Before I ever launched this blog, I made a board game about – you guessed it – an early 20th-century revolution. With help from others, I developed it to the point where it is for sale on The Gamecrafter. Due to Covid there hasn’t been much opportunity to play it since 2020, but after a few recent games I am thinking about it again.
I think the game works well, especially the interplay between the two phases. There are plenty of moving parts, but they are mostly easy to grasp and add depth, unpredictability and balance, and turn every game into a unique story.
Still, there are things I want to tighten up. I have exciting ideas for a second edition, but I doubt I will even start working seriously on that in 2023.
Instead, here is a Rules Update. The main purpose of these changes is to make the game run faster and more smoothly, to make it easier for first-time players. At the same time, they can be implemented fully with all existing copies of the game.
The rule changes are attached here as a handy PDF for you to print and stick into your game manual. They are also written out below.
Rules Update:
Token Payouts
PREVIOUSLY, players received token payouts when they passed Corner Districts. NOW, every player collects all tokens due to them, of every colour, at the beginning of their turn.
Combat
PREVIOUSLY, combat worked according to a system inspired by Risk. NOW, combat is simpler. Both players roll D6. Whoever rolls higher is the winner. Subtract the lower from the higher number. The losing player loses that number of soldiers, to a maximum of 3. On a tie, the attacker loses 1 soldier. Repeat until one side retreats or is destroyed.
- FOR EXAMPLE:
- Player 1 rolls 6 and player 2 rolls 4. Player 2 loses 2 soldiers.
- Player 1 rolls 4 and player 2 rolls 4. Because player 2 is defender, Player 1 loses 1 soldier.
- Player 1 rolls 1 and player 2 rolls 6. The difference is 5, but a maximum of 3 soldiers may be lost per combat. So player 1 loses 3 soldiers.
Action Cards
PREVIOUSLY, an unlimited number of action cards could be used per turn. NOW, only 2 Action Cards may be used per turn. This applies both to Power Struggle phase and to Insurrection phase.
Key Areas
PREVIOUSLY, when a player seized a Key Area in Insurrection mode, they would gain D3 reinforcements (Key Areas are the places outlined in white on the board). NOW, each Key Area gives a preset number of reinforcements, once per insurrection, as follows:
- Telegraph Office & Telephone Exchange – 1
- Levsky Prospekt Upper – 1
- Levsky Prospekt Lower – 1
- Fillippov Estate – 2
- Kantankurov Estate – 2
- Prison – 2
- Duganenko Station – 3
- Vinland Station – 3
- Khazag Station – 3
In summary: Key Areas in the city centre give 1; Estates and the Prison give 2; Railway Stations give 3.
(The thinking behind this rule change is as follows: first, to reduce the amount of dice rolling; second, to rebalance the map away from the centre and toward the periphery.)
PREVIOUSLY, reinforcements spawned at the player’s base. NOW, reinforcements spawn at the Key Area.
Launching an Insurrection
PREVIOUSLY, a player needed a minimum of 15 points across all dials to launch an Insurrection. NOW, instead of a points limit, there is a ‘grace period’ lasting two turns from the beginning of the game during which nobody can launch an Insurrection. Once those two turns are up, anyone may launch an Insurrection.
Rolling Doubles
PREVIOUSLY, a player would get a second move if they rolled doubles for movement. NOW, this rule is removed.
I hope these new rules work well, and I appreciate any feedback to BolshevikBoardgames.wordpress.com
Things I’d like to change, but won’t just yet
There are other things I’d like to change, but can’t yet. There is an anomalous empty space at the top of the map which I’d like to change to a Key Area named ‘Kulpovo Heights’ or something. For colour blind people, I would imagine that the board as a whole is in places frustratingly low-contrast. I named the naval base ‘Thorstadt,’ a play on ‘Kronstadt,’ but since then I’ve learned there was a guy with a similar name whose ideas I don’t like, and I want to avoid anyone thinking it was some kind of homage to him.
But these changes would require interfering with design, and that’s a can of worms I don’t want to open until I have clear ideas (and a clear schedule!) for a more general redesign.
I’d like to change movement, too – making it less about dice rolls and more about players making choices and sacrifices. But that will require playtesting and balancing. I’d be very pleased if I could figure out a way to eliminate some of the physical assets – like cards, tokens, dials, the second manual – without sacrificing depth. This would make the game cheaper on The Gamecrafter and less daunting for new players.
In the meantime, if anyone wants to experiment with their own House Rules, please feel free to send me feedback on how it works.
Bolshevik Boardgames Blog, the dedicated site for Insurrection
The 1919 Review 