Borodino: Doomed Victory (1990)

Borodino: Doomed Victory, The Battle for Moscow, 1812, is a simulation of the The Battle of Borodino fought on 7 September 1812 in the Napoleonic Wars during the French invasion of Russia.

The fighting involved around 250,000 troops and left at least 70,000 casualties, making Borodino the deadliest day of the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon's Grande Armée launched an attack against the Russian army, driving it back from its initial positions but failing to gain a decisive victory. Both armies were exhausted after the battle and the Russians withdrew from the field the following day. Borodino represented the last Russian effort at stopping the French advance on Moscow, which fell a week later. However, the French had no clear way of forcing Czar Alexander to capitulate because the Russian army was not decisively defeated, resulting in the ultimate defeat of the French invasion following the retreat from Moscow in October.

Two scenarios are provided: a historical scenario (where units are placed as they were actually deployed) and a hypothetical scenario (where players are free to deploy where they wish).

Victory is solely based on Russian strength losses, the French player must eliminate at least 90 strength points to win. (approximately 40% of the Russian army).

Originally published by 3W (World Wide Wargames) in Strategy & Tactics magazine #136; errata appears in S&T #138.

Game Scale:
Turn: 30 minutes
Hex: 328 yards / 300 meters
Units: Division

Game Inventory:
One 22 x 34" full color mapsheet
One dual-side printed countersheet (200 1/2" counters)
One 12-page Borodino: Doomed Victory rules booklet

Complexity: Medium
Solitaire Suitability: Medium
Players: 1 or more
Playing Time: 3-6 Hours

Players will need to provide one 6-sided die