How to Make a Civil War Game on Cardboard

Create the Game

• 1

  Sketch out game squares onto your cardboard with a pencil. You will need all the squares to connect and form a winding path around the board. This will be the path your players follow during the game. You will need at least 50 squares.

• 2

  Number every second to third square, using the numbers one through 18 with your pencil. Make sure the numbers are in consecutive order in the direction your players will move from start to finish.

• 3

  Trace your squares and numbers onto the board with your marker.

• 4

  Label your "Start" area at the beginning of the game with your marker. Write, "Abraham Lincoln is elected. South Carolina secedes in a display for states' rights. In total, 11 states secede and form the Confederate States of America." This will mark the beginning of the game and the start of events that began the Civil War.

• 5

  Label your "Finish" area of the game with your marker. Write, "Have you succeeded in reuniting the Unites States of America, or have the states been thrown into further turmoil? What will happen next?" This announces the end of the game and incites further discussion about postwar events and what could have happened if the Confederacy had won the war.

• 6

  Label 18 index cards one through 18 on the unlined side with your marker.

• 7

  Write one Civil War event on each of the 18 cards, making sure the order of events follows the sequence of numbers.

How to Play

• 8

  Set up the game. Decide whether playing with one or two dice to move across the board and, using your Green and Blue soldier figurines, which players will be Union (North) or Confederate (South) soldiers -- you must have at least one player on each side. Any colors can be substituted but designate one color to either Union or Confederate. You should also make sure your index playing cards are in order from one to 18.

• 9

  Players take turns rolling a die. The player with the highest number begins the game.

• 10

  Each player takes turns rolling the die/dice to progress across the board. Draw an index card each time you land on a numbered space. Follow the directions on the card as pertain to your soldier's allegiance (whether you are playing a Union or Confederate soldier). The game is over when one player is able to move his soldier to the finish.