By Fire and Sword - Faction Overview Part 2

Welcome back! Today is the second part of my faction overview for By Fire and Sword. Today’s post is going to focus on the factions not included in Republic in Flames / the original rulebook. I’ve included what supplement each faction is from in the faction heading. Once again I’d like to remind you that all skirmish lists and some task forces are included in the online army builder at ac.fireandsword.wargamer.pl should you wish to play around with lists and check out unit rules and stats.

Holy Roman Empire – Rules found in The Deluge

Pike and shot infantry are a staple in the western armies

Pros

-          High quality, dependable cuirassier cavalry

-          Pike and shot formation infantry

-          Good quality and plentiful artillery

-          High command

Cons

-          Units are often expensive – expect to be outnumbered by the eastern factions

-          This is Not Our War means your units may start the battle understrength

-          Imperial armies suffer a reconnaissance disadvantage

If the pros and cons list didn’t give it away, the Holy Roman Empire (HRE for short) are similar a faction to the Kingdom of Sweden. In fact, most of the western factions share a similar roster and play style. Imperial cuirassiers are basically identical to reiters rules wise and play much the same way. The Imperials have access to strong cuirassier formations including the Piccilomini Regiment, a rock hard regiment of morale 6(!), armoured veteran reiters which is up there as one of the most elite regiments in the game. Pike and shot battalions backed up by artillery provide a defensive core to Imperial armies that can be used to anchor a flank or hold the centre of the battle line. Croat cavalry provide an interesting light cavalry option not available to the Swedes that may open additional options for Imperial players.

Imperial players can expect to use their defensive infantry to hold an objective or key position while their cavalry and dragoons takes the offensive and work the flanks of the enemy. High quality troops in combination with high command points allow an Imperial player to manage their units with a high degree of confidence in the face of larger enemy forces. Imperial players will need to leverage their command advantage against the enemy, in particular when up against the huge armies of Muscovy and the Ottoman Empire.

Brandenburg-Prussia – Rules found in The Deluge

Pros

-          A mix of lower quality and higher quality western troops provide a potentially larger force than most western style armies

-          Prussian armies have access to plentiful Spanish muskets

-          The demi-regiment system provides flexibility in division construction

Cons

-          Those same lower quality troops may become a liability if you are used to their better counterparts

-          Prussian forces are unable to use offensive tactics

-          Brandenburg forces still suffer from low numbers compared to eastern armies

Brandenburg-Prussia is an interesting faction that utilises a similar roster to the Swedes and Imperials. What makes the faction interesting is the combination of high quality Brandenburg units with lower quality Prussian units. The Prussians suffer from the  Poor Tactical Discipline and Militia but are cheaper than their Brandenburger brethren. This enables the faction to boost their numbers with cheaper Prussian troops in centre divisions while maintaining a core of skilled infantry or reiters to hold the line if need be. It’s worth noting that Prussian infantry carry Spanish muskets-  devasting weapons in the game. Brandenburg-Prussian players who focus on Prussian units will be able to field larger numbers of Spanish muskets than most armies at the expense of troop quality. Otherwise, my previous comments on the Swedes and Imperials largely apply here.

Transylvania – Rules found in The Deluge

Transylvania has both excellent and very poor cavalry

Pros

-          Variety! Transylvanian forces have a broad variety of units and unit quality.

-          Can field a large amount of poor quality troops while bolstering with elite formations

-          Faction special rules give flexibility at the start of the battle

Cons

-          A majority of troops are poor quality

-          Minimal artillery

-          Lots of units with Poor Tactical Discipline and Robbers.

-          Low Command

Transylvania is the faction I feel the least confident writing about here. If there are any Transylvanian players reading feel free to comment your thoughts and ideas. The Transylvanian player suffers from a similar problem to the Muscovites – masses of cheap troops and low command values. Transylvanian troops also often suffer from Poor Tactical Discipline and Robbers. Robbers may potentially exacerbate the command problems that the player is already experiencing.

Despite the issues, the faction has upsides! Poor troops typically means low points values meaning you can make up the power gap either with a horde or scenario balancing.  The Transylvanian infantry is often not too bad – while not elite like their western counterparts many of the infantry options lack any glaring bad points and have decent stats. Household Cavalry are a strong, elite cavalry option for the Transylvanian player. Take that Hill! Allows the player to deploy on a hill outside their deployment zone (get those better infantry up there for an advantage) and Ambush will allow the player to help offset some of the armies advantages with flanking manoeuvres. I recommend Transylvania for more experienced players who can manage their troops efficiently and prioritise command points.

Royal City of Gdansk – Rules found in The Deluge

Pros

-          Defensive minded – plenty of infantry and fortifications

-          Marksmen in ambush

-          Good amount of artillery and the unique mortar

Cons

-          Lacking quality cavalry

-          Mercenary infantry regiments are small in size

Gdansk is an interesting army, mostly consisting of poor quality defensive infantry. Their sole type of cavalry regiment – the combined cavalry regiment – combines decent mercenary reiters with poor quality militia cavalry. Gdansk forces typically take a large number of fortifications and indeed are forced to take them at the divisional level. Gdansk forces  can expect a lot of firepower with a good amount of divisional artillery and are one of only two factions to have access to a mortar (the HRE also having access in one division).

Gdansk infantry is a mix of poor quality, skill 3 militia alongside mercenary musketeers. Sadly for Gdansk the mercenary regiments are small and won’t be able to sustain large losses in divisional games. That said due to the smaller regiment sizes Gdansk can make do with two (upgradeable to three) command points per regiment and should have relatively few problems with command. A defensive force that I think would be quite forgiving to play for a newer player despite utilising poor quality units.

Kingdom of Denmark – Rules found in Danish Wars

A Danish skirmish force with Snapphanar at the front.

Pros

-          A well rounded, western style roster gives flexibility

-          The faction is well fleshed out with a good variety of troop types and army lists

-          Combined regiments of reiters and dragoons provide even more flexibility

-          Snapphanar partisans are unique

-          Some divisions have plenty of access to mercenaries, include veteran reiters

Cons

-          Danish national units suffer from Poor Tactical Discipline

-          Norwegian divisions are focused almost exclusively on infantry

-          The War Council Spoke limits tactics options in division games

-          Divisions may suffer from an inexperienced commander with little command

By now you should have a good idea of how the western factions play. In many respects Denmark-Norway is no different. Having received a book exclusively focused on the Danish Wars (a great little supplement by the way) the Danes have received a large variety of lists to use. Some lists are very focused such as the Norwegian divisions which rely almost entirely on infantry regiments. Others are varied, with a core of Danish units backed up by Polish or Imperial allies.

While Danish national infantry and reiters suffer from Poor Tactical Discipline the are still skill 4 unlike, for example, Gdansk militia. Access to mercenary infantry and reiters is also plentiful providing the Danish player with the option to build a force just as reliable as the Swedes or Imperials. They also get access to the Snapphanar partisans which look to be a lot of fun! The Danes offer a lot of variety and should be fun to field in the hands of new and experienced players alike.

The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia – Rules found in Armies of By Fire and Sword Part 1

Pros

-          Great as a side project

-          Strong reconnaissance

-          Reasonably well led

Cons

-          Not really a full army – just a single skirmish force or allied regiment for the Lithuanians

-          Limited roster

Courland is not really an army in the sense that the other factions are. It offers a single skirmish list that can also be fielded as an allied regiment for a Lithuanian army. Because of this, Courland has a limited roster of reiters, mercernary infantry and what amounts to militia cavalry. When played as a skirmish force Courland has strong reconnaissance advantages with an increase to its own reconnaissance and a random decrease to the enemy’s. Courland is not recommended as a faction for new players but rather a side project for those who want a unique skirmish list or for Lithuanian players looking to add allied variety to their divisions.

And that wraps up the faction overviews! I hope you’ve learnt something and are now on your way to picking your first army for By Fire and Sword! Or your second… or third… Next time we’ll start looking at general tactics for the game, focusing on the core mechanics of the game. Future articles will look more in-depth at skirmish, task force and division level tactics as well as faction specific tactics.

Until next time!