The War in Virginia: 1862-1865 by Powder Mill Games – Does anyone remember this game? This is a classic, old school, American Civil War boardgame! This game is hard to find because it was published by a small, long defunct, company in 1979 called” Powder Mill Games”. PMG was based out of Augusta, GA and I don’t think they printed too many copies of this game. I was fortunate to be a kid living in Augusta at the time, and being  a confirmed  “Civil War nut”, and Avalon Hill boardgamer, my parents figured that I would enjoy this game, so I received  it as a birthday gift in 1980 or so. They were correct, it’s a fantastic game!

The War in Virginia: 1862-1864. This is what the box looks like. It was written by D. Alan Stahl and published by Powder Mill Games in 1979, Augusta, GA.

This is a game obviously focuses on the ACW in Virginia after the first year of the war. In terms of scale, each game counter equals approximately “a force equal to four infantry brigades, with artillery”. The game plays smoothly and differs refreshingly from the “typical” military boardgame of the 1970’s and early 1980’s. The game features a square map movement system, where CSA units may move diagonally and Federal units may not, due to familiarity with the terrain. Invading units (mostly the USA) will move about 33% slower. Another nice difference is the combat chart, which features a distinctly “non-Avalon Hill ratio” way of resolving combats. There is one chart to calculate a “situation number” and then a d12 roll is made on another table and the result is cross-referenced.

The map board and the starting positions. The CSA doesn’t stand a chance, do they? I really enjoy this hand drawn board, the calligraphy and all the small, artistic details.

The game includes rules for: railroad travel, capturing/destroying RxR stations, the Valley Pike, navigable rivers, capturing cities, field fortifications, lines of supply/communication, and alternate game set-up. All in all it’s a very comprehensive set of easy to play rules.

A close up of Lee and his troops in their starting position in Richmond. One of the tough early decisions is how many troops to send on the offensive and how many to defend Richmond.

We played this a lot back in middle school and it’s been one of my fall-back games since then. We recently got it our and played it and had a great time. Our latest game saw the USA bottled up in D.C., while Lee, Longstreet and Stuart concentrated on Banks at Harper’s Ferry.

A nice touch you don’t see too often anymore – a hand signed and numbered copy of the game! Powder Mill Games is named after the Confederate Powder Works in Augusta, GA that produced gunpowder for the CSA from 1862-1864. One of the chimneys still stands today, and is a local Augusta landmark.

The massive Federal force in Washington at the start of the game.

The rulebook does seem dated by today’s standards. If I find the time I might write and post some quick play reference sheets( pdf’s) clarifying the movement rules, and adding some improved victory conditions. The original game’s victory conditions focused on capturing all the generals of the opposing side by destroying its armies and/or causing the Union to lose so many units that they can no longer continue the invasion of Virginia. I’m looking at using a victory point system that considers things like: units lost, generals killed, towns captured, etc.

The game components.

Another improvement would be to better calculate and deal with the passage of seasons and time in the game. It would also be nice to introduce new generals. I definitely don’ t feel like Banks, McClellan and McDowell should be in charge in 1865! It would also be nice to introduce a few “leader modifiers” for different leaders (+1 to movement, +1 to combat, etc). Anyway, that’s a project for a future blog post!

The rulebook

Copies of these games are hard to find. I would suggest checking eBay, Noble Knight, and Boardgame Geek for copies. It’s a great game that every die-hard ACW board-gamer should have in his collection.

If you have any additional  information on Powder Mill Games, please leave a comment or contact us!

Thanks and Good Gaming – Cory