
- BGG rank
- BGG #22,372
- BGG rating
- 5.7
Gettysburg
- 2 players
- 120–240 min
- Complexity 2.2/5
- 1958

1961
Rules assistance for Chancellorsville
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 2 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Chancellorsville is a board game released in 1961 for 2 players, 120 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Charles S. Roberts and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Grid Movement, and Paper-and-Pencil.
Chancellorsville was the third "Tournament" wargame from The Avalon Hill Game Co. It marked the introduction of hex based maps to the hobby (contemporaneously with D-Day and Gettysburg) It also marked an unfortunate experiment in early wargame map graphics -- instead of using illustrations to depict terrain features, the hexes were simply filled with a single color. The result was more mosaic than map. After a couple of years, Chancellorsville was dropped from the The Avalon Hill Game Co line. In 1974, The Avalon Hill Game Co released Randall Reed's revision of the game. However, by the mid 1980's Chancellorsville had vanished from the The Avalon Hill Game Co catalog. Re-implemented by: Chancellorsville (Second Edition)
Chancellorsville supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Chancellorsville is 120 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Chancellorsville for ages 12 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Chancellorsville has a complexity rating of 2.7 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Chancellorsville belongs to these categories: Wargame and American Civil War. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Grid Movement, and Paper-and-Pencil. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Chancellorsville are: Charles S. Roberts. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Chancellorsville as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.