John R. "Buck" Surdu
Pete Panzeri
First publishing 1992
2nd edition 2007
| Author: John R. "Buck" Surdu Pete Panzeri |
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| Publisher:LMW Works | |
| Date Published: First publishing 1992 2nd edition 2007 | |
| Period:Mexican American War | |
| Scale:Tactical | |
| Status: Available through Brigade Games, href-"http://www.oldgloryminatures.com">Old Glory, directly from LMW Works, or Amazon.com. | |
| Notes:Also available from Musket Miniatures |
Santa Anna Rules is actually two sets of rules, one for tactical battles and one for skirmishes. I wrote the tactical rules, and Pete Panzeri wrote the skirmish rules. Strong efforts were made to make the two systems compatible.
SAR(T) (a.k.a. SAR vol. 1) is my tactical System for larger battles. Volume 1 contains orders of battle and background information on the Mexican-American War and the Maximillian Adventure. In addition, this volume includes scenarios for Buena Vista, Churubusco, Puebla, and San Jacinto. Volume 1 includes several special mechanics to bring out the peculiarityes of this locality and era. It is designed to accurately portray the fell of battle in the "Santa Anna era" with each player controlling a brigade. While warfare of this period is Napoleonic-like, the Mexican-American War and the War of Texas Independence are neither Napoleonic wars nor like the American Civil War. Santa Anna Tactical Rules captures these unique aspects.
The second edition of SAR(T) corrects some typos and mistakes in the editions. There is an updated chart card. There was an issue that was discovered during the development of Wellington Rules that was corrected. In addition, I modified (slightly) movement effects of terrain. I also added scenarios for all the major battles of the Mexican-American war, except Monterrey. Mark Ryan wrote a history of the South Americans wars of liberation and a scenario for the battle of Maipu.
Santa Anna Skirmish (SAR(S)), Volume 2: Pete Panzeri's system for skirmish wargames. SAS is a very versatile, popular system, representative of combat during Santa Anna's era. Featured internationally in Old Glory convention demonstrations of the Alamo (with 1500 individually-mounted figures), Volume 2 focuses on numerous Alamo variations and scenario data for both the Texan and Mexican wars of independence, as well as the American and French conflicts. SAS is based on Pete's convention-proven Rules of Engagement system with simplicity and tactical speed of play as key game factors. While inexperienced gamers can quickly grasp SAS, combat nuances give it excellent depth and make it quite challenging for experienced gamers as well.
| Santa Anna Tactical | Scale | Santa Anna Skirmish |
|---|---|---|
| 1 infantry or cavalry figure = 30 men 1 cannon = 2 guns 1 artillerist = 10 men |
Figure | 1 infantry or cavalry figure = 1 to 5 men 1 cannon = 1 gun |
| 1 inch = 15 yards | Ground | 1 inch = 1 to 5 yards |
| 1 turn = 15 minutes | Time | 1 turn = 1 to 5 minutes |
| Brigade | Command Span | Company/Squadron/Battery |
Download a version of the charts for early American wars, such as Fallen Timbers, the War of 1812, and the Seminole Wars. This file is in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (.pdf). If you don't already have one, the Acrobat Reader can be downloaded from http://www.adobe.com .
The chart card for the Third Edition was bound into the book. This makes distributors happy. You can download a copy of the 2nd Addition Chart Card.
The Battle of Buena Vista as recreated with Santa Anna Rules at Cold Wars 98. The Mexicans marginally won the first game, the Americans smucked the Mexicans in the second game, and the Mexicans trounced the Americans in the third game. (Photos taken by Eric Schlegel)
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In SAR, figures are mounted individually, but for the tactical game, I put six figures on a magnetic movement stand. I highly recommend the magnetic movement stands made by Wargames Accessories, 7566 20th Street No., St. Petersburg, FL 33702 or (813) 522-6203 (in the evenings). |