Conference smurf::civil_war

    Take a look at Across 5 Aprils from Avalon Hill.  It includes
    scenerios on Gettysburg, Shiloh, Bentonville and one other that escapes
    me.
    

    RE .0:
    
    	Although I have not played it, I would agree with looking at
    "Across Five Aprils".  Avalon Hill is pretty good at telling you the
    "playing level" of a game - and since the book they took the game title
    from is Junior High level, the game is probably on the "easy" end of
    simulations.
    
    	(The "complex" end of simulations, BTW, can take hours or days to
    play, but are very realistic.)
    
    	However, for a twelve-year old (and yourself), you might want to
    consider military miniatures.  There are some reasonably-priced plastic
    sets of civil war soldiers available ( the 1/72 size is pretty good ),
    and there are books out on playing simulation games with them.  My son
    and I enjoy both kinds of play, but the miniatures have more of a
    "battle" feel abouty them than little military symbols on cardboard
    squares. ;^)  The plastic ones I've seen come molded in blue or gray,
    but if you really get into things you can paint them in detail.
    
    	(Of course, IMHO the ultimate civil war simulation board game is
    "Terrible Swift Sword", which lets you recreate all three days of
    Gettysburg at a _regimental_ level.  Have a week handy to play, after
    two weeks to learn the rules... :^} )
    
    MikeR
    

    Mike,
    
    	I hadn't considered miniatures.  How do you handle concealed
    movement, etc.?  Long playing games are difficult - with six other
    brothers and sisters and a dog to boot, the life span of a game setup
    is measured in hours.
    
    Charlie

For a real beginner, I have found the GETTYSBURG game to be very simple to 
learn and play.  It goes hour by hour for the entire Gettysburg battle, with
troops and commanders entering on set schedules.  Many of the concepts used in 
more involved games, such as troop movement and combat power being affected 
by terrain are used here, but it doesn't take days to play.  It also has a 
hard cardboard playing surface, versus the paper that all lot of the more 
sophisticated come with.  I don't recall the manufacturer off-hand, but I know
it is one of the major ones.  You can get it at a LEARNINGSMITH store in this 
area (Chestnut Hill mall, Massachusetts).  

    RE .4:
    
    	Gettysburg is a good game.  It's made by Avalon Hill.  As noted, it
    is in the "simpler" class, but would be a good introduction.
    
    
    RE .3:
    
    	There are a variety of techniques for using miniatures.  As for
    hidden movement, it is _easier_ to do with miniatures than with the
    average board game (though still difficult in either case), because the
    board game technique either involves multiple boards and players, or a
    lot of bookkeeping and players being away from the table.  With
    miniatures, you can have "real" view blocks which makes the process a
    little easier.
    
    	Where you play depends on the size figures you choose, and the size
    of your armies.  1/72nd scale and smaller figures do pretty well on a
    table top, if you're not trying to recreate Waterloo.  :^)  Often,
    people group figures into "units" on a base, so setup and movement are
    faster.  Since miniatures battles tend to be tactical in scope, they
    can be played in a couple of hours (depending on size of armies, of
    course).  In good weather, you could even use them outdoors on the
    driveway.  Terrain can be formed from books, blocks, cardboard, or
    whatever - some folks get serious enough to build a sand table (which
    can get covered with a ping-pong top, or something similar).
    
    	I like both board games and miniatures.  Since miniatures are more
    "visual", I thought they might appeal to younger players, but I started
    military board gaming at twelve, and haven't quit yet!
    
    MikeR
    

    Mike,
    
    	Many happy hours were spent at the sand tables playing WWII,
    Napoleonic and D&D type scenarios.  We had the periscopes, etc.
    
    Charlie