Playing time would be about 4 hours for players who know the rules. Random events are usually relatively minor things, but the usual story applies - random effects can always be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Politics involves measuring each player's level of political support, which is a reflection of the support at home for your faction. Political points are spent to gain support of foreign countries, and lost when a player loses troops or regions, or when the Republican player doesn't support or suppresses his minor factions. Points are gained for destruction of enemy forces and capture of regions, and for the fact of having international support.
Players generate equipment points from home production and from international aid to build units.
The extent of support that players receive also dictates what units the players can build. If Italy is intervening for the Nationalists, then a number of Italian units become available. The movement and combat phase is traditional, despite the term battlegroup. This is merely a simple device for limiting the size of stacks in a game without hexes. The process of creating battlegroups also forces you to plan ahead.