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

In our previous Inside GMT article, the just-landed French force led by Napoleon rushed across the desert to surprise the Mamluk army. The French general eventually won the Battle of the Pyramids and sent Murad Bey reeling south of Cairo. Now, the Allied Player gets a chance to respond with their own card play.

In typical CDG-fashion, the Allied Player decides whether an opponent’s Event happens before of after they spend their AP. In that case, it doesn’t matter much: since Cairo is still Allied-Controlled (barely!), the 4 Auxiliary Units will need to be placed in Alexandria no matter what, a bit farther from the action. Still, that’s a pretty horrible French Event but at least it’s worth 4 AP, which the Allied Player gets to spend after the French have placed the Bedouin in their landing port.

Murad Bey flees further south to Manfalut, trying to lure the French into following him as he gets closer to Ibrahim Bey and his strong army in Thebes. That costs the Allied Player 3 AP for moving into 3 Spaces. With the remaining AP, the Allied Player recruits one Mamluk Militia in Meniet, putting pressure on the French Player to capture these Fortified Spaces before they can mount a decent defense.

Back to the French, they could leave Cairo but to keep the City under Siege, they would need to leave at least two Units there (more Besieging Units than Besieged Units cowering in the City). Likewise, if they want to Besiege Meniet on the way, at least three Regulars would have to remain behind. They decide to proceed methodically, helped by a 5-AP Allied card with no downside for them.

Like all Reaction cards, which can be played outside of the normal sequence, this one has a prerequisite. When played by the opponent, the prerequisite will never be met and that’s why the French Player can just enjoy the 5 AP without an afterthought. First things first, they will use the first AP to perform an Assault in Cairo.

An Assault is very similar to a Field Battle but the main exception is that the Attacking Formation, when computing their Combat Dice Pool, has to halve the number of dice provided by their Units. With Napoleon again leading the charge here, the 12 Regulars included in his Formation only provide six Elite dice. Bonaparte himself still provide three additional dice thanks to his Battle Rating. Nine Elite dice vs a single Average die is a very lopsided Combat, the French inflict 4 hits (more than enough to kill the lonely Cairo garrison) but the Allied Player manages to roll a hit of their own to continue chipping away at the French Regulars.

Cairo is conquered! The French Player scores 4 VP. A Major City is actually worth 2 VP but when it changes hands, the former controller loses 2 VP and the new controller gains 2 VP, hence the 4-VP swing. After a successful Assault, the French Player (only) may decide to conduct Repression in or Sack the Space he just gained Control of. This is optional and doesn’t cost any AP. Before moving on with the rest of their card play, the French Player decides to conduct Repression in Cairo (there will be a time to Sack later in this series of articles).

And why would they do that? Well, every Fortified Space in Napoleon in Egypt can have one of three possible Public Order status: Allied-Favorable, Neutral and French-Favorable. It loosely represents whose Faction the Space’s population and local leaders cheer for. If a faction Controls an Unfavorable Space, that Space will Riot at the end of every Turn. Cairo fell, that much is true, but the hearts and minds of its inhabitants are still favoring the Mamluks, as shown by the Public Order marker below the City still on its Allied side.

A player can always spend AP (1 for a Minor City, 2 for a Major City) to shift the Public Order of a Space they Control one level toward their Faction. So to bring Cairo French-Favorable, it would cost the French Player 4 AP! Repression can be a shortcut to achieve that but as you can expect, it comes with a risk.

It’s now or never for the French: Repression is only an option right after you conquer a Space. The French Player rolls a die and gets a result of 3! The Space shifts to Neutral but the Allied Player gains 1 Espionage Point, a black cube used to conduct Espionage Actions, which they’ll put to good use later on. All in all, not a bad outcome for the French, who temporarily staved off the threat of a Riot and saved 2 AP in the process.

4 AP left on their card, the French Player decides to put 2 more Mamluk Fortified Spaces under Siege. Leaving two Regulars in Cairo in case of trouble, Napoleon leaves with Desaix for Meniet 2 Spaces away, bringing 14 Regulars with them. Up north, Kleber leaves with 6 Regulars and the 4 Auxiliary Units which were added to Alexandria earlier to Besiege Mansourah.

Back to the Allied Player’s Impulse, they decide to use their Home Card, which has three powerful and versatile reinforcement options based on where the action is.

The Nile corridor is a hotspot right now, so four Mamluk Cavalry Units are added to Thebes, joining the eight already present with Ibrahim Bey from the setup. The Allied Player’s Home Card is flipped on its Unavailable side (it will flip back up at the end of the Turn). The Allied Player now has a credible counter-attack option, especially since the French Home Card has been used earlier in the Cairo Field Battle.

Will they be able to put it to good use and force the French to fall back? Find out in the next article!

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