Loyalty or Liberty? is a detailed and highly–customizable deck–building tactical war game of the American War of Independence. In allowing characters to partake in hypothetical battle scenarios (or maybe even recreate historical small scale ones), it is the product of many years of hard work trying to construct a card game which strikes a balance between casual and hardcore rules systems, historical accuracy, and financial expense, while still providing a fun wargaming experience.

How to Play

Using a point buy drafting system, each player picks one of the nine factions (British, French, Spanish, German, Loyalist, Rebellion, and a collection of Native American nations) to belong to and constructs armies, each comprised of event cards (which manipulate the battlefield situation) and soldier cards (with unit types ranging from a variety of infantry, cavalry, and artillery, each with unit and cultural-specific special abilities, appropriate starting weapons, morale thresholds, movement values, costs, etc.), along with currency cards to allow them to deploy each of the aforementioned. In addition, the better to further modify your deck, players may also determine which weapons, both melee and ranged, may be used in the battle to come. Officers are also appointed at this time, which will lead the men into battle, offering a variety of passive boons.

With this task completed, players then randomize the playing field, taking turns rolling initiative to determine who places a number of cards equal to the officer’s “Scout” value on a 5x5 playing field first for that round. When all the cards are in place the battle can begin.

To take steps toward victory in these ways, you will find yourself deploying the men you've drafted using the cards from your currency deck, into which both your Lady Luck and Deployment cards are shuffled. To win you must fight off the enemy hordes and ravage enemy encampments on the enemy’s side of the field. Combat is joined by firing at or charging the enemy positions by rolling ten-sided dice that, with such modifiers as weapon type, terrain and cover, formations, and more, must beat the “defense value” of the opposition to inflict “casualties.” If the casualties of a unit supersede its “morale threshold,” the officer on the other side gets a chance to make a “rally check,” to keep the stricken unit on the field. If that fails, the unit routs and is lost from the battle, and that side’s morale suffers accordingly.

Victory in Loyalty or Liberty is contingent upon reducing enemy morale from an agreed upon number for each side, to zero, forcing an enemy retreat, or otherwise eradicating all enemy troops on the field. These goals may be similar, but one may come before the other.