GNW: Poltava & Narva AAR

[Sir John Cope]

Just some quick notes rather than a full AAR, but with an excellent (and, while waiting for a bug fix, most patient) opponent I've now finished the two most notable battles of the Great Northern War: Tsar Peter's crushing defeat at the relief of Narva, and Charles XII's equally crushing defeat at Poltava nine years later.

Historical circumstances of war do not always lend themselves to good wargaming. Narva, in terms of the quality of the armies, is hopelessly one-sided. To attempt to balance the scenario, the designers have weighted the victory conditions heavily, with the result in this twelve-turn scenario that the Swedes have little choice but to carry out a pell-mell frontal attack. Certainly, they will beat and probably rout the Russian army, which is little better than rabble. The problem is that Swedish point values are so high that they will also almost certainly struggle to win the scenario on points because, even if the Russians are sent streaming from the field and Narva is relieved, it can't be done without some sacrifice - and the point value cost of that sacrifice can easily offset any points gained from shattered Russian units or objectives.

Poltava is very similar, in that the terrain limits the Swedish army's options. As my first trial of the game, I followed the historical Swedish plan, which again was a frontal assault. Once again, Swedish quality tells - but Russian firepower rapidly thins the Swedish ranks, and because of their high quality, those casualties cost dearly in victory points.

It's a fascinating period, I look forward to exploring some of the other scenarios included in GNW, and I live in hope of seeing, eventually, a companion game covering the War of Spanish Succession (or even, dare I say it, the Austrian Succession?). But not every historical battle games well.