Monthly Archives: January 2020

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Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East (ACME) Example of Play Part 3 of 3: Reckoning Phase with Additional Examples of Competition

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Introduction: Part 1 of this article took readers through an Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East (ACME) game’s set-up through its Growth Phase; which includes deployment of each civilization’s disks upon the map. Article Part 2 continued the narrative to include the Card through Competition Phases.

Those familiar with ACME’s predecessor, Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea’s (ACIS) Playbook example of play may observe similarities between that piece and this exposition. However, although both games share the same basic system, there are differences. For details, and links to material which explain game term references (for this article’s limitations can only allude to rulebook details); see an associated InsideGMT article: Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East Design Background and Differences from Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea.

This final installment of an ACME example of play takes this two-player game’s action (Sue as the Egyptians and Bob as the Hittites) into its Reckoning Phase through the turn’s conclusion. Since the last article installment was not that “meaty” insofar as a Competition resolution example was concerned; this piece makes amends by including a real doozy; one which readers shall hopefully find of entertaining interest. Now, let’s return to this Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East’s Epoch One / Turn One action…

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Congress of Vienna Designer’s Notes (Part 2 of 2)

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Introduction (By CoV Editor Fred Schachter): Readers hopefully enjoyed the preceding part of this article which introduced one of GMT’s newest Game Designers: Frank Esparrago and how his origins as a wargamer brought him to design Congress of Vienna, one of GMT’s most recent P-500 offerings.

This installment continues Frank’s narrative regarding how he devised CoV’s design: creating a game not only for Traditional Wargamers, but also for Eurogamers. Enjoy!

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Man Your Planes – Filling the Combat Mat in Seas of Thunder (Part 1)

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One of the most interesting activities that is performed in Seas of Thunder is the setting of the line for battle. Every time two fleets meet in a Sea Zone, they move to the Combat Sequence Mat and duel it out. Setting the Battle Line requires removing your ships from the board, with the units unseen by your opponent, to the Combat Sequence Mat. Players then put up a screen to shield their mat from the opposition and proceed to place their ships in the boxes they wish for them to be assigned to. When both sides have completed their setup, the screens are removed and combat begins. Today, we will discuss just the ins and outs of setting your AIR units on the battle line. I had originally intended this article to be a sweeping discussion of the entire Battle Line, but as I wrote it, I realized that just the air options would be plenty detailed to make an article of reasonable length. So I will revisit the remainder of the line in at least one future article.

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March Orders Stacking, Extended Columns, and the Road Movement Exception in Great Battles of the American Civil War (GBACW)

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This is the second in a series of articles devoted to the GBACW Series Rules. GMT rates GBACW’s complexity a “7” for good reasons — though there are undoubtedly whiz kids who read the rules and are ready to play, some of us poor mortals require a little more before we sit down at the table. These articles are addressed to the latter group in hopes of easing the journey. They are not, however, a substitute for reading the rules.

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Commands & Colors: Medieval Belisarius Campaign Part 5 – Callinicum (531 AD) Part 1

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Below is the fifth in a series of articles from The Boardgames Chronicle playing through the Belisarius campaign in Commands & Colors: Medieval. You can find the first four articles in the series here. Enjoy! -Rachel

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Flashpoint: South China Sea ― Key Mechanics

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Flashpoint: South China Sea is a two-player game designed by Harold Buchanan and currently on GMT’s P500 preorder list. The game simulates the current events taking place in the South China Sea, a sea area in the western outskirts of the Pacific, near China. This article introduces the game’s key mechanics.

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The Last Hundred Yards Mission 23.0: A Nasty Affair

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Today, we have a surprise for you players of The Last Hundred Yards! Designer Mike Denson has graciously created a new FREE downloadable scenario for the game! Feel free to check it out here in InsideGMT. When you’re ready to download and print the PDF and TIF files, just click the links at the bottom of the article. We hope you enjoy this new scenario for The Last Hundred Yards. Thanks Mike!

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Congress of Vienna Designer’s Notes (Part 1 of 2)

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Introduction (By CoV Editor Fred Schachter): I had the pleasure of first viewing a gorgeous, virtually professional quality, playtest version of Frank’s Congress of Vienna game some years ago. It was most impressive. At the time I was working and living in the Phoenix, Arizona area and enticed a local gaming buddy (and now good friend) Dick Sauer into sharing my enthusiasm for Frank’s creation and to become CoV’s Game Developer.

Improved versions of the game followed and during 2019 the game was presented at GMT’s Spring “Weekend at the Warehouse” and at the CSW Expo in Tempe, Az. where we had a blast playing games, under Frank’s supervision of course, with myself, Mark Herman, Luke Billingsley, Mark Simonitch, and other wonderful gamers who enjoyed Congress of Vienna’s easily learned mechanics and fun, exciting, action.

Gene Billingsley introduced Frank, a native of Spain who traveled a long way to join the CSW Expo festivities, during the event’s “Meet GMT’s Designers/Developers” session. The rest, as they say, is history and the December 2019 GMT Update announced Congress of Vienna as a new P-500 addition. 

This article introduces Frank to InsideGMT’s readership and provides information and background regarding Frank and his game. If you wish to meet Frank, Dick, and their local team of play testers, as well as a GMT delegation, there’ll be opportunity to do so during January 2020’s Bellota Con III gaming gathering in Badajoz, Spain. With that… take it away Frank!

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Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East: Meet the Babylonians

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Below is the seventh in a series of articles from Mark McLaughlin showcasing the 16 civilizations in Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East. You can find the first six articles in the series here.