Introduction by Game Developer Fred Schachter: Hannibal’s Revenge builds upon the Card Conquest Game System pioneered by Hitler’s Reich GMT Games – Hitler’s Reich to allow one or two players (or teams of up to two players each) to refight the 2nd Punic War. (The rules are organized along the remastered rules model created by Kai Jensen for the 2nd edition of Hitler’s Reich.)
Unique to Hannibal’s Revenge is the introduction of up to two Carthaginian and two Roman Field Armies, each depicted by a wooden cylinder. These are commanded by Leaders. They are maneuvered on the gameboard by expending a friendly Conflict Card’s point value and these armies can engage in battles or sieges. This is in addition to the Hitler’s Reich game mechanic of declaring an attack from an adjacent friendly-controlled area. There is also a single Macedonian Army which can be brought into the fray through winning its Event Card. If the preceding piques your interest; be assured there’s more to come with future InsideGMT articles. As to the map, with apologies for the hand-assembled appearance, here it is:
The Hannibal’s Revenge Gameboard:
Before commencing a brief exposition of the leaders of Hannibal’s Revenge; it seems appropriate to provide an overview of the gameboard… the fascinating arena in which Carthaginian and Roman armies vie.
Moving an army (cylinder) into an unconquered Tribal Area, or the open sea, particularly for the Carthaginians, can be fraught with risk. At the game’s beginning, the hazards of sea movement can influence Carthage to commit its premier Army under Hannibal to an overland route through hostile Tribal Areas and over the Alps with intent to descend upon Rome’s Italian heartland… sound familiar?
This seems an appropriate time to introduce…
The Leaders of Hannibal’s Revenge
Nemesis of Rome
Those familiar with GMT’s Hitler’s Reich game know how having an Event Card can provide an advantage in resolving a conflict (battle). Hannibal’s Revenge similarly divides its Event Cards into three “decks”: one for Carthage, one for Rome, and a third whose cards be acquired by either the Roman or Carthaginian player. The game also has “Actions” which Hitler’s Reich players should find familiar.
A Leader is like a permanent Event Card assigned to a particular army and each side has up to two armies on the map (see preceding illustration). For Carthage, one wooden cylinder is star side up, to represent the host led by Hannibal, and the other cylinder star side down, to represent Carthage’s other field army led by Hasdrubal.
The third Carthaginian Leader, Hanno, will only come into play if something happens to either of the two primary ones… such as getting wounded, captured or (gasp!) killed. As to Philip, he and his Macedonian Army can only enter play through the Carthaginian player winning his related Event Card through an “Event Action” (similar to a Hitler’s Reich Event Action).
Leaders may be used to move an army, to fight a battle, or to conduct (or defend in) a siege. Capturing a fortified enemy city will reduce an opponent’s Conflict Card hand size ( just like losing a Production Center in Hitler’s Reich). Such a city may be captured by bloody assault, which involves risk to the attacker, or the safer course of a long, potentially protracted, siege. There are also Event Cards which can aid in taking a city – or in some cases allow its capture through treachery.
It should be noted the Carthaginian player’s initial hand is hand seeded with powerful Conflict Cards and potent Events (such as #19 War Elephants or #20 Numidian Cavalry). This advantage can be fleeting as the Romans , if not beaten down early, are likely to turn the tables on Hannibal by launching offensives of their own against Carthaginian Spain and/or upon their African homeland cities.
To oppose the vengeful and militarily talented Carthaginian Leaders, their Roman opponents have a “pool” of Leaders from the Republic’s Senate upon whom to rely… and what a diverse pool it is!
Defenders of the Republic
Twelve Roman Leaders?!? How can that be when there’s only two Roman field armies upon the Hannibal’s Revenge map? The reason is that when the Roman player reshuffles his Conflict Card Deck, the Republic holds Consular Elections to assign Leaders to its two armies… the other available Leaders are then ignored. The better Roman Leaders do not enter that pool until after the game begins, and the most capable Roman Leader, the legendary Scipio (Africanus), is not available until even later.
Note the varying capabilities and personalities of Consular candidates… which was historically a salient feature of how the Roman Republic conducted warfare. There was a reason Hannibal waited until Varro took command, whose above Leader card notes him as “Impetuous” (which means he must attack if an enemy is adjacent) and “Inept” (which means exactly what it says) before engaging a vast Roman host of 80,000 for the Battle of Cannae. Despite outnumbering Hannibal nearly two-to-one, Varro’s leadership, or lack thereof, was a big factor leading to that Roman catastrophe.
(It is often said that one cannot have a Cannae without a Varro).
Therefore, the Roman player must endure the risk of acquiring some truly undesirable leadership until, with time, more capable Consuls can be acquired to confront Carthage’s best. There is also the option of appointing a Dictator to mitigate risk of Rome getting a pair of incompetents to confront their implacable enemy seeking Hannibal’s Revenge!
Fred’s Closing Thoughts
For those wishing to learn more of the historical period the game covers, here’s a link to a recent YouTube video covering the Punic Wars from Carthage’s perspective: Punic Wars from the Carthaginian Perspective | Animated History – YouTube
As a gamer, while awaiting Hannibal’s Revenge, designer Mark McLaughlin’s treatment of the Second Punic War, including the option of Hannibal’s daring march across the Alps and invasion of Italy (along with other features, such as varying capabilities of Roman Consular leadership, can be found as a scenario of GMT’s Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea: GMT Games – Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea . Those who have ACIS will find this “Hannibal” scenario on Play Book Pg. 14.
Please use InsideGMT’s feedback feature to convey any comment/question you may have regarding Hannibal’s Revenge. Furthermore, Mark and I would be pleased to learn what aspect of Hannibal’s Revenge we should cover with our next InsideGMT article. Finally, to those who’ve P-500 ordered the game and moved it closer to “making the cut”… kindly accept our sincere appreciation for your patronage. Thanks!
Thanks. That’s a very interesting game.