This review first appeared in IPW, the newsletter for all discount games
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Shogun Triumphant 

Command, Issue 23

Shogun Triumphant is a simulation of the battle of Sekigahara, decisive
battle of the rebellion of Hideyori, fought September 16th,1600. Now, if
you are anything like me, Japanese history might not hold the same
interest as say European. Personally, I have great difficulty with names
like Mitsuhide, Mitsunari or Hideyoshi & Hideyori, amongst others, and
exactly who is on whose side? To make matters worse, and quite the
opposite of what I'd expected from these Samurai types, loyalty was a
pretty rare commodity. Consequently the main players often swop sides,
or create sides of their own, throughout the various rebellions that
litter Japan’s history. I find this all very frustrating but would not
let it frighten me off what might be a potentially good game. I note
that Command have likened this battle to a Japanese equivalent of
Gettysburg, an association likely to assist acceptability stateside.

The game comes with one standard sized map and 158 unit counters. Both
the units and map hexes are larger than average making handling somewhat
easier. The unit counters are to a high standard, having icons of
Samurai warriors rather than standard NAT0 symbols. They are double
sided but the reverse side shows the same unit in the opposing players
colours. Throughout the game whole clans, (the two sides comprise of
Allied clans), can change sides. Told you loyalty was a rare commodity,
didn't I? The games map is equally well done. All in all a very pleasing
package.

A game turn commences with players ascertaining who goes first by each
rolling a die. Highest roller can decide whether to go first or second.
The phasing player then rolls another die and cross references the
result on his command table. The result gives the player a number of
command points (CP's) for this turn, with a range of between three and
seven for the Eastern Army, or eight for the Western Army.

The phasing player now uses his CP's to either activate and/or move
clans. By spending 1 CP he is able to move a previously or just
activated clan. Each clan can only move once per turn and movement rules
use standard wargame procedures. However, if you move within two hexes
of an unactivated enemy clan you will automatically activate it,
possibly doing your opponent a favour unless it joins your side. Don't
move close to unactivated enemy clans until you are ready to pounce on
them, or there's a strong possibility they will defect. The rules for
activation are far more interesting than for movement. Having choosen
which clan to activate the phasing player rolls two dice and cross
references the result on his clan table. This shows whether the
activation attempt for this clan has been sucessful or not. You can only
attempt to activate a clan once per turn and, pass or fail, a CP has
been spent. Once a clan is activated another die roll may be necessary
to determine which side it enters the battle on. This roll can be
modified by how the battle is going at that time and the status of other
clans. Some clans are loyal but the majonty require a loyalty roll when
activated. The result is that they either join one side or the other.
Then again they can remain neutral which, in effect, deactivates them.
In an historic sense they are waiting to see how the battle goes before
commiting themselves to either side. What you can end up doing is
spending CPs to activate clans that then switch to your opponents side.
The lesson is study the clan table closely. Read all the possible
modifiers before choosing whether to attempt to activate a clan or not.
Activation alone can win or lose the battle for you, so treal it
seriously. Don't just try to activate clans where you need them or those
that have the most combat units. The uncertainty that activation adds to
this game gives it a high replay value and makes it a very attractive
solo proposition.

Once the trials and tribulations of activation are over, and those units
you can trust have moved, it's time for combat. Combat is split into
fire and melee types, as any game at this scale, and set in this period,
should be. First defensive then oftensive fire is resolved. A die is
rolled and cross referenced on the fire CRT. Units can only fire on
adjacent units with the exception of one artillery unit present that has
a three hex range but requires line of sight. Shifts apply for terrain,
firing on cavalry & if units are stacked in the target hex. Each unit
fires individually rather than combining fire factors into one assault.
The same target can be fired on several times however. Generally, fire
combat is not that effective unless the target hex is clear terrain, has
stacked units and is blasted from several adjacent hexes, This, however,
is a result of the Japanese present using rather poor early muskets not
a failing of the game system.

Once all fire combat has been taken, all adjacent units engage in melee
which is resolved by odds modified by terrain. A die modifier applies if
Cavalry charge Infantry or a favourable shift applies if the defender is
surrounded. This can happen more than possibly as there is no guarantee
a clan will activate whilst the enemy move around ils flanks. Each unit
has a stalwartness rating and combat results for both fire and melee are
given as a number of cohesion hits. These hits are cumulative through
both the fire and melee phases but units return to normal once the phase
is concluded. If the number of hits a unit takes either equals or
exceeds its slalwartness rating it is eliminaled. Ideally, fire combat
should be used to soften your opponent, then melee to finish him.

When both players have taken their turn, the game turn concludes with
flight/withdrawal determination. Each clan has a flight level expressed
as a number of stalwart points. Once a number of units with stalwart
equal to that level have been eliminated from the clan in question,
their remaining units are withdrawn from the map at this time. This
forces players to treat clans carefully. As both attacking and defending
causes losses, you cannot use your best clans to lead all your assaults,
or else you will see them disappear mid game. As enemy zones of control
can only be exited via combat, not movement, it can be difficull to get
a clan out of the line once they are close to breaking. This all adds
another nice touch to this simple design.

Victory in the game is earned by inflicting losses on the enemy
suffiient to cause clans to break. Although some geographical objectives
make certain clans more likely to join your side if held, ultimarely it
is combat that wins the game, not clever manoeuvres. Whal did you
expect? Those Samurai types were notoriously bloodthirsty.

Shogun Triumphant is without doubt an enjoyable game with a unique feel
and worthy of trying. I think the main reason it has turned out so well
is because of the parties involved in its creation. Designed by Richard
Berg, who concentrates on complexity, but developed by the team at
Command, who put the emphasis on playability, the end result, somewhat
predictably, is rather good.

Alan Sharif