Hi - just announcing that I've put on online version of my boardgame Angria, on corsairs on the coasts of 18th century India on a new playtesting site, Campus Martius (fieldofmars.com) that uses the popular Rally the Troops system. I'd welcome any playtesters if you're up for a game!

Can't wait to try it again, especially when Akar is able to include some art from the two warring powers - whose propaganda poster game was probably superior to their military skills, at least at the start of the war.

I was really glad for the chance to play Chalice of Poison by Akar Bharadvaj, covering the Iran-Iraq war with a political focus: two fragile regimes locked in struggle, knowing that reforms that lead to victory on the battlefield (like letting generals communicate easily) could also lead to a coup.

Getting my prototype of Digvijaya: Religious Reform and Rivalry in Medieval India ready to show at @fortcircle.bsky.social's Circle DC convention starting Friday.

Thanks for doing this! I'm working on a boardgame on corsairing and coastal warfare in 18th century India ("Angria"), and am also posting reviews/first impressions of historical boardgames on this account.

Next up from @sdhistcon.bsky.social is Palmares, a game about the quilombos - communities of people who escaped from slavery - in 17th century Brazil, and their resistance to attempts to re-enslave them. The designer is Artur Cavalho. The photo is from its Boardgamegeek page.

I'm a bit late, but am putting up some posts on the games I played at @sdhistcon.bsky.social last weekend. First up is Tipping Point, a fast-moving 2-player game on the US political system. Please forgive the blurry photos. #wargaming #boardgames

Working on my prototype of Angria, a boardgame about the early 18th century Maratha navy and its attempt to take control of the west Indian sea trade from the Mughals, Portuguese and East India Company.

Working on my prototype of Angria, a boardgame about the early 18th century Maratha navy and its attempt to take control of the west Indian sea trade from the Mughals, Portuguese and East India Company.

Another game I got to try (albeit briefly) at SDHistCon was Captaincy, by John Carnahan, covering small-scale naval warfare from the 16th century to the Napoleonic wars with an emphasis on the handling of your ship.

By participating in the struggle, we get a chance to shape the nature of Indian independence. "Nehru" here is the historical outcome, which reflects an upper-caste worldview.

Now, eventually the British will start to really step on our toes, and the 1857 rebellion will occur. We did not play this far, but after the rebellion the independence struggle will begin.

The shudras and dalits at first are locked out of the bigger political picture a bit - they're just trying to make ends meet. But if we squeeze them, ie, if I really need cheap labor to get my temple built, they have the chance either to convert or to resist and ultimately to organize.

The Vaishyas, for example, might even finance British expansion, because as the Company goes inland they bring trade routes in their wake (see those long rectangles on the map?). But British dominance, ultimately, means higher taxes.

For example, I played the Brahmins, in charge of maintaining some basic dharmic standards around this place. But I need to be a bit flexible, or the dalits and shudras might resist (or worse, convert to Christianity or Islam).

The game, by Akar Bharadvaj, involves four players, each of whom represents one varna. To me, the decisions you make would be those of a local notable or village council, but what you do in your microcosm has an affect on all of India.

Just got back from SDHistCon in San Diego. I had a chance to play a number of games, but I'll start out with Tyranny of Blood, on intercaste competition in British-dominated India - a very clever way of making a game around long-term social forces.