WHAT YOU NEED

The requirements can be modest for a smaller game. Players need a collection of Napoleonic miniatures (or unit blocks would suffice), a few six sided dice, and most importantly, a sand timer for each commander on the table. The rules recommend three to five commanders and roughly ten to twenty-five units per side for a starter game. Unit basing is intentionally flexible, and formations can represent battalions, brigades, or virtually any level of command the players prefer. Terrain rules are minimal and easily expanded. Demo games run by the author are often done on printed historical maps, offering even more flexibility for how to get started. The entire ruleset is only thirteen pages long and available as a free download. 

HOW IT PLAYS

                                        * There is no turn sequence! *

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1. Each commander with an empty sand timer may act with his units

2. Units take one action

3. Flip the commander's sand timer and pick another available commander

On the Real Time Wargaming website, the designer outlines six design principles that define every aspect of play. It is worth reviewing them now, before summarizing the gameplay experience:

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• Rule #1 / Simultaneous Action – No turn order. No sequences. Everyone acts at once. Act, and then flip the timer.

• Rule #2 / Continuous Time – The game never pauses. Plans, arguments, solutions – all are handled during battle.

• Rule #3 / Immediate Results – Move, shoot, fight. Results happen instantly on the tabletop.

• Rule #4 / Direct Outcomes – The active player applies the result at once. No waiting – but plenty of nasty surprises!

• Rule #5 / Autonomous Flow – The system doesn't need Game Masters; it is based on trust between players.

• Rule #6 / Scalable System – The game can run with two players, but it can also run just as smoothly with 20+.

What do these principles look like in practice? The thesis of the system revolves around commanders and sand timers. When a commander's timer runs out, all units within his command radius may take an action, after which the commander moves and the timer is flipped again. This creates a battlefield rhythm unlike any traditional IGOUGO system. Rather than waiting patiently for your opponent to finish moving a formation, everyone is constantly issuing orders, measuring ranges, resolving combat, and reacting to developing crises anywhere on the battlefield. All at once. And if that sounds chaotic, it can be (for good and for ill).

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Combat is dead simple--arguably a bit too simplistic for even novice wargamers. Most attacks hit on a 5+, and a successful hit eliminates the opponent. There are no casualty markers, morale tests, or record-keeping. The incredible deadliness of the game necessitates adding additional units to each army (and results in very short battles). Raasted argues that Napoleonic battles were decided primarily through pressure, exhaustion, and morale collapse rather than literal destruction, so unit removal represents a formation no longer functioning as an effective fighting force rather than total annihilation.

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This experience is far less about combat and much more about command friction. Players must prioritize, communicate, and make decisions under real time pressure. The game feels particularly well suited to large multiplayer events, demonstrations, conventions, educational exercises, and introducing younger players with shorter attention spans to historical gaming. Indeed, an entire battle with Tin Soldiers & Iron Wills could be completed in as little as 15 minutes. After 30 minutes, players are likely to find themselves mentally (even physically) exhausted due to the relentless pace of play. That pace and the many unobserved dice rolls that occur during battle make this a game to be played with friends and not in a competitive environment.

FINAL Note