1848: Year of Revolution (2015)

"1848: Year of Revolution" is a wargame simulation of the series of popular revolts that swept across continental Europe in that year. The revolutionaries involved wanted to overthrow the reactionary and repressive regimes that had been in power since the Treaty of Vienna in 1815. Prince Metternich of Austria, ‘the coachman of Europe,’ had kept order and stifled change for over 30 years with his continent-wide system of police spies and divisive diplomacy. The revolts had a number of contributing causes: nationalism; liberalism; the emerging radical doctrines of socialism, anarchism, and communism; the changing structure of the economy due to industrialization and urbanization; and even Romanticism. Initially, the rebels succeeded in getting concessions from or even casting out their rulers, but internal dissensions and determined counterrevolutionary reaction erased the gains they had made by the end of 1848. In the game, 2-4 players (up to three Rebels and one Reactionary) take the role of the leaders of various political forces in different areas of Europe. Generally, the Rebel player or players' objective is to spread revolt and seize power while the Reactionary player's objective is to retain power. 140 double-sided counters, 11×17″ area-movement map of Europe, abstract troop and time/action scale. Designed 1997, as an act of creative procrastination while battling writer’s block on finishing an article for "Strategy and Tactics" magazine on the event. I used to make individual copies for anyone who asked; it just took me until 2015 to start making nicer-looking ones in advance. —description from the designer