''Mosby's Raiders'' is a
solitaire board wargame based upon a
Confederate partisan ranger unit led by famed
Colonel
Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
John S. Mosby during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
. The game was developed by Eric Lee Smith and published by
Avalon Hill
Avalon Hill Games Inc. is a game company that publishes wargames and strategic board games. It has also published miniature wargaming rules, role-playing games and sports simulations. It is a subsidiary of Hasbro, and operates under the compan ...
subsidiary
Victory Games in
1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
.
Smith looked for a situation that had historical information he could work into the game play, and his research led him to the partisan activities of Confederate
cavalry
Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...
against
Federal troops and supply lines in
Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several County (United States), counties and independent city (United States), independent cities in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. ...
(AKA "Mosby's Confederacy") between 1862 and 1864.
The solitary player assumes the role of Colonel Mosby. He selects targets for raids from those presented on the map (such as supply depots, rail lines and bridges) and from random historical targets presented by cards that are drawn at the beginning of each turn. Mosby is aided by historical elements shown on cards that are drawn according to a formula that depends on his notoriety from previous successful raids. His ability to recruit additional raiders from local residents depends on his health, notoriety, and random Federal sweeps through the countryside. Victory is secured by continuing to score a pre-set number of notoriety and Federal awareness points by the end of a set number of turns.
The Federal army responds to these raids by being activated by Mosby's activities and moving towards the Raider marker by random throws of a die. The game succeeds in presenting the player with a sense of the limitations these early guerrillas faced, as well as their tactics such as "skedaddling" or scattering in the face of frequently superior forces. Ultimately, Mosby was fairly successful in attempting to slow supplies being delivered to Federal troops and occupy as many troops as possible that could have been used in offensive action against the Confederacy.
Reviews
*''The V.I.P. of Gaming Magazine'' #3 (April/May,, 1986)
*''
Games
A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...
'' #76
References
External links
*
Victory Games
American Civil War board wargames
Board games introduced in 1985
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