The American Civil War was a conflict between the United States (the Union or the North) and the eleven states that had seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America (the Confederacy or the South). It lasted from 1861 to 1865. One of the key issues fought over was slavery and the power of the federal government to prohibit it in certain territories. Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president, promised to keep slavery out of the territories, which was seen as hostile by the South. At the time, the North had well-established industries, but in the South there was far more reliance on large-scale farming, which itself relied on enslaved people. War began in 1861 when Confederate forces opened fire on Fort Sumter in Charleston, and ended in 1865 when the Confederates surrendered.

In the game, the Player will be commanding various units, often representing many hundreds or thousands of men each, seeking to achieve a wide variety of Objectives. Battles from the years 1861 and 1862 are included in this game.

The aim of the game is to present a simple, clear, accessible, and quick to learn game, so that players can get into the action quickly. It does not try to replace more complex wargames which often take many hours to learn and to play. It also does not pretend to be entirely realistic, and many concepts have been simplified or abstracted for gameplay purposes – it is not a simulation. Each of the 20 Battle scenarios can be played in around 20 to 30 minutes, and each one should provide plenty of replayability due some random set up of the initial forces and depending on how the Battle plays out. Note that some Battles represent a specific part of the conflict within that Battle rather than the whole Battle.

This game is a solitaire wargame. You play the game, and the enemy is controlled by the game. You will need a good handful of standard six-sided dice to play (nine is ideal, although fewer will do).

It is highly recommended that the counters provided on the final page of the game are used to play this game. Simply stick them to card and cut them out. A video demonstrating how generally to do this can be found on the Mike Lambo Solitaire Book Games YouTube channel.

On the same channel you will find an instructional playthrough video for the game, which walks players through the rules of the game. The best way to learn the game is to read through the rules and then watch that video.

Players: 1
Time: 20 to 30 minutes per battle
Complexity: 2 / 5

—description from the designer

Battles of the American Civil War June 1861: July 1862 – A Solitaire Wargame

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