Crusades: Book I

Sword & Siege Series

by

Wargame Design Studio

 

 The words Deus vult! erupt across Christendom in the Year of Our Lord 1095. Pope Urban II has sent his best preachers all throughout Europe to drum up Lords and soldiers to retake Jerusalem from the Moslems. Never mind that the city has been under Moslem rule since 637 or 638 A.D. So, this call to the masses to rescue the city is almost 500 years too late. I guess the Pope felt that it was better late than never. The Byzantine Emperor, Alexios I Komnenos, was looking for some mercenary help from his Catholic brethren. Instead, he started an avalanche of the faithful coming straight at Constantinople. The date for the start of the 1st Crusade is generally given as 1095. However, it was not the actual first crusade to the Holy Land. The People's Crusade left for Asia Minor earlier than the Lords and martial crusaders. The People's Crusade was crushed at the Battle of Civetot in Anatolia. One of the leaders of this crusade was Peter the Hermit, who will become a big part of the history of the 1st Crusade. Wargame Design Studio has given us a new series of games in which this game is the flagship offering. So, let us see what the digital wizards of WDS have cooked up for us this time.

 This is what they have to say about it:

"Crusades: Book I includes 65 Scenarios – covering a variety of sizes and situations, including a solo tutorial scenario, five Training scenarios, Historical, Variant and What If 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 1st & 2nd Crusades and some of lesser known locations.

The order of battle files cover the various forces that participated in the campaigns 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 maps to be subdivided into smaller segments for custom scenario creation.

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

Crusades: Book I 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."

 These are some of the battles that come with the game:

"Includes battles from all aspects of the 1st & 2nd Crusades - major encounters to small skirmishes. 65 stand alone scenarios and 2 campaigns. A sampling would be:

Nicaea

Dorylaeum

Antioch

Ma'arat al-Numan

Jerusalem

Ascalon

Heraclea

Ramla

Acre

Harran

Tripoli

Tyre

Aleppo

Edessa

Ephesus

Damascus"

 As is usual for a WDS release, they have taken a wonderful game and attempted to drive us mad with it. Instead of five or even ten scenarios for us to get lost in, we have the standard myriads of them to get mired in. And if that was not enough, there are also two campaigns that you can try to play. The reason I say 'try to play' is because there is only so much time that we are allotted on this Earth. Every game, some even more than others, released by WDS comes with a cornucopia of scenarios to be played from either side and with numerous differences to each scenario. Upon opening up one of WDS games, one feels a bit like Rip Van Winkle and wonders exactly when you will get your life back. Then when you have finally marched through the entire game you can then use the Campaign and Scenario Editors to further dig your hole into the time span of your life. Of course I jest, but only slightly. To click on any exe of a WDS game is not for the faint hearted. 

 The most amazing feature of this game is that we now can actually play out sieges. WDS has certainly given us battles and campaigns to play, as have other gaming companies, but none that I can recall has ever given us the ability to besiege cities, towns, and castles, at least in the ages before gunpowder. For someone who believes the boardgame 'The Art of Siege' by SPI is the crowning glory of their boardgame collection, this is really an epiphany. This not only opens up the ability, at some time, to play out the siege of Acre in the 3rd Crusade but so many others from these and other centuries. This is made even more amazing by the inclusion of both 40 meter, normal, and 100 meter per hex sizes. This will also help with counter density on the larger scenarios. Some of these are only available once you add the free expansion available for download. Please see below for more information on this.

 The ebb and flow of the battles in Outremer is shown in the game's design. The charges of small amounts of well armored knights do make a difference just as they did in real life. The masses of lightly armed Moslem horse archers swarming around the crusaders is shown just as well. These are the earlier years of the crusades. While you will not see any Mamelukes, you will see the different Christian Orders of Knights, as in the Templars and Hospitallers. The battles have been well chosen to give both sides chances to command infantry and knights and light cavalry, sometimes all in the same scenario. WDS has continued to work on the game engine. They have recently had almost weekly updates on many of their series of games. They also have kept tweaking the AI and picking scenarios that are especially made for the AI of both sides. In this day and age, all wargames, whether they be board or digital, should have the option to play a well-designed solitaire version of whatever game it is. Yes, if you play the game constantly and only a few, or one, scenario repeatedly each day for x amount of time you will learn how to 'cheat' or beat the AI. If, however, you play like most of us and can only get in a certain number of hours a week and choose different scenarios to play, the AI will do just fine. I believe that WDS is only getting better with each passing week and release or update. 

 

 So, what is the verdict? It was never really in any doubt. This is another stellar release from WDS that will keep you playing for as long as you want to. The release of Age of Longbow Volume I has only meant that they are fully behind the Sword & Siege Series and have many more planned after the battles of the Hundred years War. I am drooling over the prospect of a game that has the battles of the Wars of the Roses! I know that I cannot wait for a further release on the crusader battles and the chance to besiege Acre in the Third Crusade. Of course, we would also get all of the battles of Melek-Ric and Saladin. 

 Long time readers will know that I base my wargaming taste of the moment depending upon what book I am reading or have read. In this case there has been a lot of ink spilled about the First Crusade and the taking of Jerusalem in 1099. So, it is only natural that my favorite scenarios in this game deal with the crusaders besieging Jerusalem. The battles for Antioch come in as a close second. Both have some of the most desperate times for the crusaders, with the crusade itself hanging in the balance. At both Antioch and Jerusalem, the crusaders are, no pun intended, able to pull off miracles to not only keep the crusade going but outright win battles that they absolutely have to.

 Kudos, as usual, go out to WDS for this new game and series. We as wargamers have been truly gifted by not only their game releases but their constant upgrading and even at times throwing us freebie expansions.

 Since the arrival of Crusades: Book I into our hot little hands WDS has not been idle. They have released a freebie par excellence for us. This is what they have written about it:

"With the exceptional reception Crusades: Book I has got since release—just shy of 90 days ago—we wanted to bring you a further boost to this already great game package.

Today's expansion package will give you 9 new scenarios to play. The twist is, most of these are at the 100-meter scale. So, while they recreate familiar battles from the initial release, now those large encounters can be played with a lower counter density and larger individual units. When you extract the package to your main game directory, it will add these 9 new scenarios to the bottom of the list in the selection screen.

Oh, and did I mention this is a completely free addition to the game for existing owners? It certainly is. And when the next update for the game is released, it will be incorporated into that package.

Outside of counter density and smaller maps, some other differences relate to Siege Towers and Fortress Walls. The capacity for both has been increased from 75 to 150 men for the 100-meter variants. In the case of the walls, this is to account for the larger length of wall represented in each hex; for Siege Towers, it represents the increased amount of time available in a turn, which enables more men to traverse up a tower.

The following two images compare the 40-meter version to the 100-meter version.

The final two scenarios in this package are designed to be played from the Muslim side against the AI. One of them is a siege scenario and the other is an open field battle. Both of these scenarios are at the traditional 40-meter hex scale.

Additionally, today we are releasing another video focusing on this game, to add to the existing four videos in the Crusades Playlist. You can check that out below - Siege Playthrough, Part 1."

 Here is the link to the free expansion:

https://wargameds.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/downloads/CrusadesI_Expan_Pack.exe

 This is the link to the video described above:

https://youtu.be/wLxh8vLlaEQ

Robert

Wargame Design Studio:

Wargame Design Studio Store

Crusades: Book I:

Crusades: Book I – Wargame Design Studio

 Neither King Nor God

by

Sound of Drums

 This is some information from Sound of Drums about its newest release.

"Dear friends, supporters and grognards!

I hope you all do well and enjoy autumn, the long evenings around a table with family and friend playing board games.

Designing Neither King Nor God: The Story Behind Its Creation and the Pilot Edition

First and foremost, I’m a gamer - and have been since I was a kid. Some of my favorite moments are when fellow gamers reach out or when we meet at conventions to talk about games, history, and those wonderful cardboard boxes that bring the two together.

I had been keeping an eye on Europa Universalis for ages. Back in the early days of Sound of Drums, I even reached out to AEGIR about possibly doing a German edition. But since AEGIR, like us, is a small and passionate team, they were understandably swamped getting the project off the ground, so our contact remained casual.

For years I kept going back and forth, asking myself, “Should I back it? Shouldn’t I?” Each time I decided, “No, Here I Stand is already on the shelf, and let’s be honest, you’ll probably never play EU anyway.” That internal debate lasted far longer than I’d like to admit.

At heart, I’m a wargamer, mostly drawn to the Napoleonic era. But the Renaissance, with its politics, intrigue, and shifting alliances, has always fascinated me.

So, while I was busy dithering between Europa Universalis and Here I Stand, my desire to play an epic game set in that period only grew stronger. Then, after reading a historical novel that captured the era’s drama and complexity, I thought: why not design one myself? And that’s when the idea was born: a game built on the design philosophy of Sound of Drums.

The important thing was that it had to be accessible, and yet epic. Or perhaps better said: epic, as the theme deserves, but still accessible. In other words, the exact opposite of Europa Universalis and Here I Stand in that regard.

The novel also sparked the idea for the game’s core mechanism - one that would ensure a high level of player interaction, something I consider absolutely indispensable in any design.

Sorry, I posted the old meeple sheet along with this new one.

How can I bring the game to a wider audience? And how can I reach the full potential of the player base that might love it?

We’re gradually making a name for ourselves, but the market - and the competition - is brutal. I know from experience how much my beloved series History of the Ancient Seas has flown under the radar. I’m thrilled that it’s now slowly finding a wider audience, but it takes time and persistence.

With our rhythm at Sound of Drums and the way we work, I can’t simply produce eight or nine advanced prototypes, send them out to reviewers, and launch a massive marketing campaign. That’s not realistic for a small studio.

We do, however, have a loyal base of players who appreciate the quality, artwork, and game design we deliver. But the market moves fast. Players rush from one novelty to the next. And I always remind myself, with every project: we only get one chance to do this theme. One bullet in the chamber. It has to be right, because we won’t revisit the Renaissance or Mediterranean civ-building theme a second time. It has to be the ultimate game.

That’s when the idea came to me: what if we created a “light” version, focused on the core mechanism - the Courtiers? I asked my friend and fellow gamer Chris Synatzschke to lead the development and Andrew James to take on the role of editor. Both had very little time to work with, and the challenge was enormous.

The goal was to scale down the original design: only four factions, a smaller map, and just 300 wooden pieces. We’re producing this Pilot Edition in a very limited quantity - once they’re gone, they’re gone.

It will be available from October 11 to 31, 2025, priced at EUR 29 instead of EUR 69. Production finishes on October 14, just in time for Essen. We don’t expect to sell out instantly; some retailers have already shown interest in taking remaining copies. We’ll also be generous with YouTube reviewers and influencers.

The goal of this limited edition is simple: to showcase the unique, intelligent Courtiers mechanism and to build anticipation for the epic version. I hope many players will say, “For 29 euros, I’ll give it a try,” and later, “Wow! That Courtiers mechanism is brilliant.”

The full epic version will offer much more: a rich diplomatic subsystem, a non-player Ottoman Empire, deeply asymmetrical factions, additional courtier types, and plenty more. Yet it will still remain accessible - far more so than Europa Universalis or Here I Stand, both incredible games that are admired more often than they’re played.

My plan is to reach those same players through this Pilot Edition campaign. And thanks to our talented graphic designer Marc von Martial, along with our signature wooden components, I’m confident we can achieve a production quality that truly justifies the effort.

We’re also expanding thematically. We’re about to sign another historical title alongside Neither King Nor God: The Collapse, designed by Daniel Iniesta Hernández, set during the Thirty Years’ War."

 This is the information about the game:

84 x 60 cm double-layered mounted map

over 300 wooden playing pieces, most customized & silk printed

36 Victory Conditions cards

4 double layered faction sheets

4 wooden storage boards

2 dice

1 cloth bag

1 play aid withset up instructions

1 rules manual

Game Info:

Designer: Uwe Walentin

Artist(s): Marc von Martial

Developer: Chris Synatzschke

LTD  Pilot Edition: This edition is only available until 31st of October in a limited print run. 

Hist. period: Renaissance

Game length: 90+ minutes

Players: 4 players

Age: 14+ years

Complexity: 5 / 10

Solitaire: no 1 / 10

Robert

Sound of Drums

Neither King Nor God

My reviews of Sound of Drums other games:

Eylau 1807 Battles of Napoleon Volume I by Sound of Drums - A Wargamers Needful Things

1793 Patriots & Traitors by Sound of Drums - A Wargamers Needful Things

Hellas: History of the Ancient Seas I by Sound of Drums - A Wargamers Needful Things

Old Guard Publishing

A new wargaming company

 This is news straight from the Grognard's mouth:

"Old Guard Publishing specializes in horse and musket period games with a particular emphasis on the epic period of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars.

Our mission is to have fun while educating. Not only will you have a fun game, but each game contains a wealth of historical information in the scenario book that will rarely be found in any other game. With every game you'll have a complete understanding of the history and the choices faced by each commander as the action unfolds. In the scenario book you'll find primary source material that has never been translated into English until now.

Old Guard Publishing's motto is playability with historical accuracy. This means game mechanics should be as simple as possible to model the particular issue at hand. For example, in the tactical horse and musket system, Glory & Empire, a unit's fire strength is read from the counters/markers and modifiers are added or subtracted from the fire strength. In the case of skirmishers, the rules are more detailed, yet still with an eye towards simplicity and elegance, to differentiate the use of skirmishers prior to the French Revolution and their later use. These are not simple games, but the hope is to avoid bogging people down in complicated game mechanics.

Currently, Old Guard Publishing has two game series in development: a tactical horse and musket system called Glory & Empire, and an operational scale horse and musket system.

Glory and Empire is a game series devoted to grand tactical command, maneuver and combat during the horse and musket period. It will handle the time period from the introduction of cadenced marching up until the introduction of the mini-ball. The player is cast in the role of Army Leader. Though the player must still move all of his pieces on the ‘chess board.’ However, just as in chess there are limits on how he may maneuver his pawns and knights. The game is designed for two or more players but may be played solitaire.

The map scale is 125m per hex. Units are battalions and companies for infantry, regiments and squadrons for cavalry and companies for artillery. Each strength point is 100 men for infantry, 50 men and horses for cavalry or one section, or 2 guns, for artillery. Turns are 20 minutes. Unit counters and some markers are 5/8" and other markers are 1/2".

The rules consist of three sets: Soldier's, Battalion and Brigade rules set. Players can learn the basics with the Soldier's rules, move to a full-fledged simulation with the Battalion Game and pick and choose rules from the Brigade Game to suit their tastes. Or players can jump right into the Brigade Game and understand how grand tactical maneuvering was practiced on the battlefield during the 18th and 19th centuries.

The Soldier's Game gives players new to the era an introduction to foundational concepts of tactics in the horse and musket era. In the Soldier's and Battalion Games there are the usual line, column, square and skirmishers. The Battalion game expands the use of skirmishers, introduces important concepts for maneuvering forces on the battlefield and has more detailed close combat procedures. The Brigade Game adds close columns, attack columns, closed square, Austrian division masses. Artillery is simplified for the Soldier's and Battalion Games, but the Battalion Game adds artillery ammunition. The Brigade Game adds bombardment zones, bounce through, howitzer fire and separate ammunition tracking for round shot, shell, canister and shrapnel. The Brigade Game also gives players more tools to react to enemy moves.

However, the raison d'être of the Brigade Game is its unique command system designed to show how units really maneuvered on the battlefield. It's core concepts come straight out of the drill regulations of the period. Brigades maneuver in grand tactical formations as lines of battle and in grand columns. These grand tactical formations impose their own ebb and flow on the battlefield as they break apart in combat and reform as units rally. No longer will your games look like rugby scrums. More detail can be found on these BGG threads: [On Command - Brigade Game Command Rules](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2809161/on-command-brigade-game-command-rules) and [On Orders of Battle](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2841446/on-orders-of-battle).

The Glory & Empire system made it's debut with First Victories covering two smaller battles: Roliça and Vimeiro. The BGG entry can be found here: [First Victories](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/340120/first-victories-wellington-versus-napoleon).

The next entry in the series is a game on the less well-known battle of Fuentes de Oñoro that takes place on the Portuguese-Spanish border in May 1811, following Masséna's retreat from Portugal. Fuentes de Onoro consists of a tactical game with four maps and seven counter sheets. For this game a new feature, called the Marshal's Game, has been added. The Marshal's Game adds an operational map, about 4x the scale of the tactical maps, that overlays the tactical game. It has an additional sheet of 3/4" counters that represent the brigades and leaders of each army. Brigade units can leave the operational map and enter the tactical map converting to their tactical equivalents for battle. The Marshal's Game allows players to move units around the periphery of the battlefield on the operational map to try alternate strategies, without them being scripted by the designer, providing much more replay value in what if situations. Development is nearly complete and will be available for pre-order soon.

Old Guard Publishing's second system is the Glory & Empire Operational System (GEOSS). It's a working title. Once, it gets closer to publication a real name will be chosen. GEOSS is intended to be a more complete operational game, than the Marshal's Game. The scale is 1 to 2 KM per hex and 1 to 4 hours per daylight turn, depending on the length of the campaign. Units are mainly regiments or brigades, but there may be some artillery companies, battalions and regiments to handle mixed brigades and army and corps resources. This is more fine grained than Kevin Zucker's Campaigns of Napoleon series, which I've long enjoyed. These games will cover the critical period of a campaign when armies are on the march towards a pitched battle, usually a few days to a couple of weeks. The game system will focus on command and maneuver and the key relationship to logistics. The first game in this series will be the battle of Castiglione campaign from July 31 to August 8, 1796. The game is still very much in development.

Those are Old Guard Publishing's present plans, and the intent is to remain focused on horse and musket period games."

 So, as you can see, this announcement is about not just a new game company but also a new Napoleonic operational gaming system along with their tactical battles.

 Home of Wargamers 2025 - Matrix 25th Anniversary

 This is the information about today's Matrix information filled expo.

Home of Wargamers 2025 - Matrix 25th Anniversary - Today at 18.00 CEST

A strong lineup of Matrix Games in one event!  Home of Wargamers 2025  will take place next week on Today at 6:00 PM CEST. As part of the celebrations for the 25th anniversary of Matrix Games, we will present the future of the Combat Mission franchise, exciting news about Armored Brigade II, and the new expansions for Rule the Waves 3 - Expanded Battles and Strategic Command: American Civil War - Concert of Europe.

This will be a unique opportunity to meet and hear directly from the developers of Rule the Waves 3, WEGO WWII: Overlord, Command: Modern Operations, Flashpoint Campaigns, Nuclear War Simulator. And there will be a truly special surprise for all fans of the War in the East franchise.

https://www.matrixgames.com/news/home-of-wargamers-2025-september-25th 

 Iron Squad

by

Princeps Games

On Kickstarter now

 This is straight from Princeps Games:

"Hello,

My name is Vukasin Nisavic and I am the cofounder of Princeps Games together with my brother Janko Nisavic. When we are not designing games I work as a legal adviser. My brother and I design games, playtest them and we are doing our best to deliver a fine product to the audience. Nothing new with ‘Iron Squad’ regarding this.

While playing board wargames it always bothered me how players can see the enemy’s units on the board. Even though there are some mechanisms which simulate the FOW system in computer games up to a point, all those systems were not quite there yet. There was always something missing. So, I decided to give it a try, and I designed a system that will allow the players to have the same experience while playing board games which they have while playing computer games.

 ‘Iron Squad’ was originally designed for our new ‘Fog of War’ system. We like to call it ‘revolutionary’. This system required a unique game management so we needed a simple game to start with and that’s how the ‘Iron Squad’ was born. Unfortunately, we found that mass production of this kind of FOW system was too challenging for our small company at this time, so we decided to do an overhaul of ‘Iron Squad’ and here we are. You would definitely have to check this FOW system in order to understand the scale of it. Here is the video if you’re interested

https://youtu.be/gIZgbsffANo

With ‘Iron Squad’ we wanted to offer a game with high replay ability, so this time we went for a game board design which will allow players to have a different terrain configuration in every game by using the ‘Terrain Tiles’. Also, a different setup of the game is possible thanks to the mini-map sheets which allow the players to set the starting position of their units in a different way every time they play the game. Players draw ‘Mission Cards’ and the player who completes the mission first is the winner. If this doesn’t happen until the end of round 12, the winner is the player with the most Victory Points.

There are so many factors which can lead to a different game. You have the ‘Terrain Tiles’ which bring new configuration of the game board. Then you have mini-maps which allow a different setup. Each player has 5 different Missions Cards to draw. In addition, you have a ‘Weather’ and ‘Day&Night’ modifiers. At the end, there is a very interesting combat system with a modified D20 dice which allow the players to choose the impact of luck.

‘Iron Squad’ is currently live on Kickstarter and you can check the campaign page and back the game by clicking on this link:"

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/princepsgames/iron-squad

These are two reviews I did of other Princeps Games:

The Battle of KhalKhin Gol July - August 1939 by Princeps Games - A Wargamers Needful Things

March on the Drina WWI by Princeps Games - A Wargamers Needful Things

This is a review that Polydor did:

FREEZING INFERNO - A Wargamers Needful Things

 Countdown to D-Day: the German Perspective

The German High Command in Occupied France, 1944

by

Peter Margaritis

 This book's timeline is from December 1943, with a bit of a prelude, until the actual Normandy Invasion on June 6th, 1944. This is a very large book and is just over 600 pages in length. It deals with the day to day lives of the major German officers during the above six-month period. It gives the reader incredible detail into the different views of the main characters and even their personal lives. 

 Field Marshal Rommel is clearly the main German officer of the book. Some of the book deals with the difference of opinion between Rommel and Field Marshal von Rundstedt as to where the German panzer divisions were to be placed. Rommel, well aware of the Allied air superiority, wanted the panzers very close to the beaches of Normandy. On the other hand, von Rundstedt wanted the panzers held farther back to hit the Allies with a large, armored fist when the exact area of the landings was known. Hitler, in his usual way, made a mish mash of both plans. So, we are left to conjecture and wargaming to try and find the answer to the question - was either Field Marshal, correct?

 The book follows Rommel around as he desperately tries to make Hitler's vaunted 'Fortress Europe' a reality instead of a pipe dream. Anyone interested in the infighting and actual thoughts of the German High Command before and about D-Day should read this book. The author's painstaking diary-like approach to every day during that time period is to be marveled at. 

 There is one caveat, at least for someone whose tastes mirror my own. That is, the book goes into too much personal detail about the characters' lives during those six months. I am not really interested in where Rommel ate lunch and dinner on March 15th, 1944. That being said, all of the juicy bits of history that I love are in this book. I just had to dig a little deeper to find them. I am also not a Rommel fan boy by any way shape or means. Had it delved more into von Rundstedt's life it is possible that I wouldn't have these thoughts about the book. On the other hand, Rommel was by far the busiest of the two commanders at the time and through his travels takes you to all of the different places on the Normandy coast. So, you may want to take my caveat with a grain of salt.

 Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to review this large, interesting book. I read for the first time some interesting things about the time and the personal tastes of the characters. I knew that von Rundstedt liked detective novels, but I did not know that he was also an avid gardener. 

Robert

Book: Countdown to D-Day the German Perspective

Author: Peter Margaritis

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

 The Battle of Thapsus

Caesar, Metellus Scipio, & the Renewal of the Third Roman Civil War

by

Gareth C Sampson

 I do not believe that Gareth C, Sampson has ever written an ancient history book that I did not love. That he can make me feel this way with books about Caesar is even more amazing. This is the third book in a series of books about the main battles of the Third Roman Civil War. The author started with 'The Battle of Dyrrhachium' and then followed with 'The Battle of Pharsalus'. This book now takes you to North Africa, after Caesar's tryst and long stopover in Alexandria Egypt. The author shows that the Pompeians, or more correctly the Republicans, have taken the respite that Caesar gave them to build a large force to once again take the field against him.

 Mr. Sampson does not just take Caesar's word for what happened during this time period. This is contrary to many centuries of authors taking Caesar's books about the Civil War and before as Gospel. There are more ancient sources than just his writings to be studied and sifted through to find the real truth of the matter. The two earlier books in the series have shown that Caesar was close to being defeated several times. He also shows us that Pharsalus was not a crushing defeat of the Republicans as we have been taught before. In fact, a large number of the defeated army made its way to North Africa to try once again to defeat him.

 This third battle book is inappropriately named, as they all are. It is not just about the Battle of Thapsus. The book goes into everything that happened to get Caesar in North Africa both politically and militarily. It also goes through the whole campaign and not just the battle. It does not just gloss over the other factors and information but gives the reader a full picture of the contest of arms.

 Once again, the author shows us that this was not some slam dunk for Caesar. He did not land in North Africa and growl and the forces against him faded away like wraiths. The campaign and battle were just as much a seesaw as the other campaigns the author has brought to light. Caesar's recklessness and his wont to throw the iron dice of war are shown in their fullness.

 Thank you, Casemate Publishers and Pen & Sword for allowing me to review this excellent book. I am sorry to say that it does not change history and that Caesar still ends up as the winner. What it does do is take the reader 2000 years in the past to show them everything that matters to a lover of ancient military history. Of course, many of the maxims brought forth in the book are just as important now as they were then.

Robert Peterson

Book: The Battle of Thapsus: Caesar, Metellus Scipio, & the Renewal of the Third Roman Civil War

Author: Gareth C Sampson

Publisher: Pen & Sword

Distributor: Casemate Publishers

LIMITS OF GLORY

SANTA MAURA & CAPRI

FROM 

FORM SQUARE GAMES 

This recently released game is the third in the Limits of Glory series produced by Form Square Games. Sub-titled Campaigns III & IV, the box contains two mini-sized games covering what are very, very small engagements in what can only be considered a minor side-show of the Napoleonic Wars.  Both involve naval attacks and landings to capture small islands.  Time-wise Capri is the earlier being the French's attempts in 1808 to recapture Capri from the British, while Santa Maura, which sees the British on the attack, occurred in 1810.  What they mainly provide are two very low unit density games ideal for when time is short and you need a quick fix of the Limits of Glory system.  Though their brevity also suits them for introducing the system, all its elements  are covered including the naval elements introduced in Maida and additionally brings shore batteries to the mix.  The latter drew a rare request from me for clarification which the designer, Andy Rourke, as always was swift to reply to.  His answer served to confirm my view that it's a risky business attempting to disembark land forces before eliminating shore batteries!

A single double-sided map is all that is needed to cover the very limited geographical area of each battle and the now familiar Event Clock and Combat Charts can be handled with back printed versions of each.  This adds to the compactness of the package. Lavish though it is to provide a separate rule book for each game, the amount of duplication is such that it would seem easier for once just to have the very slight differences presented as Special Rules.  Still this is hardly a criticism, especially as it allows for the space to include an even wider range of the superlative reproductions of Cruikshank and Gillray cartoons that are a stand-out feature of presentation in the Limits of Glory games - as illustrated below.

It's rare for me to relish a rule book for its art work. Or for my wife to ask to leaf through a set of my game rules - just to look at the pictures!

What drew me to the Limits of Glory system in the first place was the sheer innovative qualities of this game design, all centring on the concept of Glory points, the leaders who possess them and the ability to spend them to influence the dice rolls of virtually every aspect of game play.   Key aspects include: area movement, the  success factor for all actions based on rolling 5s or 6s, combat based on the roll of three dice on a simple matrix of the Leader's nationality and the strength of his troops, an Event Clock tailored to the historical situation of each campaign and which ensures the unpredictability of the end of each game and a momentum system designed so that each player will have a maximum of only 4 actions per turn

Santa Maura & Capri continues this in fine style, but for a more detailed consideration of how the essential Limits of Glory rules work, I’d refer you to my review of the very first campaign in this series, Napoleon’s Eastern Empire and I've included a number of illustrative photos and explanatory examples at the end of the review. 

In this review now I want to concentrate on what makes these two campaigns individual.  The first is the predominance of sieges. Though these have been there from the beginning of the series, they haven’t so far played such a major part.  In Santa Maura, retaining control of the fortress of Santa Maura until the end of the game is the sole French victory condition, while the Allied player’s major goal is to capture the fortress, though they can also win by forcing Camus, the French leader, to surrender.  

Santa Maura Set-Up

This all or nothing outcome drives the game and, perhaps, makes it the less varied of the two games.  That said, the situation is enlivened by the small idiosyncrasies that I’ve also come to expect from the quirky historical contexts.  Here it is the inclusion of a contingent of Albanian troops fighting for the French and the presence of one of the Greek independence leaders, Kolokotronis, whose map counter can once per turn attempt to entice those Albanian troops to desert their French allies! [I’m still waiting for Form Square Games to seek out a campaign that allows an opportunity for Lord Byron to crop up in the fight for Greek Independence.]

Capri Set-Up

Capri too introduces a number of new allies: for the French there are Neapolitan Infantry, while the British contingent contains a Maltese regiment and Corsican Rangers.  The situation here is more varied; both sides have sudden death victory conditions.  For the French, it is the control of Ana Capri and Capri town; for the British the destruction of 10 of the French gunboats.  Should neither player achieve their sudden death victory condition,  victory at game end depends on who gains the most VPs from controlling  BUAs [Built Up Areas].  As such areas can only be captured from your opponent by siege and, in the Santa Maura campaign, the siege and capture of the single major fortress wins the game, you can see why I consider SIEGES as the prime factor in this latest game.

As I've implied Capri is my favourite of the two games with its wider ranging situation and more varied units and victory conditions.  Both, however, are excellent for those wanting a shorter playing time and smaller playing area (which the Set-Up illustrations show) while retaining all the elements of the system...

Below are a just few close up shots to illustrate a range of rule points.

A typical impression of the map, with each number indicating how many dice you roll in order to activate units in that area - remember a success is always a 5 or 6 and you are allowed to spend 1 pt of Glory from a Leader who is present for each die you want to reroll.

So, in the town on the right, you would roll 3 dice and provided you rolled at least one 5 or 6 the area would be activated.  Should you fail to roll any, then you could spend from 1-3 points from Leader Lowe's Glory in order to reroll from 1-3 dice.

However, if you were trying to activate the area to his left, then you could roll only one die and if you failed, there would be no chance for a reroll, as there is no Leader in the area.

Also notice the zero in some areas -  a new feature which makes the area impossible to be activated.

Here you get a clearer image of the small fortresses which add to the defence strength of the units located in the area and also mean that the enemy must besiege you.  The banners (typically red for the British and blue for the French) show the number of VPs each side would gain for controlling that area.  

Where you have two (or more leaders) in an area, you must use the most senior leader's Glory points for rerolls. Seniority is shown by the small number in the black circle - with 1 being the highest ranking leader.  So, if Hamil and Nichols were in the same area, you would have to use Hamil's Glory pts for rerolls.  

If a battle were being fought in an area, the highest ranking leader can designate a subordinate leader to be used for rerolls, but then at the end of the combat the subordinate leader would have to roll to see if he becomes a casualty!

Here you have a small section of the Event Clock for the Capri game.  At the beginning of each Turn, the appropriate number of dice are rolled to see what Event occurs.  At the beginning of the game you will roll only one die, but some Events will change that to 2 dice and eventually to 3 dice.  Notice that many involve a change in the weather e.g. from Wind to Calm - this is a new rule introduced to the system for this particular campaign.  Finally the R indicates that this Event may happen repeatedly.  If you roll for an Event that does not contain an R, then you carry out the Event and then there will be a new Event tile to place on top of the existing one. I hope these illustrations will have helped to give you a little more flavour of the game.

And finally, just as a teaser for the future, I can guarantee that the next campaign game Donning The Sacred Heart ( which is well under way) takes us to a very different situation, played out in the counter-revolution period of the 1790s in the Vendee region of France and brings new twists to the Limits of Glory system. 

 American Civil War Commander 1861 - 1865

Death of an Institution. The Bloodiest Conflict in the Western Hemisphere.

by

Student Commander

Designed by 

Andy De Campos

 The American Civil War is one of the most written about and gamed piece of history there is, from tactical games about all of the battles to strategic ones and everything in between. There are even wargames about the various Ironclads used by both sides in the war. The few hours battle between the CSS Virginia and the US Monitor probably has enough books written about it to fill up a regular sized bookcase. Even outside of the US there are tons of people who read and wargame about the conflict. So, why would a designer pick this carcass, which has been stripped to the bones years ago, as a design product? Well, one reason is that Student Commander has based its whole line of wargames on Civil Wars. However, I do not think that is the only reason. The designer, Andy De Campos really had some novel ideas about how to wargame the Spanish Civil War so I think he might have a few things up his sleeve for this one. This is a list of the games that the designer is working on, in no particular order:

Roman Civil War 49 - 30 B.C.

American Civil War 1861 - 1865

Russian Civil War 1917 - 1922

Chinese Civil war 1927 - 1949

Spanish Civil War 1936 - 1939

Korean War 1950 - 1953

Vietnam War 1955 - 1975

 I had the privilege of reviewing the Spanish Civil War game from them. Please see the link below. 

The Map in all of its Splendor!

 This is what comes with the game:

1-2 player game imitating the professional war gaming played by HQ staff officers.

Large premium photo paper board (45 x 35 in) with historical period map; highly detailed and educational.

Over 350 pieces with over 40 unique individual units.

Laser cut wooden counters.

24 commander chits with individual qualities and promotion potential.

Original American Civil War 54 card deck. Activate historical and fictional events.

Use deck separately for any card game.

1 set of 4 game booklets

2 black pawns

3 sand timers

1 set of tweezers

Label sheets for the counters

1 yellow fraction die

1 green vector die

1 orange measuring stick

3 sets of DD die (7 die each)

2 black D2 die

3 black D3 die

2 game trays for the pieces

2 player aid sheets with the sequence of play on one side and some play notes on the other side

 The game actually comes in a pretty large tube. You kind of feel like a magician who keeps pulling scarves out of his sleeve when you empty the tube.

Board Layout

 The map seems a lot larger than its stated size. As you can see in the pictures, it is extremely well done. While the map seems impervious to spills or foodstuff accidents, I cannot abide with either being anywhere near one of my wargames. The rulebook states that a normal 6' dining room table will fit it and all of the extras needed for play. I actually have it on one, so the rulebook speaks true. The only thing I would like to add is this is a game that is meant to represent a real military wargame. However, you do not need to use the timers if you choose not to. The timers are there to stop the player whose turn it is from just thinking about what to do next etc. The way the rules are stated " if your hands are not touching any component on the map or writing in your notepad the timer should be running". 

The War in Virginia

 This is what the designer has to say about the game:

"Excellent solitaire experience and high re-play value while maintaining historical content integrity.

While the action phase is highly competitive and entertaining, player choices will affect the economy heavily and, ultimately, the outcome of the war.

Each turn of the game gives you a chance to roll on four of twelve possible historical or probable events, which will enhance some of the political dynamics indirectly affecting your income through political popularity and support for the war. Congress is a heavy influencer, while international affairs make brief appearance."

 One of the biggest differences these Civil War Commander Games have compared to other wargames is an economic part to the simulation. Do not think that this is just tacked onto the game at the end for some glitz. The economic portion of these games are even more important than most of the others. An army runs on its belly and a nation runs on its economy. These are just some of the parts of the economic phase of the game:

American Civil War ECONOMY

Agricultural: cotton, tobacco and wheat were the top cash crops.

Industrial: textiles, armaments, foundries and manufacturing.

Trade: the lifeline of the South, hampered by the blockade.

Currency: immediate and sure but resulting dangerous inflation.

Taxation: The least impact on economy but it takes its time.

Bonds:  Involve the population (if they believe you'll win.)

Confiscation: a short run method with prohibitive backlash.

Financing the War

 This is a piece written by the designer that shows some of his thoughts behind the game:

"For over a century, there has been an ongoing discussion on the cause of the American Civil War. One extreme holds that Abraham Lincoln was resolved to destroy the cruel institution of slavery from the start and abused his Federal charter by using the Union Army to accomplish it. On the other end of the historiographical spectrum lies the narrative of the Lost Cause of the Confederacy, which holds that the South was chiefly concerned with defending the autonomy of states' rights over the preservation of the peculiar institution.

Regardless of ideological drive, the American Civil War saw the greatest clash of arms in the Western Hemisphere. The tragic heavy losses witnessed in battles such as Cold Harbor and Antietam stem from outdated military formations and tactics used with modern weapons of unprecedented killing capacity. 

Differing strategies competed for victory. The Anaconda Plan sought to constrict the Confederate trade. Robert E. Lee, genial though he was, persisted valiantly to give the enemy a decisive blow in a Napoleonic battle and bring the war to an end that way. The Union finally agreed to use its advantage in numbers and resources to wage a war of attrition. Ulysses S. Grant was the first modern general to lead troops from the rear. William Tecumseh Sherman grasped the use of destruction and terror with few holds barred to subdue the enemy. 

The conflict was, unlike others (Russian, Chinese, Spanish, Korean, Vietnam) a civil war par excellence in that it was mostly devoid of foreign entanglements.

The economy of the Civil War was as frail as it was peculiar. With the failure of the King Cotton strategy, the South failed to rely on innovative ways to raise money for the war. The Confederacy mitigated the Union’s death grip on imports through blockade runners but it could have tried other methods such as increased taxes or land sales. The Union’s expert manipulation of currency proved more reliable.

All these considerations are reflected in the game, to some extent. This is a great laboratory that gives you a chance to try out different military strategies and economic policies to win. Hindsight is 20-20. Find out if victory was as assured for the Union as it may seem, or if the Confederacy could have made it!"

 Thank you very much Mr. De Campos for allowing me to do another review of one of your games. This is really just a quick look at the game, which is beautiful as only a wargame can be, and I will be doing another piece which will be a much deeper dive into the game.

 On Student Commander's website there is a poll about which game people want next. Please, for my sake, click on Roman Civil War. I will offer Agrippa 50 million Sesterces to 'accidentally' drop Octavian into the Mare Adriaticum.

Robert Peterson

American Civil War Commander 1861 - 1865

Student Commander

My review of Spanish Civil War Commander:

Spanish Civil War Commander by Civil War Commander - A Wargamers Needful Things