La Bataille de la Moscowa (Third Edition) (2011)

About this game

This is the new, 3rd edition of the venerable La Bataille de la Moscowa, the wargame that introduced "monster" as a genre in the hobby. Napoleon's battle near Moscow; September 5th to the 7th, 1812. Serried ranks of French and Russians clash on a narrow field where more than 1000 guns thunder and tear asunder man and beast. It was the single bloodiest day of battle up until WWI. The scale is 100 meters per hex. 100 men per infantry strength point, 50 men per cavalry strength point and 2 to 4 guns per strength point for artillery. It has 4 maps and over 1400 counters. This edition uses a new, simplified and faster playing set of La Bataille rules called Le Reglement des Marie-Louises (named for the French conscripts of 1814 who, in turn, were named for Napoleon's Empress; mother of his son). The game is also fully compatible with the advanced La Bataille rules called Le Reglement de l'An XXX.

Does it fit your group?

• Group size. Works with 2 to 8.
• Rules load. At 4.2/5 this is a heavy game — read the rulebook before people arrive.
• Age. The publisher suggests 16 and up. That rates the rules rather than the artwork, so judge the box yourself for younger players.