Scenario
General Description
Rather than just picking random units and hacking it out, it is better to sketch a scenario for each battle, whether you are inventing the scenario or refighting a day in history. In terms of the rules here, the scenario is important because it determines how long the game will last and how reinforcements will reach the battlefield.
Balancing the Game
The game is more entertaining if the opposing armies are roughly balanced. To arrive at a numeric value for each army, see Assembling an Army: Unit Points. These Unit Points are also used at the end of a battle to determine who won and by how much: see Counting losses.
Time of Day
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A scenario begins at an agreed-upon hour and concludes either with one side’s victory or when the sun goes down at an agreed-upon hour. (If in doubt, consult the Internet to determine when the sun goes down for the date and location of your scenario.)
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Every five turns (one turn being one side's move), fifteen minutes of game time elapses. The clock strikes at the end of the fifth move.
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On turns on which reinforcements arrive, the reinforcements’ one free PIP per unit (see below) is not counted towards the averaging of PIP dice for the purpose of calculating the passing of time.
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Reinforcements
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Reinforcements appear at scheduled times and in scheduled places. They appear on their side's next turn they can after the clock has struck the appointed hour, as determined by the Time of Day procedure described just above.
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Reinforcements should appear reasonably close to the point of the map where they are supposed to appear, i.e. their arrival should not be exploited to have them appear closer to the enemy than would be natural. They probably arrive by road.
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In lieu of regular dicing for PIPs, on the turn they appear, troops arriving as reinforcements get one free PIP per unit on the turn they appear, which they must each use to move onto the map.
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With regard to the allocation of PIP dice on turns following the turn on which reinfocements arrive on the battlefield, Divisional generals arriving with reinforcements to a battle in which their side has a Plan may be inserted at no cost anywhere in the Plan's ranking of Divisional generals, for the first turn after the turn of their arrival on the battlefield.
Non-Divisional Units
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Occasionally, a scenario may call for units who are not subordinate to a Divisional commander; they may, for instance, be under the direct command of a Corps or Army commander, such as Corps artillery or miscellaneous detachments.
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These non-Divisional units may be moved using PIP points supplied (1 per turn each) by Corps or Army commanders (see Army and Corps commanders).
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Non-Divisional units may be specified in advance as coming with one automatic PIP point of their own or as having no automatic PIP point. For an automatic PIP point, add 3 to their Unit Point value.
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An automatic PIP point is necessary especially for cavalry: without it they will not be able to attack, even with the 1 PIP contributed by an Army or Corps commander, since charging cavalry require 1 PIP to move to contact and 1 PIP more to charge (see PIP Phase).