Day 2 started early as we hurried down to the War Room to get started with a game of Tattered Flags No. 1: Into the Whirlpool from Blue Panther.

The game is a tactical American Civil War design that really has the feel of a miniatures game with the way units move and the facing. The really interesting part of the game is the way the map is laid out. It doesn’t use traditional hexes but uses star shapes that act as hexes but are called 8-pointed spaces. The rules are really tight and crunchy as to hit rolls are expressed in percentages and players roll 2d10 with one die identified as the lead.

The game is a blast and I really enjoyed what it was trying to do. Alexander also enjoyed it and I would like to play more of it soon as we really only hit in a few turns before we had to pack it up and move.

The 2nd game of the morning was Rebels Against Rebellion from Flying Pig Games coming soon to crowdfunding. This one is designed by David Thompson and Trevor Benjamin and is a very interesting card driven game that takes a look at the lack of support for the secession of Tennessee as most of the residents of Scott County voted against breaking away. The game pits the local groups against each other as Free and Independent State of Scott fights against the local secessionist residents as violent confrontations between Loyalist and secessionist-aligned partisans and outlaws engaged in raids on farms, stealing livestock, and destroying property. The establishment of local militia groups known as the home guard sought to defend loyalists. These small militias acted in secret, launching surprise attacks on Confederate soldiers and secessionist raiders, but they also faced constant threats from the Confederate army and local secessionist groups. 

The cards in the player’s decks represent the units and locations under their control and provide various abilities and benefits as locations can produce food and also be played in defense when attacked. Each turn you will play cards to perform actions on the board and to add, remove, and improve the cards in the deck. The player who most successfully spreads their control across Scott County and amasses the most victory points will become the winner.

The game uses deck building to acquire new and upgraded cards and really reminds me a bit of A Few Acres of Snow from Treefrog Games. The location cards must be played to launch attacks or advances into the city’s around those identified on the cards and really creates a bit of a card management issue as you have to plan ahead with what you want to accomplish and sometimes hold over cards rather than discarding.

I really liked the game and it felt quite fresh and unique and played in about 45 minutes. David’s secessionists defeated my home guard by a slim margin of 3 VP’s and I look forward to playing again.

Next up we played a 5- player game of Divine Right from Pungo Games. Divine Right is a classic fantasy wargame originally published in 1979 by the Game Wizards at TSR. A few years ago, Pungo did a kickstarter that really only changed the game cosmetically and had no real upgrades or changes. Divine Right is a game that many have great nostalgia for and I can see why they do but man it needs to be updated. The game is playable by 2 to 6 players in 4 – 6 hours.

I would like to see some changes to the assymetry of each of the factions such as special abilities, the addition of a more solid alliance and negotiation process as there really isn’t one and then some type of an economy or building up of units. The combat also felt very old school and was not really great as it’s just a d6 die roll off with a few DRM’s and the loser takes losses in the amount of the difference between the results. This means that a large stack can be reduced massively if a 1 and a 6 are rolled. We enjoyed it but it needs more.

Next up was True Command from Catastrophe Games which is a unique and interesting tactical level game where players have 3-6 brigades or regiments they command, who each each have their own commander. Good commanders with more stars (from 1-3) bring greater flexibility to battles, allowing their units to roll more and better dice (which are custom) to fight off larger and stronger units. 

The players also have scouts/recon to fight for information about unit makeup, to cover your flank as you retreat or reposition, or to capture objectives on their own. One of the keys to the game is the proper and skillful use of scouts to figure out the enemy objectives and order of battle before they can find out yours.

Each scenario begins with both sides randomly being assigned their mission and also a secondary objective. I think one of the most important parts of the game is trying discern what you think the other commander’s mission is.

Each turn is conducted by randomly pulling actions from a bag, with half being for you and the other half your opponent, while adding 3 random turn shortening actions as well in the form of black chits. You will never know when the turn will end and this random activation is a very well done part of the game.

Finally, both sides have divisional staff officers to assist and bring additional resources to the battle. You draw them randomly from a staff bag, hoping to get the critical assistance that you need, and also hoping to avoid drawing the dreaded friction markers, which waste that action instead. We very much enjoyed what the game was trying to do and we offered several points of recommended changes but I think they gave something with this one.

According to the designer Tim Densham, the fake will go to Kickstarter in the fall with fulfillment in mid-2026.

Our final game of the night was Crisis: 1914 from Worthington Publishing. We played a 5-player game with our friends Russ and Cullen from Pittsburgh and Hermann Luttmann. This was my 2nd time playing the game and Alexander’s 5th time and we always have a good time with it is an interesting game.

In the end, it came to an end in Turn 5 as the Germans mobilized and started WWI. My British won with 14 victory points. Such a great game that needs more widespread attention for what it is.

Well that was a jam packed day and we are exhausted. It is now 12:15am and I’m finishing this up and hope to get a few hours of sleep. Tomorrow is a big day and we have games of Successors 4th Edition from Phalanx and then as a night cap Nations & Cannons RPG from Flagbearer Games.

-Grant