ADLG: Army List Writer

Introduction

As of Sat 17 January, 2026 the latest version of the list writer is available here. The original 2021 post has been extensively edited to focus solely on my design philosophy and general approach

Background

In 2021, I felt the urge to write a new Art de la Guerre (ADLG) army list spreadsheet.

I'd tried the free Excel sheet from the main ADLG site and soon realised it did not suit me. Every time I moved a line I managed to break the calculations within the sheet.

So, I reverse engineered the free sheet and wrote my own: otherwise known as building a better mousetrap.

Design Philosophy

I wanted more focus on data entry and less emphasis on filling in the final form.   I knew I could automate the form filling once the right data was present somewhere.  I also wanted everything on one screen and useable without scrolling up and down.

How It Works

Here's the result with the basic flow from one of the early versions:

I've colour coded and numbered the steps to illustrate how the sheet works:

1. Pick a list in the "Player choices" section. The top level list details will automatically appear in the blue section on the right. Add the date for the list and any option(s) or strategist taken (if available). Finally add a fortified camp & fortifications if required.
2. Add the various generals and their competence. The points accrued will increase automatically as will the command points. If you overspend on command the unused command point total will be negative and highlighted in red.
3. Add any allied commands here. The available allies will be automatically listed in the blue section.
4. Enter the Quantity/Description/Type/Quality of each command. Change the Corps numbers as required, especially if you have a Corps more than seven different units.
5. As you add items the points total will appear in the grey section on the left. The army initiative is shown in the top right hand corner of the dark green section.

Obviously, you can backtrack and make changes at any time but the above flow is the quickest way to create draft list.

Editing

At first, it is best to avoid the use of cut and paste; in the wrong places this can break formulae. Until you get used to the spreadsheetIt use the pick lists, where provided, or clear a cell's contents before entering new data. Do not type over any formulae.

However, by design, the Quantity/Description/Type/Quality cells can be cut (ctrl+x), copied (ctrl+c) and pasted (ctrl+v) without breaking any formulae. This is a real advantage when optimising a list.

Printing

Once you are happy with your list, printing is easy. There is a "Print" tab where all the data from the "List" tab has been used to populate the standard template:

A list can be printed using the print icon, ctrl+p, or File|Print option in the Sheets menu.

The form is designed to be printed on two sides of A4 or duplex printed. The second side is solely for your notes and a packing list; it can be easily skipped.

Postscript

Since 2021, I have used this spreadshete to write my lists. It has been thoroughly tested and and new features have been added & tested. It was originally written for version three, but has been updated and is now fully compliant with version four rules and lists.

Download a copy.

Acknowledgements

I'd like to thank whoever wrote the spreadsheet on the ADLG website. Their approach to some of the calculations was re-used as was the list of categories and troop types.