Under the Southern Cross: Flying Colors Vol. IV: Essentials:
- No. of players: 1-4
- Playing time: 150-480 minutes
- Age: 12+
Under the Southern Cross: Flying Colors Vol. IV: - Rules of Play says:
Under the Southern Cross: The South American Republics in the Age of Fighting Sail is the fourth volume of the highly regarded Flying Colors series of games on naval combat. The focus is on the southern part of the South American continent: Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador, from the Wars of Independence starting in 1810 through the last naval war fought completely under sail between Argentina and Uruguay in 1841. These wars attracted naval officers recently unemployed by the end of the Napoleonic Wars as well as providing a proving ground for the first generation of naval heroes native to Latin America.
Updated rules introduce river and tidal currents, modified grounding rules for operations in the Rio de la Plata and Uruguay rivers, and the use of ship’s boats to tow stranded or becalmed ships. In all, over two dozen battle scenarios ranging in size from a handful of ships per side, to full-blown fleet actions are presented. Also included is the return of the popular ship duel map and activation cards originally found in Serpents of the Seas (Flying Colors volume II), along with 18 ship duel scenarios.