HALLS OF HEGRA

FROM

TOMPET GAMES

When my gaming friends and I first heard of this title, the general consensus was that it must be a game in the fantasy genre.  Intrigued, I'm glad I delved deeper to discover that it was a distinctly unusual WWII battle in the Norwegian defence against the invading German army and so I contacted the publishers, Tompet Games, who generously provided me this review copy.  On its very rapid arrival, a first sight of the components and a reading of the historical background made me think I had got my hands on the next David Thompson design in his series of "siege" games.  Though that is not the case, the reasons for thinking so will quickly become obvious.  First the components - they are all excellent whether it be the mounted playing board, the variety of cards, the wooden pieces, the cardboard counters and the full colour rule book.  Second, the historical situation - quoting from the back of the game box and the front of the rule book -  "From an abandoned mountain fortress you command a group of Norwegian volunteers fighting numerically superior German forces in the early days of WW2."  

The continuation again quoted from both back of the game box and the front of the rule book sounds very familiar - "Halls of Hegra is a solo only game where you play as the commander during the siege, which is divided into three stages.  The mechanisms you will use are worker placement, bag building and area control/tower defence."  Certainly the game shares many of the system features seen in David Thompson's designs and three stages calls to mind Postmen in Soldiers' Uniforms, while the map section of the game board has visual echoes of Lanzerath Ridge.  Considering both are set in snow bound locations that's not surprising.

Map section of Halls of Hegra

Knowledge itself of the Norwegian campaign is for most British citizens very, very limited and despite playing most of the few rare games related to either individual battles or the whole campaign, this last desperate defence was a revelation for me.  Its details certainly promised some intriguing and novel situations.  The situation spans 11 turns corresponding to 11 days.  As mentioned,  the game plays out the three stages of the historical event.

Stage 1 Mobilisation [Days 1-3] - during this stage, you as the defender will explore, clear snow, find equipment  (some damaged and needing to be repaired), establish supply routes and gather supplies and defenders.

Stage 2 1st Attack [Days 4-6] - you will be defending against a variety of German attacks, while continuing final preparations for the siege and gathering supplies.

Stage 3 Siege [Days 7-11] - Fortress Hegra is defended by you against bombardment and infantry attacks while you try to maintain morale amongst your volunteer force.

So, there's the overall picture in brief, now on to how the game fairs accomplishing this.

The complexity of the mechanics of playing this game is reflected in the two pages of the rule book dedicated to SetUp.  There are eleven tracks needing a marker cube to be placed to record each's initial starting point, German artillery pieces to be set out on the Artillery Track; Air tiles, Damage tiles, and Status tiles to be placed; German Patrol tokens; wooden discs for the Defender units and Doubt discs and wooden German unit meeples.  All these have their allotted places at start either on the game board, in a Reserve Area [any conveniently handy area near the game board] or placed into one of the colourful three draw bags.

... and when that's all complete, there is a wealth of cards to be sorted into a variety of decks and shuffled!  49 Event cards get sorted into five decks, 22 Morale cards into  two decks, Hope & Despair cards into two decks and last but not least 11 Snow tiles!

Above are some of those Snow Tiles revealed that give one-off benefits or provide permanent actions that you can allocate defenders too.

While below is the busy game board before any of these elements are placed on or near it.

The bottom left hand section even has a double-sided mini-board placed on it at the beginning.  

The side above is needed for Stage 1: Mobilisation and then turned over for Stage 2: 1st Attack and then removed to reveal  the section of the whole game board it covered, which is used for Stage 3: Siege.

As you can see, there is quite a lot to follow through carefully in the Rule Book just to set up the game. 

When it comes to Gameplay, which is the meat of the rules, the outline beckons as tantalisingly simple.  The eleven turns are broken down into three Stages.  Stage 1: Mobilisation covers turns 1-3.  Stage 2: 1st Attack covers turns 4-6 and Stage 3; Siege covers turns 7-11. These three Stages are each divided into the same three Phases: Event Phase - Morning Phase - Day Phase.  What follows and how it is organised in the Rule Book belies that simplicity.  First of all, the actions for the Event Phase for each of the three Stages are explained in order. Then the shortest Phase - the Morning Phase - is explained Here steps you carry out are  identical in each of the the three Stages and are largely simple steps.  Hurrah!  

Finally, you come to the third and last Phase for each Stage and that is the Day Phase.  This is by far the most complex and lengthy section in each turn of the game. The basic concepts are logical.  Each Stage prepares for the next Stage.  So in Mobilisation you are largely creating supply routes and gathering supplies, building up the numbers of your defenders and clearing snow to reveal actions and objects that you can use in Stages 2 and 3.  As you move into these later two Stages, the enemy actions gather in number and power and work to reduce the number of your defenders and limit the range of actions available to you.

Everything set out at the start of the game

I love these ideas and the realistic feel it gives to the game.  I just wish the rule book could have explained them more clearly.  There are two major difficulties to learning and understanding the rules.  The first difficulty is the tendency to explain a number of actions for Stage 1 and then move on to Stage 2 and tell you which are identical to the previous Stage and then explain what's added and finally Stage 3 tells you what is the same as in Stages 1 & 2 and now explains what's new in Stage 3.  Take for example, the Day Phase.  There are in total Seven numbered sections (0-6) to learn.  BUT there is no turn when all seven sections are ever performed in full.  For example section 0 only occurs on turns 1 to 3, while section 01only occurs on turns 4 to 11.  Similarly what actions may be carried out in each section is not consistent for every turn.  Sometimes, a specific action is just not performed on certain days. Other actions depend on a variety of circumstances, such as whether the item to be used has been dug out of the snow on earlier turns or damage has been repaired to make it usable and, of course most important is whether one or more of your defenders has been allocated to perform it.

Here we are for example part way through the game. Working from left to right.  Gun 1 has one section active, the next is jammed and the third is damaged.  The ability to send out a new Supply Run is available, but no Defender has been assigned to activate it.  Below is the Medicine Cabinet that was dug out of the snow earlier on and has had a medic Defender allocated to gain its benefits. To the right is another action, Counter Patrol, that was revealed earlier in the game.  It too has no Defender currently assigned to take this action, but notice the cross on the medic symbol, which tells you that a medic defender cannot be placed here.  After all, your medics are far more valuable doing jobs elsewhere!  This is just one small area of the board with the potential for so much to be happening there.

On top of all that is the need to work through different steps on each Event card as it is drawn. which add a lot of flavour, but also mechanics to the game system.  The outcome I've found is that you will spend quite a few games with the rule book in hand with frequent reference to it and, even with much more familiarity, it will be a game where you will still forget whether you can or can't perform an action and will need to check.

The second major difficulty is that there are quite a number of symbols to be mastered, some of which direct you in adjusting markers on the many tracks in the game or affect actions that you can take.  These are not all clearly explained and has led to doubts about interpretation of rules. These add to the central complexity of the game that stems from the many interactions that build up and multiply as the game progresses.  It's fascinating, but I've found there's a steep learning curve that only comes through repetition.  

In my view the key to learning and coming to enjoy the game is to avoid trying to take in everything at once.  In fact, it is one game where I would suggest that you don't even skim through all the rules.  

Start by playing through Stage 1 Mobilisation [Turns 1-3], perhaps even practising them several times.  Then move on to play Stage 1 and Stage 2: 1st Attack and finally settle down to play through the whole game.  The other important advice is watch the several excellent videos on YouTube that play through several turns.  I would particularly recommend  "JP Plays Halls of Hegra", but as always with such videos remember that there will be a few changes, often minor, that have taken place since the videos were made and the game was published!

So what are my final thoughts.  First of all it is a quality product in all its many components.  The situation, like quite a few other Siege games, is unusual and focuses on a brief and for most people unknown and obscure incident in WWII.  It's engrossing and has so many options with the constant pressure of multiple choices of action clamouring for your attention, but so few defender units to carry them out.  It has great replayability, both because of these many choices of actions, but also because the different Event cards and the order in which they get drawn will always throw up new problems to solve each time you play.  Consequently, it is a game that will constantly test you out with little likelihood of a winning formula emerging- for me that's always a good quality.  I hate games, especially solitaire ones if they turn to have either a limited focus or a method that's soon mastered  All these are very positive elements, but you will also need to put in a good deal of time and effort to learn and understand the game's mechanics.  It's definitely not a game for beginners in the board war game world or those who want a "light" game. Nor is it for the gamer who must have absolute certainty or suffers from "analysis-paralysis".  On the other hand it is definitely a game to get your teeth into and bury yourself in the action.

 Bloody Verrieres

The I. SS-PanzerKorps' Defence of the Verrieres - Bourguebus Ridges Volume II

by

 Arthur W. Gullachsen

 This is volume II of a comprehensive look at the defense of the ridges during the Normandy Campaign. This book will have a tough time equaling its older brother. Volume I was full of history tidbits that I have not seen anywhere else and there are tons of books on this part of the Normandy Campaign.

 Have no fear, the author has continued in Volume II to shine a light onto the history of the battles for the ridges. He also never fails to report on the bravery and tenacity of the British, and Canadian etc. attackers. He does, however, find fault with what he calls their "bite and hold" tactics. He feels that they are using outdated World War I tactics in World War II. This is a point that he makes throughout the book with plenty of examples. He shows us how the German 1st SS Panzerkorps used a defense in depth to absorb the British and Commonwealth attacks. He also contends, along with other writers, that the British and Commonwealth attacks and losses were not in vain (although they could have been better commanded and planned out). They kept the main striking power of the German Army in Normandy in a desperate battle for Caen and the surrounding area. This allowed the Americans to break through on the German left flank. 

 In the book he dispels some of the myths that we have been taught about the campaign. Such as, Sepp Dietrich did not know how to read a map or that the SS in Normandy were just fanatics that had no real tactical ability. The author shows that the Germans were able to halt the Commonwealth forces even though they were completely outmatched in artillery and air power.

 The book comes in at just under 300 pages including the appendices, end notes, bibliography, and index. It shows the battle for the ridges from July 23 - August 5, 1944. The author concentrates on the 2nd Canadian Corps attack during Operation Spring starting on July 25th. The book continues with the German counterattacks after Operation Spring. This shows how the German forces were still resilient even after the long battle for the environs of Caen. 

 Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to review this second volume from this author. He is a captain in the Canadian Army and also a teacher of military history in the Royal Military College of Canada's History department. The books are two of the best to read about the tactical warfare during the Normandy Campaign. They should be in the library of anyone who has any interest in the campaign.

Robert

Book: Bloody Verrieres: The I. SS-PanzerKorps' Defence of the Verrieres - BourGuebus Ridges Volume II

Author: Arthur W. Gullachsen

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

 Detour to Disaster

General John Bell Hood's "Slight Demonstration" at Decatur and the Unravelling of the Tennessee Campaign

by

Noel Carpenter

 This is a small book which is just over 160 pages in length. The book is also printed in large type, so it is not a hard read by any measure. The center of the book has fifteen pages of black and white photos of the people mentioned and towns of the area. The book is followed by three appendices. The first one gives and Order of Battle for the Army of Tennessee. The next is a list of ferries and fords across the Tennessee River between Chattanooga and Florence. The third is the evacuation order for the people living in and around Decatur Alabama.

 Lieutenant General John Bell Hood has lost Atlanta and a good portion of his troops trying to attack General William Tecumseh Sherman and stop him from taking the city. Hood now comes up with an audacious plan. He will do exactly what Sherman has decided on doing except in reverse. Sherman plans to cut his lines of communication and march from Georgia to the sea. Hood intends to cut his lines and head north trying to pull Sherman after him. The disparity between the forces makes Hood's campaign not only a desperate chance, but one that in hindsight is almost assuredly useless. The author tells the story of the beginning of Hood's campaign and Hood's 'Detour to Disaster'.  

 On page 146 the author uses some quotes from other historians about Hood's campaign plans. "An impossible dream" another wrote "Hood's activities after Sherman left Atlanta (to follow Hood) seemed to have been scripted in never-never land".

 However, a lot of other pundits believe that had Hood acted with more speed his campaign would have been successful. General Beauregard, in his report, said that the original plan "would have led to the defeat of Thomas ... if executed without undue delay and with vigor and skill". Which, as the author shows, was not done. Hood's four lost days at Decatur pretty much put paid to the entire campaign. In the Epilogue the writer explains what happened next in Hood's Tennessee Campaign.  Hood was given a last chance to destroy a large part of the Union force against him before the Battle of Franklin, but once again victory was turned into defeat. This would lead to the tragic and useless battles of Franklin and Nashville.

 This is a great book that shows off the truth of the expression "for the want of a nail". It also should be required reading for anyone trying to sift fact from fiction during Hood's days in army command. Unfortunately, we lost the author in 2000. In his retirement he dedicated twelve years to research and write this book, and it shows in this detailed account. Thank you, Savas Beatie, for allowing me to review this book. I do not know anywhere near enough about the Western Campaign in the Civil War. I am just starting to fill that gap and this book has done its job admirably.

Robert

Book: Detour to Disaster: General John Bell Hood's "Slight Demonstration" at Decatur and the Unravelling of the Tennessee Campaign

Author: Noel Carpenter

Publisher: Savas Beatie

 The Battles of Antiochus the Great

The Failure of Combined Arms at Magnesia That Handed the World to Rome

by

Graham Wrightson

 Antiochus III, or the Great, was a ruler of the Seleucid kingdom from 223 to 187 BCE. He ascended the throne at eighteen years of age after the assassination of his brother Seleuces III. His throne was not secure by any means. The provinces in the east had left the empire a few decades before. He was also faced with a revolt by the satraps of Mesopotamia, Medea and Persia. The Ptolemies had almost crushed the Seleucid kingdom a few years before. Syria was also lost to the Ptolemies at the time of his ascension to the crown.  The author informs us of all of the history written above at the start of the book. He also goes into the state of the nations around the Seleucid kingdom so that we readers know exactly where the Hellenistic world, and beyond, stand at this time.

 The book describes itself thusly:

"The author analyses Antiochus' major battles, Raphia, Arius, Panium, Thermopylae and, of course, the disaster at Magnesia which opened the door to Roman dominance of the region."

 The author's take on the militaries of the later Hellenistic kingdoms is that they had not learned the lesson of Alexander or the Diadochi very well at all. He extols that the militaries of the later kingdoms were just a pale comparison to the great armies that had conquered the Persian Empire and beyond. Not just because there was no longer an Alexander to lead them, but because they did not understand what made those armies invincible for their time. The book shows how the percentage of infantry to cavalry, approximately 3 to 1, had changed so that it was more than 10 to 1 by Antiochus' time. The main idea of the book is that these newer rulers did not understand the combined arms approach that was needed to win with a Hellenistic army. He uses the battle history of Antiochus to prove his point. In this the author easily succeeds.

 However, the book gives the reader much more than the above. He goes into the tactical uses of each of the parts of a Hellenistic army. The author shows us how to use a Hellenistic army and where Antiochus went wrong. Antiochus was a singular unlucky king. He ruled at a time when Rome was branching out to make the Mediterranean Sea a Roman lake. It did not help that one of the greatest Roman generals, Scipio Africanus, was present with the Roman forces. While he deserved his appellation 'Great' by reconquering all of the Seleucid territories in the east, Antiochus ensured the death of the Seleucid kingdom by his loss to Rome. This is a tour de force about the military history of Antiochus' reign. I can easily recommend the book to anyone who wants to learn about him and the militaries of the Hellenistic kingdoms. Thank you, Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this excellent book on an era that hardly ever has some light shed on it.

Robert 

Book: The Battles of Antiochus the Great: The Failure of Combined Arms at Magnesia That Handed the World to Rome

Author: Graham Wrightson

Publisher: Pen & Sword

Distributor: Casemate Publishers

 War Along the Wabash

The Ohio Indian Confederacy's Destruction of the U.S. Army, 1791

by

Steven P. Locke

  The United States was only eight years old when this campaign took place. One tends to be a bit shocked that only after so few years that the country and Army that had defeated Britain was almost totally destroyed by an Indian Confederacy. This book goes back in time a few years to show how the smoldering resentment of both the English and the Native Americans burst forth into war. We are shown that Britain ceded all of the territory up to the Mississippi River to the new United States. There was only a small matter of the indigenous population who were not a part of the treaty. The native tribes had been pushed farther and farther back by the colonists, even though Britain had tried to stop the colonists from encroaching farther inland. 

 As the book shows, the British were still upset about their loss during the American Revolution and were very slow to, or not at all, follow the treaty's stipulations in the Northwest Territories. They refused to leave most of their forts. Not only that, but they were fomenting hatred among the Native Americans for the new rush of settlers that were encroaching on their lands. The British were also arming the Native American tribes of the area.

 The author explains that just like after every war until the Cold War the United States had shrunk its Army to an incredibly small size. Governor Arthur St. Clair was authorized on March 4, 1791, to raise the Second American Infantry regiment. This, along with the First American Infantry Regiment (The U.S. Army at the time) and with some six-month volunteers, only amounted to 4,000 soldiers! This force was to be used to create forts and strike out at the Ohio Indian Confederacy.

 This sets the stage for one of the U.S. worst military defeats with losses more than three times that of the Battle of the Little Big Horn. The three Native American chiefs Buckongahelas, Little Turtle, and Blue Jacket are almost forgotten now except for historians. The fame of Red Cloud, Sitting Bull, and Crazy Horse now far exceeds these earlier warriors. 

 The book goes into the hows and whys of the campaign. It then traces the resulting campaign and the trek through native American land. The battle does not really have a name like Tippecanoe or other battles against the Native Americans. It is called St. Clair's Defeat or the Battle of the Wabash but again it is mostly lost to history.

 The author has given us an excellent book about the era just after the American Revolution in the Ohio River Valley and the Northwest Territory. The book follows St. Clair's expedition day by day and gives all of the bad decisions that were made on many levels to lead to the crushing defeat. Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to review this deep and well written book. It is a must for anyone who wants to know about early American history or the history of the Native Americans trying to defend their land.

Robert

Book: War Along the Wabash: The Ohio Indian Confederacy's Destruction of the U.S. Army, 1791

Author: Steven P. Locke

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

 

 Assault Sicily 43 – on Gamefound starting 13th October 2023 – Subscribers get a free gift discount. 

 

“Mediterranean Sea, southwest coast of the island of Sicily.

It was the early morning of 10 July 1943 when the first landing craft their ramps at Gela and the first units of US Rangers set their boots on Italian soil. Together with the British and Canadian units that had landed further east, the Western Allies launched an unprecedented landing operation to push open the gate to Fortress Europe.

The night before, on 9 July, American and British airborne troops had already dropped into enemy territory behind the planned beach landing zones to occupy important positions. This was to prevent or delay timely counterattacks by Italian and German troops on the day of the landing.

This operation, called Husky, was the beginning of the end of the Italian army as an ally of the German Wehrmacht. It was the additional front, long demanded by Stalin, and thus brought the necessary relief of the Eastern Front.

Assault Sicily 43 is the second volume in a planned series of tactical level wargames in which players lead historical units into battle during the landing and airborne operations around Gela Beachhead in July 1943.

Americans, Italians and Germans fight bitterly for the backdoor Sicily as a launchpad for the invasion of the continent.”

Assault Sicily 43 is the first Western Front module in the Assault Games tactical war game system. The developers are Wolfgang Klein and Erich Rankl, who also designed the first Assault Games debut Eastern Front module Assault Red Horizon 41 (The Players Aid Top 10 Wargames 2021). 

Assault Sicily 43 is the second volume in a planned series of tactical-level wargames in which players lead historical units into battle during the landing and airborne operations around Gela Beachhead in July 1943. Americans, Italians and Germans fight bitterly for the back door of Sicily as a launch pad for the invasion of the continent. 

The scenarios and included dynamic campaign show the fierce and brutal fighting in the early days of the landing. US Rangers and Airborne soldiers face Italians and German counterattacks by Panzer grenadiers and the Hermann Göring Division, supported by the 504th Heavy Panzer detachment. Become part of the courageously led assaults on Italian positions by the American airborne troops of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment dropped the night before the landings.

Subscribe to be notified when we go live. You will get a free gift - 5,00 € discount.

Find more details and content following this link:

https://gamefound.com/en/projects/assault-games/assaultsicily43

 

About Assault Games:

Assault Games is a German board game publisher and was founded in 2020.

We want to create easy-to-learn, intense and action-packed gaming experiences.

We love tactical wargames!

Find our webshop and more information about us on: www.assault-games.com

Many thanks for your support

Wolfgang Klein.

Owner of Assaut! Games.

 

 

 



 

 

 Strategy & Tactics #340

by

Decision Games and Strategy & Tactics Press

  The French & Indian War was really the fourth war between Britain and France over the new continent. It is also the name given to the North American part of the Seven Years War. These are the wars, and their dates, fought on the North American continent:

King William's War 1688-1697 - Known as the War of the Grand Alliance in Europe

Queen Anne's War 1702-1713 - Known as The War of the Spanish Succession in Europe

King George's War 1744-1748 - Known as The War of the Austrian Succession in Europe

The French & Indian War 1754-1763 Known as the Seven Years War in Europe

 So, you can see there was a large history of warfare between the colonial powers before the last war for supremacy took place. In actuality, France really had no chance. The British colonies had a population of over a million in 1750. The French colony in Canada had a population of just over 50,000. With that disparity of numbers, it is pretty amazing that the French were able to battle that long for the continent. 

 It seems at times that the first thing that one of Noah's children did after landfall was to start printing Strategy & Tactics magazine. It was a bit heftier then and was written in Cuneiform but if you can find an old copy you will see that the format hasn't changed that much.

Part of the map for the Battle of Lake George 1755

 The articles for this issue are:

Decisive Battles of the French & Indian War by Joseph Miranda

Timur's 1398 Invasion of India and Sack of Delhi by Cam Rea

Goose Green - The Falklands 1982 by Andrew Mulholland

US Armor in the Philippines: 1941-42 by Russell Moore

 The usual departments are listed here:

On Design by Joseph Miranda

Work in Progress: Carolingian Twilight

The Russian Prewar Experience by Dave Schroeder

Did You Know? by Joseph Miranda

Flashpoints

 Iranian Drones in Venezuela by Javier Romero Munoz

 The Emerging Russo-Turkish Axis by Andrew Mulholland

 Cold War Weapons in the Russo-Ukraine War by Gilberto Villahermosa

 Lightning Carriers in the Indo-Pacific by Patrick S. Baker

For Your Information

 The 1946 Azerbaijan Crisis by Vernie Liebl

 The First Arab Siege of Constantinople, 674 -78 by Cam Rea

 Long Rifles in the 1815 Battle of New Orleans by Arnold Blumberg

 The Renault FT-17 Tank by Maciej Jonasz

Media Reviews: 

 Rome & Parthia, Empires at War Ventidius, Antony and the Second Romano-Parthian War 40-20 BC by Gareth Sampson and published by Pen & Sword reviewed by John D. Burtt

 It always happens when I get an issue of S & T that they print an article that interests me even more than my interest in the main article. The French & Indian War really interests me and always has. However, the life and reign of Timur is another bit of history that I have always tried to read everything I could get my hands on. The Falklands article takes a different than usual approach to the Goose Green Battle. As always, each page has something to make you think about or get interested in. 

Counters

 From Sir William Johnson's early victory in the war, to the penultimate Battle of Quebec, where both Wolfe and Montcalm died, along with the Battle for Fort Oswego in 1756. We have a triple dose of grand tactical battles for the French & Indian War to choose from.

 The game scale is 50-100 yards for each hex. Each strength point equals from 40-150 men. The artillery units equal from 2-6 guns. Each game turn represents 10 minutes to one hour. Both of the above vary due to the different scenario sizes.

The map is the standard 22" x 34". The map is split into three sections. The largest is the Battle of Quebec part. Next in size is the Battle of Fort George followed by the smaller Fort Oswego map. The hexes are nice and large. The nature of the terrain is mostly woods and clear hexes with the added fortification lines. The map is a well-done representation of the areas. The counters seem huge at 5/8" for a magazine game. They are also some of the best looking, if not the best, counters I have seen from S & T. The leader counters have small portraits on them. The counters show these units:

Line Infantry

Light Infantry

Grenadier Infantry

Indians

Militia Infantry 

Artillery

Supply Trains

 There are also counters for the different tactics that can be used by each side. These are used in the 'Special Tactics' of the Optional Rules. 

Attack

Volley

Bayonet Attack

Ambush

Forced March

 Each scenario has its own victory conditions. The French and British forces in each battle have a Demoralization Level. The different scenarios have conditions that raise each side's demoralization level. After that level is reached one of the effects are that disordered units cannot rally. The Special Tactics cannot be used on a side that has reached its demoralization level. The different units all have their Combat Factor, Movement Allowance, and Range Factor (if the unit is artillery). Other than some bells and whistles the games rules are pretty standard for this period of warfare. 

 These are some nice small engagements with a minimal of counters and small map footprints. They are a good choice of battles from the war. Players should be able to play a few games easily on game night. Thank you, S & T, for allowing me to review another of your excellent issues.  

Robert

S & T Press

S & T #340

 

Great Northern War

by

Wargame Design Studio 

 

 The Great Northern War went from 1700 until 1721. It was certainly not the first to envelop the Baltic countries nor would it be the last. Peter I (the great) was on the throne of Russia, Augustus II (the strong, and Marshal DeSaxe's father) was king of Poland and Saxony, and Frederick IV of Denmark-Norway decided to get together and conquer and then divide the Swedish possessions around the Baltic. On the throne of Sweden was an eighteen-year-old by the name of Charles XII. He had been a rowdy teenager as king, and one is reminded of Henry V of England before he became king. Charles, just like Harry, seems to have sobered up completely at the announcement of war. What the three foolish kings did not know is that they had unleashed from his bottle a specter that would haunt them for many years. Charles XII was a born military genius. He also slept with Arrian's account of Alexander the Great under his pillow. His feats on and off the battlefield would be sung through the ages just like a skald would sing of his Viking ancestors. I first met up with him as a child in the book Twelve Against the Gods by William Bolitho Ryall. My little eyes glassed over when constantly reading the part of about him over and over. I still only wear boots that resemble the ones he had on in the picture. Charles XII was a total anachronism for his years on earth. Cervantes should have written his biography. Charles probably saw himself as a crusader or as a knight errant.

 War game Design Studio has not released a game like this in a while. Most of their games are of huge swaths of territory with 1000 or more scenarios included with it, let alone the campaign games. This game comes with a mere sixty-eight scenarios, not counting the ones in the campaigns. You also get a Getting Started Scenario that also comes with a Getting Started PDF. This walks you through a good number of the different commands and settings you can use in the game. The Great Northern War is part of WDS's line of games called Musket & Pike. As of now, there are only three games in the Musket & Pike series The Great Northern War, Renaissance, and The Seven Years War. Both Renaissance and The Seven Years War are excellent games in their own right. However, I hope that the Musket & Pike Series is soon awash with other titles (hint, hint, nudge, nudge). This is what WDS has to say about the Musket & Pike Series:

 "The games in the Musket and Pike series cover many different campaigns during the new age of muskets up to the Seven Years War. The game scale is 100 meter hexes and 15 minute turns. Units are normally at the company/battery/squadron and battalion level.

All the titles in the series include both stand-alone battles as well as linked campaign games. Editors for both scenarios and campaigns are also included with all titles."

close-up battle screenshot

 This is what WDS has to say about GNW:

"All the titles in the series include both stand-alone battles as well as linked campaign games. Editors for both scenarios and campaigns are also included with all titles.

The Great Northern War includes 69 Scenarios – covering all sizes and situations, including a solo tutorial scenario plus specialized versions for both head to head play and vs. the computer AI.

A range of maps are included covering all the significant locations fought over during the Great Northern War and some of lesser known locations.

The order of battle files cover the various forces that participated in the campaign with other formations added in for hypothetical situations.

There are extensive 3d unit graphics covering all of the major armies involved.

Campaign and Scenario Editors which allow players to customize the game.

Sub-map feature allows the main map to be subdivided into smaller segments for custom scenario creation.

Design notes which cover or include the production of the game, campaign notes and a bibliography that includes the sources used by the designer team to produce this simulation game.

The Great Northern War provides multiple play options including play against the computer AI, Play by E-mail (PBEM), LAN & Internet "live" play as well as two player hot seat.

Includes battles from all aspects of the war - major encounters to small skirmishes. 69 stand-alone scenarios and 5 campaigns. A sampling would be:

Humlebæk

Narva

Riga

Kliszów

Poniec

Fraustadt

Holowczyn

Veprik

Poltava

Helsingborg

Stresow

Trondheim"

 Just like all of their titles, the bare bones of the games come from a series of John Tiller games that were released a while ago. However, WDS has worked their combined fingers to the bone in updating and testing all of the different series of games that they now produce. All of the games have come a long way from what they were when first released. 

 One of the biggest gripes from players of the original versions was the AI was not being up to snuff. A lot of the titles now have actual scenarios designed from the ground up to be played against the AI. There are sometimes multiple scenarios of the same battle complete with what ifs. The actual number of scenarios if you include the ones from the five campaigns is around 200! (and this is a smaller WDS game). This title is a bit different because the number of units on the game maps are very small compared to most of their titles. 

one of zoomed out levels view

 I should just post some pictures and say that you get to replay Narva and Poltava and call it a day. Anyone who has any interest in the GNW will be drooling over the prospect of replaying those battles. However, your choice is just like one offered by Monty Hall: there are always more doors to open. The amazing thing about these games is that you get a complete scenario and campaign editor. Effectively WDS has given you one game that you can tweak to your hearts content down through the years. 

This is the highest zoom out level.

 The battles in the game go from small engagements to large battles like Poltava. The addition of the Getting Started Scenario and PDF does a lot for newcomers to the games. It will also help grognards who, for whatever reason, have not played a WDS title in many a year. 

 Another thing that I love about WDS is that they have released a total of nine! smaller demo games covering almost all of their game series. These range from a piece of Waterloo to some Modern Air War and then topped off with a Spanish-American War Naval Campaign demo release.

 

Poltava from one of the zoom out levels, it also shows the inset map.

 Enough about WDS and all of their hard work and range of games. What about The Great Northern War? It is very hard as a reviewer to review a game that is about one of your favorite eras of wargaming. On the one hand, Poltava and Narva have had a good number of board wargames done about them. The other battles have never seen the light in a grognards eye. I also have really liked the system that the game uses, even more so now that WDS has updated almost all of the parts of the games. The only thing about the game that gives me any pause at all is their treatment of Poltava. While you could use the editor to change certain aspects to your liking, I am kind of stymied by their being only one version of the scenario included, outside of the Russian Campaign 1708-1709. This campaign has two different battles of Poltava in it. Historians are torn between it being a forlorn Swedish attack or that had Charles XII not been wounded (he was shot in the foot and unable to stand or ride a horse) their plan was feasible. So, it is possible that the designer is firmly in the 'the Swedes had no chance' side of the argument.

Another zoomed in screenshot

 

 We have not come to the point yet in computers where we can effectively act like commanding generals. No AI program has been written that can make your computer subordinates act like their historical counterparts (unless those counterparts did not deserve to be on the battlefield). Oh, we can tell a group or unit to follow a road or move to a certain area, but once it is there, we keyboard generals have to take over. AIs, especially in defense, have made great strides, but on the attack not so much. The great thing about the WDS AI scenarios is that they were built with this in mind. So, your AI opponent with these games will give you a fight. The other point about WDS is that they are continually working on the games' code. They just released version 4.7 for Waterloo (and soon for all of the Napoleonic games). Even some more work on the AI has been done in that release. The updates come from WDS so fast and furious that it is hard to keep up with them. 

 I do believe that grognards (grumblers) who also play board wargames make up the largest part of computer wargame players. So, in this instance instead of having a map the size of a table laid out for cats and kiddies to ruin we have it here on our screen. For wargamers who had to downsize, these games are also perfect. The map and the units stay right where we saved them. No wife or better half to grumble about taking up the space. All we do is turn the computer on and poof! there it is. 

 What goes for all of WDS games goes for this one. We do have competent AI generals, at least to some degree. So, solo players can have their cake and save it too. If you want to play a wargame against a live opponent, this game can do it no problem. The age where we had to switch seats is long over. You still can if you want to. You can also order your computer units around while sitting comfortably in your pajamas. Great Northern War brings to our computers battles that have never been seen before and campaigns that we have just dreamed about. Can you follow in Charles XII's footsteps and march to glory and final ruin, or will you be able to defeat all of your enemies and make the Baltic a Swedish lake for another hundred years?

close-up of the Battle of Narva at the start

 Thank you, Wargame Design Studio, for allowing me to review another excellent game in your stable. I cannot say enough about this game or the whole gamut of battles and campaigns from so many eras that your company produces. They also have been producing updates at a prodigious rate; this also includes more scenarios. Please take a look at all of the fine games they produce.

Robert 

Wargame Design Studio

Great Northern War

This is a link to their nine demos:

Game Demos – Wargame Design Studio (wargameds.com)

Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic

by

Natale Barca

 Is it just me or does anyone else get the irony of someone with the last name of Barca writing about the fall of the Roman Republic?

 The book is 342 pages long. It has a full color section of artwork and a few maps in the center of the book. This is from the jacket:

"Before Augustus focuses on the political and military history of this tumultuous period, 60-27 BC."

 This is a truly well written and deep book that focuses on the last few decades of the Roman Republic. It follows in detail the life of the Republic from 60 BC until the rise of Octavian (Augustus) to emperor in all but name. This is one of the best history books that I have read over the last year. This is coming from a reader who is most certainly not a fan of either Caesar or Octavian.

 At the start of the book Caesar is much like all of the other sons of the aristocratic families of Rome. He needs to be famous and to somehow make or come into a very large sum of money. Money pretty much buys votes by this time in the Republic. Pompey and Crassus are older and have already made a name for themselves. Pompey is, at this time, the first man in Rome, due to his various military campaigns. Crassus has made himself one of the richest persons who have ever lived. While Caesar came from a famous family, it was nowhere near the pinnacle of power it had once been. He needed a war to both make a name and to fill his coffers. The three of them enter into an arrangement called the First Triumvirate. This was strictly a back-alley arrangement between the three. It had no basis in law as the Second Triumvirate had.

 The author does an excellent job of showing us all the above and much more. He also shows us all of the other players in the political game called the Roman Republic (its slow decay into this bread and circuses type Republic is for another book). The writer does go into some of the details of how Rome got into the position she was in during the last century of the Republic. However, the main part of the book follows the time of Caesar's rise and fall. 

 This book is a great deep dive into the history of the players and events that it shows. The only thing that I wish is that it was a two-volume set with just one volume starting with the aftermath of Caesar's death. The machinations of both before, during, and after the Civil War are wonderfully laid bare. I see by the bibliography that the author has written other books in Italian. My hope is that we see more of his work in English. It appears that he has another book offered by Casemate Publishers: Rome's Sicilian Slave Wars. I will have to pick this up as soon as possible.

 Thank you so very much Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this excellent volume. It should be required reading for classes about the Roman Republic of the time. I look forward to a book about Marcus Antonius from the author.

Robert

Book: Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic

Author: Natale Barca

Publisher: Casemate Publishers