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Game description from the designer:
Commands & Colors: Medieval is based on the Commands & Colors game system and by design is not overly complex. The Medieval game introduces many new game concepts to the Commands & Colors system, which add historical depth and flavor. Some of the new concepts are:
Superior armor and status when battling
Cavalry units increase to 4 blocks
Heavy infantry battle dice are reduced from 5 dice down to 4
Light Bow Cavalry units can employ the Parthian Shot when they evade
Still, some Commands & Colors game mechanics remain familiar to players of other games in the system, like the deck of Medieval Command cards that drive movement while creating a “fog of war,” and the battle dice that will resolve combat quickly and efficiently. The stylized battlefield scenario maps emphasize the important terrain features and highlight the historical deployment of forces in scale with the game system. The scale of the game is flexible, and varies from battle to battle. For some scenarios, a unit may represent a Chiliarchy of soldiers, while in other scenarios a unit may represent just a few brave warriors. The battlefield tactics, however, that you will need to execute to gain victory conform remarkably well to the strengths and limitations of the various medieval unit types, their weapons, the terrain, and history.
The medieval battles showcased in the scenario book focus on the historical confrontations between the Byzantine Empire and Sassanid Persians (530 to 627 AD) with a slight detour to battle the Moors and their rebel allies (645 - 648 AD). The Byzantine Empire during this period of medieval history was one of constant transition and reorganization. Its army tended to mirror its eastern adversaries by deploying an increasing number of armored cavalry formations (Cataphracts) and more missile troops. Yet, it was how the Byzantines adapted their battlefield tactics in relation to the enemy it faced that is perhaps the chief reason for the longevity of their Empire.
Although the Byzantine army fought on other frontiers, against a multitude of opponents, Visigoths, Vandals, Ostrogoths, Franks, Alemanni, those conflicts are beyond the scope and space of this one package. Additional expansion modules that address those battles will be forthcoming.
- Hugely enjoyable system
- Adds way more variety to play due to different unit types and matchups
- Great for competitive play
- The CDG solo system is liked a ton and is a cool system for solo play
- Limits on card choices help keep the game moving at a nice clip
- Can be a bit swingy, not just in combat but also in card draws
- Solo system swings of luck can be more extreme due to limited card choices
- Sometimes stuck playing a card that isn't great
- Requires a learning investment due to more nuanced rules and unit variety
- Memoir 44
- Battle Lore
- Commanding Colors Ancients
- Wilderness War
- Twilight Struggle
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Banner Victory Points — Victory is generally achieved by earning a certain number of banners, usually obtained by fully defeating enemy units.
- Battle Back — If an attacking unit does not defeat or make the defending unit retreat, the defender gets to hit back.
- Card-driven wargame — Players use a hand of cards to activate units, move them, and attack, with cards indicating a side of the battlefield and how many units can be moved.
- CDG Solo System — A solo system where players don't see their cards, instead revealing them based on a die roll, creating limited information and forced choices.
- Dice combat — Combat involves rolling dice, with specific symbols needed to hit targets. Different unit types have different numbers of dice.
- Evade (Cavalry) — Mounted units can evade attacks from units of lower heaviness, allowing them to retreat without taking full damage.
- Flags (Combat Result) — Flags rolled in combat can cause units to retreat. Certain abilities or adjacent units can ignore flags.
- Flank Activation — The battlefield is divided into left, middle, and right flanks, and cards order units based on these divisions.
- Inspired Action Tokens — Special tokens that can be used to boost actions targeting leaders for 'super actions' or defensively to modify results.
- leader units — Leader units accompany specific units, making them stronger and more dependable, and can be a target for banners if defeated.
- Momentum Advance — After defeating an enemy unit or making them retreat, the attacking unit can advance into the defeated unit's space and potentially perform a bonus attack.
- Parthian Shot (Light Bow Cavalry) — A special ranged attack that light bow cavalry can perform as they evade.
- Swords (Combat Result) — A complicated combat result that can be ignored by certain units based on rank, heaviness, or unit type.
- Terrain effects — Special terrain can affect movement and combat, with hills providing a defensive advantage.
- Unit Health — Units have four health points, and fully defeating a unit earns a banner.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- So, how this solo system works is I'm playing both sides of the battle.
- But Commander Colors is a card driven war game.
- The GMT versions of Command and Colors games are awesome.
- For somebody who does not mind the idea of playing against myself, I think is a really cool system.
References (from this video)
- Mixing up the actions
- A lot of great scenarios
- A lot of great battles that I really enjoy
- No longer in collection
- Medieval Europe (Byzantine Empire, Franks)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Card-driven activation — It's the same kind of game, but it's mixing up the um actions here.
- Dice combat — Great dice combat.
- Flank-based movement — Activating the different sections of the board.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- My number 20, Apocalypse Road.
- My number 19, Plains Indian Wars.
- My number 18 is Commands and Colors Ancients. My number 17 is Commands and Colors Medieval.
- So, this is Combat Commander Europe, and that is my number 16.
- So, I'm actually hopefully they they can do this with with other people as well. I find other historical figures to place with like Augustus or Julius Caesar or uh Charlemagne or you know what have you, Alexander the Great. I think there's a lot of stuff you could do with this kind of a system. Uh but that is my number 15. I Napoleon.
- Still, I loved it. That is my number 14, Mr. President.
- So, that is uh my number 13, Commands and Colors, Samurai Battles.
- And that is why it is my number 12.
- So this is 1989 Dawn of Freedom. That is my number 11.
- Again, I DON'T KNOW WHERE I'M GOING and I don't know where I've been. IT'S A LONG TIME AND I'LL BE DYING.
- That sounds suspiciously like something a bear would write.
References (from this video)
- enjoyable clash of medieval powers
- refined rules compared to ancients
- some rule tweaks from ancients; not as familiar to some players
- Byzantines, Franks, and medieval powers clashing
- medieval Europe
- historical theater-style battles with a card/deck feel
- Ancients
- Samurai Battles
- Battlecry
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- block war game system — Variant of the Commands & Colors format tailored to medieval warfare.
- dice-based combat adjustments — Incorporates unit differentiation and dice outcomes for combat resolution.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- There' s just be some random carnage before the game played out.
- dragon cards... there were like a whole another deck of cards that can throw monkey wrenches into what you know your opponent's trying to do.
- it's such a great system and we ended up playing seven or eight games that night.
- I absolutely love the Napoleonic era, Napoleonic warfare.
- my number one Commands and Colors game of all time. That is Memoir 44 with the Overlord expansion.