Sword of Rome: Conquest of Italy, 362-272 BC (2004)

About this game

"The Sword of Rome" is the latest in GMT’s acclaimed line of card-driven board wargames. It uses the popular base system invented by Mark Herman and featured in Ted Raicer’s Paths of Glory. This time, event cards and point-to-point maneuver enable up to four players to recreate the vicious struggles among the peoples of Italy and Sicily in 4th and 3rd Centuries BC. Who will dominate the western Mediterranean–and with it earn the right to vie for control of the known world? The Sword of Rome includes rules and events for city loyalty, Roman colonies, tribal raids, Gallic indiscipline, Greek siege craft, Indian war elephants, Roman and Macedonian-style infantry tactics, the mountain fastness of Samnium, and much, much more. The game covers over 100 years of classical history in just 9 hands of cards. The interplay of each power’s special strengths, of the strategy decks’ 152 event cards, and of up to four players’ diplomatic acumen provides unlimited variety. But the rules remain at low-moderate complexity, and the familiar, underlying system is easily mastered. Expanded by: The Sword of Rome: 5th Player Expansion Sword of Rome: Deluxe Map Sword of Rome: Conquest of Italy, 362-272 BC Mounted Map

Does it fit your group?

• Group size. Works with 2 to 5.
• Rules load. At 3.3/5 this is a mid-weight game — expect a proper rules explanation before you start.
• Age. The publisher suggests 12 and up. That rates the rules rather than the artwork, so judge the box yourself for younger players.