Samurai: Warfare in 16th Century Japan

About this board game

Samurai: Warfare in 16th Century Japan is a two-player historical wargame with an approximately 180-minute play time, covering the major battles of Japan’s Sengoku Jidai, the Age of Warring Daimyos.

The game is the fifth entry in the Great Battles of History series and presents a streamlined approach to the system. Its revamped command structure reflects clan-based leadership, while simplified shock and fire mechanics make the battles easier to play than earlier entries in the series.

Individual samurai add a distinctive personal dimension to the battlefield. They can challenge opposing samurai to collect important severed heads; ignoring a challenge means losing face and may even force a leader to commit seppuku on the spot.

• Okehazama, 1560: Oda Nobunaga wins a remarkable victory with a force outnumbered about six to one, amid burning castles and thunderstorms.
• Anegawa, 1570: Nobunaga takes the offensive against his treacherous brother-in-law, Nagamasa.
• Kawanakajima, 1561: Uesugi Kenshin seeks to destroy Takeda Shingen once and for all.
• Mikata-ga-hara, 1572: Takeda Shingen faces the young Tokugawa Ieyasu.
• Nagashino, 1575: Takeda cavalry charges Oda’s volley-firing musketeers.
• Sekigahara, 1600: I. Mitsunari and T. Ieyasu clash in the decisive battle that would determine the Shogun.

With leaders including Oda Nobunaga, Takeda Shingen, Uesugi Kenshin, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, Samurai combines dramatic historical scenarios with command decisions and close personal confrontations. Turns represent 20 minutes, each hex covers 100 yards, and each strength point represents 100 men.