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Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War
2024
Rules assistance for Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2 players
- 20–30 min
- 10+
- Complexity 1.2/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War is a board game released in 2024 for 2 players, 20–30 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Stephen Baker, Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, Noah Cohen, and Brian Neff and its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Hand Management, and Variable Set-up.
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About the game
Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War is a restoration of Crossbows and Catapults, the 1983 classic game of kinetic warfare. Each player builds their castle, then players take turns using their weapons to fire discs at their opponent's castle, trying to knock over their warrior figures. This new version features highly engineered weapons, more detailed building bricks, and deeper game play. The new weapons no longer use rubber bands, replaced by spring-powered and pinch-to-fire technology that ensure reliable velocity and reward player skill. On the building side, castles are constructed using a variety of detailed components to allow for larger, more intricate, and more varied structures. With 300% more bricks than the smaller version Castle Battle and with special new pieces, you'll build legendary fortresses that tower over the battlefield! Fortress War also features detailed mercenary miniatures, special ammo and a deck of asymmetrical tactics cards let you take special actions and recruit mercenaries to the battlefield, where they'll use their unique abilities to turn the tide in your favor. On your turn, take two actions: Move or Fire. Do them in either order, or do the same one twice. Knock down all the enemy warriors and their general to win! —description from the publisher
Categories
Publishers
- Goliath Games
- Restoration Games
Questions and answers
Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War 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 Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War is 20–30 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 Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War for ages 10 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.
Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War has a complexity rating of 1.2 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a 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.
Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War belongs to these categories: Action / Dexterity and Medieval. Its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Hand Management, and Variable Set-up. 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 Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War are: Stephen Baker, Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, Noah Cohen, and Brian Neff. 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 Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War 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.