Guerra a Muerte Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Read This First
  • Learning to Play the Game
• Introduction
• 1.0 Game Components
• 1.1 Game Map
• 1.2 The Playing Pieces
• 1.3 Sample Units
  • 1.3.2 American Royalist Abbreviations
  • 1.3.3 Spanish Royalist Abbreviations
  • 1.3.6 Patriot Unit Abbreviations
• 2.0 Setting Up the Game
  • 2.1 Royalist Set Up
  • 2.2 Patriot Set Up
  • 2.3 Other Units
• 3.0 Sequence of Play
  • 3.1 Turn Sequence
  • 3.2 The Patriot Operations Phase
  • 3.3 Activations
  • 3.4 Activation Friction
  • 3.5 Interception
    • 3.5.1 Interception Die Roll Modifiers
• 4.0 Resource Points
  • 4.1 RP Expenditures
  • 4.2 Patriot RP
    • 4.2.1 El Plata RP
    • 4.2.2 Grand Colombian RP
    • 4.2.3 Mexican RP
    • 4.2.4 Peruvian RP
  • 4.3 Royalist RP
  • 4.4 Costs of Building Units
  • 4.5 RP from Spain
  • 4.5.1 Die Roll Modifiers (DRM)
  • 4.6 Recruiting Units
  • 4.7 Upgrading Militia Units
• 5.0 Movement
  • 5.1 Forces
    • 5.1.1 Force Markers
    • 5.1.2 Stacking
    • 5.1.3 Limited Intelligence Rule
  • 5.2 Forces and Movement
  • 5.3 Movement Attrition
• 6.0 Combat
  • 6.1 Ranged Battle Procedure
    • 6.1.1 Post-Combat Advance
  • 6.2 Siege Combat
  • 6.3 Siege Combat Procedure
    • Siege Table
  • 6.4 Siege Works
  • 6.5 Naval Units and Sieges
  • 6.6 Blockade
  • 6.7 Cities
• 7.0 Naval Operations
  • 7.1 Naval Movement
  • 7.2 Off-Map Sea Movement
  • 7.3 The Spain Holding Box
  • 7.4 Returning to Port
  • 7.5 Naval Combat
    • 7.5.1 Combat Procedure
  • 7.6 Amphibious Operations
  • 7.7 Naval Transport Capacity
  • 7.8 Raiding
  • 7.9 Naval Units and Port Capture
  • 7.10 Enemy Ports
• 8.0 Leaders
  • 8.1 Leader Casualties and Retreat
  • 8.2 Royalist Leader Boves
  • 8.3 Patriot Naval Commander Cochrane
• 9.0 Uprisings
  • 9.1 Pro-Royalist Areas
  • 9.2 Pro-Patriot Areas
  • 9.3 Uprisings Procedure
  • 9.4 Uprisings Die Roll Modifiers
  • 9.5 Internal Turmoil in El Plata
• 10.0 Special Units and Rules
  • 10.1 Guerrillas
  • 10.2 Liberals Take Power in Spain
    • 10.2.1 Effects
    • 10.2.2 Procedure
  • 10.3 Patriot Havens
  • 10.4 Royalist Repression
  • 10.5 Minimum Deployment Requirements in New Spain and Cuba/Puerto Rico
  • 10.6 The Sao Paulo Legion
  • 10.7 Mexican Guerrilla Warfare
• 11.0 Winning the Game
  • 11.1 Levels of Victory
    • 11.1.1 Patriot Victory
    • 11.1.2 Stalemate
    • 11.1.3 Royalist Victory
• 12.0 Scenarios
  • 12.1 The Opening Guns (1810-14)
    • 12.1.1 Scenario Length
    • 12.1.2 Royalist Set Up
    • 12.1.3 Patriot Set Up
    • 12.1.4 How to Win
  • 12.2 The Empire Strikes Back (1815-18)
    • 12.2.1 Scenario Length
    • 12.2.2 Royalist Set Up
    • 12.2.3 Patriot Set Up
    • 12.2.4 How to Win
  • 12.3 End of Empire (1820-24)
• 13.0 Designer's Notes
  • The Map
  • The "Indian/Slave Masses" Rule
  • The El Plata Rebels
  • Royalists and Patriots
  • Importance of Fleets
  • The Combat System
  • The Counter-Guerrilla Table
  • 13.1 Bibliography

Read This First

We've organized the overall structure of the rules of this LPS simulation game to follow this game's sequence of play in introducing concepts. The rules themselves are written in a format known as the Case System. This approach divides the rules into Modules (each of which deals with a major important aspect of play). Modules are numbered sequentially as well as possessing a title. Each Module is divided into Sections (that deal with a major sub-topic inside the Module) which are also numbered sequentially. Modules and Sections are introduced by some text that briefly describes the subject covered by that particular Module or Section. Finally, the majority of each Section consists of Cases. These are the specific, detailed rules that govern play.

Each Case is also numbered sequentially. The numbering follows a logical progression based upon the number of the Module of which the Cases are a part. A Case with the number 7.51, for example, is the first Case of the fifth Section of the seventh Module of the rules. Each Module can have as many as ninety-nine Sections and each Section can have as many as ninety-nine Cases. The numbering system is designed as an organizational aid. Use it to determine where a Case is located in the rules.

3.1.4 The example above is the number of the fourth Case of the first Section of the third Module of the rules.

Learning to Play the Game

Begin by familiarizing yourself with all of the components listed for this game. Then skim through the charts and rules, reading all the titles of the Modules and Sections. Set up a game scenario or portion of a scenario (after reading the applicable Module) and play a trial game against yourself. During this trial game, try referring to the rules only when you have a question and remember the numbering system we employ makes it easy to look up rules when you do. While a trial game may take you an hour or two, it is the quickest and most pleasant way to learn (short of having an experienced friend teach you). We also don't recommend attempting to learn the rules word-for-word. Memorizing all the details is an effort that few can do. We've written these rules to be as comprehensive as possible, but they are not designed to be memorized. Taking in the rules in this way (as you play along) is the best approach to mastering this game. We're always open to suggestions on how to improve the comprehension of our rules. Write to us (see addresses below) if you have an idea on how we can communicate better with you.

Introduction

Guerra a Muerte (War to the Death) is a simulation of the Wars of Independence of the Spanish colonies in the Americas. Every turn represents one year of actual operations. Unit scale: regiments/battalions.

1.0 Game Components

Each copy of Guerra a Muerte is composed of the following:

• One 22" x 32" map
• 280 die-cut counters
• This rules booklet

Not supplied with this game but also required for play are one six-sided and one ten-sided die. If any of the supplied parts are missing or damaged, write to:

Against the Odds Magazine PO Box 165 Southeastern, PA 19399-0165 USA Attn: Guerra a Muerte

Or e-mail us at: [email protected]

We hope you enjoy this game. Should you have any difficulty interpreting the rules, please write to us at the above postal address, or send an e-mail to: [email protected], phrasing your questions so that a simple sentence, word, or number can answer them. If you send a letter by mail, you must enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope to receive a reply. We recommend e-mail as the best way to resolve a query.

Although we welcome comments and suggestions about the game's interpretation of events, we cannot promise to respond to questions on theory or design intent. Additionally, check out the Against the Odds and Guerra a Muerte discussion folders at www.consimworld.com.

1.1 Game Map

The map depicts Spanish America in the early nineteenth century, from New Spain (Mexico) to Chile and the Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata.

The map is further divided into sea and map areas. Areas perform several functions in the game. Units are placed in particular areas, and that determines their position on the map. Movement is from area to area wherever a common border exists. Movement is not directly allowed between areas that meet only at a point. Example: movement directly from Chaco to Salta is not permitted. A unit or force would have to move from Chaco to either Chiquitos or Río de la Plata then on to Salta.

Regions have a value (a number) used for recruitment and attrition purposes, among other functions. Some areas include cities and or fortified cities (such as Cartagena de Indias) which may be besieged.

1.1.1 Map Area Control. An area is considered to be under a Players's control if there are only units, including just a leader, owned by the player in the area. If there are units of both sides in the same area this are is considered to be only "partially controlled" by either side. This is important when collecting Resource Points (RP) (see Module 3.0) and determining the winner.

1.1.2 Ports. The port symbols on the map are not locations in themselves. They point to a city or fortress that has port facilities and indicate the sea area that connects to that city or fortress. Example: The city and port icons in the USA area both represent New Orleans.

1.1.3 Mountains. The Andes Mountains run without interruption from the eastern border of Maracaibo to the eastern border of Chiloé; in other words, along a north-south axis one area to the east of the western edge of the South American continent. This range also extends along the border between Chiquitos and Salta. See Section 5.3.

1.2 The Playing Pieces

The cardboard counters represent the various forces involved in this conflict, basically Patriots (further subdivided according to nationality) and Royalists (Spanish and Americans.) There are three general types of counters: units (representing cavalry, infantry, artillery or navies), leaders and markers.

1.3 Sample Units

See diagram on the center insert.

1.3.1 Royalist Units. All Royalist units have a light yellow background. Regular units have colored figures and Militia units have white figures. Spanish units have a red bar along their bottom edge. American units have a blue bar. Portuguese units have a brown bar.

1.3.2 American Royalist Abbreviations

Code	Name
NE	Nueva España (New Spain)
Mx	México
Pb	Puebla
Es	España (Spain)
Vz	Veracruz
Pr	Presidiales (Presidio Garrisons)
Cp	Campeche
Gm	Guatemala
LH	La Habana
Cb	Cuba
Am	America
Cn	Cumaná

1.3.3 Spanish Royalist Abbreviations

Code	Name
A	Americano (American)
Ab	Albuera
As	Asturias
LB	Lobera
FVII	Fernando VII
Zm	Zamora
Ex	Extremadura
TC	Tiradores de Castilla (Castilla Sharpshooters)
Lc	Lorca
GC	Granaderos a Caballo (Horse Grenadiers)
Gr	Granada
Sb	Saboya (Savoy)

Portuguese Royalist

Code	Name
SPL	San Paolo Legion

1.3.4 Patriot Units. Patriot units have a green background. Regular units have colored figures and Militia units have white figures. El Plata (Argentine) units have a blue bar along their bottom edge. Chilean units have a purple bar. Grand Colombian (Venezuelan and New Granadan) units have a yellow bar. Mexican units have a dark green bar. Peru (Upper Peruvian) units have a red bar.

1.3.5 Rebel El Plata Units. Rebel El Plata units have dark vertical lines across their lower bar and "Rebel" as their ID (see Section 9.5).

1.3.6 Patriot Unit Abbreviations

El Plata Units

Code	Name
C	Cazadores (Light Infantry)
DP	Dragones de la Patria (Dragoons of the Fatherland)
BSF	Blandengues de la Frontera de Santa Fe (Santa Fe Frontier Light Cavalry)

Mexican Units

Code	Name
Tp	Tlalpujahua
Mt	Matamoros
SP	San Pedro
EC	El Carmen
SL	San Lorenzo
DV	De los Valles
UV	US Volunteers
M	Mina

New Granadan and Venezuelan Units

Code	Name
Cn	Granaderos de Cundinamarca (Cundinamarca Grenadiers)
GI	Granaderos de infantería (Infantry Grenadiers)
NG	Nueva Granada (New Granada)
GC	Guardia Colombiana (Colombian Guards)
VC	Valerosos Cazadores (Brave Light Infantry)
BV	Barlovento
LG	La Guaira
Ll	Llaneros
H	Húsares (Hussars)
Lc	Lanceros (Lancers)
SD	Soberbios Dragones (Superb Dragoons)
BP

Peruvian Units

Code	Name
HN	Húsares Nacionales (National Hussars)
LP	Legión Peruana (Peruvian Legion)
CP	Cazadores peruanos (Peruvian Light Infantry)
HP	Húsares Peruanos (Peruvian Hussars)
DSM	Dragones de San Martín (San Martín Dragoons)

2.0 Setting Up the Game

The Royalist player sets up first, followed by the Patriot.

2.1 Royalist Set Up

Place the following at-start Royalist units as indicated by the unit ID or the code printed after the dash.

• Code C = Place in Cuba.
• Code M = Place anywhere in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. Note Militia infantry unit must be placed in Veracruz.

Historical Note: The Veracruz infantry regiment deploys with only one step because in 1810 it was only an independent infantry battalion, later upgraded to a full two-battalion regiment in 1813.

• Code V = Place anywhere in the Captaincy of Venezuela, including the areas of Maracaibo, Costa Firme, Cumaná, Los Llanos and Guayana. Note Militia infantry units must be placed in Maracaibo and Puerto Cabello.
• Code P = Place anywhere in the Viceroyalty of Peru.
• Code BO = Place in the Banda Oriental. Note Militia infantry unit must be placed in Montevideo.
• Code CH = Place in Chiloé.
• Place the Cp (Campeche) battalion at Yucatán.
• Place the Gm (Guatemala) Regiment plus any one militia cavalry unit at Guatemala.
• Place one militia cavalry unit in the Salta area.
• Place one militia infantry unit in the fortified cities/port of Callao [printed as "Calloa"], Puerto Rico and Santo Domingo.
• Place the Panamá (Pm) battalion at Panamá.
• Place the Chiloé (Cl) battalion and the Dragones de la Frontera (DF) Cavalry Regiment (minus one step) at Chiloé.
• Naval forces: Place a frigate at any one of the following ports: Montevideo, Callao, La Habana.

Royalist RP = 4

2.2 Patriot Set Up

Place the following at-start Patriot units as indicated by the unit ID or the code printed after the dash.

• Code PL = Place in any of the following areas: El Plata, Córdoba, Salta, Misiones.
• Code SF = Place in Santa Fe (the Granaderos de Cundinamarca Regiment deploys minus one step).
• Code CH = Place anywhere at the northern or Southern Chile areas.
• Code Q = Place at Quito.
• Code M = Place anywhere in the following Mexican areas: Tierras Calientes, Central Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Guadalajara.
• Place leader Hidalgo at Guadalajara and Morelos at Tierras Calientes. A Patriot Slave/Indian uprising is recorded in the Central Mexico and Guadalajara areas (note on the Sieges and Slaves/Indians display).
• Code AP (Alto Perú) = Place anywhere in "guerrilla" mode at either Mojos, Chiquitos and/or Charcas.
• Place one Columbian militia unit in Cartagena de Indias.

Patriot RP Available

• El Plata = 2
• Grand Colombia = 2
• Chile = 0
• Mexico = 4
• Peru = 0

2.3 Other Units

• Paraguay: deploy one cavalry and one infantry "Rebel" El Plata units.
• Place the Peninsular Royalist reinforcements in the respective entry turn of the game turn track.
• Place the Patriot reinforcements in the respective entry turn of the game turn track.
• Place the at-start units on map.
• Place all other units in the "Recruit Pool" of their respective sides.

Historical Note: The initial set up of the Peruvian units simulates the "Republiquetas" of the Upper Perú which forced the Viceroy at Lima to assign badly needed resources to counter guerrilla duties.

3.0 Sequence of Play

Each game turn is divided into two player turns. Each player turn is subdivided into several phases. Each action taken by a player must be taken in the appropriate phase.

3.1 Turn Sequence

Events Phase. Starting with turn 9 (1818) the Patriot player begins rolling for the "Liberals take power in Spain" event (Section 10.2).

Uprisings Phase. Both sides may attempt uprisings in enemy-controlled areas. Up to two per turn and side. See Module 9.0.

Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase. Players collect RP. Militia units already on map may be used up to replenish regular units (Section 3.7). [Editor's note: the printed cross-reference reads "Section 3.7"; the militia upgrade rules are in Section 4.7.] Create/recreate units, purchase OP. Arrival of reinforcements from Spain. Players may split/organize forces with units present in the same area. Units may switch to "guerrilla" mode.

Patriot Operations Phase.

Royalist Operations Phase.

End of Turn. Check for Siege Blockade surrender (section 6.6). Ensure naval units are returned to Port (section 7.4).

3.2 The Patriot Operations Phase

The Patriot player must conduct his operations in the following order:

1. El Plata/Chile units
2. Grand Colombian (including Peruvian)/New Granada units
3. Mexican units

3.3 Activations

Forces/individual units (see Section 5.2) may be activated during their own activation phase. Before activating a stack/unit, roll one die to determine number of Operations Points (OP) available for that turn. Players may use the "OP Available" marker to keep track of the number of OP expended by a force. Players may not alternate activations. That is, another force may not be activated until an activated given force has expended all its available OP, or the player decides not to continue operating with that force.

D6	OP available
Less than 1	3
1, 2	4
3, 4	6
5, 6	8

Activation Die Roll Modifiers (DRM)

Modifier	Condition
+?	OP rating of any leader stacked with that force
+2	every additional RP expended
-3	leaderless forces with 50% or more of militia units

Once the player has determined the number of OP available, then the force may operate. Every action costs a number of Operations Points. For instance, to move from one area to another costs 1 OP. See the Operations Costs Table for details. A force may alternate any type of operation as long as it has OP available.

3.4 Activation Friction

Forces attacking after having expended 7 or more OP get -1 DRM in combat.

3.5 Interception

This is a special type of activation. When an enemy force or stack moves out of an area occupied by friendly forces, the latter may try to attempt an interception. The Active player must stop movement until the interception die roll is solved.

Roll 1D6, modifying as applicable per the list below. With a modified Die Roll (DR) of 5 or more, the moving force is intercepted. Players must resolve regular combat between both forces. This combat costs no OP to any player. After resolving combat, if there are any surviving units in the moving force they may continue their activation.

Units placed in fortresses or cities may not attempt interception against moving enemy forces and/or units.

3.5.1 Interception Die Roll Modifiers

Modifier	Condition
+1	50% or more of the units in the intercepting force/stack are cavalry (not including leaders)
-1	50% or more of the units in the intercepted force/stack are cavalry (not including leaders)
+?	OP factor of any leader in the intercepting force/stack
-?	OP factor of any leader in the intercepted force/stack

Example of Interception: On turn III, during the Royalist Operations Phase, a Royalist force with leader Pezuela, 4 infantry, 1 artillery and 3 cavalry enters the Salta area from Charcas. Its activation die roll yielded 5 OP. There is a Patriot force with leader Belgrano, 2 infantry and 2 cavalry units in that area. The Royalist player wants to bypass them and expends a second OP to perform a movement activation. He announces that his force will move to the Río de la Plata area. The Patriot player then announces that he is trying to intercept. He rolls one die and adds +1 because at least 50% of his force is cavalry and +1 for Belgrano's OP rating, but the final die roll modifier is -1 because of Pezuela's OP rating of 3. The Patriot rolls a "6" which is modified to "5", so the Royalist force is intercepted. Combat between both forces must be resolved. After that combat the final result is BB (bloodbath). Then the surviving units in the Royalist force may continue to operate or not with the remaining 3 OP (two were already expended during the two movement activations.)

4.0 Resource Points

Players collect Resource Points (RP) at the beginning of the game depending on areas under their control, and arrival of RP from abroad (arrival of RP from Spain or from exiled Patriots). During the third phase (Reorganization and Reinforcements) of the Sequence of Play, players collect RP depending on the areas and territories they control.

For partial control of an area, a player receives half of the RP, rounding down remainders. If an area yields 5 RP, and if there are units of both sides in the area, then each side gets 2 RP. The extra RP is lost (exception See Case 4.2.1).

4.1 RP Expenditures

RP allow a player to purchase/replenish units, paying the appropriate cost in RP. They may be used also during attrition die rolls (see Attrition Table for details).

4.2 Patriot RP

Grand Colombian (Venezuelan and New Granada) units may only use Grand Colombian RP.

El Plata units may only use El Plata RP.

Mexican units may only use Mexican RP.

Chilean units may use either El Plata and/or Chilean RP.

Peruvian units may use El Plata, Chilean or Grand Colombia RP.

Provided that there are Peruvian, Gran Colombian, and/or El Plata units at Lima, Cuzco and/or Arequipa, RP collected from these areas may be added to their respective national RP total(s).

4.2.1 El Plata RP

These can be collected if the following areas are partially or completely under El Plata control: Córdoba, Río de la Plata, Salta, Misiones, Paraguay, Banda Oriental, Charcas, and Mojos.

Rebel El Plata forces may not collect nor expend RP. Rebel El Plata units may only enter play through successful uprisings. Complete occupation of any given area by Rebel El Plata denies RP to Royalists and Patriots. That is, any area with even 1 Rebel El Plata unit will result in neither player receiving any RP from that area.

Example: During the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase, Banda Oriental is occupied by one Rebel El Plata force and one Plata force. All RP are lost (an exception to Module 4.0 in which a player would get a partial RP award for partial control of an area).

Rebel El Plata units never roll for attrition when in their own areas.

4.2.2 Grand Colombian RP

These may be collected if the following areas are partially or completely under Grand Colombian control: Cumaná, Guayana, Los Llanos, Costa Firme, Maracaibo, Santa Fe, Pasto, Quito, Guayaquil, Isla Margarita, Panamá.

4.2.3 Mexican RP

These may be collected if the following areas are partially or completely under Mexican control: Guatemala, Tierra Caliente, Central Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Guadalara, Durango, Tejas.

4.2.4 Peruvian RP

These may be collected if the following areas are partially or completely under Peruvian control: Lima, Cuzco, Arequipa, Charcas, Mojos.

4.3 Royalist RP

The Royalist player collects RP from areas that are either totally or partially controlled per Module 4.0 and RP from Spain (Section 4.5, as well as Case 10.2.1).

4.4 Costs of Building Units

RP Cost	Unit
0.5	militia infantry brigade, 1 step
0.5	militia cavalry brigade, 1 step
1	regular infantry battalion, 1 step
2	regular infantry regiment, 2 step
1	regular cavalry squadron, 1 step
2	regular cavalry regiment, 2 step
2	artillery unit
5	frigate unit
10	ship of the line unit

RP may be used also during the Operations Phase. See Module 3.0, Sequence of Play.

4.5 RP from Spain

At the beginning of the R&R Phase, the Royalist player rolls 1D6 for the arrival of possible additional RP from Spain.

D6	RP received
1, 2	0 RP
3, 4	1 RP
5	2 RP
6	3 RP

4.5.1 Die Roll Modifiers (DRM)

The following DRM affect RP generation:

• -1 turns I to V
• +1 turns VI to VIII
• -2 turns IX to XIV
• -1 if there are more areas under Patriot control than Royalist and the "Liberals Take Power in Spain" event has occurred

4.6 Recruiting Units

Players may use RP to rebuild/create units available in their respective Recruit Pools. Recreated units are placed in an area or city under the player's control (either total or partial).

Recreated Mexican units may only be placed in Mexican areas under total or partial control: Tierra Caliente, Central Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Guadalara, Durango, Tejas.

Recreated Grand Colombian units may only be placed in Grand Colombia areas under total or partial control: Cumaná, Guayana, Los Llanos, Costa Firme, Maracaibo, Santa Fe, Pasto, Quito, Guayaquil, Isla Margarita, Panamá.

Recreated El Plata units may only be placed in El Plata areas under total or partial control: Córdoba, Río de la Plata, Salta, Misiones, Paraguay, Banda Oriental, Charcas, Chiquitos, Mojos.

Note: Units may not be recreated in a city under siege.

4.7 Upgrading Militia Units

During the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase militia units already existing may be expended to replenish depleted regular units. The player to go first in this phase is determined by both players rolling a die. The high roller determines who will go first. Both the militia and the regular unit must begin the Phase in the same area.

One militia infantry unit may be used to replenish a depleted two-step regular infantry unit. One cavalry militia unit may be used to replenish a depleted two-step regular cavalry unit. The militia unit is withdrawn from the map and the regular unit is flipped back to its full strength side. Important: The upgrading of militia units must be done before passing to the following step, that of creating/replenishing units (including creating of new militia units) and purchasing OP. Royalist militia units may be used up to replenish either regular Spanish or American Royalist units.

Historical Note: During the wars of independence it was common practice to replenish depleted Spanish units with local militias, or to take cadres from a Spanish regular unit in order to create a new regular unit with American recruits.

Patriot militias may be used only to replenish regular units of their own nationality. That is, Mexican militias may only be used to replenish Mexican regular units, Chilean militias may only replenish Chilean regulars, and so on.

4.8 Royalist Reinforcements

The Royalist player can receive new units during the course of the game.

The Royalist player may place reinforcement units in any Spanish-controlled port in America. If there are Patriot naval units in the naval area adjacent to that port, the Royalist player may not place his reinforcements in that port.

If there are both Spanish and Patriot naval units in a naval area, then naval combat must be resolved before landing the reinforcements in a port in that area. If the units scheduled for that turn include at least one fleet, this fleet unit(s) may be added to the battle.

If there is a Spanish fleet in the same area, players must resolve naval combat before the Patriot player can attempt to intercept the reinforcement units (on transport ships). If the Royalist player wins the naval battle, the reinforcements land unmolested. If the Patriot player wins he rolls a D6 to determine if the reinforcements are intercepted or turn back:

D6	Result
1, 2	Transports abort and the reinforcement units return to Spain.
3, 4	Transports elude enemy ships and land reinforcement units.
5, 6	Transports intercepted and reinforcement units eliminated.

Example of Spanish Reinforcement Arrival: It is turn VI (1815) and the Royalist player receives as reinforcements Spanish leader Morillo plus 7 infantry battalions, 2 cavalry regiments and 2 artillery units. The Royalist player wants to place these reinforcements at Montevideo, currently under Royalist control. However, there is one El Plata fleet at sea in the Atlantic Ocean I area. If there are no Spanish fleets in the sea area of arrival, the Patriot player rolls a die to see if he can intercept the Spanish reinforcements. On a DR of 1 or 2 the expedition is aborted and returns to Spain. These units may try to arrive as reinforcements in the next turn. If there are opposing fleets on the next turn the interception naval combat is repeated again. On a die roll of 5-6, the convoy is intercepted and destroyed. The reinforcements are eliminated.

4.9 Recruiting Indian/Slave Masses

Both sides, one area per turn, may recruit Indian/Slave masses during the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase. The recruitment of slaves may be done in the following areas: Costa Firme, Cumaná, Santa Fe, Maracaibo, Chiquitos, Mojos, El Cuzco, Guadalajara, Tierra Caliente, Central Mexico, Yucatán. A friendly leader/ground unit (not a ship) must be present in the area for a player to attempt to recruit slaves to their cause.

4.9.1 Indian and Slave Effects

The side that recruits Indian/Slave masses may not roll for an uprising in that area anymore during the game. Use the Sieges and Slaves/Indians display to record where and who has recruited slaves. Exception: The rolling of event "Liberals take power in Spain" (see Section 10.2) cancels this rule (the side who recruited Indian/Slave masses may roll again for an uprising in that area).

The side recruiting Indian/Slave masses receives 3 extra militia infantry units at no extra cost in RP. This may be done only once per area. Also, during the ensuing Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase, that area will yield only half of its RP (round down remainders: half of 5 is 2). This represents the economic breakdown caused by the massive loss of slave work on agriculture, mines, etc.

Example: It is turn 1, and the Patriot player decides to recruit Indian masses in the Central Mexico Area (the historical situation). The Patriot player receives three infantry militia counters but he won't be able to roll for an uprising again for the Central Mexico area unless the "Liberals take power in Spain" event is rolled. Use the Sieges and Slaves/Indians aid to keep track of areas where this has taken place by each side.

4.10 Patriot Reinforcements

The following reinforcement units arrive at the specified locations:

Mexican Patriot Reinforcements. Mexican Patriot reinforcement units must be placed in any fully controlled area or stacked with leader Morelos. Note: Should this leader be out of play then Mexican Patriot units can enter in any area that is free of Royalist units.

Mexican Lost Cause. If leader Morelos is killed/captured, any regular units scheduled for entry on later turns are replaced by militia brigades. That is, if three infantry and three cavalry regular units are scheduled for entry as reinforcements, they are replaced by three militia infantry and three militia cavalry. If there are insufficient militia units to replace these regular units any that are not replaced will be lost.

Nueva Granada Units. Nueva Granada units (1 to 5 NG battalions, 1, 2 GC, Colombian Guards, Cundinamarca) enter or are recreated only in the Santa Fe area.

The Mina (M) Unit. Place it on any Caribbean coastal Mexican area at the beginning of the operations phase of turn 8 (1817).

All Others. Any other Patriot units enter in the recruitment areas per Section 4.6.

Patriot Navy. 1 Columbian, 1 Chilean and 1 El Plata frigate naval units become available for free (no RP cost) at a Patriot controlled port of the respective country on turn 2. If there is not a Patriot controlled port in its country for the frigate to enter play it is placed in the Patriot Recruit Pool (and will have to be paid for to enter it into the game). However, see Section 8.3. Note: This represents not only the capture of these vessels but also the sudden surge by unemployed American and European sailors to the Patriot's cause.

5.0 Movement

A Movement Operation costs 1 Operation Point (See Operations Costs Table). During the Operations Phase, a force can perform any number of movement operations per turn, provided that it has the required number of OP to do so. Enemy control of an area does not block the other player moving through it and on to an adjacent area. However, doing so costs one additional OP.

Note: Units friendly to besieged units may not enter the city unless the siege is broken.

Units from either side may voluntarily enter Neutral areas (those bordered in yellow) as directed in the rules. Royalist units must move out of these areas in the next turn. If unable to do so the units are eliminated. Patriot units can remain in a neutral area indefinitely. Note: Combat may not occur in a Neutral area.

Movement Example: A force with two infantry units and one leader moves from area Lima to area Cuzco. The owning player announces that this force is going to move, expends 1 OP and moves the force to the designated area. The force may perform other operations, including movement, as long as it has enough OP to do so.

5.1 Forces

At the beginning of the Operations Phase and before activating any unit or force, players may reorganize the units present in an area forming several stacks or forces (Ejercitos, see Case 5.1.1 below). Players may reorganize them to form several forces. There is no limit to the number of units that may be in a single stack or force. A force placed inside a city or fortified city hex benefits from the defensive bonus of being in a city but may be subjected to siege attack and/or attrition (see Section 5.3). See 6.2 Siege Combat for details.

Force Example: At the beginning of the Operations Phase, the Patriot player has 2 infantry battalions, 4 cavalry regiments and 1 artillery in the Los Llanos area. He may redistribute his units as he sees fit, forming for instance one force with 1 infantry battalion and 2 cavalry regiments and one force with the rest, or disperse the units in single unit forces, etc.

5.1.1 Force Markers

Multiple stacks of units on the map can be substituted with Ejercito (Force) Markers. The units are placed in the Force Pool corresponding to the appropriate Ejercito Marker that is moved on map.

5.1.2 Stacking

Patriot units may freely stack with one another regardless of their nationality (all for one, one for all!). Clarification: Patriot units of differing nationalities can only activate per Section 3.2. Obviously opposing units may not stack with one another.

5.1.3 Limited Intelligence Rule

The box should be kept out of sight of the enemy player, and its contents revealed only to resolve combat, interception, or retreat before combat.

Force Marker Use Example: The Royalist player has a force in the Cumaná area with one leader, 6 infantry, 4 cavalry and two artillery units. Instead of placing a huge stack on the map the "Real Ejercito de Barlovento" marker is placed and moved on the map while the units are placed in the Real Ejercito de Barlovento holding box or out of sight of the Patriot player.

5.2 Forces and Movement

During the Movement Phase, a force or stack that performs a move operation can "leave behind" units. That is, it can leave in an area one or more units before moving to another area. Units "left behind" may not move nor operate for the remainder of that Operation Phase. A moving force can "pick up" another force but only if the "picked up" force has not operated during that phase. Rotate units 90 or 180 degrees to indicate they were "dropped off" or completed a movement operation.

5.3 Movement Attrition

Certain areas on the map were extremely hostile to operating armies because of disease (yellow fever, malaria, etc), climate, height (the "soroche" which affected foreign troops in Peru and Upper Perú), wild fauna, as well as hostile Indian tribes. Hostile areas have red numbers (Hostility Level 1 or 2) written underneath their RP value. A stack of two or more units, or any force, moving across or ending an operations phase in any of these areas, or that moves across the Andes Mountains, must roll on the Attrition Table (see charts in center of rules) to determine the effects of Attrition (this roll is made at the end of the stack/force's movement).

The Attrition DR may be modified by the owning player expending 1 RP for every 4 steps in the moving force/stack to modify the DR by -2. The maximum DRM is -2, see the RP Expenditure Table.

Attrition step losses are apportioned out by the owning player.

6.0 Combat

There are two types of combat: ranged battle and siege. Combat is not mandatory between enemy forces in the same area (exception see 3.5, Interception).

6.1 Ranged Battle Procedure

To resolve combat:

• The active player declares an attack on a force in the same area.
• The attacked force may try to avoid combat. Note: Avoiding combat is not permitted for a force defending a fortress (see Section 6.2).

Roll 1D6. On a DR of 1-3, the force avoids combat. Note: If a force avoids and had siege works in place then the siege works are removed (by avoiding the siege has been lifted, Section 6.2).

Add the following modifiers to the DR:

• -2 If attacked force has more cavalry units than the attacking force

• +2 If attacking force has more cavalry units than the attacked force

• +? Operations rating of any one leader in the attacking force

• -? Operations rating of any one leader in the attacked force

• If both forces accept battle or if the defending force failed to avoid battle, then battle is resolved.

• Roll for initiative. Both players roll one die. Higher roll wins (re-roll any ties). Apply the Tactical rating of any leaders in the force as a DRM.

• The initiative player rolls 2D6 on the Tactical Options Table (TOT) to determine if any Tactical Effects will occur in the upcoming battle.

• Non-initiative player rolls 1D6 on the TOT to determine if a Tactical Effect will occur in the upcoming battle.

• Calculate odds, taking into account any effects from the TOT. (See Charts and Tables for more details.)

• Roll one die, check the Combat Results Table (CRT).

• Apply results (see CRT).

• Check for Royalist Repression (if applicable, see Section 10.4).

6.1.1 Post-Combat Advance

If a force is victorious in a ranged battle it can immediately move into unoccupied fortresses if the area they are in is cleared of enemy units.

Example: A Royalist force attacks the Tierra Caliente area. There is only one militia unit. It is not in the fortress of Veracruz. The militia unit is destroyed, so both the area of Tierra Caliente and Veracruz fall automatically under full Royalist control.

6.2 Siege Combat

Players use the Siege Combat Table (SCT) (located on the Sieges and Slaves/Indians display) to solve siege combat. The besieging force must be activated and expend 3 OP per Siege attack. To indicate a siege, the attacking units are placed in the "Besieging Forces" box of the appropriate fortress on the Sieges and Slaves/Indians display. Enemy-occupied fortresses must be attacked using the Siege Table. That is, to attack an enemy unit inside a fortress you must conduct a siege. The unit(s) cannot be attacked using ranged battle.

Fortresses must be taken by siege if there are enemy ground units in them. Fortresses add 8 combat factors (representing walls, artillery, ammunition stockpiles, and garrison).

Example: The Royalist player has a factor 1 militia at Puerto Cabello. The Patriot player must conduct a siege operation against the militia which defends with 1+8 combat factors.

Clarifications: If any units of a besieging force engage in Interception, ranged battle, or leave the area, they are no longer considered part of the siege.

6.3 Siege Combat Procedure

1. Both players calculate odds taking into account all possible combat factors, odds shifts, naval units, siege works, etc.
2. Roll one die and apply any results. See the Siege Table for details. Drop any fractional result (but not less than 1).

All fortresses have an intrinsic combat factor of 8.

If a leader is present at the siege, his Tactical Factor can be applied to the siege DR. The Tactical Factor is a + modifier if attacking, a - modifier if the leader is defending.

Artillery units have their combat factors doubled for siege combat.

Siege Table

Die Roll Modifiers

• Add one Sieging Leader's Tactical Modifier
• Subtract one Defending Leader's Tactical Modifier

Odds Shifts

• Works = Shift two odds columns to the right
• Besieging Naval Units = Shift one odds column to the right

Results

• SO = Sortie. Eliminate one step of any besieging unit (besieging players' choice.) Eliminate Siege Works.
• DA = Defender Attrition. Eliminate one defending unit step for every four steps of besieging units. The defender loses at least one step regardless of the number of attacking steps.
• AA = Attacker Attrition. Eliminate one besieging unit step for every four steps of besieged units. The attacker loses at least one step regardless of the number of defending steps.
• NE = No Effect. Nothing happens.
• B = Breach. Roll again without counting the intrinsic defensive factor of the fortress.
• SR = Surrender. Eliminate all defending units.

Sieging Forces / Defending Forces - Odds Ratio

1D6	1:2	1:1	2:1	3:1	4:1	5:1	6:1	7:1	8:1
-1	SO	SO	SO	SO	SO	AA	NE	NE	DA
0	SO	SO	SO	SO	AA	NE	NE	DA	DA
1	SO

6.4 Siege Works

A player may elect to use "Siege Works" against a fortress. The cost is 2 additional OP and the units laying siege are then placed "Besieging Forces with Siege Works" box of the appropriate fortress on the Sieges and Slaves/Indians display. Siege Works shift the odds column by 2 on the Siege Table. Example: A siege normally resolved on the 3:1 column would be resolved on the 5:1 column with Siege Works.

Land units are considered to be in a fortress when placed on top of the fortress on either the map or the Sieges and Slaves/Indians display. They may be subjected to siege attack and suffer the results of the Siege Table and also the results of the attrition table. Land units placed in the same area as the fortress but "outside" of it (that is, not placed on top of the fortress) may only be attacked using ranged battle.

6.5 Naval Units and Sieges

If friendly naval units are present when besieging a fortified port, and there are no enemy naval units in the same area, add 1 Right column shift to the Siege Combat Table.

6.6 Blockade

A fortress can be forced to surrender by starvation if the following conditions are met during phase 6, i.e., the End of Turn Phase:

• A force spends at least 4 OP besieging a fortress. That is, the besieging force must move adjacent to the fortress and announce that it will blockade it.
• The naval area adjacent to the fortress is under complete control of naval units of the besieging side (that is, there are no naval units of the besieged side in that area at the end of the turn),
• There are no units of the besieged side in that fortress's area other than inside the besieged fortress.

If these conditions are met, then the besieging player must roll 1D6. On a die roll of 1 to 4 the fortress automatically surrenders.

Example of Siege and Blockade: The Siege of Cartagena de Indias. It is the Royalist Operations Phase of turn VI (1815) and a Royalist force with leader Morillo plus 8 infantry, 6 cavalry and 2 artillery units is activated and moves from the Maracaibo area to the Cartagena area. The Royalist rolls a 4 for activation, which results in 6 OP, modified to 7 because of Morillo's Operational Rating of 1. Inside the Cartagena area there are two Patriot forces, Force A with 2 infantry and 2 cavalry in the field plus Force B with 2 infantry and 2 militia infantry inside the fortress of Cartagena de Indias.

Morillo's force expends 1 OP to move to the area and 2 more to attack Patriot force A. The final result is DZ which means Defender Eliminated. With the 4 remaining OP the Royalist player announces that he is going to blockade Cartagena de Indias and moves no further during that Operations Phase.

Additionally, a Spanish naval force with 1 ship of the line and 1 frigate is activated in sea area Caribbean Sea V. They expend 1 OP to move to sea area Caribbean Sea III. In sea area Caribbean Sea III they attack and sink 1 Patriot frigate unit. They move no further during their Operations Turn.

During the end of turn phase, the three conditions specified in Section 6.6 are met, so the Royalist player rolls 1D6. The result is a 4 so the fortress surrenders. All units inside the besieged fortress are withdrawn from the map and placed in the owning player's Recruit Pool.

6.7 Cities

Units located in cities may not attempt interception of moving enemy forces. Cities are automatically conquered if the area they are located in is occupied by enemy forces. That is, it is not necessary to attack them using siege combat or blockade (as would be the case with fortresses).

Units in Guerrilla mode may not be placed inside cities.

Summary: Units located in cities lose mobility (no interceptions). Units inside a city may not go into guerrilla mode.

7.0 Naval Operations

Fleet counters are used to move troops and to fight each other. They may also be used for raiding enemy controlled coastal areas (see Section 7.8, Raiding). Naval units may be purchased during the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase.

There are two types of naval units: frigates (light forces formed by frigates, corvettes) and ships of the line or S-O-Ls. There are also naval leaders used to modify possibility of seeking combat/intercepting enemy naval forces.

7.1 Naval Movement

Naval units or forces are activated following the same procedure as land forces. During the Operations Phase naval units or forces may operate. To move, an activated naval force expends 1 OP. It may move a maximum of 4 sea areas per OP expended.

7.2 Off-Map Sea Movement

Moving from sea area Atlantic Ocean III to sea area Pacific Ocean X and vice versa counts as moving 8 areas of movement. That is, to move between these two areas a naval force must expend 2 OP.

Moving from sea area Atlantic Ocean I to Caribbean Sea VI and vice versa counts as 8 areas of movement. That is, to move between these two areas a naval force must expend 2 OP.

7.3 The Spain Holding Box

Spanish naval units may move from Caribbean and Atlantic sea areas to the Spain Holding Box and vice versa.

Moving from the Spain Box to any Atlantic Ocean area and vice versa costs 4 OP.

Moving from the Spain Box to Caribbean Sea areas VI, VII, VIII, IX or X and vice versa costs 3 OP.

7.4 Returning to Port

During the End of Turn Phase, all naval units must return to any friendly-controlled port no more than 4 sea areas away. If no such port exists the units are eliminated. No OP are required to perform this special movement.

Patriot naval units may move to any friendly controlled port (any port under Plata, Chilean, Peruvian, Upper Peruvian, Grand Colombian or Mexican control). They may move also to New Orleans in the US or Haití (Haití Holding Box).

Royalists naval units may move to any Royalist controlled port, including the Spain Holding Box.

7.5 Naval Combat

Combat is not mandatory between opposing naval forces placed in the same sea area. To attack an enemy naval force, a naval force must be activated and expend 2 OP. The enemy naval force may try to avoid combat. Roll one die. On a die roll of 1-3, the force avoids combat.

7.5.1 Combat Procedure

Every ship or fortified port (see Section 7.10) chooses one target and rolls 1d10 for every step available to the unit (in this game, a DR of 0 is always read as 10, not zero). That is, a two step unit rolls 2d10, a two step reduced to 1 rolls one D10. If the result is equal or less than the naval combat factor of the ship, they score a step loss. Apply results simultaneously.

Naval Combat Example: A Spanish naval force comprising one frigate and one ship of the line unit attacks one Mexican force with two frigate units. The Spanish ship of the line fires on one of the Mexican frigates and the Spanish frigate fires on the other Mexican frigate. Both Mexican frigates fire on the Spanish frigate. The Spanish S-O-L rolls 2d10 and rolls two "2" results thus scoring two hits, sending the Patriot frigate to the bottom. The two Mexican frigates roll 1d10 each, with a result of 1 and 5. The Mexican frigates score a hit on the Spanish frigate. The Spanish frigate rolled 2d10 with a result of 2 and 5, scoring a hit on the surviving Mexican frigate.

7.6 Amphibious Operations

Amphibious Operations consists of both ground and naval units. The naval unit(s) must begin movement adjacent to an area. The ground force to be moved must begin that turn in a port city in the same sea area. The ground force is activated (rolls for activation and receives any number of OP) and expends 1 OP to embark on the naval unit. The naval unit is then activated and moves any number of sea areas to another sea area. The ground force expends 1 OP for every 4 areas moved by sea in order to land in an area. It may continue operating as long as it has enough OP to do so.

7.7 Naval Transport Capacity

A Ship of the line unit may transport a force of up to 4 steps worth of infantry, cavalry or artillery, plus one leader. A frigate unit may transport up to 2 steps of infantry, cavalry or artillery, plus one leader.

Any Patriot ship can transport any one Patriot unit and one leader (regardless of Patriot nationality. All for one, one for all!).

7.8 Raiding

Place the raiding unit in any coastal area adjacent to an enemy controlled area. Roll one D6. Modify the DR by -1 if an enemy naval unit is in or adjacent to the area being raided.

With a modified DR of 3 or less the area loses 0 RP. With a DR of 4 or more, the area loses 1 RP. This RP is lost from the area's contribution next turn.

Players should take note of what areas are raided or place a marker in them as a reminder during the following Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase.

7.9 Naval Units and Port Capture

Naval units may affect ground siege combat, see Siege Combat (Sections 6.5 and 6.6).

When a port fortress is captured and there are any naval units in the port, roll one D6. With a DR of 1, the naval unit escapes to any friendly port within 5 sea areas. If it is a Spanish naval unit it may be placed in the Spanish or Puerto Rico Holding Boxes. If it is a Mexican Patriot unit it may be placed in New Orleans. If it is Grand Colombian it may be placed in the Haití Holding Box. With a DR of 2 through 5, the unit is destroyed. With a DR of 6, the unit is captured. Substitute the unit with another unit of the same type and combat factors of the units that have just conquered the fortress.

7.10 Enemy Ports

When attacking enemy naval units at fortified ports, the fortified port city may fire like a two step ship with a combat factor of 7. It may not be damaged by fire from the enemy ships. The naval units are considered to be "in port" if they are placed on the port city.

8.0 Leaders

Leader units represent leaders plus supporting staff and a small bodyguard unit. Leaders are rated for Operations and tactical ability. Leader tactical and operational factors are used to modify several different factors: combat, avoid combat, movement, etc. There is also a special naval leader representing Patriot Lord Cochrane.

8.1 Leader Casualties and Retreat

If all units, ground or naval, stacked with a leader are eliminated, roll 1D6. On a die roll of 1-2 the leader is killed/captured, on a die roll of 4-6 the leader survives and is placed adjacent to the nearest friendly stack. If it is a Patriot leader and he survives the leader loss DR, the leader can be placed in a "Patriot haven" (see Section 10.3 Patriot Havens).

8.2 Royalist Leader Boves

When the Royalist player rolls for uprising at the Los Llanos region, add l DRM [printed as "l"; presumably 1] if leader Boves is at Los Llanos or in any area adjacent to the Los Llanos area.

Boves and all officers of the "Division Infernal" always commanded "up front", so he risked being killed at every battle (as happened at the battle of Urica in 1814). Therefore, whenever leader Boves participates in a combat, -1 DRM to the leader casualty die roll.

8.3 Patriot Naval Commander Cochrane

Lord Thomas Cochrane is a naval commander. He may not use his tactical rating to assist in any ranged battles or sieges. He may contribute his tactical rating as a DRM to the following naval actions only:

• -1 Blockade (Section 6.6)
• -1 Naval evasion (Section 7.5)
• -1 Naval combat (Section 7.5)
• +1 Raiding (Section 7.8)
• +1 Naval Units and Port Capture (7.9)

In addition, If Cochrane is present during a naval battle involving Royalist frigates, roll 1D6 before resolving the battle. On a 1-2 a Royalist frigate is immediately eliminated or captured (Patriot player's choice). If capture is chosen, the Royalist frigate must be removed from the map and replaced with a factor 3 Chilean frigate. The just captured ship cannot participate in the current battle and is eliminated if all Patriot naval forces are eliminated.

The turn Cochrane enters the game any one Patriot (historically this should be Chilean) naval unit can enter the game for free (no RP cost).

9.0 Uprisings

Both sides may try up to two uprisings per turn in enemy controlled areas. Certain areas have a positive uprising modifier for the Royalists, and certain other areas have a positive uprising modifier for the Patriots.

9.1 Pro-Royalist Areas

Areas that were actively pro-Royalist during the wars are given a solid orange border on the map.

The Patriot player may not attempt to provoke an uprising in the following areas: Banda Oriental, Misiones, Paraguay, marked with a broken orange border on the map.

9.2 Pro-Patriot Areas

Areas that were actively pro-Patriot during the war are given a green border on the map.

9.3 Uprisings Procedure

During phase 2 of the Sequence of Play, both players designate which areas will rise-up this turn. Roll one D6 for each region and add any positive die roll modifiers. The region (not city) will rise up on a modified die roll of 5 or more. If the uprising is successful, place any one friendly infantry or cavalry militia unit in the area that is from the same area (if none are available then nothing will happen; false alarm, you repressive soul you).

9.4 Uprisings Die Roll Modifiers

• -1 regular enemy units are in area and/or area rebelled before against the player making the DR check
• +2 Patriot uprising in pro-Patriot area
• +2 Royalist uprising in pro-Royalist area
• +1 Patriot uprising in area under Royalist repression (Section 10.4)
• +1 Royalist uprising in Los Llanos and Leader Boves is in Los Llanos or in adjacent area (Section 8.2)

9.5 Internal Turmoil in El Plata

Internal rebellions in Banda Oriental, Misiones and Paraguay against the authority of Buenos Aires are simulated in the form of "pro-Royalist" rebellions.

That is, if during the Uprisings Phase the Royalist player triggers an uprising in Misiones, Río de la Plata, Banda Oriental, or Paraguay, the following happens:

• Instead of placing Royalist militias in the areas the Royalist player may place "Rebel El Plata" units in the areas.
• The Royalist player may roll for uprisings in these areas starting with turn 3 (1812). That is, on turns I (1810) and II (1811) he may not roll for uprisings in these areas.
• Uprisings die rolls in these areas have a positive DRM of 2. (For this die roll only they are treated as "pro-Royalist" areas.)
• The Rebel El Plata units may not attack nor move outside of their respective areas. They are controlled by the Royalist player if their areas are attacked by the Patriot player. They are controlled by the Patriot player if attacked by the Royalist player. They may never stack with Royalist or Patriot units.
• RP production of an area under complete control of Rebel El Plata units is controlled neither by the Royalist nor by the Patriot player. In other words, these RP are lost.

10.0 Special Units and Rules

This section of the rules deals with units that have unique capabilities or should specific circumstances occur during the game.

10.1 Guerrillas

Both Royalist and/or Patriot militia units may switch to "guerrilla" mode (and vice versa) during the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase. A "Guerrilla" marker is placed on them as a reminder. Note: The guerrilla marker carries the image of a vampire bat, an animal indigenous to the geography of the game. Sometimes depicted as gods by pre-Columbian populations, they were later reviled as threats to livestock.

Guerrilla units effectively control an area unless there are regular enemy units in that area. The enemy player may not collect RP in that area unless there are regular units placed in that area.

Royalist units fighting in pro-Patriot areas where there is at least one unit in guerrilla mode have their combat factors halved (round up remainders.) The pro-Patriot areas have a green border on the map.

Patriot units fighting in pro-Royalist areas where there is at least one Royalist unit in guerrilla mode have their combat factors halved (round up reminders.) The pro-Royalist areas have a solid orange border on the map.

Example: It is turn VII (1816) and the Royalist Army of Alto Perú with leader Pezuela, 8 infantry battalions, 4 cavalry regimients and 1 artillery unit tries to invade the Salta area from Charcas. There is one militia infantry unit in guerrilla mode in Salta, 3 El Plata infantry battalions and 2 cavalry regiments under leader Belgrano. The guerrilla unit may not fight but the Royalist forces are halved if they chose to attack Belgrano's force because Salta is pro-Patriot. However, the Royalist force may try to perform a counter-guerrilla operation against them and then attack the regular Patriot units.

To attack a Guerrilla force, the attacking player announces that he is going to perform a counter-guerrilla operation against any one enemy unit in guerrilla mode and spends the required number of Operation Points to do so. Roll 1d6 on the Counter Guerrilla Table and apply the results.

Units in guerrilla mode may not enter cities, fortresses or ports.

10.2 Liberals Take Power in Spain

Starting with turn 9 (1818) roll 1D6 at the beginning of each turn. With a DR of 5-6, the Liberals take power in Spain, forcing King Fernando VII to accept the parliamentary regime and the Constitution of 1812. Note: This event can occur only once per game. On each subsequent turn, add one to the DR until the Liberals take power. That is, this event happens on turn 10 (1819) on a die roll of 4, 5 or 6, on turn 11 on a die roll of 3, 4, 5 or 6, etc.

10.2.1 Effects

The following take effect should Liberals take power in Spain:

• There will be no more Spanish reinforcements arriving from the peninsula. Any reinforcements scheduled for the current or later turns (1818, 1819, 1820, etc) are cancelled.
• The number of RP received from Spain each turn is halved (round down remainders).
• The Patriot player may roll again for uprising in areas that had suffered Patriot slave/Indian uprisings during earlier turns.
• During the turn this event is rolled (only), Patriot leaders may attempt to "subvert" American Royalist units. It is one attempt for each Patriot leader on map. That is, if the Patriot player has leaders Bolívar, Sucre and San Martín on map they can try to subvert one American Royalist unit each.

10.2.2 Procedure

The Patriot player selects any one Royalist American unit placed in the same area as a Patriot leader. Roll one D6. On a die roll of 1-3, the unit is subverted. Withdraw it from the map and replace it with a Patriot unit of the same type.

Example of Unit Subversion: It is turn XI (1820) and the event Liberals Take Power had been rolled during the previous Events Phase. Leader San Martín is in the Lima area along with 7 steps of line infantry and 4 of line cavalry. The Royalist player has in the same area 6 steps of line infantry and 3 of line cavalry. The Patriot player selects enemy unit "VdC" as a target for subversion and rolls one D6. The result is "2" so the unit is subverted. It is a two-step regiment so this unit is withdrawn from map and replaced with another equivalent El Plata or Peruvian unit (another two step regular line infantry). If the subverted unit is a reduced two-stepper the replacing unit would enter play reduced as well.

10.3 Patriot Havens

Patriot leaders may cross into US territory (only Mexican units) or to Haitian territory (Grand Colombian units only) at any time during the Patriot operations phase, or when the force they stack with is completely eliminated and they have survived a leader casualty DR (Section 8.1). This movement has no cost in OP.

Historical Note: Historically, the Mexican Patriots used the US as a springboard to invade Tejas in 1813. Also, their corsair ships operated out of New Orleans and the island of Barataria, off the US coast. As for the Venezuelans, after being soundly defeated by the Royalist Army led by Boves, Bolívar used Haití as a base from where he launched his counteroffensive, landing back in Venezuela in 1816.

During the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase, the Patriot player may expend RP to recruit infantry, cavalry, artillery and naval units and place them adjacent to a leader placed in neutral territory. These units may be activated normally during the Patriot Operations Phase. This operation can be done even if all areas of the Patriot player performing this operation are Royalist occupied.

There is a maximum of units that may be recruited and deployed in "Patriot havens"; no more than 2 infantry, 1 cavalry and 1 artillery plus 1 frigate unit. Grand Colombian units recruited in Haití are placed in the "Haití Holding box" on the map. Mexican units recruited in the US are placed in the United States area of the map. When activated they may enter Mexico in the Tejas, Nuevo Mexico or Nueva California areas.

Example: It is turn VI (1816). Leader Bolívar moves to Haití at the end of the Patriot Operations Phase. During the Reorganization and Reinforcement Phase of turn VII (1817), the Patriot player expends 7 RP to recruit and/or reclaim from the dead pile 1 frigate unit, 1 infantry battalion and 1 cavalry battalion. These units may be activated during the Operations Phase of turn VII (1817) and land in any Venezuelan area following normal amphibious landings rules.

10.4 Royalist Repression

Whenever Royalist forces clear an area of Patriot units, roll 1D6. On a die roll of 2-6, nothing happens. On a die roll of 1, the subsequent Spanish repression alienates that region's populace. A "Spanish Repression" marker is placed in that area as a reminder for the rest of the match.

Effects of the Spanish Repression Marker. Any Patriot uprising die rolls in that area get a modifier of +1. If the reconquered area is either a pro-Royalist or pro-Patriot area, then do not roll for Spanish Repression.

Historical Note: This rule simulates the indiscriminate repression which followed the reconquest of certain regions such as Chile in 1816 and Venezuela in 1815. This repression alienated many people against the Royalist cause.

10.5 Minimum Deployment Requirements in New Spain and Cuba/Puerto Rico

Campaign Game Scenario. The Royalist player must deploy a minimum of the following by the last turn of the game:

• 16 steps of line infantry and/or cavalry (Royalist) in Mexico and Captaincy of Guatemala...
• plus a minimum of 12 steps of line infantry and/or cavalry in Cuba/Puerto Rico

If the Royalist player has not achieved both of the above requirements the Patriot Player is considered to control 2 more areas at the end of the game when determining the winner.

Historical Note: The Spanish always kept strong garrisons in New Spain (Mexico), Puerto Rico, and Cuba. New Spain was the main source of income, so keeping it under control was key for the continuation of the war. There was also the potential danger of US expansion if these border areas were left under-garrisoned.

10.6 The Sao Paulo Legion

In 1811, the Portuguese sent a expeditionary force, nominally to help their Spanish allies to defend Banda Oriental (now Uruguay), but in the long-term to annex that province to the Portuguese Empire, thus gaining access to the estuary of El Plata and the riverine routes going towards Paraguay, Matto Grosso and even Upper Perú.

The three Portuguese SPL units (Sao Paulo Legion) set up at start aside of the map. They may be activated by the Royalist player the first turn any Plata unit enters the Banda Oriental area. Each operates normally until it is eliminated. They can not be replenished or returned to play after being eliminated. They may withdraw to Brazil performing a normal movement operation but if the Royalist player decides to do so that unit is permanently eliminated from play.

They may operate only in Banda Oriental area. They do not roll for attrition. They may not stack with Royalist units.

If there are only SPL units and El Plata units in Banda Oriental, the Patriot player controls only half of the RP of that area (but the Royalist does not control the other half, these are lost).

If there are only Rebel El Plata units and SPL units in Banda Oriental, neither the Patriot nor the Royalist player receive any RP from that area.

10.7 Mexican Guerrilla Warfare

Until Patriot Leader Hidalgo is eliminated from play, the Royalist player can only activate a number of Royalist units equal to a DR each turn in Mexico (Yucatán, Tierra Caliente, Central Mexico, Guadalajara, San Luis Potosí, Durango, Tejas, Nuevo Mexico, Nueva California, Vieja California).

Designer's Note: Non-activated units simulate the forces assigned to guard the northern frontiers against possible American aggression, or guarding the coast and ports against corsair raids, etc.

11.0 Winning the Game

A game of Guerra a Muerte is won by controlling areas of the map. At the end of turn XV (1824), check the total number of areas controlled by both players and determine who's the winner. Areas partially controlled by both sides count as half an area for victory purposes.

Areas totally or partially controlled by Rebel El Plata forces count as 1/2 area for the Patriot player.

Controlling areas with 0 RP value (the Pampas, Chaco, for instance) do not count for victory check purposes.

11.1 Levels of Victory

As in life, there are few things that are clearly delineated in war.

11.1.1 Patriot Victory

The Royalist player controls only two areas on the continent (not counting Cuba, Santo Domingo and Puerto Rico). These areas on the continent may not add up to more than 4 RP.

The historical result: The Spanish Empire on the continent is finished and the war enters a phase of mopping up of the last desperate resistances such as Chiloé or Veracruz.

11.1.2 Stalemate

The Royalist player still controls at least 5 areas worth at least 14 RP on the continent (not counting Cuba, Santo Domingo and Puerto Rico).

The main rebellion areas (Venezuela, Mexico, Argentina) have won independence and made sure that the Spanish won't be able to return. They have solid bases from which to attack the last Spanish territories. However, the Royalists still hold one or two solid strongholds on the continent and will be able to fight on for years.

11.1.3 Royalist Victory

The Royalist player controls at least 15 areas (worth any number of RP) on the continent (not counting Cuba, Santo Domingo and Puerto Rico).

The Spanish Empire is not only able to keep on fighting for years but also to counterattack and reconquer the main foci of rebellion. Argentines, Mexicans and Venezuelans must think first about securing their independence rather than invading the Spanish strongholds of Mexico and Peru. The end of the Spanish Empire in America is not within sight for the coming decades.

12.0 Scenarios

There are three short scenarios to Guerra a Muerte. The first covers the initial Patriot uprising, the second the Imperial Spanish counter-offensive to retake their American Empire. The third covers the final chapter of the war in which Spain was evicted once and for all from the North and South American Continents.

12.1 The Opening Guns (1810-14)

The French invasion of Spain and specially the crushing Spanish defeat at Ocaña (1810) created a power vacuum in the American colonies that was promptly filled by a series of Juntas who in the name of Fernando VII took power in the different Viceroyalties, sometimes against the opposition of the Viceroy itself. The attitude of the existing American regular units against or supporting the colonial authorities (there were no Spanish troops in America in 1810) determined who controlled power in every region. The stage was set for civil war between Americans.

12.1.1 Scenario Length

5 turns. Scenario begins with the Operations Phase of turn I (1810).

12.1.2 Royalist Set Up

Use initial set up Instructions (see Module 2.0).

12.1.3 Patriot Set Up

Use initial set up Instructions (see Module 2.0).

12.1.4 How to Win

Patriot Victory. The Patriot player controls any 12 areas. Partially controlled areas count as 1/2 area.

Stalemate. The Patriot Player controls 9, 10 or 11 areas. Partially controlled areas count as 1/2 area.

Royalist Victory. The Patriot player fully controls less than 9 areas. Partially controlled areas count as 1/2 area.

By the end of the last turn of this scenario the Royalist player must deploy the following:

• a minimum of 6 steps of line infantry and/or cavalry (Royalist) in Mexico and Captaincy of Guatemala,
• plus a minimum of 6 steps of line infantry and/or cavalry in Cuba/Puerto Rico.

If the Royalist player fails to achieve the above conditions the Patriot Player is considered to control 2 more areas at the end of the game when determining the winner.

12.2 The Empire Strikes Back (1815-18)

At the beginning of 1815 the cause of Fernando VII seemed to have the initiative in the South American continent, thanks to the Royalist successes of the year prior (reconquest of Chile and almost all of Venezuela, victories against the Argentines in Upper Perú) and thanks also to the end of the war in peninsular Spain, which freed thousands of veteran troops for the war in the American colonies. With the arrival of massive Spanish reinforcements, the Royalists had enough resources to clear the last Patriot strongholds in New Granada and to take the offensive against the last main rebel province: El Plata. However, during the year 1816 Bolívar and Güemes would frustrate the Royalist plans, the former landing back at Venezuela and the latter frustrating the Royalist invasion of El Plata using hit-and-run tactics with his gaucho irregular cavalry.

12.2.1 Scenario Length

4 turns. Scenario begins with the Uprisings Phase of turn VI (1815).

12.2.2 Royalist Set Up

In Cuba, Puerto Rico and Santo Domingo: 8 steps of American line infantry, 1 step of American line cavalry, 2 steps of Spanish line infantry.

Anywhere in New Spain (including Yucatán and Guatemala): 11 steps of American line infantry, 4 steps of American line cavalry, 2 artillery units, 2 militia infantry, 2 militia cavalry, 7 steps of Spanish line infantry, 2 steps of Spanish line cavalry.

1 frigate unit in Veracruz.

In Venezuela (Costa Firme, Guayana, Cumaná, Maracaibo, Los Llanos): 5 steps of American line infantry, 4 steps of American line cavalry, 1 step of Spanish line infantry, 1 artillery unit.

In Perú (Pasto, Quito, Guayaquil, Quijos, Cuzco, Lima, Arequipa, Mojos, Charcas, Chiquitos): Leader Pezuela, 14 steps of American line infantry, 3 steps of American line cavalry, 2 artillery units. 1 frigate unit in Callao.

In Chile (Northern, Southern Chile, Chiloé): 2 steps of American line infantry, 1 step of American line cavalry.

Royalist available RP = 14

Place a "Royalist repression" marker in the Northern Chile area.

12.2.3 Patriot Set Up

Grand Colombians. 1 GC militia infantry brigade in Margarita Island. Deploy any four steps of line infantry battalions, 2 steps of line cavalry regiments, 2 militia infantry, 1 militia cavalry units in Santa Fe (including Cartagena de Indias). Leader Bolívar plus 1 frigate unit in Haití Holding Box.

Grand Colombian RP = 10

Mexico. Leader Morelos with 2 militia cavalry and 2 militia infantry units in Guerrilla mode in any of the following areas: Tierras Calientes, Central Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Guadalajara, Durango. 1 frigate unit in New Orleans. Place Patriot Slave/Indian uprising markers in Tierras Calientes and Central Mexico.

Mexican RP = 4

El Plata. Place any 7 steps of line infantry, 4 steps of line cavalry, 1 artillery unit in Salta, Córdoba, Río de la Plata. Place one infantry and one cavalry militia in either Río de la Plata and/or Córdoba. 1 frigate unit in Buenos Aires.

El Plata RP = 7

Place all other Patriot units in the Patriot Recruit Pool including those scheduled to enter as reinforcements for turns I to V. Reinforcements scheduled for turns VI (1815) to IX (1818) enter following normal reinforcement rules.

Plata Rebels. Place one infantry and one cavalry unit in Paraguay. Place one cavalry unit in Banda Oriental.

12.2.4 How to Win

Patriot Victory. The Patriot player fully controls any 14 or more areas. Partially controlled areas count as 1/2 area.

Stalemate. The Patriot Player fully controls 13 to 11 areas. Partially controlled areas count as 1/2 area.

Royalist Victory. The Royalist player fully controls 10 or less areas. Partially controlled areas count as 1/2 area.

By the end of the last turn of this scenario the Royalist player must deploy the following:

• a minimum of 10 steps of line infantry and/or cavalry (Royalist) in Mexico and Captaincy of Guatemala,
• plus a minimum of 10 steps of line infantry and/or cavalry in Cuba/Puerto Rico.

If the Royalist player fails to achieve the above conditions the Patriot player is considered to control 2 more areas at the end of the game when determining the winner.

12.3 End of Empire (1820-24)

After the defeats at Chacabuco, Maipú and Boyacá, the Royalists were on the defensive in both Venezuela and Peru. With Chile firmly in Patriot hands now, Peru was threatened from sea and not only from the long and difficult Andean route; the Patriots were ready to bring war to the enemy. In Venezuela the Royalists were reduced to a small bridgehead at the coast. The year 1820 also brought a radical change in the political situation: the liberal coup d'etat in Spain that forced Fernando VII to accept the parliamentary regime and abandon Absolutist rule. Many American Royalists (most of them noted for their Absolutism) began to question their loyalty to the new Spanish rulers.

12.3.1 Scenario Length

5 turns. The scenario begins with the Uprisings Phase of turn XI (1820).

12.3.2 Royalist Set Up

In Cuba, Santo Domingo and Puerto Rico: 12 steps of line infantry (Spanish and/or American Royalist), 1 militia infantry brigade, 1 cavalry militia brigade.

In New Spain: 12 steps of Spanish line infantry, 10 steps of American Royalist line infantry, 7 steps of line cavalry, 2 militia infantry brigades, 2 militia cavalry brigades, 3 artillery units.

1 frigate unit in Veracruz.

Guatemala: 1 militia infantry Brigade.

Venezuela (Maracaibo fully controlled, Costa Firme partially controlled): 6 steps of Spanish line infantry, 2 steps of Spanish line cavalry, 8 steps of Royalist line infantry 4 steps of Royalist line cavalry, 2 artillery units.

Pasto: 1 step of Spanish line infantry, 1 militia infantry Brigade.

Cartagena: 1 step of Spanish line infantry.

Quito: 2 steps of Royalist line infantry.

Panamá: 1 step of Spanish line infantry, 1 step of Royalist line infantry.

Lima area: Army of Lima with leader Pezuela, 6 steps of line infantry, 1 militia cavalry brigade, 3 steps of line cavalry, 2 artillery units.

Anywhere in Upper Perú: 2 steps of line infantry, 1 militia brigade, 3 steps of line cavalry.

Arequipa: 4 steps of line infantry, 2 steps of line cavalry.

Anywhere in Guayaquil or Lima: 2 steps of line infantry.

Cuzco: 2 steps of line infantry, 2 steps of line cavalry.

Callao: 1 frigate unit.

Chiloé: 1 Royalist militia infantry brigade in Guerrilla mode.

Royalist available RP = 8

Place a "Royalist repression" marker in Northern Chile.

12.3.3 Patriot Set Up

The Patriot player fully controls the following areas: Santa Fe, Cumaná, Los Llanos, Guayana, Margarita. Partial control (both sides may deploy troops there): Costa Firme.

Grand Colombia. In Santa Fe: 3 steps of GC line infantry, 1 step of English line infantry (these have dark vertical lines over their lower bar), 2 steps of GC line cavalry. 3 steps of GC line infantry (New Granada units). 1 GC artillery unit.

In Venezuela: Leaders Bolívar, Páez, 6 steps of GC line infantry, 2 steps of English line infantry (dark vertical lines over lower bar), 8 steps of GC line cavalry.

El Plata. In Santiago: Chileans: leader Cochrane, 1 ship of the line, 1 frigate, 3 steps of Chilean line infantry, 1 step of Chilean line cavalry. Argentines: Leader San Martín, 3 steps of Argentine line infantry, 2 steps of Argentine line cavalry, 1 artillery unit, 1 frigate unit.

In Salta, Córdoba, Southern and Northern Chile: 4 steps of Argentine line infantry, 3 steps of Chilean line infantry, 3 steps of Arg. Line cavalry, 2 steps of Chilean line cavalry, 1 artillery unit.

Banda Oriental. 1 Rebel line infantry.

Paraguay. 1 Rebel line infantry, 1 Rebel line cavalry.

Mexico. 2 Militia units in Guerrilla mode in any of the following areas: Tierras Calientes, San Luis Potosí, Guadalajara or Durango. 1 frigate unit in New Orleans.

12.3.4 Victory Conditions

Same as in the campaign scenario. See Section 10.5 and Module 11.0, How to Win.

13.0 Designer's Notes

Las derrotas serán vengadas, los verdugos exterminados. Nuestro odio será implacable y la guerra será a muerte. Simón Bolívar

Guerra a Muerte comes from the similarly named announcement issued by Simón Bolívar in August 1813, warning that any Spaniards in Venezuela who did not actively support the rebellion could expect no quarter from the Patriots. In fact the fighting in Venezuela was the most vicious in all of America with a spiral of bloody reprisals and counter-reprisals, and with both sides routinely shooting enemy prisoners. The Royalists treated the Patriots as traitors to their lawful King Fernando VII and the Patriots shot anybody who did not actively support the revolution in order to force indifferent people (most of the population, actually) to take sides. There was also a social dimension to the fight when the Royalist began mobilizing slaves against the Caracas oligarchy, the real leading force behind the cause of independence.

The Map

The Maracaibo area includes the very Royalist regions of Santa Marta (in Nueva Granada) and Coro (in Venezuela). Units moving to or moving out of the Chaco get a special die roll modifier of the +1 instead of the Region's RP level of 0. This is so because the route to Paraguay from Upper Perú across the Chaco traverses one of most inhospitable regions of the earth and was inhabited by very hostile tribes to boot. The Chaco is a combination of a jungle and a desert with the worst aspects of both.

The borders between the different viceroyalties, captaincies or audiencias of the Spanish Empire in the Americas were not very precise to say the least. In many of the disputed territories (such as in Amazonia or Patagonia) there wasn't actual physical occupation. Therefore, actual definition of the borders between the post-independence South American Republics was more often than not decided by brute force, during and after the Wars of Independence. All South American Republics claimed sovereignty of this or that territory based on colonial era documents, maps, post-independence treaties, and Royal decrees. To cite a few examples: both Paraguay and Bolivia claimed Chaco and Paraguay and Argentina claimed Misiones territory and other Guarani-speaking areas in what today is Argentina, Brazil claimed the eastern side of the Río de la Plata and Banda Oriental (now Uruguay) until well into the 1860s, Argentina and Chile argued over Patagonia until some 20 years ago (their respective military dictatorships almost went to war in late 1978 over the Beagle Channel), Venezuela claimed most of Guyana (their official maps still shows Guayana as belonging to Venezuela), as well as Peru and Ecuador claiming the former territories of Maynas and Quijos. The list goes on and on. In most cases the differences were solved using violence. Paraguay won the Chaco War and annexed Chaco, Argentina. Brazil won the Triple Alliance War and annexed Misiones and other disputed territories in 1941-42. Peru invaded and took control of the Amazonas territories from Ecuador. In sum, I can't draw a map which will make happy everyone in South America. Against The Odds would need to print several versions of the Guerra a Muerte map to not offend someone's national pride.

Regarding the Ecuador-Peru borders, I know that there is a very long diplomatic/military conflict over control of these territories. Over the last two centuries there have been dozens of peace conferences, treaties, conventions, and even an arbitration attempt by the King of Spain in 1887-1900. According to the Peruvians, the valid limits are that of the Real Cedula of 1802 and 1806. According to the Ecuadoreans, these cedulas were never put into effect as Nueva Granada protested against it, claiming the cedulas would never be legitimate as Guayaquil and Quijos belonged to them since the creation of the Viceroyalty of New Granada. Moreover, for the Ecuadoreans the valid limits were that of the Audiencia of Quito and these territories belonged to the Audiencia. Please keep in mind that with the borders depicted in the Guerra a Muerte map I'm not trying to settle "who is right" in the Ecuador/Peru dispute. It is too complex a subject and the influence of game play is nil. What I can say is that Gran Colombia and Ecuador both claimed in the 1830-40s the regions of Tumbes and Jaen in the Peruvian border. These cities now belong to Peru who applied the principle of self-determination of peoples, just like Guayaquil. In the Guerra a Muerte map Tumbes and Jaen would be in the Viceroyalty of Peru. Regarding Maynas/Quijos, most post-independence maps show this area as belonging to Ecuador and that this region was de facto annexed by Peru in 1941-42. But, again, this area was (is) actually an Amazonian wilderness inhabited only by native tribes until very recent times, and controlled by Peru or Ecuador only on their respective government's official maps.

The "Indian/Slave Masses" Rule

Since the leading force behind almost all of the rebellions against Spanish rule that started in 1810 were the criollo (American born whites) elites, any rebellion that would mobilize the Indian/Slave masses was likely to subvert the rigid American social order. After all, what the criollos wanted was to substitute themselves for the Spaniards at the top of the social order, not to change the social structure. Therefore, the elites of certain territories supported the King's cause because they feared that any revolution would end up as in Haití, where the white rulers had been wiped out by the Negro slaves in 1797-1801. Hence the Royalist stance of the criollo elites in Cuba and Puerto Rico where most of the population were African slaves. In Perú there was also the experience of the Túpac Amaru rebellion less than 30 years prior, in the 1780s, when the Indian masses rose in rebellion against any white, either American born or Spanish. The elites in Peru were so scared by that possibility that it can be said that Peru had to be "freed" from the outside by Argentines and Venezuelans. In New Spain (nowadays Mexico), unlike in the rest of the Spanish America, the rebellion of the Priest Hidalgo mobilized from the very beginning thousands of Indians, and therefore the local elites supported to a man the Absolutist King as a symbol of the "natural" social order. Only when the liberals took power in Spain in 1820, forcing Fernando VII to abandon Absolutist rule, the Mexican criollo elites began to consider the idea of breaking with the empire but in a "controlled" way, without touching the social order.

In game terms, if the Indians were to be mobilized then the local elites would never think again of rebelling against the King, as their first priority would be to recover their lands/mines/factories, and to do so they needed all the troops at hand plus the ideological support of the (mostly Royalist) Catholic Church. Hence the "no more uprisings" rule when the Indian/Slave masses are mobilized.

The El Plata Rebels

To simulate the opposition of many regions inside the former Viceroyalty of El Plata to accept the hegemony of the city and province of Buenos Aires we used the same mechanism used to simulate Royalist rebellions to make things simpler. In fact, the first 50 years or so of what we call now Argentina was regularly troubled by civil wars between the "Provinces" and the capital Buenos Aires. Until well into 1860 Argentine history was basically a struggle between Buenos Aires and the provinces. For instance, Paraguay had to fight for independence against the Argentines, not against Spain; the Paraguayans secured their independence at the battle of Paraguarí (1811) by defeating a military expedition under Belgrano sent by Buenos Aires to "invite" them to accept Buenos Aires' authority. Other territories formerly belonging to the Viceroyalty of El Plata, such as Upper Perú (current-day Bolivia) or Banda Oriental (now Uruguay) began to break away from Buenos Aires as soon as 1810-12.

Royalists and Patriots

Why the term "Royalist" instead of "Spanish"? Because the issue here was to fight for the rights of Fernando VII to his territories in the Americas. If only Spanish peninsular units would have fought, the war would have lasted months, not 14 years. There were also Spanish Liberals fighting against the King because they identified themselves better with the Patriots than with his Absolutist ruler. The wars for the Independence of South America are more of a civil war between Americans than a war between Americans and Spaniards.

Importance of Fleets

Naval forces may not win the war, but you may lose it if you surrender naval superiority to your enemy—he will be able to land anywhere he wishes. Please note that when we refer to Spanish ships we say "Spanish navy." There were also light naval forces manned by American Royalists, but the main combat units and most of the crews were all Spanish.

The Combat System

Superiority of infantry over cavalry or vice versa in each combat depended on several factors, handled here with the Tactical Options Table (TOT). That is, the chance that in a given battle that cavalry wins the day with a massed charge at the right moment will depend pretty much on several tactical factors that are modelled by the TOT. Of course, the better commander you have, the more chances of taking advantage of your infantry or cavalry, hence the importance of leaders' tactical modifiers to have the initiative and therefore to be able to roll twice, instead of once as with the non-initiative player, on the TOT. The various options that can be obtained should force players to maintain balanced armies (combined arms forces) on the field. Thus, in this game cavalry is not reduced to the role of a lower-quality infantry that runs faster, as happens in other systems. In this game your cavalry may have better combat factors at a given moment because your commander was good enough to take maximum advantage of it.

The ranged battle procedure rewards a player who keeps on the field a balanced army with cavalry, artillery and infantry. Also, depending on the type of army, players have advantages: more cavalry: better mobility, better ability to screen the enemy, to seek/avoid combat. More infantry and artillery: more shock combat power, and so on.

The Counter-Guerrilla Table

The name of the Partidarios unit comes from Partidas, Spanish for "Partisan bands". These were units specially created by Gen. Pezuela (later Viceroy of Peru) for counter-guerrilla warfare in the Peruvian highlands. Hence the +1 DRM of the Partidarios when fighting guerrillas.

The "Eliminated" result against guerrillas is intentional. The best thing a guerrilla commander can do against an enemy offensive is to disperse. If you concentrate, you risk being destroyed in a single blow. The -1 DRM if all guerrilla units are militias means that all guerrillas are local troops who know well the terrain they operate in.

13.1 Bibliography

• Albi de la Cuesta, J., Banderas Olvidadas. El Ejército Realista en América. Madrid 1990.
• Albi, Julio, La Defensa de las Indias. Madrid 1987.
• Albi, Julio and Stampa, Leopoldo, Campañas de la Caballería espanola en el siglo XIX. Madrid 1985.
• Clonard, Count, Historia orgánica de las Armas de infantería y caballería españolas. Madrid 1859.
• Halperin Dongui, Tulio, Historia contemporánea de América Latina. Madrid 1986.
• Luqui-Lagleyze, Julio M., Por el Rey, la Fe y la Patria: El Ejército Realista del Peru en la Independencia Sudamericana 1810-1825. Madrid 2004.
• Lynch, John, Las revoluciones hispanoamericanas, 1808-1826. Barcelona 1976.
• Marchena, J., Ejército y milicias en el mundo colonial americano. Madrid 1992.
• Mitre, Bartolomé, Historia de San Martín. Buenos Aires 1968.
• Pérez Turrado, Gaspar, La Marina Española en la Independencia de Costa Firme. Madrid 1992.
• Pérez Turrado, Gaspar, Las Marinas Realista y Patriota en la independencia de Chile y Peru. Madrid 1996.
• Scheina, Robert L. Latin America's Wars. Vol. I. The Age of the Caudillo, 1791-1899. Washington 2003.
• Semprún, José, Capitanes y Virreyes. El esfuerzo bélico realista en la contienda de emancipación Hispanoamericana. Madrid 1998.
• Semprún, José, La Division Infernal. Boves, Vencedor de Bolívar, Madrid 2002.