Deserters: An Outdoor Roleplaying Game

It was June 24th 1812 when Napoleon crossed the Neman towards Russia with the grandest army Europe had ever seen. It was December 14th 1812 when that army left Russia, nine days after Napoleon abandoned them. Around 612,000 Frenchmen, Germans, Austrians and Italians followed him over the course of the campaign. About 500,000 would not return. 200,000 died in disease, starvation, heat and cold. 100,000 died in combat. 100,000 became prisoners of war, of which 50,000 died in captivity. 50,000 were abandoned, too sick or wounded to take care of. The remaining 50,000 were Deserters. 

Deserters is a one-page, GM-less tabletop roleplaying game played outdoors. You take on the role of desperate deserters from Napoleon's la grande armée struggling to get out of your emperor's disastrous invasion of Russia. 

To play Deserters you will need:

• Up to ten players (compatible with solo-play)
• These rules, preferably printed out on two sides of a sheet of paper
• A standard deck of playing cards with jokers
• Clothes fitting for the weather with good pockets
• Hope (optional)

Once the season has been established and each player's deserter has been made, every deserter draws a hand of cards and the game begins. The cards in your hand represent the four resources deserters need to survive: Shelter(♠), Rations(♣), Weaponry(♦) and Will(♥). Every now and then a card is drawn and an event occurs. It could be an obstacle that must be overcome with the resources at hand or it could be an opportunity to add to or improve the resources you have. Continue drawing cards until you either make it home after a long and terrible journey or die trying...

This game is inspired by many others, here are some of the most direct inspirations: 

• For the Queen by Alex Roberts
• The Grizzled by Fabien Riffaud and Juan Rodriguez

If you find this game inspiring PLEASE HACK IT AND SEND IT TO ME! 

Special thanks to:

• Max Pettersson and Oscar Andersson for proofreading and editing.
• Fredric Haraldsson, Theodor Ottosson, Nanna and Kattja for Playtesting. 
• Toby Auberg (Toberg, Kinemus) and Kattja for artistic guidance. 
• Auguste Raffet and Hippolyte Bellangé for breathtaking art and faithful depictions.