Has anyone on here played Sails of Glory by Ares Games? I’ve had the starter set and the USS Constitution sitting in my eBay cart for a few days now but haven’t pulled the trigger yet.
I got the starter set for Christmas a few years back. I think it's cool so I'm keeping it, but it doesn't hit the table very often.
It borrows a lot of mechanics from Ares' other game, Wings of Glory, if you're familiar with that. I find that managing more than one ship gets very time-consuming and fiddly. But for one-on-one ship duels it's pretty fantastic.
The best way to add more ships is to add more players, which works great because of simultaneous moves.
Ships are pretty small though, making them difficult to tell apart. If I were them, I would have scaled them up a bit.
They're pre-assembled and pre-painted, which is nice.
If you pick it up, check out the Anchorage fan page. They do solo campaigns which is a great way to get more plays in.
Other similar options:
Oak & Iron by Firelock Games (the Blood & Plunder 28mm pirate guys). Larger scale, earlier time period, pirate themed, optimized for more ships per player. Coming out this fall. Assembly/painting required.
Black Seas by Warlord Games. Borrows mechanics from Cruel Seas (haven't played, so I don't know how many ships per player is best). Larger scale, same time period. Also coming out this fall. Assembly/painting required.
Not going to lie, with two kids under four and the wife wanting another the “pre-assembled and painted” sounds very convenient. How much space do you typically need to set up a Sails of Glory match?
If I recall correctly, it's pretty flexible. The official game mat is 67 x 98 cm (26 x 39 in) so that gives you a rough idea of the table size they are expecting in order to let you maneuver around obstacles and stuff.
That sounds very reasonable! Thanks for the feedback.
The last War at Sea game I played was done on a 5’x8’ kitchen table and took a week to play out. But it was a lot of fun. Used every CA, BB, and CV that I own. I could only do it because my wife and kids were out of town.
A 5x8' table is plenty of room for a game. I own a considerable amount of the game, but don't get to play nearly as often as I would like. I find it strikes a nice balance between playability and realism. If you can get the starter, many of the expansion ships are still pretty easy to find.
I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast; for I intend to go in harm's way. - Captain John Paul Jones
There’s lots of availability on eBay for very decent prices. Most of my interest in the time period would be putting the Constitution up against 1-2 frigates or a frigate and 4th rate from various nations, so I think I could satisfy a lot of my desires with just the starter and the Constitution. The majority of the frigates are under $15 on eBay, so it’s much more affordable than WaS, and the scale of combat would be massively reduced.
Yeah... you have way more ships than I plan on purchasing. The battles I’m thinking about doing are much more “Master and Commander” (movie version) than Trafalgar.
Then again, I originally intended WaS to just be some US and Japanese ships... somehow I landed almost every mini made.
I really enjoy both the game play and the models in Sails. The only problem I have with it right now is that my playing partners (my kids - at least the ones who are interested in this kind of game) are too young. They would break the fragile little masts on the tall ships. I do have about eight ships or so, though. I've never met anyone else who plays. That's the problem...
Yeah, that's the problem. Its a beautiful game, but opponents are a little hard to come by.
I keep hoping they will release one more wave of ships. Santísima Trinidad, HMS Indefatigable, and USS Congress (or Essex) would just about do it for me.
I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast; for I intend to go in harm's way. - Captain John Paul Jones