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

When we last left our belligerents, the French had just suffered a crippling naval defeat that left the Mediterranean Ports to the mercy of the Allied Player.

The Birth of a Legend will have to wait. The French Player has pressing matters to attend to. They want to pin down Murad Bey before he can flee closer to Thebes. They thus play the card they drew off their Sack of Meniet for AP.

Napoleon and Desaix leave Meniet, again leaving two Regulars behind them. These breadcrumbs left here and there sometimes make the trip all the way to Thebes a tricky affair. Spending 2 AP, the French bring their Generals to Manfalut, where Murad Bey is sitting with 4 Mamluk Units. The Mamluk General tries to Avoid Battle and, once again, fails. He will apparently make his last stand in Manfalut as he Withdraws Behind Fortifications with his troops! The Allied Player is buying some precious time here as the French Player will have to wait until their next Impulse to launch the Assault (an Assault can only be performed if the Space was Besieged at the start of the Active Player’s Impulse).

As we near the end of the Turn, Public Order becomes of paramount importance. If Meniet were to remain Allied-Favorable, a Riot would break out there since the Minor City is French-Controlled but Allied-Favorable. And while the odds of the rioters to defeat the 2 French Regulars are very slim, the French Player doesn’t want to tempt fate. They thus spend their remaining 2 AP to shift Meniet’s Public Order all the way to French-Favorable (It costs 1 AP to shift a Minor City’s Public Order one level)

Next, the Allied Player plays the Capture of HQ card for 2 AP.

They definitely want to move Ibrahim Bey within reach of Napoleon, if only to worry the French Player they might want to clash with their best General. Ibrahim and 10 Mamluk Cavalry Units move one Space toward Qeneh. With their 2^nd AP, they will try to Ambush Kleber’s army who has been sitting in Mansourah for a little too long for their liking!

Let’s talk about the Espionage system. This is where EP (Espionage Points) come into play. Espionage Points are black cubes players can collect by spending AP, through Events and other various means. An Espionage attempt will always cost 1 AP and a number of EP depending on the distance between the origin Space and the destination Space. The origin Space has to be Friendly-Controlled OR contain a Friendly Unit and a General. Mansourah fits the bill: remember that, even though the Space is Besieged, it is still considered Allied-Controlled. Distance in that case is 0 but an Espionage attempt EP cost can never be lower than 1.

Four types of Espionage attempts are available in the game:

• Agitation, to shift a Space’s Public Order in your favor.
• Assassination, to Wound an Enemy General.
• Open the Gates, to facilitate an upcoming Assault.
• Ambush, to kill Enemy Units.

The Allied Player announces their intent (Ambush), the origin Space (Mansourah) and the destination Space (also Mansourah). Before we go any further, since the French Player has EP of their own, they can declare a Counter-Espionage attempt. Basically, they spend 1 or more EP, roll a die, add +1 to the result for every EP spent and hope to achieve a result of 7+. If they do, the attempt is successfully thwarted. The French Player, feeling lucky, spends 2 EP, rolls the die… And gets a 6! That gives them a final result of 8: Kleber and his troops receive a heads-up from friendly local tribes and manage to avoid the trap! Note that the AP and EP spent by the Allied Player are wasted in that case.

That was a wake-up call to the French Player: they have to “finish the job” in Mansourah and Manfalut. They play a 3-AP card to do so:

Another potentially appealing Event has to be forfeit since time is of the essence. Indeed, the French Player will now be down to one card in their hand, allowing them to pass. They could (and would like to!) keep this card through next Turn if they so desire. The Assault in Mansourah is a formality and for once, no Regular dies in the process! The Repression attempt fails miserably with a result of 2 though, granting the Allied Player 3 EP and leaving the Public Order unchanged!

The pivotal Assault of Manfalut, where Murad Bey took refuge, is next and worthy of mention. For the first time since the beginning of the campaign, Napoleon cannot take full advantage of his 12 Strategy Rating, having only 11 French Regulars at his disposal. Remember that Combat Dice coming from Units are halved in an Assault, rounded up. That makes 6 Elite Dice + 3 for Napoleon’s Battle Rating. Certainly not in the bag, even with a 50% chance of each die inflicting a Hit. Furthermore, the French will face a significant retaliation as 4 Mamluk Cavalry Units led by Murad Bey grant the Allied Player 6 Average Dice in defense.

Fortunately for them, the French Player does get the 4 Hits they needed to take Control of the City but the Allied Player inflicts 2 Hits of their own so Napoleon is now down to 9 Units. The good news for the French is that they have Captured Murad Bey and the Allied Player will be forced to pay a 2-VP Ransom (Murad Bey’s Battle Rating) during the End of Turn Phase. Considering the French Player scored 4 VP total during this Impulse alone (Taking Control of 2 Minor Cities), all is not bleak. The cherry on top is that the French Player again attempts to conduct Repression in Manfalut and this time, they roll a 6 so the City falls in love with their liberators!

With their 3^rd AP, the French Player will shift Mansourah’s Public Order to Neutral, again to prevent a Riot.

All is good… Or is it? The Allied Player has 3 cards left in hand, do they have what it takes to move Ibrahim and face the battered Napoleon’s Army? Find out in the conclusion of this article series!

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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)

A Mediterranean Diversion: Napoleon in Egypt – Full Turn Example of Play (Part 3)