In 2020, after playing enough solitaire games to get a really good feel for what I like and don’t like, I put together my initial Top 10 Solitaire Wargames list, which ranked the best 10 solo only games that I have enjoyed over the past 7+ years. The games on that list were those that I found to be fun and engaging to play, challenging and that also wove an interesting narrative as a part of the process. Now, over 2 years later, I have played about 25 additional solitaire wargames and thought it was time to update that list.

A few caveats about this post though. First, if I haven’t played a game, I cannot place it on this list. I have not played several of the more famous solo games out there (such as Patton’s Best from Avalon Hill, RAF: The Battle of Britain 1940 from Decision Games or Fields of Fire from GMT Games) and unfortunately cannot “rank” a game I have no experience with playing. Second, this is my list. Not yours. So if you feel differently, please politely inform me of the error of my ways and I might be open to changing my mind, with the caveat that I play the game. Third and lastly, I only included games on this list that were designed as solitaire only wargames with an AI or some type of Bot. I have played many great wargames solo by playing both sides but I wanted this list to be specifically solitaire designed games. With that being said, let’s take a look at my updated list.

Falling off this list from last time was #10 Solitaire Caesar, #9 Agricola: Master of Britain (which was actually replaced by another game in that same series from the same publisher), #8 Attack of the 50 Foot Colossi! (which was a really hard removal because that game is pretty fun and interesting), #6 Field Commander: Alexander, #5 Castle Itter (this one hurt to remove but it was replaced by another game in the same series) and #4 Nightfighter Ace. Some of the other games that remained on the list have moved around a bit as other games have entered the list that were ranked higher.

10. Soviet Dawn: The Russian Civil War 1918-1921 Deluxe Edition from Worthington Publishing

The States of Siege Series of solitaire games is either beloved or hated by those who play it! Some find it boring and rote while others enjoy the structure that the tracks give you and the predictability in actions you can take to avoid the effects of the pressure coming at you. I love the system and enjoy the narrative it creates with the cool historically based event cards used as well as the interesting choices that are presented to the player with the unique period specific aspects of the subject being covered.

Soviet Dawn: The Russian Civil War 1918-1921 Deluxe Edition is an updated version of Darin Leviloff’s States of Siege Series game focused on the Russian Civil War from 1918 to 1921. I played this one a ton last year and really came to enjoy the interesting choices that I was presented with to either try to focus on simply attacking the advancing tracks (Offensives), to try and win a political victory (Political) or to invest in the “stock market” per se and take a risk at gaining really interesting and useful advantages (Reorganization) to aid me in fighting off the advancing enemies of the movement. These three different types of actions are all very useful but some you will use more than others. Offensives will always be your most frequently used action because you will need to drive your enemies back as they advance down the various tracks. Political actions are necessary to keep your supporters behind you and to avoid difficulties in taking your other actions but also can be an immediate source of victory if you near the top of the track.

The Reorganization actions though are quite a bit different and this is what makes Soviet Dawn a winner and earned its spot on this list. There is a lot more risk involved in this course of action as these Reorganization chits, which provide certain advantages, are very hard to obtain. You will have to get a bit lucky and roll a modified 6 in order to successfully pull off these Reorganization actions. So most of the time these efforts will fail and you will kick yourself for wasting that action this turn. But when you succeed, there is great celebration! These include Armored Trains and Tank Corps (that gives a +1 DRM against the enemy on a specific track for the turn), the Comintern (that gives a positive modifier on Political Actions) and my favorite the Imperial Gold Reserve (which allows a player to change fate in the game by either negating a critical advance or changing any die roll to the result you want). These are very evocative inclusions that came out of the era and was a great addition to the game. It felt quite a bit like Axis and Allies and the technology rolls. Remember that in Axis and Allies, you had limited resources available, but if you could afford it, you could gamble on a chance to obtain some sort of strategic advantage, ranging from improved submarines to long range aircraft. Darin included this aspect into the game with the Red Army Reorganization Chart and it really deepens the narrative and the tension of the game.

I really liked Soviet Dawn and it remains in my collection today and will hit the table when I am in the mood for a quick playing yet interesting solo game on the Russian Civil War!

Here is a link to my video review of the game:

And also a link to a video playthrough:

If you are interested in Soviet Dawn: The Russian Civil War, 1918-1921, you can order a copy from Noble Knight Games at the following link: https://www.nobleknight.com/P/2147876791/Soviet-Dawn

9. D-Day at Tarawa from Decision Games

D-Day at Tarawa is a solitaire war game published by Decision Games that is a follow up to D-Day at Omaha Beach designed by John H. Butterfield. The game is a look at the 4 day campaign during World War II spanning November 20-23, 1943 over the control of the islet of Batio located in the Tarawa Atoll. The game covers the operations of the US 2nd Marine and 27th Infantry Divisions in their attempt to clear the islet which is defended by nearly 5,000 hardened and dug-in Japanese troops.

The signature element of the game that I liked the most is the US Action phase and how it provides the player with lots of choices about what to do. The US is given three actions that they can take each turn which include movement, attack and barrage. These actions can activate 3 units or stacks and each can only be activated once. You can also take free actions with certain units that have a hero, inspired or disrupted marker or an HQ unit. This requires you to think about and plan out each of your uses of these scarce actions. I found that I would use at least 2 on groups to create a stronger attack on Japanese units and then always use one of the other remaining actions to move into Close Combat (as that was more effective than my fire attacks). This is another puzzle that must be solved in order to effectively play the game and I have lots of work to do in that area.

I also really like how the AI operates as the cards when drawn during Close Combat or Japanese fire actions, the colored boxes with various symbols tell you which Japanese positions on the map will fire that round and what type of units they will hit. The colored areas also tell other information about the actions that can be taken in later rounds and add qualifiers to the ability to fire. Each of the US units has a certain array of weapons that they carry and each Japanese unit has certain weapon requirements to effectively attack them. The player must learn what those weapon requirements are (you find this out only after you attack and uncover the units) and bring troops with those requirements to bear on that unit to do any real damage. I found that I had trouble with fire attacks on the Japanese due to the weapons not matching and their great cover (for example, a fortified building doubles the strength of the unit inside) usually only adding a Disrupted marker to them but this was beneficial as it prevented them from firing the next round as they had to remove the Disrupted marker.

I have only played one of the other entries in this series D-Day at Iwo Jima and really didn’t like it. The rules were very wonky (different designer) and it really lost some of the luster of the system for me. But I assure you this one is good and even though it is really challenging and I have never won yet will make for a great play each and every time.

Here is a link to a preview that I posted on the game in 2016: https://theplayersaid.com/2016/06/23/one-square-mile-of-hell-a-preview-of-d-day-at-tarawa-by-decision-games/

If you are interested in D-Day at Tarawa, you can order a copy from Noble Knight Games at the following link: https://www.nobleknight.com/P/2147560014/D-Day-at-Tarawa

8. Silent Victory: U.S. Submarines in the Pacific, 1941-45 from GMT Games

One of my favorite movies of all time is Das Boot. I know that this is a movie about a German submarine and I am using it as the introduction to a post about American submarines but it is simply so good and really helped to give me an understanding of the absolute hell that those submariners endured in the depths in a slender metal tube being depth charged to death. I remember the scene where the Chief Machinist Johann loses it and has to be restrained. As we follow along on the patrol of the U-96, we grow to understand the difficulty with which those men had to deal as they did their job and took the punishment. As you know, the movie ends when they are in a sub base and are bombed by Allied planes and we see the Captain and most of the crew shot up and dying as they watch the U-96 slip under the water. After playing Silent Victory, where the player takes the helm of an American submarine in the Pacific Ocean during World War II, I could understand (not physically or psychologically) emotionally how they felt, just a bit, as my boat was depth charged mercilessly and I simply could not get away from the Escort. Eventually, I did get away but not before I lost a few crew to injuries and basically nearly sank myself by deciding to go past test depth to escape.

Silent Victory: U.S. Submarines in the Pacific, 1941-45 is a window into the experience of a submariner during World War II. True, the game boils down to an exercise in chart flipping and dice rolling but it amazes me that all of that can generate a nail biting heart pounding tension filled experience all using nothing more than a few pieces of paper, a few counters and some dice. It is the only submarine game from Gregory M. Smith that I have fully played through and I really need to get the others off the shelf and get them on the table. Along the same lines of thought though this chart flipping and dice rolling can get to some people after a while and this one may not be for everyone. It’s strength is the building of the characters in your captain and crew and the narrative that it weaves all while using a pen, a pad and some dice and charts. There are limited choices, but they mostly have to do with how you attack or whether you attack, as your patrols are basically boxes along a track that you follow and roll dice looking for contact. But the tension is palpable and really kept me on the edge of my seat for several hours. The game can be played quickly as a patrol might take 30-45 minutes depending on what happens and you can then put it away and come back to it when you have another opportunity to go out on patrol again in trying to complete and survive your tour of duty. For that type of gamer with limited time and table space, this is a lifesaver.

If you are interested in Silent Victory: U.S. Submarines in the Pacific, 1941-45, you can order a copy from Noble Knight Games at the following link: https://www.nobleknight.com/Search?text=silent+victory

7. Charlemagne, Master of Europe from Hollandspiele

A few years ago during the pandemic, I finally got the opportunity to play Agricola. No not the farming Euro style game but the very unique and interesting wargame from Hollandspiele designed by the incomparable Amabel Holland. The most unique part of that design was the 3 Chit-Pull Cup System. The 3 cups each have a title and specific disposition of Britain Tribes are placed in them. These titles include Friendly, Unfriendly, and Hostile and abstractly represent the allegiance and attitude of the different Units contained within the cups to the Roman occupation. After each action taken by any Roman Legion on the mapsheet, the player will reach into these cups and take one or more of the Units and blindly move them from their current cup to another cup as identified by the action. Some actions make them upset and they move up the scale from Friendly to Unfriendly or to Hostile. Some actions pacify the tribes and allow the player to move them toward a more friendly disposition. These cups all are used by the game to unleash enemies, and certain conditions or events, at the player causing them trouble in their efforts to conquer Britannia. It is really genius!

The 2nd game in this 3 Chit-Pull Cup System is called Charlemagne, Master of Europe in which the player sits as Charles I on the Frankish throne and tries their hardest to unite Europe under their rule. The armies of Frankia will conquer new territory and add it to the empire while also trying to build the required public works and patronizing the Carolingian Renaissance to increase prestige and wealth. The game plays over 12 turns and each of these turns has five phases. The really tricky part about the structure is that if the player cannot meet the requirements for that turn, the game will end immediately in a loss. These turn requirement thresholds increase throughout the game and success last turn doesn’t guarantee success in meeting them in the next turn but you must continually grow and develop your engine to gain what must be gained. These requirements include the player having to increase their treasury, a minimum value of military strength by adding all the individual units values together and a minimum number of victory points. I really liked this one better than Agricola because it included many of the same elements but really added in a lot of additional parts such as seeking Papal approval, building of infrastructure, clearing regions of enemy troops and rebels, building churches, increasing the treasury, and achieving glory focused goals such as becoming the Holy Roman Emperor.

The military battles are also very key and if you ever lose a battle you will lose your grip on the throne and lose immediately. You have to really pick your battles and must plan effectively by building up your most powerful units to their highest levels but also understanding that they need to be replaced as they will retire once they reach the top. This was a fascinating dance and kept me concerned about recruiting each and every turn and I really liked that.

The only complaint I have about Charlemagne is that the game is very long and takes a solid 3 hours to complete in its entirety. The battles are very involved and require lots of rolls, which leads to lots of time spent when battling a lot. I don’t think that you should be fighting all of the time but it does make the game long. Great game though and currently my favorite of the three games in that system.

If you are interested in Charlemagne, Master of Europe, you can order a copy from the Hollandspiele website at the following link: https://hollandspiele.com/collections/solo/products/charlemagne-master-of-europe

6. Stilicho: Last of the Romans from Hollandspiele

A few years ago, I discovered a great solitaire game called The Wars of Marcus Aurelius from Hollandspiele that dealt with the Romans attempting to pacify Barbarian hordes from the north in the Danube provinces during the Marcomannic Wars in 170-180 AD. Now the designer has taken that system and applied it to another period in Roman history when the Goths and Vandals, as well as a pretender named Constantine, were assaulting Rome itself and one man was asked to defend her from her enemies. Flavius Stilicho was a high-ranking general who rose from humble beginnings to become one of the most powerful men in the Western Roman Empire. After many years of victories against a number of enemies, both barbarian and Roman, a series of political and military disasters finally allowed his enemies in the court of Honorius to remove him from power, culminating in his arrest and subsequent execution in 408 AD. In Stilicho: Last of the Romans the player must survive these attacks from enemies both external and internal and quell all three advancing enemies.

Stilicho is a very well designed and interesting solo experience that plays in 60-90 minutes. But, due to the unforgiving nature of the random card draws and its reliance on dice luck, that admittedly can be mitigated through cagey card play and proper decisions, the game can be over very quickly. In fact, my first play lasted only 2 rounds and was over in about 10 minutes. Remember that the historical Stilicho only made it to Round 3! The cards are at the heart of the game here and make it a very tense and decision filled experience. Having to analyze each card, measuring its utility against the board state and what pressing matters the player must address while also fretting over having to discard a good Event Card that just isn’t useful at this point in time to take an action can be really agonizing. I think that this design works even better than its predecessor and is slowly starting to overtake the affection of my heart…..but not quite yet!

I wrote a series of Action Points on the various aspects of the game and you can read those at the following links:

Action Point 1 – the Mapsheet focusing on the three Fronts down which your enemies advance, but also covering the different spaces and boxes that effect play such as the Olympius Track, Game Turn Track, Army Box, Leader Box and Recovery Box

Action Point 2 – look at the cards that drive the game and examine the makeup of both the Enemy Deck and the Roman Deck.

Action Point 3 – look into the Roman Phase and examine how cards are discarded to take one of nine different actions.

Action Point 4 – look at a few examples of Battles and how they are resolved.

Action Point 5 – look at a few points of strategy that will help you do better in the game.

I have not been able to shoot a video review yet nor a playthrough so stay tuned.

If you are interested in Stilicho: Last of the Romans, you can purchase a copy directly from the Hollandspiele website at the following link: https://hollandspiele.com/products/stilicho-last-of-the-romans

5. Soldiers in Postmen’s Uniforms from Dan Verssen Games

I have played all the entries in the Valiant Defense Series to date, including Pavlov’s House, Castle Itter and now Soldier’s in Postmen’s Uniforms, and have really enjoyed the series. Fun, engaging, with some tough choices about how to spend your limited actions. It is perfect as a solitaire system and also works cooperatively. Soldiers in Postmen’s Uniforms deals with the assault on the Polish Postal Office #1 in the Free City of Danzig, Poland on the first day of World War II. This game tells the story of the assault as German forces moved in to seize Polish installations. Two of the installations were on alert and under orders to hold out: the Military Transit Depot on the peninsula of Westerplatte and the Polish Postal Office No. 1. The personnel of the post office repulsed repeated assaults, and were forced to surrender only after a day-long siege, when the post office was doused with gasoline and set alight. Though German propaganda cast these acts of defiance as futile and a failure, they were viewed by the Polish people as symbolic of their stand against a materially superior aggressor.

What makes this game in the series so unique, and that has given me thought to unseat Pavlov’s House as my favorite but hasn’t yet, is that it looks at the battle from a 3D perspective. It is not just about one level to defend or assaults from a few tracks but includes multiple floors to the building, the basement, ground floors and upper floors. Each of these areas has their own field of fire and there are several entrances and tracks from which the German and Polish Police can enter the building from. You really have to be on your toes and keep those invaders out or they will simply start wasting the defenders on the interior of the building. The game also provides some new tricks for the defenders, including hand grenades to attack multiple enemies in the interior of the building and more of a focus on ammunition as the big guns need bullets to be able to fire and suppress the attackers. There are just a lot of different things to focus on and similar to Pavlov’s House leaves me feeling full and satisfied as I feel after eating a 10″ ribeye steak! There are a lot of familiar mechanics to the game but enough new that it feels like a totally new experience.

We posted an interview with the designer David Thompson on the blog covering the design and you can read that at the following link: https://theplayersaid.com/2020/11/09/interview-with-david-thompson-designer-of-soldiers-in-postmens-uniforms-from-dan-verssen-games-coming-to-kickstarter-november-17th/

Also here is a look at an AAR of sorts from David as he played through the game on Tabletop Simulator that we posted on the blog: https://theplayersaid.com/2020/10/13/playthrough-aar-for-soldiers-in-postmens-uniforms-from-dan-verssen-games-coming-to-kickstarter-soon/

Here is a look at our review of the game after playing the game cooperatively:

If you are interested in Soldiers in Postmen’s Uniforms, you can order a copy from the Amazon website (it was out of stock everywhere else) at the following link: https://www.amazon.com/Dan-Verssen-Games-Soldiers-Postmens/dp/B09FBVZJMQ

4. Jeff Davis: The Confederacy at War from White Dog Games

I love a really hard and involved solitaire wargame and I found a really good one in Jeff Davis: The Confederacy at War. The game is designed by Charles S. Roberts Award-winner R. Ben Madison and he does a great job with his games. The player takes on the role of President Jefferson Davis, and you have to manage the Confederate government and the Southern war effort during the American Civil War. The choices help determine the fate of armies and the struggle between Lee and Grant. The game uses the States of Siege Series model with a central point being defended from advancing forces on 5 different tracks.

The game uses a very interesting method of determining your per turn funds as you have to run blockades against the Union to get funds to supply armies, move your troops and invest in actions to build defenses. You can also use the Slave tokens as a sort of currency to take actions but then those tokens are used up and cannot be reused. I have really enjoyed this one although it is a full 3 hour game as you have to get through 40+ chits to survive to the end. Lots of tough choices, lots of interesting side issues, such as dealing with slaves in the southern economy and keeping politicians happy. This is a great solo game! I have now played most of Ben Madison’s games and really feel that this one might just be his finest effort to date. There are others of his designs that I really like, such as Mound Builders, Nubia, The Mission, but this one really is my favorite of his! I have played it 3 or 4 times and always enjoy it.

If you are interested in Jeff Davis: The Confederacy at War you can order a copy from the White Dog Games website at the following link: https://www.whitedoggames.com/jeff-davis

3. Pavlov’s House: The Battle of Stalingrad from Dan Verssen Games

Pavlov’s House: The Battle of Stalingrad is a very interesting solitaire game that focuses on the defense of the fortified apartment building that was nicknamed “Pavlov’s House” by the Soviet 62nd Army after they withstood two months of attempts at storming from the German Wehrmacht during the Battle of Stalingrad in World War II. The name came from one of the building’s heroic defenders named Yakov Pavlov and was a huge psychological victory for the Soviets during that difficult period.

The game board depicts three different views of the Stalingrad battlefield that all play a key role in the success or failure of the defenders in Pavlov’s House and this is such a great way to approach this subject.

On the left side is a view of the inside of Pavlov’s House and covers the tactical-level movement and actions of the Soviet defenders in the form of counters. In the middle of the board is a view of the area immediately surrounding Pavlov’s House which mainly consists of the area called 9 January Square. This area shows the location of various colored tracks that are assault lanes for the German Wehrmacht counters and also provides for locations where the Soviet defender can place special Sapper units that act as a last line of defense. As German counters are drawn, they are placed on one of these 6 tracks via a die roll and as there are other units placed on each track the units advance toward Pavlov’s House. On the far right side of the board is the Volga River and the operational-level of the Soviet 62nd Army.

The player is charged with managing their array of counters located inside Pavlov’s House, including different weapons teams, commanders and weapons to fight off the advancing Wehrmacht soldiers before they can enter the base. The operational side of the game is also important as the player must try to get supplies across the river to the beleaguered apartment building while providing various assets to the defenders such as artillery strikes and extra actions through establishing a communications system. The player will have to make it through the Wehrmacht deck and survive to the end of the siege to win.

This game is a blast and plays in about 90 minutes. If you are interested, I have written a series of Action Points giving a look inside the game’s mechanics. In our 1st Action Point we took a look at the Volga River operational-level board to understand how those actions hinder or help the defenders in Pavlov’s House. In Action Point 2, we took a closer look at the 9 January Square portion of the board and how the Wehrmacht Cards work. In Action Point 3, we took a look at the inside of Pavlov’s House and how the player can use the Soviet counters to ward off the Germans. In the 4th and final Action Point, we examined the special Resupply/Storm Group Cards and discussed how you score victory points.

I also recorded a 2 part video playthrough of the game that you might find helpful: Part 1 and Part 2. We also recorded a video review of the 2-player cooperative version:

If you are interested in Pavlov’s House: The Battle of Stalingrad, you can order a copy from Noble Knight Games at the following link: https://www.nobleknight.com/P/2147708868/Pavlovs-House

2. Comanchería: The Rise and Fall of the Comanche Empire from GMT Games

I also enjoy really great thematic wargames that teach me something that I either don’t already know or don’t know much about. Comanchería: The Rise and Fall of the Comanche Empire fits into both of these categories. The game’s designer Joel Toppen is a true devotee to this game and its premise as he currently resides in Montana and lives among the Blackfeet Nation on the Reservation as he works as a pastor. I want you to know that this game is well designed and has a real basis for realism as the designer made sure to discover as much as he could about the Comanche through hundreds, if not I am sure, thousands of hours spent by Joel in researching this topic to create the playable masterpiece that it is.

Comanchería is the second game in the First Nations Series and is a solitaire only game in which the player plays from the Native American tribe’s point of view. In Comanchería, the player takes command of the Comanche nation, referred to as the Lords of the Southern Plains, as they controlled most of the area making up present day Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas, and must strive to fight off enemies and preserve their way of life and most importantly their Comanche culture from 1700-1865. The player must drive hostile tribes from the southern plains, establish dominance over the region, set up trade networks with both friendly tribes and colonial powers, and finally defend all of this against relentless military and cultural attack. The AI in this one is simply fantastic and keeps you guessing but also gives you a window into your future, which I think is very appropriate as the medicine man could metaphorically see into the future and divine what was happening with the enemy of the Comanche.

I wrote a full blown review of the game and you can read that here for all the details on the actions available to the player, the AI and how it functions and the goal of the game.

Here is a link to my video review of the game:

If you are interested in Comanchería: The Rise and Fall of the Comanche Empire, you can pre-order a 2nd Edition copy (I couldn’t find a copy on other sites) from the GMT Games website at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-872-comanchera-the-rise-and-fall-of-the-comanche-empire-2nd-printing.aspx

1. The Wars of Marcus Aurelius from Hollandspiele

A few years ago, I was introduced to this little solitaire wargame called The Wars of Marcus Aurelius: Rome 170-180CE from Hollandspiele and really have enjoyed the game as I have played it over 25 times since. That’s the good news. The bad? I have only won the game 5 or 6 times ….and even though that is the case, I can’t stop thinking about the game and playing it. It is really that good!

The Wars of Marcus Aurelius: Rome 170-180CE is a solitaire only game that uses cards similarly to a CDG to simulate the strategic level struggle of the Romans led by Marcus Aurelius to stave off the invasions of Germanic tribes and Sarmatian raiders as they encroach on Roman territory across the Danube River. That’s the history. And it is really well integrated. The game play is very fun, strategic, with lots of decision points about what to do and what cards to use, and it is really challenging.

If you like a good solitaire game, with great components, that plays in about an hour and is very challenging (code for hard to win), then this one is for you. I fully endorse this game and give it my highest marks for a solo experience.

As I tend to do, I also wrote a series of Action Point posts on this one. In Action Point 1, we examined the map and the various Barbarian Tracks down which the Marcommani, Quadi and Iazyges tribes move toward Roman territory. In Action Point 2 we looked at The Barbarian Deck and how the Barbarian Phase works. In Action Point 3 we looked at The Roman Deck and how the cards can be used for their printed events or discarded to take various actions in the Roman Phase. In Action Point 4 we looked at a few different examples of combat in the Battle procedure. Finally, in Action Point 5, I shared some strategy tips that I have learned from my plays of the game.

Here is a link to my video review of the game:

And also a link to a video playthrough:

There you have it, my Top 10 Solitaire Wargames. You will note that my top 3 didn’t change from the last time I posted this list in 2020 but since that time there have been many newcomers to my table and now to this list. Solitaire gaming is so much fun and I am truly glad that I have had the opportunity to play so many great solo games!

What are your favorite solitaire wargames?

Here are a few honorable mentions as well:

Aurelian: Restorer of the World from Hollandspiele – another excellent game in the 3 Chit-Pull Cup System that is faster playing and has streamlined the combat mechanic to a single die roll based on your forces. Must faster playing than Charlemagne.

20th Air Force: A Solitaire Game of the Strategic Bombing Campaign against Japan, 1944-1945 from Fortress Games – very interesting game where the player takes control of the mighty flying fortresses of the US in the Pacific Theater of operations bombing Japanese cities and ports. This game has some interesting mechanics but the rules need work and the board can be a bit unwieldy as pieces making damage can easily move.

414 BC Siege of Syracuse from Worthington Publishing – a beautiful game where the player controls the besieging Athenians against the city of Syracuse in the 1st Peloponnesian War. Wall building, setting up blockades and breaking the enemy morale are the keys to victory in this fast playing solo game.

World War Zed: USA from White Dog Games – a very cool zombie game on an outbreak in the United States of America where players have to use their mighty forces to turn back the horde and protect cities and the refugees that are fleeing from the undead. Lots of tough choices, about when and where to attack and defend, whether to invest in technology such as nukes or chemical weapons and how best to go about containing the zombies.

Rogue State from Tiny Battle Publishing – the player will take on the role of the Supreme Leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) immediately after the end of the Korean War. Your primary objective will be for your regime to survive from 1953 through the year 2030. Your secondary objective will be to maximize adherence to the Juche ideology by progressively achieving national self-reliance and global influence. This one is interesting and has a dark theme so it won’t be for everyone.

Don’t Tread on Me: The American Revolution Solitaire Board Game from White Dog Games – very interesting strategic-level solitaire simulation of the American Revolution with the player controlling the British side along with American Loyalist forces against the A.I. forces of George Washington and the Continental Congress. The design does a great job of incorporating elements from history into the game play and I love the various events that can happen and change the game considerably from turn to turn.

Thanks for following along and I hope you have a great time exploring all of these fantastic games!

-Grant