Rules for Siegecraft

As promised, the rules I used for the recent siege of Flussburg. The rules for this battle of digging and fighting are a home-made mishmash I’ve drawn up myself, as a kind of fast-play melding of the M&R rules I’ve used up until now and the Age of Reason rules which tackle some siege mechanics. The ‘Konig und Kaiser’ house-rules for sieges are as follows:


TURN SEQUENCE
Proposed Digging
Redeploy
Sorties/Assaults
Bombardment
Casualty Recovery, Complete Digging, Advance Clock

Proposed Digging Phase
Each side sets out troop bases to mark out it’s intended trench works. The first parallel can be built to any length in turn 1 (to provide the ‘starting trench’.) After this, any trench can progress at the following speeds:
8BW(Base Widths)/Turn for any works over 4BW from the Glacis edge
4BW/Turn within 4BW of the Glacis edge
3BW/Turn on the Glacis
For the Defender, digging counter-approaches:
4BW/Turn on the Glacis
2BW/Turn beyond the Glacis

Redeployment Phase
All units can be moved and repositioned as desired. Defenders can move anywhere inside their defences, while attackers can move anywhere inside a continuous trench system. Note that artillery cannot move and fire in the same turn.

Sorties/Assaults Phase
The attacker and defender may fight each other by launching attacks on each others’ works. The side which launches a sortie/attack may move to within 1D6 BW’s of the enemy before setting up, to simulate surprise as they try to sneak up and rush the enemy.

Infantry bases move 2BW; hits on a 6 at short range (0-2BW) and at long range (2-4BW), but a saving throw is permitted at long range.
and guns don’t move at all, but can be removed voluntarily to simulate the crews running away.

Artillery fires only on every third turn (as each turn represents a shorter period of time.) Range 16BW, but all infantry caught in 3BW of the 45deg. Canister fire arc are hit on a 6. This canister arc of fire from a battery in the fortress is also assumed to fill any section of ditch/covered way that it overlooks.

There are no AT’s, and no SP’s – bases are removed as casualties if they are hit.

In close combat, each side rolls a dice and modifies it (-2 if Artillery or enfiladed; +1 if Grenadiers; +1/+2 if defending trench/rampart.) If less than enemy, recoil 1BW and the enemy advances to occupy the space you previously held; if less than half the enemy’s score, destroyed and enemy advances.

Troops carrying Gabions move at half speed, and need 1 turn to set them up & create a trench. Overturning/filling in trenches requires 1 Turn.

Bombardment Phase
Cannon that didn’t move this turn may fire. Range is 16BW. Artillery does not get it’s saving roll if hit, but will get one from fortifications/trenches. No suppression – the first artillery hit is marked, and the second destroys the battery. The fortifications saving throw is ignored if the firing battery has 'enfiladed' the barrier, by firing from parallel or behind the line of the protection.

No fire can be directed on the fortress walls or troops in the ditch except from the Covered Way. The Covered way gives no protection if fired on from under 1BW away. To knock a breach 1BW wide in the wall requires a total of 3 hits.

Howitzers and Mortars have a max. range of 8BW and a minimum range of 4BW. They fire like normal artillery but ignore all cover and can hit targets in the ditch.

Casualty Recovery Phase
Half of all losses in the last turn (rounding up) are permanent losses and removed. The other half (rounding down) are assumed to have been lightly wounded, routed, etc. and otherwise return to action. Troops lost in Sorties/Assaults are all permanently lost by the attacking side.

Complete Digging Phase
All those troops placed for new works in the Proposed Digging phase, and haven’t been disturbed by combat or hit by artillery, now place trenches.

Advance Clock Phase
Mark off a turn – this equates to 2 days in the ‘real’ world.