Ultimate Light Wargame Battle!
Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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As my Ultimate RPG/Dungeoncrawl/Herogame Battle! geeklist went down so well I thought I'd run another one for Light Wargames. This list tries to capture all the best Light Wargames on the geek.
I've trawled a load of Light/Introductory/Kids Wargames geeklists to get the base list of 103 - I required a game to be mentioned on at least 2 lists to add it, then added a few obvious omissions.
Feel free to add your own suggestions.
The initial order will be based on the number of times the games appeared on the geeklists I used. This will also be used as a tide-breaker, as will ranking if required. Note that a couple of very recent games (notably BattleLore) only appear on a couple of these geeklists.
The Battle
Several of these games receive increased ratings due to nostalgia and some of them get very few ratings in the BGG database, so I'm hoping this list can provide a bit more clarity on which are the best games of this type!
1. Vote using the  icon for your favourite games. Feel free to add comments saying why you like them.
2. If you strongly dislike a game then you can add a comment with a  . Feel free to thumb down if you think the game is not suitable for this list - i.e. not a wargame or not Light!
I'll regularly review the list and re-sort it based on the Net number of each game has.
The comment for each game is one from a user who rates it highly - not my comments!
I know that they are of dubious value because wargamers & non-wargamers see it differently, but I'm going to add the BGG game weights to each description.
Other lists in this 'Battle' Series:
Ultimate Ameritrash Game Battle!
Ultimate 2-Player Game Battle!
Ultimate Gateway Game Battle!
Ultimate Gamers Game Battle!
Ultimate Horror/'B Movie' Game Battle!
Ultimate Solitaire Game Battle!
Ultimate RPG/Dungeoncrawl/Herogame Battle!
Party Game Battle: The (Little) BIG 13
Party Game Battle: The BIG 13
And a Metalist of them all: The Tony Awards
Also see: Best Games By Category - Polls
And... The Best Light Wargames for 3 or more players
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Sean Franco
United States
Hammond
Louisiana
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crackedlcd81: "Everything a solidly designed, modern hybrid Euro/American board game ought to be- thematically rich without needless abstraction, rules that are easy without sacrificing depth, and clean mechanics that don't get in the way of creative thinking and player interaction. Warrior Knights is a real knockout, a tremendously exciting and fun medium-weight, multiplayer wargame that manages to capture the wild thrill of baroque, 1980s style gaming in a relatively short playtime that's sure to be full of blackhearted treachery, shocking shifts in alliance, and revelations of noble sterility. There's at least 179 mechanics happening in a game of WK, and they all work pretty darn well together. In particular, I found the combat system quite ingenious- yes, it's full of wonderful, blissful chaos but it also allows for some pretty exciting results including tremendous upsets, Pyrric victories, and complete massacres. The subsystems, such as the trade routes and the Assembly phase, add lots of flavour and scope without complicating the game too much and contrary to what a bunch of folks have already said I think the level of luck is exactly right for this sort of game. Indeed, if you dig Talisman as much as you dig A Game of Thrones, this should be your next purchase. I think this is ultimately a better game than AGoT and along with the masterful reissue of Fury of Dracula it proves that all the games that everybody gave up rushing to play Elfenland back in 1995 should never have gone away. Why play Caylus and try to impress King Dinkydonkey by building a church when you can run roughshod over a fictional European country with raging barons full of hate and bloodlust with names like Geoffery Lavender and Sir John Dudley Black? Very close to a 10 indeed...it does work with 2, by the way, but be prepared to sort of fudge it a little on some of the Assembly cards. I think the only thing that keeps it from a 10 for me is that I'm not entirely satisfied with the way the influence points work- every game I've played has ended with everyone agreeing to add more influence and just keep going. I think it's a really artificial, superfluous way to shorten the play time that winds up ending the game at what seems like the beginning of the last third. Regardless, it's easy enough to fix by adding more influence or by only using the "half the unrazed cities on the board" condition so bollocks to anyone who sees that as a game-breaker."
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Kolumel: "This is an excellent, well-balanced nail-biter of a hex and counter wargame. The system includes many details ranging from Monschau artillery restrictions to Angriff attacks, but never feels fiddly. The L2 edition (I haven't seen any others), has beautiful counters and a nice stiff map. The rules are crisp, unambiguous, well presented, and easy to comprehend though it takes a few playings before some of the implications become apparent. The game includes two tense tournament scenarios playable in two-three hours with some experience, a long campaign game for true grognards, and several historical scenarios.
The game is well-supported at its CSW forum and the designer will often graciously answer e-mails personally within just a few hours!"
Weight: 2.90
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 4 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Lawrence Hung: ""King of England, render account to the King of Heaven of your royal blood. Return the keys of all the good cities which you have seized, to the Maid." ~ Joan of Arc in a letter to King of England dated 22 March, 1429.
Who doesn't want a game on a female who is a Catholic, a Saint, a charismatic leader, a patriot and loyalist? Very few games were made on the subject and even fewer were they good. Excellent production from the French. Hundred Years War in focus with heroism, natural disasters, political alliance all packaged in one single box. Deep strategy game with easy mechanics, mounted mapboard (!) and a fluid system.
"I say to you in God's name, go home to your own country; if you do not do so, beware of the Maid, and of the damages you will suffer." "
Weight: 2.61
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
nerotora: "Of all the multiplayer games that I have ever played this is the one which I prefer.
It does require a lot of effort to learn the rules well and teach to others but it is worth it.
The fact that we keep playing this game week after week for almost four years (despite the fact that my collection of games is now over 250) indicates how fun this game can be.
Still, this game is obviously not for everyone and it does have its problems. Yet, when the question comes about how we want to spend the evening TNW makes it to the table.
Note: A new version of TNW is now being prepared and can be preordered from GMT."
Weight: 3.64
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David Pearsall
United States
Pikeville
North Carolina
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The map may be bigger than many of the other games listed here. But this game is quite simple to learn and play. It has many of the features novice players will see in hundreds of games. It is one of the most famous battles of all time!
A timeless classic re-issued by Decision Games and also available for play on line at Hexwar.
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 3 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
sbszine: "A fine introductory war game, with only a few 1" counters to keep track of. Seems a bit rough for the Axis, but that's not uncommon in these things.
This is a good choice for an after work (or even possibly a long lunchtime) wargame, as it plays very quickly once you know the rules."
Weight: 2.00
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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Someone suggested it and didn't add it....
SoS1: "Clean system, easy enough to understand and with minimal record keeping to control many space ships, and yet still return "realistic" results. (It *is* a science fiction game, so I'm not sure what "realistic" would really mean, but I mean the vector-based movement "feels" like spaceships should feel, unlike something like Silent Death, which feels like tanks moving in the desert.) See my review."
Weight: 2.50
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 4 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Brien Martin: "I am already an ASL player, but purchased this game as a way to introduce my daughter to the game that her Dad plays at his tournaments. This game has truly sparked her interest (she has played games with me like Enemy In Sight and Battle Cry), and she came within one dice roll of beating me her very first time out. A great game that has done what I believe it set out to do ... make a very complex game like ASL very accessible to people of all ages and gaming experience."
Weight: 3.88
5
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Offa: "Great game to have a few beers over. Simple and very playable."
Weight: 2.16
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Steve Herron
United States
Johnson City
Tennessee
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I add this one for my two cents worth. The game is based on the Battle of Isandlawana, pretty simple game to play. Sorry for bring up a game Tony were the Brits got beat up, maybe you can add a Rorks' Drift one. ZULU still one of my favoite films.
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 5 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
DaMilli: "If you want to start WWII wargaming on strategic scale - get this game! It simulates the whole conflict on the eastern front from 1941-1945 on corps/army level. Easy to learn with an introductory scanario, difficult to master! High replay value, because every scenario can be set up individually. It perfectly incorporates four basic principles of war: weather, terrain, command ability and supply attrition. Plays in about 5 hours per scenario (each scenario consits of 6 months). Uses wooden blocks instead of counters which stand upright. By this way, enemy unit strength remains hidden!
It`s simplicity (compared to other wargames) makes it shine. GET IT!"
Weight: 3.79
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Leo Zappa
United States
Aliquippa
Pennsylvania
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The hit parade of AH Classic games continues with this one. Like the rest, it features a simple and direct ruleset, a manageable number of pieces, and a reasonable playing time. Like the other AH Classics, while it may not be the most accurate historical representation of the battle being protrayed, the original BotB captures a feel for the battle while provding an enjoyable experience that does not induce headaches from reading a 40 page rulebook like later games on the subject. Like the others as well, this game, while long out of print, is typically readily available on eBay at bargain prices.
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Chris R.
United States
Unspecified
Missouri
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I don't know much about it, but I think my basic game rules are only about 2 1/2 pages long. This 1965 game seems to be listed on several lists mentioning first wargame played.
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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Late addition.
FREE print and play game.
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 3 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Jay Townsend: "This is a fun game to play! It only has 140 counters to set up, so it is fast to setup and the rules are short as well. It did take about 3-1/2 hour to play but I hardly noticed. Everything is very small about this game, the size of the box, the map and the counters but the hex size is nice for counter movement. You could put this game in a suitcase and lose it when traveling. There are only nine types of units, Infantry, Mountain, Armor, Shock, Airborne, Leaders, Cavalry, Fleet and Aircraft. The Axis gets a boat load of nationalities and again, the game is fun to play, for a very little dollar investment. We need more games of this type on the market! I'll play this one more then once and I'll give it an thumbs up rating!"
Weight: 2.00
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
cfarrell: "10 years old and still going strong - there are surprisingly few wargames you can say that about. The only problem is the "end of the world" effect after the first week, so the Germans can counterattack much more recklessly than seems reasonable. Still, the best game on the D-Day invasions that I've played, and a top-tier wargame of just modest complexity."
Weight: 3.50
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Gurantsu: "Lots of fun, even though it is not a complex game. The game mechanics capture the feel of the situation well, with plenty of decisions to be made."
Weight: No ratings
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Donald Wilbur III
United States
Sacramento
California
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I think this qualifies as a lite wargame. I really enjoyed this one.
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
Mozart827: "Another hit from MMP. Interesting asymmetrical balance between the Allies and Axis. Fun, easy to learn and play. Nice components, but the colors are bit hard to distinguish in less than perfect light--esp. between the Italians & Germans."
Weight: 2.45
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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Late addition
Best with 6 players
Recommended with 4, 5, 6, more than 6 players
FREE Print n Play
RoloTomassi: "First played the basic game (without any expansion cards): it's fun but maybe too simple. Then I played the campaign game with more cards/rules added from the II, III, IV, V and VI expansions: it's much better than the basic game. There's also the victory point management, to buy new ships and cards between scenarios. Game turns are shorter so need to plan more carefully which ships/subs can enter the fight and which ones are better to leave behind. Different types of mission require different strategies. Note: probably the most important expansion is the V (the 5th) that's the one with the campaign rules so after trying the first basic games is strongly recommended to add that. Considering this game is completely free, it deserves some attention. Standing ovation to developers who decided to distribute this game to the community without charge. Thanks!"
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Peter
Canada
Port Coquitlam
British Columbia
Makers of Battlefields of Olympus
MoFo Max Payne Yo
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Because Battlefields of Olympus is about to be released in the coming month or so and is available for pre-order, I thought it would be appropriate to officially add the game to this excellent geeklist.
I think the game scratches a similar itch to that of Manoeuvre, but without the dice and physical area control. You can easily play this card game on an airline tray table and it takes around 30 minutes.
In addition, because it is a card game, it was easy to convince my wife to play a wargame. I think if you and your SO enjoy Battle Line or Iliad, you might also like this one.
In the future, I plan to do an expansion with more cards and more options. I've already mentioned two new rules that can be played with the base Battlefields of Olympus starter deck.
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I think that this would fit nicely into the 'light wargame' category and was surprised that it was missing from this list.
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123.
Board Game: Hue
[Average Rating:6.78 Overall Rank:3672]
Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
larsk7: "Action-packed tactical slugfest. Lots of carnage as almost all units are vulnerable, if spotted. John Hill said he designs for feel over historicity, so some may quibble...but I'm usually having too much fun! Playable in an evening, too. SDC is the better version as roads on map are easier to see."
Weight: 1.00 (???)
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists. Wargame?
BoB3K: "Outstanding game. Once you learn the few straight-forward rules, the game is a breeze to play. And yet, it is filled with agonizing decisions almost every play. It's only detraction is the theme. We completely ignore it. Using the formations names instead of just straight, flush, etc. might actually make the game more confusing.
We don't play with the tactics cards- they're random power takes away any certainty in row control which is key to the game, IMHO.
We do play the advanced rule of claiming flags only at the beginning of the turn. This gives a little more allowance to "throwing off" crap cards in a row you've just lost, and allows for closer, tighter games."
Weight: 1.91
6
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Tony Ackroyd
United Kingdom
Brighton
E Sussex
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On 2 'Light Wargame' Geeklists
sisteray: "There are a ton of really wonderful things going on here. I think that there is a bit of a learning curve to the game as ther are just so many options available that it takes one game just to grasp the reprocussions of all of your moves. The greatest thing about this game is that it really captures the theme well. You are constantly trying to balance your position with moving yourself into better scoring opportunities while trying to build up the areas you control. Of course you are only building up countries to steal their resources for your agenda.
Mostly, this is all fun and games until someone loses a vital organ. The interaction is high, and while there can be bad blood, the game just feels "equal opportunity mean".
As the game progresses you have to be careful not to pay attention to who could get the instant win. People talk about a run away leader problem, but I don't think that this is the case here. The instant win is much more likely and everyone has an equal number of meeples available on the map so the "losers" have just as good a chance of succeeding.
Really there is nothing like it. It really is one of the finest political games I've played. I suspect I will be playing this for years. "
Weight: 3.38
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Posted Mon Aug 27, 2007 5:29 pm
low Intermediate yes.
