Ram Speed
Ram Speed, subtitled "Naval Warfare in the Bronze Age", is a two-player microgame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1980 that simulates naval combat between galleys in the Mediterranean during the Bronze Age when the preferred method of attack was ramming a ship. Description. "Ram Speed" does not simulate a specific battle. Instead, each player builds a fleet of penteconters, biremes, triremes and quinqueremes using a point-buy system. The players then set up their fleets on the board to begin the game. Components. The small flat game box includes: Gameplay. The sequence of play each turn is : Galleys can move forward at full speed or backwards at half speed, and can achieve double or triple speed for short periods of time, but there are penalties for exhaustion. Publication history. Metagaming Concepts pioneered the concept of the microgame, a small game packaged in a ziplock bag or small flat box, in 1977 with the release of "Ogre". They subsequently published more microgames with science fiction or fantasy themes. In 1980, Metagaming turned to historical themes, publishing five microgames as part of the "MicroHistory" series. The first was "Rommel's Panzers". The second was "Ram Speed", designed by Colin  Keizer, with artwork by Ben Ostrander. Reception. In Issue 34 of "The Space Gamer", Ronald Mark Pehr thought the game was "tremendous fun", calling it "the cerebral equivalent of amusement park bumper cars." He also liked that "Rules are easy to learn, set-up doesn't take forever, and record keeping isn't onerous." His only complaints were that counters were larger than the hexes, leading to misunderstanings about ship position; and a few rules were ambiguous. Nevertheless, he concluded "The faults don't mar the game. "Ramspeed" is less complicated than most other games, but as enjoyable as any . Whether you play it as a fast [microgame], or as part of a historical or fantasy campaign, it should be well worth the time you devote to it." In Issue 31 of "Phoenix", John Lambshead was not impressed with the game, calling it historically inaccurate and unoriginal. He concluded, "I really cannot recommend this game."