Warfare in the Sengoku Jidai
Great Battles of History series
Designers: Richard Berg & Mark Herman
Publisher: GMT Games, 1996
Players 1 to 4
Playing Time 1 hour per turn
Era 16th Century Japan
Scale Tactical
Time Scale 20 minutes per turn
Map Scale 100 yards per hex
Unit Scale 100 men per Strength Point; individual leaders and samurai

Components
1 standard cardstock accordion box
2 double-sided unmounted full color hex maps 22"x34" (4 maps total)
5 countersheets: 1, 2 & 3 each containing 176 full color die cut 5/8" counters;
4 and 5 each containing 280 full color die cut 1/2" counters
1 24 page 8 1/2"x11" rulebook
1 20 page 8 1/2"x11" scenario book
2 cardstock 8 1/2"x11" sheets of tables
1 sheet of credits and sources
1 sheet of scenario clarifications
1 white-on-black 10-sided die
16 small clear plastic ziploc bags
1 feedback card

Counter Manifest

Sheet 1 of 5
78 Oda (red)

1 Honjin
21 Kibamusha
54 Ashigaru
2 Destroyed markers

34 Imagawa (mauve)

1 Honjin
8 Kibamusha
25 Ashigaru

64 Takeda (light blue)

1 Honjin
33 Kibamusha
30 Ashigaru

Sheet 2 of 5

43 Takeda (light blue)

43 Ashigaru

20 Asai (light green)

1 Honjin
6 Kibamusha
13 Ashigaru

21 Asakura (beige)

1 Honjin
5 Kibamusha
15 Ashigaru

5 Uesugi (orange)

5 Kibamusha

87 Ishida (dark blue)

1 Honjin
22 Kibamusha
64 Ashigaru

Sheet 3 of 5

26 Uesugi (orange)

4 Kibamusha
22 Ashigaru

100 Tokugawa (yellow)

1 Honjin
25 Kibamusha
74 Ashigaru

50 Markers (white)

9 Shock
16 Routed
17 Contingent
4 Trump
4 Siege

Sheet 4 of 5

43 Oda

1 So-Taisho
20 Busho
10 Teppo
12 Yumi

22 Imagawa

1 So-Taisho
7 Busho
2 Teppo
12 Yumi

41 Takeda

1 So-Taisho
21 Busho
3 Teppo
16 Yumi

16 Asai

1 So-Taisho
4 Busho
2 Teppo
9 Yumi

10 Asakura

1 So-Taisho
2 Busho
1 Teppo
6 Yumi

17 Ishida

1 So-Taisho
1 4 Busho
2 Ozutsu

17 Uesugi
1 So-Taisho
6 Busho
2 Teppo
8 Yumi

32 Tokugawa

2 So-Taisho
22 Busho
4 Teppo
4 Yumi

15 Samurai
67 Markers

2 Ozutsu Moved
5 ODA
10 Engaged in Shock
10 Abandon Guns
10 Busho Out of Command
10 Palisades
20 Severed Heads

Sheet 5 of 5

280 Markers

22 Palisades
16 So-Taisho Activation Points
102 1/2 chits
82 3/4 chits
50 5/6 chits
8 7/8 chits

What GMT says:

“Samurai simulates the highly personal form of warfare developed by the Japanese samurai, wherein formal battles played out almost as backdrops to individual feats of courage, bravery, and devotion -- much of it outstanding, some of it rather foolhardy, all of it very Homeric. Although political and tactical victory was the bottom line, collecting the severed heads of enemy samurai ranked a very close second in importance.”

What the commentators say:

“All in all a game that grows on you. Its exotic subject is captured well (once you understand the Japanese terminology used). The basic system models the ebb and flow of battle nicely and there is plenty of chrome (samurai combat, etc.) for period flavour.” Alan Poulter on Web-Grognards.

“On a qualitative level, I enjoyed the game immensely. The rulebooks are, like a lot of GMT’s products, badly organized and unclear on some points. The components (maps and counters) are, like all GMT products, very attractive and well designed. There is some inconsistency with the placement of the same information on different types of counters, but we overcame this. I strongly recommend Samurai to those of you sitting on the fence.” Walt O’Hara on Web-Grognards.

Collector’s Value

GMT’s Samurai is one of the most recently published games to appear in Simulacrum. It is, after all, only six years old. But it has been out of print for a while, and the high price it commands in the market speaks of a game that is already a collectible.

Specifically, in Boone’s 3rd, the low, high and average prices were15/40/ 25.59 at auction and 15/45/28.22 for sale. By Boone’s 4th, the prices were 25/ 60/37.67 at auction.

As of October 5, there were 218 P250 orders for Samurai on GMT’s web site. The retail price will be $65, and the preorder price is a bargain at $45.

An unusual treatment of an uncommon subject was likely the reason for the low initial print run. Two well-known designers and a well-developed system likely contributed to the high demand. It appears as though a second printing, if not a second edition, will be published soon, possibly even in 2003.

Other games of this type:

The only other tactical game of medieval Japan in the Simulacrum database is Shogun Triumphant by Richard Berg in Command 23 (1993). Samurai is part of GMT’s Great Battles of History series, which also includes Caesar: the Civil Wars; Caesar: Conquest of Gaul; Caesar at Alexandria; Caratacus; Cataphract; Great Battles of Alexander; Lion of the North; SPQR; and War Galley.

Other games by these designers

Richard Berg has far too many games to his credit to list here. Mark Herman’s credits include: Golan (SPI, 1975); the Battle of Jerusalem (SPI, 1977); October War (SPI, 1977); Raid! (SPI, 1977); Stonewall (SPI, 1978); Tyre (SPI, 1978); John Carter, Warlord of Mars (SPI, 1979); Mech War 2 (SPI, 1979); Red Star / White Star II (SPI, 1979); Suez to Golan (SPI, 1979); Across Suez (SPI, 1980); Gulf Strike (Victory, 1983); RDF (TSR, 1983); Pacific War (Victory, 1985); Aegean Strike (Victory, 1986); France 1944 (Victory, 1986); Flashpoint Golan! (Victory, 1991); the Great Battles of Alexander (GMT, 1991); the Peloponnesian War (Victory, 1991); Consul for Rome (GMT, 1992); Juggernaut (GMT, 1992); War Elephant (GMT, 1992); Pyrrhic Victory (GMT, 1993); We the People (Avalon Hill, 1993); the Great Battles of Julius Caesar (GMT, 1994); Across Suez (Decision, 1995); Diadochoi (GMT, 1995); For the People (Avalon Hill, 1998); Phalanx (GMT, 1998); Cataphract / Justinian (GMT, 1999).