Note: Art shown is from the game prototype and not final.

In our previous Inside GMT article, the French took Control of Cairo and started Besieging two more Mamluk Spaces. Meanwhile, the Allied Player recruited a sizable force in Thebes for a potential counterattack. Ibrahim Bey is still 8 Spaces away from Bonaparte though so the French have time to brace for impact. They will thus seize this opportunity to Assault Meniet with a low-AP card. CDG fans all know that sooner or later, we need to pick a moment to play these weak cards!

The good news for the French (and for everyone complaining about low-value cards in CDGs) is that, in Napoleon in Egypt, every 1-AP card grants an Espionage Point (EP) to the player who actually plays the card. So, in the case above, even though Hasasyin is an Allied card, the French Player gets an EP (a black cube that can be used for Espionage and Counter-Espionage). They then use the 1 AP to Assault Meniet and, unsurprisingly, Napoleon’s overwhelming force is no match for the Minor City’s garrison. One more French Regular falls in Combat though, and these losses are starting to be a concern. Still, the French Player scores 2 VP for gaining Control of Meniet and this time, they will attempt to Sack the conquered Space.

Just like a Repression attempt, Sacking a Fortified Space can only be performed by the French and only after a successful Assault. It’s a much simpler process though: the French Player rolls a die and on a result of 4+, they can draw a card and discard a card from their hand. The drawback is that the Space’s Public Order is shifted one Level toward the Allied Player (the population obviously doesn’t appreciate the French looting, plundering, and ransacking) but in that case, it does the French no harm as Meniet is already Allied-Favorable. The French Player rolls a 5, happens to draw a French card and gets to discard a troublesome Allied card. It’s good to be the invader!

Still, all is not bleak for the Allied Player, who gains 3 EP thanks to Hasasyin: this will allow them to start thinking about other ways to make the French life miserable in Egypt. But for their next Impulse, they have another evil plan in mind and play New Alliances for the AP.

The Event is certainly appealing, but the Allied Player already has a troublesome French card in hand and doesn’t want to risk drawing another one. So they start moving Nelson’s fleet toward Alexandria. About halfway through, the French Player, realizing what’s about to happen, plays a Reaction card to hopefully dent a few ships before the upcoming pivotal Naval Battle.

First, even though the card is played as a Reaction, the French Player gains one EP, as shown by the black cube below the card’s AP value. With five EP at their disposal (they start the campaign scenario with three), the French Player has the means to answer upcoming Espionage attempts. Back to the Sea Storm Event, Attrition rolls usually only trigger when moving to Inhospitable Spaces on Land but Events bend the rules sometimes. Eight British Naval Units are entering the Sea Space, the Allied Player rolls a 3, modified to a 5:

Cross-referencing the final result of 5 with the 5-9 row, the Allied Player is forced to eliminate a Squadron. The Naval Battle will be even tighter than expected but nonetheless, Nelson continues onward, determined to eradicate Brueys’s fleet. As the British ships approach Alexandria, the French Player has an opportunity to Intercept them. This is going to be a very important roll, as being attacked in a Port Sea Space can have dire consequences. A Naval Interception is very similar to a Land Interception: the French Player rolls 2 dice and has to obtain a 9+ result. They get to add Brueys’s Battle Rating of 2 but they also have to subtract Nelson’s Battle Rating of 3. In other words, the French Player needs 10+ to succeed. The attempt is half-hearted to say the least as they roll a 5. Nelson and his fleet cruise into Alexandria’s Port and jump all over an unsuspecting Brueys. Naval Units in a Port Sea Space cannot attempt to Avoid Battle so we have a Combat on our hands.

At first glance, this may look to favor the French as the French Squadrons roll Elite Combat Dice whereas the British Squadrons roll Drilled Combat Dice. However, upon a closer look, both dice bear the same number of targets on them. Therefore, unless the square face of the Elite Dice is enabled somehow, the odds of rolling a Hit are the same for both dice!

Moreover, since the Naval Battle is taking place in a Port Sea Space, the Defender gets a single bonus die instead of using their Admiral’s Battle Rating (who is severely limited in his maneuvering). The final tally is thus 9 Elite Dice for the French (eight for the Squadrons + one for Defending in a Port Sea Space) vs 10 Drilled Dice for the British (seven for the Squadrons + three for Nelson’s Battle Rating).

Well, neither side can complain about luck as the rolls were pretty much average. The British win the Combat five hits to four. However, since Naval Units in a Port Sea Space cannot Retreat, the French fleet won’t live to fight another day. All the French Squadrons are eliminated, and Brueys is Captured (This does sound like a remake of the battle of Aboukir!). To add insult to the injury, the winner of a Naval Battle can potentially capture some of the eliminated Squadrons as well. A die is rolled for each such Squadron and, for each result of 5+, the winner gets to add a Captured Squadron to their force. The Allied Player rolls 1,1,2,3,4,4,5,6 and adds two battered but serviceable Allied-Captured Squadrons to Nelson’s fleet. That helps compensate for their losses and pretty much guarantees they will rule the Mediterranean. For now though, this is not as scary as it looks as the Allied Player doesn’t have much Land Units to spare to take to the sea.

Can you feel Bonaparte’s anger? The French retaliation awaits in the next article!

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Previous Article: 

Battle of the Pyramids: Napoleon in Egypt – Full Turn Example of Play (Part 1)

Fleeing Down the Nile: Napoleon in Egypt – Full Turn Example of Play (Part 2)