SGS Battle for Fort Donelson is a tactical game, the first in an SGS series dedicated to the great battles of the American Civil War (1861-1865). With a new gameplay specially created and designed to simulate the characteristics of the armies and battles of the period, it recreates, at infantry regiment scale, with a turn-based system representing one hour and zones of around 300 meters, the few days of fighting around Fort Donelson, on the banks of the Cumberland River in northwest Tennessee, in February 1862.

It was one of the first and most important battles of the war, and the first major success for General Ulysses S. Grant. Grant, with decisive consequences for the rest of the conflict. By seizing Fort Henry in the middle of winter and forcing the 15,000-strong garrison of Donelson to surrender, Grant inflicted a disaster on the Confederacy, opening the gates to the invasion of the "Deep South" to the Union armies, while forcing the "Grays" to evacuate Kentucky and the precious capital of Tennessee, Nashville, 60 miles away.

Yet this battle was far from won in advance. Grant and his 20,000 men had their work cut out for them, and even came close to disaster, winning by the skin of their teeth thanks to the panic of their opponents. As a Union player, you'll have to do at least as well: seize the fortifications and crush the "rebel" army against you, or at least, with the help of Commodore Foote's armored river gunboats, shake their morale enough to surrender. There are many ways to win... or lose.

As a Confederate player, with the heterogeneous troops of Generals Pillow, Floyd, Buckner and Jonhson, you'll have to hold out for several crucial days, and, why not, counter-attack to teach the "Yankees" a lesson and keep your retreat routes open. The morale of your troops, simulated by a gauge that varies with events, is a central element of the game. But you'll have assets on hand, starting with solid fortifications, powerful coastal batteries protecting the river, and troops large enough to keep the North at bay... provided they're well used.

One of the particularities of this game compared to others in the SGS range is, given the scale of the game, the small number of replacements available: sure, a few "stragglers" will occasionally fill out the ranks of your most tried-and-tested regiments, but don't expect to be able to sacrifice your forces in repetitive, poorly-organized "push-pull" assaults.

You'll only have one army, and your role is to prevent it from falling to pieces. Will you succeed in repeating Grant's feat or, on the contrary, turn the tide of the Civil War in favor of the rebellion? It's up to you to prove it.

Vincent Bernard

SGS Battle For: Fort Donelson

Vincent Bernard

SGS Battle For: Fort Donelson