TDG: Gettysburg 1863

[@get_the_lead_out]

As an old SPI geek who loved playing “monster games” back in the day, I was glad to see Gettysburg come out. The problem with a lot of the old MG’s was not the size of the game, but the sheer number of rules you had to keep track of. With Gettysburg you have a small learning curve with the basic rules (8 pages I think?); but, you have a large map to play with. It really gives,you a good feel for the sheer expanse of the battle!

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@get_the_lead_out Indeed. Thanks.

[@gravecac9522]

I had a relative that fought with the 148th Penn. and was wounded at the Wheatfield on the second day. Been to the battlefield many times, and I must agree, it is a haunting/chilling experience. You can almost feel the energy coming out of the ground. Never felt anything like it before. That said, it is great experience to walk the battlefield and see the ground that those men fought over. It really adds to an understanding of that battle.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@gravecac9522 I agree. Every American should visit it at some point.

[@justgettothegame6331]

Great video.. consider this a great entry beer and pretzel type CW hex and counter game... great to introduce to new players...

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

Thank you.

[@dhmcarver]

Always love watching a review of a Civil War game -- and I somehow missed your Top Ten on the subject, but will watch it today thanks to your link in the earlier comment. You are so right that there is nothing like being on one of these battlefields, especially when they look largely as they must have looked at the time, like Gettysburg. (Ditto for Vicksburg, btw.) I went to the battlefield many years ago with a friend of mine who was a real Civil War buff -- I knew the broad outlines of the battle, but he knew what unit came over which ridge when. It was like having a personal tour guide. We had played the old Avalon Hill Gettysburg game many times since we were both 11 or so. We both had come to the conclusion that Pickett's Charge was an idiotic error -- we had even refought it with minis, and the Confederates always got slaughtered. (I have a ancestor who was a CSA officer under Archer who was in the charge, so I had some personal interest in this.) When we visited the battlefield, we decided to walk from the treeline where the Confederates gathered to the Union batteries. We were shocked at how long it took, even being unencumbered 20-somethings in good health, not carrying pounds of kit and weaponry and dodging cannon fire. That is the kind of visceral experience you can only get on a battlefield, however much you read about it or play wargames about it. Thanks, as ever, for the review.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@dhmcarver That is very cool. I too walked Pickett’s Charge when I was there. It’s an amazing experience. Thanks.

[@robertmoffitt1336]

Hallowed ground to be sure.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@robertmoffitt1336 Indeed.

[@McHugh1949]

I'm old wargamer going back to the days of Avalon Hill and still have it's 1958 Gettysburg game with the rectangular counters. There are some issues with Gettysburg 1863 so for me one playing will be enough. I've played a lot of Gettysburg games including Terrible Swift Sword the monster game from SPI. Gettysburg 1863 is a poorly designed and tested game. First off Chambersburg Pike does not go through Herr's Ridge and McPherson Ridge. On the Gettysburg 1863 map this Pike is actually south of the above two ridges. In other words the crucial delaying action by Buford and the Iron Brigade is not going to happen. On the combat table, if you roll a 10 the defending unit automatically routs. We had an early situation where a 5 gun Confederate battery firing from Gettysburg in the offensive artillery phase hit the Iron Brigade on Cemetary Ridge. It was in a completed breastwork hex along with Reynolds. The Iron Brigade suffered a loss of 1 and routed. At the time the closest Confederate infantry were 4 hexes away. It is a real head scratcher that the Iron Brigade would rout with no Confederate infantry in the vicinity after losing 100 of it's 1800 men. To add insult to injury a second Confederate battery of 4 guns also fired in the same phase at Von Gilsa with Barlow in a breastwork on Cemetary Ridge causing another automatic rout. Von Gilsa is a black numbered morale so one level below the Gold of Meredith. The closest Confederate infantry was a lone out of command brigade 5 hexes away. To summarize we have the highest morale unit of the Union in Meredith at Gold and the second highest for Von Gilsa at black and both rout the first time they come under fire after losing 6 % and 9 % of their total force. I'm sure that someone will say that in this example my opponent was extremely lucky but in my opinion, this type of result should not be possible. In addition there is a Tide of Battle rule in the game which I have no clue as to what it is supposed to simulate. During your turn you can take a "mulligan" on an combat or morale roll and roll again. So let's say that in this example either of the Confed batteries missed on their first shot, well they could do it again and you get 3 Tide of Battle attempts in a day. Besides questioning what this rule is meant to simulate why is it only available during the phasing player's turn which means it only helps the attacker but not the defender? Oddly enough there is a shattered rule so that when a unit 's strength falls to half or less of it's original it is shattered. The designer should have had a similar rule for when a unit routs. Civil War battles were generally engagements of attrition and when units had taken severe losses they would break and rout. The Iron Brigade should not be routing after losing 6% of it's strength. The turn sequence also produces an oddity in the timing of rallying a unit. For example if a unit routs during the opponents offensive artillery phase that unit will stay routed for the entire next friendly turn only having the opportunity to rally during the rally phase which is the last phase in a friendly turn. However if an attacking unit takes a loss and routs during a friend combat or melee phase it can attempt to rally during it's rally phase which occurs immediately after those phases. If successful it means the unit be back to "normal" at the start of the opponent's next turn. I have read in Board Game Geek where players have adopted a house rule that units on roads and pikes do not pay a +1 when moving to a higher terrain. Players were complaining that at the beginning of the game units could not reach their historic destinations. The game designer posted that he agreed with house rule but the rule book has never been revised. I also know of players complaining of massive lines of breastworks although the rules seem to indicate that once the original infantry unit in line moves out of the hex the breastwork is removed. To me the rule is not entirely clear. Don't know if players have created their own house rule on this one. In regards to cavalry, specifically Buford's cavalry have -2 modifier applied because according to the game designer some of the troopers had to hold the horses. However Buford's men had breech loading carbines which could fire much more rapidly then the muskets that Heth's men had and was one of the main reasons they were able to delay Heth until the Iron Brigade arrived. I have played board games where Buford's cavalry have a positive modifier rather then a negative. I'm also wondering why dismounted cavalry which are essentially infantry cannot build breastworks. Given the above, It appears to me that this game was not play tested enough before release which is surprising considering that the series rules are all of 8 pages.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

I appreciate your comments. Best of luck.

[@wartable]

Hard to beat Flying Pig Gettysburg I suspect but that takes 3 days.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@wartable Haven’t played that one. Sounds massive.

[@hanng1242]

RE: Unit strength count-down. So, how much cooler would it be if it were a Columbia Games-style block wargame? I'm just disappointed that this one and Franklin are the two not on sale during Worthington's current Black Friday season sale. I understand why Franklin isn't on sale - the Kickstarter fulfilment happened just earlier this year, but Gettysburg has been out for a while.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@hanng1242 I like with this system there is more than just four steps.

[@hanng1242]

@@TheDiscriminatingGamer OK, but you miss out on the joy of stickers.

[@douglewis1273]

Great review since a visit to Gettysburg at age 10 sparked a lifelong love of history. Would love to see a ranking of your favorite Gettysburg games or maybe ACW.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@ Thanks. Here you go: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHutnXaZlr92b9Usi=rmgQSnnH15sRr9OK

[@josephwurzer4366]

Old fashioned look at Brigade level. Folks need some basic games to get started.

[@TheDiscriminatingGamer]

@@josephwurzer4366 This is a fun one.