A new Way of Setting Up Chessboard Battlefields

       As mentioned in my last post, at the end of the Napoleonic wargame I had played,  the end result of having a Napoleonic battle field having with a bunch of single figures scattered across it just didn't catch the feeling of the period. It left me thinking of my single based Minifigs and their future in my newest plans.  The next day was a beautiful day, sunny and warm, perfect for taking the dog for a long walk. These long walks are prefect to think out problems, and this walk had me thinking of my single based figures. I had already decided to consign them to fighting small battles on my chessboard using Chris Salanders' Horse &Musket 2.0. I was pondering if there was a way to transfer Command & Colors scenarios to a chessboard. I then thought of something I had seen in  " The Complete Brigadier" ruleset.   In it the author suggests making a small frame template that you can use to put over a map. By using this you can select a small part of the field for your game.
     When I got home I made a template that is equal to 8X9 Command & Colors Napoleonics hexes. By putting it over the map I picked a section of the battlefield to transfer to my chessboard.  For hills I used some cork for hills. I was happy with the result; this system could be used with Bob Corderys' Portable Wargames and other square based wargames. I am thinking of making a smaller template that will be measured off to make locating the terrain features easier to place on the board.

The template

The chosen scenario; The River Coa

The template placed on the chosen part of the map.

The armies deployed. For this game I used the One Hour Wargame army selection  charts. The rules used were Battle Cry. I was a good game which could have gone either way. I am thinking of trying a game using the forces shown on that part of the map, thereby removing having to pick and deploy the armies myself.