This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in my game, GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas.

Silly Ships of the Civil War: The “Double-Ender” Gunboat Design Pays Off

May 29, 1863

            Historical Event:  The “double-ender” gunboat USS Cimarron captured the Confederate blockade runner Evening Star as she tried to slip through the close-in blockade of Wassaw Sound, Georgia.   The “double-ender” sidewheel design incorporated a rudder at each end so the ship could go in either direction without having to turn around.  They were designed specifically for service in narrow inland waterways.

            The USS Cimarron was constructed in New Jersey and outfitted at the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1862.  The 860-ton vessel could only make 10 knots, but carried a powerful arsenal of eight guns:  six 24-pound howitzers, one 9-inch smoothbore and one 100-pound rifle.  She participated in several engagements and caught three blockade runners during her service, the first of which was the ill-fated “Evening Star” she took as a prize on May 29, 1863.

            Game Connection:   The Confederate player relies on his Blockade Runners to bring in cargo that translates into badly-needed Victory Points.  These points are vital to Southern production, as they can be traded in for the additional ships, batteries, cards and counterattacks needed to match the growing industrial behemoth of the North.   Gunboats play a key role in making it more difficult for these ships to deliver the goods, as gunboats can stack up in the Blockade Stations, thus increasing the odds of intercepting the Rebel vessels as they try to enter and then leave Rebel ports.

USS Cimarron, courtesy U.S. Naval Historical Center.

           

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in my game, GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas,  

May 20, 1863

            Historical Event: Siege of Vicksburg.    

            After Pemberton’s retreat from Champion’s Hill (see the May 16 blog entry), Grant pressed forward, overrunning hasty Confederate works on the Big Black River on the 17^th.  Federal engineers bridged the river and three Union corps crossed on the 18^th.   Grant’s attempt to carry the fortified city of Vicksburg by coup de main on the 19^th was a costly failure, resulting in nearly 1,000 casualties.  On May 20 the Union dug in, beginning the formal siege. 

            To complete the siege by water, Porter sent two ironclads (Choctaw and DeKalb) and four gunboats to attack the Rebel shipyard at Yazoo City.  The garrison set fire to the yards and to the three warships under construction rather than surrender them to the Union.

            Game Connection:

            Vicksburg is one of the three keys to the Mississippi, Federal control of which is one of the requirements for a Union victory.  Grant is in the game as a card (USN #8), and Porter appears both as a naval leader marker and as a card (USN#2).  Ironclads and gunboats are vital to both sides when battling for supremacy on the Mississippi.

Below is a photograph of USS Choctaw taken off Vicksburg in 1863 (Department of the Navy, Navy Historical Center)

            

Boardgamegeek hails Rebel Raiders as: “A design that is well worth getting into”

“Rebel Raiders is a game I definitely enjoyed playing,” says noted Boardgamegeek reviewer Marco Arnaudo in a video tour of the game he posted on that site over the weekend.

“It is not complicated but it is complex, in the best sense of the word” says Arnaudo, explaining that by complex he means the “challenges and dilemmas that both sides have to face constantly.”

To watch the nearly 20 minute review, which includes examples of game play and strategy, go to:

http://boardgamegeek.com/video/29095/rebel-raiders-on-the-high-seas/video-review

First Time Using the REAL Game...

Today I finally got to "play" Rebel Raiders on the REAL game (instead of my old hand-made playtest copy).

Actually, I did not "play" but taught the game.  My friend Bob, who had been a playtester but had not played for months, was the South, and Charlie, who had never played, was the North -- and I coached him just a little, but only on explaining what he could do, not what he should do.

 Bob as the South frustrated Charlie early on...by turn six he had not lost a single city or port...and had lost only Fredericksburg (which he took back) and had Louisville.  His blockade runners were steaming in and out of ports quite merrily and his raiders were having a romp on the seas.

Charlie got on a slow roll...he kept winning naval battles, sinking ships and blowing up batteries, but LOSING the final attack.  We counted: he made 12 amphibious attacks over the course of the game   and won ONE...Savannah was the ONLY port to fall!

But that was key...as from there he rolled through the South, where there were very few defensive batteries - as Bob concentrated on putting batteries in ports and on using his resources to build ironclads.

Charlie came out of Savannah and took Augusta, then into Atlanta and from there straight across to Vicksburg, then fought DOWN through Baton Rouge to New Orleans!

Jackson died defending Fredericksburg, and Grant took Richmond.

The final battle was a huge naval fight at Memphis (fourth such of the game).   Porter's mortar boats finally had an effect, knocking out a battery before the battle, and the duel of U.S. ironclad Carondelet vs rRebel ram Manassas was epic! Six rounds of combat during which four rebel and three union gunboats were sunk, along with one rebel ironclad forced to retreat due to a mechanical failure card and one Yankee ironclad sunk...then it was Carondelet and another ironclad alone vs Manassas and Charlie won.

That cleared the way for the attack by the army which took Memphis...and that was game (Atlanta,Richmond, the three Mississippi cities, negative rebel points makes for an automatic victory)...and it came on the last attack of the last turn of 1864.  (That is normally the last turn of the game, but Charlie played the card that gave him a chance for a 13th turn and he did win the election that would have given him one more turn)

Charlie sank 33 blockade runners through the course of the game -- there are 17 counters available, which means every blockade runner was basically sunk twice (the South still had four on the board)  and he sank four raiders (but Alabama, ironclad raider Stonewall and two others were still at sea)

It was a great game, both had a lot of fun and both want to play again! (Hopefully next time I will get to play!)

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas, my next game.

April 12, 1863

            Historical Event: Union naval forces land General Nathaniel Banks’ troops behind Confederate positions on the Teche River in an effort to trap and destroy the Rebels so Banks can march on Port Hudson.  In a three-day running fight that involves a brief naval action between rival squadrons, the Confederates break out with the help of a captured Union gunboat, the Diana.  Also engaged – and finally lost – was the CSS Queen of the West – a Union army warship of the same name that had been captured and put into service by the Confederate army in February.

            Game Connection:  Army-Navy cooperation is a key part of Union strategy in Rebel Raiders, and in many battles small groups of warships must fight to clear the way for a landing.   The Queen of the West, noted above, appears in the game in its original Union colors as Card 38.

Rebel Raider Shipping Date Confirmed!

GMT announced today that Rebel Raiders will ship in late April, along with Iron & Oak,  a tactical Civil War naval game which gamers can use to play out the battles in Rebel Raiders if they wish.   A section of the Rebel Raiders playbook shows how to use Iron & Oak for such a purpose.  So when Monitor and Virginia clash, or Kearsarge and Alabama meet, or when you are ready to run the gauntlet of guns at Vicksburg, rather than just play a card and roll a few dice for a quick result, you can go to Iron & Oak and fight it out in detail.

Late April, 2013:

Iron & Oak

Rebel Raiders on the High Seas

My Friends at GMT have also put my blog up on their site:

Mark McLaughlin's Blog

Mark just started a new blog covering his various novels and game designs. It includes a feature on Rebel Raiders on the High Seas - 150 Years Ago - that ties in the cards with history. Drop by and say hi to Mark and check out the blog. It's here:

http://markgmclaughlin.blogspot.com/

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas, my next game.

April 7, 1863

- Historical Event: The South Atlantic Squadron attacks Fort Sumter! Flying his flag from the masts of the mighty USS New Ironsides, Admiral Samuel DuPont boldly steams into Charleston Harbor to bombard Forts Sumter and Moultrie. His nine ironclads pound away, taking on the brick and mortar forts and numerous batteries that protect the beating heart of the secession.

- Game Connection: Ship-to-fort combat is a big part of the naval war in Rebel Raiders. Admiral Samuel Francis DuPont is a key leader, and card (US #54), as are many of his ships, including his flagship and the “Giant Monitor,” USS Passaic, which appear in the game as the following cards:

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

- Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas, my next game.

April 5, 1863

 - Historical Event: Shipyards in Liverpool prepare the Alexandria for service as a blockade runner.

- Game Connection: The Confederate player may build blockade runners in England. As in the war, such vessels play a key role in bringing war material (represented as cargo points) that the South may convert to military use, and as Victory Points which enable the Confederacy to continue the war.

Sample Blockade Runner Counter:

 

Sample of Blockade Runners loading Cargo in Europe; Union warships hunting for a Raider:

Typical Blockade Runner of the type built in England (a schooner-rigged sidewheel steamer, built by Caird & Co. of Greenock, in Scotland, purchased by North Carolina and christened Advance, in honor of the state’s governor, Zebulon Vance. (As depicted in the game as CSN Card #67 – CSS Advance)