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Complete Summary: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory is a grand strategy board game of the American Civil War in the style of Krieg!. Two or more players place and maneuver infantry step units consisting of divisions, corps and armies on
map boards representing the Eastern Theater (Pennsylvania south to Virginia, east to New York) and the Western Theater (encompassing the rest of the South and the Midwest). Note that these maps are of different scales to allow more room to
affect strategy in the East. Terrain plays an important part in movement, combat and supply. Each map includes terrain, Strategic Objectives, roads/rail, naval zones, navigable and non-navigable rivers, cities and locales, supply centers
and other features affecting the game.
The game covers the war from the summer of 1861, 9 turns each year, until the end of the war, as late as December 1865. Strategies are many and varied but the ultimate goal is to
demoralize the opposing faction's population through military, economic and political victories while sustaining your own population's will to continue the fight. The Union and Confederate players each choose a Strategy Card and an
Addendum Card before each new season and may opt to play an additional card as a diplomatic response to certain events. These cards lead to the introduction of new military units, leaders, and replacement steps and result in socio-economic
and political events that affect the course of the game. Some of the most important events include the introduction, by either side, of Black forces after a declaration of Emancipation, the Union mid-term election of 1862 and Presidential
election of 1864, and the possible intervention by European nations on behalf of the South. Events are often double-edged swords, sometimes providing a military advantage while negatively affecting the popular will to fight.
In
addition, both sides may attempt to develop and manufacture new technologies, both historical and speculative, as each tries to gain a military advantage. These include the widespread use of ironclads, submarines, torpedoes, observation
balloons, repeating rifles and Gatling guns. Both sides can introduce espionage and even sabotage, which can have many unexpected consequences, including the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. If foreign powers attempt to interfere in the
war, it is possible for the French army in Mexico to aid the Rebel cause while the British threaten the North via Canada.
Control of the border states of Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri and West Virginia can be crucial in deciding the
victor. Each of these states require special care to induce them to your side. There is no clear-cut, winning line of play. The Union military strategies include capture of the Mississippi River and Rebel ocean ports, the occupation of key
locales including the Rebel capital, factory sites, and Rebel supply areas, the expansion into enemy territory, the interdiction of Rebel supply lines, as well as the destruction of Rebel land forces. For its part, the Confederacy needs
only to play good defense, but it can augment its military strategy by attempting to influence the alignment of the Border States or the US elections, by instigating foreign involvement or by invading Northern territory to capture
objective sites or the Union capital. Initially its superior military leadership can provide the Rebels with an opportunity to secure combat victories to advance its cause but as this advantage wanes, during the game, the Rebel player may
choose to invoke a guerilla insurgency as a final attempt at victory.
The key to waging successful campaigns depends upon developing leaders with an ability appropriate to the military task, whether offensive, defensive, or
the moving and training of troops. Placing key leaders with the necessary forces in position to accomplish a task is crucial. Leaders arrive in the game via the play of Strategy cards. Players may select the cards in any order, but if
played as the events occurred historically, the leaders will attain their effectiveness as they did during the Civil War. Each leader has a rank based upon his military seniority and assumes command over less senior leaders during any
attack or defense within his command radius. Players may promote some leaders to army command according to the order of their seniority. Early in the war the Union player will find it difficult to sustain many offensives because of a lack
of dynamic leadership. McDowell, Halleck, Fremont and Butler will prove to not be the most competent of commanders and will appear especially weak when confronted by Rebel commanders, such as Beauregard, either Johnston, Robert E. Lee,
Jackson or Longstreet. The Rebels have an additional advantage early in the war, an effective cavalry arm. At first, the Union has no answer to Stuart, Forrest or Wheeler. As the war progresses, the Union player will be able to promote
more capable leaders, gain a cavalry force of its own and negate much of the initial Rebel advantage. The Union is better able to raise and sustain forces throughout the struggle, while the Rebel player may feel frustrated with the dearth
of his military, finding that he must carefully husband them for crucial moments.
Historically, each general was capable of only a specific level of command. The game rates each accordingly. Some are limited to leading only a Corps,
while others may command armies or even army groups, as time goes on. Some leaders arrive as Political or Regional leaders with certain limitations and restrictions. The game also contains several "what if" possibilities, including the
promotion of certain leaders to a higher command than they historically achieved. Because it is not always possible to predict how qualified or successful a man would be in command of larger forces, the performance of these leaders varies
from game to game. A table determines how well those leaders perform. For example, Stonewall Jackson will command an army extraordinarily well, during some games, while at other times he will be quite ordinary.
Supply is essential
for both movement and combat and is achieved in a number of ways, including roads, rail, the capture of enemy supply trains and via foraging but can also be blocked by enemy infantry forces, and cavalry raids. Weather affects movement and
combat each game turn. The use of naval forces, cavalry and artillery units in the game reflects the ability of those forces during the mid-19th century to aid the infantry in combat. Cavalry is not usually directly involved in combat with
infantry, but provides screening for other forces, reconnaissance of the enemy, capture of enemy supply trains, and the destruction of supply lines, including railroads. Naval forces provide for the control of ocean and navigable river
Naval Zones, the transport of troops to occupied ports, the amphibious assault of enemy territory and support for ground forces as well as for harbor defense. Artillery Support represents the reserve artillery forces associated with an
army and can augment an army's attacks or defense. The game includes many different scenarios, both historical and speculative, allowing for varied and exciting game situations at all stages of the war from the initial build-ups in 1861 to
the final assaults of 1865. "What if" scenarios include situations that did not arise historically such as the direct action of French forces from Mexico on behalf of the Rebels, or the secession of Kentucky or Missouri from the Union.
The game pieces include 103 leaders (corps, army, cavalry and naval), infantry step units (division, corps, wing and army), garrison, artillery, militia and fortress units, elite brigades, special units and assorted markers. In
addition, there is a 100+ page rules book, which includes many examples, references and scenarios. The rules divide into a basic set of rules, two sets of supplemental rules adding increasing complexity to the game, and many optional rules
that add nuance and aid in balancing play between opponents of different abilities. There are two large hex maps; two force pool displays, player aid sheets, 352 large iconic counters and one deck of 110 Strategy Cards. Barry Altshuler
Est. Retail: $100 (Est. Pledge $75).
Barry has a site with more information regarding the "Mine Eyes" game. Click here
Here is a link to a PDF with some Strategy and Addendum Cards from the game and some representative game piece art is coming soon.
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