designed by Dennis Bishop for Khyber Pass Games
KPG are a new imprint seeking to cover Colonial warfare, so when you hear that their first three games include one on the Jewish rebellion of 66AD and another on the Italians in the Spanish Civil War one can conclude that focus isn't their middle name. As DTP games go these are extremely small, one letter sized map and less than a playing card's worth of counters. The game plays solitaire in about 30 minutes. It is very micro indeed.
To balance the thinness the presentation of map and counters is very high. The Spanish artist who did the work is on a par with Vae Victis, though with the tiny counters he needs all his skill. One really does regret the size of the counters because the work is of a very high level indeed. No repetition of tedious little icons here, but many interesting and (I think) accurate sprites. This transfers over to the map that is also nicely executed with good town icons.
The argument has been made that at $6.50 (from Boulder Games) you cannot go wrong. But on the basis of the pieces one is getting much less than many Microgame Co-op products. Although the price may tempt one I think the underlying value of the game still requires consideration.
The Jewish War is supposedly the Roman Campaign from 66 AD to 73 AD against the Zealots. The scene opens with a few Arab garrisons holding the area (called foederati, a term I always associated with later). The Jewish militias rise up (all weedy 2-6s) and are faced with Legio XII Fulminata and its auxilia. Although the legion can bash anyone it wants it can also get surrounded so that this turn (I believe this is Cestius Gallus' incursion) is unlikely to see much happen. In 67AD the full mass of the Zealots arrive as do three legions (Macedonica, Apollinaris, and Fretensis) and auxiliaries.
The game scale immediately raises one's suspicions (one turn per year). Since the area of the map is pretty small I suspect you could drive across it in a few hours, so a single move is not going to go far. This is not the first game to botch a time-scale like this. Clearly the designer is trying to represent a number of offensives or operations within a simple model. It shows however a mismatch that has been papered over.
Movement is simple with the horrid Galilean terrain meaning that one is frequently one movement point adrift. Combat is odds with some Legio integrity bonuses and is very old fashioned. Lots of elims and mandatory combat between adjacent units. This of course fits better into the "many operations in a year" mould than any specific action that the gamer may feel is occurring. So even though you are in a town you cannot avoid combat since the enemy is raiding your villages.
The real kick is the victory conditions, no capturing Masada or rending the Temple Veil, the Roman must simply destroy all Jewish units. The problem is that this really does require that you drive the map like a pheasant shoot. Let one zealot slip through and you may need six Roman units to catch and kill in the very short playing time. There are no ZOCs and lots of retreats on the CRT. Forming a cordon is one thing, maintaining it is another if the Zealots mass their units to rupture the position. Both sides are therefore faced with choices as to whether they mass or disperse. The Jewish War may at times not feel like its subject, but it is by no means a non-game. With its quick play you will be able to examine a number of strategies, and the bloody effect of an AE or DE cam soon open up the proceedings.
I am in two minds about this game. It is quick and pretty, and it has gaming content. Your time is not completely wasted. However, as game on this War (even a quick one) it is not exactly state-of-the-art, its effects being achieved despite rather than because of the chosen system. One hopes the concept of quick and cheap does not mean that ideas are incompletely developed.
[Perhaps the publishers agreed with this because you can go to their web site (see below) and download some extra counters and rules to make the Temple rather more important, and to enhance the Roman chances with siege trains and generals. Surely Vespasian didn't look like that though!]
http://usuarios.iponet.es/gehiegi/kpg/tjwaditional_rules.htm
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© Copyright 2000 by Charles and Teresa Vasey.
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