Designer/Developer: Dana F. Lombardy
Publisher: SDC 1975
Players 2 or more
Playing time depends on scenario
Era 1st English Civil War 1642-46
Scale Strategic
Time 1 turn is about 1 month
Map Areas (1" = about 22 miles)
Units Individual leaders; 750 to 1500 men per cavalry, pikeman and musketeer counters

Components
1 Cover sheet
3 Ziploc bags, 1 large & 2 small
1 18"x24" four-color unmounted map
1 32-page rules booklet
98 two-color backprinted stamped (not die-cut) counters with rounded corners
2 Scenario cards, backprinted

Counter Manifest

Royalist (purple on mauve)

12 Pikemen (10*2; 2*4)
8 Cavalry
7 Musketeers (6*2; 1*4)
2 Militia
3 Fleets
3 Siege artillery
5 Leaders (purple on white): Charles +1, Rupert +3, Newcastle +0, Hopton +2, Goring +1
19 Blanks (12 white; 7 mauve)

Parliamentary (black on orange)

12 Pikemen (11*2; 1*4)
9 Cavalry
9 Musketeers (8*2; 1*4)
2 Militia
4 Fleets
3 Siege artillery
5 Leaders: Cromwell +3, Fairfax +2, Essex +1, Waller +1, Manchester +0
3 Blanks

Scottish (black on light orange)

5 Pikemen
2 Cavalry
4 Musketeers
1 Leader: Leven +0

Markers (black on white)

1 Turn
1 Battle

Of the 120 counters included with the game, 22 are blanks, leaving 98 units and markers used in play.

What the Designer says:

“The Introductory Game was designed to get newcomers interested in wargaming. To achieve more accurate simulations, higher levels of complexity are provided. That is, players can begin with the Introductory Game version, then add the remaining rules and units for the Level 1 game, and buffs and experienced war gamers can go to the Level 2 game. The playtesters found that the full game was too long and exhausting, so shorter campaign game scenarios have been provided. ... As a simulation Cromwell is a failure, only if you consider a game a simulation because it must always duplicate the actual events.”

What the Reviewer says:

“Moderate to fairly complex; somewhat long.” --Richard Berg in S&T 57

Collector’s Value

Simulations Design Corporation and Conflict magazine were begun in 1971 by Dana Lombardy, in avowed imitation of SPI. One year later, SDC had the formula down pat, but not the success, and almost folded. By issue 8 of Conflict in 1977, SDC had abandoned the formula of a game in each issue.

No more issues of Conflict were ever published, but Campaign magazine carried the SDC Report, a brief synopsis of what SDC was up to and how the Kesselschlacht Project (their monster game on Stalingrad) was progressing, for a few issues. SDC finally ceased business in the fall of 1978.

Boone quotes low, high and average prices of 9/30/18.60 at auction and 13/50/26.17 for sale.

Other Games by D.F. Lombardy

Kamikaze (F&M 31); Alien Contact, Streets of Stalingrad (Phoenix); Battle for the Factories, Fire on the Volga (Nova); Dunkerque - 1940, Guerre a Outrance, Khalkhin-Gol, NORAD (SDC); NORAD (Mishler 2ed); 4th Reich (Task Force Games).

Other Games of This Type

Ironsides; Marston Moor; Royalists & Roundheads I, II & III (3W); English Civil War (Ariel); This Accursed Civil War (Ben Hull); the King’s War (CoA); Cropredy Bridge (Decision); Edgehill 1642 (Excalibre); English Civil War (FGU); Winceby (GPG); English Civil War (Ironside); Edgehill; Marston Moor (Perfidious Albion); English Civil War (Rostherne); Power and Resolution (SimCan); Cromwell’s Victory (TSR); 1644 (Wargames Foundry); Edgehill (Wellington).

Other Games by SDC

Assassin!; Dunkerque - 1940; Guerre a Outrance; Kasserine Pass; Minuteman (1972); Dien Bien Phu; Battle for Hue; Khalkhin-Gol; NORAD; Rifle - Musket / Alamo (1973); Jerusalem!; Schutztruppe (1975); Hammer of God (1976); Fight for Tobruk (1977).