#Wargame First Impression – Campaigns of 1777 (@HBuchanan2 in Decision Games. Strategy & Tactics 316, May-June 2019)

Harold Buchanan already has earned my respect with his entry in the GMT Game COIN -series. Liberty or Death: The American Insurrection (2017) is in some ways a revisionist look at the American Revolution. I really enjoy the game; it is amongst the top 10 titles in my collection. So when I heard that Harold was getting another American Revolution game published I waited impatiently for it’s release. Campaigns of 1777 finally arrived in Strategy & Tactics 316. Although Campaigns of 1777 will never replace Liberty or Death (nor was it intended to) in my pantheon of games, the title will get played because it is an enjoyable, challenging exploration of the 1777 campaign year.

Campaigns of 1777 is a classic campaign battle game, but with a few innovative twists to make it fresh. It is not hex-and-counter but uses point-to-point movement. The game also uses a chit-pull mechanic for activation of leaders. Those leaders are most important because, once activated, they use their leadership rating to execute actions. The leader chit-pull mechanic and action points thematically portray many campaign issues. The chit-pull mechanic also makes the game solo-friendly. In his video review, marnanudo even went so far as to characterize Campaigns of 1777 as a near-hybrid of wargame and eurogame mechanisms. I agree; Harold Buchanan has drawn from a toolkit of several varieties and assembled a very interesting game.

As rich as the game is thematically and mechanically, it also has excellent components. The map by Terry Leeds is beautiful; I also really appreciate that many of the charts and tables are on the map for it saves flipping through the rulebook. The 1/2″ counters are easy to distinguish and cut well. They really look good once the corners get clipped!

Unlike so many magazine games, so far I have found Campaigns of 1777 to be “well baked.” The rules are pretty tight and gameplay executes in a fluid fashion.

If I have one (little) complaint it is that I worry about replayability. Campaigns of 1777 comes with three scenarios; the “historical” campaign and two short scenarios. In the historical scenario victory is determined by British control of Philadelphia and five other spaces. That is it. On the other hand, when I think about it the single historical and two shorter scenarios they are not all that bad if you use the game for a group game night or convention play. The simple, straight-forward scenarios and victory conditions in many ways make the game simpler to teach and play.

Hmmm….