/pic1081573.jpg)
/pic1081499.jpg)
This is where the players take over in Command Combat: Civil War, in which players take on the roles of corps generals and lead their commands to victory or defeat against an opponent of equal strength. The concept of the game is to reflect the personalities involved in the conflict, the challenges they faced in coordinating fights without radios, having to rely on their sub-commanders to interpret orders given to them, all within the confines of a game that's fast and simple enough to play in a relatively short period of time.
I have always wanted to create this sort of a game, ever since I was a child and got my first exposure to miniature war gaming. I was at my first convention, one that was held at Gateway Mall in my home town of Lincoln, Nebraska. Someone had what looked like a train model set in a corner, but with Civil War figures standing around instead of modern citizens. I was confused. Why would anyone put on a miniature train diorama at a game convention?
:strip_icc()/pic1081504.jpg)
The following week, at Hobby Town, I saw the game for $20, and I finally understood. I saved up, and when I returned for it, the game was $30. (It had been on sale.) I had only a twenty-dollar bill, so the owner let me have it; he knew I would be back for miniatures.
And I have gone back...for 30 years. I have played more miniatures games than I can count, paying attention to what I liked and what I didn't. In addition to Johnny Reb, I played a lot of Fire & Fury, Stars & Bars, Napoleon's Battles, Warhammer, Flames of War, War of the Ring, Squad Leader, and countless smaller games at conventions and at game stores.
The one aspect I never felt was fully explored was the blindness of the army and corps commander. I always thought the best computer game would be one in which all you see is a map, and on that map are figures of where enemy units are reported to be. You send out orders, and depending on how far away the command is, it takes that much time for them to react to your orders. They may not even get the order, and you will only suspect that by the fact that your courier doesn't come back.
Because of the nature of miniatures gaming, such a system is nearly impossible. However, I sought to reflect that as much as possible. Ironically, the only system that came even close to this idea was Johnny Reb, with its system of placing hidden order markers which are revealed simultaneously with the enemy. I liked the idea that an order was sent out, and the general had to live with the result of it, even if the enemy's order decision counteracted your choice. The commander on the field had to in some way fulfill the order.
/pic1081528.jpg)
As I further developed this system, I considered what it was about the Civil War that most drew me to it, and I realized it was the personalities of the generals. That war, more than any was affected by not only the abilities of the commanders, but their eccentric personalities. Stuart's wild, long distance raids were a direct result of his flamboyant behavior. Grant's modesty and lack of pompous tradition is what enabled him to move so quickly, to relate to his men, and even to look at the situation at the front without fear of being hit by a sniper.
I used to know someone who ran Civil War games that observed the same thing. He would "cast" his games with people who had similar personalities to the generals. The results of the games were amazingly similar to what really happened, and it was a lot of fun to watch, as well as play.
I wanted to capture that spirit in this game, but I wanted to do it without needing a lot of players and without having to find people who were similar to the actual generals. So I made special rules for each general that would encourage players to make decisions similar to what the generals did. For instance, certain generals gain benefits only when they are in a defense order. Others gain benefits such as the rebel yell, which makes them more effective in charges. As I was developing this, Flames of War was released and did the same sort of thing with the various sides, causing players to play their armies similar to the way they historically fought without forcing them to through rules. As I saw this progress, I knew I was on the right track.
The one thing still missing was a basic system by which to play. I found myself playing miniature games less and less because of a lack of time. I didn't have entire days to play a single battle. I wanted to create something that could be played quickly, so speed was an important factor. This seemed to be the trend of games in general, so I looked closely at what was being done.
:strip_icc()/pic1081539.jpg)
I finally realized that the key to a faster moving game was having everything on the table. What causes a slow down in game play more than anything is stopping to look up rules, and even to look at charts and figures for a player's army. The less that players have to look away from the table, the faster the game plays. So I determined on a system whereby the player can determine his initial to-hit number simply by looking at the number of stands shooting. The rest is intended to be calculated most of the time without ever taking one's eyes off the table.
The result is Command Combat: Civil War.
Here's how the game works:
/pic1081545.jpg)
Players create a stack of index cards with the names of every general in the game. Generals get one index card for every point of initiative that he has. The cards are shuffled, then one card is drawn. If it is a division general, he and all of his units now make their move. If the general has more cards in the stack and chooses to wait, he puts the card aside and the next card is drawn. If the general drawn is a corps general, he may activate any division general he is within 2" of, or he may ride up to any unit and activate it. Charges take place during the movement phase, and any unit that participates in a charge may not participate in any other action the rest of the turn. Once a general has taken his turn, his card is placed to the side. For the rest of the turn, when his card comes up, it is ignored, and the next card is drawn.
After all cards have been drawn, players move on to the fire phase. Firing is handled one way for infantry and cavalry, and another way for artillery.
:strip_icc()/pic1081556.jpg)
For infantry and cavalry, players count the number of stands firing, then turn a ten-sided die to that number. This number is then raised and lowered based on the quality of the unit, its range, and any cover the target happens to be behind. When the final number is reached, it is placed in front of the target. When a second unit fires on the same target, instead of placing another die in front of the unit, the first die is simply raised the appropriate amount, with a maximum of 9.
Artillery has a base number for its range, depending on whether it's smoothbore or rifled. This number is altered based on its crew's quality and the cover of the defender.
Once all units have selected their targets, players roll for damage. If they roll equal to or less than the number on the targets, they score a hit, and the target takes the appropriate damage. After each roll, the die in front of the target unit is placed behind the target unit, becoming its morale die.
Generals within 1" of target units must roll to see if they are hit. If they are, many things can happen, sometimes even good things. If he manages to bravely shrug it off, the men around him actually raise their morale. He might run away like a coward, and his men run with him. Even his death can have various effects.
Generals who survive this round that are within 1" of their units may rally them. They may lower the number on the morale die by a number equal to his leadership.
Players now go through each unit that has a die behind the unit – the morale die – and rolls against it. If the roll is equal to the number on the die, the unit goes into disorder. If the number is 1-4 below the number on the die, the unit moves back that many inches into disorder. If the number is 5 or more below the number on the die, the unit routs that many inches. Regardless of what happens, the number is lowered after being rolled on.
After all morale has been resolved, players determine whether or not there is a victor, then switch orders, if they wish to. New orders may come only from a corps commander; however, division generals may attempt to alter their own orders by rolling equal to or lower than their initiative numbers. If they succeed, their new order is rolled randomly, so a player may wish to wait for orders to come from the corps general.
Turns typically go by rather quickly. They slow down a little in the movement section because of the nature of drawing cards, but it's worth it to get the disjointed feel that was so common in the days before radio communication. It makes for some of the most entertaining situations.
Players also build their forces from generic lists, or they can purchase specialty units, such as the Iron Brigade, the Stonewall Brigade, the Louisiana Tigers, the Irish Brigade, and many more. They can also purchase raiders and spies who affect the setup of the game.
I have begun work on 1862, which will release sometime in the spring of 2012. In addition to providing more units and generals, it will cover fortifications and the navy in greater detail, providing almost an entirely new game in sea warfare. There will even be an air force in that balloons will be added as a spy unit for the Union side.
I have also developed a number of "battle packs". These are individual battles utilizing the Command Combat system, with all the terrain, markers, dice, etc. a player needs to play the individual battles. This makes it possible for a player to begin playing a battle without having to go out and purchase miniatures and paint them. It makes the whole game more accessible to the general public, making it easier for people to just pick up and play.
The biggest challenge of the battle packs is that they require more financial backing to be able to do them. I have a Kickstarter campaign running through the end of September 2011 in which we are trying to raise the money to do these battle packs and get the game distributed and promoted at GAMA next spring.
Jeff McArthur
Bandwagon Games
:strip_icc()/pic1080351.jpg)
:strip_icc()/pic1079630.jpg)
/pic978372.jpg)
/pic1077748.jpg)
/pic703145.jpg)
