is a new Napoleonic Rule Set which is freely available on the Perry Miniatures website.

Link is https://www.perry-miniatures.com/valour-fortitude/

Blurb on site is:

Valour & Fortitude (V&F for short) is a set of rules that you can download from this website and then use to fight tabletop wargames using the Perry Miniatures range of figures. The rules are complemented by a set of army sheets, that contain the information needed to use one of the armies from the Perry Miniatures range in V&F, and scenarios that provide all the information needed to set up a battle.

The rules, army sheets and scenarios are completely free of charge, and are designed to fit onto just half a dozen sides of A4 paper. All you need to do is download them and print them out and you are good to go! In addition, a full colour printed version of V&F is available with the October 2022 issue of Wargames Illustrated magazine, and the magazine itself includes further V&F coverage. You can find out more by visiting the Wargames Illustrated website.

These rules are written by Jervois Johnson, Alan and Michael Perry, names well known to all Wargamers. The rules are aimed at those hosting games for new players and convention demonstration games.

So, Goldie expressed a desire to give them a whirl at the year ending BBQ so 4 of us gathered to give them a first whirl…I had printed them….as had Alan while Goldie and SteveC had actually read them…so a good start. As usual I managed drinks while Alan and Steve playing French took on Goldie in a 150 point game. The Army lists allow you to point out a force.

A second game was played between Xmas and New Year; however, I missed that one as Covid finally got me on Xmas Day… sigh…….but a third one was played with Alan and I with Goldie (Alan also had Covid over Xmas). So, a scattering of pictures is below from several games with my initial thoughts…….

The Rules are the standard fare of I move, you move with caveat of they are FAST PLAY rules so don’t expect a BLACK POWDER game.

It’s designed to be quick, and it is as once you get the hang of the rules…a good-sized game will probably last a couple of hours. The rules are 4 pages however with the Army lists you get a wee bit of the National characteristics along with a small deck of cards which add a wee bit of flavour.

Some pictures from games follow:

So below we have French infantry brigade on the left v Prussian infantry and a French Cuirassier brigade on v Prussian Cavalry. In the infantry fight the French have advantage as have a flanking unit and a rear unit…they add differing attack factors. Now the Cavalry bash is very interesting….. the Dragoons get 6 attacks….the support adds 3 as is touching corner of French Cuirassiers…the Cuirassiers get 7 attacks…but only 1 for the supporting unit…Prussians roll average…French less than average and they explode(several tests are performed).

Here we have a different game…..Prussian skirmishers on left that were proving very difficult to get away…Goldie checked after game, and they should have died earlier…..but the cavalry is more interesting…..I used a small brigade of Guard Cavalry…why not! To take on 3 Prussian Landwehr Cavalry…..this is where the Card deck helped…was able to auto move 2 brigades so sent Guard into Landwehr and then moved the infantry brigade up as cover. I took out the Landwehr.

Other side of table…..I was holding the village…well….actually just being target practice. Shooting is vicious,,,,,you get 3 shots…..on a 4 you cause a casualty…no save…in a village…you ignore the FIRST casualty.. the rest stick…so if you put a unit in a village…and opponent gets several units and a battery to shoot you…you don’t survive long at those odds!! Now opposite these Prussian landwehr is my Cuirassier brigade. Plan was to charge to landwehr and form them into square. This is where reading rules would have helped…..I have 7 attacks….Landwehr have 5 as in attack columns…however….there is no form square test…instead my attacks round down to 50%…so I have 3 attacks…..YIKES!!

Last picture from this game is Alans flanking cavalry having smashed my Cuirassiers, is flanking the Landwehr and the village is now devoid of French infantry as the brigade guarding it has been blown away.

So I have watched one game and played in one….. so and initial thoughts are it sure ain’t BLACK POWDER.

Do I like Valour & Fortitude…frankly unsure. Goldie has been conversing with Jervois Johnson and as a group we have been invited to do some playtesting which the guys have jumped at. But you do need A LOT OF TROOPS as brigades literally EXPLODE…. which fortunately is not an issue for our group.

I don’t like the layout of the rules…so as just headed away on holiday the plan is to do very little for couple of weeks(at a beach town….but…its going to be wet most of the time)…so will reformat them so easier to read.

Pop on over to Little Wars for a good review if you have the time.

https://www.littlewarstv.com/valour–fortitude.html

Now the first Whisky of the Year 2023 is the Lagavulin 16.

When asked what I wanted for Xmas…I informed the Beloved a bottle of whisky of course…so she just sighed and just handed over her credit card! Last year while visiting one of my daughters who is working in Queenstown in a hotel…..while drinking whisky at the bar…the delightful young chap on the bar gave me samples of a few whiskies, one being the Lagavulin 16…which is a peaty classic….so I decided this would make a good Xmas Prezzie.

Sadly…with covid hitting me on Xmas day…was unable to sample it until this month…when friend Weakly stopped over for a night on arrival from Vanuatu (we spent the day spray coating his Warlord Epic Waterloo figures…you can’t send spray cans to the island) …so at last could open it and smell then taste it!

These are the reviewing notes:

Nose: More like Lapsang Souchong tea than Lapsang Souchong! One of the smokiest noses from Islay. It’s big, very, very concentrated, and redolent of iodine, sweet spices, good, mature Sherry and creamy vanilla. Stunning.

Palate: Very thick and rich. A massive mouthful of malt and Sherry with good fruity sweetness, but also a wonderful sweetness. Big, powerful peat and oak.

Finish: Long, spicy finish, figs, dates, peat smoke, vanilla.

All I can say is I heartily agree….it is not for the for a Whisky newbie or the faint of heart…..but I am really looking forward to winter and enjoying this wee beauty in front the fire….. while listening to Runrig singing Loch Lomond!

Until next time….and a hopefully refreshed Terry