I think AGEODS Rise of Prussia is one of the best this company has to offer. Face it, if you want to game the Seven Years War in Europe with the finest army of the time, it's the only game in town.
Well, this Monday, AGEOD is releasing RoP gold. It included national decisions, 2 years worth of bug fixes and improvements, 200 new leaders, a 4 person PBEM for the SYW...and best all of all: 2 scenarios for the War of Austrian Succession! "Maria Teresa at bay 1741" and " The Empire Strikes Back 1744" (also known as the first and second Silesia wars)
Can be a standalone (a la WW1 gold) or bought as an upgrade kit
http://matrixgames.com/products/476/details/Rise.Of.Prussia.Gold
Interesting. The War of Austrian Succession is one war I know nothing about.
Quote from: Gusington on May 05, 2013, 08:23:06 PM
Interesting. The War of Austrian Succession is one war I know nothing about.
Le Marchal de Saxe rings no bells?
Fontenoy? Dettingen?
Mollwitz? Frederick the Greats first battle? Saved by his disciplined infantry? Hohenfriedberg? Scene for the most famous painting of Prussian arms "attack of the Prussian Infantry"!
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Hohenfriedeberg.Attack.of.Prussian.Infantry.1745.jpg
A fantastic war!
It's called the War of Austrian Success-ion but they weren't Success-ful. Whose turn is it now to make a pun?
Not forgetting that the Jacobite rising of 1745 formed part of this war, with Bonnie Prince Charlie's advance into England before turning round at Derby and returning to eventual defeat in Scotland at Culloden.
It's an interesting war that certainly deserves more attention.
I have heard of de Saxe and know it was Frederick's first experience in battle from reading his biographies but beyond that...not so much.
Quote from: Sir Slash on May 05, 2013, 09:52:08 PM
It's called the War of Austrian Success-ion but they weren't Success-ful. Whose turn is it now to make a pun?
No pun, but the Austrian Succession did succeed since Maria Theresa became Empress (and lost Silesia, but held on to
everything else on all other fronts).
Quote from: Gusington on May 06, 2013, 07:48:35 AM
I have heard of de Saxe and know it was Frederick's first experience in battle from reading his biographies but beyond that...not so much.
Well, if 18th century warfare interests you, it's an interesting war. Prussia sees the crowning of Maria Teresa as Empress of the HRE as an opportunity for a land grab. Frederick complains that women cannot hold the title based on a 400 year old document. He also claims he is entitled to Silesia based on an inheritance argument 200 years old. He attacks.
Meanwhile, The Bourbons of France and Spain see this as a great opportunity to take the Hapsburgs down a peg or two and maybe grab some of the land lost in the war of the Spanish Succession.
So, France attacks with Spain. Prussia is an Ally in name only... Once Silesia is taken, Fred signs his own peace with the Empress. At first, the HRE and Sardinia are losing. But after the Prussians make peace, Maria turns the full weight of the HRE armies on the French and beat them back.
Now Fred, fearing that a victorious Austria/HRE will simply attack Silesia and reclaim it (which they would have) decides to re-enter the war against Austria/HRE. Britain, knowing that Austria is its only mainland ally and tiring of French support for the Jacobites, enters the war as Austria's ally.
Most of the fighting is between Prussia and Austria in Silesia, Spain and the Kingdom of Sardinia in northern Italy and France vs Britain/Hanover/Dutch in the Low Countries.
The latter of those theaters is where we see Dettingen(a British victory) and Fontenoy (a French Victory). Fontenoy is a fantastic battle between Lord Cumberland and Maurice de Saxe. An anecdote has General Hay (I think that's it) of the British Guards approaching the French Guards. Hay exclaimed "Gentlement of France...Fire your volley" to which the French general exclaimed "The Gentlemen of France never fire first ". So the British fired a close range devistating volley that felled over 700 French troops and officers. Now it's unlikely the conversation occurred but the volley did.
It's been awhile since I read about it so I may have missed a few things, but that's the war in a nutshell.
A+ Mikecek. Go to the head of the class. Living in Florida, I can also add there was serious attempt by the English to take St. Augustine, Fl. during this war if I'm not mistaken and the fortress there, one of only a few built along Vauban's line here in America, Castillio de San Marco held-out until help arrived from Cuba. Been there several times, St. Augustine that is, and a great place to visit.
Such a great era for gaming. War was so formal: like chess. Lots of great generals of great armies. The War or Spanish Succession, Austrian Succession and the Seven Years War are crying out for strategic gaming treatment. Problem is there isn't a big audience....so it's easier to crank out a WW2 TBS
The AGEOD game is fantastic and I am checking Matrix hourly for the update
It's like you were there mikeck. And St. Augustine is a great city...I passed through there a couple of years ago. Hot as Hades but still very cool :) lots of history.
Quote from: mikeck on May 06, 2013, 09:11:24 AM
Quote from: Gusington on May 06, 2013, 07:48:35 AM
I have heard of de Saxe and know it was Frederick's first experience in battle from reading his biographies but beyond that...not so much.
Well, if 18th century warfare interests you, it's an interesting war. Prussia sees the crowning of Maria Teresa as Empress of the HRE as an opportunity for a land grab. Frederick complains that women cannot hold the title based on a 400 year old document. He also claims he is entitled to Silesia based on an inheritance argument 200 years old. He attacks.
Meanwhile, The Bourbons of France and Spain see this as a great opportunity to take the Hapsburgs down a peg or two and maybe grab some of the land lost in the war of the Spanish Succession.
So, France attacks with Spain. Prussia is an Ally in name only... Once Silesia is taken, Fred signs his own peace with the Empress. At first, the HRE and Sardinia are losing. But after the Prussians make peace, Maria turns the full weight of the HRE armies on the French and beat them back.
Now Fred, fearing that a victorious Austria/HRE will simply attack Silesia and reclaim it (which they would have) decides to re-enter the war against Austria/HRE. Britain, knowing that Austria is its only mainland ally and tiring of French support for the Jacobites, enters the war as Austria's ally.
Most of the fighting is between Prussia and Austria in Silesia, Spain and the Kingdom of Sardinia in northern Italy and France vs Britain/Hanover/Dutch in the Low Countries.
The latter of those theaters is where we see Dettingen(a British victory) and Fontenoy (a French Victory). Fontenoy is a fantastic battle between Lord Cumberland and Maurice de Saxe. An anecdote has General Hay (I think that's it) of the British Guards approaching the French Guards. Hay exclaimed "Gentlement of France...Fire your volley" to which the French general exclaimed "The Gentlemen of France never fire first ". So the British fired a close range devistating volley that felled over 700 French troops and officers. Now it's unlikely the conversation occurred but the volley did.
It's been awhile since I read about it so I may have missed a few things, but that's the war in a nutshell.
There are lots of versions of the invitation to fire story. The upshot (haha) of them all is that the French Guards get blasted. Still, the rest of the battle went okay from de Saxe's point of view: The British and Hanoverians advanced into a killing zone between Fontenoy and the old forest. the Dutch and some other support columns failed and Cumberland failed to call up the Imperial reserves (it wasn't called the Pragmatic Army for nothin') so the "infernal column" remained stranded sort of half-way into breaking into the French defenses and eventually had to withdraw, resulting in a victory that Napoleon said saved the French monarchy for almost another fifty years.
Yep...and the whole time Saxe was sick as hell.
Quote from: Gusington on May 06, 2013, 10:16:58 AM
It's like you were there mikeck. And St. Augustine is a great city...I passed through there a couple of years ago. Hot as Hades but still very cool :) lots of history.
Gus, if I had to be a general in any time period, that would be it. Truly the game of kings. Choreographed battlefield movement, vibrant uniforms and emerging firepower based tactics...oh my! Now... As much as I admire Frederick's Army (and its administration) I sure as hell wouldn't want to be a soldier in it.
The funny thing is that the upgrade kit will almost certainly cost 5x more than I paid for the base game. It's a game I want to play, but will probably only tinker with, so I waited until I got it for a pittance.
I got RoP for about 1.25! I would not be a good soldier in that era. I just don't have the sand to remain in line and advance while getting shot at.
Gus, a private soldier in the Prussian army longed for battle. Not because of honor or anything like that... But because it was better than the mind numbing tedium of drill and harsh punishment. Once you were instructed on an element of drill and demonstrated that you were capable of performing it, any further mistake in that area was met with severe beatings. You didn't have to worry about that in battle generally.
Most of the soldiers didn't truly volunteer. They had money slipped into their pocket when drunk and were then tricked into reciting an oath. All that aside, it was the finest war machine of the time.
Quote from: mikeck on May 05, 2013, 08:07:34 PM
I think AGEODS Rise of Prussia is one of the best this company has to offer. Face it, if you want to game the Seven Years War in Europe with the finest army of the time, it's the only game in town.
Although I wouldn't mind a larger scale game of the whole Seven Years War. Might as well have been World War -1 (if the Napoleonic Wars counted as World War Zero).
I guess that's what Total War: Empire is for, hm? ;)
Thanks for the brief synopses
mikeck; that was like word porn! Even in those few paragraphs, you really bring the conflict to life. :)
Quote from: smittyohio on May 06, 2013, 12:21:57 PM
The funny thing is that the upgrade kit will almost certainly cost 5x more than I paid for the base game. It's a game I want to play, but will probably only tinker with, so I waited until I got it for a pittance.
Well I was gifted RoP by a kind soul over at WG, so I can't really complain myself. ;)
I've only tinkered around with the game, but I had fun with the little time I've spent with it thus far. Depending on exactly how much MSA charges for it, it's very possible I'll willingly pay for the upgrade kit.
Quote from: JasonPratt on May 06, 2013, 05:20:35 PM
I guess that's what Total War: Empire is for, hm? ;)
Ugh. I'd sooner be gifted a pet tarantula than play or even discuss that game again. :(
Jason, not sure if I understood what you were saying but RoP does have a full 7 yrs war campaign...1756-1763. Play as Prussia/UK or the Allies.
Quote from: Bill101 on May 06, 2013, 04:17:29 AM
Not forgetting that the Jacobite rising of 1745 formed part of this war, with Bonnie Prince Charlie's advance into England before turning round at Derby and returning to eventual defeat in Scotland at Culloden.
It's an interesting war that certainly deserves more attention.
I did not realize the '45 was considered part of the War of Austrian Succession. That's interesting information, Bill. Thanks!
Quote from: mikeck on May 06, 2013, 06:30:10 PM
Jason, not sure if I understood what you were saying but RoP does have a full 7 yrs war campaign...1756-1763. Play as Prussia/UK or the Allies.
I thought that the conflict area was only in Germany for this game.
Gus, and anyone else interested in this conflict, should check out this book. I picked it up at Barnes & Noble many years ago. I found it comprehensive, if light on battlefield details.
http://www.amazon.com/War-Austrian-Succession-Reed-Browning/dp/0312125615/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367883590&sr=1-1&keywords=The+War+of+the+Austrian+Succession (http://www.amazon.com/War-Austrian-Succession-Reed-Browning/dp/0312125615/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367883590&sr=1-1&keywords=The+War+of+the+Austrian+Succession)
Definitely...it is really the only book around on the subject...and of course, read any book by Christopher Duffy
Quote from: mikeck on May 06, 2013, 09:53:58 AM
Such a great era for gaming. War was so formal: like chess. Lots of great generals of great armies. The War or Spanish Succession, Austrian Succession and the Seven Years War are crying out for strategic gaming treatment. Problem is there isn't a big audience....so it's easier to crank out a WW2 TBS
The AGEOD game is fantastic and I am checking Matrix hourly for the update
18th century warfare is probably my second favorite period, after the Classical one. I'd definitely like to see more Grog-ish games covering the period, and AGEOD looks to be one of the few who does.
I'd also put the 17th century stuff in roughly the same category. Between the two centuries, there was so much European conflict erupting on such a regular basis, you'd think it perfect for more grand strategy titles than we've seen (ETW and..?).
Quote from: JasonPratt on May 06, 2013, 06:50:19 PM
Quote from: mikeck on May 06, 2013, 06:30:10 PM
Jason, not sure if I understood what you were saying but RoP does have a full 7 yrs war campaign...1756-1763. Play as Prussia/UK or the Allies.
I thought that the conflict area was only in Germany for this game.
Covers everywhere on the continent where battles took place. You get eastern France, Germany, northerm Austria and Poland primarily. You can also move to off map areas like Paris and Vienna.
Quote from: Martok on May 06, 2013, 05:42:56 PM
Thanks for the brief synopses mikeck;
+1 I love learning history. Never had any idea about that.
I could never have served back then. Wearing make-up and a wig into battle just not me. Though I might fight if someone tried to put it on me. Just saying. ::)
Well it's out now. Purchase on matrix or AGEOD sites
Quote from: mikeck on May 07, 2013, 07:06:16 AM
Well it's out now. Purchase on matrix or AGEOD sites
?? I just looked at Matrix's site this morning; the game page has no purchase links (or even pricing info), it isn't listed on the new game page, or the front page, and doesn't show up in the gamestore's horizontal scoll list at the top. (Revolution Under Siege does for example, but not Rise of Prussia; the list goes straight to the S's with the Scourge series.)
Pr0n is available to buy for $25, though. ;)
I just looked and still no buy link, but I did find a post (http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/fb.asp?m=3318516) that states the price of the upgrade will be $5.
Yep...they took it down. Not sure why. This am it had it available for purchase. I asked at the matrix forum but received no response
Post from matrix says there was a last minute quality assurance issue so it was pulled. Will be released tommorow
Ok.... It's out... Again....for reelz
Or is it? -- http://www.matrixgames.com/store/476/Rise.Of.Prussia.Gold
As of 7:50am Central US time, it still doesn't show up on the horizontal scroll list, still has no button to actually order with, much less any indication of the cost, and the detail screen indicates it has a size of 0 megabytes. (Though also an instantaneous download time. So there's that. ;) ) It doesn't show up on the list at the actual 'store' part of Matrix either, where Nappy's Camps and Pr0n are featured with Panzer Corps megapack as the most recent games. (Each with a buy now button.)
Until it shows up in a store search for Prussia (http://www.matrixgames.com/store/?k=Prussia&m=&g=&p=&v=&t=&d=&a=3&pt=1&searchSubmit=Begin+Search), it ain't out yet. (Store search handily linked there for convenience. :) )
Well, can't advise on that. I'm looking at the upgrade kit here
http://matrixgames.com/products/490/details/Rise.of.Prussia.Gold.Upgrade.Kit
And there is a buy button.
Here is the regular version
http://www.matrixgames.com/store/476/Rise.Of.Prussia.Gold
There are purchase options and download options so looks good to go.
Same page I linked to earlier this morning, now with buttons added (and the actual game file for that matter, showing size etc.)
$20 seems like a very good deal for the full game (not even counting expansion).
Bought and installed. There is a glitch where a few map overlays aren't available but I'm sure that will be fixed and I don't use them anyway. I like the decisions although there aren't as many as in AJE. Looking forward to the AI improvements. Worth the $5 upgrade absolutely if you own RoP
If not, and you are interested in AGEOD games, it's a great one to learn on. More complex than WiA2, AJE and BoR but less than ACW.
Edit: it's also missing the ledger icon so the ledger tabs must be accessed by pressing f1-f8. Not a deal breaker but seriously AGEOD??? Didn't see this in beta?
Quote from: mikeck on May 08, 2013, 05:16:47 PM
If not, and you are interested in AGEOD games, it's a great one to learn on. More complex than WiA2, AJE and BoR but less than ACW.
(Or Pr0n. ;D )
Quote from: JasonPratt on May 08, 2013, 06:09:12 PM
Quote from: mikeck on May 08, 2013, 05:16:47 PM
If not, and you are interested in AGEOD games, it's a great one to learn on. More complex than WiA2, AJE and BoR but less than ACW.
(Or Pr0n. ;D )
I think I'll get this this week-end to warm up for the Civil War II -- ROP gold has regional cards and seige strategies and so on. So that's the plan.
It's a great game. Takes one game to learn where everyone is Attacking from and such...you know just to get your orientation
I thought I remembered Pr0n having these expansion packs!! (In fact, I vaguely remember buying them. But alas, oh well.)
Quote from: JasonPratt on June 21, 2013, 07:03:30 PM
I thought I remembered Pr0n having these expansion packs!! (In fact, I vaguely remember buying them. But alas, oh well.)
I recall it got an 1880 start scenario that was much requested.
I hope they can come through on the plan to modify it to run AI planning routines while the player is taking his turn. It was a hope that one of the Phils mentioned on their forum so perhaps we'll get lucky sometime.
Quote from: mikeck on June 21, 2013, 04:06:10 PM
It's a great game. Takes one game to learn where everyone is Attacking from and such...you know just to get your orientation
The Gold version is nice in that the smaller earlier campaigns can be lost pretty quickly even by the Prussians.
Quote from: mikeck on May 06, 2013, 07:12:05 PM
Definitely...it is really the only book around on the subject...and of course, read any book by Christopher Duffy
Yep. Duffy is an education all on his own.
There's also Fred Anderson's Crucible of War for a British Empire-o-centric view of the seven-years war.
Yeah but that only covers North America right?
Quote from: mikeck on June 25, 2013, 04:12:23 PM
Yeah but that only covers North America right?
It does focus on NA, but the dynamics of the British Empire even in Europe are described very clearly. It is the most coherent discussion of the
war from the point of view of Great Britain and its allies and colonies.