Anticipation! Something that we feel for things that we are interested in, whether it be family trips, sporting events, time off, holidays or hobbies. Anticipation keeps our minds focused on something that we feel and hope will be a good thing that brings us great joy. I feel anticipation each year for the new wargames that we are going to get to play many of which we will have been waiting upon….sometimes for years. Each year since year 3 of the blog (having been started in 2016), I have posted this list highlighting my most anticipated wargames for the upcoming year. The list has grown each year with the first entry consisting of 11 games in 2018, then growing to 12 games in 2019 and 2020, ballooning to 18 games in 2021 and then settling on just 10 games in 2022, 2023 and 2024 and then 11 games in 2025. This year, I will focus on 15 games because I cannot help myself! In case you missed my post from last year, you can read that here: Most Anticipated Wargames of 2025!
Once again the same as I did last year, I wanted to put this caveat out there. The games chosen for this list might not fit your definition of a wargame. I feel that historical and wargames are somewhat interchangeable terms because of the quote from Clausewitz “war is a mere continuation of politics by other means”. Wargames to me are a broad category not simply relegated to hexes, counters and a CRT. Don’t get me wrong. I really like hexes, counters and a CRT. But wargames can include none of these three things and be considered wargames to me. But that is probably a debate for another time. Once this post is shared, I expect many comments and questioning statements from you our audience and I have come to actually “anticipate” reading these. So sit back, relax and get ready to have your paradigm about what a wargame is shifted!
Battle Commander: Volume I – Napoleon’s Italian Campaigns from Sound of Drums
I have been following this project for the past couple of years after it had a very successful Gamefound campaign in November 2024. I just really like the way the game looks to be laid out and executed and frankly anything designed by Carl Paradis has been good such as the No Retreat Series. Another tactical Napoleonics game sounds like something that I am very much in need of and am hotly anticipating this title. Battle Commander: Napoleon’s Italian Campaigns is at the Brigade/Division scale, is supposedly very playable, with no downtime or complex computations or mechanics. Because it is being published by Sound of Drums, the package will be super-deluxe, using a very large box, allowing the 2-sided mounted maps to be folded only once, game pieces will be painted-on wood blocks of different shapes, so no annoying stickers to apply, you’ll have a couple dozen blocks per side in a game, often less. Also, no dice, almost no markers, and the emphasis is on the gameplay!
The crux of the game engine will be the deck of event cards, that will also take care of all the combat results and other dice functions and the cube-pull mechanism, that will manage player unit activations, but also turn end, when combat and rally happens, and other similar game happenstances. It’s all a very granular affair. The whole package has a definite “Kriegspiel” look, with all the graphics done in a contemporary Napoleonic style, with a very different way of maneuvering units on the field of battle compared to other Napoleonic games.
From the game page, we read the following:
Battle Commander intends to recreate historical 18th-19th century battles. It features a fresh framework focused on providing two key aspects: command decision and maximum playability.
In Volume I, you act as Army Commander in a series of six dramatic Battles fought during Napoleon’s two Italian campaigns. Volume II will cover engagements of the Second and Third Coalitions, including Austerlitz and the Battle of the Pyramids.
In Battle Commander, you struggle against the chaos of battle, making meaningful high-level decisions, not micro-managing your troops: that’s your colonels’ job! Good card play is paramount for Battle success, but make no mistake: this is not a card-driven, but a card enhanced game.
Cube-pull activation is used to manage game phases (movement, combat, rally, card draws etc.), and cards for the interactive combat system and events, allowing for a myriad of possibilities and solitaire-friendly gaming. No dice, no complex odds counting, no markers, no play downtimes, no sure thing!
A persona card represents each Commander, his specific abilities and your Army’s resources; the all-important Subordinate Leaders are integrated in an innovative multi-role card system.
Morale and troop skill are a core mechanic: demoralizing the enemy goes a long way towards winning the fight, with Armies slowly degrading in performance, until the breaking point! Casualties are managed effortlessly, and a correct “Battlefield Look” maintained at all times. With a game piece count similar to Chess, you’ll be able to assess your going in one quick “coup d’oeuil”.
This one looks to be interesting! And Carl Paradis is a very good designer as we have played lots of his No Retreat! Series games and enjoyed them.
I am 100% confident that Battle Commander Volume I: Napoleon’s Italian Campaigns will be out this year and I am very much looking forward to playing it.
Valiant Defense Series Volume V: Guadalcanal: The Battle for Henderson Field, Oct 23-26, 1942 from Dan Verssen Games
The Valiant Defense Series originally designed by David Thompson has been one of my favorite solitaire wargame series of the past 8 years. Each of the volumes in the game addresses very specific situations and always have a very interesting take with fun mechanics, great art and fantastic production. The torch for the series though appears to be passing to a new designer in Vincent Cooper. He has been working on Guadalcanal: The Battle for Henderson Field, Oct 23-26 1942 for the past few years and it had a successful Kickstarter campaign in July 2024.
From the game page, we read the following:
Valiant Defense Series Volume V: Guadalcanal: The Battle for Henderson Field (Oct 23-26, 1942) from Dan Verssen Games is a solitaire wargame where players command US forces defending a fixed perimeter against waves of Imperial Japanese Army troops. It focuses on the pivotal four-day battle, utilizing card-driven AI to simulate intense, often nocturnal, combat, similar to Pavlov’s House.
Players will command the 1st Marine Division and the 164th Infantry Regiment, defending the Lunga perimeter against the Japanese 17th Army’s major October offensive. Similar to Pavlov’s House, you manage multiple layers of defense, including the Cactus Air Force (Wildcats and SBD’s), supply lines from Task Force 62, and the 11th Marine Artillery Regiment. The game emphasizes the “Night” setting of Guadalcanal’s jungle warfare, utilizing unique card illustrations to show Japanese columns advancing through the dense foliage toward your perimeter.
This all started about 3 1/2 years ago when I first played Pavlov’s House. I say played. I ‘played’ the game for about 10 minutes…and then I sat there in stunned disbelief at how a game could be sooooo good!!!! By the time I finished there were two very clear ideas for games fully formed. I contacted DVG to see if there was any interest and they put me in touch with David Thompson. I didn’t hold much hope. There was no reason for him to trust his IP to me, a person he didn’t know.
But I gave it a try and David, it turns out, is one of the nicest people you can ever come into contact with. After some back and forth, the idea for Guadalcanal – The Battle for Henderson Field was born (not, in fact, one of the original ideas, but we’ll see what the future holds for them…).
Art by the supremely talented Nils Johansson
Thank you to all the play testers, and in particular Glenn Saunders, Shane Freshwater and Martin Fenwick Charlesworth Much more to come from out design team in the near future!!!
The most recent update on this one’s progress says that the game was sent to the printer in December 2025 and that this process could take “months”. With that being said, my guess is that this will shipping in the spring, probably around April.
Volume II Civil War Heritage Series – Army of the Potomac: Campaigns of 1862 & 1864 from GMT Games
Several years ago, Mark Herman designed a very unique and simple American Civil War game called Gettysburg that appeared in C3i Magazine #32. That game became the basis for his new Civil War Heritage Series with the first volume being Rebel Fury that focused on five battles from the Chancellorsville and Chickamauga Campaigns. He has been working on the follow-up to that game and we finally will get it with Army of the Potomac.
From the game page, we read the following:
Army of the Potomac: Campaigns of 1862 & 1864 is the second volume in the Civil War HeritageSeries and the follow-up game to the innovative and acclaimed Rebel Fury. Army of the Potomac uses the same core rules as Rebel Fury, so players familiar with Rebel Fury will be able to jump right into the action. Each battle in Army of the Potomac is quick-set-up, quick-playing, and deeply interactive. The density of counters in each scenario is low, allowing you to see and experience the big picture of the battle.
Army of the Potomac covers the battles of Spotsylvania II, North Anna River, Cold Harbor, and the entire Seven Days battle (McClellan vs. Lee), including the prelude Seven Pines (McClellan vs. Johnson) when Johnson’s wounding brought Lee into the command of the Army of Northern Virginia. Each battle places you, the player, in the role of the Army Commander (Grant, McClellan, Lee, Johnson). You maneuver your army to find the enemy’s flanks, concentrate your forces for an attack, and determine where to commit your artillery assets.
I think that one of the most interesting parts is that this new game can be played with Rebel Fury as also included are two bonus scenarios to allow owners of Rebel Fury to fight Spotsylvania II and begin the Campaign scenario from Wilderness to Cold Harbor using their original Rebel Fury map.
While attending the WBC last summer, me sat down with Mark Herman and he gave us an overview and insight into the game and its focus. You can watch that interview at the following link:
If you are interested in Volume II Civil War Heritage Series Army of the Potomac: Campaigns of 1862 & 1864, you can pre-order a copy for $49.00 from the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1108-army-of-the-potomac.aspx
The most recent update from GMT Games from late January was that Army of the Potomac is currently at the printer but doesn’t have an expected shipping date as of yet. My guess is this one will be on our tables sometime in early summer.
First Man in Rome – Strategikon Book II: The Civil War and the Fall of the Republic from Thin Red Line Games
If you are a monster wargame fan then you are probably familiar with Thin Red Line Games and the genius behind the madness Fabrizio Vianello. They are a small but passionate publisher and my favorite thing about them is that Fabrizio speaks in his military jargon so fluently that it is such a thematic boost to the games they produce. Over the past couple of years, we have posted interviews with Fabrizio covering their Cold War Gone Hot games called Die Festung Hamburg and In a Dark Wood as well as the first game in a new Ancients series called The Fate of All: Alexander’s Campaign Against the Persian Empire. Following along in that Strategikon Series is the new volume called First Man in Rome that was announced during the fall of last year.
From the game page, we read the following:
Citizens, the creation of the great mosaic depicting the beleagured civil war between Caius Iulius Caesar and Cneo Pompeius Magnus continues!
As already discussed in the Senate, we intend to represent the entire civil war, from the crossing of the Rubicon in 49BC to the defeat of the last Pompeian forces in Spain in 45BC. So it’s not just a glimpse of this epic confrontation, but the whole struggle for the greater good of the Res Publica.
I can now share some details on the map, almost at its conclusion. The map will be probably divided in six parts, each one with the size of a “standard” map. Due to the enormous extension of the conflict, the scale has been increased from 30km to 60km per hex, and the rules will be adjusted accordingly.
If you are interested in First Man in Rome– Strategikon Book II: The Civil War and the Fall of the Republic, you are encouraged by the designer to reserve a copy immediately by writing a votive tablet (email) to info@TRLGames.com! Don’t miss your chance to join the Legions and defend the Res Publica!
Rising Dragon: Platoon Level Combat in 2034 from Flying Pig Games
Several years ago, we played a very fresh and innovative wargame called Armageddon War, which is a platoon level scenario based game set in the near future. The game focuses on the Mid-East, pitting Israelis, Russians, and Americans against age-old adversaries. The game felt very fresh and new as it adds a few new tricks to a tried and true hex and counter tactical wargame system. And Flying Pig Games pulled out all of the stops on production with huge hexes, beautifully large counters and custom dice. Now, finally, Flying Pig Games and Greg Porter are unveiling the next volume in this series called Rising Dragon: Platoon Level Combat in 2034 and it looks awesome!
From the game page, we read the following:
October 1, 2034 marks the beginning of the conflict that unfolds in Rising Dragon, a standalone game and campaign setting for the Armageddon WarSystem. With the United States turning inward in the wake of the catastrophic ‘Armageddon War’, China seizes the moment to assert its territorial claims, letting the world know that it is now the unchallenged power in the region. This sets the stage for a military showdown that spans East Asia, with Taiwan at the epicenter.
Platoon Level
Scale of 150 meters per hex
15 minutes per turn
Continuous Chit-pull Activation
18 stamped dice for combat resolution
Naval, amphibious, and urban conflicts
Age: 14+
Players: 2
Playing Time: 1-3 Hours
Scenario based
The game introduces cutting-edge technologies, including hypersonic missiles, advanced amphibious operations, and features detailed maps that bring the battlegrounds of Taiwan and the wider region to life. Scenarios include the Chinese invasion of Taiwan, where hypersonic missile systems like the PRC Heaven Sword devastate Taiwanese defenses.
OPLAN 5027 Supplement
OPLAN 5027 expands the conflict further, introducing North and South Korean hostilities, where players can engage in both the defense and offense of Korea’s border zones. With Rising Dragon, players can immerse themselves in a fast-paced, near-future conflict, where technological advancements and strategic decision-making determine the fate of East Asia.
Gameplay is continuous and fluid. There are no turns, just continuous activations. The intensity of a unit’s close combat modifier is determined not only by its weapons but also by the tactics you choose to use for the assault or defense, and when you fire on a unit, it has the option of taking cover or returning fire. The number of dice and the color of dice rolled, determine the number of hits.
Formations are activated by chit draw (nothing new there), but returned to the draw cup not at the end of a turn, but rather in a continuous manner. When chosen, a formation marker is placed on the activation track, to the right of the last-drawn formation. When only one chit remains in the cup, the two leftmost chits are returned to the draw cup. Simple, continuous.
I am unsure if this title will be ready this year but am hoping that it it. The Kickstarter campaign was funded in November and I see no reason why this cannot be fulfilled by the end of the year.
Rebel Tide: The American Civil War, 1861-1865 from Compass Games
There is no secrete that we really enjoy Gregory M. Smith designs and we also count him as a close friend so take that for what it is worth. He is a great designer and has put together some of our favorite narrative-driven solitaire wargames, such as Silent Victory, The Hunters and The Hunted, but also has done some great 2-player strategic level games on various historical periods including Imperial Tide, covering WWI, and Pacific Tide, taking on the Pacific Theater of WWII. His new game in the system deals with the American Civil War and is called Rebel Tide.
From the game page, we read the following:
Rebel Tide: The U.S. Civil War, 1861-1865 is a two-player strategic level game that places you in command of either the USA (Union) or CSA (Confederacy) during the Civil War. Each turn consists of a year, during which multiple card plays occur. These give the players movement, combats, entrenchments, and other actions. At the end of each year, players must make critical decisions on which cards to re-buy in an attempt to win the war outright or to win by placing the other side in a disadvantageous position by 1865. Rebel Tide is based on the popular, action-packed Imperial Tide/Pacific Tidegame system by Gregory M. Smith, with many combat and strategic decisions to challenge players in just a single evening’s game.
The core of the game is the unique card re-buy system, in which players take their annual production (adjusted for blockades and blockade runners) and decide which cards they need for the upcoming year. Cards not only provide for reinforcements, but allow for movement, combat, and entrenchment. Which cards to rebuy is without question one of the key decisions the player must make to prepare for next year’s operations.
The game has infantry units for all of the major participants, cavalry, and artillery units. Naval operations are mainly abstracted, although the Confederate player must worry about Farragut invading a port from the sea. Besides the focus on card play, the game features a small footprint (one standard map) and also is designed to be played in just a single evening – estimated at 3 hours for experienced players to fight the entire war.
But don’t worry because the game is not just a reskin of the same system used in those other two games, although the system is really interesting, but instead attempts to create new mechanics and elements to tell the proper story of the struggle for the soul of the country in the 1860’s.
One new mechanic in Rebel Tide is the Political Track, which is an abstract measure of the support of England and/or France to the Confederacy. If this track reaches the maximum early in the war, it can trigger an early CSA victory.
Another new key mechanic in the game system is the addition of historical Leaders, who range in ability from excellent (5) to poor (2). Bad leaders may be “sacked” and removed from the game and randomly replaced by the expenditure of a movement action. Leaders are vital in advancing after combat and also can add strength to an attack’s total combat power.
While attending WBC a few summers ago, we had a chance to sit down with Gregory M. Smith to cover a few of his upcoming designs and Rebel Tide was included in that discussion. Here is a look at our video interview with Greg:
As of February, Rebel Tide was the 4th next game to be published according to Compass Games website so I would think that this will be in our hands early summer.
Brandywine 1777 – A Time for Heroes from Les 3 Zouaves
As you know, I love a good game about the American Revolution and last fall (September) month I noticed a new game going to Gamefound on the Battle of Brandywine Creek on September 11, 1777. The game is from a new company that I don’t know much about called Les 3 Zouaves but looks really great.
From the game page, we read the following:
The smoke of musket fire hangs in the air. The Brandywine River glistens behind your lines. Across the field, redcoats are on the move — and one bold decision could tip the balance of the entire Revolution.
You hold command.
Will you outwit your enemy? Will you strike with daring precision, or hold the line against impossible odds?
Play as General Howe or General Washington in a tense, card-driven clash of minds.
Every decision matters. Every move could rewrite history.
And only one can emerge victorious.
Brandywine 1777 is more than a battle: It’s your chance to prove you are a true tactician… a hero of the Revolutionary Wars.
In Brandywine 1777, you assume the role of George Washington, facing a bold and elusive enemy. Activation Cards are your principal tool —used to commit your forces at just the right moment… if you can anticipate the British plan.
But it’s never that simple. Each card lists several potential formations—some real, some misleading—and you’ll never have enough activations to do everything you need to do. Choose wisely, bluff cleverly, and stay one step ahead.
You’ll be balancing:
Major activations – few in number, but vital,
Minor activations – flexible but limited,
And Bonus activations, which cost precious cohesion but can turn the tide when used effectively.
This one is a stretch to add to this post but once again I am being optimistic.
Limits of Glory Campaign V: Donning the Sacred Heart from Form Square Games
A few years ago, we became acquainted with Andrew Rourke through his Coalitions design from PHALANX that went on to a successful crowdfunding campaign and is a game that I am very much looking forward to and have been since that time. He has since been a busy guy with starting his own publishing company called Form Square Games and also publishing the first 3 designs in a new series called Limits of Glory that will take a look at the campaigns of Napoleon and other contemporary conflicts. In Campaign I, which is called Bonaparte’s Eastern Empire, the game is focused on the campaign of the French in Egypt between 1798 and 1801. Campaigns II, III and IV are Maida 1806 and Santa Maura & Capri. Last year, they ran a successful crowdfunding campaign for the fifth campaign and volume in the Limits of Glory Series and it is set during the French Revolution and the Civil War in the Vendée in 1793 and is called Donning the Sacred Heart. I very much have enjoyed our plays of this series with its use of Glory and chance in managing your leaders and their inherent elan and leadership.
From the game page, we read the following:
The French Revolution was not welcomed by all in France. The staunchly Catholic and Royalist leaning Vendée Militaire was a region unwilling to sacrifice its youth to the voracious appetite of the Republic’s military conscription machine, and the people of the Vendée were prepared to fight to defend their beliefs. Donning the Sacred Heart covers the vicious Civil War in the Vendée from March until December, 1793. All combatants and significant commanders are included and the game causes Multiple strategic decisions every turn. Your decisions will decide victory or defeat, the easy to play mechanics produce a subtle game with full player agency. Complete player engagement throughout.
Tension builds as the Event Clock drives the game, neither player being able to depend on events going their way, or knowing when the game will end.
I would expect this one to be fulfilled in late summer as the most recent update in late January was that the games would be shipping soon.
An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834-1838 from Bellica 3rd Generation
A few years ago, we did an interview with David Gómez Relloso covering his well thought of Crusade and Revolution: The Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939 from Compass Games that was getting a deluxe edition and on Kickstarter at the time. Since that time, we have played the game and really enjoyed it. Recently, I spoke with Francisco Ronco and he informed me that his company Bellica 3rd Generation was doing a new game by David called An Impossible War. That game covers The First Carlist War in the North of Spain and is currently in the process of being fulfilled so it won’t be long now.
From the game page, we read the following:
An Impossible War is a game about the decisive years of the First Carlist War in the North. Infantry and cavalry are represented by blocks, which introduce fog of war into operations. There are also artillery counters (field and mountain artillery) and logistics units (supply trains and backpacks).
The main map is a point-to-point board covering the northern theater of operations: Navarre, the Basque Country, and surrounding areas of La Rioja, Burgos, and Cantabria. In addition to provincial capitals, major towns and other localities are shown, along with primary and secondary routes of communication. There is also a smaller map of the rest of peninsular Spain, showing the regions affected by the Carlist uprising and allowing expeditions being launched from the North.
Each turn, players compete for initiative and carry out a variable number of actions. There is also a card deck for each side, including historical, operational, and tactical events. The cards add background and unpredictability to the game, helping make each session different. This is NOT a card-driven game, but one assisted by cards.
An Impossible War simulates the historical conflict, which featured numerous skirmishes, few major battles, and significant siege warfare. It is an asymmetric game in which each side has strengths and weaknesses. Players must exploit their advantages and mitigate their disadvantages to achieve victory.
The Carlist player must make use of superior mobility and unit quality to consolidate territory, wear down the enemy, and threaten cities. The Liberal player must contain and suppress the insurrection; they have more troops, but of lower quality and plagued by logistical nightmares. Additionally, they must quell uprisings and chase down Carlist expeditions across the rest of Spain.
If you are interested in An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834-1838, you can order a copy for 120,00 € from the Bellica 3rd Generation website at the following link: https://bellica3g.com/en/product/una-guerra-imposible/
This game just recently became available and I actually own a copy and am in the process of doing an unboxing video0 and learning the rules to play it with Francisco Ronco (owner of Bellica 3 G) at the end of the month.
Song for War: Mediterranean Theater from Invicta Rex Games
While attending Buckeye Game Fest in the spring of 2022, we met two new designers who had a very cool looking prototype copy of their new game setup in the War Room called Song for War: Mediterranean Theater. Chris Helm and Seth Stigliano were really nice guys who obviously had put a ton of time into their game and it was immediately evident that this was going to be a different experience. Unfortunately, because of our crazy schedule of events and already committed to games at the convention, we were unable to sit down and play the game but did get a quick overview and crash course into the design as well as a good look at the awesome components.
The game was funded on Kickstarter in 2025 and we have been told that the game will be available by the end of 2026.
From the game page, we read the following:
Song for War is a tabletop strategy game based in the contested regions of southern Europe, north Africa, and the Mediterranean Sea during World War II. Representing one of four nations, players must work together as the Allies (US or Great Britain) or Axis (Germany or Italy). Players have the option to set strategy, move units, attack and defend as individual nations or simultaneously as the Allied or Axis team. Innovative mechanics allow players to deploy their land, sea, and air units strategically as combined forces, with faster units moving first and more often, followed by heavy units with stronger firepower. Take strategic objectives, control shipping lanes and resupply, deploy new technologies and units, and recreate historical events to defeat the enemy and win the day.
One of the best parts is the asymmetry built into the design for each of the nations. This gives the game some feeling of reality versus everyone just having the exact same units with the exact same abilities. I also am really interested in each nations’ special units and want to see how these things work and feel as the game is played.
Fellow content creator Zilla Blitz did a preview for the game in 2023 and you can check that out at the following link:
If you are interested in Song for War: Mediterranean Theater, you can pre-order the game at the Invicta Rex Games website at the following link: https://www.invictarex.com/songforwar
The Lions of El Alamein from VentoNuovo Games
Last year, while perusing the internet, I found mention of an upcoming block wargame on the battles in and around El Alamein in World War II from VentoNuovo Games. The game covers the Axis and Commonwealth Forces clash in the North African Theater in Egypt during 1942 and really looks to be pretty interesting. The game is called The Lions of El Alamein and was successfully funded on Kickstarter.
From the game page, we read the following:
What is The Lions of El Alamein? North Africa, 1942.The Battles of El Alamein were a series of battles fought in Egypt between Axis and Commonwealth forces between July and November 1942.
The terrain of El Alamein, close to the Qattara Depression, was chosen by the British after the Tobruk rout because it was the only geographical segment that could offer a defense in depth capable of protecting the Nile Delta and the Suez Canal. The game offers five scenarios to play all the battles fought at El Alamein from July to November 1942.
A turn is made of Impulses and each turn represents a month of real time. Each hex represents a distance of about six kilometers from side to side. Units vary from brigades to battalions, most of them HQ’s, armored, artillery, motorized, or infantry. The game employs the newly developed SLIT engine.
Complexity depends on the scenario played and the optional modules applied, thus varying from 2 to 4 out out of 5. Average game duration is less than a hour for the short battles, and about 1-4 hours for the three major battles.
There was supposed to be a series of these small interviews in a run up to the Kickstarter but there was a language misunderstanding (that I still cannot figure out) and I believe that I offended the parties involved and the series was cut short after just one entry. Shame really as I was liking what I was seeing and hoping to bring more of it to you!
I recently received a shipping notice on that one and would expect it to arrive by the end of February.
Model’s Counterattack: The Battle of Radzymin and Bagration’s End from Dissimula Edizioni
A few years ago, Sergio Schiavi broke onto the scene with his new company called Dissimula Edizioni with their first Kickstarter called Radetsky’s March: The Hundred Hours Campaign and that game was then followed a few years later by From Salerno to Rome: World War II – The Italian Campaign, 1943-1944 and then their third game called Give Us Victories: The Chancellorsville Campaign. Now, they have launched a very interesting looking East Front wargame during the summer of 1944, after Soviet forces launched a series of offensives that annihilated much of the German army but Field Marshal Model rallied some intact forces and counterattacked managing to halt temporarily the Soviet forces. This game is called Model’s Counterattack: The Battle of Radzymin and Bagration’s End and is currently available.
From the game page, we read the following:
In the summer of 1944, Soviet forces launched a series of offensives that annihilated much of the German army. During their advance they went as far as the Vistula, arriving near Warsaw. Field Marshal Model, by rallying some relatively intact forces and counterattacking, managed to halt, at least temporarily, the Soviet forces. While all this was happening east of the Vistula, the city of Warsaw rose up behind it…
The game lasts a total of ten turns; during each turn both players, altering each other, move and fight with their forces on the map, trying to conquer or defend key positions. During the course of the game some particular historical events may occur such as the arrival of reinforcements or the Warsaw uprising. At the end of the game, the victory conditions are checked and victory is awarded to the player who scores the most points.
Each hex on the map represents a distance of approximately two kilometers, side to side. Each turn represents one day of real time; units vary from brigades to battalions. The map represents the area where the main bales took place, east of Warsaw. Above it is printed a hexagonal grid which serves to regulate some aspects of the game. Warsaw is considered as a single area, an area where only German forces can transit or mass. Tables and tracks are printed on the map and are used to record and regulate some game functions:
Game Turn Track
Track for the Warsaw Uprising
Track for the allocation of German forces in Magnuszew
If you are interested in Model’s Counterattack: The Battle of Radzymin and Bagration’s End, you can purchase a copy for 59 € on the Dissimula Edizioni website at the following link: https://www.dsimula.com/model
COIN Series Multi-Pack IIThe Guerrilla Generation: Cold War Insurgencies in Latin America from GMT Games
Stephen Rangazas has been active behind the scenes over the past few years with his development work on Fall of Saigon: A Fire in the Lake Expansion. He used his background and research capabilities to great effect as he did the background work on the Event cards for that game. From that experience, he has now come forward with a few of his own designs in The British Way: Counterinsurgency at the End of Empire, which was announced in 2021 as well as Sovereign of Discord announced in 2022. Now, he is working on a new COIN Series Multi-Pack that deals with insurgencies in Latin America during the height of the Cold War called The Guerrilla Generation.
From the game page, we read the following:
The Guerrilla Generation: Cold War Insurgencies in Latin America is the second COINMulti-Pack, containing four separate games exploring a series of thematically related insurgencies. Building on the The British Way, this new multipack allows players to explore variations in insurgent groups’ organizational structures, strategies, and relationship with civilians, across four insurgencies in Central and South America between 1968 and 1992. During this part of the Cold War era, Latin America experienced an incredible number of different insurgent groups, many inspired by the Cuban Revolution featured in Cuba Libre, ranging from popular backed rural insurgencies, flexible urban guerrillas, externally sponsored raiders, and brutal ideologically rigid groups. This multipack features a game exemplifying each of these types of insurgencies, to offer players the chance to compare different approaches to rebellion highlighted in the quote by scholar Jeremy Weinstein above. The Guerrilla Generation also offers four longer and more complex individual games than those found in The British Way, as well as an entirely different approach to the linked campaign scenario, which combines two games into a simultaneous side-by-side experience.
This Multi-Pack includes four full games in one box, which is a fantastic value that will allow players to explore four different conflicts set during the height of Cold War Latin America between 1968 and 1992. Each game uses a unique ruleset building on the same general mechanical structure, ensuring that they are easy to pick up while still offering a distinctive experience.
I also love these Multi-Packs because they have a small board footprint with each of the 4 games playing in under 2 hours and taking place on a single 17” x 22” board. But, the game doesn’t just treat these games as individual as they are designed to experience at least a portion of the full span of the period and be used to learn more about these insurgencies.
There is also a “Resisting Reagan” Campaign designed into the game. A linked campaign scenario allowing up to 4 players to play El Salvador and Nicaragua side-by-side, with new mechanisms to represent the Central American peace and solidarity movement’s efforts to resist the Reagan Administration’s aid to both the Salvadoran government and the Contra insurgency, by influencing Congress and American public opinion.
In the most recent GMT Games update from January, the game was listed as being at sea, meaning that it has been printed and is in transit to the warehouse. Hoping that this one sees our table in April/May.
Small Battles of the American Revolution, Volume I: The Battle of Cowpens
While attending the World Boardgaming Championships in July 2024, I was able to meet up with Dave Stiffler (acting as Developer on the project) and Bruno Sinigaglio who is the designer to get an early look at the upcoming debut release in the Small BoAR Series called The Battle of Cowpens.
I didn’t get any pictures because they didn’t have the components along to show but learned a lot about the design and how it changes the Battles of the American Revolution Series from GMT Games. First off, the scale is the major difference as it is 1/8th of the scale used in the normal series. This means 25 yard hexes and 2-3 men per counter. They also have included both rifle fire and musket fire which is a change as musket fire is simply an abstracted part of the close combat mechanic in BoAR. They also have added some new mechanics to account better for things like morale and being shaken or even shattered.
I have known about this game for a while now, actually nearly a few years or so, but am very excited to see this one see the light of day and hope that the reception is great and that the game does well because I would like to see more small battles covered in future volumes.
From the game page, we read the following:
Two critical battles were considered turning points in the American Revolutionary War: the Battle of Saratoga in New York and the Battle of Cowpens in South Carolina. The Battle of Cowpens was a catalyst to a series of events that led eventually to the surrender of the British at Yorktown. Small BoAR Volume I, The Battle of Cowpens, puts players directly into the milieu of this decisive contest.
The goal of the Small BoAR design concept is to include small yet critical battles that otherwise do not fit the scale of the historically simulating and highly successful Battles of the American Revolution (BoAR) system designed by Mark Miklos. This new system, aptly termed Small Battles of the American Revolution (Small BoAR), was designed by Bruno Sinigaglio working closely with Mark Miklos to preserve the continuity and popularity of the original Battles of the American Revolution game system.
Although extremely important to the history of the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Cowpens involved slightly over 1000 participants per side. In the Battles of the American Revolution system, which represents 100 men per strength point, this would equate to only ten or so combat factors per side. The scale for the battle of Cowpens, on the other hand, is 12 men per strength point, or one-eighth that of the BoAR system. The map scale is also correspondingly reduced to 25 yards per hex from the BoAR scale of 200 yards per hex. The time scale is approximately four minutes per turn as compared with one hour per turn in BoAR.
I think that one of the best parts of this new series, aside from the size and scope of the battles covered being smaller, is that they have not just rested on their laurels and reproduced the BoAR System but have added new mechanics and elements to better deal with these battles and to model the smaller scale battles.
Although Army Morale, the game-within-the-game in BoAR, is faithfully preserved in Small BoAR, and the Small BoAR sequence of play resembles that of BoAR and will look familiar to anyone who has played games in the original series, certain novel elements appropriate to the new scaling have been added. These include:
The ability to designate cavalry units in reserve
Artillery Fire conducted both offensively and defensively
Simultaneous ranged musket Fire as a complement to ranged rifle fire
A Cavalry Reserve Phase where units designated in Reserve may charge after the normal Close Combat Phase
And Opportunity Card Management
As mentioned earlier, I had the honor of sitting down with Bruno Sinigaglio and Dave Stiffler to discuss this new series and The Battle of Cowpens. Here is a link to that video interview:
If you are interested in Small Battles of the American Revolution, Volume I: The Battle of Cowpens, you can pre-order a copy for $48.00 from the P500 game page at the following link: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-1140-the-battle-of-cowpens.aspx
In the most recent GMT Games update from January, the game was listed as going through final art and proofreading so production should be in the next few months and possibly this one will be ready in the fall.
Imperial Borders – The Congress of Vienna from Nightingale Games
Put this game in the expensive, overproduced, huge, Ameritrashy wargame section if you are looking for a categorization of what it is but Imperials Borders: The Congress of Vienna from Nightingale Games is designed by Larry Harris (he of Axis & Allies fame) and is somewhat of an alternative history game that includes a system of written orders that is really very cool as we played this system with War Room a few years ago. The game is nearing finalization and shipping after successful Kickstarter campaign last year.
From the game page, we read the following:
Imperial Borders – The Congress of Vienna is an alternative historical board game designed by Larry Harris (designer of Axis & Allies) that lasts about 4 to 6 hours.
PREMISE – What if the Congress of Vienna failed to establish peace? 2 to 6 players control the major nations of Europe during the aftermath of war with Napoleon. Establish a dominating presence of power and wealth through clever diplomacy and strategic warfare…
THE HEART OF THE GAME – Establish a dominating presence of power and wealth through clever diplomacy and strategic warfare…Plotting, scheming, deal-making, and backstabbing are fundamental to winning the game. The timing of exactly when to make your play for domination of Europe is a most challenging dilemma.
HOW TO WIN – Each Nation’s final score is their sum of Prestige points gained gradually over the entire game and the value of all their controlled Territories and Elite Forces in the last Game Round. The highest total score wins the game.
END GAME – Starting in the 5th Game Round, the Congress of Vienna convenes. A blind vote is held as to whether to settle for peace or to continue the conflict. Each subsequent Game Round the results are weighted more heavily towards peace.
This game is very highly produced, with hundreds of plastic miniature units (including infantry, cavalry, artillery and ships of the line) and an absolutely huge and stunning looking board. This one is for sure going to become a game we play at conventions and with large groups of friends. We backed the game and are very much looking forward to playing it!
If you are interested in Imperial Borders: The Congress of Vienna, you can pre-order the game from the Nightingale Games website at the following link: https://www.nightingale-games.com/imperial-borders
With a quick look at their website, it appears that they are readying the game for delivery and then retail sale this summer. You will want to keep your eye out on that page to get information and learn more about the game.
Whew! I am wiped out now. I hope that you have enjoyed reading this list (I know I had a good time writing it!) and I hope that you have a good financing plan to purchase all the gaming goodness coming soon. Let me know what games you are looking forward to in 2026 as I always like to hear your thoughts. With so many good games upcoming it is really hard to cover them all!
The Players' Aid 