's first experience with 1:4800 scale naval models.
First developed back in 1997 by author/sculptor Chris Ferree in time for the Centennial of the Spanish-American War, Rough Riders! is the only set of rules specifically written to represent the types of combats fought by U.S., Spanish, and later, Moro forces in Cuba and the Philippines. Now, after considerable expansion and improvements, it returns in its Second Edition, and almost doubled in size. To quote from the Introduction....
Rough Riders! is a wargame which depicts the battles of San Juan Heights and El Caney, in Cuba, and actions in the Philippines, between the eager, but nearly clueless, Army of the United States, and the highly experienced and far better-equipped Armies of Spain, as well as the resultant insurgency of the Moros that came with control of the Philippines.
Each Player represents a Commander who controls a number of Battalions, and it is his task to defeat the enemy through maneuver and firepower. Even though an Army may have many Battalions, and far outnumber their enemy, if the soldiers are new to war, discipline, and command, those advantages can quickly evaporate. To achieve victory with such an army, a Commander, with the help of his Junior Officers and by his personal example, must struggle to keep his confused and isolated men fighting and moving on their objective, or see them fail and die to no purpose.
In such battles, even more than any others, the difference between Victory and Defeat lies in Leadership....
For Cuba, the game provides the full OBs and specifics for the battles for San Juan Heights, and the lesser known, but more difficult, Battle of El Caney fought the same day. The figure-to-man ratio is 1:25, and the ground scale developing for that at about 75' per table inch. Players take the roles of Brigadiers, moving variable numbers of singly-based figures as Battalions and even Companies, though in these two actions, the Spanish don't move at all, defending their positions with a stubbornness that belies their small numbers. No written records are required, so long as the provided game counters are used to keep track of a Unit's Adversity Status.
Designed for use with 15mm figures, the game can as easily be played with 25/28mm by simply increasing single Foot Bases sizes from 1/2" to 3/4", and with no need to change movement or weapons ranges.
The full-color topographic maps site the Spanish defenses, from their trenches and wire obstacles, to their Blockhouses, and other strongpoints, and allow players to make as accurate a recreation of these fields as their resources allow them. Full-color, historically accurate cardstock scale models of the actual Blockhouses, and the famous Church and "El Viso" strongpoints at El Caney, are available separately.
The crux of the game is the difficulty of trying to lead and retain control of Battalions who have never seen "modern" combat, and whose training ranged from effectively non-existent to merely inadequate. But where the U.S. Army was out of its depth organizationally, it was blessed with a number of individuals of such personal quality that it was possible for them to create just enough order out of chaos that victory could be - Oh, so narrowly! - achieved. The Action Cards which determine order of movement by specific Unit, bear the actual, historical names of the Regimental and Battalion CO's - both U.S. and Spanish - and the former are individually rated based on their contributions to the actual battles.
Playing Rough Riders! will be an eye-opening experience - especially for those who thought the War of 1898 was an American "walk-over!"
And when you've seen the difficulties to be overcome against "The Dons" in Cuba, wait until you cross bayonets with campilans in "Moro Land!" Two fictionalized scenarios give you a taste of bundok warfare in America's first jungle-set guerrilla war, against a ruthless foe once more in the headlines of the world.
Rough Riders! may also be played using scenarios of your own devising, where you get to rate the Leadership of Spanish, Moro, and U.S. officers and men, and then test them in action.
Thoroughly researched, but written to emphasize simple game mechanics, Rough Riders!: A Splendid Little Wargame of America's Little Wars of Empire, 1898-1906 is the game that will not only let you "play" these conflicts, but actually "experience" so much of what made them - in spite of the odds - the "Splendid Little Wars" that launched the American Century.
Here's The Deal
The book is printed in 8.5" x 11" format, 70 pages of text and many illustrations, full-color covers and frontispiece, topographic maps of San Juan Heights and El Caney battlefields, as well as four sheets of colorful Unit ID flags specifically developed for the game. Accessories include a cardstock Quick Reference Sheet, and, bound into the book, are seven pages (printed front-to-back) of grayscale Action Cards printed on paper, and another page of useful game counters. All may be cut from the book for immediate use, though the Action Cards and Counters may be purchased separately, printed in full color on glossy card stock.
The Subscription Offer is as follows:
- Pre-Publication Price: $25.00 USD, saving $5.00 USD off the projected retail price of $30.00 USD. Please add $7.00 USD for domestic Postage, and $14.00 USD for Overseas, Mexico, and Canada.
- The Subscribers' names will appear on the Role of Honor printed in all copies of the initial printing.
- Each Subscriber's copy will be personally numbered, inscribed, and autographed by the Author.
- Copies may be reserved only by emailing TVAG@worldnet.att.net. Please be sure to provide your mailing address (or at least the country where your copy will be sent). Please, do not send payment when reserving your copy!
- When payment is due, it may be by personal check (payable in U.S. funds), money order, or PayPal. (Please note that due to escalating costs, PayPal users are requested - not obliged! - to add an additional $1.50 USD to each order to defray that service's charges against the seller.)
The Subscription period closes at Midnight (CT), June 7, 2009, or as soon as the minimum number of 50 sets have been reserved, whichever comes first. Previous experience suggests the Subscription may be full within the first few days, but notice will be posted shortly before it closes.
Only when the minimum number of copies has been Subscribed will buyers be notified and funds actually requested. Some extra copies may be sold above the minimum number to accommodate those who might otherwise just miss their chance.
Upon the Subscription's close, Quality POD will once more print the books, with copies mailed directly to the Subscribers by TVAG immediately upon their return from the printers in their usual high standard of quality.
From close of the Subscription to receipt of copies should be about three weeks, more or less, depending on the printer's job schedule, but the intention is at least to have them in the mails by the end of June.
Rough Riders! will be available in PDF form ready for self-printing on CD, for $25.00 USD, plus $7.00 USD postage. Each CD comes with full-color labels, inscribed to the buyer.
P.S. And by the strangest coincidence, TVAG has just begun the return of the newly expanded Rough Riders! line of 15mm figures for those who enjoy the possibilities they provide. Visit TVAG to see what is being molded and cast at this very time by Tom Dye, et al, at GFI/MiniFigs to fill the Subscriptions that made their return possible.