Home Search My Account You have 0 items in your cart. View Cart Go to Checkout
 
 

The issues below are all in preparation:

(PRE-ORDER) 61 - ROME, IInc.
(Upcoming) 62 - Strike of the Heron
(Upcoming) 63 - Trying Men's Souls

(NOW LIVE ON KICKSTARTER) 2023 Annual - La Bataille de Kulm

 I want to (login required):
   Change My Address
   Check My Subscription Status
   Pre-Order the Next Issue
   Buy a Back Issue
   Vote For a Game Idea

 I want to (no login required):
   Get the Latest Addenda
   Join Our Mailing List
   Set Up an Account
   See What's Coming
   See All Our Products
   Check for Special Offers
   Re-read any ATO Newsgram
   See the ATO Article/Game index
   Read the Latest ATO News

Read Against the Odds

Against the Odds magazine investigates military history from a broad perspective. The economic, political, religious and social aspects of warfare are examined in concert with events on the battlefield.

Each issue of ATO features:

Informative and insightful articles showcasing the history behind events, plus regular columns by noted game designers providing insight on the latest trends and events.

A challenging, fun wargame that drops the players into truly desperate situations but gives them multiple options to alter history.

Professionally printed graphics, complete with large playing map and 200 to 360 die cut playing pieces.

And much more! Look for Against the Odds to cover simulation design issues, order of battle research, rule writing, play testing and graphic techniques as it evolves. Get yourself truly "connected" with games and gaming by reading Against the Odds!

Click here to see our upcoming issues

As an Amazon Associate, this firm earns from qualifying purchases.

© 2024 LPS Inc.

All | Upcoming Issues | Pre-Order | Back Issue List | The Annuals | Campaign Studies | Special Offers | Way of War Packs | Black Swans | Accessories | Spare Parts | Endangered Species | Sold Out | Kickstarters

You have 0 items in your cart. View Cart Go to Checkout

 

49 - A Gate of Hell

“The defenses of Charleston are like a porcupine hide with the quills turned outside in.”

-- USN Rear Admiral Samuel F. Du Pont

During the summer of 1863, in the aftermath of the Gettysburg and Vicksburg campaigns, battles on land and sea were fought over control of the birthplace of the Confederacy, Charleston, South Carolina. A Union victory here would send an unmistakable signal to the states in rebellion as well as the rest of the world that the Confederacy’s cause was lost and further fighting a waste of lives and effort.

A Confederate victory in the face of the tremendous Union host, that included every Union Ironclad on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, as well as some of the most seasoned regiments that numbered among them the first formations of all Black soldiers (free US citizens as well as former slaves), would signify the war would go on and that two nations, not one, could be the result of this “second” American Revolution.

Players in A Gate of Hell: The Campaign for Charleston, July-Sept. 1863 are cast in the roles of the historical commanders of the campaign; Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard for the Confederate defenders of Charleston, or Admiral Dahlgren and General Quincy Adams Gillmore of the Union. Can you do as well or better than they?

A Gate of Hell uses an interactive design to portray this decisive battle of the American Civil War. Players use “military support points” (MSPs), representing the logistical and political support for the campaign, to mobilize and support their forces (ground and naval) on one of the most inhospitable battlegrounds of the war. Both sides have a variety of military assets to deploy, but the planning and effective use of MSPs throughout the game will determine in large measure who is the victor. Units represent mostly regiments for the ground units, and each ironclad for the naval units. All of the famous batteries and forts, including Sumter and Wagner, are portrayed.

Rules cover Assault and Bombardment combats, multiple activations, the effects of battles elsewhere that can influence the actions at Charleston, the Union’s “Swamp Angel”, as well as the early completions of the Confederate ironclad Charleston and submarine Hunley.

Three scenarios are in included. One is on the April 1863 naval offensive by all of the Union ironclads that sought to defeat the rebel’s fortresses and is an excellent single-turn introduction to the game’s naval combat rules. A second is another single-turn scenario on the initial Union assault on Morris Island and Battery Wagner. These single turn scenarios take under an hour to game, and are well-suited for tournament play. The third covers the entire campaign and that takes about 6 hours to complete.

Bonus Game Inside!: This issue also features an extra game, All or Nothing. By late October of 1777, the British had repulsed the American attack at Germantown, and were occupying Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. American forces still occupied two forts south of the city, blocking the only viable British supply line out to sea via the Delaware River. The British made plans to eliminate these two redoubts....

Can you as the American player hold off the British attack on Fort Mercer? The Pennsylvania State Navy, proud but inexperienced, stands ready to assist.

Will you as the Hessian player take the Rebel strong- hold to really secure Britain's grip on the American capital, avenge the defeat at Trenton last year, and perhaps end the rebellion once and for all?

A Gate of Hell and issue #49 of ATO:
Map - One full color 22" x 34" area mapsheet
Counters - 200 full color 1/2" die-cut pieces
Rules length - 12 pages
Charts and tables - 2 pages
Complexity - Medium
How challenging is it solitaire? - Poor

Design - Paul Rohrbaugh
Development - Lembit Tohver
Graphics - Mark Mahaffey

Product Prices (includes shipping)
SKU Back Issue Type Price Qty.
A131Z-US Ziplock USA $39.95
A131Z-IN Ziplock International $54.95

Like the topic, designer, or types of challenges in this game?
You may also be interested in this product:

12 - Chennault's First Fight
12 - Chennault's First Fight
 
Tell a friend:

49 - A Gate of Hell
View Larger Image


Click here to view the contents spread below (in PDF format) for this issue of Against the Odds Magazine!

Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader version 6 or later. Free download here.

Download the rules for A Gate of Hell (in PDF format).

Download some variant and expansion rules for A Gate of Hell (in PDF format).

Read more about this game on Consimworld.

Read more about this game on BGG.

And, the game designer recommends the books below if you would like to learn even more about this battle: