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THE LIST OF OUR
FREE GAMES! French & Indian War Variant for Jon Bull/Patriots MOHICAN! Optional Actions! Some optional rules useful for all versions of Actions! War of 1812- Cousin Jonathan Patriots (AmRev) John Bull Obstinate Beyond Description Ancient Greece- Renaissance- Spanish Fury
Series:
Siege! Sail! Actions! Battle! Campaign! Voyage! Tinker Fox Very Civile Actions! (ECW) Russian Civil War-
We are also the
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of the Feldmachink! Double blind system for tabletop or boardgame for TOTALLY HIDDEN MOVEMENT WITHOUT A REFEREE!! Check
it out
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A companion game to Cousin Jonathan, sim'lating warfare
of that smaller sort
Welcome to the home of
John Bull & Patriots! (2nd Edition now available) A Free set of
miniatures rules
for the War of 1812 and Who is
"John Bull"? As far as
the Americans were concerned, John
Bull was another name for the British,
<> What
are these rules about? just as "Cousin Jonathan" was what the British called the Americans. 
 Well, these
rules are, as already stated, the
companion set to our previously published War of 1812 ruleset "Cousin
Jonathan", which covered the war at the Battalion/Regiment level. It
enabled you to fight any of the famous
battles for the period such
as Chippewa, Lundy's Lane, Sackett's Harbour, etc. While battles were generally small, (with 6000
participants total considered large), we felt that there was something missing for those interested in even
smaller actions of the period. Further, while Cousin Jonathan is by no means a complicated game, it was decided
to make a game that could be whipped together and
played in a relatively short time. Thus, John Bull, and ultimately Patriots, the American Revolution variant. What's
different? Well, for
those of you who have played "Spanish
Fury, Actions!", not a lot! You'll notice more than a passing similarity between these rulesets. Why? We
felt
the fun of cattle raiding and prison breaks to be quite diverting.
Then we realized, with some modifications
(for
period flavour), North American warfare, with its forests and swamps, raids and counter-raids would be a
perfect
setting for this system. The War of 1812 was the obvious
era to start with, followed by the American Revolution and a fan-created French and Indian Wars version (Mohican). Useful
graphics ease play As far as
the rules themselves they allow fast
but hopefully historical play of smaller actions from the period.
The entire northern front is the area we
chose
to simulate, with Indians, Kentuckians, Light Dragoons, Canadian
Fencibles, British & American Regulars
(several
types), Volunteer Rifles, Turncoat Militia, Voyageurs- you name it, there's a separate card for it. In the Revolution,
you'll find Brunswick Dragoons, Veteran Continentals, Tory Legion
Infantry, and a pile of other cards. The
game
is so simple just about everything you need is on the unit card (about
the size of a regular playing card;
smaller,
even). With a few of these in front of you, and the quick reference
sheet, you won't be needing the rules after
a
game or two......
What
kind of scenarios? From Detroit
to Montreal, we have TEN scenarios
available for 1812 and SIX for
the AWI, but have included a random force generator for those with a passion for "Design Your
Own".
The best part is, you never know what your enemy might be packing... are those "Regulars By G_d?"
or
are those "mere Militia"? Can I advance truimphantly, or am I walking into a trap? You'll never know
until
the game's over. The ten scenarios mostly cover actions from historical battles or skirmishes. Those
keen
on the period will recognize Purdy's advanced guard at Chateauguay, the last charge of Sir Isaac
Brock,
the beach landing at Little York, and many others.
What about personality......? What's
company level actions without a little
extra flavour and some heroics? These gentlemen are "Heroes". In every game, you will have an officer in
charge
of the entire force, as well as a few "loose cannons" attached to individual companies (or Warbands). Some
of
these fellows will raise your morale, others lower it. Some can have taught their charges new skills,
like
Skirmishing and Ranger tactics. Clever officers can second guess
their opponents, and get the drop on them. Still others might be the Romantic type of legends, exposing themselves to enemy fire in hopes of becoming legendary themselves. What
about the troops themselves? You'll
recognize all of your favorites- the Glengarries,
De Meuron's Foreigners, Forsythe' Rifles, Scott's brigade, Tecumseh's Shawnee. In fact, no
two
troop types are alike. Some are Hardened, and can face casualties with ease. Some are Careful,
and won't stick around when they get shot at. Some perform well in the Open Field, while Rangers
prefer the woods. Skirmishers are hard to get a bead on. Some
troops fear other, specific units, such
as
Sedentary
Militia being afraid of everything except Sedentary Militia. Others, like British Grenadiers, fear
nothing.
What's
the scale? How many figs
will I need to play? A stand of
three figures is about 25 actual men,
and an inch about ten paces.You can play
with as few as 20 figures,or as
many as one hundred.
It's up to
you. You won't have to rebase your
army to play with these rules, by the way, just about anything will do. And there's no individual figure
removal.
As per the Captain's secret protocol, there is no record keeping! Burn your pens, pencils, and paper!
Here is a totally unsolicited testimonial from William Henry Harrison, commander on the Detroit front, 1812-1813:
"Ye'll
feel as like unto one hiding behind
ye tree aquiring a bead on Tecumseh himself. Ye shall be pleasantly surprised or I am not
William Henry Harrison, certain to be this great nation's greatest
multi-termed
president through time immemorial."
Tyler, too!
Can you
give us an idea of the
flow of play? Why,
certainly. Each force is divided before
play begins into companies, some of which may be led by Heroes. Each turn, players alternate
acting
with an individual company to move, shoot, hide,
rustle sheep, jump into or out of
boats,
manhandle cannon, stop running away, etc. Some
Heroes are Clever. These
officers
can attempt to preempt an enemy company's actions by performing his own first, thus giving
his
side a sort of double turn. Otherwise companies keep alternating their actions, getting
into
firefights, sometimes charging with the bayonet, until the other side has run off or had their
army
morale shattered. The play is fast and amusing.
Is this
connected to Cousin Jonathan
somehow? Of course!
Every troop type in CJ is present
in JB, with simple conversions available. Both of these systems will be integrated into our
campaign
game which is set for delivery to you all very soon.
Can you show us a
Scenario? Mail Call
William Hull
is isolated in Detroit, with no
news from the outside world- the Indians have cut off his communications south. He has
decided
to send a force south to reopen the road, and deliver his own dispatches.
- Forces - British:
American:
Board
Special
Rules Victory
Conditions
The Americans must exit both wagons from the opposite board edge (Good luck!).
Hold on
a minute, Cap'n! What
are the forces? The forces
are generated randomly for EACH scenario,
EVERY TIME it is played!
Both player's would roll on their respective National Force tables, and the exact force is given. Note that this is NEVER shown to your opponent. A little "fog of war" goes a long way.
WHO SAYS YOU CAN'T HAVE
IT ALL?
Since we here at The Captain doubtless
outrank
you, You can contact us anytime with
questions or comments!
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Come
and join us at
our Yahoo Group, where we discuss rules, variants, and new products! Right HERE! * * * Contact us anytime, by mail, at: The Perfect Captain * * * Visit us at The Perfect Captain's Homepage Also, battlefield, uniform, and historic site books printed by: Uniforms and Equipment of the
United States
Forces
on the War Of 1812 War Along the Niagara
How about some Patriots links? Causes
of the American Revolution The
Patriot Resource Revolutionary
War battles Uniform
Guide Southern
Campaign.....Campaign! The
King's Royal Regiment of New York |
