Monthly Archives: March 2020

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Legend of Rostam: Bonus Scenario for Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East

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Rostam is the hero of the Persian national epic, Shahnameh (which translates as Epic of Kings), which was written by the poet Abolqasem Ferdowsi around 1000 AD. It is set in a semi-mythical era that loosely resembles the Parthian period (247 BC – 224 AD). The central conflict is between the Persians and the Turanians, invaders from Central Asia whose homelands are situated on the far side of the Oxus River and the eastern shores of the Aral Sea. Rostam is repeatedly called upon to save the kingdom (and its hot-headed, selfish and incompetent king). This scenario is set at the period in the book where the Turanian king, Afrasiyab, sets forth on the first of his many invasions.

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Commands & Colors: Medieval Belisarius Campaign Part 6 – Callinicum (531 AD) Part 2

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The Campaign

With the sixth installment of the Belisarius Campaign, we are getting close to the end of this epic tale, the tale of the greatest Byzantine general, beautifully told by the Commands & Colors: Medieval game. So far, he was mainly successful in his endeavors against Empire enemies, but will he still be after the battle below? Let us see!

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Congress of Vienna Detailed Sequence of Play – The Initial Phase (Part 1 of 5)

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Introduction by Congress of Vienna (CoV)’s Editor, Fred Schachter – To familiarize the InsideGMT audience of what designer Frank Esparrago created with his fun and exciting Congress of Vienna game, now a GMT P-500 offering which has “Made the Cut” (thank you patrons!); previous InsideGMT articles presented “Designer’s Notes”, “Game as History: An Historical Introduction to the Congress of Vienna Period (CoV)”, “Meet the Statesmen of Congress of Vienna”, and “Congress of Vienna Goes Electric with VASSAL”. We here present an example of how the rules and game components come together with this series entitled “Congress of Vienna Detailed Sequence of Play”. Use this link to access copies of the preceding-referenced articles: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-850-congress-of-vienna.aspx .

This series is based on a four player “across the Atlantic” VASSAL game narrated by game designer Frank Esparrago: two players were in Spain and two located in the USA. It will hopefully provide readers insight into how enjoyable, thought-provoking, and entertaining Congress of Vienna is! 

Kindly note the following text and ensuing increments of this series of articles is, with some editing, eventually intended as content for the game’s Playbook.  As such, there will be ready reference to the Rulebook to explain related details as needed. For now, please accept our apologies for having the rules behind this example of play remaining implicit.

With that, take it away Frank!

Note: If you would like to view any of the below images in a larger size, you can click on the image and it will point you to the full image file.

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Optional Cultural Development Tracks for Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea (ACIS) and Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East (ACME)

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Introduction: By Game Developer, Fred Schachter – Players desiring a bit more complexity to their games of ACIS and/or ACME (once published, of course) in exchange for adding development of culture to their respective Civilizations should appreciate this offering by designers Chris and Mark. This responds to some ACIS players lamenting the game’s absence of a “Culture Arc”.

When play-testing these rules; we found the added complexity acceptable. What’s nice is that with exception of military-oriented developments, advancing a Civilization’s culture does not entail direct overt aggression towards another player… a nice touch in my opinion to a game which already has plenty of “take that!” opportunities.

What these rules entail is another path to achieving your Civilization’s victory and a new aspect to the fascinating resource allocation “puzzle” the designers provide. When trying this option with Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea, please feel free to tinker with these rules to achieve what your gamer group believes provides the best alternatives. Above all… have fun!

With that, here’s what Chris and Mark offer…

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A New Wargamer’s Reflections on Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan

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Below an article on Sekigahara new gamer strategy from InsideGMT contributor David Wiley of Cardboard Clash and Swords & Chit. You can also find this article on David’s blog. Enjoy! -Rachel

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Second Disorders in Great Battles of the American Civil War (GBACW)

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This is the third 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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Congress of Vienna Goes Electric with VASSAL!

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Introduction by Congress of Vienna (CoV)’s Editor, Fred Schachter – To familiarize the InsideGMT audience of what designer Frank Esparrago created with his fun and exciting Congress of Vienna game, now a GMT P-500 offering; previous InsideGMT articles of “Designer’s Notes”, “Game as History: An Historical Introduction to the Congress of Vienna Period (CoV)” as well as a four part series entitled: “Meet the Statesmen of Congress of Vienna” were published.

Use this link to access copies of these articles: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-850-congress-of-vienna.aspx

Now we present a “walk through”, albeit something of a “teaser”, of how Congress of Vienna has been converted into electronic form, specifically VASSAL, to enable players, without geographic constraint, to have a grand time experiencing all this wonderful game has to offer.

Should this article strike a responsive chord of interest, the CoV Team is seeking additional play testers using the VASSAL medium. If interested in joining this effort, kindly contact game developer Dick Sauer at sauerrj@aol.com to learn more.

For those trying to “fill in the blanks” regarding rules and game play from what this article shares; more Congress of Vienna content is forthcoming! Specifically, an InsideGMT article series providing a detailed example of a game’s set-up and turn’s play (using VASSAL: courtesy of the talented Joel Toppen).

Here is “Congress of Vienna Goes Electric”: starting with “Game Set-Up” of course…

Note: If you would like to view any of the below images in a larger size, you can click on the image and it will point you to the full image file.

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Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East: Happy Ides of March: Meet the Romans, Pontics and Parthians

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

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Inside the History of Twilight Struggle: Red Sea — Conflict in the Horn of Africa

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Twilight Struggle: Red Sea, the newest addition to GMT’s Lunchtime Series, will be added to the GMT P500 list this week! TS: Red Sea is a two-player, card-driven game that builds on the award-winning Twilight Struggle system and recreates the sudden spark in the Cold War around the Horn of Africa and its vital sea lanes.

With a more limited scope and much shorter playtime, TS: Red Sea is the perfect way to introduce new players to Twilight Struggle while maintaining all the tension, decision making, and theme of the original classic.

This series of articles will introduce players to the history reflected in the game and provide some example events that illustrate the ties between the history and gameplay.