1914: Glory's End


Game Design: Ted Raicer
(c)1994, XTR Corporation

Aide de Camp 2 Gameset by: Patrick Hirtle (pyhirtle@try-net.or.jp)


These notes are intended to help you get the most out of this gameset, and to explain and clarify some points necessary for play.

1. The Map
The terrain symbols on the map are quite similar to those of the original game, and should be easily recognizable. Some city symbols and VP values have been done in a lighter colour than others to help them stand out from mountain and forest terrain; this has no effect on play. There is some information which is not visible on the map, but appears in the information box when you place the cursor over the hex; for example, Melun (3334) contains the information "vital rail hub" as a reminder of Rule 11.3. 

2. The Counters 
Most of the counters have retained the appearance of the original game pieces, with some exceptions: the German counters are feldgrau instead of black; the German siege guns are iconic; cavalry units have their attack factor printed on a light background square instead of in parenthesis; and some of the information counters have been changed to make them (hopefully) more attractive. Also, I've done the deployment counters as national flags (the number chits seemed a bit drab), and have added the army commander's name for historic interest.

The numbers which appear in the unit information box are in the following order: under Piece Values, the set-up hex, Game turn of entry, or the army to which the unit is attached; under Class values, Attack - Defense - Movement - (Number of Steps). French fortress units also list their defense modifier, and German siege guns have their fortress elimination value listed (e.g., 1-4 for the 420mm siege gun), per the Siege Gun Table.

3. Limited Intelligence
Using the limited intelligence rules (only the top unit in a stack is visible to the opponent) requires a bit of work. Once deployment is completed, you should click on each hex containing one or more of your units. In the unit information box, double-click on the unit or piece that you want to appear on top; this will take you to the Edit Piece menu. In the lower right of this screen, check the box to place the unit on top of the stack. Below that box will be the words "This Unit is Hidden" Click on these words to change them to "This Unit is NOT Hidden", then exit. (If there is only one unit in the hex, simply change its status to not hidden). If, for example, you have the British I and II Corps stacked together, during your opponent's move, he will see only I Corps; II Corps will appear in the unit information box as "unknown/hidden unit."

NOTE: Fortified Zones are never hidden, nor are track markers. 

NOTE: I've already defined the hidden/non-hidden status for units with pre-designated set-up hexes in each of the .OPS files.
 
IMPORTANT: All units in a hex are revealed during combat. At the end of your turn, you must go through the above procedure again so only the top unit is visible. It is a bit tedious, but once you get the hang of it, the routine becomes fast and simple. Of course, if you trust your opponent, you can simply use the honour system and agree not to examine each other's stacks, and forego all the above.

4. The .OPS Files
There are three versions of the game included: the Historical Set-Up (Rule 3.2), the Free Set-Up Scenario (3.6), and a variant by designer Ted Raicer, allowing for a greater level of fog-of-war.

A) Historical Set-Up: In this scenario, all at-start units are placed in their set-up hex, in their army deployment hex, or, if a "0" Class unit (including dummies), in their respective side's 0-Class Unit pool. The Entente player should deploy his units first, per Rule 3.3, then save the .OPS file and send it to the German player. Remember to define the top unit in each stack, and lone units in a hex, as non-hidden units after you've deployed them.

B) Free-deployment Scenario
In this .OPS file, units with pre-designated set-up hexes begin on the board in their respective hexes; units attached to armies, and "0" Class units (including dummies), begin in the Force Pools.

After the Entente player deploys his units, he should NOT define the top unit in each hex as non-hidden. Instead, he should simply save his set-up and send it to the German player, who then deploys his forces - the Entente forces should be completely hidden from him while he is deploying his forces(. When he is finished, he should send his set-up back to the Entente player, who then defines the top unit in each hex, and lone units, as non-hidden, and then sends the file back to the German player, who does the same. Play is now ready to begin.

(NOTE: If for any reason the German player can see the Entente units when he begins his deployment (i.e., they're not hidden from him), simply go to the Advanced menu and click on 'Auto-reveal Now.' 

C. Hidden Movement Variant
The following variant is provided courtesy of designer Ted Raicer. Basically, it's similar to the Free Deployment scenario, but with an added twist: each side gets "mobilization" counters - five for the Germans, three for the French, and one for the British.  These markers can be found in the Mobilization Force Pool. During setup, you can place any number of units in a Mobilization counter's Force Pool, and represent them on the map with the Mobilization counter. Normal stacking rules do NOT apply, though inter-army stacking restrictions do. A player may 'deploy' the units (see below) at the start of any of his moves, and MUST deploy the units at the instant any of the following occur:

- an enemy unit moves within three hexes (two intervening hexes) of the Mobilization counter (or the Mobilization counter moves within three units of an enemy unit during its owner's movement phase);
- the Mobilization counter moves adjacent to an enemy fortress or Fortified Zone;

- If a Mobilization counter moves within three hexes of an enemy Mobilization counter, both must deploy, the non-moving side first.

To deploy, simply place the units from the Mobilization counter's Force Pool, within normal stacking restrictions, in or adjacent to the hex the Mobilization counter occupied.

Revealed Mobilization counters are removed from play.

Note that it is permissible to place/move a Mobilization counter representing no actual units (i.e., it's Force Pool is empty), to further confuse your opponent!

Mobilization counters move as infantry, at the speed of the slowest unit in the stack (if the Mobilization counter doesn't represent any actual units, it has a movement factor of '4').



I hope you enjoy playing 1914: Glory's End using Aide de Camp. I've been as careful as possible in creating this gameset, but I know from experience that in converting a board game to a computer format, errors and omissions can occur. If you find any errors in this gameset, please drop me a line so I can fix it. 

And now... nach Paris!




