There are lots of battle games out now that use cards, but you’ve never seen one quite like Worthington’s new Battle system for the Medieval Era, “The Days of Knights” Series and its initial offering, CHAINMAIL.
The “DoK” system is a card game that plays out using a map and units, not a battle game that is assisted by cards.
The game uses cards, one deck for each player (whose cards are somewhat different from those of the other player) to drive the game. Each player gets a certain number of cards each turn - often a different number for each player! - but never his full deck. The cards are used to determine movement, combat, and special items such as Missile Fire, Looting, Counter-Attack, Special Leaders, and Rapid Movement, among others. Players may play as many of their cards as they wish (up to 5) when it’s their turn, using each card for only one of the possible three purposes. Play passes back and forth between players, until both players have used all their cards… and the Turn is over.
CHAINMAIL is thus a game of card play and management, which unfolds on the historical battle map - it uses squares, rather than hexes – with the use of some beautiful, super-size counters. This is a game of position, feint, and sudden attack with what you hope are better odds (since you don’t know what cards your opponent will play, if any, and you never know what his final strength will be). No dice are used. And there are no CRT’s.
The game thus becomes a tense battle of card management. When do you play your cards? How many do you play? What do you do with them? Will you be caught short and be subject to a sudden attack by your opponent?
CHAINMAIL includes some of the major battles of the Medieval period: Lechfeld (955), Arsouf (1191), Bouvines (1214), Lewes (1264), Benevento (1268), and Bannockburn (1314).
Playing time for each battle is about 2 hours, sometimes less, and the rules are only 6 pages! Balance is excellent, and because of the use of cards and their random distribution each turn, no game is the same as any other. And the game is playable solitaire (with specific rules for doing so)!
freebooter - noun, a pirate or lawless adventurer.
A cutlass slashes through the sea breeze, smoke fills the air, a shout of "prepare for boarders!" echoes across the water, two ships pull closer as men run to the rails. You are about to enter the world of FreeBooters. Pirate adventure through the sea fights, fort battles, sacking of towns, and battles for treasure and fame. Can you as the Captain of the fort prevent the crew from rescuing their freebooter captain? As a freebooter, can you get your treasure back to your ship through the jungle, avoiding the enemy ambush? Do you risk crossing Danger Falls or hack your way through the jungle facing quicksand and gators?
Fight your way across the seas, jungles, towns, islands, and forts of the Caribbean in this game of sword fights and adventure…
Freebooters showcases man to man swordfights in the style of Worthington's popular COWBOYS game. Cards will reflect the variables of the fighting style of the golden age of piracy as well as some of the personality unique to this time. Players assume the roles of freebooter captains and their crews, opposing the English, Spanish, and American soldiers and sailors pitted against them.
The game includes plastic pirates crew, captains, multiple hard mounted game boards, cards, and much more, all produced with some of the highest quality game components available.
Vietnam is a simple, card-driven game covering the American buildup of troops and arms in Southeast Asia as to our decision to begin troop withdrawal: 1965-1970 (A topic that thirty-seven years later is just as timely and just as significant). The game is quick (2-4 hours)and clean (a bold & colorful map using area movement) HAM utilizes most major events of the period, including proposed events such as the Macnamara Line which was never actually built. Although nominally a combat game, the mechanics actually revolve around both sides occupying South Vietnamese provinces for propaganda purposes. The heart of the game is political influence. There is little doubt that the Allied player will eventually withdraw his American boys from the quagmire, but the question is, how quickly and in what numbers?
HAM contains 80 cards, counters to represent the American army, the ARVN army, the NVA army, VC units of varying hidden strength, the Cambodian army, the Laotian army and a small contingent of international allies. Turn counters, withdrawal counters, reduced movement counters as well CAS (Close Air Support), communist Air Suppression and artillery is also included. Optional rules cover Air Cavalry, naval support, Riverine interdiction, and bombers. Untried troops are a liability in the game, Veteran troops are a necessity. Ultimately, the Communist player must deal the American such a crushing public relations disaster that he will abandon his Southeast Asian allies before the momentum of those allies stalemates the irreversible infiltration of South Vietnam.
Take command of the American and British Armies in twelve great battles of the American Revolutionary War. You'll feel the battles come to life as the American Continentals and feared British Elites try to hold the line against each other at the battles of Long Island, Harlem Heights, Princeton, Trenton, Hobkirk's Hill, Eutaw Springs, Bemis Heights, White Plains, Kings Mountain, Brandywine, and the double scenario covering the morning and afternoon battles at Monmouth.
The game comes with a beautiful hard mounted game board with hard mounted terrain tiles, counters and plastic infantry, dragoons and artillery. The plastic pieces come mounted on a unique combat base that rotates to reflect losses and rallies as the tide of battles ebb and flow. The game also uses the Clash for a Continent system.
As British leaders you've told the American patriots to lay down their weapons or you'll lay waste to their homes. And as the Americans you have pledged your lives and fortunes in defense of all you value. Take the role of British generals Howe, Burgoyne, Cornwallis and others as you stake your reputation on defeating the rebel armies. As American generals Washington, Greene, Gates and others as you've precariously placed your army in their path... The enemy approaches, the sound of cannon deafens, men shout commands, smoke fills the air, can you HOLD THE LINE!
Who will be the greatest blockade runner Captain? How will you make your fortune? Guns or butter? Load your ship with coal and cargo and try to run the Union blockade during the Civil War becoming the greatest blockade runner of them all. Compete against your fellow blockade runners as you race across the Atlantic. Players have limited control over the Union blockaders, so you can open up routes for you while blocking your opponent. If you are caught by the Union, do you toss cargo overboard or burn more coal? The answers await you on the high seas.
Game will include wooden blockade runners, board, rules, cargo counters, etc.
This game will use the Clash for a Continent system to cover the Anglo Zulu War of 1879. Scenarios will be based on the battles of the Campaign that destroyed the great African Zulu nation. Scenarios will be playable in 30-90 minutes. More details will be forthcoming soon.
Using Worthington Games VICTORIA CROSS system to recreate the 1965 fight between the 1st Battalion 7th Air Cav against the 66th and 33rd Regiments of the NVA army.
The game will be an area combat game covering the fight of the 450 men of the 1st Battalion, 7th Air Cav against 2,000 men of the 33rd and 66th Regiment of the NVA army. The US player will have to use off board artillery and air to try to hold on against a determined NVA player. Playing time will be approximately 2-3 hours.
Using Worthington Games FORGED IN FIRE sytem to simulate Stonewall Jacksons complete 1862 Valley Campaign.
The game will a block game with point to point movement covering Stonewall Jackson's classic 1862 Valley Campaign. The game system will be using our Forged in Fire rules with adjustments for the situation facing both Union and Confederate commanders in the Shenandoah Valley. Supply and suprise will be critical as Jackson races up and down the Valley fighting one Union force after another as the Union try to trap the Confederates. The game will include a main campaign as well as several shorter scenarios. Playable in 3-4 hours for the full campaign with 1-2 hours for scenarios. Victory is determined by how many Union troops the Confederate player can force the Union player to keep in the Valley. The Union player will try to keep the bare minimum of troops in the Valley to prevent the Confederate player from obtaining certain objectives.
Following the death of Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee has reorganized his Army of Northern Virginia. As the Union and Confederate armies eye each other across the Rapahannock River, Lee begins a maneuver to the west and north, hoping to draw the Union army into a battle that will once and for all give him the opportunity to destroy it. Joe Hooker as the Union commander has sat back and watched following his disastrous campaign culminating in the battle of Chancellorsville. As Lee maneuvers to the north and west, Hookers wants to strike south, being refused by Lincoln, he warily trails Lee north, always keeping between the Confederates and Union capital.
Can you as Lee catch the Union army scattered and destroy it, and finally capture Washington, D. C. or Baltimore and obtain the South's independence? Can you as Hooker, or Meade, catch Lee's corps spread out over the countryside and force a surrender on the banks of the Potomac? The decisions are yours to make!
The game is a block game using point to point movement and the FORGED IN FIRE game system. The entire campaign from June-July 1863 will be playable in 2-3 hours.
Scenario based game covering the battles of the Mexican-American War using Worthington Games CLASH FOR A CONTINENT system.
Scenarios will be playable in 30-90 minutes. The game will cover the battles of the Mexican-American war that developed so many of the great (and some not so) commanders of the American Civil War. More information will be forthcoming as it develops on this title.
PREORDER PROGRAM
Worthington Games preorder program is designed to give you the opportunity to purchase games at a great pre-production discount, and to give us an idea in customer interest in a game topic. To preorder all you have to do is send an email to wg@worthingtongames.com with the game title in the subject line. There is no charge to you and we do not take your credit card or shipping information. When the game is ready to be charged we will send you an email letting you know what you have to do in order to pay. If you have changed your mind about your purchase then you don't have to do anything, there is no charge.
