Quote Originally Posted by Zoring View Post
It's not true that the Bolt-Action would ruin the game, essentialy all bolt actions up till the Mauser 1871 were single shot.

Even the 1871 wasn't in deployed in great numbers in the Franco-Prussian wars the earlier single shot weapons being used in far greater weapons.

Widespread usage of magzine fed weapons started around late 1880s with the 1871/84 the Lee Metford (1899) and the Mosin Nagant (1891)

Well within the scope of total war.

The tactics didn't deviate massively until the advent of total industrial war of 1914. Up until that point traditional millitary tactics still dicated the battlefield.





Yes, the Dreyse and Chasspot rifles were both very deadly to close order formations; that is why 1870 is even a stretch. Once magazine fed rifles and automatic crew-served weapons were issued, the formations started to thin out and alternatives started to be sought. Of course it did take the early bloodbaths of WW1 for the absolute need for drastic change to sink in. I just don't think that a TW game without a viable Horse arm and close order Infantry would be interesting.