Session Report: Vijayanagara, Part Two (Solo - GMT Games)

Read part one here.

This article has been long delayed- my family has been hit by quite a number of illnesses over the last few months, which have been a huge drain on my energy, and even taking a few minutes a day to take a turn, and write it up, has been a challenge. This month, I have finally bounced back enough to get through the second Succession card and hope to keep the momentum through the rest of the game. Sadly, in addition to the delays, most of the turns are just going to be 'this happened', as opposed to any meaningful thoughts on them, but I will try to do better in the next article.

I did get a little bit of feedback about the previous session report, and the use of some extra graphics to highlight changes to the images was positively received, so I will try to do so going forward.

After the dynasty card, the game continues, with no change in eligibility. The next card drawn is Uprising in Daulatabad (card #15). The Delhi Sultanate bot once again ignores the event, and draws for Command + Decree, electing to Govern first. This places Governors on the map or allows such pieces already on the map to remove opposing pieces and build Qasbahs (which will allow them to Conscript more troops, or support attacks better in the future). For Govern, the bot makes the following plays:

In Gujarat, they remove a Raja, and add a Qasbah.

In Orissa, they remove an Amir, and add a Qasbah.

In Tamilakam, they remove two Rajas and add a Qasbah.

In Andhra, they remove two Amirs, and in Madhyadesh, they remove an Amir and a Raja. This Command costs them a total of five resources.

For the Decree, the bot chooses to Collect Tribute, gaining two cavalry markers, and eight more resources. I suspect we will see some more combat soon, so Delhi having more cavalry markers is certainly going to help them.

The Vijayanagara Empire bot looks through its choices and ends up doing a Limited Command (preserving its eligibility for next turn, but only affecting a single area). The bot chooses to Rebel in Karnataka, putting it under Vijayanagara control. This deprives the Delhi Sultanate of points, taxable resources, and gives the Vijayanagara two points.

Next card is a Mongol Invasion card, with me making the choices. I choose Amass, which adds one Mongol Invader to Mountain Pass, Punjab, and Delhi (technically, it adds three to Mountain Passes, they just overflow down to Delhi as they reach four Mongols in a space).

I then choose Attack and Plunder in Punjab. The Mongols roll 4, 3, 3, 1, scoring four hits, and Delhi rolls a 5 and a 3, generating two hits. Because there are remaining Mongols in Punjab, they remove two Delhi resources, and causes the Sultanate to remove troops from Jaunpur and Orissa.

Next up is another Mongol Invasion card (this time controlled by the Vijayanagara bot)! Rough timing for the Sultanate. They choose to Advance four cubes into Punjab, and then attack, with the result being the destruction of the Delhi piece, and the removal of six resources and six Troops (three from Andhra, two from Tamilakam, and one from Rajput). Just a disastrous two turns for the Sultanate, but it gives me and the Vijayanagara bot some space to play around!

Next card up is Capital Relocated, a 'Stay Eligible' event, which reads "Move up to four Delhi Sultanate Units from any Provinces to adjacent Provinces. -5 Delhi Sultanate resources". I choose to take the event, moving Governors from Andhra and Tamilakam into Karnataka (hoping to complicate the Vijayanagara situation), from Orissa into Andhra, and a Troop from Jaunpur into Malwa. I forget about the resource deduction for several turns, but eventually I do apply it correctly. Doing this piles onto the Sultanate player, which is great, and I stay Eligible, which is also great!

The Vijayanagara bot then chooses to draw for a Command & Decree, and proceeds to Build a Temple and then Rebel in Madhyadesh which falls under their control.

Next card up is Mongol Army Repelled (card #2). The reeling Sultanate bot choosing Command + Decree, starting with a Tribute Decree for seven resources, and then a Conscript command to add five Troops to Delhi, and two Troops each to their provinces with Qasbahs- Gujarat, Malwa, Orissa, Andhra, Tamilakam. With most of their Troops on the board, they can start pushing everyone around again.

I choose a Command, electing to Rally, adding an Amir to Bengal, and two Amirs to Gondwana and Maharashtra.

Next card is Hindu-Muslim Marriage (card #35). Only the Vijayanagara player is eligible, and they choose a Command + Decree, electing to Tax for five resources, bringing them to seven, and then they Rally, putting four Rajas in Karnataka, one in Maharashtra, and two in Madhyadesh, meaning every one of their Rajas is on the board. At this point, almost every piece is on the board, so some conflict feels imminent.

Next card up is Empire Building (card #25) with me and the Delhi Sultanate eligible, in order. I debate taking the Stay Eligible event, which would provide a free trade, but decide that I need to try to spread out, and choose a Command + Decree instead, starting with a Migrate. I move one Amir from Bengal into Jaunpur, one into Orissa from Gondwana, and two into Madhyadesh from Maharashtra, and then pay to shift the Deccan Influence one in my favor because I moved into a spot where Vijayanagara units existed. I am pretty poor at this point, so I Trade for six resources, and take two cavalry tokens from the Delhi Sultanate.

The Delhi Sultanate is limited in options, and elects to take the Event, which keeps them Eligible for next turn. The event ends up placing a Troop in Andhra and removes a Raja there.

Next card is Musunuri Nayakas (card #18), with Vijayanagara and Delhi as eligible. The Vijayanagara bot chooses a Command + Decree, building a Temple in Maharashtra, and then Attacking in Karnataka (removing two Governors, and losing two Rajas) and Madhyadesh (removing a Governor, but losing a Raja). Each of these attacks was supported from the neighboring province, replenishing some of the losses (although, I should mention, I did realize as I was writing this that I've done this incorrectly, and will need to fix at least the movement of Rajas from Maharashtra into one or both of these provinces- it will be fixed before I work on the next part).

The Delhi Sultanate elects to take a Limited Command, placing a Governor in Orissa.

Finally, for this blog post, the next Succession card, Rise of the Rebel Sultans comes up. This provides a special action for each player and helps identify how close we are through the game (about halfway through).

The Delhi Sultanate gets a free Campaign, and targeting my region with the fewest pieces, moves a Governor from Andhra into Jaunpur, and adds a Troop from Delhi to join it.

I get a free limited command, which I use to Rebel in Bengal, putting it under my control, and I gain three resources.

Vijayanagara moves three Rajas from Karnataka to Maharashtra, and gains three cavalry tokens (taking one from me). The migration also lets them shift the Deccan Influence one.

So, at the halfway point, our current scores:

Delhi Sultanate: 12 points

Vijayanagara: 7 points

Bahmani: 5 points

I am still losing to the two bots, but the gap is not too bad, and I am in good position to make a play for a few provinces on the eastern part of India pretty early. I need to get more Temples out, to make my Amirs a bit better defended, and to get more points. Delhi, to me, seems to be in a pretty rough situation, because they have a huge horde right on their doorstep, so even if they stay ahead of me in points, I can hope the Mongols drop them down at the end game.

Vijayanagara seems to be in an enviable position, with strong coverage in a few provinces and little Delhi interference. I am going to have to take the fight to them in order to get ahead of them. Something to keep in mind as I enter part three of this playthrough.

Unboxing: I, Napoleon (GMT Games)

A recent release from GMT Games is I, Napoleon, a solo, card-driven role-playing game where you take the role of Napoleon, from his early career to his final days (through death, exile, or whatnot). Cards present challenges, assets, and opportunities, and your goal is to equal or exceed his historical achievements. It is an interesting design idea with a lot of potential, so of course I had to order it. It arrived a few days ago, and I tore it open immediately, eager to investigate the game and get started on learning it. In the process, I figured I should take some pictures and post an unboxing, since I would already be examining the components anyway.

As with any unboxing, we start with the box:

A beautiful cover (by Domhnall Hegarty, according to the playbook), with a very understated, but evocative piece of art, and a title that feels perfectly sized. GMT is doing a fantastic job with their box covers lately, very well done!

The back provides us a lot of information:

As I stated, this is a solitaire game, and the complexity is apparently pretty low.

On to the rulebook:

GMT has posted the rulebook here for your viewing pleasure. I am most of the way through it, and there are a lot of interesting things going on, but it does not seem too difficult to get into.

Next up is the Playbook:

This one comes with a very detailed example of play, notes about each card, design notes, and a high-level chronology of Napoleon's career. As with all GMT products, the quality of these playbooks is fantastic, with a lot to read and enjoy, even when not playing the game.

Next up is the Player Aid Card, with a Campaign Battle Mat on one side, so you can easily fight your wars, and a Campaign Selection Table (not pictured) on the other, which provides the pre-conditions for the various campaigns you may fight during the game.

A small sheet of counters is provided, which track various resources, the status of diplomatic relations with other nations, income modifiers, and whatever else needs to be tracked.

The pre-rounded counters will save me a little bit of work, so no complaints here.

Now, onto the game board:

This is a 22"x34" mounted board, with spaces to track a variety of game effects/resources. The larger boxes are for placement of cards, both in draw/holding boxes, and for placement of cards that are currently active and affecting the game. The game board itself seems fine- maybe not the most visually exciting, but it certainly gets the job done.

We are given one (1) ten-sided die to resolve campaigns, random results on various cards, etc. One cool thing to note about the die rolling is that once a turn (once a year), Napoleon can re-roll the die (tracked by the "Napoleon's Luck" counter) if the result is not to his liking. Of course, he can also use his luck to draw a different card or avoid paying a cost. Another resource to manage in the game.

Finally, the meat of the game, the cards. There are cards that will be drawn throughout the game, cards that are used as dividers/reminders of when to add/remove cards, cards that are played as the results of other cards. The contents list on the box mentions 222 cards are included. I did not count to verify.

The previous two pictures are the front and back of the divider cards, which are not shuffled into the deck, but handle separating out cards for easier searching, and in some cases do enter play.

There is also the large pile of cards that get added to the main deck throughout the game, year by year, which create situations/opportunities for Napoleon. The cards are nice quality, well-illustrated, and in my brief look through them, are very easy to read.

This game has a lot of potential, both as a fresh, interesting take on Napoleonic gaming, but also opens the door for future topics using a system like this. I would not mind seeing an I, Alexander, or I, Frederick, for instance. Nothing of the sort has been mentioned, I should rush to add, but it is a really cool concept that I hope plays as well as it presents. I am working to clear up my second gaming table to try to put this out and try it, and if I do, I will make sure to post about it!

That's all for this post- thanks for reading!

Unboxing: Velikiye Luki: Stalingrad of the North (Legion Wargames)

Man, I buy too much stuff. I really do, don't I? The problem is, I really like supporting different designers/publishers/series/whatnot, and when new stuff comes out, I feel compelled to keep at it. Alas, until I get a product that isn't great quality, I have no real reason to stop. The trials of a board game collector, I guess.

Anyway, on to today's topic, Velikiye Luki: Stalingrad of the North by Legion Wargames. What does my opening have to do with this? Well, Legion Wargames caught my eye because they had a CPO (similar to GMT's P500 system) for a game on the Russo-Japanese war, a conflict I was interested in, and a game that seemed very intriguing (funnily enough, by the same designer as today's subject, Michael Taylor). Looking through the preview components, I fell in love, it is going to be a great game... when it comes out (I came across it several years ago, so it has been a while). While looking at the game, I decided to see what else the company had on offer, and there were a lot of designs that grabbed my attention. A solo game about the B-29 Superfortress? Or a great looking game on the battle of Dien Bien Phu? Well, there was a lot to like (although these were not out yet either, I did CPO them and have them now). I have been keeping an eye on Legion since then and have purchased most of their releases as they come out. They do not put out a huge amount of product each year, so keeping up has not been too bad at all.

Velikiye Luki: Stalingrad of the North came out late last year, and I waited a little before ordering it so that I could combine shipping with other releases coming from Legion Wargames that were coming out (in this case, Invasion Malta, and the Target for Tonight expansion). It has gotten complimentary reviews so far, and it is pretty inexpensive for such a nice-looking package. It is a ziplock game, but it has a fantastic looking table footprint, and good-looking rules. Let's take a closer look at the contents.

First, the front and back of the ziplock:

The front is a cover page on thick cardstock, which is very nice, and will be used whenever I move this to a permanent storage solution with some other games. The back is the back of the rulebook. It contains a small map from the Soviet perspective, but there is no description of its source in the rulebook.

Moving on, we have a one-sided terrain chart, on nice card stock.

Next up is the map, measuring 11" x 17".

Feels very clean, and very well presented. The size of the hexes is quite roomy, when you compare them to the size of the counters, which is extra nice for a game that may be a really perfect introductory game.

Speaking of the counters, let's have a look:

There were some errata for some of the counters, but they have been fixed with stickers applied by Legion Wargames already. The counters look very nice and clean and are cut well.

Finally, we have the rulebook, which is only six pages of rules.

And really, given that the front page of the rules is all background, the rules are only five pages! I have read through the rules, and it seems pretty standard wargame fare, ZOCs, replacements, combat which is not mandatory. Again, this seems like a completely perfect intro wargame. Might be just the thing to try with my nephew (and my brother, if I can get him to try it). We will see.

And that is a quick look over the components for this game. It is very affordable and has Legion's typical great quality. Definitely recommend taking a look!

Unboxing: Drive on Leningrad 1941 (Decision Games, Campaigns in Europe I, World at War #97)

The second issue of my World at War subscription arrived about two weeks ago, and I have been excited to talk about this, but have been delayed due to illness. However, I am recovered enough to write about it and share some excitement about this new game. This will be a pretty short post, just to show the components.

This is the first release in a four-game series called the Campaigns in Europe, all to be released in World at War magazine, which will use the maps from the old SPI War in Europe game, but with new rules (and new units and such). The four games' maps will connect with one another, but will not connect in any particular scenario, needing an expansion kit Decision games will sell in the future. Plus, it looks like there will be no way to play a full European War scenario, with the game focused on individual campaigns rather than the full war itself. Anyway, it is a pretty exciting concept, and one I am interested in seeing happen, whether or not I end up getting the additional package.

As with all magazine games, my focus is on the game itself. The articles are great and well worth the price of the magazine (they sell this without the game, after all), but today, it is the game I am talking about.

So, let's start with the cover:

Very nice cover, with the contrast between the black and white image and the colorful labels creating a very visually appealing combination.

Next, the Table of Contents:

The main article, of course, is on the topic of the game, with the background and history of the topic. The other articles are sure to be fantastic (although I admit I have not read this issue yet). Prior experience has taught me that these magazines are always really good, informative reads.

Now, let's get to the game, looking at the rulebook, first.

The rulebook is really great quality- full color, lots of clarifications, and the ruleset seems a bit more on the complex side than what I would expect out of a magazine game (which is great news). One nice thing about the Decision Games rules nowadays is that they are attached to the magazine's subscription card with a sort of tacky glue, which you can peel off, allowing you to remove the rulebook without damaging it (and the magazine). A great change that I wish other magazine publishers would do as well.

I looked through the rules a little, and they seem pretty standard to me. That is hardly a bad thing, and there is likely some depth that was not immediately obvious to me, something to discover when I actually set the game up and give it serious study.

This issue comes with a number of player aid cards, which feels different than the usual World at War release. These include scenario setup information, and charts for terrain and combat (pictured are the front and back):

Next up, we have the counters, one countersheet worth:

Quite sharp looking! Distinct colors for the different nationalities, and the factors are very clear. Nicely done sheet of counters.

Finally, the map:

As mentioned above, this is apparently a map from the old War in Europe game. Not a game I own or have seen, but the map is really nice looking, clear, and has plenty of interesting places to fight over. Not much to quibble about.

Overall, it is a great looking package, and one I cannot wait to play, whether or not the other games in the series connect to one another in any meaningful way. The components are great, the rules look perfectly fine- it is looking to be a pretty good product.

Unboxing: Bayonets & Tomahawks, 2nd Printing (GMT Games)

Something about the second (or later) printing of a game always gets me. I am not sure if it is just the knowledge that the second printing will have less errata (usually having known errata incorporated). Maybe it is the assurance that enough people bought the first printing that I have a reasonable chance to find opponents. Maybe it is the assurance that enough people bought the game that I know it's not a dud. Some combination of these three, whatever it is, makes newer printings of games almost irresistible to me. Today's topic, Bayonets & Tomahawks, 2nd Printing, from GMT Games, is just the latest in the trend of such purchases.

It is possible I would have picked this up without the new printing- the topic (French and Indian War) is interesting enough, and I have played at least one game on it and enjoyed it (A Few Acres of Snow). I don't own many games on the war (I believe the only other one is Bloody Mohawk, from Lock 'n Load Publishing). It is well-regarded, award-winning, the system looks interesting at first glance... plenty of reasons I may have grabbed this. A new printing just solidifies it.

As with all games that come into my collection, I always spend a bit looking over the components. It gives me the first feel for the game, and the table appeal is what I hope will get my friends to try it too. So, let's take a look.

As with all games, we start with the box:

Classic GMT look, which is to say it is nice, clean, with a good piece of art on the top. I think the newer boxes are more visually interesting, of course, but I don't really expect them to drastically change something as important as a cover for a new printing. And the classic GMT cover style really is quite nice as it is.

The back of the box:

As always, a lot of good information, with a sampling of components. The complexity seems lower than I'd expect (BGG gives it a 'weight' of 3.2 out of 5, but non-wargamers may find this more complex than a wargamer would), and a brief perusal of the rules indicates that the six solitaire rating comes from a solitaire-friendly set of rules, not a specific set of solitaire rules, although the playbook does have one column with some slight modifications to play, in order to make solitaire play easier.

The rulebook is the first thing you encounter when opening the box:

Full color, very nice quality. GMT hosts a digital version of this here. One picture to show the inside of the book:

I have briefly read through the rules, and the game is much different than I expected. In my head, I was anticipating more of a traditional CDG, but this seems more... card-paced, than card driven. I am not sure what the term would be. You draw a card, and your options are limited by the action provided by the card, but you do have a single reserve card you can use to replace the drawn card, once per year. It feels more like what COIN games do than a CDG, but even that is a very poor comparison. Either way, the rules are nicely laid out- this will be an easy one to put on the table.

Next up is the playbook:

Again, given to us online by GMT here. Again, full color, and great quality:

The playbook's focus is on examples of play (with several detailed examples of various parts of the game), some strategy advice, and historical background on the various cards/events in the game. As a wargamer, the playbook is frequently the part of the game I spend the most time with- yeah, I need to read the rules to play, but seeing how the designer tied mechanics to the history, as well as learning about said history is something I will read for pleasure in my free time.

Next up are the countersheets. The game comes with three such sheets:

I honestly tried to take pictures in better light than usual, but that seems to have made almost no difference in picture quality. Anyway, the counters are very nice, up to GMT's typical standards. The triangle counters are light units, and I am certain their non-standard shape will annoy me at some point. Do light units not stack with the other unit types (there are circle and square units)? Well, again, this game justified a second printing. How about I play it before I worry about how awkward it will be.

Next up we have scenario set up cards:

Every scenario uses the Indian setup card, and there are separate British and French cards to allow the setup of the any of the game's four scenarios (there are also variant scenarios presented in the playbook). The printing of a particular scenario's setup across two different cards is very handy- nothing slows a game down more than both players needing to pass setup information back and forth. Smart choice!

Two identical player aid cards are included:

A lot of information is on these cards, and presumably once you are familiar with the game, these will be all you need.

The game comes with custom dice:

These dice are excellent! Custom cut, painted, and really high quality. The sides show what units get a hit (matching the shapes of the counters), and the others deal with a Battle Victory marker, or potential leader loss... well, that is pretty cool. The battle rules look to be more involved than I would have expected- very exciting.

The game comes with a beautiful, mounted map:

GMT is also kind enough to provide a much better digital version to see the details here. I quite like the map, and the actual physical quality is very impressive. Of course, this is GMT, they have some of the best component quality in the business.

Next up is a fabric bag:

This is used for reinforcement draws, where counters called 'Vagaries of War' will be added to provide additional uncertainty in the schedule and arrival of reinforcements.

Finally, we have a number of cards, with three different card backs. The French cards have a blue back:

Here are some other pictures of these cards, with a bit more going on:

The cards have events, limits as to what sort of units you can activate on your turn, an initiative value (the die on the bottom). You will have the choice of using this card or your reserve card each turn, but you will definitely be at the mercy of these cards throughout the game. I imagine if I played it more than once, some time analyzing the spread of activations would be really helpful.

There are also British and Indian cards (the latter drawn by the French player):

And some more interesting examples:

And there you have it. The game looks incredible, as everyone has come to expect from GMT. My brief read through the rules made me very excited for this game- it is not what I expected at all. If anything, it seems much meatier than I was anticipating, which is a very pleasant surprise. My friend Bob has expressed interest in playing this (I think he has a copy), so I am going to sort and sleeve this one in the next month, on the off chance it gets on the table soon.