1979 · American Civil War

The Ironclads: A Tactical Level Game of Naval Combat in the American Civil War 1861-1865

A tactical-level simulation of ship-to-ship combat during the American Civil War, set in the transition from sail to armor and steam. Players command individual ship counters and move them simultaneously across a large segmented map, manage separate gun batteries using range and penetration tables, and track damage to specific ship areas via detailed ship specification cards. Scenarios include one-on-one duels, fort assaults, blockade running, and multi-ship campaigns. The game models rivers, tides, forts, mines, obstructions, fires, crew quality and morale, sighting and smoke, and cumulative and critical damage, with charts, markers and reference aids to resolve combat and navigation.

groupPlayers

1–8 best 2

schedulePlaying time

120–180 min

cakeAge

12+

psychologyComplexity

3.5 / 5