Game Info
Year
2024
Players
2-4
Age
14+
Playtime
45 min
Collection
Ratings
Creator Score
Mechanic profile
Not enough video data yet
Vibe profile
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Description
Take charge of the formidable Roman legions and their allies. Command the powerful crossbowmen of the Han dynasty as they traverse unfamiliar deserts. Steer the renowned Greco-Bactrian cavalry, and fight for every oasis. Direct Hannibal's diverse array of mercenaries, elephants, and the Sacred Band of Carthage.
To lead is to walk the tightrope. Choose a faction, consider its ranks, assemble them into units, and as they fight, carefully balance their orders and sustain your forces in the field. The unique traits of each rank tile will make your units stronger, but combine too many and your units will become unwieldy.
Battalion: War of the Ancients is an accessible two or four-player game. Command a wide range of units from four playable historical factions, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Employ faction-specific tactics cards to outmaneuver your opponents. Compose your unique forces with rigor. Judge the tempo of battle with precision. Seize victory for your people!
—description from the publisher
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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 8
This page: 8
Sentiment:
pos 7 ·
mix 1 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–8 of 8
Video wrsejAlQt2Y
Rolling Dice & Taking Names Discussion at 34:43 sentiment: positive
video_pk 86725 · mention_pk 301973
Click to watch at 34:43 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Mimics miniatures game feel without miniatures
- Quick resolution
- Strategic depth
- Faction variety
- Tactile components
- Easy to transport
- Good examples in rulebook
- Can build own army
Cons
- Damage assignment rules can be confusing
- The number of cards in your deck is determined by the number of units on the board, which can lead to quick game ends if units are lost.
Thematic elements
- Ancient warfare
Comparison games
- Warhammer Fantasy
- Blitzkrieg
- Undaunted series
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Action Point Allowance — Players have a limited number of order discs to activate units, with subsequent activations becoming more expensive.
- Area Control — The game features sectors on a battlefield, with a win condition related to controlling the center sector.
- Card Driven Combat — Cards have special abilities that can affect combat, such as counterattacks or modifying dice rolls.
- Deck Building — The number of cards in your deck is determined by the number of units you have on the board.
- Dice Rolling — Combat is resolved by rolling dice, with modifiers based on unit abilities and the option to discard cards to add dice.
- Rank and File — Units are represented by cardboard pieces stacked to form ranks and files, moving and attacking together.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- If you can't correctly use a gas can, maybe you don't need to be on this earth.
- This is where I'm losing the translation.
- It's not as complicated as what we made it out to be.
- There's no strategy here. It's just have fun with these cards and and hope that you can um outplay your fellow players with uh making the right combos as you're building them.
- While the merry bells keep ringing, I thought there was something called a merry bell.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video -gr86AutUK0
Board Gaming Ramblings Other at 16:11 sentiment: positive
video_pk 86223 · mention_pk 281396
Click to watch at 16:11 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Very good
- Interesting mechanisms
- Had a great time playing it
- Very nice one
Cons
- Not going to stay in the collection
- Problem with dice rolls
Thematic elements
- War game
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Army building — Players can build their own armies with four different factions.
- Dice Rolling — The game involves dice rolls for combat, introducing randomness.
- Strategic placement — Players must strategically place units and attack at the best moment.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- something's going to happen that's never happened in keeper call history
- this is the first ever hi episode so we never done this before
- this is the one of the worst games I've played in a long long time
- the way we consume games which is not normal and you should not try to consume games the way we do because we do this for you
- my best with oranges is lemons because it has no oranges in it and it's fun
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video KJKtbF8KD40
Review at 0:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 69474 · mention_pk 165991
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Fast-paced conflict
- Unforgiving
- Unconventional
- Mechanically elegant
- Strategically daunting
- Detailed rank customization
- Unit abilities
- Engaging combat system (barrage, assault, charge)
- Damage system saps resources
- Victory conditions are clear (opponent's central lane empty, deck depletion)
- Tactics cards can swing battles
- Nuanced tactical depth
- Layered combat interactions
- Tight game length for experienced players
- Joy in unit composition and formation
- Four factions offer variety
- Exploration of faction strengths and rank pairings
- Bold Art Deco illustrations
- Feels like something new and bold
Cons
- Not for everyone
- Demands and deserves getting obsessed with
- Requires dedicated focus which can be hard to achieve with a typical game group
Thematic elements
- ancient conflict and tactics
- historical
Comparison games
- P's Premier second edition
- Undaunted series
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Area control (lanes) — set into the three divided lanes that make up a battle... Winning is measured either by your opponent having no units in their Central Lane at the start of the turn.
- Customizable units — each faction has loads of tiles called ranks that can be combined in various ways into units.
- damage system — damage to an opponent they either have to destroy the front ranks of the attacked unit with health equal to or higher than the damage or take their precious unspent command tokens and place them on their unit on their disorder side.
- Deck building (tactics cards) — draw a new special tactics card... draw a tactics card and their deck which is a very slim deck.
- Dice Rolling — strategy just as brutal as the dice rolls... roll dice usually three though Modified by various traits and any eights are Autos successes.
- Reaction system — unless your opponent takes a reaction to either counter charge or do a range attack at an oncoming charging unit both requiring that they spend their precious command tokens on your turn.
- Skirmish — head-to-head Skirmish game of ancient conflict and tactics.
- Unit Activation — you are either spending command tokens to activate a single unit for an attack... or you're rallying a rest turn where you recover your spent command tokens.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- The strategy just as brutal as the dice rolls.
- It is a mechanically very elegant but strategically very daunting exchange of turns.
- This is a game that demands and deserves getting obsessed with.
- Battalion feels like something new something really bold.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video xDTGUFkztos
Board Stupid Discussion at 2:25 sentiment: positive
video_pk 39669 · mention_pk 298286
Click to watch at 2:25 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Beautiful art by Roland McDonald
- Large-scale, theater-like battles that fit on a manageable table
Cons
- Requires table space and planning for full setup
- Quick-play format trades depth for speed
Thematic elements
- Lane-based tactical warfare with historical flavor
- Ancient Rome vs. Carthage; grand historical battles
- What-if battlefield scenarios with expanded box content
Comparison games
- Total War
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Army-building / point-based skirmish — Players assemble forces with points, adjusting for different battlefield conditions.
- Lane-based battle — Two lanes (and more) allowing quick-play historical battles on a tabletop.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Undaunted 2200 Kalisto is now out, it is out, ready to rock
- we've been releasing a new game every year for the last five years
- it's big historical battles we're playing Rome versus Carthage here
- Line of Fire Burnt Moon is the future of the Undaunted 2200 Series
- this is going to be the third in our Trilogy of Fabio games
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 4LhqLqiwys4
Board Of It Review at 0:00 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 37869 · mention_pk 296878
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
- Tight, tense, quick 30-minute play with bite-sized decisions
- Feels like commanding real armies and offers a strong Commander-centric experience
- Asymmetric factions and varied unit abilities create rich variety and replayability
- Pace and action economy are punishing yet satisfying for careful play
- Learning curve is manageable, offering growth and deeper strategy over time
Cons
- Significant randomness in dice can feel punishing and disconnect from outcomes
- Hits and damage do not always map cleanly to unit losses due to the disorder mechanic
- Player aids and card text sometimes omit important details, causing misinterpretations
- Redeployment rules are underdefined, and some mechanics (e.g., counterattacks) are not clearly documented
- Box contents and scale feel overpriced for what is included
- Tactics cards vary wildly in usefulness depending on scenario; some decks feel irrelevant
- Overall rule/documentation quality could be smoother; expansions or clarifications would help
Thematic elements
- Military command, tactical battlefield control, and risk/reward via an action economy
- Ancient battlefield clashes split across multiple sections, commanding historical-looking armies in a modular arena.
- Procedural battle scenarios with arcade-like execution and bite-size duels
Comparison games
- Undaunted Normandy
- Undaunted series
- Imperium Series
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Combat: Dice — Base three-die attack roll with additional dice for various conditions; hits are allocated to opposing units.
- Command tokens and disorder — Commands are spent to activate a unit; tokens can be flipped to disorder to preserve ranks but reduce immediate options.
- Dice-based combat — Base three-die attack roll with additional dice for various conditions; hits are allocated to opposing units.
- Rally and token refresh — Rally returns command tokens and flips tokens back from disorder, drawing a tactics card from the deck.
- Scenario structure — Players can play pre-made (set) battles or create their own matchups (mustard) in either 1v1 or 2v2 formats.
- tactics cards — Deck-based effects drawn on rallies or when a unit is defeated; multi-use and situational usefulness.
- Unit activation and cost scaling — Activating units with multiple ranks and abilities costs more command actions; more ranks increase complexity and options.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's tight tense very sharp game
- a really short sharp kind of roller coaster to ride
- you feel like a real Commander
- Battalion has a particularly nasty and tight action economy
- it's going for the price of a standard size board game and I just don't think I would be happy paying that much
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video azyZJ4CaSnM
Board Stupid Game Preview at 3:11 sentiment: positive
video_pk 32914 · mention_pk 297741
Click to watch at 3:11 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Condensed yet deep tabletop war game
- Strong design pedigree and artwork
- Flexible battle sizes and scenarios
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- Condensed tabletop war game with modular battlefield
- Ancient warfare across multiple civilizations (Roman, Carthaginian, Han Chinese, Graeco-Bactrian)
- Forges a core battle-building experience with tactical options
Comparison games
- Undaunted
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Combat: Dice — Combat uses dice and unit abilities
- deploy and command multiple factions — Four factions with shared combat rules
- dice-based combat resolution — Combat uses dice and unit abilities
- faction customization and victory-tactic cards — Tactics cards and unit ranks grant advantages
- range, charge, flank, etc. — Unit actions include ranged, charge, flank moves
- tile-based map and faction assembly — Tiles form a modular battlefield; build your own battle
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- the maps are pre-built there a board yeah it's a map board
- we've got four double-sided boards which give you a bespoke map for each of the eight scenarios in the game
- there's a narrative that pulls you through it
- you've got three types of dice over there so elevation comes to undaunted for the first time
- standies to represent some of the vehicles in this one
- it's two-player you've got four player and you have solo all in the same box
- I can't wait to play this game
- this is a sort of a condensed tabletop war game
- gorgeous art as well
- narrative heavy sort of Choose Your Own Adventure game setting
- you've got four agents that you are collectively in control of
- and you will be moving to a mission book which is full of narrative entries
- you are Bears to gain fishing spots along a river and those fishing spots will allow you to satisfy objectives and ultimately win salmon
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video gyovZhcUnP0
Board Stupid Event Coverage at 0:40 sentiment: positive
video_pk 32579 · mention_pk 96426
Click to watch at 0:40 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- tight action economy
- clever deployment decisions
- evocative visual language with simple minis
Cons
- initial learning curve for new players
- requires multiple players to reach full potential
Thematic elements
- Tactical deployment and skirmish combat
- Ancient battlefield with rank-and-file units
- Historical war-game flavor with evocative board setup
Comparison games
- Total War (video game intelligence)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- area/section combat — Attack decisions and line-of-play depend on deployment within or across map sections
- Closed Economy — Damage reduces a player's available actions, forcing retreat or loss of ranks
- restricted action economy — Damage reduces a player's available actions, forcing retreat or loss of ranks
- tile-based rank-and-file units — Units are represented by cardboard tiles organized into ranks on a battlefield
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's basically just cardboard tiles on a battlefield
- this is warham on cardboard
- it's a thing of beauty to look at and to play
- melted all of our brains at the end of the long Saturday
- amazing, amazing content coming from SP 2024
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video v-CF4mrQg8Q
Board Stupid Top 5 List at 12:33 sentiment: positive
video_pk 28105 · mention_pk 82216
Click to watch at 12:33 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Elegant, tactile war-game feel; strong artwork by Roland McDonald
- Clear asymmetry with strategic depth
Cons
- Abstract nature may not appeal to everyone
- Balancing between factions could be tricky
Thematic elements
- Historical warfare with abstracted mechanics
- Ancient world; Greeks vs Romans; dramatic warfare
- Abstract war with counters and strategic depth
Comparison games
- Warhammer (paper/cardboard representation)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Abstract war with modular units — units represented by simple counters that can combine
- Adaptive cards and events — cards trigger key moments and strategic choices
- Flanking and stacking bonuses — bonuses from unit size and positioning
- Symmetrical factions with unique strategems — each faction has special cards/effects
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- World Order is very very smart clever
- it's not going to be an easy game
- it's going to be low cost because it's just cards
- I'm super excited for this to come out
- it's an amazing two-player game
- one of the best two-player games ever released
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–8 of 8