As fantasy miniatures infiltrate more and more historical miniature wargaming time periods, we're starting to see an increasing number of Napoleonic fantasy games. For years the only games in the genre were Slaughterloo and Flintloque, but in the last decade we've seen The Silver Bayonet and Turnip 28 bring a hint of horror and grimdark to the era. And on February 24 the Kickstarter opens for Napoleonica: Steel and Magic, a brand new high fantasy take on the Napoleonic war, with gorgeous miniatures by Signum Games.
Signum Games was not on my radar before now, but I will be paying a lot more attention. As you can see in the pictures, the figures coming in Napoleonica are stunning.
They remind me of the models from the late lamented Rackham studios. They're larger than life in a slightly cartoony way that has more in common with European comics art than World of Warcraft or Warhammer.
The Kickstarter goes live on February 24. At time of writing there's no price listed but, the models that come in the game will all be cast resin, so I expect we're looking at a couple hundred dollars minimum for a base set.
The rules are available to download from the game's website. I've only had a chance to skim them, so I certainly can't vouch for this being one of the best miniature wargames out there - but I spotted some fun seeming ideas. The game injects friction into the act of controlling your army in ways that remind me of two great strategy board games, Memoir 44 and Undaunted.
Each round, both players draw a random selection of Order Tokens from their bag, which are used to activate units with matching order symbols. You'll also have a hand of Maneuver Cards which may provide abilities to activate units. But between those two systems, you still don't have full control over what forces you can use.
Maneuver Cards have other uses, too, unlocking a variety of special actions, reactions, or bonuses in combat, and each round you can also bid one card to try and claim the role of Leader. It's a resource you'll have to give a lot of thought to.
Not only does the Leader get to activate a unit first, they set the intensity of the round by deciding which side of a random Escalation Card will be used. The Escalation Card determines how many Orders Tokens you'll draw for the round - and thus how many units you'll activate - and how many Maneuver cards you'll draw up at the end of the round.
I haven't tested the system, but it seems like an interesting take on command and control - and you should rarely be stuck without anything to do. Units can activate multiple times in a round if you have the orders, though they'll become Fatigued if they're over-exerted; and it's possible to trade Order Tokens with the bag (though not at a favorable exchange rate).
Then there's a separate set of Reinforcement Cards, which are used both for bringing models back into play to reinforce damage units, and to clear Fatigue from your whole force. That gives you an incentive to withdraw units before they're completely destroyed, in case you can reinforce them back into the fight.
Have you played any of Signum Games' earlier games, like Warseer or Fantasy Commander? What's your favorite Napoleonic fantasy wargame - is there one that I've overlooked? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the Wargamer Discord community. For a regular roundup of all the best stories on Wargamer, make sure you're signed up to our weekly newsletter!