Chancellorsville (game)
A two-player wargame of the 1863 Civil War battle.
Chancellorsville is a board wargame published by Avalon Hill that simulates the Battle of Chancellorsville during the American Civil War. Originally released in 1961, it was republished in 1974. The game is notable for being among the first wargames to use a hex grid.
Quick Facts
- Subject name
- Chancellorsville
- Players
- 2
- Ages
- 12+
- Setup time
- 15 minutes
- Playing time
- 4 to 6 hours
- Random chance
- Medium
- Skills
- Tactics, Strategy
Facts from the source article.
Description
Chancellorsville is a two-player wargame covering three days of the battle. The 1977 edition includes a 22" x 28" mounted hex grid map, 169 die-cut counters, a 13-page rule book, and historical notes. Counters represent brigades and artillery battalions, with blue for the Union and pink for the Confederates. Units have orientation, and attackers improve odds by attacking from the side or rear; defenders can entrench on hills. Day turns represent three hours, with two night turns. The turn sequence is move then fight, but defending artillery can fire at enemies up to two hexes away.
Publication history
Chancellorsville was released in 1961 by Avalon Hill alongside its companion game Gettysburg, both designed by Charles S. Roberts to mark the centennial of the Civil War. These two titles were the first wargames to employ a hex grid. Unlike Gettysburg, Chancellorsville was poorly received, mainly due to its map, which used solid colors in each hex instead of terrain lines. Avalon Hill discontinued it after two years. In 1974, Randall Reed updated the rules and a new map with standard terrain symbols was created. That reprint led to an expansion that required the base game and added three scenarios for Fredericksburg, the Wilderness, and Spotsylvania. The General magazine’s Volume 12, Issue 6 also provided unmounted counters and rules for four additional scenarios.
Reception
In Issue 54 of Moves, Steve List gave the 1974 edition a grade of B, calling it "a much more workable game" with a revised map that looks like a map rather than an abstract pattern. Nick Palmer, in his 1977 book, thought the 1974 edition was much improved, noting an attractive board, detailed river crossing rules, a bloodless CRT with units dispersing and regrouping, and optional artillery rules. He called the game well-balanced but warned that the Union always does splendidly yet needs a massive triumph to win. In 1980, Jon Freeman found the game unbalanced, predicting the Union player should win at least three out of five games. He questioned the historicity, saying the differences between the armies are ignored, and gave an Overall Evaluation of "Fair", stating it is better than the 1961 version but that is not saying much.
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