From: Roberto Chiavini Subject: One Review AT ALL HAZARDS (Ivy Street Games) The first try of Ivy Street Games to an operational system takes at least a B for Beautiful Effort in adapting their chit-drawing system to a larger scale, with a few particular innovation. The game simulate the Cold Harbor Campaign of late May - early June 1864, with corp level (but with brigade level units), in 5 daily turns (with several days for the all campaign). As the previous efforts of this publisher, the game is a DTP project, but very good indeed, with good graphics for map and units. The only regrets are the uncut counters, really hard to cut with scissors or a cutter(as the cardboard is thick enough to create problems). I spent more than one hour to cut all the pieces, having to glue again a few of them as the paper above them was removed by my cutter. Anyway, it's time well spent. The system adapts the chit drawing initiative that we have seen in the previous games from this publisher: each corp (plus the cavalry and the supply units) has a chit that you must put on a cup; when a chit is draw, all the units in that corp may take actions. There are several kind of actions, with the most important difference in movement and rest action: in the first case (movement, forced march and combat) you spend fatigue points and may lose supply, casualty and straggler points (you have very nice sheet to take in account the compleat status of each unit, very easily and effectively); in the second, you normally try to regain the best status for your combat units. Movement is straightforward (with locking ZOCs when you enter them, but you may move out of them at a movement points cost), with the added spice of forced march (a supplemental movement action that more than double the normal one, at a possible cost in stragglers and a fixed cost in fatigue). Combat is very elaborated, probably too much for the real effect of this strange system in the game, but it flows very easily after a few ones: you have to take in account several strenght differential (limited mostly to trenches, flank or rear attack, river/creek effects, plus the usual added limitation of fatigue, out of supply, etc.), then calculate the combat ratio (which is expressed as a DRM for the attacker), the effectiveness rating differential (plus/minus 1 if a unit is better than the other of at least 2 levels), the three or more hexes against one modifier, and at last the attacker roll the modified die and read the result: there are three different ones: stay (both the attacker and the defender stay in place), advance and retreat, up to 3 hexes. This combat table directs both players to another CRT to see what happens to the single combat units: in this new CRT, each unit may lose fatigue, casualty, straggler and supply points, other than disorganizing. There are several ways to replenish your units, regaining stragglers, resupply them, using replacements and resting to lessen your fatigue, all centered on the effectiveness check: if a roll of a die plus the effectiveness rating of the unit is greater than 6 the check is ok and the action could be taken to the end. Otherwise, better luck next time. There are also rules for digging trenches (a two turns stationary effort) and other optional chrome. There are also several scenarios, varying in length and difficulty, most of them very balanced. All in all, the system plays very well, the situation, if a little static on a few fronts, is tense and exciting, you may have a very good time even solitaire. I have a few complains with the cavalry units (having a fixed strength of 1 not depending on the steps of the unit, and as the minimum combat strength value for the CRT is 1, you may use your cavalry in an almost suicidal way until you have supply left, as effect like fatigue, straggler and casualty seem not to be taken in account very efficiently, if I have understood correctly the rules) and with the convoluted combat CRTs, I still prefer the tactical system of the previous games (in particular, this operational system doesn't use the command orders that I like very much), but this is still a great game, a game that must be on the shelves of each self-respecting civil war buff. I rate this game 7 1/2 out of 10.