Grand strategy wargame

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources:  –  ·  ·  · scholar · JSTOR (September 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Part of a series on:
Wargames
show Types Military wargaming Recreational wargaming Level of War Grand strategy wargame Strategic wargame Operational wargame Tactical wargame Skirmish Genres Air wargaming Board wargames Computer wargames Miniature wargaming Naval wargaming
show People 19th century pioneers Johann Hellwig Georg von Reisswitz Julius von Verdy du Vernois (1832–1910) Fred T. Jane (1865–1916) 20th century Pioneers H. G. Wells (1866–1946) Don Featherstone (1918–2013) Tony Bath (1926–2000) Charles S. Roberts (1930–2010) Allan B. Calhamer (1931–2013) Phil Barker (born 1932) Gary Gygax (1938–2008) Redmond Simonsen (1942–2005) Jim Dunnigan (born 1943) Richard Berg (1943-2019) John Hill (1945–2015) Tom Dalgliesh (born 1945) S. Craig Taylor (1946–2012) Paddy Griffith (1947–2010) Larry Harris, Jr. (born 1948) Groups Castle & Crusade Society Game Manufacturers Association International Federation of Wargaming International Wargames Federation Johnny Reb Gaming Society Naval Wargames Society Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers Events Charles S. Roberts Award Gen Con Origins Game Fair World Boardgaming Championships
show Lists List of board wargames List of miniature wargames List of wargame publishers
v t

A grand strategy wargame or simply grand strategy game (GSG)^[1][2] is a wargame that places focus on grand strategy: military strategy at the level of movement and use of a nation state or empire's resources.

Scope of games[]

Grand strategy wargames typically focus on a war or series of wars, often over a long period of time. Individual units or armies may not be represented; instead, attention is given to theaters of operation. The resources of the nations involved may be mobilized as part of a long-term struggle. The simulation typically involves political and economic as well as military conflict. At the most extreme end of this is the branch of strategy games in which the player assumes the role of the government of an entire nation-state and in which not conducting war is a possibility, such as in Victoria: An Empire Under the Sun.^{[citation needed]}

Examples of grand strategy games where military tactics are highly abstracted or eliminated entirely include the board games Risk and Diplomacy. Another example which is slightly more realistic is Axis & Allies, although in it military factors are still highly abstracted. Games such as Rise and Decline of the Third Reich, Empires in Arms, and Empires of the Middle Ages are true wargames, in the sense that military units are specifically represented, and engage in direct combat based on specific military attributes. The Hearts of Iron, Europa Universalis, Crusader Kings, Supreme Ruler Ultimate, Hegemony and Total War series are examples of computer-based grand strategy games.^[3]

Gameplay and dynamics[]

Games use various techniques and features to simulate aspects of national military strategy. Some games simulate industrial production of resources and military units. Others may enable various diplomatic moves and alliances.^{[citation needed]}

For example, the game Axis & Allies utilizes a "price" for producing units, consisting of a quantity of production units allocated each turn and used to "pay" for each unit produced. Some games allow various nations to produce units at a set rate, corresponding to their actual real-world industrial and economic history.^{[citation needed]}

Academic use[]

Because grand strategy games go beyond simple warfare to deal with economics, geography, history, and politics, they are especially useful in education and studies of international affairs.^[4]

See also[]

• 4X
• List of grand strategy video games
• Government simulation game
• List of board wargames
• Wargame (video games)

References[]