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Wooden Ships & Iron Men cover
1974BGG rank #2,152

Wooden Ships & Iron Men

by S. Craig Taylor · The Avalon Hill Game Co

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Players2
Time60–300m
ComplexityMedium
Age12+

About the game

What is Wooden Ships & Iron Men?

Wooden Ships & Iron Men is a Tactical level Nautical board-wargame - Fighting ships in the Age of Sail !!! This classic title details military engagements in the golden Age of Sail with a plethora of historical scenarios. Players take their groups of ships and form their ship lines and then go at it. The game comes with a large generic ocean map overlaid with a hex grid. The ship counters occupy two hexes and include special rules for moving and firing with this design. Players can begin with the smaller scenarios and work up to whole fleets engaged in pitched battle. Avalon Hill Complexity Rating - 6

How it plays

Mechanics

Action QueueDice RollingHexagon GridLine of SightSimulationSimultaneous Action Selection

On the shelf

Categories

Age of ReasonAmerican Indian WarsAmerican Revolutionary WarNapoleonicNauticalPiratesPost-NapoleonicWargame

Questions players ask

Questions to bring to BoardGameBrain

  • How do setup and the first turn work in Wooden Ships & Iron Men?
  • When does scoring happen and what ends the game?
  • How should the table resolve an unusual timing or rules interaction?