Opponents Wanted

Find Gaming Opponents!

Another new feature for Grognard.com, "Opponents Wanted" provides a quick and easy way to locate gaming opponents with similar gaming preferences. Requires site registration.

Gaming Clubs/Organizations

Gaming Clubs and Organizations

Please check out our new (and growing) database of gaming clubs and organizations world-wide. Please let us know of your gaming club, or any other clubs that you know about so we can make this a truly useful resource.

Spotlight Articles

Outstanding articles that are not necessarily linked to one particular game, but may have broad appeal to gamers.

Seeing the Elephant at Kasserine Pass. “Patton’s Payback: The Battle of El Guettar and Patton’s Rise to Glory”. Book Review

"...explores a chapter of the US Army’s history that rarely gets much attention...". Ray Garbee reviews Patton's Payback The Battle of El Guettar and General Patton's Rise to Glory by Stephen L. Moore. While Ray has some quibbles about a couple aspects of the book, he nonetheless find an enjoyable read that is "…a good narrative into how combat is a test that separates true warrior leaders from the merely competent administrators."

Poster: Doug Holt
Post Date: 5/4/2022

Reflections on gaming not-Ukraine

"...in our games the Russian military was far more adroit using [artillery] in a fluid battlespace than seems to be the case in Ukraine." Rex Brynen, in PAXsims, reflects on some semi-recent "not Ukraine" modern wargame exercises, and what light those games shed, or didn't shed, regarding the reality of the current war. For example, in an influence operations exercise, "...what worked looked very much like what has worked for the Ukrainians in the current war, right down to heroic leaders and cute memes."

Poster: Doug Holt
Post Date: 4/1/2022

In The Sailor’s Bookshelf, James Stavridis Tackles a Deep Subject – The Sea. Book Review.

"...If you have any interest in the sea, the books on this list are bound to include several you will want to chase down." Ray Garbee reviews The Sailor's Bookshelf, Fifty Books to Know the Sea, by Adm. James Stavridis, USN (RET.). Check out why he is enthusiastic about a book that "…spans subjects and genres encompassing fiction, history, law, environmentalism and more!"

Poster: Doug Holt
Post Date: 3/11/2022

Never Give Up! Never Surrender! The Tin Can Sailors Have Their Finest Hour in ‘The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors’. Book Review

"At times, the book certainly puts the ‘graphic’ into the graphic novel." Ray Garbee reviews The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary WWII Story of the U.S. Navy’s Finest Hour, a visual adaptation of what Ray considers to be the definitive book on the Battle off Samar in the Pacific theater of World War II. He makes clear that this is no lightweight comic book, but rather a powerful retelling of a "…battle should have been the big gun shootout the Navy’s battleship admirals had sought for years."

Poster: Doug Holt
Post Date: 3/2/2022

Gaming Conventions

Another new feature for Grognard.com, the Gaming Convention calendar will make it a snap to keep up with all the latest gaming conventions in your area. But we need your gaming convention information, so please contribute.

Grognard News

New Grognard.com Management Coming Soon! (6/30/2022)

After about 8.5 years, Mark is finally passing the Grognard.com management torch over to new administrators at the end of June 2022. Please bear with us as we migrate the site to the new servers, and be patient if there are any hiccups along the way. Thanks for supporting the site with your visits for all these years! +Mark

No More Advertisements! (2/1/2022)

As of Feb 1st, there will be no more paid advertisements on Grognard.com, until the new Administrators are established, and decide how they want to handle site visitor support.

Grognard Opponents Wanted (10/15/2021)

Another new feature for Grognard.com, "Opponents Wanted" provides a quick and easy way to locate gaming opponents with similar gaming preferences. Requires site registration.

Gaming Conventions

New Gaming Conventions calendar. You can see all upcoming gaming conventions worldwide.

If you are sponsoring a board gaming convention of some type, or know of one that is not listed on Grognard.com, then please contact us and let us know!

Gaming Clubs/Organziations

New Gaming Clubs/Organizations listing. You can search for existing gaming clubs worldwide.

If you belong to a gaming club, or know of one, please drop us a line and let us know so we can get it listed on Grognard.com!

New Search Features

Now you can search for specific games (or games by publisher) using the new Game Search feature, located at the top right corner of the this page. In addition you can now harness the power of Google to search the entire Grognard.com site for any specific information you'd like. Just enter a search word or phrase into the Google box labeled "Search All of Grognard.com" and click magnifying glass button. Search features will continue to be improved and enhanced going forward so check back often to see the latest stuff.

Grognard Originals

In addition to our links to great content all around the internet, expect to see more Grognard.com "originals" in the future.

A Close Look at a Neglected Gem

Long overdue review of Victory Games' "Central America: America's Backyard War", written by Mark D.. In depth review covering rules, game features, and scenarios (one of the highlights of the game). Editor's note: I've been playing this game again after a long, long time, so I felt this article was worth re-publishing to maybe spark interest in the game...

Falling Sky - Perfect Opening Moves - Roman (updated)

Is there such a thing as a "Perfect Opening Move" in any of GMT's COIN Series games? Mark D. shares his idea of a "perfect" opening turn for the Romans in Falling Sky. Enjoy.

Editor's note added on 5/15/2021.

Higlanders - Scenario for Vietnam: 1965-1975

Experimental scenario for Vietnam: 1965-1975 created and shared by Mark D'Agosta.

Battle for Russia - Game Turn Restrictions Summary

I'm finally getting to play this game, and am looking forward to it. There are a decent amount of "special rules" and restrictions that apply to either the Axis or Soviet player, depending on which turn it is. Rather than flipping back and forth in the rule book, I made a quick & dirty cheat sheet for myself which I have been using, and thought I'd share it. If anyone sees anything that's incorrect, please let me know via email at mark at grognard dot com. (updated 4/11/2020 to include rules for ignoring Rivers - Axis only on Turn 1; both sides on Turn 2)

More Grognard Originals...

Grognard Challenge

Latest Challenge

Have a look at the graphics for the latest Challenge and see past solutions and contest winners.

Recommended (archives)

Wargaming - General Info

Board Wargames

Miniatures Wargames

Computer Wargames

Academic Gaming

Board Games

Internet Based/PBEM Games

Individual Wargamer Blogs

Wargaming Magazines

Asst Software/Player Aides

In Memoriam

Grognards Lost

New Management Coming to Grognard.com!

Grognard.com will soon be getting new management. After about 8.5 years, Mark will be passing the torch to new managers/administrators sometime during the month of June 2022. There will be additional communication and information about the new team as the time grows closer.

We will be reaching out to all Grognard.com registered users to confirm that you wish to continue to have access to sections of the site that require registration (i.e. Opponents Wanted, Grognard Challenge, etc.).

We have already begun the transition, so please be patient if there are any "hiccups" along the way.

Thanks for supporting Grognard.com with your visits over the years and we hope you'll continue to support this valuable gaming resource. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at Mark @ Grognard.com up until the end of June.

+Mark

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Updates to Our Privacy Policy (as of May 25, 2018)

Game Articles

(t10139)	Pub Dates	Game: The Shores of Tripoli Publisher: Fort Circle Games Game Type: Board Designer(s): Kevin Bertram Article Descriptions
Article ID: 16	Date: 6/19/2022 Poster: Pat L.	Top 6! Solitaire Games of 2020 (video) Game enthusiast Wayne Hansen discusses 6 solitaire games published in 2019-2020 that he enjoyed playing. His video includes components, game play, and his concise reviews. War game players who enjoy solitaire games will want to check out this list including: Ostkrieg: WWII Eastern Front, Space Infantry Resurgence, The First Jihad: The Rise of Islam 632-750, Stilicho: Last of the Romans (an update and improvement of The Wars of Marcus Aurelius), Chancellorsville 1863, and The Shores of Tripoli plus others mentioned as runners up. In short, a nice summary of the state of the art of solitaire war games as of 2020.
Article ID: 15	Date: 3/28/2022 Poster: Doug Holt	The Shores of Tripoli by Fort Circle Games "Another small jewel which you can play quickly, switch sides and play once again. All in one evening!" Michal, in The Boardgames Chronicle brings us a review of Fort Circle Games' The Shores of Tripoli, which covers the First Barbary War in which the United States and Sweden sought to suppress state-supported North African piracy. Check out the feature that he considers to be a "…tremendous design advantage and something which makes the game really unique."
Article ID: 14	Date: 10/6/2021 Poster: Doug Holt	The Shores of Tripoli – two very exciting games "...this is one of the best examples of assymetric design, with both sides having completely different game mechanics and goals." Michal, in The Boardgames Chronicle brings us a couple of fun replays with Fort Circle Games' The Shores of Tripoli. Two games with two very different outcomes, one concluding where "Frontal assault was left as an only option."
Article ID: 13	Date: 7/22/2021 Poster: Harvey M.	How to Play Shores of Tripoli: Naval Combat The Shores of Tripoli, published by Fort Circle Games, is a great game to introduce someone to the hobby.Seek Out and Play has produced a series of excellent videos tutorials to help people learn the game and start playing quickly. In this video, they teach you how naval combat works.
Article ID: 12	Date: 7/22/2021 Poster: Harvey M.	How to Play Shores of Tripoli: Solitaire Rules Seek Out and Play has produced a series of excellent videos tutorials to help people learn The Shores of Tripoli published by Fort Circle Games. This one covers the solitaire rules for the game.
Article ID: 11	Date: 7/11/2021 Poster: Mark D.	How-To Video by "Seek Out & Play" How to Play "The Shores of Tripoli". Turn Sequence From my YouTube channel, Seek Out & Play. A short video that describes the turn sequence in "The Shores of Tripoli". The video goes over each element of the turn sequence to help newcomers learn how to play the two-player version of the game.
Article ID: 10	Date: 6/4/2021 Poster: Mark D.	The Shores of Tripoli – Multiplayer mode – First Impressions Michael at the Boardgames Chronicle says: "I finally had a chance to play Shores of Tripoli in 2-players version – and the great experiences which I had with this title from solo games were reconfirmed. Enjoy the session report as well as my impressions!"
Article ID: 9	Date: 1/16/2021 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli The Shores of Tripoli published by Fort Circle Games is reviewed by A Wargamers Needful Things and they conclude, "The Shores of Tripoli is a charming game that could fit right in on any gamer's shelf. The mechanics are simple, the game plays fast, and each side offers a unique approach."
Article ID: 8	Date: 12/23/2020 Poster: Mark D.	The Boardgames Chronicle - First Impressions "The Shores of Tripoli" - a very interesting 2-player wargame, with great cards mechanics and pirates theme. In this article The Boardgames Chronicle explore a very well designed solitaire mode.
Article ID: 7	Date: 12/2/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games – Action Point 5 In their 5th and final installment of their action point series on The Shores of Tripoli published by Fort Circle Games, The Players Aid covers Naval Movement, Naval Combat, Naval Bombardment and Ground Combat.
Article ID: 6	Date: 11/15/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games – Action Point 4 The Shores of Tripoli published by Fort Circle Games is an intriguing look at the war against the Barbary pirates in the early days of our nation. The Players Aid continues their excellent action point series on this game with Action Point 4 which covers the Sequence of Play, Victory Conditions and different actions players can take by discarding the cards.
Article ID: 5	Date: 11/1/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	Video Review: The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games "Shortly after the end of the American Revolutionary War, commercial vessels of the United States were being attacked and raided by the pirates of the Barbary coast in the Mediterranean Sea. In 1801, newly inaugurated President Thomas Jefferson was eager to put an end to this threat and sent a “squadron of observation” to the Mediterranean to deal with the threat. The Shores of Tripoli covers this conflict and does so using a card driven game mechanic that works really well in this instance." The Players Aid gives us a video review of this new game from Fort Circle Games.
Article ID: 4	Date: 10/30/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games – Action Point 3 In Action Point 3 of their continuing series covering The Shores of Tripoli, a simulation of the war against the Barbary Pirates published by Fort Circle Games, The Players Aid covers the cards that drive the action and discusses the interesting Events that ground the game in history.
Article ID: 3	Date: 10/24/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games Preview Moe's Game Table gives us a preview of a new offering from Fort Circle Games covering the war against the Barbary pirates, The Shores of Tripoli.
Article ID: 2	Date: 10/20/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games – Action Point 2 The Players Aid once again takes us to The Shores of Tripoli in Action Point 2 of their series on this game published by Fort Circle Games. This one covers "the differences between the units of the United States and her Allies, and Tripolitania and her Allies, and how they are used in the game. "
Article ID: 1	Date: 10/8/2020 Poster: Harvey M.	The Shores of Tripoli from Fort Circle Games – Action Point 1 The Players Aid takes a look at a game from a relatively new company, Fort Circle Games, that covers an often overlooked conflict in American history, the war against the Barbary pirates. So check out action point one on the new game The Shores of Tripoli.