1776 - 2nd attempt to understand the game

[-72-]

All that said, what specifically do I think is wrong and what do I think it should be?

1). Units in column formation do not get flagged as Enfiladed when fired upon from flank or rear.  They may get the fire modifier for casualties- playing with FOW I can’t be sure - but not getting the morale hit is wrong IMO.  Personally I think units in column that are fired upon from any side should be so flagged, but at the very least they should be flagged when fire comes from rear or flanks.

2). I think units that melee while in column formation should be severely penalized, at least a 50% reduction to combat value since they are engaging on a narrow frontage.  It should be a rare event, usually only against an already weakened foe, or in extremely desperate circumstances that a unit would do it. 

Thanks for listening

No worries: I only really added part of that as a way of addressing the 'market' aspect, not being a factor when it comes to development.

Look, I'll be honest, I don't know that the armies of this period actually did fight in column. I keep thinking of that Pyle painting of Bunker Hill with the British in lines marching up the hill ... I'll tell you what I think I might find - and that is that the British's goal was to march right up that hill and into the redoubt and just push through and send the non-army farmers scrambling. I'd sometimes seen 'column' used to represent formations that were not able to fight in line, and in effect fought in formation that were, more or less, big fat targets as well (which was more about density modifiers, and effective frontage ... how many guys were doing the fighting in a unit ... but I mean, to be fair, that was also for a different period).  

That's part of what I am looking for, as it will help with working out where to direct modifiers; column should probably be a bad idea.

Actually ... you know what, leave it as I suspect that you're on the money with that observation.  I also want to have a look at how the British used their artillery in the battle; things like how mobile were they actually? Did the conditions really allow for that.

-But on a broader point, what I'd been spending some time doing is looking at sources on cavalry.