Warhammer Historicals: Trafalgar

[archduckdan]

Link: Click here

This is reportedly coming out in late february. From the website, it looks like it will handle squadron actions easily.

Is anyone keeping tabs on this one besides me?

~ Danny

[craigjwoodfield]

(raises hand)

Cheers

CW

[Dropbear]

Thanks for pointing this one out... I didnt know about this one.

I probably will get the book for the modeling/painting information more than anything, and use the Too Fat Lardies rules to play games.

[arnhem_chris]

Uh Oh here we go .... napoleonic naval fantasy as dictated by the evil empire (or its offspring) and the almighty handful of D6!!! ...... actually this is one type of battle where the 'handful o dice' system is most appropriate

Those of you interested in this period, apart from the Toofatlardies "Kiss Me Hardy" (KMH) rules could not go far wrong looking at the set "Form Line Of Battle" (FLOB) .... in my experience, KMH is better for more detailed smaller scale actions (probably using GHQ or Langton 1/1200th models) with only a few ships per side, and hence are better for the smaller Frigate style actions, whereas FLOB work superbly with larger fleets (I have played Trafalgar itself a couple of times with these rules) .... hence the Hallmark/Regal 1/2400th models are probably better ..... I will look at these 'Trafalgar' rules, initially probably with a very sceptical eye, but I doubt I will find better sets than the two I have mentioned above, depending on the size of battle I want to run,

Rgds

Chris

[starkadder]

Just out of historical interest, whatever happened to the Heart of Oak rules.

I seem to recall they were pretty good.

[Cardinal Biggles]

I would be interetd to hear what Thommo has to say..I know hw is around I saw him on the weekend..hangin' out the back with a tough looking crew near the container that was across from the side exit... he had the second best shirt at CanCon..

[greatwhitezulu]

Heart of Oak!

Many a fine game played with those. Most memorable was my raid into a french port with 8 ships when the wind changed and all but one lost their masts....needless to say I did the honourable thing rather than return to Old Blighty.....

[starkadder]

How did the French lessons go?

[akula_au]

bon,trie bien....

[craigjwoodfield]

Some more info, and a link to some pdf's.

"Warhammer Historical is proud to present Trafalgar, a naval wargame, set in the Age of Sail. Within this book you will find all the rules, history and hobby information you need to fight battles between opposing navies throughout the period 1795-1815. From the Battle of Copenhagen and the Glorious 1st June, the war in the Baltic, and the eponymous Battle of Trafalgar itself, to the naval War of 1812 between Britain and the emerging naval superpower of the United States, all are contained within this volume.

Whether you’re inspired by the history and romance of massive, bloody battles on the high seas, or wish to recreate the fictional exploits of Hornblower and Aubrey, Trafalgar provides an accessible set of rules and practical information to bring these encounters to life through a strategic tabletop wargame.

Set sail for adventure and glory. Clear for action, beat to quarters, and run out the guns: Every man must do his duty!

Trafalgar includes a comprehensive section detailing the history of the period. Amongst the content is an excellent article on the Trafalgar Campaign by Dr John Rickard - you can visit his website by clicking here.

Click each of the thumbnails below to download the templates or rosters from Trafalgar..."

http://www.warhammer-historical.com/Tra ... falgar.asp

[Sparker]

I have been playing these pretty avidly down at the HMS Sultan club, with a bunch of naval officers, some of whom are keen sailors, and the consensus is that they are pretty good. Having said that none of us have done any naval wargaming before, but if these rules have persuaded us to give it a try, no doubt it may bring others into the hobby.

The whole weather gauge thing works well, bringing an element of unpredictability but still making it worth having a plan.

My most embarrasing moment so far, was when, in formation 1, the wind changed and my whole fleet was in irons, with two collisions resulting in the loss of a third of my squadron. I now understand the religious emphasis given to manoeuvering distances! It was at this point that my opponent, a supply officer, pointed out that I was a warfare (seaman) officer...Heigh Ho!

[Bluewillow]

I have in anticipation went out and bought some langtons, but as usual they are in the draw awaiting love, along with a heap of other lead

[JasonB]

Will have to give these a look.....I remember visiting HMS Victory on my honeymoon in 2005 just weeks before the 200th anniversary of Trafalgar....i bought the Osprey on Trafalgar fromt he book shop there and I remember they had a computer setup where you typed in your surname to see if anyone of that named served in the fleet during Trafalgar. Commander Thomas Bury served aboard a ship I cant remember now. Long story short I traced the family ancestry and indeed he was a Great great something or rather Grandfather from Dublin......seems the Bury's are an old seafaring family and when my Dad's grandfather came here in 1904 he settled in North Sydney because of the sailing community there and he was an amateur yachtsman.....so there you go......i shall definitely give the rules a look.....

[Sparker]

Matt,

Get those Langtons sorted for August time and I'll give you a game -don't worry, I've bought Spanish, cos I reckon the Dons will be the least popular navy to get, but at least I should always have some opponents!

Actually, the more I read up on the Armada Real I find them quite impressive, and very brave, considering they actually didn't like the French that much...

[Bluewillow]

Matt,

Get those Langtons sorted for August time and I'll give you a game -don't worry, I've bought Spanish, cos I reckon the Dons will be the least popular navy to get, but at least I should always have some opponents!

Actually, the more I read up on the Armada Real I find them quite impressive, and very brave, considering they actually didn't like the French that much...

how about for the congress!

cheers
matt

[Sparker]

Matt,

You're on!

[Cardinal Biggles]

hmm now you have my interest as well..

[D'Saint]

Hi Blue Willow,

Forgot what scale are we playing Trafalgar in? Just looking at Magister Militum site and they do the rules plus a fleet in both 1/2400 & 1/1200. Thinking I might order 1. Maybe Spanish?

Cheers.

[craigjwoodfield]

I started putting together my British fleet (1:1,200) for Trafalgar last night.

The models are nice (Langdon), bit of flash on them though. Painting should be fairly straghtforward.

Then I read the guide to rigging provided in the Trafalgar rulebook. And I had to have a lie down. I started reading it again, but started sobbing uncontrollably, and had to stop again.

Cheers

CW

[Arnhem_chris]

Bard,

That is the main reason that I put together the total Trafalgar fleets in 1:2400 and not 1:1200, ... I wanted to maintain my sanity (I don't have much, so can't afford to lose the rest), plus, the playing area for a 1:1200 Trafalgar just gets silly .... I've done it in 1:2400, and it still required two table-tennis tables, in a T, with the Allied fleet crossing the top, and the English Fleet coming up the stem .... done it a couple of times, great game

I would suggest if you truly want to do Trafalgar, go to the smaller scale, and use the 1:1200 for squadron/individual ship actions

A_C

P.S. don't know if anyone is interested but GMT games, have just released "1805: Seas of Glory", which looks like it could be quite a good system for some sort of Napoleonic Naval Campaign? ... I'm waiting for my copy

[craigjwoodfield]

I can assure you that I have no intention of building a fleet to fight the battle of Trafalgar. I will, however, attempt to put together my fleet of 4 ships to play the game Trafalgar.

Cheers

CW

[braveheart2408]

Sparker: Fear not, I don't recall too much sails training during my time as a Warfare Officer
For all, played a 1500pt game of these rules a few weeks ago, used the good ole Pirate of the Carribean for ships as my minis were still to be ordered. Plays well , considering the wind direction is part of the whole fascination for me of wargaming in this period, and I too found my stout British lads sitting in Irons as the damn Frenchies pounded the masts and sails... I was gratified to see the cheeky blighters sink after they collided with me when attempting to board(my ship also sank in the collision)....at least they didn't scarper off with the Mess Silver!!
The gunnery rules work well I thought, and the benefits of remaining in formation are defintiely evident as the intitative rules (closest to the wind moves last) really forces you to avoid crossing your own T and preventing your own ships from shooting or maneuvering.
Took about 4 hours solo, so I'm trying a 1000pt game with an opponent next time...and real minis!!

[straylight]

apologies for the thread necromancy.

Braveheart, just on the off chance, are you still in Adelaide and are you still interested in 1:1200 Trafalgar games ? I'm down in Glandore and I'll be at Little Wars with some 1:600 ships in July 2014. Drop me a PM if you'd like a game or two.

stu

[Dropbear]

apologies for the thread necromancy.

Braveheart, just on the off chance, are you still in Adelaide and are you still interested in 1:1200 Trafalgar games ? I'm down in Glandore and I'll be at Little Wars with some 1:600 ships in July 2014. Drop me a PM if you'd like a game or two.

stu

I would send him a PM, as unless he is being notified on topic replies, most likely he wouldn't read this before Little Wars.

[straylight]

cool, of course, thanks Dropbear