Seapower & The State

Seapower & The State is a strategic study of World War 3 at Sea. The game examines the worldwide state of naval affairs from 1984-1994 as related to major conflicts in this two-player simulation game of moderate complexity on the grand strategic scale. The viewpoint of the simulation is that of grand strategy and thus has the players acting as the overall commanders of the naval forces of the Eastern or Western alliances. Numerous scenarios are presented for various force levels for different time periods. Designed & developed by Stephen Newberg, this substantially upgraded 2nd edition includes all of the aspects of the original with more components and all-new artwork.

If major war had broken out in the last two decades of the previous century, the oceans of the world would have been the scene of some of the most intense military conflict in the history of mankind. Since the Second World War naval science has undergone two major technological revolutions that have completely altered the types of weapons available to naval forces and the naval forces themselves. This has changed the interrelation-ship between the three major types of naval platforms, namely the aircraft over the sea, the warships on the surface of the sea, and the submarines beneath the sea. The first of these revolutions was the development of nuclear propulsion systems, leading to true submarines, for the first time untied to the sea’s surface. The second was the application of electronics and computer systems to all forms of naval platforms, resulting in enormous increases in the detection and destruction capabilities.

Seapower & The State examines this worldwide state of naval affairs as related to major conflicts in a two-player simulation game of high complexity on the grand strategic scale for the time period from about 1984-1994. Detailed systems depict the capabilities and liabilities of the aircraft, surface warships, and submarines of the period as individual platform types and in combined mutual support teams in the light of the expressed naval doctrines of the time. The game system covers various levels of conflict ranging from crisis atmosphere maneuvering with no actual combat through mutual strategic nuclear warfare strikes, including such aspects as:

• reconnaissance
• communications
• navigation
• anti-satellite type satellites
• seabed sonar arrays
• global trade shipping lanes
• mines
• anti-aircraft
• anti-surface & anti-submarine warfare

Optional systems cover convoying, direct conventional & tactical nuclear attacks on bases, and weather. The game map is scaled to about 900 km per hex, with an expansion map for the European area and the Arctic ice cap. Units are represented by two sheets of 9/16 inch counters depicting various platforms from 90,000 ton nuclear aircraft carriers to 200 pound satellites.

Product Information:

• Complexity: 7 out of 10 (Medium)
• Solitaire Suitability: 6 out of 10 (Medium)
• Time Scale: 1 Turn = 4 days
• Map Scale: 900 km per hex
• Unit Scale: Variable (from individual ships to groups of smaller warships and aircraft)
• Players: 2 Players (also suitable for solitaire or team play)
• Playing Time: 6 – 9 hours

Components:

• One mounted map (22 x 34 inches)
• One mounted Europe map (11 x 8.5 inches)
• Two Counter sheets (9/16 inch counters)
• Five Player Aid Cards (single-sided)
• Two Player Aid Cards (double-sided, identical)
• One Rules booklet
• Two 6-sided dice
• Box and Lid

Game Credits:

• Designer: Stephen Newberg
• Project Director: Julian Thomas
• Artist: Knut Grünitz