The Coorg War

The year is 1834 and you are the commander of an East India Company expedition headed into the mountain kingdom of Coorg, in southwest India, with orders to depose an uncooperative raja. Or, if you prefer, you are the commander of the Raja's troops, a Kodavan guerrilla fighter defending your land (and by default the Raja, too) against an incursion of the East India Company. The Coorg War is an asymmetric war-game, one player commanding five columns of troops marching on fixed paths toward the center of the map, and the other player manoeuvring guerrilla bands to block and ambush the columns, trying to wear them down and run out the clock. Success is measured by how long it takes for the Raja's Morale to drop to a point that he is willing to come to terms. The combat system is based on that old standby, rolling dice to score hits. Hits on the Raja's warbands take them out of the fray temporarily; the trick is to manage the 'recycling' process. Hits on the Expedition cause Fatigue, which slows their operations. To recover from Fatigue the Columns must periodically Rest or risk being forced to Retreat. The Raja's forces are represented by wooden cubes and the Expedition's forces by cards laid out in a predetermined tableau. The game is highly suitable for solitaire. There are no ‘bots’, only suggested guidelines for the opposing side. At the same time, there are enough tense decision points to make the game enjoyable for two players. It is also a short game. With experience, probably no more than two hours, and possibly as short as 90 minutes. (The game covers 9 days or 27 turns, but unless the Expedition player fumbles the ball it should end after 3-4 days.) Table space required is only the typical 22”x34” map sheet. —description from the publisher

Players: 1–2 best 2
Playing time: 90–180 min
Age: 12+
Complexity: 2 / 5