I have been a board gamer for a little over a year and I am absolutely hooked! I do not claim to be an expert at board games and I have NEVER played a wargame in my life. So WHY (!?) would I devote a whole day to Wargames, you ask? My reasoning is simple: WE CAN DISCOVER THEM TOGETHER. Yup. That’s right. I talk about each step of my journey into wargames, make decisions on what game to pick up, find answers to questions and hopefully add another passion to my ever-growing list of hobbies. And since I do not even own a wargame at this point, I figured I would list a few that I am interested in picking up. You will notice that there is an emphasis on WWII- it is probably my favorite time period in history, so I figured I would start there. Here is a list of 3 games I plan on buying soon:
Battle For Moscow
In September of 1941, the German High Command decided to launch a final, decisive offensive to crown their invasion of Russia, capture Moscow, and break the Red Army once and for all. Codenamed Operation Typhoon, German tanks and infantry pressed relentlessly forward until they could see the very spires of the Kremlin. As Russia’s communist government was burning secret papers and evacuating Lenin’s corpse eastward out of their ancient capital, Moscow was hanging in the balance. By 5 December, the Germans were halted along the entire front — exhausted and demoralized, having barely failed to capture their objective as the winter freeze grew ever colder.
Why I Chose It
Battle for Moscow is cheap (14.95), part of a series of “introductory” games from Victory Point Games and I like the time period it is set it. The rulebook is only four pages long and it has 40 pieces- I have a good feeling I will not be overwhelmed whatsoever. This will probably be my first purchase.
Field Commander: Rommel
Rommel was designed by Dan Verssen and is the first game in the “Field Commander” solitaire series of historical strategy board games. The player takes command of General Erwin Rommel‘s forces in 3 exciting WWII campaigns: France 1940, North Africa 1941, and D-Day 1944. An easy-to-use game system of “Battle Plan” and “Operation Plan” chits manages the Allied movement, combat, and reinforcements.
Each campaign comes with a list of historical options that the player can modify to adjust its difficulty level and improve replay value. Also, as units win battles, stats increase to affect ensuing battles and movement. The game comes with “Career” rules that allow the player to link campaigns, so that the outcome of one campaign affects the start-up conditions for the next campaign.
Why I Chose It
Again- I enjoy the time period and I like that the deluxe edition comes with mounted maps. The overall design of the components is nice and you get three maps with the game. This purchase might not come for a while since it seems a bit more complicated that Battle for Moscow, but who knows- wargaming could be my forté!
D-Day at Omaha Beach
D-Day at Omaha Beach (Re-print) recreates America’s most bloody and heroic day of World War II. In this solitaire game from the designer of the solo classics RAF and Ambush, you control the forces of the US 1st and 29th Divisions landing under fire on the Normandy shore, and struggling desperately to establish a viable beachhead. The game is also great for two players playing cooperatively, each controlling one US division. US units include assault infantry, amphibious tanks, artillery, engineers and HQs. The game system controls the hidden German defenders in Widerstandsnest resistance points on the bluffs overlooking the beaches. US forces that manage to break through the deadly coastal defenses and reach the high ground must then contend with German mobile reinforcements in the bewildering hedgerows of Normandy’s bocage. An innovative diceless combat system highlights unknown enemy deployments and the importance of utilizing the right weapons and tactics.
Mostly Solo... 