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sean johnson
United States
avon
Indiana
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It was after I attended Gen Con in 2008, that we really started getting into board games. As I began looking into this whole new world of board games I started making notes of games that I might be interested in, and Manoeuvere was on that list. However, by early 2009 when I placed my first big order (with an extra game for free shipping!)Manoeuvre was already sold out. In 2010, the reprint of the game was my first P500 order (of course, that started that ball rolling down the hill and I currently have five P500 pre-orders with GMT). I was thrilled when the game actually got reprinted in October of 2010. Was the game worth the wait for us?
Game Overview
Manoeuvre is played on an 8x8 grid that is made by putting together four 4x4 tiles. These tiles have various terrain spaces such as woods, hills, and villages. In this two player game a player will play the military of one of eight countries from the early 19th centuries. These countries range from powerhouses like France to weaker upstarts like the United States. The armies are represented by counters and each country has eight counters. Most of the game is controlled by cards. Each country has it's own deck of cards. On a player's turn they first discard any cards they do not want (like cards belonging to eliminated units). Next they draw back up to five cards. The third step is movement. On a turn a player must move one unit. Infantry move one space and cavalry move two spaces. Then a player may make an attack playing a card. To attack they must play a card that matches one of their units and that unit must be adjacent to an opposing unit. The opposing unit can play defensive cards (again it must belong to this unit). The attack cards have a die value like 1 D10, 2 D6, 2 D8, etc. The attacker rolls the dice and adds the total to the current strength of the unit. The defender takes their unit strength, adds any terrain bonuses and any defense bonuses from a played card. There is an extremely simple and completely non-intimidating Combat Results Table to check to get the results. If a unit is hit then it is flipped to it's weaker side, if already on its weaker side it is eliminated. After making one attack a player can play cards to supply or rally wounded units. There are also general that can be used to set up some massive damage combos by allowing multiple adjacent units to participate in a battle. The game ends when one side looses five of their units or both players run through their deck. If both players go through the deck then their is a way to determine who has the most control of the board.
The Game We Played
I played the Prussian Army and my wife played the Austrians. The game got off to a good start for me. I purposely moved off a wooded terrain spot, and my wife took the bait and occupied the space. This put her in an location where I had people on two sides, so I was able to use a general this wounded the unit, and on my next turn a volley finished it off. On the other side of the board she advanced into my territory, she made an attack and as soon as I chose to retreat she realized her mistake. One of the rules is that when a defending unit retreats, the attacking unit must advance. This forced her to advance into a situation where she had my units on three sides of her. On my turn I was able to move a fourth unit and completely surround her. Overall, the game really went my way. One of the Prussian units had a great volley roll that I used for great effect. The game ended when I used the Royal Escort unit to take out one of my wife's wounded units. The game ended fairly quickly I destroyed five units and she was unable to take out a single Prussian unit.
Our Thoughts
My Rating: 4.5 (Really like it)
My Thoughts: I really like this game. For me it has the perfect mix of skillful game play and making the most of one's luck. I also like the theme, and how well the unique decks of cards reflect the strengths and weaknesses of the various countries.
Her Rating: 4 (Like it)
Her Thoughts: It is fun. I like the simplicity of the rules and the ease of play. If I am going to have to play wargames, I am glad that there are games like this.
Verdict
Combined Rating: 8.5
Any wargame that my wife will play is a winner. We both like this game and it is one that I hope we bring out more often. I know it is one we will be playing for some time, because one of those five GMT pre-orders we have is for Manoeuvre: Distant Lands.
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