Alan Moorhouse - 09:47am Mar 13, 1998 PST
UK, Recently played: Operation Spark, Hannibal RvC and Lost Victory

Finally got to play this gem 2 weeks ago and wondered about other
peoples experiences with it. The game is for 6 players each of which
control a political current in revolutionary France and begins just
after Louis XVI is captured attempting to skip the country. 


Alan Moorhouse - 10:22am Mar 13, 1998 PST (#1 of 4)
UK, Recently played: Operation Spark, Hannibal RvC and Lost Victory

To kick this off I will outline the game I was in recently. I played
the Montagnards (Robespierres lot). Their main aim is to defeat the
constitutional Monarchy, install the Terror, guillotine as many people
as possible including the King and hold onto power at the end of the
game. (The game is 8 turns long, each turn representing 6 months). The
game begins with the Feulliant faction (Constitutional Monarchists) in
power. These guys proceeded to restrict emigrants and suppress the
aristocrats. I would have applauded this measure except that it
quietened the Paris Mob (partially my power base) and drove the
inflation rate up. This faction and the Marais (centrists) then outvoted
us left wingers on some civil measures to increase their popularity. This
caused the Girondins (Republicans, the Montagnards just call them wet) to
attempt a coup which failed and 2 of his leaders (Brissot and Petion) ended
up in the slammer. 

Meanwhile the Royalist Faction was stirring up trouble and along with
pleading letters from Louis to the King of Prussia and the bad economic
situation. The European Coalition against France was formed and foreign
armies attacked France. 

Great! Just the chance the revolutionaries were looking for. Up until
now my faction had been spending its money trying to control Picardy and
foment revolt in the Marais controlled regions (mainly because the Marais
player kept trying to persuade my 2 least fierce leaders: Danton and
Desmoulins to join his faction). Now I had the chance to grab some power. 

I teamed up with the Girondins and Sans-Culotte (Communists, he calls
me wet) and we contrived to hold another coup sponsored by the Girondins.
With an Austrian army at the gates of Paris (the Government could not afford
to pay the troops) and the Paris Mob rioting due to sugar shortages. We
instigated a popular coup and setup the Convention. This government system
ensured that I had some say in Parliament, Louis was imprisoned and the
Feulliant were outlawed. 

The voting system becomes very erratic under this system (votes are
cast as a dice roll with each faction modifying the dice) but I decided to
table a motion to execute Louis. A random event that turn had produced
evidence of Louis darstardly deeds and gave a favourable modifier to the
vote but only the Sans-Culotte supported me (surprise-surprise). In spite
of this I only needed a 6 on 2d6 or more. 

The roll for a head roll -------- 4! damn! To try it again I'll need
to install the Terror. Here goes!!!!! 

Unfortunately it was about 2am (we started at 9pm), turn 6 and we
decided to call it a day. 

Racking up the VPs we see that the Feuillant and Marais have more VPs
than us Reds so its only between them. As the Feulliant had just been
kicked out of power the Marais win! Gironde second, me third, Sans
Culotte fourth, Feulliant fifth and Royalists last ( the foreign armies
weren't doing very well. 

Cannot wait to give it another go.