Introduction by Congress of Vienna (CoV)’s Editor, Fred Schachter – To familiarize the InsideGMT audience of what designer Frank Esparrago accomplished with his fun and exciting Congress of Vienna game, now a GMT P-500 offering which has “Made the Cut” (thank you patrons, thank you so very much!) please reference previous InsideGMT articles covering a wide range of CoV topics.  These contain background which will help you better appreciate this article.  Use the following link to access this material: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-850-congress-of-vienna.aspx.

The CoV play test team, now mostly using VASSAL due to being geographically disparate, have enjoyed many exciting Congress of Vienna games. The team has held many an interesting debate considering how to best play France in Congress of Vienna. This article reflects their most recent musings as described by game designer Frank Esparrago. 

The game rules this article alludes to will unfortunately need to remain implicit: a restriction an article format such as this compels which readers shall hopefully understand. That said, take it away Frank!

Note: If you would like to view any of the below images in a larger size, you can click on the image and it will point you to the full image file.

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France has 3 main ways to achieve a Congress of Vienna win: an “Early Victory” by imposing its military and political hegemony on Europe through obtaining 80 VP or more at the end of any game turn; play a long game “Resisting Strategy” by stubbornly defending until the tenth and final game turn and having more VP than any of the rest of the players; or use a mid-game approach through being the “Congress of Peace Winner” (see Figure 1).

Which approach you pursue will depend on the means you have available and also the idiosyncrasies of the other players. In a multiplayer game like Congress of Vienna, your actions are governed not solely by your nation’s relative strengths and weaknesses, but also by the personalities of your opponents (just as was the case historically!).

Despite my achieving these understandings, every time I have played Congress of Vienna (CoV) as France, I have lost and sometimes lost badly (we Spaniards can get stubborn at times… but I’m nothing if persistent in seeking an elusive French victory).

I have, however, observed how other players, more successful than I, have followed winning strategies for this always fun-to-play nation. Consequently, this article will share what has been learned and, perhaps one of these days, I will join the ranks of CoV French victors!

Congress of Vienna VP Mechanics: How can these be optimized for France?

As Congress of Vienna is something of a Eurogame; it is important to realize that diplomatic and political successes and failures are at least as important as military ones. These factors are synthesized in terms of CoV Victory Points (VPs).

Therefore, for each great game-winning strategy, particularly France’s, it is necessary to understand how VPs can be lost or won. Let’s foundationally examine these before getting into broader French strategy possibilities.

There are losses which are almost inevitable: for example, 2 VPs lost for Coalition capture of Poland, or -1 VP each time you recruit new military units while the Armistice is not in place, as happens during most turns to one or more of the four Major Powers (France, Russia/Prussia, Britain, and Austria).

One way for France to gain VPs is by winning major battles. Major battles are those with 4+ military cubes. The victor wins 1 VP whilst the vanquished loses -1 VP. These values double in battles with Napoleon. This is a risky approach as you may not win such fights. As France, it is therefore better to pick your battles carefully, or even bait your enemies into attacking where they think you are weak but are in fact strong; through military cards or your planned positioning of upcoming reinforcements and strategic redeployments.    

There are VP penalties easily avoided with adequate handling of the War Phase. For example, do not conduct attacks, which cost a valuable Resource each for a Military Operation, when you are clearly inferior in strength (as much in troops as in battle DRMs). Remember, you lose 1 VP with each major defeat, -2 VP with Napoleon and his prestige hazarded into the fray! Especially do not engage in battle when you risk running out of units, that is, having no military unit remaining in an Army and leaving it an “empty shell” since that will cost you an additional 1 VP.

Another way France can gain VP is by reconquering map spaces lost to the Coalition. This is done through making counter-attacks (placing Offensive Markers). France can potentially regain many VPs initially vulnerable to the Coalition on various Front tracks. This fits well with an aggressive player’s battle-led approach; but committing Resources to acquiring French Offensive Markers could be a costly mistake if you don’t win the resulting battles. It may be better to use the Napoleon card’s ability to place a French Military Support marker automatically than potentially spending a lot of cards on securing one during the Diplomatic Phase.

Do recall the French military maxim” “Reculer pour miex sauter” (“Take a step back in order to leap forward”). A weak Grande Armée can withdraw to Bavaria and return heavily reinforced the following turn, particularly if the cards of Napoleon, Berthier, Murat (as commander of French cavalry) and other excellent subordinates are drawn and saved for the Military Phase. You can then launch a counter-attack to push back the Allied Armies of Bohemia and Silesia and possibly regain Saxony if latent Austro-Russian player tensions worsen and the Generalissimo Issue proves unresolvable between those two Allies or their best generals are spent for Diplomacy Phase political Issues or don’t get drawn at all!

Alternatively, a more cautious approach for France is to focus on defending territory, merely aiming to avoid losing VP to keep its sum total high enough to aim for the 80+ VP Automatic Victory condition through other means. At first sight this may appear a passive strategy, simply waiting for the enemy to come to you, but since you gain VP for winning major battles no matter who the attacker, this approach could actually present sufficient opportunity to gain VPs and reduce those of your opponents.

But the most efficient way for France to gain VP is through winning diplomacy Issues in the Diplomatic Phase and then spending their corresponding Resource markers during the Government Phase. Unlike other Powers such as Russia and Austria, France is better equipped with Resources to carry out this task!

A most obvious route to VP is the Liberalism Issue, which has increasing yields each time the pawn is successfully advanced on its track. However, the best approach for France to gain VP is to focus on acquiring Minor Country Issues, as they not only yield 1 VP per Issue, but also provide an extra military unit if you currently hold the territory to which the Issue corresponds (e.g. if you control the Saxony space and win the Saxony Issue). In fact, this provides a better approach to building up your forces than aiming to secure the French Recruitment Issue, which, whilst it yields two military units also costs you -1 VP. Use this approach! Two won minor country Issues provide France the same number of military units as Recruitment but bags you 2 VP! (see Figure 2).

Which of these courses you pursue depends not only on your means; but also what you can read from the other players. You’ll need to keep an eye on which cards they play during the Initial Phase and trawl for good French cards in trade. Use your ability to demand card swaps to make sure you get some. You’ll need to be aware of the bonuses of your own cards, e.g. if you have Davout and Friederich of Saxony, make certain to put out those Issues they help with as you’ll almost certainly be able to win them. Use the French National Track to your advantage, as Issues on it are subject to a -1 in enemy movement; try to encourage dissent between your opponents, etc.

Finally, there’s Sound Government, which gives 1 VP in exchange for one Resource. This can be done every turn, so its acquisition is always worth planning for.

Now let’s revisit and reiterate some of the preceding within context of winning French strategies.  

France’s Great Strategies

The first obvious strategy for any French player who wants to emulate Napoleon is to get an automatic victory of France early during a game. The emperor nearly reached it historically during early June 1813 in Germany; but a successful withdrawal by the Russians and Prussians, poor military behavior by his subordinate marshals; and Wellington’s vigorous advance in Spain, which earned VP in CoV terms, narrowly derailed the strategy.

In Congress of Vienna, getting this type of game win means the French player must amass 80 or more Victory Points. As France starts the game with 60 VP this seems a somewhat easy goal to achieve considering the game’s tremendous French martial advantages. However, this type of victory is difficult to achieve as the French lack Resources to effectively obstruct the Coalition on all battlefronts (labeled A-F on the map). Although France can amass a concentration on at least one front in the hopes of earning VPs while impeding their adversaries’ advances on the map’s other tracks.

Another possible French great strategy is to carry out a planned withdrawal in Eastern, Central and Northern Europe (track B); vigorously seeking retention of most of Central Germany (track A: the most important track in terms of VPs and replacements, particularly the critical space of Saxony… see the game map of this article’s Figure 3); abandon Spain to the hated British, and then, once Austria enters the war, staunchly defend Italy while forestalling a British capture of Naples.

As if accomplishing the preceding wasn’t enough of a challenge; the French player must also conduct a three element concurrent strategy: First, garner the maximum number of VPs obtained by diplomatic means (win minor country Issues, win the Diplomacy Phase, Liberalism, get Sound Government VP each turn…); even carried out in a more vigorous manner than in the early victory strategy described above. For this purpose, some French battle cards will probably be used for the diplomatic “fight”. Second, accumulate the maximum number of troops, thereby making French armies as powerful as possible and difficult to defeat. This could even result in France having a chance to counterattack if circumstances permit. Once this is accomplished and seeing how the different Allies are obtaining their respective VPs; you must perform the task of exploiting differences between them. Hopefully, you’ll be more persuasive than Napoleon historically was.

The third major French grand strategy possible is a kind of intermediate approach between the two previously described extremes. Ah, but what is the right balance? That seems to be highly situational based upon how a given game is going. However, keep in mind it is very difficult to maximize your number of troops without using Recruitment, which until the Armistice, will cost a precious VP each use and diverts a Resource from VP-generating Sound Government. Some play testers initially go for the 80VP auto victory during the game’s first turns and then switch to seeking to achieve a kind of French survival win through the Resisting Strategy towards game end.

Factors in any French Strategy

French Battle Advantages: To be well prepared for the War Phase, don’t forget Military Support markers (these represent auxiliary units like HQ, sappers, cavalry, warehouses, an artillery reserve, etc.). They can make the difference in battles by tipping the balance to victory or saving you from major defeat. Each marker contributes +3 DRM; so part of your Resources should be applied to acquiring one or more of these. Of course, this should be a priority if you have chosen the “Early Game French Sudden Death Victory” strategy.

In addition, you will realize that for most turns, especially during the early game, you will have numerous French Resources to allocate to this goal and yet the Allies (without Austria) shall have comparably few Resources for acquiring their own Military Support markers. They have many priorities and ever so seemingly few Resources available!

Just one last comment on Military Support markers; be judicious using them! What do I mean by this? That when you anticipate a battle irretrievably lost; use them in another battle you believe you can win… better yet if it is a major battle that also allows gain of an additional VP. Also, due to the ability to pass on a battle (seeming to attack and then withdraw), you must keep in mind that the Allies might lure you to play a Military Support marker in an area where they do not themselves plan to attack. Try to assess before the placement of any Support markers where there is a good probability of such an Allied non-action feint.

There is also the (historical) advantage of interior lines for the distribution of French troops via reinforcement/replacement/strategic movement (SM). When allocating troops, assess the potential for losses on a Front and ensure enough troops are present to prevent an Army battle loss. Also, do not be afraid to denude an Army that is not being attacked in order to reinforce other Armies during the SM phase. They can be moved back or replaced if needed later. If you have it, saving the Berthier card for the War Phase is almost automatic due to the large advantage of swinging 40,000 extra men (2 military cubes) into a given Front!

Another consideration about battles: a battle not won is not necessarily a battle lost! In Congress of Vienna, to control a space, you must win the battle, that is, do more casualties than your opponent. In the “DRM Battle Record track” you can see how the difference to suffer more casualties than the opponent is +7 DRM; a distance that in relatively even battles is difficult to achieve. That is to say, both sides suffer attritional battle losses, but you maintain control of the space if the battle is a draw. France’s excellent military cards, Military Support markers, and central position can help make the Allied advance a thorny path indeed. Furthermore, sometimes such a stubborn strategy sparks strife amongst your enemies. This occurred historically after the French major victory of Dresden during August 1813! Foster such dissention!

Exploiting Potential Allied Dissention: A fundamental feature of Congress of Vienna is its multiplayer-game design. Always keep that in mind! The French player must understand this well and exploit that since, on many occasions, the necessary collaboration between the Allies, what is needed to make them successful as a team, is not always adequate nor should it be presumed. If there is disunity among the Allied players, which France should do all in its power to encourage, take advantage of their internal dissensions so you get the largest number of Issues during the Diplomacy Phase.

Remember, it can be difficult to get an Issue onto your National Track; but once an Issue is on the French track make certain you get it into the depths of that track to discourage other players from opposing your move! The French National Advantage which makes it more costly for an enemy to move an Issue from your track will certainly help with that.

For example, when the Austrian player uses the Russian player’s Blücher card in the first bid of the Diplomacy Phase to try to win that step, that indicates two things: the first is obvious; that a powerful combat card may not be in the Russian hand against you this turn! The second message is more subtle, for it could indicate future Allied dissension (or a lack of competence) about diplomatic Issues which could benefit you by making it easier to secure your own Issues. It would be easier for the Austrian player to await Diplomacy Rounds and simply trade with the Russian player to grant Russia possession of Blücher: why was that not done? 

Exploiting the French Advantage in Diplomacy Phase Card Trading: Congress of Vienna has quite a few differences with Churchill, one of the main ones is a rule facilitating “Trade Character Cards between Players”. This rule allows you to significantly improve your hand with your own French cards that in many cases will be battle cards usually saved until the War Phase.

Furthermore, if the French player requests trading a card from another player; that player is obliged to trade whenever he has a French card in his hand. This is especially true when considering timing to use the other French National Advantage, that of debating first by using a French National card (France has the most such cards in the game). This should be employed later in the turn’s Diplomacy Phase, if at all possible, to keep the Allies guessing as to when to move an Issue, especially one that is important to France.

Use this powerful ability: start applying that advantage as soon as possible; because if you don’t, the rest of the players will use your cards first and deny you the opportunity to obtain such cards later. Obviously, you must trade other player cards without military capability (e.g. don’t give the British Wellington!); although until Austria enters into The War you can do such trades with few problems.

Don’t be afraid to trade cards! You can potentially improve your hand a lot and will usually receive combat cards. Don’t despair about not moving Issues on the National Tracks and trading instead. By improving your hand quality, France will have many opportunities to debate and thus get Issues onto its National Track.

There are some “humble” French cards you usually receive by trading, but those can have an excellent value in your hand. They are shown in Figure 4. The first is Suchet (F-14) a card of only 2-value but that on the Mediterranean front (D) has +6 DRM against Spanish units. The second is Andrew Jackson (F-1) with +3 DRM in War of 1812 Box battles. A last example is Berthier (F-3), another 2-value card; but it allows you to play it with Napoleon thereby awarding a +2 DRM with the possibility of choosing the better of two dice rolls in one battle!

You may be surprised how many times you receive such powerful French cards in trade. Sometimes because your Allied trading partner doesn’t have a “worse” card to provide you under “forced choice” circumstance; at other times because the Austrian or Russian player knows Suchet or Jackson can’t be used against them in Central Europe (although that won’t make Britain happy… you can delight in that player’s astonished admonishment to their supposed Allies).

Furthermore, on rare occasions, you’ll get them to help “sabotage” the strategy of other players (who are apparently friendly allied!). This happened to me recently during a game when I received from the British player Berthier’s card. That allowed me to place him with the Grande Armée and provide Napoleon the choice of two rolls of the dice to achieve a crushing victory against the Russians and Austrians in Bavaria. This indirectly improved the British VP token position. Of course, when the British subsequently allowed me to go through a National Track Issue door first, I politely rejected him. The cause? The fear he’d stab me in the back just as he did his own allies!

Two Key Map Locations: The Prussia and Castile Spaces: The extreme defense of the Prussia space (part of track B) is of critical importance to a French early game victory.  In addition to denying an additional card to the Russian player, it grants a card to you (see Figure 5).

Furthermore, while Prussia is under French control the Russian player loses 1 VP each turn.  If fortune smiles upon you, France can have superior Military commander cards: for there’s no certainty the Allies will gain Blücher or any commanders of great talent. Of course, the Coalition is guaranteed having one VERY talented general at game start: the elderly yet still militarily dangerous Mikhail Kutuzov, who died in 1813.  This fact translates into the game by the Russian player needing to roll for Kutuzov’s survival EACH turn he is used as well as at game start.

Now consider Spain: The space of Castile on track C, facing the powerful British Army of Portugal, presents another difficult decision for the French player. If you decide to withdraw from there, France will stop receiving 1 VP each turn and suffer a future card reduction for its hand while Britain reaps 2VP each turn and gains a card for itself… not a pretty prospect. 

However, defending Castile requires very good combat cards in Spain (and the French have few available prior to the Armistice). A difficult decision! Only when you have good combat cards and know Wellington is not in the British hand (e.g. you have it yourself or see it used during the Diplomacy Phase) can you face battle there with a potentially decent opportunity for success.

The War of 1812 in America Box: Although this seems a purely British matter that concerns France indirectly, American defeats and victories result in lost and gained VPs… perhaps causing a perception that winning there is a daunting task. However, nothing is cheaper than recruiting 1 French unit for “conversion” into an American militia unit or put a marker of Military Support in each battle that takes place on that Front to add to the potency of American militiamen automatically regenerated each turn.

For that reason, you can make life miserable for the “hated” British (they have been fighting against your beloved France for more than 20 years since the distantly remembered Siege of Toulon in 1793!). Furthermore, if the British player is clueless, being distracted by other matters, you can get a net superiority in victories in America and gain 1 or 2 VPs for the War of 1812 Box each turn and even annex Canada to the United States for big VP rewards. So never forget this front! (see Figure 6).

France’s Inveterate Enemies’ Commanders:

Continuing this French grand strategy analysis, we must consider some of the main French enemies’ card capabilities: such as the Wellington and Blücher cards. They are shown by Figure 7. Both are powerful 5-value cards (British and Russian respectively). But their deadly effect is truly felt when they are used during the War Phase. Should the British player have Wellington in his hand; it allows him to easily advance in Spain (no matter how you try to contain him).

Only track C’s Gascony space, which is French territory, can help you since the British player loses the guerrilla modifier (+3 DRM) received when he fights in Spain. Furthermore, Gascony is a mountain space which inflicts another -3 DRM for its terrain while you have a +3 DRM for combat in your home country. Finally, if the Soult card is in your hand, the C-in-C modifier has France receive another +5 DRM… Wow!  So the apparent British superiority under Wellington will drastically decrease. This was what the French historically did, with Soult in command against his nemesis Wellington, from July 1813 until the war’s last months!

However, keep in mind that Wellington and those cards which enhance his military power are not restricted to the map’s track C.  He can be transferred to Southern Spain (track D) and make things miserable for the French Army of Mediterranean… don’t neglect that possibility.

Blücher’s card is also terrible news for you, as he can act as Commander-in-Chief on the North and Central European fronts (tracks B and A respectively). In the first you have no decent general to oppose him: only Davout during the fourth or fifth turns can genuinely help, if you manage to have that card in your hand.  This is enhanced when you have Eugene as C-in-C and military cards to support him. With a Military Support marker and enough troops, you can tempt fate and try to defeat Blücher and his minions (take another look at Figure 5).

If you lack adequate French cards to mount a credible defense, withdraw from a map space! I like games where players practically always have a valid option to escape even if it is a desperate decision. For example, a low or zero troop-loss withdrawal is wonderful against powerful Allied Armies. Those Military Support markers and retained good combat cards could be wasted in a futile defense.  They are better committed to a confrontation at another time and place. This is the perfect practical application of trading time for space.

If this is in Central Europe, however, things change, since you will have Napoleon, who gives you the initiative once the Grande Armée is rebuilt and with whom you can place up to two Military Support markers of +3 DRM each. Of course, try not to be too aggressive and risk a VP costly defeat; which can always happen after the Armistice when the Generalissimo HQ and new fresh Austrian troops join the struggle!

Just a last comment on these cards: during the “Deal game cards”, when you receive the character and event cards for your hand; the first turn of a Campaign Game gets France an impressive 14 cards. This give you an almost 50% chance to receive either Blücher or Wellington.  Should that occur, just inwardly smile without seemingly being too happily enthusiastic if you receive one (or both) of these cards. For this means your enemies will not use one of France’s most obstinate enemy combat commanders against you during the turn’s War Phase. You should use such an enemy card directly to your own interests during “Diplomacy Issues selection”.  This is a slap in the face to your opponents since it allows demonstrating they will not have a powerful Allied card available this turn; and, hopefully, you could also win the sequence if the other players wager lower value cards. 

 “The Armistice” Issue from a French Perspective: Let’s consider some ideas regarding theArmistice Issue. Normally, France must delay its implementation because, after the Armistice, the Austria at War Issue can take place and then you will have to face the Russian Army of Silesia joined by Austria’s Army of Bohemia and you’ll be facing two Armies on track A. Austria can do a lot of damage to France both in Central Europe as well as in Italy.

Only when you have been thoroughly roughed up by Russians and Prussians, or there is a rapid advance of Wellington being carried out and he has arrived in France and occupied Gascony, then you as France must claim the Armistice to hopefully use its time to reconstitute your forces and be able to defeat, or at least forestall, Wellington with Soult. In fact, I have seen a game in which in a similar situation the Russian player traded Soult’s card to the French player to help France “take the wind out” of Britain.

…but sometimes not everything goes as planned

At the start of the game it’s likely that French players will want to try and reach 80 VP, whether by means of counter-offensives or putting up a strong enough defense to avoid losing territory in the first place, and probably topping this up by winning Minor Power Issues, Liberalism, and committing Resources to Sound Government.

However, most likely you’ll find yourself pushed back over time; with the 80 VP automatic victory goal line receding from your grasp. It’s therefore worth thinking early about how you transition from the military approach to securing a Congress of Peace victory (or secretly aim to go for that anyway).

The longer the war drags on though, the more likely it is that your strategy will have to switch to one of holding on to the bitter end and hoping you can still come out on top. We’ll address this through another InsideGMT article. This future Congress of Vienna “End Game” analysis will feature “Fortress Paris”.

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