Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
La Bataille d'Espagnol-Talavera is a simulation of the culminating battle of Wellsley's 1809 counter-offensive. The radically different English and Spanish armies are pitted against the corps of King Joseph Napoleon's multi-national Armee de Espagne.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Grid Movement
Move pieces between adjacent spaces on a regular grid.
Dice Rolling
Roll dice to introduce uncertainty into actions, production, movement, or resolution.
Movement Points
Spend a movement allowance across spaces with different costs.
Hexagon Grid
Use a hexagonal map where each space connects evenly in six directions.
Line of Sight
Visibility between pieces determines valid targets, movement, or effects.
Read the full game description
La Bataille d'Espagnol-Talavera is a simulation of the culminating battle of Wellsley's 1809 counter-offensive. The radically different English and Spanish armies are pitted against the corps of King Joseph Napoleon's multi-national Armee de Espagne. Played on four 17"x22" period style maps over which a hexagonal grid has been laid. Each hexagon represents an area approximately 100 meters across. The armies which fought on this ground are represented by over 700 multi-colored playing pieces. Infantry are in regimental or battalion organization. Cavalry are shown as regiments. Artillery is deployed by battery. Distinctions are made between line or light infantry, guard and other elite forces. Various leaders are also portrayed. Each unit is individually rated according to its number of men or guns, its morale, its ability to initiate combat though gunfire or mêlée, its movement and, where appropriate, its range. The game is ideal for solitary study or team play. Each turn is twenty minutes of real and simulated time, play balance depends entirely on the skill of the players. The rules are a revision of the award-winning system developed by the Marshal Enterprises Household and cover the full range of features characteristic of the Napoleonic Battlefield. A special rulebook provides regulations particular to the Spanish Campaign of 1809, and a historical narrative completes the perspective of events on July 27-28 of that year. scale = 100 m/hex; time = 20 min/GT; strength = 50-100 men/SP (Regimental/Brigade Size)