- BGG rating
- 7.5
The Napoleonic Wars: Update Kit
- 2–5 players
- Complexity 4.0/5
- 2008
- BGG rank
- BGG #4,317
- BGG rating
- 7.0
The Napoleonic Wars
2002
Rules assistance for The Napoleonic Wars
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–5 players
- 240 min
- 12+
- Complexity 3.5/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for The Napoleonic Wars
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
The Napoleonic Wars is a board game released in 2002 for 2–5 players, 240 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Ben Knight, Don Greenwood, and Mark McLaughlin and its main mechanics are Point to Point Movement and Campaign / Battle Card Driven.
Expansions
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About the game
From GMT games: In The Napoleonic Wars, GMT Games brings you a fast-paced, tension-filled, card-driven wargame with a point-to-point movement system that pushes the envelope in a new direction for a pivotal period of history. Rooted soundly in Mark Herman's award-winning We The People system, The Napoleonic Wars provides refinements that allow two-to-five players to play an exciting game requiring two to ten hours. The majority of your games will easily end in a single evening, thanks to sudden death victory conditions providing variable game lengths that eliminate the "end of the world" phenomenon that plague many games. Often, you'll set 'em up and knock 'em down twice a night, and once in a great while your Campaign game will require two nights of play for the terrific panoramic history to unfold before your eyes. Like similar card-driven games, The Napoleonic Wars provides strategy cards that are played as events or to activate leaders, armies or fleets (by play of command points) to move on the map. Players must constantly weight the value of an event or reaction card against the need for its command points. Command points themselves can be played for a wide variety of activities, making play unpredictable and fresh with each sitting. Uncontrolled powers are governed by a diplomatic track which is also affected by play of command points and events. Expanded by: Napoleonic Wars: Super Deluxe Map Revised by: The Napoleonic Wars: Update Kit (upgrade to 2nd edition) Re-implemented by: Wellington The Napoleonic Wars (Second Edition) (aka 2008 reprint Edition)
Categories
Publishers
- GMT Games
Questions and answers
The Napoleonic Wars supports 2–5 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for The Napoleonic Wars is 240 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists The Napoleonic Wars for ages 12 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
The Napoleonic Wars has a complexity rating of 3.5 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
The Napoleonic Wars belongs to these categories: Wargame and Napoleonic. Its main mechanics are Point to Point Movement and Campaign / Battle Card Driven. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of The Napoleonic Wars are: Ben Knight, Don Greenwood, and Mark McLaughlin. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists The Napoleonic Wars as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.