THE WAR FOR THE UNION: Designer's Edition

1-COM1078

The War for the Union is a strategic level simulation of the American Civil War. It is the long awaited 2nd edition of the game originally published in 1992. Players command the Union and Confederate forces that fought from 1861 to 1865. The map runs from southeastern Texas to the Atlantic and from Harrisburg, PA to southern Florida. The new map is 34x44 inches to accommodate larger counters. Atlanta and Pensacola are now in the Western Theater. Terrain types include forests, rough, swamps, bayou, mountain hexsides, river hexsides (tidal, navigable, and minor), lakes, bluffs, and major and minor cities.

Ground units include infantry and cavalry strength points. Quality varies from Militia (worst) to Volunteers to Veterans (best). There are about 5,000 men per strength point. There are corps and army leaders and a few division leaders. Leaders have a Command Rating which indicates how many strength points (SPs) they can command, a Battle Rating (combat DRM), and a Movement Factor which also affects their force march DRM. Union militia recruits now have 3 MPs but a very poor force march DRM. There are seagoing and riverine naval units, including ironclads. There are also river transports which are very valuable to the Union player in developing campaigns along rivers. Since the Confederates cannot use sea movement, the Union sea movement capability is somewhat abstracted.

The quality of the armies, particularly the Union, improves as the war progresses. The Confederate player starts out with a small qualitative advantage but the Union catches up by the spring of 1863. The Confederates also have better leaders early in the war but the Union gets more and better leaders as the war progresses. Army counters, such as the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia, are central to the play of the game. Armies enable more efficient use of strength points, leaders, and supply.

Details:
* Complexity: 6 out of 10
* Solitaire Suitability: 8 out of 10
* Time Scale: 1 turn = 1 month
* Map Scale: Approximately 22 miles per hex
* Unit Scale: Approximately 5,000 men per strength point
* Number of Players: 2 to 4 plus solitaire
* Playing Time: An hour for an introductory scenario, an evening for a 1 year scenario, and a weekend for the Campaign Game

Components:
* 2 maps - each at 22x34 inches
* 3-1/2 sheets of 9/16-inch counters
* 1 deck of 25 Tactical cards
* 2 reinforcement schedules - 1 each for North and South
* 2 identical Terrain Effects cards with additional charts/tables
* 2 identical Combat Results Table cards with additional charts/tables
* 1 rulesbook
* 1 scenario book
* 2 ten-sided dice
* 1 box and lid set