Fletcher Pratt's Naval War Game

Fletcher Pratt’s Naval War Game was created by Fletcher Pratt and published by Lake Shore Press in 1943. It is widely considered one of the most popular and successful war games of the 20^th century and was even played across entire ballroom floors during its peak in popularity and could be played by as many as sixty people. Traditionally each player would command a single wooden ship – sometimes two – controlling the movement and firing of the vessel with the aim of the game to sink all other ships.  Players must focus on three main factors: the movement of their ship, calculating the range to fire at your target and applying any damage received from hits the enemies have scored on the player. Maneuvers were calculated via a complex mathematical formula and each ship has different capabilities and attributes based on those of real life ships, for example if one ship has a higher top speed than another it can move more fractions of an inch per round. (McAleer, 2012)