Fredericksburg: The Union Repulsed is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Battle of Fredericksburg during the American Civil War. The game was originally part of the four-game collection Blue & Gray II , and was also released as a stand-alone "folio" game.
In November 1862, Union Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside planned to cross the Rappahannock River at Fredericksburg, Virginia and make a lightning strike at the Confederate capital of Richmond before the Confederate army could intervene. However, the pontoon bridges Burnside needed to cross the river did not arrive until December, and by that time, Confederate general Robert E. Lee's army had dug into strong defensive positions overlooking the city. Burnside's forces were forced to cross the river under fire and then make frontal assaults against the entrenched Confederates. [1]
Fredericksburg is a two-player wargame where one player controls the Union forces and the other player controls the Confederate forces. With a small map and only 100 counters, the game has been characterized as "simple".
The game system, adapted from SPI's 1972 game Napoleon at War , uses an alternating "I Go, You Go" series of turns, where one player moves and attacks, followed by the other player. Each turn represents 1–2 hours of game time, and the battle lasts two days.
To represent ambiguous orders from Union headquarters, the Union player can only move fifteen units per turn. [2] In addition, all Union units on the eastern side of the Rappahannock cannot move until certain conditions are met.
Units are surrounded by a zone of control — enemy units entering the zone of control can move no further, and cannot leave the zone of control except through combat. [3]
A new concept, "Attack Effectiveness", was introduced as an optional rule for the Blue & Gray battles: If an attacking unit receives an "Attacker Retreat" result during combat, then that unit cannot make any further attacks for the rest of that game day, although it may defend as normal.
The game includes a set of rules, "The Grand Chancellorsville Option", that enables the players to combine this game with another game in the Blue & Gray II box, Hooker and Lee, the two battles being part of Hooker's Chancellorsville campaign. [4]
The game also includes a second scenario, involving a diversionary attack on Fredericksburg that happened in May 1863. [2]
In 1975, SPI published Blue & Gray: Four American Civil War Battles , its first quadrigame — four different battles using the same set of rules, packaged into one box. The concept proved very popular, and SPI quickly produced Blue & Gray II, which rose as high as #4 on SPI's Top Ten Bestseller list, and stayed on the list for 6 months. [5] The four games in Blue & Gray II were Hooker and Lee ; Battle of the Wilderness ; Chattanooga ; and Fredericksburg. The latter was designed by Joe Angiolillo, with graphic design by Redmond A. Simonsen. It was also released as an individual game packaged in a double LP-sized cardstock folio. [3] It was not the most popular game in Blue & Gray II; in a poll conducted by SPI to determine the most popular board wargames in North America, Fredericksburg placed 65th out of 202 games (compared to 44th for Hooker and Lee, 54th for Chattanooga, and 80th for Battle of the Wilderness.) [4]
In the April 1976 edition of Airfix Magazine , Bruce Quarrie called this game "Good exciting stuff, challenging for experienced players but basic enough to make a good starting point for anyone interested in the Civil War and wishing to try board wargaming." [6]
In the 1980 book The Complete Book of Wargames , game designer Jon Freeman called this game "an assault on a prepared position" with little room for creative maneuvering. But Freeman thought the option to combine this with Hooker and Lee "could serve nicely as the second step in a novice's introduction to the hobby." [7]
In Issue 54 of Moves, Steve List did not like the artificial restriction on Union movement, noting that it is "To insure that the Union player doesn't do significantly better" that the historical Union defeat. However, List liked the ability to combine Chancellorsville with Fredericksburg, saying that "This [combined] game is superior to either of its components." List concluded by giving Fredericksburg a grade of "C." [2]
In Issue 20 of Simulacrum, Steven Busey commented "This is certainly not a simulation. However, it is a very playable game system that often demands careful thought during play. The combination of easy-to-learn rules and short games makes this an excellent alternative when time and attention are short." [3]
The Battle of Chancellorsville, April 30 – May 6, 1863, was a major battle of the American Civil War (1861–1865), and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville campaign.
Chancellorsville is a board wargame produced by Avalon Hill in 1961, and republished in 1974 that simulates the Battle of Chancellorsville during the American Civil War.
Cemetery Hill, subtitled "The Battle of Gettysburg, 1–3 July 1863", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 as part of the "quadrigame" Blue & Gray: Four American Civil War Battles that simulated four battles of the American Civil War. Cemetery Hill was later released as a stand-alone "folio" game.
Linda D. Mosca was the first commercially published female board wargame designer. In the mid-1970s, when the wargame industry was dominated by men, she was the only woman employed in a creative role.
Blue & Gray: Four American Civil War Battles is a board wargame originally published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates four battles from the American Civil War.
Lee vs. Meade, subtitled "The Battle of Gettysburg", is a board wargame published by Rand Game Associates (RGA) in 1974 that simulates the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War.
MechWar '77, subtitled "Tactical Armored Combat in the 1970s", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates hypothetical tank combat in the mid-1970s between various adversaries, using the same rules system as the previously published Panzer '44.
Napoleon at War, subtitled "Four Battles", is a collection of four board wargames published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates various battles fought by Napoleon.
Bloody Ridge, subtitled "Turning Point on Guadalcanal, September 1942", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Guadalcanal Campaign during World War II. The game was originally published as part of the Island War: Four Pacific Battles "quadrigame" — a gamebox containing four games simulating four separate battles that all use the same rules. Bloody Ridge was also published as an individual "folio game."
Thirty Years War, subtitled "Four Battles", is a "quadrigame" — four separate board wargames packaged in one box that use a common set of rules — published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976. The four games simulate different battles during the Thirty Years' War, and were sold individually as well as in the quadrigame format. Some of the games were well received by critics, but overall, the quadrigame did not sell well.
Breitenfeld, subtitled "Triumph of the Swedish System", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates the 1642 Battle of Breitenfeld during the Thirty Years' War. Breitenfeld was a free game that appeared in Strategy & Tactics, designed to promote SPI's soon-to-be-launched wargame Thirty Years War. Breitenfeld proved popular and was also published as part of SPI's "folio" series of games.
Blue & Gray II, subtitled "Four American Civil War Battles", is a collection of four board wargames originally published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that each simulate a battle from the American Civil War. It is the sequel to Blue & Gray published earlier in the year. Each of the four games was also published as individual "folio games."
Jena-Auerstadt: The Battle for Prussia is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the twin battles of Jena and Auerstadt in October 1806. It was one of four games that were part of the "quadrigame" titled Napoleon at War, but it was also released as an individual "folio game" packaged in a shrinkwrapped cardstock folio. Jena-Auerstadt was rated highly in a 1976 poll of favorite wargames, but critics questioned whether its simplicity was capable of simulating a complicated two-part battle.
Leyte: Return to the Philippines, October 1944 is a board wargame published in 1975 by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) that simulates the return of General Douglas MacArthur to the Philippines during World War II. The game was originally published as part of the four-game collection Island War: Four Pacific Battles, but was also released as an individual game. Leyte was not considered an outstanding success by critics.
Road to Richmond, subtitled "The Peninsular Campaign, May–July, 1862", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1977 that simulates the Peninsula Campaign of 1862 during the American Civil War.
Antietam: The Bloodiest Day, 17 September 1862 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Battle of Antietam during the American Civil War. The game was originally part of the four-game collection Blue & Gray: Four American Civil War Battles, and was also released as a stand-alone "folio" game. It proved to be one of SPI's most popular games in the year following its publication.
Chickamauga: The Last Victory, 20 September 1863 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Battle of Chickamauga during the American Civil War. The game was originally part of the four-game collection Blue & Gray: Four American Civil War Battles, and was also released as a stand-alone "folio" game.
Battle of the Wilderness: Gaining the Initiative, May 5-6, 1864 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Battle of the Wilderness during the American Civil War. The game was originally part of the four-game collection Blue & Gray II, and was also released as a stand-alone "folio" game.
Chattanooga: Gateway to Victory, Nov. 24-25, 1863 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Battle of Chattanooga during the American Civil War. The game was originally part of the four-game collection Blue & Gray II, and was also released as a stand-alone "folio" game.
Hooker and Lee, subtitled "The Battle of Chancellorsville, May 2-3, 1863, Nov. 24-25, 1863" is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Battle of Chancellorsville during the American Civil War. The game was originally part of the four-game collection Blue & Gray II, and was also released as a stand-alone "folio" game.