Short AAR--Texas, USA, Mexico and the ACW
Played two short games last night to iron out kinks (I'm the VIP stuckee for the ACW and USA antebellum events )
Major changes:
The ACW isn't preordained anymore, but it is pretty hard to keep it from happening. A player can avoid the ACW by creating more slave states, but too many can cause New England to secede. Electing Republicans will anger South Carolina and the slave states.
USA issues--expansion into North America, and northern Mexico, exacerbates the slave/free issue. If the USA gets Cuba, for example, and if the player makes Cuba 'free soil' South Carolina and the southern Gulf states become very angry very quickly.
In the test games this is what happened. Keep in mind I was trying to only watch the USA (I was in Hands-Off mode as Hawaii).
Mexico granted Texas independence after San Jacinto (1836-37); USA allied with Texas in 1838-39. First Mexican-US-TEX war was in 1841, followed by the Second Mexican War (this one added France in the US-TEX alliance as well) happened in 1848. In the first war, USA gained MEX buildings in Colorado and a part of Utah. In the second, California rebelled and set up the Bear Flag Republic, and the USA gained the rest of Utah and Nevada. TEX gained El Paso. Mexico looked like a checkerboard for about 5 years with all the revolts. Peace finally came to MEX by the early 1850's.
For the USA, the good times ended in 1855, when South Carolina seceded over the Republican victory in the election of 1854-55. All of the historical CSA seceded; Kentucky, Maryland, Delaware, South Dakota and Washington (the border and northern slave states in this game) stayed loyal to the USA. Texas broke its military alliance with the USA and allied with the CSA. The war began in Dec 1855 with Texas' attacking US-held Oklahoma. CS forces attacked into Kentucky, but were defeated as they tried to invade Ohio. The CSA bought two commerce raiders from the UK, and raised havoc for a few months on US frigates and transports; they were destroyed in the Gulf of Mexico by the US MW's led by Farragut. The CS offensives petered out as US forces marched south through Virginia, Arkansas (toward New Orleans) and Tennessee. The war ended in early 1858 with a US victory; Texas continued to fight, holding on to its Oklahoma victories, but it was hopeless. Texas lost Amarillo but stayed independent.
Stopped the game at that point. A few other notes to be stated--the British East India (vice all of India as UK territory) really changes the game. Much more interesting now in that part of the world. Russia was wracked with revolts from 1838 to mid-1840's, and much of Russia (Poland, Ukraine, Crimea, etc.) broke away and formed their own nations. China jumped on Russia during the 'troubles' and took a chunk of the Russian Far East. The 1848 revolutions created three German states--Germany (led by Prussia), North German Confed. and South German Confed. (a satellite of Austria). All three were Great Powers and allied with each other and Austria. They did a job on Russian-allied Poland in the Crimean War, taking all but the capital in the peace treaty. France ended up satelliting Annam, and with most of Russian Alaska in the Crimean War. The UK settled differnces with the USA in the Oregon Treaty, then focused on colonizing Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Most of Africa was still open for colonization--very little spread by anyone past the at-start colonial buildings. Same for the Pacific islands, which were still wide open for grabbing
Once the last kinks are ironed out, it will be a blast to play!
Played two short games last night to iron out kinks (I'm the VIP stuckee for the ACW and USA antebellum events )
Major changes:
The ACW isn't preordained anymore, but it is pretty hard to keep it from happening. A player can avoid the ACW by creating more slave states, but too many can cause New England to secede. Electing Republicans will anger South Carolina and the slave states.
USA issues--expansion into North America, and northern Mexico, exacerbates the slave/free issue. If the USA gets Cuba, for example, and if the player makes Cuba 'free soil' South Carolina and the southern Gulf states become very angry very quickly.
In the test games this is what happened. Keep in mind I was trying to only watch the USA (I was in Hands-Off mode as Hawaii).
Mexico granted Texas independence after San Jacinto (1836-37); USA allied with Texas in 1838-39. First Mexican-US-TEX war was in 1841, followed by the Second Mexican War (this one added France in the US-TEX alliance as well) happened in 1848. In the first war, USA gained MEX buildings in Colorado and a part of Utah. In the second, California rebelled and set up the Bear Flag Republic, and the USA gained the rest of Utah and Nevada. TEX gained El Paso. Mexico looked like a checkerboard for about 5 years with all the revolts. Peace finally came to MEX by the early 1850's.
For the USA, the good times ended in 1855, when South Carolina seceded over the Republican victory in the election of 1854-55. All of the historical CSA seceded; Kentucky, Maryland, Delaware, South Dakota and Washington (the border and northern slave states in this game) stayed loyal to the USA. Texas broke its military alliance with the USA and allied with the CSA. The war began in Dec 1855 with Texas' attacking US-held Oklahoma. CS forces attacked into Kentucky, but were defeated as they tried to invade Ohio. The CSA bought two commerce raiders from the UK, and raised havoc for a few months on US frigates and transports; they were destroyed in the Gulf of Mexico by the US MW's led by Farragut. The CS offensives petered out as US forces marched south through Virginia, Arkansas (toward New Orleans) and Tennessee. The war ended in early 1858 with a US victory; Texas continued to fight, holding on to its Oklahoma victories, but it was hopeless. Texas lost Amarillo but stayed independent.
Stopped the game at that point. A few other notes to be stated--the British East India (vice all of India as UK territory) really changes the game. Much more interesting now in that part of the world. Russia was wracked with revolts from 1838 to mid-1840's, and much of Russia (Poland, Ukraine, Crimea, etc.) broke away and formed their own nations. China jumped on Russia during the 'troubles' and took a chunk of the Russian Far East. The 1848 revolutions created three German states--Germany (led by Prussia), North German Confed. and South German Confed. (a satellite of Austria). All three were Great Powers and allied with each other and Austria. They did a job on Russian-allied Poland in the Crimean War, taking all but the capital in the peace treaty. France ended up satelliting Annam, and with most of Russian Alaska in the Crimean War. The UK settled differnces with the USA in the Oregon Treaty, then focused on colonizing Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Most of Africa was still open for colonization--very little spread by anyone past the at-start colonial buildings. Same for the Pacific islands, which were still wide open for grabbing
Once the last kinks are ironed out, it will be a blast to play!
