Dive into history and heroism with Crusaders: The Siege of Acre 1291, a solitaire wargame that lets you experience the last stand of the Knights Templar and the Crusaders in the Holy Land.
Relive the courageous stand of some 15,000 Crusader soldiers, Knights Templars, Teutonic Knights, and Hospitallers as they defend Acre, a critical port city in the Holy Land, against a massive Mamluk army of some 80,000 soldiers armed with siege engines and catapults in the century after the Ninth Crusade.
Fighting was brutal. Mamluk archers and catapults rained missiles on the walled city, infantry conducted relentless assaults against its perimeter while miners attempted to breach the defenses of the stronghold from below. From behind its ramparts, the Crusaders repelled attack after attack while leading raiding parties outside of the city as the immense Mamluk army tightened the noose of the defending Crusaders.
When the dust settled, the city of Acre was overun by the Mamluk army. Crusaders and citizens were killed as the remnants of the Crusader army fled back to Europe while the legendary Order of the Knights Templars retreated to the island of Cyprus. The Crusaders lost their last major stronghold of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, never to return. Can you hold Acre?
As this month’s Wargame Watch posts on the blog, I will have just come back from attending the World Boardgaming Championships in Seven Springs, Pennsylvania where I was able to spend 5 1/2 days of fabulous gaming. I bring that up because this month I just didn’t have the time to do the deep dive that I normally do and only was able to find 27 games (including a new game from our sponsor Nuts! Publishing). I was also able to find 3 games to share being offered on Crowdfunding through Gamefound and Kickstarter.
This month we have a sponsor for the Wargame Watch feature in Nuts! Publishing. Founded in 2011, Nuts! Publishing is a French tabletop and board game publisher established by four wargaming and history enthusiasts. While initially famous strictly for historical and tactical wargames, the company has expanded its catalog to include cooperative, sci-fi, and family-friendly board games, while maintaining a strict selection process for those games they do publish. They are well known for developing popular original titles like Mini Rogue, Diluvium, and 300: Earth & Water, which is a part of their unique small format wargame series called Combat Rations that recently released the 3rd volume in the series called Guerre Eclair. The “Combat Ration” Series is a line of highly accessible, compact wargames designed to be played in about an hour including the 2 previous titles of 300: Earth & Water that delves into the Persian invasion of Greece in 492BC, and Port Arthur that retells the story of the 1905 Russo-Japanese War.
But, they also have a full line of more beefy traditional wargames including such titles as Urban Operations, Saigon 75, Stalingrad Roads, This War Without an Enemy, We Are Coming, Nineveh and Phantom Fury.
In addition to their own unique games, they also hold licenses to translate and distribute highly acclaimed international games for the French market, such as One Deck Dungeon, War of the Ring and the UndauntedSeries.
Their newest wargame release is called Guerre Eclair designed by Yasushi Nakaguro and is a part of the Combat Rations Series. Guerre Eclair is a remake of the 2019 game called The Rise of Blitzkrieg from Bonsai Games and is a card-driven game for 2 players lasting around 45 minutes. The setting is World War II in 1940 as the Germans unleashed their new Blitzkrieg tactic to invade France. The attacking Germans hide their intentions by choosing a conquest goal of either taking the Maginot Line, conquering Paris or controlling the ports at Dunkirk. Dice are rolled for combat and the highest 2 dice totals determine the outcome and if doubles are rolled losses to units will be inflicted. The French and British really cannot afford to lose many units as they don’t have a lot but neither can the Germans. The game is simple but fairly meaty with lots of decision points and we had a great time with it, as we have had with the other games appearing in the series.
Here is what Florent had to share on their upcoming slate of games:
In May, we released Guerre Eclair the third game in the CombatRations series and work on the next titles in the line is well underway (specifically Norway 40, followed by Bulge 20 – Yes, by Joe Miranda previously published by Victory Point Games). Urban Operations 2nd Edition is now available in stores worldwide. Please note that an upgrade kit is available on our website for owners of the 1st Edition.
Upcoming releases in early 2027 include The Coldest Winter, a card-driven game about the 1939–40 war between Finland and the Soviet Union (designed by Timo Pohja; art by Nils Johanssen), followed by Supremacy 2050, in which the world’s four major powers clash between 2020 and 2050 (designed by Pierre Razoux; art by Domhnall Hegarty).
Finally, we will launch two crowdfunding campaigns in 2027. The first will be for the second edition of Sword of Rome, covering the rise of Roman power in the 3rd and 4th centuries BC (designed by Wray Ferrell; art by Nicolas Roblin and Gabriel Pardon). The second will feature Nemto a cooperative sci-fi wargame (designed by Hermann Luttman; art by Nicolas Roblin and Christian Benavides).
Quite a variety of eras and gameplay styles!
Here is a link to an interview we did with one of the owners, designer and main bottle washer Florent Coupeau while attending Essen Spiel 2025:
Here also is an older video we did with Florent while attending SDHistCon 2024 where we discussed the excellent Combat Rations Series and Guerre Eclair (recently released) and the upcoming Norway 40:
1. Pacific Fleet: Rise & Fall of the Japanese Empire from VUCA Simulations
VUCA Simulations is a newer company on the scene the last several years (really since 2021) and they are coming out with some really great looking games. We have played several of their games and always have a great time with them. One of their newest pre-order offerings is called Pacific Fleet: Rise & Fall of the Japanese Empire designed by Hiroyuki Inose. I love a good Pacific Theater WWII game and this one looks pretty great.
From the game page, we read the following:
The Pacific War was unlike any other conflict of the Second World War. Vast oceans, isolated island chains, carrier task forces, long-range bombers, amphibious invasions, and industrial warfare all combined into one of history’s most complex military campaigns.
Pacific Fleet: Rise & Fall of the Japanese Empire places you in command of this global struggle. Lead the Imperial Japanese forces in their quest to establish dominance across Asia and the Pacific, or direct the Allied war effort as overwhelming industrial power gradually turns the tide. Every carrier strike, convoy, amphibious landing, and production decision shapes the course of the war.
This is not merely a naval game—it is a complete grand-strategic simulation where sea, air, and land warfare are seamlessly integrated into one operational system.
Fight from the opening attacks of December 1941 through the climactic campaigns that determined the fate of the Japanese Empire. Unlike many Pacific games that focus on individual battles, Pacific Fleet presents the entire theatre as one interconnected campaign where logistics, production, intelligence, and operational planning are equally important.
2. Modern Tactics: Afghanistan – British Forces Expansion from VUCA Simulations
We have played a lot of Old School Tactical from Flying Pig Games, which is designed by Shayne Logan. Shayne now has a design with VUCA Simulations that deals with modern warfare in Afghanistan called Modern Tactics: Afghanistan. That was announced on pre-order a while ago and has since been delivered but there is now an expansion of sorts to the game called Modern Tactics: Afghanistan – British Forces Expansion but it is being designed by another designer named Kenneth Tee of People Power from GMT Games fame.
From the game page, we read the following:
The war in Afghanistan was fought village by village, compound by compound, and patrol by patrol. Every operation demanded careful planning, disciplined infantry, close cooperation with allied forces, and constant vigilance against an elusive insurgency.
Modern Tactics: Afghanistan – British Forces Expansion places you in command of the British Army, Royal Marines, Special Air Service, and supporting Afghan forces during Operation Herrick. Experience thirteen new scenarios inspired by real operations fought throughout Helmand Province between 2001 and 2012, introducing new units, mechanics, and tactical challenges to the Modern Tactics system.
Whether conducting a night raid with the SAS, leading Gurkhas into hostile villages, defending isolated platoon houses, or escorting Afghan National Army units through dangerous territory, every mission presents unique tactical and operational decisions.
3. Thirty Years of Misery: The Thirty Years War 1618-1648 from VUCA Simulations
A couple of years ago, I came across a new designer named Brian Asklev and have done interviews with him covering Baltic Empires from GMT Games and 1812 – Napoleon’s Fateful March from VUCA Simulations. Brian is a pretty sharp designer and I very much like his approach to design as well as the choices in designs that he is doing. His new game is called Thirty Years of Misery: The Thirty Years War 1618-1648. The cover art is amazing, the topic looks great and the approach that he is taking seems to be very novel.
From the game page, we read the following:
Between 1618 and 1648, Europe was consumed by one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in its history. What began as a rebellion in Bohemia soon engulfed the Holy Roman Empire and drew nearly every major European power into a struggle over religion, dynastic ambition, and political supremacy. Millions perished as armies marched across Central Europe, cities were besieged, alliances shifted, and entire regions were devastated.
Thirty Years of Misery places you in command of the major powers that shaped this conflict. Lead the Imperial Habsburgs, the Catholic League, Sweden, or France as you fight to reshape Germany through military campaigns, religious influence, political maneuvering, and strategic diplomacy.
Victory requires more than battlefield success. You must secure electorates, protect your heartlands, influence the religious landscape of the Empire, and achieve your faction’s unique historical ambitions before peace is finally negotiated at Westphalia. Rather than recreating individual battles, Thirty Years of Misery captures the entire strategic conflict across three decades of war.
Every campaign combines:
Military operations
Religious conflict
Political objectives
Coalition warfare
Historical events
Dynamic diplomacy
Each round features a randomized turn order, ensuring that no two campaigns unfold the same way. Players must continually adapt to changing circumstances, unexpected interventions, and opportunities created by both allies and enemies.
4. Iwo Jima: Hell on Earth Revised Edition from Neva Game Press
Neva Game Press (formerly Neva Wargames) is a new publisher who appeared on the scene 2+ years ago. When I started seeing their posts on Twitter and Facebook, I was immediately impressed with their interesting topic choices for their upcoming games as well as the fact that they are trying to make small footprint wargames that pack a punch. And the art is also very appealing and brings an aesthetically pleasing and attractive look to their games! Their first release called Iwo Jima: Hell on Earth, which is a solitaire look at the amphibious invasion of the island of Iwo Jima in 1945 at the end of WWII, was both commercially and critically successful and has sold out and now they are bringing back a revised edition for pre-order.
From the game page, we read the following:
Iwo Jima: Hell on Earth is a hex & counter wargame based on this iconic battle. This challenging solitaire wargame puts you in command of US Marine Regiments as they battle entrenched Japanese Battalions during the iconic 36-day Operation Detachment. Each game turn represents approximately four days, condensing the intense conflict into nine turns of strategic decision-making.
In Iwo Jima: Hell on Earth, your mission as the commander of US forces is to conquer the island of Iwo Jima to secure its three airfields and the iconic Mount Suribachi. The game simulates the 36-day battle in nine turns, with each turn representing approximately four days.
Victory is determined at the end of Turn 9 by calculating your Victory Points. You earn VP’s by: Eliminating Japanese units, Capturing key objectives on time and Japanese surrender. You can lose VP’s if: You play too many Special Orders and/or you suffer too many US casualties. Your final VP score will give you an assessment of your performance, ranging from a “pen-pushing job” (1 or less to 5 VP) to an “incredible victory” (19-20 VP).
I think that a new company selling out their first release is probably pretty rare in our hobby but Neva did it and it is partly because a good solitaire game is always in demand and their focus on quality, in both game play and components, speaks to wargamers and word will spread fast once it is out. So what is different in this new Revised Edition?
Because we are heading back to the printers, we saw the perfect opportunity to integrate our community feedback directly into the game. The Revised Edition will feature:
Upgraded Map: A minor visual tweak where hill hex frames are slightly thicker, making them much easier to identify during intense gameplay.
Box Art Variant: A fresh, slight variation of the original box art (while keeping the classic spirit of the original design).
Fully Integrated Updates: All components from our Update Kit (detailed below) will come standard inside the box!
5. Rebels Against Rebellion from Flying Pig Games Currently on Kickstarter
About 18 months ago, while attending Buckeye Game Fest in Columbus, Ohio, we met up with David Thompson to get a quick look at a few of his newest upcoming games at the time including Line of Fire: Burnt Moon from Osprey Games and the very interesting American Civil War game with a twist called Rebels Against Rebellion from Flying Pig Games. I got to play Rebels Against Rebellion and very much enjoyed the game and what it was trying to convey about the lack of support for the secession of Tennessee from the Union as most of the residents of Scott County voted against breaking away during the American Civil War. The game pits the local groups against each other as the Free and Independent State of Scott fights against the local secessionist residents as violent confrontations between Loyalist and secessionist-aligned partisans and outlaws engaged in raids on farms, stealing livestock, and destroying property. Since that time, the game has progressed and has already launched on Kickstarter.
From the game page, we read the following:
Rebels Against Rebellion is a card-driven war game designed by award-winning designers, David Thompson and Trevor Benjamin. The cards in your deck represent the units and locations under your control. Each turn you will play cards to perform actions on the board and to add, remove, and improve the cards in your deck. The player who most successfully spreads their control across Scott County is the winner.
Tennessee’s role in the American Civil War and the Secession Crisis was marked by significant internal divisions between its eastern, middle, and western regions. In early 1861, when South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union, Tennessee’s legislature resisted the idea. However, following the attack on Fort Sumter in April 1861, Tennessee was forced to readdress its position. On June 8, 1861, a state referendum resulted in a decisive vote to secede.
Despite this formal decision, Tennessee remained divided. In the eastern part of the state, loyalist sentiment was strong. East Tennessee had overwhelmingly voted against secession in the 1861 referendum, while West and Middle Tennessee overwhelmingly supported secession.
As tensions escalated, residents of East Tennessee found themselves forced to take sides, often leading to violent confrontations. Loyalist- and secessionist-aligned partisans and outlaws engaged in raids on farms, stealing livestock, and destroying property. The establishment of local militia groups known as the home guard sought to defend loyalists. These small militias acted in secret, launching surprise attacks on Confederate soldiers and secessionist raiders, but they also faced constant threats from the Confederate army and local secessionist groups.
Of the thirty-one counties in East Tennessee, none voted against succession by a higher margin than Scott County. With a vote of 521 to 19 in favor of rejecting secession, the county’s stance was clear. Local residents so opposed the Confederacy that later in 1861, the county court approved a protest resolution declaring the county’s secession from the State of Tennessee and the creation of a “Free and Independent State of Scott.”
This is the story of the Free and Independent State of Scott during the Civil War.
If you are interested, we did an interview video with David while attending Buckeye Game Fest in the spring of 2025 and you can watch that at the following link for more information on the game:
Because I know that many of you will be paying this one solitaire, Denver did an overview video of the solitaire mode and you can watch that at the following link:
As of August 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has funded and raised $24,531 toward $10,000 funding goal with 450 backers. The campaign will conclude on Tuesday, August 18th at 12:00pm EDT.
6. Lee’s War: The War in Virginia 1861-65 from Worthington Publishing Currently on Kickstarter
One of the subjects that Worthington Publishing does really well is the American Civil War. They have their Civil War Brigade Battle Series that we have enjoyed and they really have a way of making these ACW games playable yet integrating some of the most important historical aspects to keep them grounded in history. Their newest series is focused on the Strategic Level and is supposed to be a 3 volume series. The first entry in the series is called Lee’s War: The War in Virginia 1861-65 and is currently on Kickstarter.
From the game page, we read the following:
Lee’s War is Volume I in what I hope to be a 3 Volume set on the American Civil War. It is meant to show the difficulties each side faced during the war. There is no plan currently for a full war campaign scenario. Players are given scenarios based on the campaigns and complete years of the war. I hope you enjoy playing the short crisp 2 – 3-hour scenarios giving an intense game experience as well as a study in Civil War command.
If this game is successful then Volume II, tentatively titled Grant’s War will be the Western Theater along the Mississippi from 1861 to 1864. Volume III, titled Sherman’s War, will be the Western Theater and the battle for Eastern Tennessee and Georgia from 1861 to 1865.
The game is for 2 or more players but is highly solitaire friendly (one player playing both sides) due to the random nature of certain rules such as Dice Differential and combat die rolls.
Lee’s War is a strategic level hex and counter war game for 2 or more players of the entire American Civil War in Virginia from 1862 – 1865. Leadership is highlighted using counters representing the combat leaders of the war. The destruction of the opposing players forces are the main objectives of the game, followed by the occupation of key cities or rail lines. The political aspects of the war are not reflected in the game per say, however they are reflected in the Victory Conditions. The longer the south drug out the war, and the more Union casualties inflicted, the better the chance that Lincoln would lose the 1864 election, and a peace Candidate (probably McClellan) would end the war with southern independence.
Here is the current 14 scenario list:
First Manassas / Historic 4 turns or optional long game 8 turns (July 1 – August 31, 1861)
The Peninsula Campaign / 10 turns (April 1 – June 15, 1862)
The Peninsula Campaign Plus Seven Days 16 turns (April 1 – July 31, 1862)
Second Manassas / 7 turns (July 14 – August 31, 1862)
As of August 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has funded and raised $27,212 toward its $1,861 funding goal with 304 backers. The campaign will conclude on Saturday, August 15th at 4:00pm EDT.
7. Warfighter: The WWII Eastern FrontSpecial Forces Card Game from Dan Verssen Games Currently on Kickstarter
The Warfighter system from Dan Verssen Games is a card based game designed for 1 to 6 players. You can play solo or cooperatively against the AI to complete World War II squad-level combat missions. One of my favorite parts of the game is at the start of each mission, you will select one or more Player Soldiers, equip them with skills, weapons, and combat gear within the mission’s Resource limit. You then fight your way through hostile territory and engage enemy soldiers, as you attempt to reach and complete your mission objective. Every mission is a stand-alone game. You build your Soldiers, select your Gear, and then run your mission. Within 30 to 60 minutes you will have succeeded or failed. We simply love the system and prefer the WWII focused modules (we really hated Fantasy!) and are very excited to see that they are doing this WWII Eastern Front offering as I think that it will offer a new and interesting view of the history.
From the game page, we read the following:
Warfighter WWII Eastern Front recreates the brutal skirmishes fought across the vast Soviet battlefields of World War II, where Soviet Red Army and German forces clashed for shattered cities, strategic strongholds, and hard-won ground in some of the harshest climactic conditions of the war. You will face fierce resistance from enemy troops, but the battlefield itself, from deep snow and choking mud to bitter cold and broken terrain, can prove equally deadly.
Do you have what it takes to defend the Rodina and drive the invader from our soil?
Warfighter WWII Eastern Front is the latest title in the Warfighter WWII Series, which includes other core sets for the Europe, Pacific, Mediterranean and North Africa Theatres of Operation. The Eastern Front has been an area of interest which we have been discussing for a time, and we began research and design work in January 2025. Now, the game design is complete, and we are ready to present it for crowdfunding support.
A key part of the game is squad building and mission planning. You decide which soldiers go on the mission, and which skills, weapons and gear to equip them with, best suited for the objective you are attacking. You control their actions and resolve all combat against hostiles and events encountered, but do not take too long, as the timer is counting down!
As a solitaire wargame, the game’s hostile response system handles all the enemy decisions and actions which will oppose your squad and thwart your mission plans. You will have to respond to the unexpected events and hostile attacks, as well as challenging weather and terrain, to make it to the objective and complete the victory conditions. Glory for the Motherland! Slava Rodina!
Along with the Eastern Front Core Box, there are seven Expansions which will allow you to extend your gameplay to include more armed forces and battles. The expansions offered with the Eastern Front core box feature Penal Battalions, Airborne, Partisans, as well as the Soviet Winter, Soviet Winter Vehicles and the Raid on Peenemünde.
We have also created the Critical Hit Deck pack, a new type of expansion which introduces critical hits to Soldiers and Hostiles alike, to add some cinematic flair and drama to your stories. All expansions are designed to be playable with the core set, and they add new Soldiers, Missions and Objectives, Gear, Skills, Locations, Hostiles and Events to your gameplay.
As of August 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has raised $24,469 toward its $20,000 funding goal with 151 backers. The campaign will conclude on Monday, August 3rd at 3:00pm EDT.
8. Lee Moves North: Campaigns of Antietam and Gettysburg from GMT Games
Several years ago, Mark Herman designed a unique and simple American Civil War game called Gettysburg that appeared in C3i Magazine #32. That game became the basis for his new Civil War Heritage Series with the first volume being Rebel Fury that focused on five battles from the Chancellorsville and Chickamauga Campaigns and Volume II being Army of the Potomac. Mark has now advanced the series with the upcoming Volume III called Lee Moves North: Campaigns of Antietam and Gettysburg that was announced this past month by GMT Games.
From the game page, we read the following:
Lee Moves North is a standalone game that covers the Confederate invasions that led to the battles of Antietam and Gettysburg. Lee Moves North is the third volume in Mark Herman’s Civil War Heritage Series that began with the Charles S. Roberts Award winning Rebel Fury (Best American Civil Wargame of 2024).
Lee Moves North is a low-complexity, grand tactical simulation that won the James F. Dunnigan Award for Playability and Design. Its unique combat system generates a detailed narrative that perhaps for the first time allows you to fully experience the risk calculus of a Civil War Army General.
If you know how to play Rebel Fury or Army of the Potomac, you can play the one map battles of Antietam and Gettysburg right out of the box. The game comes with 13 scenarios, 7 of which are played on one map to include 4 DOG (the four days of Gettysburg) with the remainder using all or some number of its EIGHT grand tactical maps, plus a standalone Theater scenario. The thirteenth bonus scenario covers Jubal Early’s 1864 invasion that led to the battle of the Monocacy River.
Through Lee Moves North you will experience these famous battles in a way that you have not seen them before. The grand tactical level is about maneuver combinations prior to and during a battle but make no mistake you will also see the brutal nature of Civil War combat. As the general leading an army, you will have player agency over when, where, and how often to attack using the unique Rebel Fury combat system. Following the combat narratives that are in every book that you have ever read on the Civil War you will experience the frustration of seeing your assaults fail more often than they succeed yet the better general is the one whose plans turn this historical reality into victory.
While we have not yet played Army of the Potomac, we have very much enjoyed the system and its first volume Rebel Fury. Here is a look at our video review for Rebel Fury:
If you are interested in Lee Moves North: Campaigns of Antietam and Gettysburg, you can pre-order a copy for $82.00 from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1253-lee-moves-north.aspx
9. Rowing to Hades: Fast Playing Naval Battles of the Ancient World from GMT Games
Ancients games are always a good time and if that game has naval units, including triremes, Greek fire ships and the like sign me up. This past month, GMT announced this new game from designer Jason Walonoski called Rowing to Hades:Fast Playing Naval Battles of the Ancient World. Jason is a newer designer with his first game called Epipolae: The Athenian Expedition in Sicily, 415-413 BCE, which is a part of the Levy & Campaign Ancients Series. I share that because he knows something about Ancients and I also think that he is a good designer with a good approach.
From the game page, we read the following:
Rowing to Hades is a squadron-level naval wargame set in the ancient era. The era of oars, not sails. Rams, not broadsides.
Inspired by classics such as War Galley (GMT), Trireme (Avalon Hill) and the Commands & Colors system, it will appeal to gamers who want to enjoy quick naval battles at a different scale and complexity level.
A single battle can be completed in 30-60 minutes. There are scenarios for the Greco-Persian and the Peloponnesian Wars as well as a campaign system to link multiple battles together in an afternoon.
A key design goal was to create a fun quick-playing game, not a simulation. Many details are abstracted, while maintaining historical flavor.
Combat is simple and quickly resolved. After all units have moved, they may Ram. If units have not moved, they may conduct Melee.
Attackers roll a base number of dice determined by the unit type (different types of units roll different numbers of dice for ramming and melee), with the number of dice increasing or decreasing for factors like attacking from the rear, using a special maneuver card, or the enemy formation (for example, line abreast, line ahead, or kyklos).
I am very much interested in this one. Tactical level naval combat is something that is very appealing and this one looks to be on the lighter side of the spectrum but offers enough depth that it should be a very interesting experience.
If you are interested in Rowing to Hades: Fast Playing Naval Battles of the Ancient World, you can pre-order a copy for $55.00 from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1252-rowing-to-hades.aspx
10. Commands & Colors: Ancients 8th Printing from GMT Games
Commands & Colors: Ancients depicts warfare from approximately 3,000 BC to the opening of the Middle Ages in 400 AD, which is quite a spread across time encompassing different strategies, tactics and even technology. CC: Ancients uses the standard card activation system which identifies a number of units that can take actions in one of three areas on the board, including the Left, Center and Right. This card system is standard to the series and really keeps the game light and fun as you sometimes simply cannot control take the actions you need to in order to win the game.
One of the reasons that I like Ancients and how it implements the system is that the scale changes during each of the battles represented. This means that some of the scenarios will have an Infantry unit representing an entire legion of fighters, while in other scenarios a unit may just represent a few warriors. This flexibility makes the game really interesting and you have to learn how best to use each of your units in each of the settings. This really adds to the replayability factor as well because you are learning from each scenario.
The unit variety in this one is interesting as compared to other games in the series such as Battle Cry and Memoir ’44 as each of those volumes had just three types of different units. In Ancients though there are multiple different types or classes of Infantry. Units are rated according to their makeup and in some ways their tactics and are placed in three neat and tidy categories including Light, Medium and Heavy. In the ranks of the Light Infantry, there are the standard Light Infantry, Auxilia, Light Bow and Light Sling for example. In looking at the other types of units there are Cavalry, Chariots, War Machines, Leaders, and the best part Elephants. The game comes with very clear and well done player aids that outline the different abilities of each type of unit and help you with an understanding of their movement, combat dice and any special abilities.
The final best thing about the game is the number of different engagements portrayed and how each of them uses different units and will require you to think on your toes about how best to utilize your assets. The battles covered include Akragas, Crimissos River, Ticinus River, Lake Trasimenus, Cannae, Dertosa, Castulo, Baecula, Ilipa, and Zama. All in all, I find Ancients to be a simple yet fulfilling gateway to the series and would recommend it heartily to anyone interested in getting on board.
From the game page, we read the following:
Commands & Colors: Ancients allows you to re-fight epic battles of the ancient world. Here the focus is on the two rivals for power in the Western Mediterranean – Carthage and Rome. Will you, as Hannibal, triumph over larger Roman armies; or as Scipio Africanus, will you beat Hannibal with newer tactics of your own?
Units in both armies can only move and fight when ordered. The command playing cards supply those orders, providing an element of luck that creates a fog of war and presents players with both challenges and opportunities. You must maximize your opportunities by playing your command cards judiciously. How well you handle the diverse units, their weapons, and the terrain, will determine victory.
Commands & Colors: Ancients contains the battles of Akragas, Crimissos River, Ticinus River, Lake Trasimenus, Cannae, Dertosa, Castulo, Baecula, Ilipa, and Zama.
11. Commands & Colors: Napoleonics 6th Printing from GMT Games
I will be honest with you, when we first played Commands and Colors, I was really leaning toward Ancients as my favorite one. But that all changed once we got the grand daddy of them all on the table in Napoleonics. To me, I really enjoy the added layers of depth to this one. It has six expansions for a reason as they have tried to capture the intricacies of each nation and their unique abilities and fighting styles to make for very highly stylized game.
Of all the C&C games this one is on the richer end of the scale, especially as you add in the expansions. The little bits of chrome make the combats more tactical. You can put your infantry into square formation to counter cavalry charges, but that comes with it’s own sub set of limitations. Each nation has their own special ability, and then each of their units have their own characteristics. An example of which are the Spaniards’ Infantry being straight up not as good as others. They roll dice equal to their number of blocks -1 for example. Each faction has strengths and weaknesses which gives you a little more to think about. Again, nothing overwhelming, and nothing you can’t handle but Napoleonics just has that extra richness and detail that brings the game to life and makes each play feel different from the last.
There are a few new differences in this one. Leaders play a very important role on the battlefield. They don’t add to attack but keep units in formation and from breaking. You must try to keep the Leaders away from the front line because they can become casualties but you need them to keep order on the battlefield as they will allow units to ignore some symbols.
Another major difference is in how units do when they are reduced. In all previous versions of the C&C system, the number of remaining blocks in a unit was not factored into the strength of that unit’s attack. If they had three units left, they would still roll their maximum 2 dice. But now that has changed and I really like this one. The basic attack strength of a unit is equal to the number of its blocks.
The color and the pageantry of a Napoleonics battle is hard to ignore and this one has a lot of substance to the game that the other volumes don’t approach. I will play Napoleonics at any time and relish the chance to learn new strategies and try out new tactics with the multitude of different units found in each expansion.
In the end, Commands and Colors is a fantastic system that has a little bit of everything that will appeal to any wargamer’s taste. I recently played Tricorne and man was that a fascinating experience. We also played the new one from GMT from 2019 Medieval and enjoyed it, and actually really liked some of the new additions, but just were let down by the theme. If you haven’t tried C&C yet, what are you waiting for? Pick a historical period you like and give it a try. You won’t be disappointed!
From the game page, we read the following:
The Napoleonic historical period has always been one of our favorites and was actually the second historical game that we developed using the Commands & Colors system. The Wars of Napoleon rules at first glance may seem more complex than other Commands & Colors games, but if you are familiar with the game system, you are only a few short steps away from taking Command. Even if you have never played before, learning the fundamentals of the game system is straightforward and will be an enjoyable endeavor.
For the game group in Orlando, Wars of Napoleon is one of our favorites. There is a wealth of subtle and bold features that set it apart from other historical periods and it truly embraces the tactical doctrines of France and the various nations that fought against Napoleon.
The Napoleonic period showcases a unique balance between the roles of Infantry, Cavalry and Artillery on the battlefield.
In combat, a unit’s battle strength is directly tied to the number of blocks present in the unit. Therefore, as a unit suffers block loses its combat effectiveness is reduced.
An Infantry unit, by forming square, can reduce the effectiveness of the most gallant Cavalry charge.
Artillery in combined arms combat along with an Infantry or Cavalry melee attack can produce the most devastating results.
As with other Commands & Colors games, the battle dice resolve combat quickly and the Command cards provide a fog of war and will present players with new challenges and opportunities for victory.
When in Command, the battlefield tactics you will need to execute conform remarkably well to the historical advantages and limitations inherent to each Napoleonic Army. For example, as the French Commander you will want to maneuver your infantry units into a position to take advantage of their melee attack dice bonus. While a British Commander will want his line infantry to take up a defensive position and stand and volley fire with a dice bonus. The other major powers also have similar seemingly simple advantages that can impact a battle and will influence your Command style for that army.
The core Wars of Napoleon game will feature French, British and Portuguese troops, while the expansions will showcase one Coalition army that opposed Napoleon.
12. Pacific War: The Struggle Against Japan, 1941-1945 Deluxe Edition 2nd Printing from GMT Games
Both Alexander and I love Empire of the Sun and really enjoy Mark Herman designs. Now I know that Pacific War is not EotS but it definitely was a precursor and led to its design and development. Unfortunately, I did not play the original Pacific War as I was 12 years old and focused on other things (baseball, football) and other games (mainly Dungeons & Dragons and other role playing in my teens). So, this one interests me because it will be a new experience for me.
From the game page we read the following:
Pacific War is a Strategic wargame that takes you from the attack on Pearl Harbor to the climatic summer of 1945… from Australia to China… from Burma to Hawaii… from the defense of Wake Island through the invasion of Guadalcanal culminating in the desperate battles to defend the Japanese Home Islands.
Strategic wargame that covers the entirety of the Pacific Theater of World War II…pretty big game, both in scale and distance. For a game to cover the entire theater, it has to be deep and have various systems to cover all of the different types of actions. Here is an answer on this aspect frog the game page:
For the first time in a Pacific Theater game, size, subtlety, and ease of play has come together in a game of sharp action and historical accuracy. Players can become familiar with the layered Pacific War systems in the solitaire Engagement scenarios, then fight their way through increasingly panoramic Battle, Campaign, and Strategic two player and multi-player Scenarios. As they learn the game’s basic maneuver and combat systems, they will then layer on more advanced systems for Strategic bombing, submarine attacks on merchant shipping, search and detection, amphibious assaults, and extensive Operations driven by their command decisions.
As this game is a reprint and updating of a classic, the first thing I thought about was what has changed in the design? Mark answered this question very well in the game write up on the game page:
So, what will change in the new version? The structure and feel of the design will be unchanged, so if you played it in your youth, you already know how to play. That said, a devoted number of players have been playing this game for 35 years and I have incorporated the best of their feedback into this new and final edition for this title. I am going over each scenario and updating them with information that I did not have available back in 1985. For example, I now have several Japanese translations of their official records that were only published in the last few years. Toward this end, I am adding at least six new campaign and strategic scenarios, so you can experience the entire panorama of the war in a long afternoon .
The key question that I consider when buying a new game is will it hit the table? The owners and reviewers who created the game’s reputation were excited that Pacific War had a layered set of scenarios that incorporated fifteen-minute solitaire learning engagements, two hour battles (such as Coral Sea and Santa Cruz that were used in a decade of tournaments), two to eight hour Campaigns (such as Malaya, Guadalcanal and Breaking the Bismarck barrier), and of course the Strategic scenarios that cover the entire war from a single year to the entire war. Will you ever play the entire war? It’s unlikely (to date I have only done it three times). However, Pacific Waris an operational level game and the Campaign scenarios are the heart and soul of this game system. Most play in an afternoon to completion. So, will it hit the table? Only you can answer that question, but from a time and learning perspective this game will support any time commitment you wish to make, to include the 100+ hour Strategic Scenario.
No cards, as this one is not a Card Driven Game, and lots of counters with 9 counter sheets listed. This is going to be blast and I hope that we get around to playing this game so that I can get a view of the original work from one of my favorite designers.
1. Bohemian Rhapsody – Battles of Wimpen: May 6, 1622 and Hochst: June 20, 1622 from High Flying Dice Games
Paul Rohrbaugh and his company High Flying Dice Games is a designer I love to follow. He is always doing games on smaller or lesser known conflicts and I just find his work to be superb and really draws me in. Recently I saw where he was releasing a new series of games covering the Thirty Years War called Bohemian Rhapsody – Battles of Wimpen: May 6, 1622 and Hochst: June 20, 1622.
From the game page, we read the following:
Bohemian Rhapsody – Battles of Wimpen: May 6, 1622 and Hochst: June 20th, 1622 is a game with 2 battles and both battles were part of the so called “Bohemian Phase” of the Thirty Years War and were one the result of the other. The first took place when the Catholic forces of Tilly and Cordoba surprised the smaller force of George Fredrick of Baden who was trying to cross the river Neckar near Wimpfen. Even if the Protestant forces made their best in the battle, thanks to a favorable uphill position, theywere defeated.
A month and an half later, another part of the Protestant troops moving around the Rhineland, the part commanded by Christian of Brunswick, was stopped by the same catholic army under Tilly and Cordoba near Hochst, while trying to cross the river Main. The ensuing battle was a sort of a draw, as at least a part of the catholic army was able to join the other catholic force under Mansfeld, but at so high a cost in losses, that the Palatinate theatre of the war was de facto closed.
If you are interested in Bohemian Rhapsody – Battles of Wimpen: May 6, 1622 and Hochst: June 20, 1622, you can order a copy for $20.95 from the High Flying Dice Games website at the following link: https://www.hfdgames.com/bohemia.html
2. La Conqueste: The French and Indian War 1754-1763 from White Dog Games
I have really enjoyed my plays of several games designed by R. Ben Madison. He has a knack for including elements of the history into the gameplay while placing the events into the framework of his chosen system, which is usually the States of Siege Series…but not always. His newest offering called La Conqueste: The French and Indian War 1754-1763 from White Dog Games uses the States of Siege Series System and dives into the French & Indian War.
From the game page, we read the following:
Over 270 years ago, France controlled most of North America east of the Mississippi River. The British had colonized only along the Atlantic Coast and wanted to expand further west. Conflict between these two great powers in the New World was inevitable. The immediate issue in the new World was whether the upper Ohio River valley was to be a part of the British Empire, and therefore open for trade and settlement by English colonists, or part of New France. When, in 1754, war broke out between France and England in Europe, it quickly spread to the New World, where it was called the French and Indian War, and where two of the most famous generals in history fought one another: Wolfe and Montcalm.
In this exciting game of that titanic struggle in America designed by R. Ben Madison, you control the forces of New France against England and the British colonies as the epic nine-year long French and Indian War breaks out.
If you are interested in La Conqueste: The French and Indian War 1754-1763, you can order a copy for $60.00 from the White Dog Games website at the following link: https://www.whitedoggames.com/french-and-indian-war
3. Fortress of Oblivion: Iran in the Sasanian Era 224-651 AD from White Dog Games
Another new solitaire States of Siege Series offering this month from White Dog Games takes us to ancient Persia and Iran in the Sasanian Era covering the years of 224-651 AD. This one is also designed by R. Ben Madison and looks to be very interesting.
From the game page, we read the following:
Fortress of Oblivion is an exciting solitaire game by designer Ben Madison that puts the player in the role of the ancient Shahs of Iran during the Sasanian Era, 224-651 AD – or even later, if you survive! You will use the economic, military, and social resources of the Iranian Empire, called “Persia” in the west, to defend your realm against invading foreign armies from the west (Armenians and Romans, later called Byzantines), the east (China, Central Asian nomads, and the mighty empires and petty states of India), and marauding Himyarites and Ethiopians from the south, soon to be routed by your greatest foe: the giant Arab Caliphate!
If you are interested in Fortress of Oblivion: Iran in the Sasanian Era 224-651 AD, you can order a copy for $60.00 from the White Dog Games website at the following link: https://www.whitedoggames.com/fortressofoblivion
4. Santa Cruz 1797 Reprint from Bellica 3rd Generation
One well recieved wargame from 2017 was called Santa Cruz 1797 from Bellica 3rd Generation which was designed by Iván Cáceres. The game covers the British amphibious assault on the fortress at Santa Cruz de Tenerife in Spain and is a card driven siege game. Bellica 3rd Generation is now reprinting this game which has been out of stock pretty much everywhere with a new edition.
From the game page, we read the following:
Early morning on July 25, 1797…A squadron of His Britannic Majesty under the command of Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson set out to assault the fortifications of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The fight would be desperate and the first light of day would find the
On this occasion, in addition, Nelson lost his right arm due to an impact from a cannon (“El Tigre”) that is still preserved in the Museum of the Castle of San Cristobal, in Tenerife.
Santa Cruz 1797 is a game for two players in which each player has a well-defined role: the British must storm the city and occupy its key points while defeating the Spanish military forces, the Spanish must wait to see where his opponent lands and then launch into a tenacious and aggressive defense to defeat him.
The game is a block wargame and works with a card engine that allows players to act on the opponent’s turn and creates a situation of unparalleled tension and uncertainty until the end of the game.
If you are interested in Santa Cruz 1797Reprint, you can purchase a copy for 50,00 € ($57.00 in US Dollars) from the Bellica 3rd Generation website at the following link: https://bellica3g.com/en/product/santa-cruz-1797/
5. Lone Panther from Mike Lambo
Over the past several years, print and play solitaire wargames have gained a lot of traction in our hobby. A solitaire wargame that is very affordable at $10-$15 and can be purchased and downloaded online. What is not to like? And the name of Mike Lambo has been tied to a lot these games as he has designed 20+ of these titles and has built quite the rabid and loyal fanbase. His newest game is called Lone Panther and can be downloaded from Wargame Vault. I do know that typically these games are sold on Amazon but I have not seen this offering make it there as of yet.
From the game page, we read the following:
The German front in the Italian Po Valley is collapsing. Months of retreat, shattered divisions, and dwindling fuel have left the once‑proud Panzerwaffe reduced to scattered pockets of armour fighting desperately to hold back the Allied advance. In this flat, misty landscape of farms and villages, marshland, narrow roads and orchards, tanks are no longer committed in massed formations. Instead, single vehicles are thrown forward to plug gaps, delay Allied spearheads, or hold a vital crossroads.
You command one such machine, a Panther Ausf. G, operating alone, cut off from its parent battalion and reliant on its crew. Allied forces push north with growing momentum. British armour probes ahead, infantry screens advance through the fields, and fighter‑bombers circle overhead searching for targets of opportunity.
In this final phase of the Italian campaign, a Lone Panther can still shape the battlefield – if its Commander keeps his nerve.
Whilst this game is not a ‘narrative driven’ game as such, with a little imagination it will provide memorable stories. Some events are randomly generated, but the Player always has at least some degree of control over the level of risk they wish to take and how vulnerable they leave their Tank to these Events.
This game is designed to be easy to learn and good fun to play.
This is a solitaire wargame. You play the game, and the enemy is controlled by the game (or the Artificial Intelligence or ‘AI’). You will need at least 7, but preferably 9, standard six-sided dice (not included). There are 10 very replayable missions included with full colour maps and clear instructions.
It is highly recommended that the counters provided on the final page of the game are used to play this game. Simply stick them to card and cut them out. A video demonstrating how generally to do this can be found on the Mike Lambo Games YouTube channel. The easiest way to make these counters is to print or copy them onto an A4 printer label, leave the ink to dry completely, then peel the back and stick to 1-2mm card. Alternatively, any standard paper glue will do such as PVA. You can also find ‘Instructional Playthrough’ videos on the Mike Lambo Games YouTube Channel to see how the game plays.
6. Great War Battles Volume 2: Tankschlacht: Cambrai, 1917 from Revolution Games
World War I is always an interesting war to game. We have played our fair share of WWI games and pretty much enjoyed them all. The Great War Battles Series from Revolution Games is a wargame system designed by Kerry Anderson that simulates World War I engagements at the brigade and regimental level and the newest offering in the series is called Tankschlacht: Cambrai 1917, which is now available for purchase.
The Battle of Cambrai was a massive British offensive on the Western Front in France during World War I and was fought between November 20 and December 7, 1917. The battle is legendary for marking the first large-scale, effective use of massed tanks in warfare.
From the game page, we read the following:
Tankschlacht is the second game in the Great War Battles Series; the first being Death of an Army: Ypres, 1914. Tankschlacht is a brigade/regimental simulation of the Battle of Cambrai, November 20 – December 3, 1917. A two player game where players assume the role of the German and Allied troops as they desperately fight for the valuable position in the line.
7. Blind Swords Series Volume 13Early Threatens Washington: The Battle of Monacacy Junction, July 9, 1864 from Revolution Games
Blind Swords is a series that most all wargamers have heard of and played at least a few games that use the system. We have played several of these games including Shiloh: The First Day and Gettysburg: The First Day in the series from Revolution Games. Recently, they announced a new title in the series called Early Threatens Washington: The Battle of Monacacy Junction, July 9, 1864 designed by Mike Wimple.
From the game page, we read the following:
The Confederate’s 1864 Maryland Campaign, led by Lieutenant General Jubal Early, was designed to draw Union forces away from the siege of Petersburg, Virginia and pose a possible threat to Washington. On the morning of July 9, 1864 Early was in Frederick Maryland, ready to cross the Monocacy River and drive toward a lightly defended Washington. Opposing him was Union General Lew Wallace. Wallace put together a hurried defense using any available troops who delayed the Confederate offensive towards Washington long enough that battle hardened forces from Grant’s Army were able to reach the city and bolster its defenses. These additional forces proved sufficient to repel the threat to the city. Thus, the ensuing Battle of Monocacy Junction has been referred to by many historians as “The battle that saved Washington”.
Early Threatens Washington includes one introductory and two full battle scenarios. The all-day full battle scenario allows players to try various strategies for clearing the Georgetown Pike. Do you try Early’s plan of forcing his way across the Wooden and Railroad bridges while feigning interest in the other crossings or some other, more clever method? The half-day full battle scenario allows players to play out Early’s plan as it actually unfolded, ignoring the morning actions, and focusing on the afternoon climax of the battle. Even though the Union is outnumbered by the Confederates, the situation is balanced and offers tough choices for both players. The thirteenth game in Revolution Games’ popular Blind Swords system, Early Threatens Washington provides an immersive experience of tactical American Civil War combat without a heavy rules load. The game can be enjoyed solitaire, two-player or multi-player.
If you are interested in Blind Swords Series Volume 13Early Threatens Washington: The Battle of Monacacy Junction, July 9, 1864, you can order a copy for $70.00 ($55.00 for a Ziploc edition) from the Revolution Games website at the following link: https://stores.revolutiongames.us/early-threatens-washington-boxed-edition/
8. Stalingrad: Advance to the Volga, 1942 from Revolution Games
I love a good solitaire wargame. And if that game covers the famous Battle of Stalingrad mores the better! A few years ago, they released the first volume in a new Solitaire Area Movement Series called Stalingrad: Advance to the Volga, 1942 designed by Mike Rinella. Mike has done a slew of area movements games, such as Patton’s Vanguard and Last Battle, Ie Shima, and his designs are always interesting and playable.
I have played this one quite a few times, and have also played the follow up version called Manila: The Savage Streets, and the AI and the overall design itself really worked well to create a very interesting and challenging game. In fact, after 4 or 5 plays, I have yet to taste victory. I really have enjoyed my experience with Stalingrad: Advance to the Volga, 1942 as the game is well put together, well thought out and frankly just works. They now have reprinted the game and you can get a copy now after the game was out of print for a year or so.
From the game page, we read the following:
There can be little question Stalingrad was one of the bloodiest and most decisive battles of the entire Second World War. The campaign by the German 6th Army to crush the Soviet 62nd Army and capture the city has been the subject of numerous two-player designs. It is a situation known to most gamers but is presented here in a new and exciting SOLITAIRE format, the first in a series of single-player area movement games by publisher Take Aim Designs. Stalingrad: Advance to the Volga, 1942 puts the player in charge of the attacking and far more mobile German side while the game system handles the defending and largely static Soviet side. No two games will ever be the same. Each turn presents new and unique challenges for the player in the form of random events, uncertain supply deliveries, and unknown Soviet area strengths and defensive strategies.
The primary game is a nine-turn campaign covering the first great German assault on the city during September 1942. The deeper German forces advance, from the city’s less developed periphery to its urban and industrial core, the greater Soviet resistance becomes. The number of German units bled white, effectively out of action, mounts. German determination to secure a rapid victory, represented as “morale” in the game, gradually decreases. The player wins by equaling or exceeding historical German gains and loses if they fail to do so, or if morale falls too low.
Also included is a five-turn “Factory District Scenario” representing the second great German effort in October 1942. The challenge is now even greater: the player must capture all of Stalingrad in order to release divisions in time to cover the German flanks outside the city against the coming Soviet winter offense, which was not far off. With a setup time of less than 15 minutes, low counter density, endless variability, and quick playing time, Stalingrad: Advance to the Volga, 1942 will appeal to every level of player, from the novice to the grognard.
9. Drive on Voronezh, June 28-July 27, 1942 from Legion Wargames
I love Legion Wargames. They are just a solid publisher and Randy Lein is such a great guy. Recently, they started shipping a new game designed by John Theissen called Drive on Voronezh, June 28-July 27, 1942 that deals with combat on the East Front of World War II.
From the game page, we read the following:
The Battle of Voronezh was fought on the Eastern Front of World War II, in and around the strategically important city of Voronezh on the Don river, 450 km (280 mi) south of Moscow, from 28 June-27 July 1942, as the opening move of the German summer offensive that year. The German attack in this sector bit into parts of the Soviet Briansk and Southwestern Fronts with German panzer corps leading the drive.The German assault was conducted by the element of the 4th Panzer Army′s forces of Army Group South under commanded by General Hermann Hoth, who was under strict instructions not to get bogged down in street-to-street fighting.
The armored units of the 4th Panzer Army partly captured Voronezh on 6 July by occupying the western river-bank suburbs, however German troops were subjected to a Red Army counter-attack. The 4th Panzer Army was to be followed by the Sixth Army, and when Voronezh was occupied the former was to wheel south-eastward and move down the right bank of the Don towards Stalingrad as part of Operation Blau. It took two days for infantry divisions from the Army Group South to reach Voronezh to hold the line and free the Panzer troops; Adolf Hitler later came to believe that these two days, when combined with other avoidable delays on the drive south, allowed Marshal Semyon Timoshenko to reinforce the forces in Stalingrad before the 4th Panzer Army could arrive to allow taking of Stalingrad.
Drive on Voronezh covers this opening move in the Fall Blau offensive. The scale of the game is nine miles per hex and two days per turn. The basic units in the game are divisions with special brigades for the Germans and brigades/corps for the Russians. The game uses a basic I Go – You Go system but also includes special event chits that allow players to augment certain combat and movement situations.
If you are interested in Drive on Voronezh, June 28-July 27, 1942, you can order a copy for $46.00 from the Legion Wargames website at the following link: https://www.legionwargames.com/legion_DOV.html
10. Bear Trap: The Soviet-Afghan War, 1979-1989 from GMT Games
A few years ago, GMT announced a very cool looking game designed by Paul Daniels covering the Soviet-Afghan War from 1979-1989 called Bear Trap. The game was described as a block wargame that used a similar system to what was used in the design for Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan.
From the game page, we read the following:
Bear Trap is a quick-playing, low-complexity 2-player block wargame covering the Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989).
In the Soviet–Afghan war, Insurgent groups—including the mujahideen—fought a guerrilla war against the Soviet 40th Army and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA) government. The game begins shortly after “Operation Storm-333” was executed at the end of 1979—in this coup, Hafizullah Amin (General Secretary of the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan) was killed, and Babrak Karmal, a Soviet loyalist, replaced him. By putting the Brezhnev Doctrine into practice, the Soviets sought to prop up the sympathetic local government and “solve the Russian Ice-lock Problem” while the Insurgents sought to expel the secularist government and foreign invaders.
Although the two sides in this conflict were fundamentally different in a variety of ways, they also faced some parallel challenges. For instance, they struggled to maintain loyalty. For the Soviets and the DRA, the DRA armed forces merely offered an opportunity for a paycheck, and there were cases where conscripts in the Soviet Army defected to the Mujahideen (e.g. Kazbek Hudalov). For the Insurgents, propaganda, threats, and promises to family drew would-be combatants away, as did injuries suffered from landmines and attacks on villages. Both sides also struggled to puncture the fog of war, not being able to secure reliable intel about force deployment and strength. And both faced various challenges around supply, communication, and coordination. Both sides needed to react to shifting strategies and developments over this decade long Cold War proxy war, where the landscape upon which it was fought presented many unique challenges.
Bear Trap is a spiritual successor to Sekigahara—building on the same core system. In both games, each player has their own deck of cards; players spend cards from their hand to activate areas or in combat to commit units to battle. This means fans of Sekigahara will find learning Bear Trap easy, but the feel and experience of the games are highly divergent. In addition to the difference in topics covered, other differences include:
In Bear Trap, forces are represented by blocks, stickered side hidden from the opponent, and the orientation of a block determines its disposition (i.e. the orientation of a block dictates whether it’s mobilized, fortified, disordered, poised to offer fire support to a battle initiated by friendly units, or ready to ambush enemy units). The orientation of a block also determines which battles it can join, whether card play is required to commit it to battle, and whether it can be moved or activated.
Bear Trap features an area-based map, rather than the point-to-point style found in Sekigahara.
The sequential combat system popularized in Sekigahara is utilized in Bear Trap, adapted to suit the setting. This includes the use of ‘loyalty challenges,’ making Bear Trap simulate the proneness of (for instance) Afghan forces to defect.
Bear Trap is, like Sekigahara, first and foremost a 2-player game—but Bear Trap includes a unique solo mode, built around a card assisted flowchart bot.
Bear Trap has fewer blocks than Sekigahara, and each player has fewer card types (‘suits’) in their decks.
Bear Trapintroduces ‘strategy’ cards—powerful event cards. Although it would be misleading to label Bear Trap a deck-building game, players will add 2 cards from a pool specific to their side each time they reshuffle their deck.
Bear Trap is not a “clone” of Sekigahara—they are very different games with differences in topic, feel, and mechanism, despite having an underlying shared game system. Bear Trap is also a more asymmetric game than Sekigahara. AlthoughBear Trap is a slight step up in complexity (relative to Sekigahara), the mechanics remain simple, and Bear Trap can be completed in 2-3 hours.
11. Fields of Despair: France 1914-1918 2nd Printing from GMT Games
Fields of Despair: France 1914-1918 is a medium weight 2 player hex-based strategic level block war game set on the Western Front of World War I. Players take control of either the Allies, including France, England, Belgium, the United States and an abstracted Russia or the mighty Central Powers fighting the war not only on land, but also at sea, and most importantly and probably one of the better and more interesting parts of the game, in the air all while having to focus on and make tough decisions about your economic and technological progression.
Fields of Despair uses a very unique and revolutionary block system designed to maintain the confusion and uncertainty of the Fog of War throughout the entire game. The reason that I consider this system revolutionary is that in most block games, the combat values of individual blocks usually range from one to four, so as you scan the battlefield and after a quick calculation in your head you can come up with a pretty good guesstimate of what force power is arrayed against you, while in FoD the combat value of blocks ranges from zero (dummy blocks) all the way to a maximum of twenty. This difference in value ranges alone has completely changed the block wargame and has created a very strategic game that can be quite deceptive and difficult to play well. The reason for this deception is that you can build up one block in a hex to 20 when in other block games this would require 4 or 5 blocks that have tipped your hand and help your opponent to gauge your strategy and react more effectively to counter that. But, this deception does have its limits as air reconnaissance, one of the best parts of the design, allows players to scout out the strength of units and remove that deception. But, you cannot simply scout with no opposition as your opponent can place their air units in that hex you are scouting to initiate aerial dogfights that will ruin your recon attempt.
Movement in the game is also very straightforward and simple and can be used as a deceptive tool as well in addition to the use of dummy blocks. Players are allowed to “make change” during the movement phase, which means a larger block can be broken apart into 2 separate blocks or can even be done in reverse by consolidating a few smaller blocks into a larger force. So after the movement phase, you will not be 100% confident in your enemy’s strength and will have to sometimes just throw your hesitancy out the window and attack. The Fog of War also isn’t lost after first contact with the enemy. Blocks remain hidden even when enemies occupy the same hex and stay hidden until one player decides to allocate an air squadron for reconnaissance or sends his men across no man’s land to attack.
I love that this game is so unique with the Strategic Reorganization element as well as the continuous battle for reconnaissance with the airplanes. I have played several block wargames and the way this is handled is very revolutionary and I am sure will be replicated in future block wargame designs. I also am very impressed with the tightness of the rules and how easy they were to understand and apply. For an ambitious wargame covering the entirety of the Western Front of World War I, a 24 page rule book was a shocker. But it is done very well and has very few rules problems.
If you are interested in Fields of Despair: France 1914-1918 2nd Printing, you can order a copy for $108.00 ($69.00 if you hurry and place your order before they ship in mid-August) from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-686-fields-of-despair-2nd-printing.aspx
12. Small Battles of the American Revolution Volume I: The Battle of Cowpens from GMT Games
While attending the World Boardgaming Championships 2 years ago, I was able to meet up with Dave Stiffler (acting as Developer on the project) and Bruno Sinigaglio who is the designer to get an early look at the upcoming debut release in the Small BoAR Series called The Battle of Cowpens.
I didn’t get any pictures because they didn’t have the components along to show but learned a lot about the design and how it changes the Battles of the American Revolution Series from GMT Games. First off, the scale is the major difference as it is 1/8th of the scale used in the normal series. This means 25 yard hexes and 2-3 men per counter. They also have included both rifle fire and musket fire which is a change as musket fire is simply an abstracted part of the close combat mechanic in BoAR. They also have added some new mechanics to account better for things like morale and being shaken or even shattered.
I have known about this game for a few months, actually nearly a year or so, but am very excited to see this one added to the P500 and hope that the reception is great and that the game does well because I would like to see more small battles covered in future volumes.
From the game page, we read the following:
Two critical battles were considered turning points in the American Revolutionary War: the Battle of Saratoga in New York and the Battle of Cowpens in South Carolina. The Battle of Cowpens was a catalyst to a series of events that led eventually to the surrender of the British at Yorktown. Small BoAR Volume I, The Battle of Cowpens, puts players directly into the milieu of this decisive contest.
The goal of the Small BoAR design concept is to include small yet critical battles that otherwise do not fit the scale of the historically simulating and highly successful Battles of the American Revolution (BoAR) system designed by Mark Miklos. This new system, aptly termed Small Battles of the American Revolution (Small BoAR), was designed by Bruno Sinigaglio working closely with Mark Miklos to preserve the continuity and popularity of the original Battles of the American Revolution game system.
Although extremely important to the history of the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Cowpens involved slightly over 1000 participants per side. In the Battles of the American Revolution system, which represents 100 men per strength point, this would equate to only ten or so combat factors per side. The scale for the battle of Cowpens, on the other hand, is 12 men per strength point, or one-eighth that of the BoAR system. The map scale is also correspondingly reduced to 25 yards per hex from the BoAR scale of 200 yards per hex. The time scale is approximately four minutes per turn as compared with one hour per turn in BoAR.
I think that one of the best parts of this new series, aside from the size and scope of the battles covered being smaller, is that they have not just rested on their laurels and reproduced the BoAR System but have added new mechanics and elements to better deal with these battles and to model the smaller scale battles.
Although Army Morale, the game-within-the-game in BoAR, is faithfully preserved in Small BoAR, and the Small BoAR sequence of play resembles that of BoAR and will look familiar to anyone who has played games in the original series, certain novel elements appropriate to the new scaling have been added. These include:
The ability to designate cavalry units in reserve
Artillery Fire conducted both offensively and defensively
Simultaneous ranged musket Fire as a complement to ranged rifle fire
A Cavalry Reserve Phase where units designated in Reserve may charge after the normal Close Combat Phase
And Opportunity Card Management
As mentioned earlier, I had the honor of sitting down with Bruno Sinigaglio and Dave Stiffler to discuss this new series and The Battle of Cowpens. Here is a link to that video interview:
If you are interested in Small Battles of the American Revolution Volume I: The Battle of Cowpens, you can order a copy for $75.00 ($48.00 if you hurry and place your order before they ship in mid-August) from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1140-the-battle-of-cowpens.aspx
13. Twilight Struggle 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition from GMT Games
As if you don’t know but Twilight Struggle is a 2-player game simulating the forty-five year ideological struggle known as the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States which can be played in 2-3 hours. The entire world is the stage on which these two countries “fight” to make the world safe for their own ideologies and way of life. The game starts right after the end of World War II in the midst of the ruins of Europe as the two new “superpowers” of the world squabble over what is left and ends in 1989, when only the United States remained standing.
I remember my first impressions of Twilight Struggle was that it needed some graphic design improvements and the game just didn’t grab me visually but that was all erased the first time we played as the topic and the mechanics just really spoke to me. This game was our gateway to the CDG mechanic and I still have a real soft spot in my heart for it. Well, this month I got my wish and this new edition of TS with upgraded art is now on the P500.
From the game page, we read the following comments and a bit about the history of Twilight Struggle on the new offering:
“Twilight Struggle is my all-time favorite game. It is a brilliant first design by the team of Jason Matthews and Ananda Gupta. It takes the card-driven genre of games like We The People, Hannibal: Rome vs. Carthage, and Wilderness War to its highest peak. Every game is different and the game gets better and better as you become more familiar with the individual cards. You are surprised as hidden combos are revealed game after game. Every turn is filled with tension as you try to figure out the best way to play the hand of cards you’ve been dealt. Gaming simply doesn’t get any better than this”. – Alan R. Moon
That quote from legendary designer Alan Moon, spoken not long after Twilight Struggle was released in 2005, helped sell out the game’s first print run and introduced thousands of gamers to Twilight Struggle. Fortunately, they mostly shared Alan’s opinion of the game and they told their friends. Soon, a groundswell of play and support for the game ran rampant across the gaming community as tens of thousands of players immersed themselves in the tense competition and compelling storytelling of Twilight Struggle. As a result, Twilight Struggle was the #1 ranked game on BGG for over five years, something no other game has achieved.
Soon there was a digital version of the game for Steam and tablets, introducing hundreds of thousands of additional gamers to GMT’s most commercially and critically successful all-time game and supporting a total of twelve sold-out versions of the boardgame. And over those years, the awards rolled in, reflecting the joy and challenge that Twilight Struggle brought to so many gamers: BGG Golden Geek Game of the Year, IGA Game of the Year, Charles Roberts Awards, and more.
Then, in the summer of 2024 at its Origins convention, GAMA (Game Manufacturers of America) bestowed on Twilight Struggle its most prestigious award, inducting Twilight Struggle into the GAMA Hall of Fame. Designers Ananda Gupta and Jason Matthews attended the awards ceremony and jointly accepted the honor on their behalf and for all of the Twilight Struggle team at GMT.
As we now approach the 20th anniversary of the game’s release, and in light of the recent Hall of Fame honor, we are thrilled to announce a new edition of our most successful game. We invite you to check out Twilight Struggle 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition.
So what exactly is new and different about this edition:
Twilight Struggle 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition adds even more beauty and play options to the original game. Here are some of the additions you’ll see in this new Edition:
A brand new game box by the incomparable Terry Leeds
A double sided map with a new Terry Leeds map on the front and the familiar Deluxe Edition Mark Simonitch map on the back
The Turn Zero and Alternative Space Race variants included.
A new alt-history scenario, “Red Sun Rising” with new cards.
A collection of promotional cards including the Kickstarter Promo Packs #1 and #2 and a selection of promo cards from foreign editions of Twilight Struggle
A background booklet including retrospective essays from the designers
We cannot think of a better way to commemorate the Cold War, this vital piece of world history, than with our freshest and richest version of Twilight Struggle to date.
Here is a comment from Gene Billingsley about this game offering:
We’re really proud of Jason and Ananda and what they and their brilliant game have meant to GMT over these past 20 years—and for all of the TS team that helped to make their design vision a reality. And we’re so honored and really happy that Twilight Struggle was inducted into the GAMA Hall of Fame at Origins this past summer. That is a rare honor. So, to celebrate both the 20th Anniversary of Twilight Struggle and it’s HoF induction, we are adding a new Twilight Struggle 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition to our P500 list this month. As you can see from the artwork, this is a beautiful new edition, featuring a new box and mounted map from Terry Leeds (with the Mark Simonitch map on the back side) as well as all new card fronts (we’re keeping the backs standard so there’s no problem mixing in cards from other versions). It’s also chock-full of a lot of new or hard-to-find play value, with a new scenario and a variety of cards and other game add-ons all in one new package.
With the recent advances in art and production, I have often longed for GMT to retouch some of their best games and give them the art and components that they deserve. It looks like this might be the first step in that direction and I would argue there are other great games that deserve a similar treatment including Here I Stand, Labyrinth, Wilderness War and others.
14. Falling Crescent: The British Offensive: September-October 1918 from Compass Games
More WWI is never a bad thing. Particularly when that game focuses on a front that doesn’t get a lot of love in the wargaming world. But Falling Crescent is such a game that focuses on the British offensive against the Turks in Palestine in the fall of 2018.
From the game page, we read the following:
Falling Crescent is an operational-level game of the British offensive of September-October 1918 against the Turks in Palestine. One player controls the Turkish, German, and Bedouin forces, and the other, British, French, and Arab guerilla forces. A three-player version, commanding the Arabs separately is also included.
After lasting for centuries, the Ottoman Turks’ hold on Palestine is at risk. British forces and Arabs in revolt threaten to bring down the Ottomans and their Crescent flag. The game is one of skill, in which it is entirely possible to change the course of history. This game proves to be an interesting challenge as modifications to the design, such as strategic and operational cards, bring a new feel to the classic model also built-in!
In designing Falling Crescent, designer Roger Nord brought out the flavor of encirclement and surrender, of charging cavalry and elusive Arab guerillas. The Palestine campaign is one of history’s last great cavalry actions. In this fluid scene, local plans can often go astray unforeseen developments may hinder or even alter command plans. The players’ cards, new to this edition, add their part to the fortunes of war with reactive tactics and shifting events.
The game’s pace is swift, and we believe players will enjoy it as a World War I game devoid of attrition and stalemate. Especially in the use of cavalry and air, they will see a hint of things to come in 1939-1940, when a later war will no longer be fought with horses and canvas biplanes, but with treaded armor and screaming dive bombers.
I am very much looking forward to this one. Games on this subject and with this scale are pretty rare and the comment in the description about “one of history’s last great cavalry actions” definitely has my attention!
As usual, thanks so much for reading along and sticking with me this month as I navigated through the many websites and game pages looking for new and interesting games to share.
Finally, thanks once again to this month’s sponsor Nuts! Publishing!
I have played my fair share of Root games, lord knows. I have no official play count. I respect the impulse of those who track their plays, but board games are one area of my life where I don’t do that sort of thing. Some back-of-the-envelope math tells me I have played well over 50 games of Cole Wehrle’s juggernaut since I first bought a copy back in the summer COVID lull of 2020. It quickly became, and has remained, one of my favorite board games.
Root’s status as a personal all-timer has never been threatened, but I have found myself moving away from it over the last few years. Since the release of The Marauders Expansion in 2022—an expansion of which I am very fond—I’ve found myself less and less interested in playing. This has nothing to do with the quality of the game. It hasn’t worn on me, nor has it grown tired. If anything, the fact that I haven’t played Root as much as I used to is Root’s fault; it offered early instruction in the idea of board games as strange and ungainly, and I’ve spent the last few years eager to explore new designs, new spaces, and tracking down new experiences. Root became the kind of game I would happily play if suggested,…
Last November, I attended the San Diego Historical Games Convention for the first time and it was one of the best events of 2025. When the SDHistCon board announced they would be putting on a new convention outside of San Diego, SDHistCon North, and invited me to attend, I was absolutely thrilled. Even more so when I learned it was just about an hour flight from Chicago, in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Purple and Gold
Given my undying love of Prince, Hüsker Dü, and the Coen Brothers, it’s strange that this was actually my first time in the North Star State. The downtown St. Paul office buildings, ballparks, and breweries definitely gave it a different vibe from the tiny surf shops, bait shops, and oceanside restaurants of Point Loma in San Diego. The convention itself had a distinct feel, as well. To begin with, it was only a two-day event, as opposed to four in San Diego. While this meant that I had to pack my gaming schedule pretty tightly, it also meant that I didn’t spend too much time exploring the city.
SDHistCon North took place at the historic St. Paul Union Depot. Originally built in 1881, it was rebuilt in 1923 after the original burned down in 1915.…
Good morning faithful readers and wargaming enthusiasts! At the time this post uploads to the blog at 8:00am on Saturday morning, July 25th, I will already be on the way to the World Boardgaming Championships held at the beautiful Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Seven Springs, Pennsylvania. This year, unfortunately, Alexander will not be with me as he is visiting family in the south of France for a reunion. This is now the 2nd time in the past 3 years that I have flown solo to WBC but this time I am more prepared and more ready to take on the convention and its coverage. I will miss my friend and partner Alexander but will have a blast anyway. I am leaving earlier than I have ever left before for the convention and plan to make a pit stop in Pittsburgh, PA to pick up a friend Mike from the airport on Saturday afternoon to travel down together. We should arrive at WBC around 3:00pm on Saturday, July 25th and I plan to be at the convention for a total of 6 1/2 days leaving on Saturday, August 1st to come back home.
Only the essentials including games, diet Mountain Dew, victuals and of course something healthy in apples!
I already have a lot of plans laid out and will have 6 1/2 days filled with gaming, designer interviews, looks at new prototypes, visiting with friends, publishers and designers.
Here are my scheduled games as of today:
Sunday-Monday – Grand Tactical SeriesThe Devil’s Cauldron: The Battles for Arnhemand Nijmegen and Where Eagles Dare: The Battle for Hell’s Highway from Multi-Man Publishing. I will be playing this one with Mike Heckman and a few others. I am very much looking forward to my first exposure to the Grand Tactical Series.
Monday – sit down with designer Gregory M. Smith and maybe a play of his Viking Dawn and a look at a new surprise Burning Banners offering (I won’t talk….yet!). But what I can say is that you will be able to play tactical battles in Kalar. We will also discuss his other in-process designs.
Tuesday – World Order from Hegemonic Games Project taught by our friend Tom and Coalitions: Realpolitik from PHALANX taught by Ric Manns from Southern Indiana.
Wednesday – The Emperor’s Choice and The Emperor’s Voice coming from Worthington Publishing designed by Wes Crawford and Maurice Suckling. I am very much excited about seeing these games and getting to play them.
Thursday – Imperial Elegy from VUCA Simulations. This will be my 3rd play and is sure to be epic!
Friday – Here I Stand from GMT Games. Our standard play of one of the best games in the hobby. Always look forward to this.
Plus I am trying to schedule a game of Small BoaR: The Battle of Cowpens from GMT Games with designer Bruno Sinigaglio, A Forlorn Hope from Wharf Rat Games, Above the Trenches: The Fokker Scourge 1915-1917 from Flying Pig Games with designer Bob Tkach and a sit down with Uwe Wallentin to get a look at Sound of Drums upcoming games. Already a full schedule and that isn’t even accounting for the opportunities that will present themselves. Should be an exhausting blast!
This year will be my 8th trip to WBC (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025) and this is by far the best of all the different conventions that we attend! WBC is an event put on by the Boardgame Player’s Association (BPA), which is a non-profit corporation established to support the shared interests of board game players everywhere. This is a membership organization and I have been a member since 2019.
At the end of each day, I will be putting together a short summary of what I was able to do that day at the convention. I would like to keep this to just a few paragraphs with several pictures to give you an idea of the games I played that day, designers I was able to speak with and other activities I found my way to participate in. I am still planning on doing some videos that will be released on the YouTube Channel over the next few months but this written coverage will supplement the videos and be a real-time look at my time at the convention. This summary will most likely not be posted until after 11:30pm EST each night, if not a bit later, so you might be checking it out the next morning which is fine.
If you might be interested in attending WBC in the future, here is a look at their schedule for the next few years.
Finally, if you are at WBC please feel free to find me and say hello. I love to meet people, discuss gaming and catch up so don’t hesitate. I will also have plenty of TPA buttons and stickers to give away so just ask. I also would like to take a picture with you so I can document it in our writings. As is usual at our convention attendance, I will be looking to get in some bigger multi-player games so hit me up if you are interested. Thank you and here is to a successful trip to WBC!
Last Light is a 4X game designed by Roy Cannaday and published by Grey Fox Games. The premise is simple: the last sun in the universe is dying, and it’s your job to harvest the most Light. Be the first to collect 20 pieces of Light and you’re the winner.
The Board & Setup
Last Light is likely to be one of the most impressive-looking games you’re going to see for a while. Seeing it on a table at Tantrum Con for the first time, I immediately felt drawn to it. Rotating circles of outer space, small plastic spaceships in three sizes (the game being set up was an upper-tier Kickstarter edition with 3D ships and Resource tokens; my review copy is the standard, cardboard-only release) and the planets.
The marble-like 3D planets, each rising from the board on its own stand and featuring swirls of colors, made me willing to sit down for a teach and a quick few rounds. Had the setup just featured flat cardboard with drawings of planets, I would have kept walking.
[caption id="attachment_332390" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] The standard edition of Last Light, with lollypop-like planets rising off the board.[/caption]
In SPQR: The Battle of Alesia 52 BC, you recreate the historical final battle of Alesia which took place in the year 52 B.C., during Caesar’s Conquest of Gaul. In the heart of the Gaul region, a battle unfolded that would reshape history. Julius Caesar had been carving a bloody path through the Gaul lands.
Vercingetorix, the famed and confident Celtic warrior-king, rallied the scattered tribes of Gaul into a desperate stand on a fortified hilltop in Alesia. From within the encircled settlement, he watched as a vast Gaul relief army of some 250,000 men gathered to finally crush the brutally outnumbered Romans, a storm cloud promising a final, glorious clash.
Will you lead the Roman Legions to glorious victory? Or will you face annihilation in the muddy fields of Alesia? The choice is yours…
Time of Wars: Eastern Europe 1590-1660 from Stratagemata is a multiplayer card driven game that is modeled after games like Here I Stand and Virgin Queen. Players take on the role of the head of superpowers in Eastern Europe including the Polish, the Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Tsardom of Russia, the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Sweden and the Holy Roman Empire. Minor states are also present such as Denmark, Brandenburg, Moldova, Wallachia, Transylvania and Crimean Khanate.
The game covers the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries. The period was rich in famous characters (rulers and commanders) and critical events – for example the Time of Troubles in the Tsardom, the Thirty Years War in the Reich, Swedish “Deluge” in the Commonwealth. All these and much more are smoothly incorporated into gameplay.
It has been very hot lately….and the humidity is getting out of control here in our Area of Operations (Indianapolis, IN). It makes everything tougher but I still like it better than the negative temp spikes we experience in January and February and look forward to the rest of summer. In the wargaming world, there is also a lot of “heat” coming upon us in waves as this month for the Wargame Watch, I was able to find 30 games (including the single new game from our sponsor Bring it on Games). I was also able to find 9 games being offered on Crowdfunding through Gamefound and Kickstarter.
This month we have a sponsor for the Wargame Watch feature in a new publisher named Bring it on Games. Bring it on Games is owned by Adam Starkweather of Grand Tactical Series (GTS) and Company Scale System (CSS) fame. He has started this new company with several friends and compatriots as a “company run by gamers – not a company that publishes games”. I think that Adam is a great designer and he is now out on his own and is going to make the games that he wants to make.
On their website, they have said the following about their production schedule and plans for the near future:
We will only make two or three games every two years. Next up is ACSS: Utah: 10 Days in Normandy. But work has also started on Omaha, Market Garden, and Battleaxe for ACSS. But other games on different stuff using new systems has started too. Gettysburg, The War of the Atlantic, and other fun stuff. I just have to live to ninety to make everything I want to make.
While they are new and don’t have a published game to their credit as of yet, they appear to be working hard to build a brand that is solid and will hopefully be one that is a continual force in the wargaming hobby. Their current project that is up for pre-order is called Anzio: A Lost Opportunity and is a big, monster wargame. This game has a ton of maps (10 total) and a ton of counters (20 5/8th” Countersheets) as well as a ton of charts, tables and player aids. This is a MONSTER wargame…big, bad and beautiful…no doubt about it but it looks really good.
We have played several games designed by Adam Starkweather in his Company Scale System (CSS) published by Compass Games including Saipan: The Bloody Rock and The Enemy is at the Gates: The Batlte for Berlin. These games are really good solid chit draw systems that really puts some unknown in what groups of units can activate and even when they will activate. There are also events and if the chit cup runs dry before all of the units can activate due to the end round chit then you are just sore out of luck. You have to prepare for this inevitability and I love the concept of prioritizing your activations and making sure you activate what you absolutely have to before doing those units that would be beneficial to activate. The system is a highly accessible, streamlined approach to simulating tactical military operations while retaining strong decision-making depth. The CSS offers a “design-for-effect” combat system that effectively eliminates micro-management and makes the game a joy to play.
Anzio is the first game in a new series called the Advanced Company Scale System or ACSS. At this point, I am unsure what makes it advanced but will be working with the designer to get a better understanding of that in a designer interview for the blog.
In the mean time, you can download the rules and the scenario booklet from an online OneDrive and you can also get access to a Vassal module to try the game out. Here is the link to the OneDrive: OneDrive Link to Rules and Scenario Booklet
If you are interested in Advanced Company Scale System Game One:Anzio: A Lost Opportunity, you can pre-order a copy for $300.00 from the Bring It On Games website at the following link: https://bringitongames.com/shop/p/anzio-a-lost-opportunity
Pre-Order
1. OCSThe Hero City: The Battle of the Baltics, September 1943-April 1944 from Multi-Man Publishing
In late 2021, we posted an interview with Tony Birkett as designer and Chip Saltsman as developer covering his The Third Winter from Multi-Man Publishing, which covers the third winter on the Eastern Front during World War II and deals with German Army Group South as they retreat to the Dnieper River and then the Carpathian Mountains. This game is an entry in the Operational Combat Series and was followed up by his Crimea: Conquest & Liberation game that was promoted as a low-counter density, small OCS game. Since then, he has been hard at work on the next volume in the series called The Hero City: The Battle of the Baltics, September 1943-April 1944 that dives into the mid war battles in the Baltics between the Germans and the Russians.
From the game page, we read the following:
The Hero City depicts the desperate battles between late September 1943 and April 1944 in the Army Group North sector of the Russian front. Soviet priorities were to establish a rail connection into Leningrad, evict the Axis forces from the Leningrad Oblast, and force their way into the Baltic States. Well aware this hammer was about to fall, Army Group North prepared the Panther Line defensive belt along the borders of Estonia and Latvia. The Hero City covers the major engagements: the autumn attrition battles while the Soviets mass their forces, the fighting retreat as the Wehrmacht desperately tries to escape intact, and the crashing impact as Russian waves pound against the German Panther Line breakwater. In the north are the Finnish lines, which offer a completely different strategic opportunity, including a scenario for the Soviet Summer 1944 offensive into Karelia. The Axis forces managed—barely—to hold at the Panther line, but the situation could have spiraled into disaster. The campaign here laid the foundations for the drama during the summer of 1944, and many of the German units in The Hero City will end the war trapped in Courland.
The game area covers the Soviet Oblasts of Leningrad, Novgorod and Pskov, as well as Estonia, Latvia, and the northern part of Lithuania. The map extends north of Helsinki and Viipuri in Finland, south to Daugavpils and Tilsit, east to Valday and Volkhov and west to the Baltic Sea. The Hero City is fully playable with The Forgotten Battles, to create a combined massive gaming experience using campaign setups that start in September 1943 and January 1944.
The Soviet command and supply structure is modeled through Front HQ markers. Fronts are either in “Offensive” or “Regrouping” status, allowing for shifting axes of attack and the on/off nature of Soviet operational warfare during this time. Each Front has an assigned Air Force. The parallel fighting in Army Group Center is represented by a boundary marker that shifts as the war advances off map, and the Axis player must be careful to watch his off-map flanks.
The Hero City is a large-sized OCS game, with 1,400 combat units (five counter sheets) and a 44×66-inch map layout at a scale of 5-mile hex/3.5 days per turn. The full Campaign game is 63 turns long, and there are three campaign scenarios so players can start at different points in the action. Also included are several partial-map scenarios.
Special rules in this OCS game are carefully researched to model key aspects of this critical campaign:
Forces include German Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe and SS formations, as well as Soviet Guards, regular and Partisan units, plus Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian units. The Prinz Eugen and German destroyers might put in an appearance.
Soviet Front HQ Markers which reflect their role in command and marshaling supply.
Soviet RVGK for coordinating strategic redeployment and rebuilding shattered mobile Corps.
Axis Army, Army Group and Kessel HQs, along with Kampfgruppe markers which portray Axis operational flexibility.
Random events similar to what are found in The Third Winter and The Forgotten Battles. The 26 possible events add historical flavor with minimal rules overhead, covering things like Guards Promotions, Fuel Shortages, Hitler’s intransigence, Soviet submarines Partisan Offensives, One-Turn Offensives, Battlefield Heroes, options for emergency reinforcements and unexpected Finnish offensives.
If you are interested in OCS The Hero City: The Battle of the Baltics, September 1943-April 1944, you can pre-order a copy for $90.00 from the Multi-Man Publishing website at the following link: https://mmpgamers.com/the-hero-city-p-468
2. Inferno in the Blue Grass: The Battle of Perryville, 8 October 1862 from Multi-Man Publishing
While attending Buckeye Game Fest this past March, we met with a fan of the channel named Leslie Jerome and had him introduce us to the Line of Battle Series with Volume 3 To Take Washington: Jubal Early’s Summer 1864 Campaign from Multi-Man Publishing. Line of Battle is a regimental-level American Civil War wargame system designed for fast-paced, non-stop action by eliminating excessive paperwork and combining fire phases with movement. I feel like this system is a highly playable classic ACW system with lots of very interesting mechanics including activation, order reception and relay, closing rolls, morale checks and close assault. In fact, I love how it creates a great narrative with some of the terminology and naming conventions such as the Blood Lust result for close assaults and the Cowardly Legs from broken units.
Recently, MMP put the next volume in the series up for pre-order called Inferno in the Blue Grass: The Battle of Perryville, 8 October 1862. I am very much anticipating this one and can’t wait to dive back into the series.
From the game page, we read the following:
Inferno in the Bluegrass brings The Gamer’s Line of Battle (LoB) Series into the Western Theater. The Battle of Perryville, the largest battle fought in Kentucky during the American Civil War, was the culminating engagement of the Heartland Campaign of 1862. This was the South’s attempt to invade the border state and garner support for its cause while simultaneously forcing Union armies in the west on the defensive. By October, the Army of the Ohio was on the move, poised to throw back the invaders. Bragg, confident that an initial Federal advance would focus elsewhere, was completely unaware that Don Carlos Buell was converging on his army in the small town of Perryville. As the sun rose on October 8th, 1862, neither army could have known that the coming engagement would ultimately determine the fate of Kentucky in the war.
The sheer scale of violence at Perryville factored heavily into the design, over 7,600 casualties were tallied – resulting in one of the larger casualties per hour rates of the war. Independent Command rule replicates Confederate commanders blurring the lines of command by fragmenting divisions into small, independent commands, creating confusion and limiting effectiveness. The Attack Commencement Chart limits the ability of the Confederate player to organize one massive assault. The Union, conversely, is hamstrung from the outset. The Union Alertness Table represents the phenomenon of an “acoustic shadow”, which caused Buell to be blissfully unaware of the overall tactical situation hours after the initial fighting had started. The map shows the parched land in meticulous detail, corroborated by the designer walking the battlefield to get a great feel of the ground.
This is Nick Roser’s first published design. His commitment and expertise on the battle shines through the design. Nick’s ancestor, Johann Christian Kurtz, fought in the battle, so his personal connection to Inferno in the Bluegrass is in his blood.
If you are interested in Inferno in the Blue Grass: The Battle of Perryville, 8 October 1862, you can pre-order a copy for $48.00 from the Multi-Man Publishing website at the following link: https://mmpgamers.com/inferno-in-the-bluegrass-p-467
3. Great Battles of the American Civil War: Battles for the Ozarks from GMT Games
This is one of those venerable series that we have not had the opportunity to play or experience. Great Battles of the American Civil War or GBACW (not to be confused with Great Campaigns of the American Civil War from Multi-Man Publishing) is a highly detailed, regimental-level wargame series originally created by Richard H. Berg. It is known for its interactive chit-pull mechanics that simulate the chaos, command difficulties and fatigue of 19th-century warfare. The newest volume in the series, which is Volume XI, was announced in late June and is called Battles of the Ozarks.
From the game page, we read the following:
The game presents five key battles that shifted the balance of power west of the Mississippi during the first two years of the war. Battles for the Ozarks concentrates on events on the Ozark Plateau of northern Arkansas and southwest Missouri and included are these battles from the first three campaigns of the war in the West. Each battle is portrayed in great detail allowing players to try alternate strategies.
Dead & Buried, The Battle of Wilson’s Creek, August 10, 1861 The first large battle west of the Mississippi. Federal General Nathaniel Lyon leads the Union forces in an attempt to bloody the nose of General Sterling Price’s Missouri State Guard and Ben McColluch’s Western Army that has arrived from Texas and Arkansas. Command the unusual forces that were arrayed in each army for this battle. As the Union, you’ll have Home Guard units, Regulars (including the famous 2nd Dragoons), and German American Missouri Volunteers from St. Louis. As Price and McCulloch, you’ll have everything from Missouri State Guard units armed with flintlocks and shotguns, to the South Kansas Texas Cavalry regiment and Arkansas State Militia.
Into The Night, The Battle of Dunagin’s Farm, February 17th, 1862 A lesser-known battle that occurred about a month before the much more famous battle of Pea Ridge. In north Arkansas along the Little Sugar Creek, the rear guard of McCulloch’s Army of the West, led by the capable Louis Hebert, tries to cover Sterling Price’s retreat from Springfield, Missouri. Hot on Price’s trail is Samuel Curtis’ Army of the Southwest. The advance cavalry of Curtis’ army collides with Hebert’s forces on farmer Dunagin’s field. What starts as a simple skirmish escalates into a full-blown fight that spills over into the evening, with both sides gradually feeding more troops into the battle.
Rush To Glory, The Battle of Pea Ridge, March 7th & 8th, 1862 Can you, as Earl Van Dorn, fall upon the rear and flank of the Federal army deployed north of the Little Sugar Creek before the more rested and organized enemy responds? Or can you, as General Samuel Curtis, repeat one of the few times in military history when an army reversed course, moved its supply train out of danger, and then engaged and defeated the enemy? A challenging battle for both sides; the Confederate army has been “Rushed to Glory” by Van Dorn in a snowstorm and is worn out, while the Union army is flanked by the CSA foe. The battle has a two-map and a three-map version (the largest presentation of the battle ever done).
Iron Men, The Battle of First Newtonia, September 30th, 1862 Probably the most unusual and desperate of all the battles included in Battles for the Ozarks. First Newtonia was fought before the Battle of Prairie Grove in Blunt’s campaign. The advance units of the two armies meet at the small hamlet of Newtonia in southwest Missouri. A CSA force comprised of the Indian Command, a brigade of Texas cavalry, and part of Jo Shelby’s Iron Brigade attempt to stop the forward movement of BG Fredrick Salomon’s 1st Kansas Division. With warriors of the First Nations on both sides, First Newtonia steps into new territory for GBACW. Also command part of the Western “Iron Brigade” in its first battle. One of the most desperate fought battles in the Trans-Mississippi.
Blunted Again, The Battle of Prairie Grove, December 7th, 1862 Take the role of the headstrong Union General James Blunt and see if you can move the CSA forces led by Thomas Hindman off the Fayetteville Road. As the Union commander, you will have superior artillery that can win the day. Or as the Confederate commander, you’ll hold the strong defensive position between the two Union wings along “The Bench”. You have the Napoleonic central position, and it is held by Joe Shelby’s Iron Brigade! Will it be enough?
Ready for a new experience in your War Between the States gaming? Battles for the Ozarks is the 11th installment in the award-winning Great Battles of the American Civil War Series. The game has rules that satisfy both experienced and new players, with a Simple Version that offers an easier, faster gaming experience. New optional rules are also introduced! New skirmish rules catch the ebb and flow of open order combat between the battle lines, and the Peoples of the First Nations make their first appearance in the GBACW Series. See how well these warriors fought at Prairie Grove or First Newtonia. New terrain types, such as Heavy and Light woods, are introduced, along with Rifle Pits and Entrenchments. With over twelve scenarios, including two on their own half maps, there is something for everyone.
4. Bataan! The Battle for the Philippines 1942 2nd Edition from Consim Games/GMT Games
Classic wargames always do well, either because of nostalgia and a longing for the past or because the game was really good. I don’t know which one this fits into but GMT Games announced a new 2nd Edition of a classic wargame called Bataan!. I say GMT Games but the game is actually published by Consim Games, as they have entered a new partnership with GMT as they have in the past to publish their own line of games.
From the game page, we read the following:
Bataan! 2nd Edition is the much-anticipated, updated grand-tactical-level treatment of WWII battles on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines, which took place from January through April 1942. Game designer and Charles S. Roberts Award recipient Vance von Borries has drawn on his game design experience to create a game engine capable of portraying the tense jungle fighting that took place on Bataan. While the system is based on his popular Roads to Leningrad game, the changes needed to simulate the fighting on Bataan make for a unique gaming experience. For history enthusiasts and wargamers, this is a nuanced, in-depth exploration of a specific, underrepresented aspect of WWII history. This all-new 2nd Edition does not simply address all official errata from the original edition, but also delivers new game components and a major game system update, with the rules rewritten to further advance this popular game system.
Gameplay is both tense and interactive, based on an alternating activation sequence in which both sides conduct operations. This second edition features streamlined game mechanics to improve and help speed gameplay, all based on player feedback. The game also captures air and naval operations, though the focus is on ground warfare and specialized unit capabilities.
Special rules model key historical facets of the campaign include: movement classes of units, artillery, air power, air missions, strategic movement, infiltration movement, disruption, contested hexes, unit formations, attack coordination, lead unit losses, efficiency and lead units, HQ units and capabilities, initiative and activation, hasty and deliberate activations, momentum, supply, fortifications, withdrawals, Japanese emergency supply, Campaign supply, general attrition, forage, naval operations, amphibious invasion, special situations and events, special units, Philippine Scouts, and more! Five scenarios are included. The three quick-playing opening scenarios require fewer rules to play. You can complete them in a single sitting, focusing on the core game system, and they include At the Pearly Gates: Layac (intro scenario), Abucay Line, and Mauban Line. These scenarios provide a clear and accessible entry point for players new to the system, allowing them to learn the core mechanics before tackling the full complexity of the campaign game. The two full campaign game scenarios add detail by introducing campaign supply, naval operations, amphibious invasions, special situations, and events. While intended for two players, the game is also suitable for solitaire play.
5. When Titans Clashed: The Eastern Front in WW2 from Consim Games/GMT Games
And the 2nd game offered on pre-order this past month in this new Consim Games/GMT Games partnership is called When Titans Clashed: The Eastern Front in WW2 designed by Michael Resch. This is a new game design but pays homage to the original Jedko Games edition of the classic The Russian Campaign designed by John Edwards. I know that we all very much enjoy a good romp on the Eastern Front of World War II and the tank clashes and and I am sure that this game will be a fantastic representation of the genre and give us hours and hours of hex and counter goodness.
From the game page, we read the following:
When Titans Clashed is a game covering the epic campaign fought in Eastern Europe during World War II. Game designer Michael Resch offers this tribute to the original 1974 Jedko Games edition of The Russian Campaign by John Edwards. This new design seeks to balance the classic game’s attractive aspects while introducing modern design concepts unheard of at that time. The map and counters use a vintage style to honor the 1974 Jedko edition, but beyond this, the designer presents a new, modernized design approach to the classic game.
Gameplay is fast-paced and intense for both sides, as the initiative can shift through significant maneuvers and battle outcomes. For both sides, each turn features a double-impulse sequence that rewards the player who, in a disciplined fashion, plans for the possibilities the double-impulse sequence can create. Such planning may enable battlefield gains to be solidified or, conversely, allow recovery from disaster along an expansive front. Players must also plan for reinforcements, replacements, and upgrades, as well as various strategic considerations and political events that will influence the campaign.
While the game system itself is relatively low in complexity, special rules help capture the campaign’s historical narrative. Political events include the Warsaw Uprising and the Romanian coup d’état. Special rules include Axis Ally Limitations, German Heavy Panzers, Air Power, Stalin, Fortified Areas, Coastal Army, Sea Invasion, Soviet artillery, partisans, workers, oilfields, and more! The game, while designed for two players, plays very well solitaire, and one can finish the full campaign in a single sitting.
6. Combat Commander Battle Pack Nr. 1: Paratroopers 4th Printing from GMT Games
I have played a ton of Combat Commander over the years, including from Combat Commander: Europe, Combat Commander: Mediterranean and Combat Commander: Pacific as well as several of the Battle Packs and absolutely love the narrative that the game creates. I love the cards and how they are used for combat, there are no dice in CC, activations and events. The system is just full of chaos and fun. This month they have announced the 4th Printings of a few of the classic Battle Packs including Battle Pack Nr. 1: Paratroopers, which allows players access to elite American/Russian/German troops with some nifty abilities that can really turn the tide of battle and boost the capabilities of your soldiers.
From the game page, we read the following:
Combat Commander: Battle Pack Nr. 1 – Paratroopers is the first of many themed scenario packs for use with the Combat CommanderSeries of games. The theme of this first Pack is focused on the exploits of American, German and even Russian Airborne forces. CC-Paratroopers features eleven new scenarios printed on cardstock, as well as four new maps.
The scenarios included in CC-Paratroopers are:
“Fields of Fire” and “Fields of Blood” set at Lanzerath, Germany, 16 December 1944 – both morning and afternoon attacks (using a new map #25)
“Turnbull Turns ’em” at Neuville-au-Plain, France, 6 June 1944 (using a new map #26)
“Carentan Causeway” at Carentan, France, 10 June 1944 (using a new map #27)
“No Ingouf Around” at Carentan, France, 11 June 1944 (using a new map #28)
“Operation Repulse” at Bastogne, Belgium, 27 December 1944
“Red Skies at Night” at Veliki Bukrin Bridgehead, Russia, 25 September 1943
“Blizzard Baptism” at Flamierge, Belgium, 4 January 1945
“Look Mom, No Tanks!” near Trois Ponts, Belgium, 24 December 1944
“We Go!” at St. Mere Eglise, France, 6 June 1944″Encircled at Hill 30″ at Caponnet, France, 8 June 1944
CC Battle Packs are NOT stand-alone games and will require ownership of one or more Combat Commander boxed games in order to be played. CC-Paratroopers requires ownership of Combat Commander: Europe or the Combat Commander: Europe/Med 20th Anniversary Edition.
Overall, this is a great expansion for the base game and all true Combat Commander fans should include this in their collection. The only concern or complaint that I had about the Battle Pack was that the American Forces colors on the scenario cards are almost all different. Some appear as Lime Green, others are Olive Drab and more yet are Forest Green! I don’t know if this is simply my copy’s problem or the entire run during the printing. Not a major issue and it definitely doesn’t change my opinion about this expansion. The scenarios are printed on thick card stock and are very durable and as usual the Situation Reports are some of my favorite parts as they set the tone for the scenario by giving historical analysis of the happenings. Great stuff that you simply must own!
7. Combat Commander Battle Pack Nr. 2: Stalingrad 4th Printing from GMT Games
They also have announced the 4th Printing of Battle Pack Nr. 2: Stalingrad and I know that this one has been out of print for a while now. I own a copy but have yet to get any of the scenarios played at this point.
From the game page, w read the following:
Combat Commander: Battle Pack Nr. 2 Stalingrad is the second themed collection of scenarios for use with the Combat CommanderSeries of games. The theme of this second Battle Pack shifts to the East Front in late 1942 as German and Soviet forces clash in and around the vaunted city of Stalingrad. CC–Stalingrad features eleven new scenarios printed on cardstock — one of which is a new style of multi-scenario Campaign Game — as well as eight new maps and dozens of new counters.
Numerous additional rules relevant to the dense urban fighting characteristic of the struggle for Stalingrad are also included:
Factories
Urban Snipers
Ongoing Melee
Rubble, Debris & Craters
Underground Sewer Movement
and the “Ampulomet” Molotov Launcher
The scenarios included in CC–Stalingrad are:
“Spartakovka Salient” set at Spartakovka, 23 August 1942
“Sea Devils” set at the Grain Elevator, 18 September 1942
“Dom 31”, behind the Barrikady, 27 October 1942
“Not One Step Back!” set at Dolgyi Gully, 1 October 1942
“Fortresses of Blood and Iron” set near the Volga River, 1 October 1942
“Into the Breach” set at the Barrikady’s Great Assembly Hall, 17 October 1942
“The Commissar’s House” as fought on 13 November 1942
“Shootout at Obliskaya” seeing the Rumanians fighting for Obliskaya Airfield, 1 December 1942
“Lyudnikov’s Island” near the Fuel Tank Area, 22 December 1942
“Stalingrad of the North” set at Veliki Luki, 14 January 1943
The “Stand and Die” multi-scenario Campaign Game recreating the battle for Mamayev Kurgan, late September 1942
NOTE: CC–Stalingrad is not a complete game and requires ownership of both Combat Commander: Europe and Combat Commander: Mediterranean OR the Combat Commander Europe/Med 20th Anniversary Edition to play.
Designed by John Foley and Chad Jensen with additional scenario designs in this second Pack courtesy of Mark Kalina, Bryan Collars, Kai Jensen, and Will Green.
8. Battle Line: Medieval-Themed Edition 2nd Printing from GMT Games
Following on in this reprint trend this month, Battle Line: Medieval is getting a 2nd Printing. This is one of those famous classic wargames designed by Reiner Knizia that is very well thought of but that is a smaller, card based game that is portable and very approachable.
From the game page, we read the following:
Now in its 12th GMT printing, designer Reiner Knizia’s Battle Line is our #2 all-time best-selling game! This new re-themed version of Battle Line is a two-player strategy card game built around the theme of Medieval warfare. This Medieval-themed version of Battle Line features 60 beautiful new cards by illustrator Roland MacDonald, as well as 10 full-color tactics “wildcards” that give players extra flexibility and choices and help make each new battle wildly different from the last.
Battle Line: Medieval takes about 30 minutes to play. To win, you must create powerful formations along your side of the line of battle that are superior to those of your enemy. Victory goes to the player who wins 5 of the 9 battle flags (an envelopment) or three adjacent flags (a breakthrough). Based on Reiner Knizia’s original design published in Germany as Shotten-Totten,Battle Line: Medieval enhances and expands that game system to give players even more tactical options and gut-wrenching decisions.
Battle Line: Medieval is a beautiful game that will delight competitive strategy game players and also serve as an great introductory game for new or young gamers.
9. Spearhead: Hell on Wheels – Tank Battles in Normandy from Matt White Currently on Kickstarter
Over the past several years, we have done interviews with Matt White, publicized his games and played a few of them as well and he always has something cooking. Recently, I came across his newest offering on Kickstarter called Spearhead: Hell on Wheels – Tank Battles in Normandy. This game is a solitaire or 2-player print and play tactical game that allows players to take command of US tanks in German occupied France.
From the game page, we read the following:
Welcome to Spearhead: Hell on Wheels – Tank Battles in Normandy” a brand new solitaire and co-op World War II print and play tactical wargame. In this game you are in command of a group of 3 US tanks in brutal and intense tank combat in enemy-occupied territory.
You must lead your tanks, through unforgiving terrain, finding and then engaging the enemy in fierce fire fights. You must defeat any encountered enemy tanks and forces, whilst meeting the objectives as you cross the map.
Keeping your tank crews alive and positioning your tanks whilst dealing with unexpected enemy positions is key to survival and success. This game is point-to-point based where you must place your tank orientation and can aim the turret separately. Being able to keep the front of the hull forward towards the enemy tanks whilst hopefully being able to fire on their flank is critical.
This is a standalone game in my series of WW2 print and play games. All of the digital PDF files are included (you simply print it out, provide yourself with a couple of regular six sided dice and a pencil).
The game is quick to setup and play, with a scenario taking around a hour to play and requires very little space.
As of July 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has funded and raised $2,485 toward its modest $171 funding goal with 88 backers. The campaign will conclude on Thursday, July 9th at 3:22pm EDT.
10. ’65: Squad Level Combat in the Jungles of Vietnam Strategy Guide from Flying Pig Games Currently on Kickstarter
Several years ago, Alexander and I played ’65 when it was originally released on Kickstarter. For a look at all the various bits and pieces in the box we made an unboxing video that shows all of the KS stretch goals as well that can be picked up, of which there were many! I’m always impressed by Mark Walker’s games because he packs so much in the box, and your hard earned cash can take you really far. The rules themselves are pretty light for a squad level tactical game, especially a Vietnam game with all of the potential complexities from that war. That made ’65 quite accessible and I’d recommend it for those looking to enter the tactical side of the hobby, as well as those who are looking for a game that is high on the fun side, and low on the dreary sense of impending doom when you lose side.
Recently, Flying Pig Games announced a new Strategy Guide Kickstarter campaign for the game and it looks like this is a very comprehensive booklet on the game and how to play it well.
From the game page, we read the following:
The ’65 Strategy Guide, launching on Kickstarter by Flying Pig Games, is a tactical handbook for the ’65: Squad Battles in the Jungles of Vietnam wargame. It features in-depth analyses of game mechanics, unit profiles, and faction-specific strategies, along with a detailed table of contents.
As of July 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has funded and raised $10,287 toward its $1,500 funding goal with 172 backers. The campaign will conclude on Thursday, July 9th at 12:00pm EDT.
11. Assault Red Horizon ’41 – Revised Edition from Assault Games / Sound of Drums Currently on Gamefound
A few years ago, I came across a new designer named Wolfgang Klein (no relation to Alexander Klein) and his new company Assault Games. They create fantastic tactical level wargames and we have played several of them and also got a chance to meet both Wolfgang and his friend and partner Erich Rankl last fall while attending Spiel Essen in Germany.
They have been working on a new edition of their first game called Assault – Red Horizon ’41: Revised Edition and they are ready now to take it to Gamefound.
From the game page, we read the following:
Assault – Red Horizon 41: Revised Edition marks the relaunch of the acclaimed tactical war game that immerses players in the dramatic early stages of Operation Barbarossa (June–October 1941). A clash of titans – the German Wehrmacht and the Soviet Red Army locked in a desperate struggle with infantry, artillery, and armored forces.
This new edition refines the system and significantly expands the experience, combining historical depth with playability, streamlined rules, and enhanced components.
The Revised Edition has optimised rules v2.5: Comprehensive revisions ensure smoother play, faster resolution, and greater clarity. The core mechanics remain familiar but have been refined for balance and accessibility. Find a draft version and changelog on our website here.
As well as expanded Game Material: New elements such as fortifications, obstacles, and minefields provide fresh tactical challenges. Tactical air support and off-board artillery support are now fully integrated into the ruleset, adding depth and variety to battlefield engagements.
Completely Redesigned Artwork: All visual elements have been thoroughly overhauled, delivering a sharper, more immersive presentation on both counters and maps. Additional we developed and upgraded the map boards with important symbols to aid the players during their actions.
As of July 1st, the Gamefound campaign has funded and raised €46,856 ($53,357 in US Dollars) toward its €15,000 ($17,119 in US Dollars) with 390 backers. The campaign will conclude on Monday, July 6th at 6:00pm EDT.
12. Imperial Elegy: The Imperial World at War 1850-1920Revised First Edition from VUCA Simulations
VUCA Simulations is a new company on the scene the last few years and they are coming out with some really great looking games. We have played several of their games and always have a great time with them. One of their newest offerings is called Imperial Elegy: The Imperial World at War 1850-1920 designed by Mike Lorino and they are doing a reprint of sorts and are calling it a Revised First Edition. This is a fantastic game that we have played twice now and looks at the time period covering 1850-1920 and the start of the Great War.
From the game page, we read the following:
Steam and steel redraw the map as telegrams outpace cavalry and dreadnoughts cast long shadows on distant straits. Imperial Elegy lets you steer a great power through seven decades of brinkmanship—industrial booms, colonial crises, and alliances that never sit still. Each turn spans a decade; the Great War may erupt…or be averted—depending on how you play your hand.
Your engine of statecraft is a hand of Action Cards. Spend them as command points to recruit, industrialize, move fleets and armies, influence minors, set war aims and build reach—or unleash their events to bend history at exactly the right moment. Control the pace by dominating flashpoints—the Low Countries, the Balkans, and global Power Projection—to draw more cards and roll your industry forward. At sea, ports and bases across linked naval boxes determine how far your influence can travel; chokepoints like the Suez Canal and the Dardanelles can open or close entire theaters.
Alliances breathe. Political shifts and crisis checks can flip blocs, sometimes twice in a single step. If the guns do speak, the game changes cadence: fixed wartime budgets, trenches, reserves and naval interceptions make every decision tighter—and every loss sting—until winter closes the campaign.
Victory wears many faces. If peace holds to the end, reveal National Goals and tally your triumphs. If the Great War crowns a side, alliance victory (with room for a canny neutral to slip through) decides the outcome. On rare occasions, sheer territorial conquest ends it early.
13. The Far Seas: German Cruiser Operations at the Onset of WWI from VUCA Simulations
Another new pre-order game from VUCA Simulations this month is The Far Seas: German Cruiser Operations at the Onset of WWI and I am always in for a naval focused wargame. I have not played that many and frankly not that many of the ones that I have played are that good but this one does look intriguing. I have also always been interested in the German efforts to solidify their place around the globe navally and with the founding of colonies in Africa and the South Pacific. So this one looks to fill that niche and looks to be really very interesting.
From the game page, we read the following:
At the outbreak of World War I, eight German cruisers were scattered across the globe—isolated, outnumbered, and cut off from home. What followed was a daring campaign of commerce raiding, evasion, and naval warfare that forced the British Empire to divert vast resources in pursuit.
The Far Seas puts you in command of this asymmetric naval struggle.
Take control of the German raiders or the Allied fleets in a tense operational-level game of hidden movement, search, and decisive engagements.
German player: Plan secretly, strike where the enemy is weak, raid merchant shipping, disrupt supply lines, and attempt the long journey home.
Allied player: Coordinate a superior fleet, protect trade routes, and hunt down elusive cruisers across the world’s oceans.
Every decision matters—overextend, and you risk destruction; hesitate, and the enemy slips away.
The system is built for fast turns, high tension, and meaningful choices:
Hidden movement and intelligence gaps create constant uncertainty
Elegant search and encounter mechanics lead to dynamic engagements
Combat resolves quickly but carries lasting consequences
Modular rules allow you to scale complexity to your preference
The core experience is accessible, yet layered with strategic depth for experienced players.
Beyond the core system, the game integrates historical realities that shaped naval warfare in 1914:
Coaling constraints force long-term planning
Convoy systems create high-risk, high-reward targets
Colonial operations add strategic pressure points
Special events introduce uncertainty and narrative moments
These elements enhance realism while preserving smooth gameplay.
If you are interested in The Far Seas: German Cruiser Operations at the Onset of WWI, you can pre-order a copy for $89.99 from the VUCA Simulations website at the following link: https://vucasimulations.com/products/the-far-seas
14. In Fours to Heaven: The Invasion of Poland 1939 from VUCA Simulations
Last year, while trolling the intervebs, I came upon the In Development section of the VUCA Simulations website and saw a very interesting looking operational level wargame on the German invasion of Poland in 1939 to kickoff World War II called In Fours to Heaven. The subject caught my eye, the title caught my eye and the cover caught my eye and I am very much interested in this one. I know that this campaign is seen as very one sided and that the outcome was predetermined as there was really no way for the Polish army to stand against the might of the German war machine but this one takes a look at the situation and makes it a gameable effort.
From the game page, we read the following:
In Fours to Heaven places you at the operational command level of the German invasion of Poland in 1939—a campaign often considered decided, yet far more complex, chaotic, and uncertain than history suggests.
Will you execute a lightning campaign—or struggle against friction, supply, and coordination breakdowns? Will you delay the inevitable—or collapse under pressure?
This is not a scripted retelling. It is a dynamic operational simulation of the Polish Campaign—driven by uncertainty, command limitations, and morale.
The German player must achieve rapid operational success before time, logistics, and resistance slow the advance.
The Polish player fights a desperate but intelligent campaign of delay, coordination, and survival—where morale becomes a decisive factor.
If you are interested in In Fours to Heaven: The Invasion of Poland 1939, you can pre-order a copy for $214.99 from the VUCA Simulations website at the following link: https://vucasimulations.com/products/in-fours-to-heaven
15. Sovereign: Shōgun from PHALANX Currently on Gamefound
Big, beautifully produced wargames is what PHALANX specializes in and they have a new offering on Gamefound called Sovereign: Shōgun that fits that bill.
From the game page, we read the following:
Sovereign: Shōgun is a competitive strategy game set in feudal Japan, where rival daimyos struggle for political dominance, military strength, and imperial legitimacy. Each player leads an asymmetric clan with unique advantages, competing to shape the future of the realm while a young heir sits at the center of shifting power.
On their turn, players select a single action using a River-style action track. Actions grow stronger the longer they remain unchosen, creating constant tension between acting early at lower strength or waiting for greater impact while risking that another player claims the opportunity first.
Core actions include Harvest to generate income from developed lands, Move to reposition armies, Develop to expand infrastructure and territories, Mastery to recruit and strengthen military forces, and Diplomacy to gain favor with temples and increase influence. Timing, positioning, and reading opponents are just as important as raw military strength.
The game ends when a player reaches the required threshold on either the Points or Glory track, or when a Harvest-related condition triggers the endgame. Victory belongs to the clan that best balances economic growth, military power, and political influence.
As of July 1st, the Gamefound campaign has funded and raised €222,770 ($253,662 in US Dollars) towards its €30,000 ($32,241 in US Dollars) funding goal with 930 backers. The campaign will conclude on Thursday, July 16th at 3:30pm EDT.
16. Russia ’41/Germany ’45 + Battle of the Bulge 1944Reprint from Worthington Publishing Currently on Kickstarter
From the game page, we read the following:
3 Hex and Counter wargames of 3 Classic Campaigns of World War II brought to life by designer Dan Fournie.
The 3 Games:
All 3 games in this series uses the same game play with modifications made on the campaigns. Each game has it’s own dynamic scenarios, and special rules modifications based on the historical situation.
All games may be played by 2 players but are very solitaire friendly by the player playing both sides to the best of their ability (there are varying resource points per turn making knowing what your opponent will receive difficult).
Further, Germany ’45 has 2, 3, and 4 player scenarios including the Western Allies attacking Russia to prevent communist domination of Europe!!!
Each side gets a set number of resource points to move and have combat, each move or combat costing a resource point. But you can do these in any order, so attack with an adjacent unit, create a hole, and then race through with another unit, which can then attack! Then move the initial unit that attacked to create the hole…the decisions are yours!
Breakthroughs will occur, having the right units in position to expoit your opportunities is critical.
Russia ’41
The game of the East Front from 1941 to 1945. As the German player you must push rapidly east trying to capture the key cities of Leningrad, Moscow and Stalingrad, not only fighting the Russian army but the winter as well. And as the Russian player you must withstand the German sledgehammer attacks as you trade ground for time, marshalling your forces for the counterattack that will drive the enemy backwards. 4 Scenarios starting and ending at different times of the conflict, plus a campaign from 1941 to 1945 all playable in 1 to 3 hours. Russia ended up winning but history did not have to end like this, can you do better?
Germany ’45
The game of the drive through Germany by the Western Allies and Russia in 1945. The game has scenarios for single front action (Germans vs Russians / Germans vs Western Allies) East and West Front Action, could the Western Allies have beaten Russia to Berlin? With 4 scenarios including a hypothetical scenario confrontation between the Western Allies against Russia as Churchill persuades Truman to prevent communist domination of Europe!
Designed by Dan Fournie this fast playing Bulge game will give you hours of game play. With fewer than 50 counters per side, and 8 pages of rules, you’ll be up and playing in 15 minutes, and finishing games in 2 hours or less.
As of July 1st, the Gamefound campaign has funded and raised $16,913 towards its $1,945 funding goal with 118 backers. The campaign will conclude on Saturday, July 11th at 4:00pm EDT.
17. Warriors of America from Compass Games Currently on Kickstarter
You had me at American Revolution and Adam Starkweather! I absolutely and supremely am interested in this offering, although I am not a fan of the title. Just doesn’t’ seem to fit with the history but that is a horse of a different color! It is actually named that as it uses a similar system to Warriors of God. Warriors of America is a new low complexity American Revolution hex and counter wargame. Not much information was shared but I do enjoy Adam Starkweather’s designs (favorite is Saipan – The Bloody Rock) and look forward to this one for sure!
From the game page, we read the following:
Warriors of America is a fast-playing game on the American War of Independence, inspired by the well-received game Warriors of God. It features the leaders, soldiers, fleets, and events that were pivotal in this war. The map is focused on the colonized coastal regions while reaching west to Indiana and north into Canada. Major events will shape each season and both sides will call on their allies; the French, Spanish, and Dutch rallying to the Americans, and Hessian mercenaries coming to the aid of the British. The American player must raise money and an army that, while less trained, is highly motivated to prevent the British player – commanding perhaps the greatest army in the world – from putting out a revolutionary fire that is about to change history.
As of July 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has funded and raised $4,457 towards its $2,500 funding goal with 46 backers. The campaign will conclude on Sunday, July 12th at 9:48am EDT.
18. Politik from Black Yeti Games Currently on Gamefound
I love a good geo-political game that focuses on nation building, conquest and economic growth and development. If that game is also a card based game more the better. And this month, I found a new game being offered on Gamefound called Politik from Black Yeti Games. Black Yeti is a new company and this is their first game so just be aware of that but what they are showing on the Gamefound page and on Boardgame Geek looks both interesting and encouraging. I am definitely interested in this one and am going to take the leap and back the game.
From the game page, we read the following:
Politik is a dynamic strategy game of military, political, and corporate control for 2–6 players. Representing any of 12 nations, players develop distinct identities during their struggle for global supremacy. They seize territories, orchestrate propaganda campaigns, and pilot companies to conquer markets. 500+ unique cards provide the landscapes, propaganda, companies, assets, and events for each nation to forge its path to power.
Following the Great Collapse, the world is fragmented but finding its way after decades of Imperial disinformation. Ascending from those ashes, pirate signals entangle the airwaves. Deserted broadcast stations spark back to life, trumpeting new anthems. With right and wrong blurred, a disoriented world yearns for truth. And one nation will decide it.
From the Gamefound page, we can see that the game is a tableau builder that uses multi-use cards that is focused on area control and action selection. If a game has all 4 of these things it definitely has my interest and I believe will appeal to wargamers.
As of July 1st, the Kickstarter campaign has raised $113,402 towards its $100,000 funding goal with 891 backers. The campaign will conclude on Wednesday, July 29th at 9:00pm EDT.
New Release
1. Rommel in Italy, 1943-1944: A Counter Factual Simulation from War Diary Publications
Recently I saw from War Diary Publications that they were printing one of Ty Bomba’s What If? style alternative history games called Rommel in Italy, 1943-1944: A Counter-Factual Simulation, which supposes Field Marshal Erwin Rommel had taken command of German forces in Northern Italy rather than being sent to help with the defense of France against the expected Allied invasion. The game is a bagged game and is very affordable.
From the game page, we read the following:
This new game from Ty Bomba supposes Field Marshal Rommel had taken command of German forces in Northern Italy rather than being sent to help with the defense of France against the expected Allied invasion.
Rommel in Italy is a fast-playing game of low-complexity, capable of being played to completion in an evening. The game includes a 23.5″ x 33″ mapsheet, 104 laser-cut counters, one Player Aid Card, and a 16-page rulebook. The game is presented in ziplock format.
2. Volume VI of the Warrior Kings Campaign Series: Alfred the Great: War of the Five Kings, 892 AD from High Flying Dice Games
Small format wargames on lesser gamed subjects are always welcome at my table. High Flying Dice Games seems to specialize in these type of games and this month have a very interesting looking game on Alfred the Great.
The game is called Volume VI of the Warrior Kings Campaign Series: Alfred the Great: War of the Five Kings, 892 AD.
From the game page, we read the following:
By 892 AD, Vikings had been in the Daneland areas of East Anglia, Mercia, and Northumbria for 27 years. These local warriors comprised a formidable army, and formed alliance with another Viking Army that pillaged Frankia and arrived on the shores of Britain in two divisions led by the legendary Hasten.
Alfred, who showed a mind that thought both strategically and tactically, not only reformed his Fyrd (local militia) but had also created the Burh system of defense in depth. The southern Welsh kingdoms, who for so long were a natural foe of the Saxons and who had battled vigorously with the Saxons of Mercia, had through strategic necessity and Alfred’s diplomatic entrees, become fi rm allies with Alfred in what could only be described as a diplomatic master class for this greatest of Saxon kings.
The Viking strength was in their professional and aggressive soldiery skills. Their weaknesses were often in the re-supply of their fighting men from overseas. However, with the local Viking Army drawn from the Daneland region of Britain this was changing the re-supply dynamic and creating new challenges for the Saxons and Welsh.
If you are interested in Volume VI of the Warrior Kings Campaign Series: Alfred the Great: War of the Five Kings, 892 AD, you can order a copy for $24.95 from the High Flying Dice Games website at the following link: https://www.hfdgames.com/5Kings.html
3. The Alamo: The Battle of the Alamo 1836 from Art of Wargames
Solitaires games are plentiful recently and another one that I found was The Alamo: The Battle of the Alamo 1836 from Art of Wargames. This one looks pretty interesting and has some really interesting mechanics to it. Plus, it is a solitaire game on one of the greatest stories of the growth of America.
From the game page, we read the following:
“Remember the Alamo!”
Dive into history and heroism with The Alamo 1836, a solitaire war game that lets you experience the last stand of the Texian Militia at the Alamo Mission. Relive the courages stand of 250 Texians led by Davy Crocket, James Bowie, and William Travis as they defend The Alamo against a professional Mexican Army numbering around three thousand soldiers.
On the morning of March 6th, 1836, the Mexican Army under General Santa Anna’s command began their final assault. Texian sharpshooters, including the legendary Davy Crockett, took their toll on the attacking force, picking off officers and disrupting formations. Hand-to-hand combat erupted as Mexican soldiers swarmed over the southern wall. The Texians, fighting for their lives and their fledgling republic, used muskets, knives, and even cannons loaded with scrap metal to repel the invaders.
The fighting was fierce and unrelenting. Though outnumbered and outgunned, the Texians fought with courage and doomed desperation. However, as the battle progressed, the tide turned. Mexican soldiers, in wave after wave, breached the Alamo’s defenses, pushing the Texians back into the interior of the compound.
The fighting devolved into a brutal close-quarters struggle, with every doorway and building a desperate battleground. By mid-morning, overwhelmed and surrounded, the last Texian defenders perished. Santa Anna, in a brutal display of power, ordered the execution of any survivors, including those who had surrendered. Can you hold onto The Alamo?
If you are interested in The Alamo: The Battle of the Alamo 1836, you can order a copy for $35.00 from the Blue Panther website at the following link: https://www.bluepantherllc.com/products/the-alamo
4. Rebel Tide: Rebel Tide: The U.S. Civil War, 1861-1865 from Compass Games
There is no secret that we really enjoy Gregory M. Smith designs and we also count him as a close friend so take that for what it is worth. He is a great designer and has put together some of our favorite narrative-driven solitaire wargames, such as Silent Victory, The Hunters and The Hunted, but also has done some great 2-player strategic level wargames on various historical periods such as Imperial Tide, covering WWI, and Pacific Tide, taking on the Pacific Theater of WWII. His new game in the Tide Series deals with the American Civil War and is called Rebel Tide.
From the game page, we read the following:
Rebel Tide: The U.S. Civil War, 1861-1865 is a two-player strategic level game that places you in command of either the USA (Union) or CSA (Confederacy) during the Civil War. Each turn consists of a year, during which multiple card plays occur. These give the players movement, combats, entrenchments, and other actions. At the end of each year, players must make critical decisions on which cards to re-buy in an attempt to win the war outright or to win by placing the other side in a disadvantageous position by 1865. Rebel Tide is based on the popular, action-packed Imperial Tide/Pacific Tidegame system by Gregory M. Smith, with many combat and strategic decisions to challenge players in just a single evening’s game.
The core of the game is the unique card re-buy system, in which players take their annual production (adjusted for blockades and blockade runners) and decide which cards they need for the upcoming year. Cards not only provide for reinforcements, but allow for movement, combat, and entrenchment. Which cards to rebuy is without question one of the key decisions the player must make to prepare for next year’s operations.
The game has infantry units for all of the major participants, cavalry, and artillery units. Naval operations are mainly abstracted, although the Confederate player must worry about Farragut invading a port from the sea. Besides the focus on card play, the game features a small footprint (one standard map) and also is designed to be played in just a single evening – estimated at 3 hours for experienced players to fight the entire war.
But don’t worry because the game is not just a reskin of the same system used in those other two games, although the system is really interesting, but instead attempts to create new mechanics and elements to tell the proper story of the struggle for the soul of the country in the 1860’s.
One new mechanic in Rebel Tide is the Political Track, which is an abstract measure of the support of England and/or France to the Confederacy. If this track reaches the maximum early in the war, it can trigger an early CSA victory.
Another new key mechanic in the game system is the addition of historical Leaders, who range in ability from excellent (5) to poor (2). Bad leaders may be “sacked” and removed from the game and randomly replaced by the expenditure of a movement action. Leaders are vital in advancing after combat and also can add strength to an attack’s total combat power.
While attending WBC a few summers ago, we had a chance to sit down with Gregory M. Smith to cover a few of his upcoming designs and Rebel Tide was included in that discussion. Here is a look at our video interview with Greg:
5. Warfighter War: The WWII Europe Strategic Combat Card Game from Dan Verssen Games
The Warfighter system from Dan Verssen Games is a card based game designed for 1 to 6 players. You can play solo or cooperatively against the AI to complete World War II squad-level combat missions set in the North Africa and Mediterranean Theatre of Operations. One of my favorite parts of the game is at the start of each mission, you will select one or more Player Soldiers, equip them with skills, weapons, and combat gear within the mission’s Resource limit. You then fight your way through hostile territory and engage enemy soldiers, as you attempt to reach and complete your mission objective. Every mission is a stand-alone game. You build your Soldiers, select your Gear, and then run your mission. Within 30 to 60 minutes you will have succeeded or failed. We simply love the system and prefer the WWII focused modules (we really hated Fantasy!) and are very excited to see this offering as I think that it will offer a new and expanded view of the history. Their newest expansion into the system takes it into the Strategic Warfare realm where you are looking at entire campaigns and the war as a whole in Warfighter War.
From the game page, we read the following:
Warfighter War takes the solitaire (also plays great in cooperative mode with one or more other players) Warfighter tactical design to the strategic level. In Warfighter tactical, a unit card is an individual soldier. In Warfighter War, a unit card is a brigade, regiment, battalion, or company. In tactical, each location is roughly 50 to 400 yards. In War, each location is roughly 10 to 50 miles.
In the tactical game, you fought way through streets, buildings, and other tactical locations. In War, you’ll command your forces as they capture cities, forests, and other strategic objectives.
The general rule framework of War is based on the Warfighter Tactical System that has been in print, and refined, over the past decade. If you know how to play Warfighter, you’ll be able to jump right in to War.
So, what makes War different? What does War do that is beyond the scope of tactical?
War adds Supplies to both your friendly units, as well as to the Hostile units. Supplies play a key role in the success of your mission. You must expend supplies from units to gain the special abilities noted on their cards. In some cases you must expend supplies for a unit to perform specified actions. For example, armor units must expend supplies to move, and artillery units must expend supplies to attack.
War also streamlines the rules used for both friendly and hostile forces. Both sides now use the same move and attack combat actions. This means that if a hostile force starts within range of a friendly unit, it will be able to attack twice.
War has two types of friendly units: Player Armies and Support Armies. Player Armies are similar to Player Soldiers in that they hold a hand of Action cards. Support Armies are similar to Squad Soldiers, and they do not hold Action cards.
In War, both friendly and hostile forces have their attack charts built into their cards, there is no need to equip weapons.
Instead of equipping weapons and other gear, your forces will instead attach support forces, such as infantry, artillery, armor, or engineering units to aid them in their mission.
War uses a much more interactive Sequence of Play. In tactical, all friendly soldiers act, and then all hostile soldiers act. In War, one friendly unit acts, then one hostile unit acts, and so on. This gives a better feel of two large forces maneuvering and engaging in combat.
War Missions also offer more flexibility. You can now run Missions with a large force attempting to overcome an Objective that is only a few Location cards deep, as well as a small force going against an Objective deep in enemy territory.
In addition, we streamlined the rules be removing Hand-to-Hand combat, since War takes place on a strategic level.
War also adds the important role of engineers to the game. Some locations and hostile units present engineering challenges. If your engineering units are able to overcome these obstacles, you will gain advantages, or not suffer penalties.
Hostile forces are made up of a wide variety of unit types, including infantry, armor, mechanized, artillery, scout, engineering, and more
While the core aspects of War are same as traditional tactical Warfighter, War adds many new elements that make for an entirely different experience!
The core provides all the materials you need to play the game. The core game includes US friendly forces, German hostile forces, and the Missions, Locations, and Objectives for resolving battles following the D-Day landings in June of 1944.
The campaign also offers 7 total expansion packs that can be purchased that typically include 56 cards including Player Armies, Hostile Armies and an assortment of Location, Attachment, Skill, and other cards.
I think that every single wargamer knows the name Volko Ruhnke. He has designed several great series including the COIN Series, that has now stretched to a full 15 volumes (not all designed by Volko), and then more recently the Levy & Campaign Series. He can make a good game for sure! One of our first experiences in wargaming and the first Volko design we played was Wilderness War. He is now at it again with a new design that uses hide and seek elements to tell the story of the Allied intelligence teams versus the Japanese in the Pacific during WWII. The game is called Coast Watchers: Allied Field Intelligence in the South Pacific, 1942-1943 and looks to be very interesting.
From the game page, we read the following:
Coast Watchers takes you into this struggle between Allied intelligence teams and Japanese hunters. Standup blocks hide coastwatching stations, guerrillas, refugees, and stranded Allied crew. The gameboard recesses hold the blocks snug. Facedown counters hide the buildup of Japanese forces, which the coastwatchers seek to observe and report to headquarters. Other counters show where Japanese patrols are searching for coastwatchers or go into and get drawn from a cup to run Japanese searches and Allied delivery missions.
Hidden information using blocks. I like this. Facedown counters that hide the number of Japanese units amassing. This is even better. Hidden information is a very good mechanic but it is difficult to make it good and I have every confidence that Volko will do just that.
Each side has Mission cards. Allied Missions assign side tasks to the coastwatchers. Japanese Missions lay out secret military objectives for victory points, including air and sea operations against which the coastwatchers are to warn Allied forces. By hunting coastwatchers while building up military readiness and guiding operations, the Japanese player seeks to slip through the enemy intelligence net. Players also draw Asset cards: special abilities to augment actions and perhaps add victory points.
The game will contain 15 standalone “Situations” or scenarios plus 4 campaigns to link all of these situations together. The Situations cover the early-1942 Japanese incursion into the South Pacific to the ultimate neutralization of their base at Rabaul by the end of 1943. This one just sounds very interesting and I look forward to doing some more research.
If you are interested in Coast Watchers, you an order a copy for $102.00 ($65.00 if you get your order in quickly before they start shipping at the beginning of July) from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1102-coast-watchers.aspx
7. North Africa ’40: The 1940 Expansion to North Africa ’41 from GMT Games
I love a good North Africa wargame! To me, the reasons that I love it are several but the focus on supply and how difficult it was in this theater as well as the various elements of infrastructure used to perform that supply, such as shipping, ports, trucks, etc. are always good fun. I also love the scope and scale of the North African Theater. The front covered an area over 2,000 or so miles stretching from Morocco on the western coast of the Atlantic, through Algeria, Libya and onto Egypt. Names such as Tunis, Kasserine Pass, Tripoli, Benghazi, Tobruk, El Alamein, Malta (I realize not a part of Africa but an important cog in this theater) and Alexandria. There is something about this theater and the games we have played that we have absolutely loved.
Also, when you pair this interesting theater with a great system in the ’40X Series and a great designer in Mark Simonitch, you have a recipe for a really tasty treat!
Now comes an expansion to North Africa ’41 called North Africa ’40.
From the game page, we read the following:
The legend continues with North Africa ’40, the prequel expansion to North Africa ’41. This expansion covers September 1940 to December 1941. Scenarios cover both Operazione E (the Italian invasion of Egypt; 12 turns) and the Allied counter-offensive, Operation Compass (6 turns). Both scenarios can be extended through December 1941 for an Operazione E full campaign (32 turns) or an Operation Compass full campaign (26 turns).
Can you as the Allied commander bag the Italian 10th Army? Will you be ready for theater whiplash, the Middle East Command operational shift to Greece in February 1941? Will you be prepared for the entry of Rommel and the German panzers?
And the game is not just taking advantage of a very good system that has been well received. There is plenty that is new to the system to make the situation come to life. New rules cover all the significant aspects of the 1940 campaign in North Africa including General O’Connor, Italian Camps, Civilian Evacuees/Stragglers, Tank Reliability, Italian Saharan Forces, Libyan Tank Command, Sollum Port and Post-Operation Compass Refit.
We recently played and loved North Africa ’41 and you can check out our video review at the following link:
If you are interested in North Africa ’40: The 1940 Expansion to North Africa ’41, you can order a copy for $49.00 ($29.00 if you get your order in quickly before they start shipping in early July) from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1106-north-africa-40.aspx
Be aware that North Africa ’40 is not a complete game and ownership of North Africa ’41 is required to play.
8. No Turning Back: The Battle of the Wilderness, 5-6 May, 1864 from Multi-Man Publishing
American Civil War is an up and coming gaming experience with us as Alexander has really been bitten by the bug because he has been reading various books on the subject (Shelby Foote’s The Civil War: A NarrativeSeries). I have always had interest in the conflict but just have not played all that many games in the setting. With this new offering called No Turning Back: The Battle of the Wilderness, 5-6 May, 1864 we are definitely more interested now than ever and very much looking forward to this!
From the game page, we read the following:
No Turning Back is the next game in The Gamers’ Line of Battle (LoB) Series covering the first epic confrontation between Grant and Lee, the Battle of the Wilderness in May 1864. The battle is a very misunderstood battle with the general narrative that both armies were stumbling to find each other in the thick woods. Units get lost and confusion reigns. While the precepts of this confused melee are generally true, there is much more to this battle that No Turning Back will showcase based on extensive design and research. There was maneuver at the operational level as both commanders prodded their forces forward to hit an open flank. Grant was seeking a general offensive to bring to bear the entire weight of his large army. Lee was not looking for a general engagement in the Wilderness, but had no choice when the shooting started and deftly engaged his outnumbered army. What is not often known is that both sides had multiple chances of obtaining victory only to be undone by the tide of fortune at the last minute. Do you have the dogged determination as Grant or Lee to snatch victory in the bloody thickets?
Game specific rules to handle the terrain that dictated how the forces fought include: WIlderness terrain type, command & communication difficulties, different trail types, and guides. Unique command situations are likewise represented in the game with Grant’s chain of command with Meade’s Army of the Potomac and Burnside’s independent corps, Hancock’s pseudo-wing command, Lt. Col. Sorrel’s ad hoc division, Ewell’s stoutness then passiveness on successive days, and A.P. Hill’s inability to get his men dug in which nearly spelt disaster for him. While cavalry action was minimal, the actions of two cavalry regiments, the 1st NC and 5th NY, proved pivotal and their exploits are captured in the rules.
The map is accurately rendered from a survey conducted immediately following the war that laid out the myriad of trails that led the armies astray. The Order of Battle is presented with accurate regimental strengths with contributions from a leading Civil War scholar. No Turning Back will show the Wilderness in incredible detail at the regimental scale.
If you are in interested in No Turning Back: The Battle of the Wilderness, 5-6 May, 1864, you can order a copy for $120.00 from the Multi-Man Publishing website at the following link: https://mmpgamers.com/no-turning-back-p-420
9. Fallschirmjaeger: The Airborne Assault on Fortress Holland May 10 to 14, 1940 from Multi-Man Publishing
I am a fan of any game that deals with airborne operations as these games are always unique and interesting. One of the volumes in the Standard Combat Series that has eluded us until recently is Fallschirmjaeger: The Airborne Assault on Fortress Holland May 10 to 14, 1940 as I got a second hand copy from our friends at Noble Knight Games. But, it appears that MMP knew this and has now released the game in a new edition.
From the game page, we read the following:
Fallschirmjaeger: The Airborne Assault on Fortress Holland May 10 to 14, 1940, simulates the German May, 1940 capture of Rotterdam and The Hague (Den Haag).
In the spring of 1940, the German military machine turned west to convert the Phoney War into a real one. Fresh from his victory in Poland, Hitler planned a blow that would knock France out of the war. Key to this plan was a knife-like attack through the Ardennes to the English Channel which would split the Allied forces moving north to block the expected replay of 1914 and the Maginot Line forces immobile in the south. To add to the trap, the Germans planned the first massive airborne operation of the war. This attack would capture the hinterland of Holland, pave the way for subordinate German Armored thrusts crossing the Maas, and to continue to lure the Allies northward.
Fallschirmjaeger covers this bait. The German player plops down an airborne invasion force with the goal of fighting off all-comers until relieved by advancing ground forces. The Dutch, all but abandoned by their French and British Allies, put up a fight for the record books. The German air bridge held on by its fingernail. While the main German drive was never in doubt, these scattered paratroopers had the fight of their lives against a small nation unwilling to succumb without giving the fight everything.
In the end, the Dutch government had to be evacuated along with the Dutch Gold Reserve, to form a government in exile. They would return after liberation.
The player must do all these things, or smash the German paratroopers before they are rescued by the Panzers, to win. Any German player thinking he’ll have an easy time, must be reminded his is not Nazi Germany’s main effort and that he must make-do on a shoestring.
If you are interested in Fallschirmjaeger: The Airborne Assault on Fortress Holland May 10 to 14, 1940, you can order a copy for $52.00 from the Multi-Man Publishing website at the following link: https://mmpgamers.com/fallschirmjaeger-p-419
As usual, thanks so much for reading along and sticking with me this month as I navigated through the many websites and game pages looking for new and interesting games to share.
Finally, thanks once again to this month’s sponsor Bring it on Games!
Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948 from Legion Wargames is a COIN Series inspired, alternate history wargame with 4 totally different factions. Werwolf was a real underground guerrilla group, comprised of SS and Hitler Youth members. It was intended to lead an insurgency against the invading Allies and Soviets when it became clear that Germany was losing the war in a conventional sense in the mid-1940’s. They did in fact have a few successes and American intelligence officer Frank Manuel said that the Werwolves were prepared “to strike down the isolated soldier in his jeep, the MP on patrol, the fool who goes a-courting after dark, the Yankee braggart who takes a back road.”
I know it is now June….I am usually done with this post by mid-March but this year we had a bunch of great games that came out in November and December and we just had to get several of them to the table before we shut 2025 down. Our opportunity to do so with full tables as there were several multi-player games in that bunch, was during Buckeye Game Fest in mid-March where we played lots of great games including Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948 from Legion Wargames, Cross Bronx Expressway from GMT Games and Imperial Elegy: The Road to the Great War 1850-1920 from VUCA Simulations to name just a few. And now, with those final games getting played, comes the impossible task of distilling an entire year’s worth of gaming down to a list of the 10 games that we most enjoyed. I hate doing this. I love writing about, thinking about and sharing my experiences about the games we have played but hate having to make somewhat objective choices about which is better and which games should even be considered for the list. The first comment I would have is that not all games are the same. Not the same scale, the same play time, the same mechanically or even historically. Each game is unique and in my opinion, all games have something objectively good about them. Secondly, we didn’t get around to playing some of the new releases in 2025. I say some but we actually didn’t play a lot of the new releases and did the best that we could to play as many as possible. So we might leave off a game that you thought was very good and deserving and it probably is but we either didn’t get around to playing it or it just didn’t hit with us. But, in the end, I have to make this list and this is my best effort at doing just that!
In 2025, we played 33 unique titles from 22 different publishers. Some were operational, strategic or tactical scale and in the list this year I didn’t include any solitaire games. Some used counters. Some used cards. Some used wooden bits and some used miniatures. Some were only card games with no other components and some were cooperative. At the end of the day, in 2025 we played a lot of games! And here I present to you my list of the Top 10 Wargames of 2025!
10. China’s War: 1937-1941 from GMT Games
This is a game that I have been awaiting for a long, long time. Really since it was announced nearly 7 years ago in 2019. Yes you read that right…2019! And I am happy to report that the wait was definitely worth it as the game feels fresh and is a very worthy addition to the COIN Series. China’s War: 1937-1941 from GMT Games, which is volume 13 in the well respected and venerable COIN Series, examines the first five years of the 2nd Sino-Japanese conflict, when China stood alone against the whole of the Japanese Empire. Each player takes on the role of 1 of 4 Factions seeking to attack or defend the Republic of China including the aggressive and powerful Japanese, the harried Government represented by the Guomindang party, the rebellious Chinese Communist Party, or the unruly and fractious Warlords who are obedient when convenient but have their eye on gaining state power. Using military, political, and economic actions and exploiting various events, players will build and maneuver forces to influence or control the population, extract resources, or otherwise achieve their Faction’s goals and victory conditions. As with all COIN Series games that are Card Assisted rather than Card Driven Games, the deck of cards will regulate turn order, inject historical events into the game with major benefits or consequences, cause victory checks and other in game processes.
China’s War feels like a classic COIN Series game but in my opinion has 3 insurgent style factions against the powerful Japanese who don’t really act like the large Government factions in previous entries in the series. The focus really centers on the control of the Lines of Communication or LoC’s on the game board, which was a very refreshing approach that created some really interesting interplay and caused me to think differently about how I would go about achieving my Victory Conditions.
We find that Brian Train’s designs are just fantastic. I think that sometimes they can be a bit opaque, meaning that their true genius cannot be seen with just a few plays but will be unlocked over 4 or 5 plays as we have found with A Distant Plain, which has continually moved up on my list of favorite COIN Series games with each play that now numbers around 5. But China’s War was just special. It is totally unique as to its take on insurgency within the COIN Series, is really frenetic and active and gives the feeling of classic COIN while really turning things a bit upside down with the way the powerful faction works in the Japanese as they really only care about maintaining and cleaning off their Lines of Communication. In fact, they are so unique that they are the faction that will place Terror on the board, which is typically reserved for the insurgent factions to sway Support and Opposition.
We very much enjoyed the game and had a good time with it. We had a newer COIN Series player and they seemed to take to the game quickly and understood what it was that they were supposed to be doing. With that being said, with only the 1 play, I am sure that there are lots of things that we didn’t experience and will be able to discover those in future gaming opportunities. Suffice it to say that we can’t wait to play the game again and I am planning to bring this one along with me to the World Boardgaming Championships at the end of July.
We recently shot a First Impression/review video and you can watch that at the following link:
9. Imperial Elegy: The Road to the Great War 1850-1920 from VUCA Simulations
This spring, while attending Buckeye Game Fest in Columbus, Ohio, we were able to coordinate a 6-player game of Imperial Elegy: The Road to the Great War 1850-1920 from VUCA Simulations. Imperial Elegy is a card driven game that blends diplomacy, warfare, and statecraft and feels a bit akin to games like Here I Stand and Virgin Queen from GMT Games. Grand scale sweeping epics that play multiplayers and take a day to play. Players play as 1 of 6 unique major powers in the game including Germany/Prussia, the United Kingdom, France, Austria-Hungary, Russia and the Ottoman Empire.
Imperial Elegy is a fantastically themed game that takes place over 7 turns, with each of the turns representing approximately a decade. If the Great War breaks out due to the World Tension Track reaching a certain level, the game can be extended by an additional 6 shorter turns. A turn in the game consists of player impulses that is driven by the play of action cards for their Command Points or for the printed events. Players will use CP and events to take actions like colonize, conduct diplomacy with minor nations, fight wars, as well as hinder their opponents by playing events that take away their actions or resources. A turn will end once all players have consecutively passed or when all players run out of cards.
The game is somewhat of a sandbox style game as you have so many options and choices about what to do during the course of the game. Obviously, your faction has some direction about what you should be doing but really it is up the player to spend their resources how they will to accomplish their ultimate goals and score Victory Points. I truly love that aspect about this game and as we played we saw that sandbox and the asymmetry between the various factions. Particularly at the start, each country has some specific goals that they have drawn from the National Goals Deck that are a source of Victory Points, in fact a major source of Victory Points, and players will need to prioritize these cards and decide which ones to attempt to go after from the start. With only 7 turns, they will have to make progress on these National Goals if they have any hope of actually achieving them.
Each of the represented nations in the game have their own special player board that contains various tracks that keep various information readily available to the players. Here is a look at the German player board. I very much enjoyed that they have gone to a great deal of effort to make these player boards and also that they gave each of the nation’s Stability, which decides whether various actions like war can be taken or if there are various positive or negative modifiers, the available Manpower that will determine how many armies can be built, Industry that tells how many action pointed you will have to spend during war to maneuver units, attack and replace losses. The focus of the game is about the control of territories both in Europe as well as colonies abroad and there is an automatic victory if a certain target number is met, in the case of Germany 15.
As we played, I started to realize that the key focus of the overall world stability and things like the Domestic Stability Tracks, which are focused of both the internal and external pressures faced by the powers. I really very much liked this thematic inclusion as no one wants to start a major global conflagration and there are steps that players have to take to skirt the inevitable troubles that result in their own actions and how they are seen by the other players in the game. But in our limited play, I never really felt threatened by this concept. Either our group was super skilled at avoiding the inevitable increase in tension or due to our short play we didn’t really experience some of the events that would have tipped this over the edge. I think that we say small increases in our full turn play but nothing that seemed unmanageable and we actually had an event that lowered it so it never became an issue. The game is about spending your resources wisely, in the form of your cards and your aspects like Stability, and to use your cards to do the events that could increase tension didn’t seem to be in our best interest, at least not in the 1st decade of the game. But maybe that will come later.
8. An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834-1838 from Bellica Third Generation
Earlier this year, I was able to host Francisco Ronco at my home to play a few games together. One of the games we played was published by his company Bellica Third Generation and was called An Impossible War. An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834-1838 is a block wargame that recreates the First Carlist War in the North of Spain which was a civil war between the Carlists who supported the succession of the late king’s brother Carlos de Borbón and the progressive and centralist supporters of the regent Maria Christina acting for Isabella II of Spain who were referred to as the Liberals. The game uses blocks representing units but also includes counters and uses cards.
An Impossible War is a fantastic design that attempts to capture the historical aspects of this titanic struggle for the throne of Spain in the mid 19th century. Historically, the Carlist forces who were defenders of traditional monarchy, regional privileges, and the Catholic Church, were a minority faction fighting an overwhelmingly larger, richer liberal government. The uprising phase reflects how the Carlists compensated for this disparity by forcing the Liberal government to fight on multiple fronts and suffer from logistical nightmares across hostile terrain. The Carlist Uprising Phase, and the use of its auxiliary Rest of Spain regional map, forces some really tough dilemmas on the Liberal player. They must attempt to divide their forces between the main Game Map and the Rest of Spain Map to prevent the opposition Carlist forces from overwhelming the home territory in the north. It serves as a vital strategic balancing act for the Liberal player that cannot be ignored and must be dealt with systematically and somewhat evenly. Too much focus on the Rest of Spain Map and the situation on the Game Map will quickly snowball and they will lose control. Focus on the situation on the Game Map and the protection of Cities and Towns and the Carlist Expeditions will gain momentum and turn the countryside red. While the primary war centers on the rugged terrain of northern Spain (Navarre and the Basque Provinces), the uprising mechanic abstractly models scattered insurgencies across the rest of the country. And as you know, insurgencies can be very unpredictable and difficult to contain. You stamp out one area only to see a fire start in another. The Liberal player must divert troops and supply resources to the secondary map to quell these localized rebellions and hunt down Carlist expeditions originating from the north. And, the important thing for the Carlist player and the expansion of the uprisings and the success of their expeditions is the possible generation of generation of Prestige and Victory Points, which is really crucial to their path to victory.
I very much enjoyed the asymmetry between the Carlist and Liberal forces in the game. It made for a very interesting tactical challenge for both sides as they have to play to their strengths and not get too overly concerned with the numbers. The Carlists will be much more mobile in their defense and look to exploit every gap in a supply line to move around and stay away from the numerically superior Liberal forces, whereas the Liberal player will have to move more methodically to take outlying towns and settlements to be able to shore up their lines and create less opportunities for end arounds by the Carlists. The disparity in the forces was a very interesting choice by the designer David Gómez Relloso and I am sure is reflective of the historical reality of the First Carlist War.
I very much enjoyed An Impossible War, even though I played just a few turns of a smaller scenario with Francisco Ronco. He was a master at the game, as obviously as the publisher and a playtester he is intimately familiar with the rules and strategies, and I learned a lot from him about how the game should be played. I am looking forward to future plays as the game is just very good and has some interesting aspects that create a very tense and interesting game of maneuver and strategy. The Game Map is very well done, from an aesthetic perspective as well as functionally, and the board makes playing the game easier.
I also was able to shoot a fairly short video summary of my game play with Francisco Ronco who is the owner of Bellica Third Generation and you can watch that at the following link:
Also I have embarked on a series of written Action Point post highlighting the various aspects of the game. Those published to date are as follows:
If you are interested in An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834-1838, you can purchase a copy for 120,00 € ($139.08 in US Dollars) from the Bellica Third Generation website at the following link: https://bellica3g.com/en/product/una-guerra-imposible/
7. Blue & Gray Deluxe Edition from Decision Games
If you like classic wargames, and by that I mean simple I Go You Go Hex and Counter games from the 70’s and 80’s, then you are going to love Blue & Gray Deluxe Edition, which is a new updated version of 2 classic quadrigames from SPI covering several key battles from the American Civil War. Blue & Gray Deluxe Edition consists of the original eight games from the SPI Blue & Gray I & II Quadrigames but with massively upgraded components and counters and some better written rules. The key battles depicted are among the most important of the American Civil War and include Shiloh, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Chickamauga, Chattanooga and The Battle of the Wilderness.
The Deluxe Edition part of the title is really just a few changes including a mounted board that is really gorgeous and pretty sturdy. The counters have been slightly enlarged and there are a few additional optional rules including things like night turns, fatigue, leader casualties. There also were some optional unit counters that could be used but overall this was an artist and layout reissue of the game with some other nice additions such as period fonts and a very solid choice of colors for the maps and the counters as they really compliment each other well. But the game is really extremely playable meaning that is doesn’t take long to pick up the rules and the system is very standard fair. The game mechanics used are based on the Borodino/Napoleon at Waterloo system and frankly are very easy to grock and to get into. I did very much like the back and forth of the scenarios as the players will tend to clash over control of certain key areas that have defensible terrain and that are only approachable from a few areas. But the game does have a few concerns for me such as generally no fog of war and no difficulty in activating any and all of your stacks. But that is what the system is and it will truly appeal to those that are looking for that nostalgic feeling from their childhoods.
But it plays well, fast and is solid and any good solid wargame is good with me.
6. Fighting Formations: US 29th Infantry Division from GMT Games
One of my favorite tactical systems of all time is Combat Commander designed by the late Chad Jensen. I had yet to play his other tactical combined-arms series called Fighting Formations until the newest release came out in 2025 called Fighting Formations: US 29th Infantry Division. Fighting Formations is intended to be an ongoing series of wargames covering WWII tactical combined-arms combat at the platoon and squad levels. Each game in the series will feature a distinct combat unit, highlighting battles in which that unit participated as well as its particular order of battle and fighting characteristics. In this second volume of Fighting Formations, GMT features the US 29th Infantry Division—“Blue and Gray”—as it fought from just after D-Day in June of 1944 to the end of the year.
The core mechanics from the original Fighting Formations remain unchanged in this volume. The difference from the original game is in the way the units will fight. The different costs on the matrix place an emphasis on certain actions and assets for the 29th ID that were different than the others games way of approaching a battle. This game is far from Combat Commander though as it uses cards but they are not the engine of the game. The game also has a very interesting and unique activation system where each of the orders cost a different amount of Initiative and tuns into and impulse-type back and forth where the various Orders carry with them a certain cost in Initiative. The game has a pool of 40 Initiative that is spent to give these orders and then to activate units for those orders. At the end of every order, the player with the most Initiative is able to give the next order. In response, the opponent can also spend Initiative to conduct both Opportunity Fire or Reactive Fire which keeps the game very dynamic and fluid. Just a really great way to approach this and if you have played Downfall from GMT Games you will notice similarities with the system.
The game also tells a great narrative of the differences between the US and German troops as the 29th had access to more battlefield support than their German counterparts and the card deck is tailored to that experience as well. The US player in the new game has access to more cards and at lower initiative costs, bringing artillery and air support to the forefront in a way that we have not seen before.
We did a RAW video after our 1st play and you can watch that at the following link:
The Rock of Chickamauga is the 2nd entry in the Black Swan Series from Flying Pig Games designed by Hermann Luttmann and follows closely on the heels of A Most Fearful Sacrifice. Using the same game system, which is based on the well received Blind Sword Series, The Rock of Chickamauga covers the entire Battle of Chickamauga, fought from September 18th through the 20th, 1863 in northern Georgia. The Union Army of the Cumberland, under William Rosecrans, is driving south from Chattanooga, hoping to envelop and trap Braxton Bragg’s Confederate Army of Tennessee. But Bragg anticipates the maneuver, pulls back and then counterattacks the overextended Union forces. They meet along Chickamauga Creek, nicknamed the “River of Death”, in an epic struggle.
The Black Swan Series uses a card-draw activation system that functions similarly to a traditional chit-pull system. This system is a core mechanic for introducing uncertainty, friction, and the fog of war into the gameplay. The cards themselves contain specific game information and orders, which streamlines play and reduces the need to look up rules or charts, saving time compared to traditional chit-pull systems.
I also very much liked how the confusion and true fog of war that existed at the battlefield was included in the game play. Not only do to the commanders’ lack precise information about their opponent but also the physical nature of the battlefield. Both sides basically went into battle stumbling and bumbling through the woods, searching out what they thought was the enemy’s flank and actually being way off in their assumptions. The woods themselves were so uniquely characteristic in that they were mostly thickly grouped with little undergrowth (being cleared by the local farmers and millers), but still displaying significant canopies. This canopy functioned like a tropical jungle “roof” and trapped smoke and dust within it. To add to that, there had been little rain in the area and the trails, lanes, and roads were exceedingly dry and produced clouds of dust. My main concern therefore was replicating all that confusion and ignorance of the location of opposing forces and thankfully, that’s what the entire Blind Swords/Black Swan System is modeled to reflect. Therefore, I just doubled-down on the inherent “chaos” elements of the core system and made those factors even more prevalent.
I also love how the system models the units and their fighting prowess referred to as Cohesion. The Cohesion Rating of a unit is essentially a catch-all for its morale, training and experience and includes what the unit’s intangible fighting qualities are, other than just sheer number of men. It is probably the most important aspect of the game engine as it is the key element that will determine how well a unit will fight – and survive – during the battle. It is used throughout the game to measure a unit’s ability to fight and endure on the battlefield. The CR will fluctuate during the entire game, and it will do so often. Units that are Shaken or Battleworn will have their CR suffer. Units can also raise their CR temporarily through the use of various events or by providing them with Unit Support. A low CR makes units more vulnerable and increases their risk during a Break Test, which will cause them to leave the game if they fail. You have to focus on this aspect or you will be unable to consistently move your attacks forward.
Just such a great system and I love Hermann’s attention to the historical details and the way he tells these ACW stories. I love this Black Swan Series and look forward to future volumes.
4. BCS Inflection Point: The Battle for Kalach and the Battle of Chir from Multi-Man Publishing
Over the past couple years, we have played a few venerated and respected series games from Multi-Man Publishing for the first time that frankly I had initially turned my nose up at for various reasons. These reasons were not really anything important or truly about the design or mechanics but included things like price, graphic design, style and somewhat because of the complexity and reputation of complexity of those systems. These series included first the Standard Combat Series (SCS) with our first game being Rostov ’41 and now the Battalion Combat Series (BCS) with our first game being Arracourt and since we have played several other volumes including Brazen Chariots and Baptism by Fire. I must admit here that I am actually embarrassed that I hadn’t played those series and readily admit that I just discounted and dismissed them out of hand. I am so very glad that we repented of our stubbornness and found this system because it really is very, very good at what it is trying to teach and demonstrate about warfare at this scale.
One of the best parts about this new volume in the series is that it is actually 2 games in the same box. One game which is smaller, with fewer counters and formations and that uses a smaller version of the board included in the game and one that is the full campaign with more counters and formations, a larger board and is much more involved. Overall, I would say that the BCS is a fairly straightforward series even for someone who is a beginner and has less experience with the BCS system like me. I think that I thought they were designing Arracourt as the entry to the series, and I still think that is the case, but this volume has some of the same flexibility and approachability that some of the larger titles don’t necessarily have. I feel that players can cut their teeth on this one using the smaller scenario while getting comfortable with the rules and system before you attempt the larger scenarior or even other larger games in the series. I also feel that the game requires somewhat of a paradigm shift before playing. What I mean by that is really two fold.
First, I really feel that usually these big hex and counter wargames are set in their combat methods, namely focused on odds based Combat Results Tables and counting up combat factors to get the perfect odds, and require a bit of calculation. But BCS doesn’t use a traditional CRT but breaks the combat down into more of a collection of DRM’s based on many factors.
Second, the game also has very low counter density, with the scenario we played having about 40 counters per side on the map at any given time, and stacking limits are just 2 combat units with other counters also allowed such as support units or HQ’s. There are not enough counters here to create the long contiguous line or wall of units that are typical in some of the larger systems, which lends this one to a bit more maneuvering of units to get into good position while using terrain to attempt to isolate and cut off units from supply or to prevent the enemy from doing the same to your units. This created somewhat of a back and forth dance for us that kept my focus and attention and was really quite entertaining. Supply is important to the system but not as focused on it as say the Operational Combat Series (OCS). The players must manage their HQ’s and their combat trains to keep their units in full supply and this becomes somewhat of a different type of dance that sees players cautiously keeping their units in a loose perimeter to prevent a freak breakthrough or run around to get to the back of the formations to take out supply sources and cut off units. I really liked the scale and feeling of this BCS system and had a very good time in trying to learn and understand it and also trying to figure out the best strategies to engage.
The counters included in BCS Inflection Point are dual sided but the back side is not to show a reduced unit as is normal with these wargames. The front side is the unit’s move side while the back side is its deployed side. Each of these stances is very important and must be used by each player to get the most out of their units and to take it to their opponent.
We also did a review video and you can watch that at the following link:
If you are interested in BCS Inflection Point: The Battle for Kalach and the Battle of Chir, you can order a copy for $112.00 from the Multi-Man Publishing website at the following link: https://mmpgamers.com/inflection-point-p-418
3. Close Quarter Battles: Waterloo from Lock ‘n Load Publishing
Close Quarter Battles: Waterloo was such a surprise of the year for us. It is a tactical level wargame that is truly intense and chaotic that attempts to, and does a fantastic job of accomplishing, the brutal, up-close engagements of Napoleonic warfare. The game puts players in command of elite British, French, or Prussian forces as they fight for control of key battlefield positions. The designer has chosen to center on the two strongpoints of the battle of Waterloo including the La Haye Sainte farm and the Hougoumont Farm. First off, the game is just gorgeous and the maps are stunning. In fact, they are so good that I am going to highlight them in an upcoming entry on the blog in the Beautiful Boards of Wargaming Series. But, the Waterloo battles here are skirmishes around and for the taking of these two farms. The game uses a grand tactical system that works to attempt to to simulate the interactions between infantry skirmishers of small groups, artillery sections and cavalry in a fortified area. This leads to the game being uber violent and bloody as assaults are common but difficult particularly for the attackers who will have to scale formidable walls and then take on the awaiting crack troops inside. Officers and generals are very important to the battle as they will influence the battlefield with their command range and other attributes to add DRM’s to the troops by issuing orders, rallying troops, and trying their best to maintain discipline.
I really like this one as it is really a game. Meaning that the rules are simple yet impactful and the game provides each of the players with a deck of cards that act as events to provide bonuses, allow for greater movement distance or to perform heroic acts. They also provide the chance to attack and eliminate leaders with sniper fire to cause even further chaos and blood.
We did a review video and you can watch that at the following link:
2. All Are Brothers: Solferino, 1859 from Legion Wargames
We very much enjoy the Blind Swords Series originally designed by Hermann Luttmann. We love it for its chaos, unpredictability and for is crunchy combat system. This past year, a new designer Bryan Armor took up the call and took this Blind Swords System and put it into action in the Second Italian War of Independence. All Are Brothers: Solferino, 1859 simulates the decisive battle of the Second Italian War of Independence at the Brigade-level, with some additional Regimental-size and smaller detachments included.
And the other part that is so good about this system and the game itself is the activation chit pull system. The chit pull mechanic also very much aids in solitaire play, as does variable activation rules and reinforcement tables but it really makes for a lot of uncertainty about how and what units will activate. No battle is in your full control and this system really reinforces that truth about the battlefield.
One of the best parts is the morale system. Each corps has an associated Corps Morale marker on the Morale Track. Each Corps Morale marker will be reduced by one when they activate including movement and fire attacks but also when Leaders take casualties or break tests are failed. This can all lead to the corps becoming demoralized which means they will be unable to offensively move and attack and will be relegated to a defensive posture. So you really have to make good choices about what units and when they will activate. You cannot just wholesale activate each formation every turn but must look at their status to decide how best to manage this aspect that was a very interesting and nice addition to an all ready proven and very good system. This means that units are also prone to attrition and need to be covered or supported by artillery fire. They can be used most effectively if massed at certain points. The chits also effected the corps’ stance switching between aggressive or defensive and this is a choice that must be made with a full understanding of a plan of attack.
Just a very solid and playable game that felt like a big wargame that played fairly quickly and easily and didn’t get bogged down too much.
We did a review video and you can watch that at the following link:
If you are interested in All Are Brothers: Solferino, 1859, you can order a copy for $58.00 from the Legion Wargames website at the following link: https://www.legionwargames.com/legion_AAB.html
1. Congress of Vienna from GMT Games
I am a big fan of the Great Statesman Series from GMT Games and several of its volumes including Churchill and Pericles are among my favorite wargames. But Congress of Vienna is a really great game, probably the best of the bunch, and has matured the system laid out by its found Mark Herman. Congress of Vienna has two different but related phases including the conference table where players first debate over the control of issues germane to the factions and the period of the war and second these issues are then used on the battlefield to recruit units, attack and take overall command of battles. The players will be playing cards from their hands to “debate” over the various issues that were placed on the table, which include all types of things such as Military Operations, Recruitment, who will lead the combined Coalition forces (Generalissimo), Future of French Government, British Financial Aid, Liberalism vs. Absolutism, Austrian Neutrality and several other issues, and then later the players will use their accumulated Resources gained from the issues to enact action on the Military Map and do things like mobilize troops, place Military Support Markers and the ultimately to conduct warfare.
The interesting thing about this mechanic is that sometimes the other players will win your issues by having them rest on their side of the conference table at the conclusion of the phase. In this case, the winning player will gain control of that issue and then will get the opportunity to choose where the issues will be placed on the Military Map, but the owner of the issue will still pay for it and must do where the placement is telling them to do, such as attack on a certain front. There also is a small area on the board where the Russian player must turn their effort to fight in Asia. This action has no real in game effect or benefit other than causing Russia to lose the choice of what they wanted to do in favor of doing something else. This can be a great tactic for the French player, or even for other Coalition players to spoil the plans of the Russian player and possibly box them out of gaining VP for military victories on various tracks.
The game relies on cards and cards can be used to negotiate, i.e. move an issue to your National Track. Cards can provide a particular issue with positive and negative DRM’s depending on which nation plays them and can also be traded with another player during the Diplomacy Phase. Certain cards are better than others for debating an issue moved by another player; and finally, if they are saved for the War Phase, staff cards can be used to modify dice rolling in battles. These are very versatile cards and the players will have to learn them and their benefits in order to be effective at the game.
But even though the game relies on cards and has an important Diplomacy Phase, without a doubt CoV is a wargame with DRM’s for units and military leaders, terrain, military support, a Casualties Table, retreat and advancing after battle, etc. However, both Phases are inversely related and if players use their Character Cards in the form of generals and military leaders for the Diplomacy Phase you will not have them available for the Military Phase. If you do not win enough issues during the Diplomacy Phase, you will not have recruiting or military operations where they are most important to your power.
I would say that the game is very involved and will take a few plays to really get comfortable with. I don’t want anyone to take this to mean that the game is overly complex and difficult to play. That is not the case. It is a very approachable system and game once you get the basics down through the play of a few turns. I would also say that there is a ton of differences and asymmetry with the nations and learning all of them well and understanding their tactics will take some time. But that is a good thing in my opinion and means that there is depth to the game and replayabilty is huge. And in my opinion, this was the best game that I played from 2025. Just fantastic!
Each year I feel compelled to tack on some games to this list just because they were so very interesting or dealt with unique settings that I feel they are worthy of mentioning. While they didn’t make the Top 10 list, they are each good games in their own right.
Alliance: Multi-Player Napoleonic Wargame from Columbia Games
All in all, we had a great time with Alliance. I think that we felt that the game was solid, with some great mechanics such as the card play and the block combat system, but was just missing some things. I would like to see what the community comes up with as far as variants and other changes over the next year. But the game delivers on its promise of a sandbox strategic level Napoleonic wargame with a focus on alliance building and maintenance. There is a lot to like and we plan to play this one again.
We also did a full video review and you can watch that at the following link:
If you are interested in Alliance: Multi-Player Napoleonic Wargame, you can order a copy for $99.98 from the Columbia Games website at the following link: https://secure.columbiagames.com/products/3221
Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948 from Legion Wargames
Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948 is a COIN Series adjacent game designed by Clint Warren-Davey and Benjamin Feine and is an alternate history game, but the story that is presented is entirely plausible. Werwolf was a real underground guerrilla group, comprised of SS and Hitler Youth members. It was intended to lead an insurgency against the invading Allies and Soviets when it became clear that Germany was losing the war in a conventional sense in the mid-1940’s. They did in fact have a few successes and American intelligence officer Frank Manuel said that the Werwolves were prepared “to strike down the isolated soldier in his jeep, the MP on patrol, the fool who goes a-courting after dark, the Yankee braggart who takes a back road.” The game allows players to take on the role of the occupying Soviets and Western Allies along with this Werwolf insurgency and the Edelweiss insurgency.
This game was very good and frankly was a breath of fresh air in the COIN Series or COIN Series adjacent arena. This game was very kinetic and each faction had a ton of combat and had to engage each other to accomplish their goals. The cards were fantastic and the additions to the system such as Research Tokens, Heavy Weapons in the form of leftover tanks, Wunder-waffen and the Cold War Tension Track, were really fresh and well integrated into the game play. I loved the game and would play it again in a heart beat!
If you are interested in Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948, you can order a copy for $106.00 from the Legion Wargames website at the following link: https://www.legionwargames.com/legion_WER.html
Verdun from Dragon Dawn Productions
Verdun is a card game that is focused on the famous siege of Verdun during World War I. As player’s hands dwindle down as they play 2 cards per round but only draw 1, players will also have to play cards that help the other side, timing it strategically to minimize their own casualties. The teams alternate being the Attacker, and each card played leads to more and more deaths. You are fighting over positive victory points from trying to win several positions through over the top attacks that are worth a set amount of VP but that are hidden from view until they are taken so you never know if you are going for the high VP area or the low ones until you blow the whistle to initiate the attack.
A game of Verdun lasts about 16 rounds as players start with 12 cards, which they then play in a series of 12 tricks. When you win the trick, you gain the VP for the position but the winner will lose their lowest valued cards while the loser will lose their highest value cards to the dead pile representing mounting casualties. Low cards have fewer skulls on them representing deaths while higher cards have more. So even in victory you will be accumulating negative VP’s and this is one of the key aspects of the game…managing those deaths! Just like the high command.
In the end, the player with the highest score will win and this number will be very low or can even be negative. In our play of the game, my French defeated Alexander’s Germans by a final score of 3 VP to -14 VP. What a great little trick taking game! The really interesting part about the late game is that your hand has dwindled to being full of your worst cards as you have most likely used the good cards earlier to win tricks or cause losses to your opponent. The last few card plays just seem brutal and you are just hoping to not have to take a lot of skulls. This felt very fruitless and mimics the despair of commanders as they had to issue orders that they knew were not going to result in any positive gains but only the loss of life.
We did a full video review and you can watch that at the following link:
Drop Zone: Southern France from Worthington Publishing
Drop Zone: Southern France is a company-level wargame covering the Allied airborne assault that spearheaded Operation Dragoon, which was the invasion of Southern France or the Second D-Day on August 15, 1944. The history behind this operation is really very interesting as early on the morning of D-Day, the allied First Airborne Task Force (1st ABTF) parachuted a dozen miles behind the Riviera landing beaches to seize key towns and road junctions, to prevent the German occupation forces from counter-attacking the amphibious landing, and to facilitate the advance of Allied forces. The 4:00 AM parachute drop was badly scattered due to an unexpected dense fog bank that blanketed the battlefield. Drop Zone: Southern France covers the first two days of this airborne operation in six game turns, when the American and British paratroopers and glider-men fought surrounded and alone, supported only by French resistance bands. This game is very good and is just a solid wargame.
This game is surprisingly good and we had a great time playing it! There are just so many interesting elements to consider including the various operations, objectives and paths to take for the Allies to attempt to capture their objectives as planned. We found the game to be imminently playable and were very pleased with the strategy and planning required to do well. This one is a winner and I would recommend it highly as an introductory wargame that plays in 90-120 minutes but gives some real meat to chew on.
We did a full video review and you can watch that at the following link:
Chicago ’68 pits revolutionary spectacle against civil order at the Democratic National Convention riots of 1968. Players take the role of either the Establishment, consisting of the Chicago PD and Mayor Daley, or the Demonstrators, including the Yippies and MOBE, and is a fast-paced game of street battles and political maneuvers.
Each side plays from two asymmetric decks of action cards. The Establishment positions tactical forces and police platoons to co-ordinate mass arrests while working the convention floor. The Demonstrators, on the other hand, can pivot from direct clashes to radical street theater; their tactics can be reactive and unpredictable, allowing for wild cat-and-mouse chases and mischief-making across the tear-gassed avenues of downtown Chicago.
This game is an area control/area influence game that uses cards to take a predetermined set of actions that can be upgraded and replayed with better actions as the game progresses. Each player will fight for control of the delegates to the convention as well as exposure to the nation through the media. Just a very well designed game that was a ton of fun to play.
There I am finally done. My list of the Top 10 Wargames published in 2025. I had fun playing them and putting this list together as I got to revisit each of the games and think about why they were included on this list.
Please let me know what your top games of the year were and what you think of my choices and what games you would have placed on such a list.
This game is set in World War II and depicts the battle between Germany and the USSR. This is a two player game and the story starts with Germany initiating the invasion of the Soviet Union. Every few rounds both players will score points based on controlling key locations. If you outscore your opponent by 10 points, you win immediately. Otherwise, you win by having more points at the end of
The April 2026 Monthly Debrief Video, which is the 4th episode in Season 6 of this series, saw us discussing Operational Level Wargames to fill out our video trilogy on Tactical (November 2024 Season 4 Episode 11), Operational and Strategic (July 2023 Season 3 Episode 7) games.
Also, as usual, we covered the games we played in April as well as the games we plan to play in May.
We will remind you here that we are fortunate to be continuing our relationship with Noble Knight Games as the sponsor for our Monthly Debrief Video series. In case you don’t know, Noble Knight Games specializes in hard to find games but also carry all the new releases. But what makes them truly unique is that you can find some of the rarest games, long out of print games, hand made games, imported games from overseas, etc. Thanks to them for their sponsorship and we hope that you will consider them first when looking for the games we cover.
Talon is a game of tactical spaceship battles. It is a game for two players. One plays Earth and the other plays an invading alien civilisation. You each control a fleet of spaceships. Your goal is to destroy all of your opponent’s spaceships.
The battlefield is abstracted to a 2D hexagonal map. You fly your spaceships around and shoot at your opponent’s spaceships. There
An unpopular war. Protests in the streets. An authoritarian US leader sending troops to a major American city, employing violence against its own citizens. Obviously, I’m talking about the events of 1968 in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention, which happens to be the theme of Chicago ’68, a game from designer Yoni Goldstein and published by The Dietz Foundation.
Running south on Lake Shore Drive, Heading into town
I hope you’ll spare some time for a little personal context before I get into my review. When I moved to Chicago in the summer of 1998 to attend film school, the only thing I knew about the city was that the Bulls had just won their 6th NBA Championship in the last 8 years (side note: they haven’t been to finals in the 28 years since). It was in one of my classes that we watched Haskell Wexler’s Medium Cool, a movie that takes place (and was partly shot) during the 1968 DNC riots. The film had an enormous impact on me and, along with the book Boss by legendary columnist Mike Royko, was my introduction to the modern history of the city I have called home for nearly 30 years.
With this My Favorite Wargame Cards Series, I hope to take a look at a specific card from the various wargames that I have played and share how it is used in the game. I am not a strategist and frankly I am not that good at games but I do understand how things should work and be used in games. With that being said, here is the next entry in this series.
#76: Military Uprising from The Republic’s Struggle: Battle for the Republic, Spain 1931-1939 from NAC Wargames
The Republic’s Struggle is a thematic Card Driven Game that tells the story of the historical events that took place in Spain after the resignation to the throne of King Alfonso XIII, and the proclamation of the II Spanish Republic in 1931. With the creation of the new regime, the struggle for power between the different social, political and ideological sectors increased, which gave rise to continuous changes of political power, alterations of public order, armed uprisings and violent acts, carried out by the numerous ideological factions of the moment; which culminated in 1936, in a failed military uprising. The failure of this coup d’état was the origin for the Spanish Civil War.
The Republic’s Struggle is based on Twilight Struggle from GMT Games and uses the same concepts of area control while adding in some actual combat with units represented on the board. During the game, the Republican player and the National player, will be able to recreate events of the period to increase their popularity in the localities by carrying out political propaganda, recruiting troops or militias, generating revolts or assaults, establishing diplomatic relations or carrying out bombardments. All this will be done by playing their hand of cards in an alternative way, either by using the events or by playing the action points or icons to perform any of the other actions available to the players.
One of the interesting parts of the design is that each player has what is referred to as a Special Card that is included in their hand from the start of the game and can be played during their turn. These cards don’t count towards the maximum number of cards that each player can have in their hand at the beginning of each turn. The 2 cards are Military Uprising, which is given to Nationalist player and Proletarian Revolution, which is given to the Republican player. These cards are single-use event cards and can only be used during the first 4 turns of the game, or in other words during the period referred to as Phase 1 – The Republic. If, after this phase, these cards have not been played, they must be discarded and removed from the game. Both players can choose to use their Special Card in an Action round, instead of using one of the cards from their hand. These cards are played like the rest of the Operation Cards either using their Operations Value or applying the effects of the printed Event. Once played, the card will be removed from the game so it is use it or lose it.
Both cards are very powerful but have some fairly difficult criteria that must be met to fully realize the value of the printed Event. In the case of our featured card Military Uprising, the top part of the card first gives the player the chance to downgrade the European Status Quo Track by 2 levels. The European Status Quo Track allows players to appeal to and in some ways manipulate the stance of the other European Nations regarding their view on the Spanish Civil War. It also the determining factor in how Victory Points are awarded for the crucial Armed Actions aspect of the game. At the end of each turn, if the number of Armed Actions carried out by a player equals or exceeds the current level of the European Status Quo, that player will score 3 Victory Points. Also, as long as the European Status Quo Track is set on level 2, players cannot carryout any action using the Operations Points of cards played to advance in the Diplomatic Relations Track. So this is another tied result to the card as if the level is 1, no cards can be played to advance the Diplomatic Relations Track.
But, remember I said that to fully realize the effects of the card, the Nationalist player would need to control Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia and every Naval Base Location or every Air Base Location. If this is the case when the card is played, then the Nationalist player will earn an automatic victory. Frankly, this is next to impossible, but has a sliver of possibility depending on how diligent and attentive the Republican player is as well as the hand of cards that are drawn by the Nationalist player. If they draw certain other events, as well as have a hand full of higher Operations Point value cards, they can make a run at this but it is not necessarily recommended. The card also has a very useful secondary use as if the condition isn’t met, they will get to place out on the board 1 combatant cube, representing one of their combat units, and also remove all of the influence of the Republican player in Morocco and Galicia and gain 2VP. In order for the card to be used in this manner though the Nationalist player will have had to previously play the El Director card.
Either way this is a very good card and a shrewd Nationalist player can make some significant headway in their efforts to push the Republican out of power in Africa and northwest Spain as well as add combat strength to areas that they wish to conduct future Armed Operations.
In 1934 there was widespread labor conflict and a bloody uprising by miners in Asturias that was suppressed by troops led by General Francisco Franco. A succession of governmental crises culminated in the elections of February 16, 1936, which brought to power a Popular Front government supported by most of the parties of the left and opposed by the parties of the right and what remained of the center.
Spanish Civil War Republican troops manning a machine gun during the Spanish Civil War, 1937.
A well-planned military uprising began on July 17, 1936, in garrison towns throughout Spain. By July 21st, the rebels had achieved control in Spanish Morocco, the Canary Islands, and the Balearic Islands (except Minorca) and in the part of Spain north of the Guadarrama Mountains and the Ebro River, except for Asturias, Santander, and the Basque provinces along the north coast and the region of Catalonia in the northeast. The Republican forces had put down the uprising in other areas, except for some of the larger Andalusian cities, including Seville), Granada and Córdoba. The Nationalists and Republicans proceeded to organize their respective territories and to repress opposition or suspected opposition. Republican violence occurred primarily during the early stages of the war before the rule of law was restored, but the Nationalist violence was part of a conscious policy of terror. The matter of how many were killed remains highly contentious; however, it is generally believed that the toll of Nationalist violence was higher. In any event, the proliferation of executions, murders, and assassinations on both sides reflects the great passions that the Spanish Civil War unleashed.
Here is a link to our full video review of the game:
The Tactical level wargame is a staple in my collection and in our hobby. I have played a lot of the various offerings out there over the past 10 years including Advanced Squad Leader from The Avalon Hill Game Company, Lock ‘n Load Tactical from Lock ‘n Load Publishing, Combat Commander from GMT Games, Fields of Fire from GMT Games, Conflict of Heroes from Academy Games, Old School Tactical from Flying Pig Games, Assault from Assault Games, Fighting Formations from GMT Games, Combat Infantry from Columbia Games, Valiant Defense Series from Dan Verssen Games, 2GM Tactics from Draco Ideas and Squad Battles from Flying Pig Games to name just a few. Tactical level wargames are just so gritty, action packed, bloody and in your face and I love that about them. But, there are some things that I don’t love, as with all games. In this edition of The Love/Hate Relationship, I want to share what I love and hate about Tactical level wargames.
Love
I love tactical squad level combat. I will say that I am partial to World War II tactical games but am always open and willing to play other time periods. There is just something about the strategy, the tension and fear inherent in the game that really draws me in. What is going to happen when I run my squad out from their comfortable and relatively safe building to cross an open field, offering little to no cover, in order to get into position to eliminate the enemy? I don’t know but whatever it is it will be fun!
I love that tactical level games focus on individual units, which can range from vehicles and squads all the way up to platoons or companies. These units are assigned rating factors based on what types of individual weaponry the units carry, reflected in firepower, range and usually movement. Tactical games are usually designed so that a rudimentary knowledge of military tactics will facilitate good gameplay. But this personal vantage point, as you control an individual soldier or small squad of soldiers, really feels personal to me. As opposed to larger Operational or Strategic level games where I am making decisions about 1,000’s of men and machines and it feels more generic and removed from the action, in the Tactical level game I get to put myself in the shoes of a soldier named “Joe”.
One of my first experiences with Tactical level games was Combat Commander. I remember sitting down and doing the Example of Play scenario laid out in the playbook where I was paying as the Russians going up against the Germans. The Russians had the initiative and immediately began taking shots at the Germans using an infantry gun controlled by a Weapons team. The first shot was a miss and I was disappointed. I wanted to see their aim be true and do some damage to the Germans but it wasn’t meant to be. I will say that it was amazing to see the range of the gun, which showed me the power of this type of ordinance. The Russians then finished their first turn by moving forces north from the orchard through the forest on a path to be within striking distance of the Germans holed up in the buildings. I saw the power in leaders as well as by activating a single leader, you can control the actions of the units within their command radius.
A Russian squad in Combat Commander: Europe from GMT Games designed by the late Chad Jensen.
I remember feeling the angst and weight of the role of Sergeant Kaminsky who was desperately trying to inspire his men to move up on the buildings to engage the enemy and knock them out of that fortification. I also experienced the disappointment of the German leader Sergeant Ganz as his troops were forced to retreat to the north to try to repel the Russians who were threatening the German troops in the buildings. I felt the disgust in my unit’s performance when the very powerful infantry gun continued to miss its targets! I was relieved when the random event put a blaze marker in between my troops and the German forces in the woods obscuring their line of sight and not allowing them to effectively fire. I love this aspect of Tactical level games because it is personal.
Another favorite part for me is the narrative that is told as the battles unfold! As I have played Tactical level games such as Combat Commander, I imagine that I can feel what the squads felt in combat. The narrative is always the best part and allows my mind to participate in the battle, even though I am not there. It is a similar feeling to a well written book that forces you to take the role of characters and experience their feelings as you read the story as it unfolds on the written pages. If a game can do all that, it is definitely good!
I do love the strategy and tactics at play when playing a Tactical level wargame! Scoot and shoot, fire from cover, suppressing fire, using smoke to obscure movement, group fire, flanking, use of off-board artillery and fire support and all of the various elements of this level of fighting. I am in control of the game and have the tools and abilities of my troops at my disposal to try and best solve the tactical puzzle laid out before me and to plan how best to go about reaching my goal. Sometimes in these tactical games there are unit abilities that can be called upon. An example of this is found in the Squad Battles Series from Flying Pig Games. Special abilities or “Powers” that different types of units and Leaders have can be activated by playing the right type of card (see below pictured card with the word POWER shown) and really pay off when you can get them played. This element really adds some variety to the game play and always has me really thinking about how I need to effectively build my squads.
A Power found on a card in ’65: Squad Level Combat in the Jungles of Vietnam from Flying Pig Games.
Finally, I really like the granularity and realism of some of the Tactical systems out there. One of the best games in regards to this aspect is Advanced Squad Leader. Admittedly, I have only played the Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit #4, but got a real taste for the gritty minutiae that the system demonstrates. I have asked many people what the appeal is for them with Advanced Squad Leader. They typically all refer to many aspects of the game, including things like its depth, rules complexity (not I am just joking with this one!), granularity and realism as well as the thought that anything worth playing should be hard to learn. But, I would agree that the granularity of the game and its focus on realism are two of its greatest advantages.
A Banzai Charge in the Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit #4 The Pacific Theater from Multi-Man Publishing.
But I think that the systems used in ASL and the rules that prop them up are really quite realistic and provide you the player with a good understanding of the factors involved in these small tactical engagements and their pitfalls. I do really think that the system mimics the process and actions of soldiers in many ways. Does it do this perfectly? Probably not but I am unsure that I can’t definitively say at this time in my journey but I want to learn more and understand the answers to those questions. And hopefully I can play it again to get a better feel and understanding. I also think that people really enjoy the bits and pieces of chrome that are injected into the system. I bring this up as I experienced the chrome of banzai charges as we played ASLSK#4 The Pacific Theater of Operations.
Hate
Hate is such a strong word for me but there are things that are very displeasing about the medium of Tactical level wargames. First off, sometimes a Tactical level game can feel pretty generic, meaning that we have just thrown a scenario together that isn’t necessarily realistic or tied to a specific historical event. As a player of historical games, and an admitted lover of history, I really like playing games that are rooted in the events of the time portrayed. If I am just covering a generic run across an open field or an assault on a fortified line of trenches, I am not necessarily as interested or vested in this situation. But if you throw a name to it, such as the Marine defense at Alligator Creek, the British defense at Rorke’s Drift or the chaotic Battle of Castle Itter, then I sit up, take it a bit more seriously and can dive into the details of the fight. I just wish that more of the systems out there did a better job of integrating the actual small scale battles into their scenarios.
Castle Itter: The Strangest Battle of WWII from Dan Verssen Games designed by David Thompson.
Sometimes Tactical level games are not necessarily realistic as they are games and they always have some gamey elements such as the activation system, dice or the use of cards to determine results. Now before you blow me out of the water, my use of realism here isn’t to say that these Tactical games are simulations. Sometimes systems, such as ASL, gives the players a sort of God’s eye view of the whole battlefield and the omnipotent understanding of the situation and of what can and will happen. This allows for the players to somewhat plan around any difficulties or traps and make the best of a situation. And I think that any battlefield commander will tell you that this is not the case as you never know exactly who you are fighting, their makeup, their numbers and capabilities nor their support. But, keep in mind that one of the keys to any battles is the use of reconnaissance and scouting of the terrain and battlefield before committing so maybe there is more to this than I think.
Well, in summary, I love Tactical level wargames. They are the best and I love them for many reasons including those I have listed above but also because they are fun and exciting to play. Part of the reason that I play games is to be stimulated and to have to exercise my brain to come up with a workable plan and then to execute that plan in the face of adversity and poor dice rolling. Tactical level games give me this and I will always want to play them.
What do you love and hate about Tactical level wargames? What are your thoughts on my observations? Please share.
John Poniske is a prolific designer and we have enjoyed several of his games including Revolution Road from Compass Games, Plains Indian Wars from GMT Games, Bleeding Kansas from Decision Games, Hearts and Minds from Worthington Games and Maori Wars: The New Zealand Land Wars 1845-1872 from Legion Wargames. We also own several of his designs but have not had a chance to get them tabled yet including King Philip’s War from Multi-Man Publishing and Pontiac’s War: Frontier Rebellion, 1763-66 from Compass Games. We have done several interviews with John over the years and I always enjoy this thoughts on the subjects that he decides to cover. In this entry in the Best 3 Games with…Series, I take a look at 3 of John’s designs that have spoken to me.
3. Maori Wars: The New Zealand Land Wars, 1845-1872 from Legion Wargames
Maori Wars: The New Zealand Land Wars, 1845-1872 from Legion Wargames is a game that uses as a background the uprisings that took place between 1845 and 1872 due to British colonial incursions into native Maori lands on the North Island of New Zealand. The ensuing conflict over a period covering nearly 30 years involved the destruction of a number of Maori villages, Pas, which are fortified villages that featured intricate trench-works and some colonial settlements. The war introduced the British to a very skilled and strategic combatant who used a strategy of ambushes and bush raiding to catch off guard and frustrate the professional British ranks. The hallmark of the game is that it is highly playable by featuring low counter density, a play time of under two hours for most of the scenarios and easy to understand rules.
Playing as the British, players will have to deal with swinging tribal loyalty and will need to master the rivers and seas to move their more powerful troops and gunboats around while the Maori player will be focused on bush-raiding, which allows the Maori to move units temporarily off the board and out of harms way, but then to later bring them back in a more favorable strategic location of their choosing. The asymmetry in the fighting styles is really very good and I like the way it factors into account the history.
Maori Wars is a great game with some really beautiful art, not only on the board but also on the counters. The game is a slugfest between the mighty British and their Queenite allies against the inhabitants of the island in the various Maori tribes that resisted their colonial oppressors. The tribes have lots of tricks up their sleeves and use the land and their knowledge of it to great advantage as they conduct bush raids regularly and are very difficult to bring to decisive battle.
Here is a look at our unboxing video for Maori Wars: The New Zealand Land Wars, 1845-1872 :
We also did a video review and you can watch that at the following link:
2. Bleeding Kansas from Decision Games
Bleeding Kansas is a very well designed 2-player game that deals with the violence and politics of pre-statehood Kansas from 1854-1861. The game focuses on the tensions between pro-slave and abolitionist parties and their attempts to win over emigrants to Kansas to their cause and thereby influence the outcome of elections to move the state toward their leaning on the issue of slavery. The game has four elections that players will fight over trying to have the most influence in Kansas counties to score victory points. At its heart, the game is an area control game that has splashes of election dynamics that feels very Euro-like as it uses cubes to represent forces.
The core mechanism in the game is the cards. Each of these cards is tied to an historical event, important person or other factor involved in the conflict and allows players to choose their actions for that immediate turn. The game proceeds as players alternate the play of one of the cards from their hand to take various actions from symbols that appear on the cards. These symbols provide actions such as influencing new settlers to the region to join their side in the conflict, build up forces for the coming battle, take control of counties by moving these forces around or displacing those of your opponent, attacking the opposition, burning down their population centers, enticing settlers to migrate to their areas or request intervention from the Federal Garrison stationed at Leavenworth. The cards carry out the plans of players and create a historical narrative of the conflict.
The game really is pretty simple mechanically but don’t let the game’s simplicity fool you. This is a knock down drag out bare knuckle fight for supremacy in the Kansas Territory and will test you’re meddle as you fight back and forth undoing what your opponent has just done. The game boils down to staying the course and playing your cards smartly to gain the upper hand in elections. You have to be able to judge where control stands as you play each card and you have to plan as scoring elections can really sneak up on you if you are not paying attention.
Here is a look at our unboxing video so you can get a good look at the components:
Here is a look at our video review of the game:
Here also are links to a series of Action Points on the various aspects of the game:
1. Devil Dogs: Belleau Wood 1918 from Worthington Publishing
Devil Dogs: Belleau Wood 1918 is an easy to learn, fast-playing card-driven game for 2 players. The play map covers the historical French battlefield geography and the 300 counters and markers represent the historical units and incidents involved along with chits that determine initiative and order choice. The game is unique in that it captures the tension and high rate of casualties without ever casting a single die, relying more on planning and issuing orders as the active or reactive player. Each side will have a 30 card deck that is faction specific.
I love Multi-Use Cards in a game and this one uses faction specific decks that can be used in several different ways. The combat system is also quite unique as hits are not calculated by a die roll and reference to a CRT but by the combat strength of the units attacking determined by the play of a card and then in what terrain the targets are hiding. The best element of the game though was having to play a card to each sector on the map without knowing what your opponent will play and then seeing how you did. Really interactive and interesting game and this one was a big hit with both of us! Although the rules were a bit challenging in their format and presentation but nothing that we couldn’t handle after a few turns into the game.
Here is a link to our video review of the game:
There you have it. My Best 3 Games with…Designer John Poniske! He has done so many good games and the narrative and historical immersion of all of them are top notch.
It’s still early in 2026, but I think I’ve already played the game that will end the year with the widest array of opinions within my review crew.
Wunderwaffen was one of my targets at SPIEL Essen 2025, so I was eager to get it home and put it in front of my team. I was attracted to the game for a few reasons, chief amongst them the game’s publisher. Ares Games has done great work in steadily tight packages, from the Quartermaster General series to family-friendly fare such as TEDOKU and Builders of Sylvan Dale. Ares’ reprint of the Mega Civilization series, Mega Empires, didn’t hurt the cause.
Wunderwaffen is a fragile system, one that worked wonderfully for some players while landing badly for others. But as a very straightforward game that plays in about an hour at its full player count, it is certainly worth a look, especially for wargame lovers looking for a weeknight game they can table with both hobbyists and casual players.
Nazis, You Say?
Wunderwaffen looks, on the surface, like a one-versus-all wargame for strictly two OR four players. There are four playable factions in the box: Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet…
In early 2024, Worthington Publishing announced a unique 2-pack of games on Kickstarter that were marketed as easy to play travel friendly solitaire games. And you know that I love a good solitaire wargame! And when I heard that these games were small, even portable, then I was even more interested. One of the games covered the Pacific Theater of WWII called Pacific War 1942 Solitaire and the other covers the War of 1812 called (you guessed it) War of 1812 Solitaire. These games are designed by Mike and Grant Wylie and each game has 4 pages of rules, a beautiful mounted board and double sided counters. I played both and really very much enjoyed the experience.
Anmelden
