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Comments on the rule book US vs CS, 1861-1865
“The biggest drawback when it comes to rules for games about the American Civil War is the awkwardness of handling the units”. Most magazine reviews which refer to the sets of games rules concerning the ACW, begin their articles with the above words.
The biggest drawback with the various sets of rules available about this particular era, was that they all ended up presenting two long lines shooting at each other, until one of them withdrew due to heavy losses.
The result was a slow, “stiff” game which became extremely dull after a while.
In contrast to what we’ve seen so far, Dinos Antoniadis’ rule book overcomes this problem while at the same time it carries us into the spirit of the age providing the players with problems the real generals of the era would face.
Behind this success there is a lot of work hidden, a lot of research and above all a lot of love for the particular historical period.
One thing is certain and immediately understood: The rule book was made with the love of a craftsman for his craft. The result justifies Antoniadis' efforts. Thus, the brigades gradually turn into living units which move, moneuver, become worn out and die during the battle. If the player wants to win, he must think and react like a real general of that period.
The whole game is fascinating and develops quickly. Those of us who played it with these particular rules, found that they are easy to learn even if you have not read the rule book. This is very important. I would suggest to all future players starting a game first and then reading the rule book in depth. The truth is that the rule book on its own appears to be complicated in an attempt to be detailed and this can be tiring for the reader.
However, every trace of this tiredness disappears once the first shots begin!…
Miltos Michalopoulos, 25/12/01
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