Review: Shores of Tripoli
This is a rare and unusual Yankee Doodle Spies sequel segment. Although it is a stretch, I felt the need to review this board game because it portrays events that have some surprising connections to the time of the Yankee Doodle Spies. What spurs me to review this game? In a word, fun. Shores of Tripoli provides an entertaining and fascinating look at this seminal period in United States national security policy. Players learn while playing, and interact while learning. And they have fun. But I think I mentioned that.
Fort Circle Games
The designer and owner of Fort Circle Games, Kevin Bertram, writes of his inspiration for the game – Brian Kilmeade’s book on the subject, which is the American effort to suppress the Barbary (North African) States and their corsairs (pirates) at the dawn of the 19th century. I confess - I have not read the book, although I have read others on the topic and had seen the John Payne film, Tripoli as a youngster. In his designer notes, Kevin mentions he developed the game when he learned no one had done anything on the subject. I myself started playing board wargames when I was in 3rd grade. The first I recall was named Tactics II. I continued wargaming for decades and even dabbled in miniatures. As I read Kevin’s words, I realized he was right. So the game is groundbreaking for that little-known conflict.
The Mechanics
I am not referring to Paul Revere’s spy network, but how the game is played. I will leave it for others to do a play-by-play on the rules. And you can find many YouTube clips on the rules by Kevin and many players who enjoy the game.
The game is first a board game, with a map of north Africa that is simple and quite easy on the eyes. Key ports, such as Gibraltar (British held and neutral), Malta, Tripoli, Alexandria, and Derne are displayed. They are where most of the action takes place. You move ship markers, such as American, Swedish and Tripolitan frigates; American cutters, and Tripolitan and allied corsairs. You also have soldier markers: US marines, Hamet’s (deposed older brother and rival to Tripolitan ruler Yusuf Karamanli) mercenaries, and Barbary pirates.
Combat is via die rolling. This game has lots of die rolling. Luck trumps everything. I think Napoleon once remarked he would rather have a lucky general than a good one. But the game is really driven by card play. Players draw cards from a deck each turn. You can discard any card to make a move or play select cards to bring on reinforcements or implement several other procedural things. But the secret sauce is the Event Cards. They drive the game - setting up movement, combat, political action, and more. Players are constantly picking up, discarding, or playing cards as the game moves across four seasons a year over the years 1801 – 1806. They provide surprises, both good and bad. How a player uses the cards he or she is dealt can make up for bad dice and bad decisions. So keep an eye on them. And may the odds ever be in your favor.
The Result
The game gives players (it is a two-player game with a solitaire option that is cool) about an hour of fun and frustration. The American has lots of advantages such as big ships (frigates), US Marines, and Swedish allies. Yeah -Sweden! But the American has a lot to lose and closing the deal, which is assaulting and taking Tripoli, can produce a Ragnarök-like end to the game. The American player starts slowly as he builds up firepower by bringing on frigates and gunboats while those pesky pirates go on raids.
The Barbary player has less firepower but more flexibility. He can run out the clock. If the American player is too cautious, the barbary player may have time to launch enough raids to win by capturing treasure (gold-colored coins). Or he can win if the American fails to combine the right mix of naval and land power to take Tripoli. And though the American frigates are powerful, they are also an Achilles heel: losing four of them wins the game for the Tripolitan cause. This simulates the impact of American and European public opinion for suffering unacceptable losses. A draw is a win for the Barbary States but the Americans can use cards and shrewd maneuvers to force a treaty and win.
Either way, both sides have fun and learn a lot about this important but little-known event in American history.
The game comes with a very smart-looking historical supplement and designer notes that complement the rules quite nicely. The design, artwork, and layout are top quality. A fun feature is the “mock-up” of the 21 May 1801 letter to the Pasha and Bey of Tripoli, Yusuf Karamanli, explaining the reason for the friendly visit of the American squadron to the Mediterranean waters. Nice scene-setter providing atmospherics as you read President Jefferson’s assuring words.
Yankee Doodle Spies Sequel?
The war against the Barbary States was the first American attempt at overseas force projection. One of the consequences of the American War for Independence and American sovereignty was losing the protection of the mighty British Navy. This was clear during the undeclared naval war with France, an event that brought the rebirth of an American naval force centered around a small force of "super-frigates," which functioned as small and swift ships-of-the-line.
Key figures – Rev War Connections
I will now circle back to the American Revolution with some interesting connections between the Tripoli affair and the time of the Yankee Doodle Spies.
Thomas Jefferson
The most obvious is President Thomas Jefferson, the central figure in the event. The founding father and first Secretary of State tried to navigate a peaceful approach to the Barbary States’ demands for tribute - short of actually paying it. This was driven by the national pride of a newly independent and still insecure republic and the paucity of funds. His 21 May 1801 letter was his last-ditch attempt to negotiate. But the Bey of Tripoli had decided on war, declaring it on 14 May.
William Eaton
William Eaton is one of those badass historical figures who played a large role in a key event. Son of a middle-class New England farmer, young Eaton served in the Continental Army from 1780-1783, ending with the rank of sergeant at the age of 19. He got some schooling after the war and later became a captain in the new American Legion under famed Revolutionary War hero, Major General “Mad” Anthony Wayne in the war against the western Indian nations. There he faced some controversy and a court-martial for war profiteering and busting a prisoner from the goal. He received a 2-month “suspended commission.” In the whacky world of Federalist-era bureaucracy, he stayed on in the army and was appointed US Consul to Tunis in 1797. That made Eaton the point man for the US in the region. In 1804 he convinced the administration to conduct a special operation to bring Yusuf’s brother Hamet into the war. It was approved and Eaton led a small expeditionary force to Alexandria where they hooked up with Hamet and his motley mercenary army. With the marines and a few sailors as the core of the fore, they marched west to Derna and in a desperate struggle, took the city. But Hamet’s unreliability coupled with peace overtures scotched any further effort. Eaton would return to America heralded, but bitter.
Pressley O’Bannon
Arguably the biggest badass of the war (and the US Navy had substantial numbers of these) was a United States Marine officer, Lieutenant Presley O’Bannon. A native of Virginia and son of a Revolutionary War officer. O’Bannon entered the Marines in 1801 as a 2nd Lieutenant and was promoted to 1st Lieutenant the following year. He held a variety of commands aboard ship and off, and during the Derna operation, commanded a squad of 8 marines and a naval ensign. O’Bannon’s bravery and daring were demonstrated on 27 April 1804, at Derna. O'Bannon led the marines, some Greek mercenaries, and a few artillery gunners in a hell-raising charge through a deluge enemy musketry. Ignoring the buzz of lead about him, he seized an enemy battery and hoisted the American flag on the city’s walls. He then turned the captured cannons on the enemy. After two hours of hand-to-hand fighting, the fortress was taken. This was the first time the stars and stripes flew over a fortress of the old world in a time of war. O’Bannon received a jeweled Mameluke scimitar as his reward for his valor, and when he returned to Virginia, his home state presented him a commemorative one as well. To this day, marine officers wear a similar sword. After the war, he resigned his commission and moved his family west, settling in the bluegrass of Kentucky. Interesting Revolutionary connection: badass O’Bannon had married the granddaughter of the ultimate Revolutionary War badass – famed rifleman and General Daniel Morgan, of Winchester, Virginia.
Tobias Lear
Another interesting Revolutionary War connection was Tobias Lear. The New Hampshire native was conspicuous in not serving in the Revolutionary War but attended Harvard from 1779-83. Lear was an ambitious but capable player who worked his way up from tutor of Martha Washington’s grandchildren to become George Washington’s secretary and right-hand man. He was visiting his old boss at Mount Vernon when Washington died. Lear eventually worked his way into the graces of President Thomas Jefferson and in 1801 Jefferson appointed Lear Consul-General to the North African coast. In that capacity, Lear on June 4, 1805, negotiated a "Treaty of Peace and Amity" with Yusuf. It was a bitter pill for many Americans. Lear negotiated a ransom of $60,000 (equal to $1,024,400 today) that paid for the release of sailors from the USS Philadelphia and some American merchant ships. Ironically, the Philadelphia was to be the ship transporting him to the region but a delay to get married (to a Washington/Custis girl) had him sail on the Enterprise.
