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Battle Line
From the Publisher...
Ancient Battles were fought in organized formations. The leaders of both sides directed their forces along the battle line to gain tactical advantage in order to overwhelm their opponent in the center, breakthrough one of his flanks, or hold their position until the time came for a decisive move. How will you muster your battle line? Your objective is to create powerful formations on your side of the nine Flags, in order to beat the formations on your opponent's side of the respective Flags. The first player to win three adjacent Flags (a Breakthrough) or any five Flags (an Envelopment) achieves victory. Based on Reiner Knizia's original design published in Germany as Schotten-Totten, Battle Line enhances and expands the game system to give players more tactical options and fun.
Battle Line is a two-player card game built around the theme of warfare during the age of Alexander the Great. Battle Line features 60 full-color Rodger MacGowan/Mark Simonitch cards depicting the prominent formations of the period (War Elephants, Heavy Cavalry, Phalanx, etc.) and 10 full-color tactics "wildcards" that give players extra flexibility and choices and help make each new battle wildly different from the last.
Battle Line takes about 30 minutes to play. To win, you must create powerful formations along your side of the line of battle that are superior to those of your enemy. Victory goes to the player who wins 5 of the 9 battle flags (an envelopment) or three adjacent flags (a breakthrough). Based on Reiner Knizia's original design published in Germany as Shotten-Totten, Battle Line enhances and expands that game system to give players even more tactical options and gut-wrenching decisions.
How will you muster your battle line? Will you use your elephants to trample a hole in the enemy front, or send Alexander to the front to win a critical flag? Maybe you'll dispatch the Companion cavalry to lead or reinforce a crucial point in the line, or perhaps you"ll rely on your spies to determine the enemy"s strengths and weaknesses before committing your best forces. You'll always have plenty of choices. With every card play, you'll determine the strength and direction of your attack while plotting to fend off your enemy's advances.
In Battle Line, you and your opponent lead the combined arms of the greatest units of the era. Will you, like Alexander, reign supreme? Play Battle Line, and find out.
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more information at the Board Game Geek website
Customer Raves - Write your own Rave about this game!
(Click on a person's name or game group to see other raves by the same person or group.
Laura Zhu
| This is a fantastic game for 2! If you like Lost Cities then I'm certain you'll like Battle Line. There's a little bit of luck involved but a whole bunch of skill is required. The tactic cards often level the playing field and help keep you motivated to keep trying to win even if you think all is lost. This game is expertly designed and keeps both my husband and myself happy. Plus, it's available in Chinese! |
A.J. Sansom
| Easy game to pack up and take anywhere with you. It also rewards players who can use logic to combat the luck that is inherent in the game. If you're a fan of logic style games, I actually think that this one will be right up your alley! |
Dog
| This game is well out of print and probably always will be, but it's still worth the time to recommend. The theme here is completely irrelevant but harmless - what's really going on is more like battle lines being drawn out between nine evolving hands of poker, with a continual hand management system and a fancy "tactics deck" for added spice. |
| Battle Line reminds me of another great 2-player game called "Lost Cities". In both games, you are constantly having to take chances in starting combinations of cards that depend on cards you don't have in your hand yet. This creates a lot of tension and difficult decisions - much more than usual for a 2-player game. |
| Nice card game that is better than Lost Cities. Bluff, manage your cards, and crush your opponents with the timely play of Tactics cards. |
Ken B.
| One of the better 2-player card games out there, Battle Line is like Lost Cities mixed with Poker. The tactics cards add just enough chaos that if you're not careful, a sure victory can turn into a rout in no time flat. Great game to play with your significant other, and in my opinion *better* than Lost Cities. |
Danny -
NYC Meetup
| Wonderful game. Players usually try to keep several cards in hand to surprise the adversary later in the game, but soon start to run out of options. A good balance between luck and strategy. Thumbs up by Me |
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