Flying Colors
2003Mike Nagel
- Videos
- 49
- Creators
- 17
Mainly playthroughs. Flying Colors is covered on BoardGameVideo.com by 2 reviews, 6 how-to-play guides, 30 recorded sessions, 9 unboxings, and 2 other videos.
1 - 4 players
240 min
Heavy weight: Expect a long teach
From BoardGameGeek
Flying Colors recreates naval actions during the height of the Age of Sail, from small engagements to full battles involving dozens of ships in each fleet. Play is fast, furious, and does not require the pre-plotted movement found in many other naval games. Instead, a simple initiative and command system allows players to activate and maneuver their fleets in a realistic manner, indicating how older commanders adhered to rules of engagement where more forward thinking commanders, like Nelson, could retain control of their fleets after the first broadsides began to be exchanged. Rather than focusing on the abilities of individual ships, Flying Colors uses broad classes of vessel within each "rate" and concentrates the players minds on maintaining command of their fleets using a simple command system. This is not a strategic level game where one piece represents several ships. Flying Colors includes individually named ships rated for size, gunnery, boarding ability, and damage capacity. Also included are nearly four dozen individually named commanders, rated for their ability to control their formations as well as the impact of their presence within the fleet. The game system provides what naval enthusiasts will expect in a tactical Age of Sail game: broadsides, rakes, anchoring, wind effects, weather, shore batteries, and much more. All this is packed into a short, accessible rulebook. Included within the game are historical scenarios [...]. The battles range in size from small engagements playable on a single map through huge engagements like the Glorious First of June playable on three maps. Players are also free to create their own variants and "what-if" scenarios using point values for each ship. Most scenarios can be played within a few hours and two players can complete even the largest within a day. Several are also well suited to solitaire play. TIME SCALE : 5-10 minutes per turn MAP SCALE: 100 meters per hex UNIT SCALE: Individual Ships NUMBER OF PLAYERS: One to Four (from GMT website and BGG users)
Watch first
Which Flying Colors video should I watch?
Flying Colors has 49 videos from 17 creators: 2 reviews, 6 how-to-play guides, 30 playthroughs, 9 unboxings and 2 other videos. They date from 2011 to November 2024.
To learn the rules, start with "Flying Colors - intro" by calandale, which runs 1 h 15 min. For a quicker teach, "flyingcolors prezcon" by Charles Cabell runs 7 min.
For an opinion before you buy, start with "Flying Colors - review" by calandale. To see it played, watch ""Flying Colors" - musing and thoughts with Wooden Ships and Iron Men" by Gilbert Collins, one of 30 playthroughs.
If you like it, try Off the Line, Captain's Sea, 1914 Deluxe: Hell Unleashed and Under the Southern Cross: The South American Republics in the Age of the Fighting Sail, also by Mike Nagel.
All videos
8 of 17
Creators who cover this
calandale
11 videos of this game
Dave Murray
11 videos of this game
Hethwill Wargames
10 videos of this game
Hexmagazine - Historyczne granie
3 videos of this game
Charles Cabell
2 videos of this game
Ardwulf's Lair
1 video of this game
Blastpop
1 video of this game
Camp Sawyer
1 video of this game
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About Flying Colors
From BoardGameGeek:
Flying Colors recreates naval actions during the height of the Age of Sail, from small engagements to full battles involving dozens of ships in each fleet. Play is fast, furious, and does not require the pre-plotted movement found in many other naval games. Instead, a simple initiative and command system allows players to activate and maneuver their fleets in a realistic manner, indicating how older commanders adhered to rules of engagement where more forward thinking commanders, like Nelson, could retain control of their fleets after the first broadsides began to be exchanged. Rather than focusing on the abilities of individual ships, Flying Colors uses broad classes of vessel within each "rate" and concentrates the players minds on maintaining command of their fleets using a simple command system. This is not a strategic level game where one piece represents several ships. Flying Colors includes individually named ships rated for size, gunnery, boarding ability, and damage capacity. Also included are nearly four dozen individually named commanders, rated for their ability to control their formations as well as the impact of their presence within the fleet. The game system provides what naval enthusiasts will expect in a tactical Age of Sail game: broadsides, rakes, anchoring, wind effects, weather, shore batteries, and much more. All this is packed into a short, accessible rulebook. Included within the game are historical scenarios [...]. The battles range in size from small engagements playable on a single map through huge engagements like the Glorious First of June playable on three maps. Players are also free to create their own variants and "what-if" scenarios using point values for each ship. Most scenarios can be played within a few hours and two players can complete even the largest within a day. Several are also well suited to solitaire play. TIME SCALE : 5-10 minutes per turn MAP SCALE: 100 meters per hex UNIT SCALE: Individual Ships NUMBER OF PLAYERS: One to Four (from GMT website and BGG users)
Designer
Mike Nagel
Artists
Rodger B. MacGowan, Mike Nagel, Mark Simonitch
Publisher
GMT Games
Categories
Age of ReasonAmerican Revolutionary WarNapoleonicNautical
Mechanics
Dice RollingGrid MovementHex GridLine of Sight