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- BGG rating
- 7.1
Wooden Ships & Iron Men
- 2 players
- 60–300 min
- Complexity 3.1/5
- 1974
- BGG rank
- BGG #15,240
- BGG rating
- 6.7
The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo
1979
Rules assistance for The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–3 players
- 180 min
- Complexity 2.8/5
Rules assistant for The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo is a board game released in 1979 for 2–3 players and 180 minutes per game. It was designed by S. Craig Taylor.
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About the game
The Thin Red Line is a detailed tactical treatment of Napoleonic warfare. Waterloo was the final and most decisive land battle of the Napoleonic Wards, and possibly the most famous battle of all time. Napoleonic warfare was complex in its variety, and victory or defeat depended on the successful application of such diverse factors as organization and command control, leadership and training, formation and position, firepower, combined arms tactics, luck, and, especially, morale. These aspects of the Battle of Waterloo are accurately modeled in this game. Can you, as the Iron Duke of Wellington, hold the French at bay until night or the Prussians arrive? Can you, as Blucher, old "Vorwarts," drive forward in time to save the day? Every unit that participated in the historical battle is represented--British, Hanoverian, Dutch-Belgian, Nassau, Brunswick, King's German Legion, French, and Prussian infantry, cavalry, and artillery. The rules cover all the key factors in the battle, line, column, square, and ordere-mixte formations, skirmishers, routing and rallying, leader effects and casualties, cavalry reaction and recall, artillery capture and recapture, hidden units, fatigue, the elan and mobility of the French infantry columns, and the firepower and staying power of the "thin red line" of British infantry. Scale: 300 yards per hex; 30 minutes per turn; brigade and division-sized combat units.
Questions and answers
The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo supports 2–3 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 Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo is 180 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 Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo has a complexity rating of 2.8 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light 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 Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo belongs to these categories: Wargame and Napoleonic. Categories describe the theme, setting and style of a game rather than its rules. Filter the catalogue by the same category to find similar games when you enjoyed The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo and want something comparable for your next game night.
The credited designers of The Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo are: S. Craig Taylor. 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 Thin Red Line: A Game of the Battle of Waterloo 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.