WARGAMING WITH DBR

One man's view of "De Bellis Renationis"

by Jeff Herbert

Although the rules have been around sometime it was only recently that I got them out and had a game with Peter.  The main reason for this was my ECW army was far from painted and I didn’t have an opponent.  However I used my Ottomans, a mix of medieval and Napoleonic’s and Peter fielded his Timurids as Anatolians.

The result was two very enjoyable games, both of which I lost, the first as I marched into his massed artillery and the second because I attacked at dawn forgetting my heavy bombards would be out of visibility and couldn’t be moved into it, doh. ! 

DBR is a very different game from DBM but uses the same methods.  It is faster moving and much harder to calculate and control with lots of fine innuendos in the outcomes.  In the first game we both found out that light cavalry cannot be depended on in the battle line but in the second Peter’s still saw off my Sipahi!   Peter was severely concerned about their vulnerability but fate stepped in and helped him, I had the biggest run of 1’s I have ever suffered.  Of course it is to be hoped that Peter emboldened by this success will try the same tactic again.

Choosing terrain under DBR has to be done more carefully.  On our last game Peter was the defender and placed the terrain, I then chose to move two pieces.   I moved two hills into a more central position to grab them by swift movement.  In doing so I blocked my bombards even more.   The game is fast but due to the fact that march moves end further away grabbing the hills was not even a real option.  So think about what you do.   A great set of rules and I must say I really enjoyed our two games.  I will be taking on Andrzej's newly acquired Polish army again with the Ottomans and shortly will put on an ECW game with Dick who also has 15mm ECW’s.  I am again painting like mad with another of those self-imposed deadlines.

Come on have a go, its fun.

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