STRATEGY AND TACTICS No.114

Chad, The Toyata Wars

This is an entirely different kettle of fish, rather more a simulation than a game. It is a simulation of the Chadian civil war between F.A.N. (Armed Forces of the North) and F.A.P. (Peoples Armed Forces, with (12!) other factions of varying allegiance, coupled with foreign intervention from Libya, USA and France.

This is not a typical wargame, with rules for topics such as Annual Harvests, Foreign Aid and Intervention, Drought, Conventional vs Guerrilla Combat and finally Politics. It can be seen that there is rather more to think about than simply moving and fighting!

I have to confess to not having found the time to play this yet. This is a very different approach to a `wargame', so I have no real idea of how it plays, however, S+T usually do a good job of making the rules work and the game playable.

However it plays, this game is going to be fairly complex, mechanically and conceptually, so probably is not for the novice boardgamer.

Of the two games, I would have to recommend Chaco as a good playable game, for an evenings diversion. The designer has done an excellent job recreating an `unknown war' and certainly succeeded in maintaining my interest. The Toyata Wars is a longer, much more complex simulation, (and words like simulation and model pop up regularly in the rules/notes), that will repay study be anyone who is interested in `low intensity combat (said with a mid-Atlantic accent) or Guerrilla Warfare.

More Reviews

Irregular Miniatures Rule Box Series: English Civil War Review
Austerlitz: Computer Game Review
Wargames South 10mm Napoleonic Figures Review
Battleground Buildings Review
Chariot Miniatures 15mm Napoleonics Review
AB Figures 22mm Napoleonics Review
Magazine Games: Command Chaco (1932-1935) Review
Magazine Games: S&T Chad (1980s) Review
Through Fire and Smoke 1750-1850 Rules Review