Torgau / by Tony Dinsdale

"Torgau" is Game Designers Workshop's reconstruction of the grand old
battle which occured in 1760, between the Prussians under Frederick the
Great and the Austrians commanded by Field Marshal Daun. Prussia was in
a bad way at the time and destruction seemed close. With his army
outnumbered and virtually surrounded, Frederick decided upon a bold
attack to dislodge the Austrians from their very strong defensive
positions, just west of Torgau which is on the Elbe. The plan was to
coordinate four army corps in concentric attacks on the Austrian
strongpoints. In fact, timing and map reading both went astray combining
to put the Prussians in a rather embarassing position for much of the
battle. This is particularly well represented in the simulation. All
looked lost until an attack after dusk by one of the Prussian corps
renewed the offensive and caught the Austrians napping. Disordered, the
Austrians withdrew acrosr the Elbe leaving the Prussian troops in
possession of the field.

The game contains nearly 450 counters which are printed back and front,
colour coded and glossy. The map is thick enough to be serviceable and
the hex-grid is larger than usual to accomodate the larger counters. The
dark yellow colour of the map shows up the units well but is printed in
only two colours. Here, I strongly suggest that you add a bit of
art-work yourself, especially to the slopes and woods. If done properly,
the results can be quite stunning. The rules come in a small booklet
with a tough cover, which I find easy to use. There are also a few card
sheets for use. Two are concerned with the organisation of the counters
for both armies, two copies printed back and front of the charts, a
time-record sheet and a unit identification/terrain key. All these are
well presented and are a joy to use.

One thing that never fails to annoy me is that too many sets of rules do
not specify the three important scales used. Often, we are informed of
ground and time scale only. "Torgau" specifies all: ground - one hex is
200 yds. across, time - one turn is fifteen minutes and one stacking
point is equal to 250-300 men or a battery of guns. Thus, one can
clearly visualise the picture on the battlefield, without having to do
any research of your own. The rules are reasonably complex in their
execution, as they must be to make the rather novel system work.
However, the basics can be quickly mastered, allowing one to start
playing fairly soon so long as you are prepared to look back every now
and then.

The system of firing is probably the one which will cause trouble at
first. The scale dictates that infantry has a range extending only into
adjacent hexes, whilst artillery has a range of four to six hexes. There
are no zones of control but all the same don't try moving those hussars
in front of that infantry line for any length of time. They tend to be
liquidated. Melee combat occurs when two unfriendly units occupy the
same hex and next to having cannon adjacent is the quickest way of
expending troops. Heavy cavalry, Cuirassier and the like can be of great
value if properly used but if they find themselves in a position where
they cannot charge then they may have difficulty in surviving. Uhlans
are even worse in this respect

Stacking is quite revolutionary and requires some thought. Basically, it
all hinges on combining stacking points into "massed formations" within
certain guidelines. Since cavalry may not stack with anything else
(except cavalry) it may not aid infantry in hand-to-hand combat. All
units must have a facing at all times which restricts the direction of
fire in some cases and movement in all cases.There are plenty of
formations at the disposal of the regiments and battalions. Infantry,
for example, may be in line, column, square, road-march, general order
or disordered. All these have marked effects upon the units' ability to
move and fight. Dragoons may dismount, which is a nice touch. A pity
that skirmishers were not invented in time. Morale is covered in a
rather abstract way and mainly hinges upon the step-reduction system
used, which is quite elaborate.

The game mechanics are all very well but where the game really draws my
vote is in the wealth of strategy available to both sides but especially
the Prussian. Initially, there are no Prussians on the map, just the
Austrians, who have almost complete freedom in this respect. There are
several entry points dotted around the edge of the board through which
the four corps enter. The composition of each corps is loosely fixed by
the rules but allows the Prussian to make important decisions. There is
a limit to the earliest time a corps may arrive at a given point.
Further more the actual time that these arrive may vary between one hour
early and two hours late. The troubles are not over for the Prussian
even when all his corps have arrived. Some may go blundering off down
the wrong forest track and even proceed straight back off the map, only
to arrive again in another hour's time. The later the Prussians leave
their assault, then the more chance there is of them managing to
co-ordinate their forces properly. Just in case that isn't enough, the
corps may arrive at the wrong entry points! The maximum game length is
from 8.00 a.m. to 9.45 p.m. inclusive, depending upon when the Prussian
decides to attack.

There are too few games these days which allow one to adopt a long term
strategy, whilst also allowing a realistic and necessary use of the
period tactics. "Third Reich" and "Anzio" I believe are two and to them
I would add "Torgau". It is a good simulation of the period and is most
professionally presented. There are one or two problems with the rules
it is true, but nothing that a little common sense cannot clear up. It
is good to know in these days of world recession that "Torgau' is
wonderful value for money in all respects