INSTRUCTIONS
The American Civil War took place from 1861 to 1865. During the Civil War, over 600,000 soldiers were killed, not to mention injured soldiers. In this scaled-down game, you and another player will act as the generals of the Union and the Confederacy. This game is a scaled down version of the Civil War -- one person plays as the North (Union) and the other plays as the South (Confederacy).
Objective
The object of the game is to either gain control of all six forts (make them into your color) or to make your opponent run out of soldiers. Each side starts with three forts positioned on their side of the "board." (The Union is represented by the color blue, and the Confederacy is represented by the color red.) To capture a fort, you must win a battle there. The forts are located in places where real battles of the Civil War took place.
Once you have captured all six forts, the Appomattox Courthouse will appear on the map (as a gray fort). Your goal is to reach it before your opponent defeats your army or captures back a fort.
Remember, though, that your first priority should be to survive. If you run out of money, you lose half of your soldiers. If you lose all of your soldiers, you lose the entire game.
On Your Turn
North goes first, then South, etc. etc. However, battles may "interrupt" turns, so turns will continue as usual after the battle ends. On your turn, you have three options:
- Move - Move your army (represented as your side's flag on the map) up, down, left, or right. You cannot move off the map or on top of forts. When you move your army, it costs you one dollar per soldier.
- Raise Money - If you are on your side of the board, then you can raise your money by around $4000, but you can only have up to $150,000 (you begin with $120,000).
- Recruit Soldiers - If you are on your side of the board, then you can recruit soldiers (around 100 to 300). However, drafting soldiers has a bad effect on your side, so you must move or attack on your next turn. Also, you can only have up to 5000 soldiers (you begin with 4000).
The Playing Field
The playing field is a section of the present-day United States with a grid. This grid is further divided into two sections, the North (Union, blue) and the South (Confederacy, red). The sides do not necessarily show the exact locations of the real Union and Confederacy. The flags represent the players (American flag for the North, Confederate flag for the South). There are also three forts on each side that, again, signify six selected battles of the Civil War. Blue forts are occupied by the Union, and red forts are Confederate.
Battles
Battles take place when an army attacks a fort or lands on the same space as the opposing army. If an attacking army wins a battle against a fort, the fort becomes theirs. However, when attacking a fort or the opposing army, it will cost you three dollars per soldier. Watch your money!
For each battle, each side will be allotted 300 soldiers subtracted from the main number of soldiers (the number at the top by the map). If your main soldier count is less than 300, then all of your soldiers are allotted for that battle. The number of soldiers that each side has for the battle is shown above the move selection. If you run out of these soldiers, you lose the battle. At the end of the battle, any soldiers remaining will be added back to your main soldier count.
Basically, during a battle, each side chooses a maneuver. Maneuvers will cause one or both sides to lose (or gain, in a couple cases) soldiers. Half of this is really based on luck, and the other half is based on strategy. The battle ends when one side runs out of soldiers or one side surrenders/retreats. Please note that you lose one-third of your remaining soldiers (just the ones allotted for that battle) when you surrender or retreat. In a battle between two armies, you can only retreat after the third turn.