Russia's leading game manufacturer, the Zvezda Company has announced the upcoming release of The Ships: Invincible Armada, the first naval combat game to use the Origins Award-nominated "Art of Tactic" game system devised by Konstantin Krivlenko for simulated military encounters.  The Ships starter set plunges players back to the 16th and 17th Centuries.  Each competitor becomes the captain of one or two sailing warships, English or Spanish.

 

At the beginning of each turn the captains write out their orders on special laminated cards.  The captains have to be mindful of wind direction, the depth of the water, and the condition of their ship.  They also have to anticipate the movements of their foes.  Once all the orders have been written, they are revealed and resolved at the same time.  The battle continues until one side is victorious, either by the destruction of its enemy or the completion of its goal.

 

The battles are presented on a modular game board.  The game comes with 9 double-sided boards with the sea on one side and coastline on the other.  Also included are a number of scenarios that gradually increase the complexity of the action by allowing captains to load their cannons with different forms of shot and issue more complex orders as they become more familiar with the game.  Future expansions will add new ships, new scenarios, coastal fortifications, and landing actions.