What is Julius Caesar?
Julius Caesar brings the drama of the Roman Civil War (49-45 BC) to life. Players take control of the legions of Caesar or Pompey and fight to determine the future of Rome: republic or empire. Marc Antony, Cleopatra, Octavian, and Brutus also play key roles.
You use cards to Move, levy or play an Event. 13 victory point Towns or Cities are depicted on the 17″x 33″ (43 x 84 cm) game board of the Mediterranean. Take command of Caesar’s Veteran Legions or Pompey sprouting Young Legions around the Mediterranean.
You decide how best to defend or conquer the Republic. With endless possibilities at your disposal, this game will keep your adrenaline pumping.
The “Columbia Block System”
Hammer of the Scots is a Columbia Block System game. The game information for each piece is facing the player, but not the opponent! This allows a “fog-of-war” aspect of play that allows an extra layer of subtlety to gameplay. It allows for feints, bluffs, and outright surprises!
Also, it has a step reduction system built into place as well! As units take damage, they simply are rotated to show their new strength. It is an innovative design that has been a fan favorite of gamers in the know for years!
Download the Rules!
Want to dive into a little light reading? Then download the rules! It is an easy read and only 8 pages long!
Learn the “Columbia Block System” right now!
What makes Julius Caesar also special is that it uses the “Columbia Block System“. It’s a system with the fog-of-war built into it that keep each opponent guessing! The combat system is simple and easy adapted for other genres with simple tweaks.
Go ahead and watch this short video that will get you up to speed in a matter of four minutes.
Afterward, be sure to download the rules to read the rest.
What do the Experts Say?
My favorite wargame. The best. If you buy one wargame, this is it.
Brilliant! Columbia Games imperative game. Just a map, blocks, stickers, all full of colors, and a rulebook. Great design!
Nobles changing sides and high degree of randomness in English army draw make it a very fun block game, not at all brain burner. Assimetry of positions and strengths is also great.
What i like the most: war is very dinamic.
I love this game. The game is very well balanced (even if it doesn’t seem like it at first) and plays brilliantly into the theme.
The Scots were outnumbered against the might of the English army (and being Scottish I’m loathe to admit that!) and so the game seems in favour of the English player who starts each round with more blocks than the Scottish player. In this, the English player can “hammer the Scots” player seemingly quite easily. But the secret to the Scots players victory is carefully outmaneuvering his opponent, choosing his or her battles carefully and taking advantage of the border limits to slow the English players’ advance into Scotland.
A brilliantly designed game and the fog of war aspect just adds to the tension.
Block wargame with a great theme, one of my favorite periods of history. A strategic intermediate-level game. Asymmetrical – the English and Scottish plays very different. Playing with the Scottish is harder, otherwise the game seems to be balanced. Very interesting mechanics for wintering and nobles changing sides.