Lee Hadley) YouTube channel and blog – I became aware that Paul Brook (who also has a YouTube channel and a website) was working on a 'road movie'-style of game about a group of French soldiers during the retreat from Moscow. I became intrigued and followed the progress with growing interest. Big Lee and Ray Rousell (another blogger) were the principal play-testers and wrote about their battles on their respective blogs (here and here).
The rules have now been published and they live up to my expectations ... and more!
The rules are published as an A5-sized softback and are sixty-pages long. It is divided into ten main sections:
- Introduction
- Core Rules
- The Turn
- Movement
- Shooting Melee
- Buildings
- Loot
- Campaign Phase
- Scenario
The introduction explains the Battle Chronicle concept and its design objectives. These are:
- Highly narrative
- Campaign-driven
- Complete, stand-alone wargames
- Suitable for collaborative or solo play
These are all admirable – and quite ambitious – objectives ... and it says much for the work of the designers that it achieves all of them.
I particularly like the fact that the rules use standard D6 dice and not the usual range of dice I've seen used in role-play games. Furthermore, unlike the latter, the rules are clear, coherent, and easy to understand. Admittedly, I had seen videos of the play-test before I read the rules, but they are – in my opinion – an exemplar of how rules should be presented. Everything you need to know is laid out in a very user-friendly way and includes a quick reference sheet inside the back cover.
One important aspect of the rules that – again, in my opinion – set them apart is the fact that the actions of the Russian troops are controlled by a simple but very effective set of mechanisms that don't require an umpire and can be used by solo wargamers. This is a big plus in my book ... and I can see myself using something like them to 'control' enemy units in my own solo wargames.
The book also includes several scenarios:
- The Barn at Dawn
- Through Frozen Streets
- The Killer Wind
- The Eagle
Each scenario includes a map, and require tabletops that are 2' x 2' (60cm x 60cm), 3' x 2 (90cm x 60cm)', 3' x 3', (90cm x 90cm) and 4' x 4' (120cm x 120cm) respectively ... which means that they do not require a huge amount of space to set them up. In addition, the total number of figures required is small (seventy-six in total, made up of eighteen French infantry, six French cavalry, six civilians, twelve Russian infantry, twelve Russian Jagers, and twelve Cossacks.)
In conclusion, I can thoroughly recommend these rules ... and I understand that there are more Battle Chronicles in the pipeline.
1813 THE RETREAT FROM MOSCOW: A BATTLE CHRONICLE WARGAME was written by Paul Brook, Lee Hadley, and Ray Rousell and published in 2026 by Pazoot (ISBN 978 19195 1980 7) and costs £12.00. It can be purchased from Pazoot.
