Next version of AWI rules

Although I have been trying mightily to avoid it, I think the best approach to horse and musket is to use an attrition approach. I have been trying to avoid the use of markers, but I think I am going to have to break out the cotton balls again and use the "smoke" to represent attrition hits on an unit. (Maybe a need a little pin on the base to secure the ball.)

The idea is that each marker represents a blow to the unit's morale or manpower (primarily the former) and will give the unit a -1 to its opposed die roll. So, unlike DBN, which destroys the unit after a certain number of hits, this method will allow a unit an unlimited number of hits, but eventually it will catch up with it. (Because the minuses can rack up, the minimum number rolled, after all modifiers, will have to be '1'.)

Another concept I want to try out is that a unit charging a fresh enemy infantry unit suffers a minus in close combat (possibly as large as -2) to represent that steady infantry tend not to run when charged. A unit that has any number of hits would not count as fresh.

Also, there should be no continuation of contact with ties in close combat. Granted contact can represent firefights at very close range, but I think I like better the idea that if the close combat is tied, the attacker is forced to retreat out of contact.

Finally, there have to be some national characteristics beyond the ability of the American versus German versus Ferguson rifle. The Patriots tended towards firefights, as did the Germans and French; it was the British and Loyalist Provincials that favored the bayonets. (Note: I am not saying the others did not use the bayonet, rather they did not favor it. The British tended to fire one volley and charge, instructing their units not to engage in firefights. The others believed in wearing down the enemy until they were wavering, then went in and ran them off with the bayonet.)

One final thing - but I haven't figured out how to do it yet - I would like to be able to roll more dice per combat in order to even out the luck in the rolls. Many battles seem like they are primarily won, not by superior tactics, but by a 6-1 roll. I don't like rolling multiple D6 and adding them together as it throws the probabilities off. I am still pondering it.