A Glorious Chance: The Naval Struggle for Lake Ontario in the War of 1812 (2023)

Overview

Format: Board wargame and VASSAL module.

A Glorious Chance is a solitaire wargame that puts you in command of the U.S. or British naval squadron on Lake Ontario in the critical summer of 1813. You have four months to dominate the lake. But each patrol, each convoy mission, each amphibious landing you make to pursue victory risks full-scale battle with the AI squadron – a battle that could leave you triumphant or shattered in a matter of hours. A dynamic card-driven AI opponent assigns enemy missions, refits and launches new ships, and plots raids on your supply routes and coastlines.

Your objective: Control Lake Ontario by the end of the summer campaign, without losing your own squadron. The AI squadron's strategic objectives and battle tactics react dynamically to your moves.

Gameplay: Make decisions about ship missions and assignment zones. Scout and shadow enemy forces to identify them. Intercept detected enemy forces. Make amphibious assaults. Attack and defend supply convoys.

What's special about this game:

1. The only operational age-of-sail game that’s below monster size, playable in approximately four hours, and requires no specialized knowledge of ship-handling or period tactics.

2. This campaign has never before been the specific focus of a wargame. (To the extent that it appears at all in wargames, it’s either been part of a full-war strategic game, or a small scenario within tactical naval games that cover the general Napoleonic period.)