THE GENERAL PAGE 2

~ Avalon Hill Philosoph" Part 36 II

Richthofen's War - the Anatomy of a Game

~he ~VAtON *HILt @rn~rnl]l~r1... a losing venture published bi-monthlypretty close to the middle of January,March, May, July, September, and Novem­ber. The General is published by The Avalon.Hill Company almost solely for the culturaledification of the serious game aficionado. Ithelps sell our merchandise, too.

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Copyright 1973, The Avalon Hill CompanyBaltimore, Maryland. Printed in USA

COVER STORYRichthofen's War

You've waited a long time for the next AvalonHill release - and here it is. Believe us, the waithas been worth it. We present to you Richt­hofen's War, the game that re-creates the wholeincredible air war during World War One. De­signed from the point of view of that war's mostfamous air ace, Manfred von Richthofen, Richt­hofen's War includes every significant aspect ofthe tactical air war.

Players engage in plane vs. plane combat on a22"x28" mapboard that is an exact reproductionof the battlefield area where Richthofen engagedBrown in his final dogfight. Players can choosefrom over 65 combat aircraft and re-fight anyone of seven scenarios depicting dogfighting,pho to-reconnaissance, trench-strafing, tacticalbombing, artillery spotting, balloon bustin' andother combat missions.

Quite a few things transpired during the de­velopment and design of Richthofen's War thatmay be of some interest to the readership. Onecriticism leveled at Avalon Hill recently has beenthat we have a tendency to leave ou r customersin the dark as to "what really goes on" at theoffices. This we have done, partly for reasons ofbusiness and industrial security, and partly be­cause, frankly, we didn't think anyone wasinterested. Hopefully, then, what follows willenl ighten the readership as to the ins-and-outs ofthe glamorous, flamboyant, and exciting world ofgame publishing (O.K. then, would you believe a

~rt description. .of the game development pro-cess?). -------

Developing a game is not a dry, step-by-stepprocess. Each game must be approached differ­ently, each game produces its own covy ofproblems that must be surmounted. There is noformula for cranking out titles. Game designing isnot an assembly-line process. The methods usedfor designing Richthofen's War will not be en­tirely applicable for the design of the next title.

Over a year ago, the decision was made toproduce a game that wou ld break away from the·steady stream of World War II land warfare gamesthat had been published heretofore (Panzerblitz,Origins,. France-40J. Preference was given tothoughts on non-WWII sea and/or air campaigns.Eventually, an unexplored topic arose; air warfarecirca 1914-18. After a brief look into consumeracceptability, the subject matter was confirmedand the wheels began to turn.

Since this was a tactical aircraft vs. aircraftgame, it was hardware oriented. That is, primaryresearch consisted of gathering performance dataand flight characteristics, determining what air­craft were involved, and constructing basic gamemechanics. Gathering data was straight-forward,although cross-checking reliability of sourcesproved to be a tricky process. The basic gamemechanics were pounded out with the occasionalhelp of a statistics expert, an aeronautical en-

Within the game are found Basic Game Rules,Tournament Game Rules, Optional Rules and (atotally new concept) the Campaign Game. Forthe lone-wolves, we have even included a solo(solitaire) game. Rules allow for modified aircraft,critical hits, accumulated damage, gun jamming,over-diving, deflection shooting, sustained endur­ance, forced landings, fast reaction time, variableanti-aircraft defenses, prevailing winds, anti-bal­loon rockets, and much more. Special rules allowplayers to actually EARN ace status as they playa series of games. So complete is Richthofen'sWar, a player (if he's good enough) can duplicate,exactly, the Red Baron's record of 80 victories.Also included with the game is a big 32-pageMission Briefing Manual containing histories,biographies, aircraft profiles and data, campaignmaps, Orders-of-Battle, chronologies, special gameexpansion data, and other goodies!

gineer, and an assortmenC of antique airplanebuffs. A few brainstorming sessions by the de­signer provided the first workable prototype andat that point the game became, to a certainextent, a group project. At this stage, the gamewas in a very crude condition. At the firstinter-office playtest session, for examp Ie, therewere exactly two different aircraft to choosefrom to play exactly one type of scenario.Throughout the developmental stages, new dataand information was constantly fed into the gamesystem to expand and fill out the basic design.

Only after the rough working model of thegame was secure was the task of defining andlimiting the game (i.e. controlling its growth)approached. It was during this period that theopen-ended design concept, the Campaign Gameconcept, and the ACC-ASP (Aircraft CapabilitiesChart-Aircraft Status Pad) concept for handlingall the variables of aircraft p!'!rformance weredeveloped. Also at this time, the scenarios wereroughed out, the aircraft that were to appear inthe game were chosen, and the optional ruleswere projected.

At this early stage, the artist was brought intothe picture to begin execution of the mapboard,box cover, and profile drawings of the aircraftwhich were used on the counters and in theMission Briefing Manual. The designer also be­came involved in these aspects of the gamedevelopment process to insure continuity ofthought and function. This was crucial; if thegame components were designed without theclose coordination of the game's designer, theintegration of all parts of the game would suffer.

Gradually, the dis-jointed pieces of the designwere pulled together into a workable productthat could be recognized as a game. Before thefirst prototype could be consumer playtested,however, the rules of the game had to be putinto a recognizable condition. No matter whatthe game, the most arduous task of game design-

Exhaustively researched, and play-tested moreintensively than any other Avalon Hill game,Richthofen's War was over a year in the making.Special attention to components and mechanicsdesign has made this game even more 'open­ended' (allowing for unlimited expansion) thanthe ever-popular Panzerblitz. This extremely flex­ible design format allows for games of 15 minutesor five hours. For many reasons, this is theBIGGEST game ever released by Avalon Hill.Play test panels report that tltis is the BESTair-com ba t game ever inven ted!

Look for Richthofen's War after March I,1973 at your local hobby and/or toy store. Ifyou must order direct from us, send $9.00 plus$1.00 for postage and handling. DO NOTORDER BEFORE MARCH 1, 1973.

PAGE 3ing is writing, phrasing, and integrating the ru les.At times the task is sheer agony. At other times,the English language consists of a million words,none of which say what is meant. It doesn't stopthere; the agony is often transfered to theplaytesters who have to interpret and play thegame from first-draft rules. The rules of Richt­hafen's War required seven complete, differentdrafts before they were in a form that could bepresented to playtesters. There were many, manyminor changes added afterwards even before therules were sent to the composition and cameradepartme nts.

After exhaustive inter-office playtesting, the con­sumer playtesters were called into the office forthe initial nuts-and-bolts testing. They literallytore the game apart, paragraph by paragraph. Asproblems cropped up, constant research wasneeded to resolve them. At this stage, all phasesof the game production/design process mergedtogether as mirade minor changes were made toall parts of the design as dictated by the on-goingresults of the playtesting. .'

The playtesting procedure was rather straight­forward. Basic p[aytests were conducted by theAH staff during the early developmental stages.When the components were in rough form, aselect group of eight playtesters conductedclosely supervised playtest sessions at the AHoffices. When components were refined to thefinal 'proof' stage, the bulk of the playtesting wasconducted through the mail by about thirtyplaytesters across the country. Throughout thewhole process, playtests were continuously con­ducted at the AH offices for the purpose oftroubleshooting problems as they arose. A

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Our intrepid researcher, engaged in field study, em­barking on another aerial odyssey.

'bounty' system was incorporated into the finalplaytest effort in which cash awards were givento playtesters who found typographical errors,ambiguities, and contradictions in the rules. Inthe final analysis, Richthofen's War became themost thoroughly p[aytested game in Avalon Hillhistory.

There were some interesting sidelights associ­ated with the research of the game. As previouslystated, the primary hardware research wasstraightforward. Many excellent military andgeneral libraries in the Maryland-D.C. area werecanvassed for relevant material. The SmithsonianInstitution in Washington provided invaluableassistance in providing many hardware items forin-person inspection. Members of the Cross andCockade society at the Institution also volun­teered hard-to-get books and materials. Variousaeronautical engineers were continually consultedin reference to general aircraft flight character­istics. What the engineers suggested was surpris­ing. We had presumed that, if anything, theaircraft in the game performed conservativelycompared to their real-life counterparts. We an­ticipated adding extra 'detail' rules to allow forgreater aerobatic maneuverability. The engineersinformed us that we had created capabilities thatmatched actual performance about as well ascould be expected in a game situation. Discretionbeing the better part of valor, we left wellenough alone.

The most enjoyable and enlightening aspect ofthe research process was our involvement withthe Flying Circus Aerodrome in Bealeton, Va.From the beginning, we recognized a need toexpand our efforts past the ordinary type ofsources. The most facinating aspect of the War inthe Air was the pilots and crews who flew theaircraft. The stresses and emotional strains thataffected these people should, in some way, bereflected in the game. We found many solutionsto the subjective aspects of this problem at theFlying Circus Aerodrome. The FCA is a highlyorganized group of WWI airplane buffs whocollect, restore, and fly over $100,000 worth ofvintage aircraft. Every weekend during the sum­mer months they stage spectacular airshows usingthese airplanes. The members of FCA provided awealth of information regarding the real-life per­formance characteristics of these ancient aircraft.

Many aspects of the game were colored by theiradvice and information. In talking with thesepilots (many are commercial airline pilots) abouttheir experiences in mock combat and aerobatics,

THE GENERALwe began to get a firm understanding of theemotional experiences involved in WWI air com­bat. Nothing beats actual experience, and thehighlight of our association with the FCA was theopportunity offered the design staff for in-flightresearch. Tru[y, the ultimate in dedication to theart was exemplified when one of the staffmembers 'volunteered' to fly in one of theantique biplanes.

After a reported eventful flight, and a "thrill­ing" crosswinds landing on the bumpy airfield­cum-cow pasture, the first breathe less wordselicited by our winged adventurer were: " ... andthey actually FOUGHT each other in thosethings?!" Finally we had our emotional referencepoint from which to view the entire design!

It may not be readily apparent, but this typeof off-beat research affects the designer in a verypositive way. A game designed to handle only thetechnological aspect of the war would have beenincomplete. Richthofen's War has certain psycho­logical' factors built into the design which makesit unique. These won't jump out of the box whenfirst examined. By their very nature they must besubtle; and, in some cases, so much so that theyare not even mentioned in the ru les folder. Onlyafter much play wi II the average p layer note theseaspects of the design.

There are many other behind-the-scenes storiesthat make up the design process that will neverbe realized by the average person. For instance,not too many people will wonder about the storybehind the picture on the box lid (they didn'thave color back in those days, kids). On Iy thosepeople involved remember our photographerclimbing into one of FCA's biplanes on a mistySaturday morning and taking to the air tophotograph a mock dogfight between a FokkerDr. 1 and a Camel. Ha[f out of the cockpit,hanging on by an arm and a leg as the aircraftmaneuvered wildly for the next shot, he dis­played amazing bravery in capturing that picturefor our cover. Yet 99% of the people will take itfor granted.

Not every design affords the interest andadventure that Richthofen's War provided. Butnot every game is as interesting and exciting asRW. Designing the game was an experience initself. If you enjoy playing the game only half asmuch as we enjoyed designing it, you'll beplaying Richthofen's War for many years tocome.

Not to be outdone by the new revISIon ofFOOTBALL STRATEGY released this fall, ourdesign staff has completely re-designed and re­vitalized BASEBALL STRATEGY. Much moreextensively revised than FOOTBALL, this newversion of BASEBALL STRATEGY represents acompletely NEW design! If you've been turnedoff by sports games bogged down in a sea ofstatistics, BASEBALL STRATEGY is for you.Employing the time-tested matrix concept, playerstatistics are reduced to an absolute, easilyworked, minimum. Play is fast moving, notdependent on luck, completely dependent uponthe strategic decisions of the players.

Extensive consumer playtesting proved thatBASEBALL STRATEGY captures and re-createsall of the key decisions faced by real-life major

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Baseballlls Back! Bisser- Better- Boxed!league managers. Each 25-player team is pat-terned along major league lines. As manager,YOU decide where they will play, how they willhit, when to substitute. As catcher, you call everypitch. As hitter, you try to outguess the catcher.As "frantic Frank of the front office" you makeplayer deals; send fading stars to the minors;bring up the rookies ... all things are possible inthis strategy game designed along identical linesto companion game, FOOTBALL STRATEGY.

BASEBALL STRATEGY will be available afterMar.ch I, 1973 at your local hobby and/or toystore. If you MUST order from Avalon Hill,enclose $10.00 plus $1.00 postage and handling.

THE GENERAL PAGE 4

KRIEGyour<t

JinPutting BLITZ':~~

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ANYBODY'S Primer on Blitzkrieg by Dave Roberts

To gamers on the East Coast Dave Robertsneeds no introduction. Until recently, Dave was aresident of Baltimore and very active in the localgaming scene. An expert chess player, Dave istruly one of the best players in the countrytoday. As a testimony, in less than a year ofSPARTAN competition, Dave has risen fromvirtual obscurity to become the best gamer onthe East Coast with an outstanding record intournament competition. How does he do it?Read on ...

It has often been complained that Blitzkrieg,called a game of lightning war, usually degen­erates into a drawn-out slugging match on adeadlocked front. Many gamel's seek to remedythis tendency to equilibrium with rule changesgiving fantastic combat capabilities to their units.I suggest that this is unnecessary. The mostspectacular blitzkrieg victories in Poland andFrance were accomplished with the pz I and pz IIas the main tank. By later standards these wereno better than recon cars, in fact· they wereeventually re-assigned in this role. The basic causeof deadlocked Blitzkrieg games is a lack ofunderstanding of the technique and objective ofthe blitzkrieg attack. All the elements necessaryfor spectacular lightning war are present in theoriginal Blitzkrieg; all you have to add is imagina­tion and agressiveness. A brief summary of thestrategies used in France in 1940 will help us seethe kind of thinking you need to pull off ablitzkrieg.

FRANCE, 1940

In the early hours of May 10, the Germansopened the campaign with attacks across theborder in Holland and Belgium. The Anglo­French command took this to be a repetition ofthe Schlieffen Plan of 1914, and replied with anortheastward advance of their best divisionstoward the Dyle River in central Belgium, wherethey expected to rally the retreating Belgians.They just reached this position by May IS, whenthe main German force struck out of the Arden­nes to the south chewing up the weak FrenchSecond and Ninth Armies.

By the time the Allies realized what washappening the Germans were already across theircommunication and supply lines. Guderian com­pleted the isolation when he reached the sea atAbbeville on the 20th. (Ten days from the start,about one Blitzkrieg move.) Failing to re-establishtheir supply line with improvised counter-attacks,the British evacuated at Dunkirk, and the Bel­gians collapsed and surrendered with most of theFrench in the pocket.

WHAT IS BLITZKRIEG?

Blitzkrieg doesn't work by rushing head·long atthe enemies' main force. It doesn't depend onmiracle weapons or tactics to achieve break­through. The objective of blitzkrieg is encircle­ment. Its techniques are timing, thorough plan­ning, and the use of the unexpected. No specificplan can be expected to work repeatedly exceptagainst the most dim-witted opposition. EveryBlitzkrieg circle develops its own traditions ofplay. These traditions are themselves a determin­ing factor in devising a blitzkrieg plan, just as thetradition of the Schlieffen Plan was a vitalelement in the success of the German 1940 plan.Blitzkrieg tries to lead the victim astray, thenstrikes hard and fast at a weak area and com­pletes an encirclement making maximum use ofterrain.

To see how these lessons can be applied toAvalon Hill's game, I will give a plausible plan ofoperations for Blue, PLAN BLUE, and show howRed can overwhelm it with PLAN PRATZEN.These are not presented as "perfect plans" byany means, although your opponent would cer­tainly know he's been in a fight. Because of its"unexpected" aspect, every blitzkrieg plan mustbe tailored to the tradition and circumstance ofthe game for which it will be used. However onceunderstood, the principles underlying the movesgiven here can be applied endlessly.

I assume we are playing the full tournamentgame except for nukes and probably weather. Iuse the minor country names from S&T's moduleBlitzkrieg variant. New Endor has city WW32;

San Estados has 0040; Calaedia has NN33; NordWalkurie has V20; Sud Walkurie has CC39.

PLAN BLUE

The objective of PLAN BLUE is to gain adominating central position, and force a generalbattle while Blue enjoys its early strength ad­vantage. The initial strengths are 272 to 260, butbringing on his reinforcements first Blue hasroughly a 40 factor advantage until turn S whenRed pulls even.

On turn I PLAN BLUE takes every city inNord Walkurie with 24 factors. At CC IS useairborne and infantry from the sea. At UII, M14,and X27 use infantry, artillery, and all of yourbombers. Using aircraft in these rear area citiesallows you to push ground units as far forward aspossible. Send all of your armor to or near EE2S.The 30 factors of infantry and rangers whichstarted in Zone D are reinforced by 10 factors inZone C. For minimum but adequate airbase andinvasion security hold these squares in sufficientstrength to prevent a 3-1, H32, 028, V33, G4,PIS, P16, and Q16. Excess fighter strength is

made most secure by delaying its arrival. Pushevery extra unit as far as possible up the road toEE2S.

If he doesn't try a major invasion, take all ofCalaedia on the second turn. Speed your artilleryforward with air transport to EE2S. Move otherreserves toward Calaedia as rapidly as possible.Begin small scale raiding activity on his coasts,and send infantry reinforcements to Zone C.

In conducting diversionary raids, be careful notto over·commit yourself. Ideally what you wantis to slip in, draw his reserves, and get outquickly before you get burned. Here's how. If heleaves a port ungarrisoned, land 12 factors andmove them all to one port square. This gives hima difficult problem. To get 3-1 he'll need todivert 72 factors, if he has it. Even then 2 timesin 6 he'll exchange and you'll skip out to sea.But if he screens you or probes with a 1-2 or 1-1,you have the option to come in with airtransport, paratroops, and the rest of your forceat sea if he's weak, or just hold and take anotherport the same way. If he has a small garrison,attack at 4-1 or 7-1 and stack your men in bigstacks in port squares after combat. If he has biggarrisons be content to wait at sea in theknowledge that you're tieing down his menwithout loss.

On the third, fourth, and fifth turns seek ageneral action, relying on your superior strengthand concentration. Continue raids and land inforce if he is heavily engaged on the main front,or land in Sud Walkurie to break open the gameif you have to.

PLAN BLUE is a natural and plausible line foran agressive Blue commander. It is by no means ablitzkrieg style attack. It is a direct thrust at

Suggested diversion technique; landing 12 factors.

PAGE 5

Maximum security and flexibility at NN48.

Red's main force and attempts to overthrow Redby brute strength. Since Blue is stronger this willusually succeed if Red tries to oppose it directly.

PLAN PRATZEN

PLAN PRATZEN is designed to side step themain thrust of Plan Blue, and lure Blue's mainforce onto what seem to be exposed Red com­munications. If Blue does over-extend, this plancan deliver a devastating blitzkrieg against Blue'ssupply route. If Blue provides sufficient pro­tection for his flanks, it is calculated that he willnot have enough strength to push into vital Redareas until Red can contest it on favorable terms.In the meantime PLAN PRATZEN seizes terrainwhich will eventually give Red a dominatingposition in the air war, and cause endless supplyproblems for Blue. To simplify the rest of thisarticle, it is assumed that Red is only operatingagainst PLAN BLUE.

The objective of PLAN PRATZEN is to secureSan Estados and Sud Walkurie. The neutrality ofNew Endor will NOT be violated. (At least notright away.) In your set-up secure all ports from3-1 attacks. Station 12 armor factors each inNN49, NN48, PP48, and PP47. Also 8 armor in0050, 12 infantry in AA48, 12 fighters in NN49,40 infantry and rangers in Zone Band 4 fightersin Zone C. The rest of your ground and air forcesdelay their arrival for maximum flexibility.

On turn I land on Y26-BB30 and attack BB31and EE34, using enough paratroops for 24 factorodds. Have all these units end in squares BB31,BB32, EE33, and EE34. Take the rest of thecities in Sud Walkurie and San Estados with 24factors each. Actually you should use 20 atAA42 if he has fighters in V33 to deter yourSAC here (use 12 armor from NN48, and 8paratroops or rangers). Leave 2 rangers at sea andreinforce with 12 infantry. You will have little orno invasion security except at NN48, and NN49.These should be fairly strong, but only TAC, afew fighters, and possibly a few SAC should bebased here. You should probably further delaythe arrival of your MDM and some SAC since ifyou bring them on you have to provide airbasesecurity for them.

For the next few turns maximum priorityshould be given to a northward push from theBB31, EE34 area. Invade Y26-BB30 every turn·even if only with I factor since this gives you abig advantage in this area. Your objective is EE2sand the high ground west of EE2s (thinkpositive), but if you only get DD28, and CC28 heis in trouble. Forcing battle in this area can costyou nothing but attrition, but EE2s is vital toBlue for supplying anything east of here. On thisconstricted front his over-all strength is of no useto him. If he fails to realize the seriousness ofthis push, he will set himself up for devastatingblitzkrieg. How do we tempt him to overcommithimself to the east of Lake Pinsky?

This is the job of the forces in the RiverZocchi area. You can afford abnormal risks here,because you want him to commit the extra forcenecessary for exploitation. There are two dif­ferent ways to do this. First mass behind theZocchi, anchor your flank in the woods aroundSS40, and hold VV42 in strength. To go aroundyou he has to violate New Endor. UU37 is nicelyplaced to strengthen your flank since it isunreduced. He can't take all of New Endor, soyou can protect VV2s or WW32 from reductionto deny him airbases and supplies here. Go towork on his flanks with your reinforcements if hegoes into New Endor. Unfortunately if Blue staysconservatively behind the Zocchi, you won't seeblitzkrieg with this strategy.

More agressive and more likely to produceblitzkrieg is pushing into Calaedia with probingattacks on the second turn. This isn't an opera­tion for those who don't know the differencebetween daring and foolhardiness. You mustmove in such a way as to guarantee that youwon't get slaughtered, but don't be afraid toleave. something tempting for strategic reasons.

\Red's final position aftertaking BB31 and EE34.

THE GENERALAnother element of PLAN PRATZEN that will

urge Blue to intemperate measures to break upyour position, is the dominating position Red canachieve in the air war. If Red captures CC28 andDD28, bases his fighters in BB31 and EE34, andbases his SAC in AA42 and CC39, he is in aposition to use his entire airforce every turn withmaximum effectiveness. Red SAC can range from133 to NN33 knocking out vital Blue supply andairbases wherever he doesn't have fighters. Mean­while Red's fighters can intercept any Bluemission and escort full TAC and MDM strikesevery turn. When you see a Blitzkrieg player whouses his TAC every turn, you know he's beenthinking. There are several ways Blue can breakup this air position, but none of them are easy ifhe started with PLAN BLUE.

The essential thread of PLAN PRATZEN is togain time and position by threatening the PLANBLUE supply line through EE2s. If your diver­sionary efforts succeed you will create an oppor­tunity for a spectacular blitzkrieg victory. If Blueisn't misled you should still have a superiorposition when mobilization is completed. If youhave an opponent who plays Blue similarly toPLAN BLUE, give PLAN PRATZEN a try for aninteresting game.

CONCLUSION

If you experiment with these plans and seehow they interact, you will begin to modify themextensively until they are barely recognizable, justas the Schlieffen Plan evolved into the 1940 Plan.Blitzkrieg is fertile ground for endless strategies.It doesn't assign arbitrary objectives like a river,town, or woods line, but gives you armies and amap, and leaves the determination of a strategicobjective up to you. Find the new twist one stepahead of your opponent. That's what it's allabout!

Y26-BB30 and

THE GENERAL PAGE 6

IncreOlental

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by Andy Lavis, Tom Olson,and Jim Snellen

PANZERBLlTZ, one of the most well-receivedgames in AH history, has at times been referredto as Panzer-BUSH by some players. This is dueto the fact that enemy units can scurry around infront of friendly positions with impunity bymoving from forest hex to forest hex or gully togully. The following is a very playable methodfor reducing this effect to a minimum.

We've decided it's time to clue some of youdedicated wargamers in on a fantastic, playableadaptation of PB. We know it is playable, becausewe've been using it exclusively, and extensively,for a year now. We know it is learnable becausewe've taught it to six of our friends. They allagree that it makes PB truly realize its greatpotential.

Our desire is for a simultaneously moved, yetplayable game. To do this, minimum movementon each round is essential. We've broken eachturn of regular PB into 16 "increments." Accord­ing to the chart below, units spread their move­ment factors (MFs) evenly across the 16 incre­ments. For example: scout cars move one hexacross open terrain each increment (they are ourbase, and the reason for chosing 16 increments);but, a Panther moves only on increments1,2,4,6,7,9,10,12,14, and 15 - it still moves onefull hex each of these increments, but there areonly 10 opportunities to move in any given fullturn, as the normal MF would allow; likewise, aT34c moves only on increments1,2,4,5,7,8,9,11,12,14, and 15; a JgPz VI movesonly on increments 3,6,9,12,15; and so on. Theincrements that each particular unit may move onare hereafter called its "movement increments."

Along roads, units move at the rate of twohexes per movement increment; any unit that hasentered a hex at road movement is considered tobe on the road. Consequently, no other unit mayenter that hex at road movement, although anyunit may enter it at normal movement rate,modified according to terrain. If you wish, on thesubsequent MOVEMENT INCREMENT, the unitmay "pull off the road" (while physically remain­ing in the same hex), allowing units behind it toadvance at road movement rate. This is especiallyuseful for advancing units quickly through acolumn along road hexes. For example, if a JgPzVI enters a road hex at road movement onincrement 12, a Panther may not enter the samehex AT ROAD MOVEMENT on increment 14. If,however, the JgPz VI spends another movementincrement on that road hex, increment 15, it maybe considered off the road and the Pan ther maypass, also on increment 15, at road movement.

Hexes which require multiple MFs to enter(slopes) or exit (gullies) are handled as follows:move the counter to the new hex, put a piece ofpaper on it with the number of the increment onwhich it will arrive there. When the properincrement arrives, remove the paper at the end ofthe movement. We have found it convenient tomake up a: set of counters labeled individually Ithrough 16 for this specific purpose. For ex­ample, a Panther moves out of a gully to openterrain on increment 2. It will arrive on incre­ment 7. Move it onto the open terrain hex onincrement 2, place a marker labeled "7" on it,and at the end of movement on increment 7remove the marker.

If two opposing units both enter a hex on thesame increment, possession of the hex must besettled before the game proceeds any further. Thetwo units (or groups of units) contesting the hexfire at each other (no other units may participatein this combat); each player then has the optionof withdrawing from the hex in the direction

from which he came, or continuing to contest thehex. If both players continue to cont.est the hex,then they repeat the procedure until one eitherconcedes and withdraws, or is destroyed. Withthe exception of overruns, no unit may enter ahex already occupied by an enemy unit. How­ever, a unit may attempt to move into anoccupied hex in order to detect concealed unitsor to occupy the hex if enemy units should moveout of it on the same movement increment.

Finally, it takes one movement increment for atransport unit to load or unload passengers. Forexample, a truck may load or unload units onincrements 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,13,14, and 15only.

Fire is simulated as follows: there are five fireincrements' - 4,7,10,13,16. No change in oddscomputation is made, but it takes four "hits" tokill a unit. An "X" on the normal chart is a fullhit, a "DO" is a half hit. When a unit is damagedby fire and then close assaulted on the same fireincrement, the effects of the close assault areraised - an "X" becomes IY2 hits, "DO" becomesa full hit, and a "0" becomes a half hit. Recordsof these hits must be kept, since hits arecumulative. However, we have found it quiteeasy, since generally you are only keeping trackof 3 or 4 units at anyone time. The unitidentification codes are used. All units whichhave fire capability may fire on every fireincrement. Any unit which fires, however, mustgive up its next movement increment (stationaryartillery gives up the next movement incrementof its transport). Finally, odds over 4-1 arebroken into the maximum number of 4-1 s, withthe remainder forming the residual 3-1, 2-1, etc.For example, a 15-1 becomes three 4-ls and one3-1; a 16-1 becomes four 4-1 's. This means unitscan be, and often are, destroyed on one fireincrement.

PAGE 7THE ULTIMATE ­HIDDEN MOVEMENT

This system works best under hidden move­ment conditions. Each player has a station in adifferent place and has a board and his units. Areferee tells each player what he can see, usingcommon sense spotting rules. First, spottingranges are set - e.g., 15-10-5. The first numberindicates the maximum range at which a unitmay be seen. At this range one can detectmovement in the open. In the middle rangetransport, tanks, and infantry (as well as howitz­ers and guns) can be distinguished from eachother. The short range indicates where definiteidentification is made. Units in a town, or thewoods can be detected only when you areadjace~t. Obviously, hills and other obstacles asdefined in the basic PB rules block units fromsight. The LOS is best determined by using astring from center to center. Outside of maxi­mum ranges, no reports of movement are made atall. Infantry and unarmoured guns, if they areunder cover, can be seen only if you attempt toenter that hex, until then they are concealed.Vehicles that are not dug in (see "DIG IN"below), but are under cover (woods and towns)cannot be spotted until an enemy unit is adjacentto the hex. The spotting ranges can be adjustedfor each game - we've used 15-10-5, 12-8-4,9-6-3, even 3-2-1. It changes the complexion ofthe whole game.

MOVEME T VARIANTS - Tanks and assaultguns may move thru a green hex side at a cost ofthree MFs, but trucks, half-tracks, and armouredcars may not penetrate a solid green hex side.Slope movement is adjusted as follows: It costtwo MF's to enter and two MF's to leave a slopehex. Movement between slope hexes costs 3 MF'sas always. Trucks, obviously, move all non-roadhexes at one additional MF - e.g., slope move­ment for them is now 3 and 4 respectively; openterrain costs two MFs. Trucks may not be usedto block the road to enemy tanks (if they try,they are shoved aside).

DIG IN - A vehicle may "dig in" (concealitself) in towns and woods. It costs two incre­ments (not MFs, just increments) to do this. Anenemy may only spot a dug-in unit by attemptingto enter that hex. Such concealed units are usedeither for ambush or reconnaisance.

LINE OF FIRE (LOF) - a unit may not firethrough more than one Russian or two Germanunits when engaging targets with direct fire. Unitson slope or hilltop hexes may, of course, fireover units that are below them. The sides of ahex containing 2 Russian or 3 German units areconsidered to be blocked hex sides in terms ofthe LOS as measured from the center of thefiring unit's hex to the center of the target hex.You can fire at a unit if you can trace anunobstructed LOS to the target hex. In this case,however, if the LOS passes along a blocked hexside without passing through the blocked hexitself, the LOS is considered to be unobstructed.

INDIRECT FIRE - is handled as optional PBrules Indirect Fire and Experimental Indirect Firewith a few exceptions. Any Russian unit exceptempty trucks may perform the function of a CP.Indirect fire onto a hill top hex is not halved. Allhowitzer units can use indirect fire, at more thanhalf range. Mortars are always halved againstarmoured targets since they always fire indirect.They can fire indirect at any range.

DISCRETIONARY FIRE - any hex that canbe engaged with fire if spotted can be fired onunspotted at half the normal effect (the refereecomputes and rolls this fire). If a hit is scored ona vehicular unit, the attacking player is informedthat there were secondary explosions. The at­tacker can confirm destruction or exact damageto a unit only by spotting it.

BURNERS (WRECKAGE) - 'burners' may beremoved from roads and bridges, etc, by tanks orassault guns only, at a cost of 3MFs. A 'burner'blocks a road, but not a ford. If a unit wasspecified as being off the road when it was blownup, it does not block the road. Deployment on'burners' is allowed as follows: one German orRussian unit may deploy on one Russian 'burner.'Two German or one Russian unit may deploy onone German 'burner.' One German or Russianunit may deploy on two German 'burners.' Nounits may deploy on three German or twoRussian 'burners.'

TOWN DEFENSE - To reduce the defensivepotency of towns, units may be attacked individ­ually, but 2 is added to the die roll instead of 1.

PANZERBLITZ INCREMENTAL MOVEMENT CHART

THE GENERAL

4-1 CORRECTION - To remove hair-tearingfrustration from the game; 7 and 8 on the 4-1Combat Results Table become "DO" instead of"-"

MINES - a 2-1 is thrown immediately uponlanding on a mine. Do not take terrain intoaccount. You must then retreat from whence youcame on the next movement increment. Each fireincrement you remain on the mine means another2- I attack. A unit on a mine field may not fire atanyone, although it may receive fire. Engineersmay roll a die every fire increment to attempt toclear a mine field. Four" I 's" (accumulated) arerequired to clear it.

AMBUSH - Units under cover may pinpoint inadvance one hex as an "ambush hex." If anenemy unit enters that hex, the ambushers mayattack at full effectiveness on that increment,regardless if it is a fire increment or not. The unitambushed cannot return fire until the next fireincrement. It takes two increments to set up anambush. The maximum range of an ambush istwo hexes. Once a specific ambush has beenthrown, the position is exposed, and the ambushmay not be thrown again unless it is set up againby waiting ~wo increments without being spotted.

SCENARIO DESIGN - the most importantpart of hidden movement is designing your ownscenarios. Most of the PB scenarios do not adaptwell to this gaming system. The best way to dothis is to specify one person as referee. Hedesigns the scenario - assigning units, tasks, andvictory conditions. He will be the only onetotally aware of the happenings of the game. Thisis when hidden movement PB reaches fullfruition. You are moving simultaneously, you seeonly units that you could see under realisticconditions. You do not know the enemy'sstrength, his objectives, or even where he is. Thisstyle of Panzerblitz is the wargamer's dream cometrue. One caution to budding designers! Panzer­blitz is a tactical game, and it does not play wellwith large scenarios. 10-30 units on a side seemsabout optimum. Good luck and happy wargam­ing!

-----¢>

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 161

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X16 X

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X14

12 X X X X X X X X X X X X

X X X X X X X X X X X11

X X X X X X X X X X10

X X X X X X X X X9

X X X X X X X8 X

X X X X X X X7

X X X X X X6

X X X X X5

X X X3

1 X

THE GENERAL PAGE 8,

The Brunswickers came under immediate at­tack by Foy's division, and were quickly broken.The Brunswicker cavalry was brushed aside byFrench light cavalry. The Duke of Brunswickhimself was killed trying to rally his men, whohad been mauled by French guns and artilleryand were now harried by the lancers. The Frenchcavalry slipped through the gap and hurledthemselves upon the squares of the British 44thRegiment and 42nd Highlanders. The cavalryretired after failing to break the squares, takingheavy casualties from their fire.

At this juncture, Kellermann's heavy cavalryappeared and renewed the attack on this sectionof the Allied line. Once again the 44th and theHighlanders held against repeated attacks; theFrench had to satisfy themselves by catching aHanoverian landwehr battalion in the open andhacking it to pieces.

The cavalry's retirement at 1700 was only abrief respite for the Allies. Despite their numbers,the Allies had run short of ammunition, and theDutch and Brunswick contingents were reeling.At this point, help arrived in the form of theBritish and Hanoverian forces of the Allied 3rdDivision, under Alten.

(This is the second part of Bob Harmon's fourpart thesis on the battle of WATERLOO. In partI, the first day of the campaign was examined indetail, noting especially the marked commandconfusion surrounding both side's maneuvers andcounter-maneuvers.)

PART II: 16 June 1815: Quatre Bras

Napoleon's orders for the 16th were given atabout 0800 that morning. Ney, leading the leftwing, was to move on Quatre Bras with II Corps,which was near the town of Frasnes; the 1 Corpsand Lt. Gen. Kellermann's cavalry corps wouldmove up behind him under Ney's direction.Grouchy was given the French right (south ofFleurus) and ordered to move through Fleurusagainst whatever was assembling at Sombreffe;assigned to Grouchy was III and IV Corps andthe remainder of the reserve cavalry. Napoleonwould follow Grouchy with the remainder.

Awaiting orders to move, Ney did not beginhis march until 1145; the main body of II Corpswas not deployed until 1400 (relaying dispatchestook time; not until the invention of the tele­graph did instant military communications be­come possible). D'Erlon's and Kellermann's corpswere enroute at that time and expected momen­tarily.

Facing Ney was only Perponcher's division ofDutch, Belgian, and Dutch-Nassau troops. ThePrince of Orange directed these forces intoadvanced positions in the Bois de Bossu, on hisright, and in the Farm of Gemioncourt, a seriesof enclosures which lay in the center of hispositions south of Quatre Bras. The Duke ofWellington arrived on the field at about 1000 andapproved the Prince's preparations. The Alliedarmy itself was already enroute. Wellington metwith Blucher personally later that morning; theDuke assured Blucher he would have his army atQuatre Bras, and Blucher informed him of his ownintention to stand and fight. It was hoped thatthe two armies could cooperate and assist oneanother. For this day and the next this was notfated to be.

With almost a 3-1 superiority in men and guns,Ney began his attack at 1400, just as the Dukereturned from his conference. The French in­fantry, backed by Pire's light cavalry, droveforward against the thin Dutch line. The Dutchfell back briefly, then stood and fought in theBois de Bossu and at Gemioncourt. The mounting

pressure was partially relieved by the arrival ofBritish and Hanoverian troops, in the form of theAllied 5th Division, under Sir Thomas Picton.These forces filled in the Allied left and center,from the Namur road to Gemioncourt, but weretoo late to save the farm itself, which fell shortlybefore their arrival at 1445. Merlen's cavalrybrigade attempted its relief but was broken byFrench cavalry - were it not for the presence ofthe British in their rear Merlen and his pursuersmight well have wound up in Quatre Bras itself.

Jerome Bonaparte's division appeared on thefield just before 1500, and moved into the Boisde Bossu, moving into line to the left of Foy'sand Bachelu's divisions. The Dutch were forcedto yield the farm of Pierrepont to Jerome andwere driven into the woods. At the same time,Bachelu's forced on the French right took thefarm of Piramount and clashed with the firstcontingents of British troops.

Shortly after Picton's forces arrived, a largemass of black uniforms appeared on the roadfrom Brussels - the Brunswick Corps, led by theDuke of Brunswick. Their presence gave theAllied forces a superiority in numbers and en­abled the British line to move into the centerbehind Gemioncourt, halting the French advance.

NORTH

~~Foy

QUATRE BRAS

140016 June 1815

~ -Dutch positions (Perponcher's Division)~

Pire

St. Amand

PAGE 9

~-·~Iml@.. . > ~ Lignv

Sl.AmandLa.HaV8 .~ ~~~ ¥Doman I~ I

NORTH Girard II

IcTIb IVandamme

~m Exelmans 1°1I~ I Paja!

Lobau

THE GENERAL

L1GNY

16 June 1815

opening position (general)o -Allied units

Ney was now very much outnumbered. Nohelp was on the way, either; D'Erlon's I Corps,due to conflicting orders, had been diverted.D'Erlon, marching up from Gosselies, had en­countered a member of Napoleon's staff, bearingan order to Ney to divert the I Corps to the areaof Ligny, where a major clash was now ragingbetween Napoleon and the Prussians. The staffofficer (some think it was Gen. Labadoyere) sentI Corps marching off towards the east. As soon asNey learned of this, he compounded the error byfiring off an order to D'Erion to come about andmarch on Quatre Bras. The order reached D'Erlonat 1730 or 1800, just as he was approaching thebattle at Ligny (his appearance in the west wastouching off a minor panic in Napoleon's leftflank - Napoleon and his local commanders hadtaken I Corps for enemy troops). The I Corpscountermarched and headed towards the fightingat Quatre Bras, with a good chance that it wouldnot arrive on time.

At Quatre Bras, Ney renewed his offensiveupon the British shortly after 1700. Again thecavalry was thrown into the fray, the French,infantry advanced in the center and in the Bois,de Bossu these attacks were broke up. With thearrival of Cooke's 1st Division (entirely British),Wellington went over to the offensive, retakingthe Bois de Bossu and Gemioncourt; Ney with­drew to Frasnes just as the day was ending.D'Erlon's corps reached him at this time - muchtoo late.

The battle of Quatre Bras was over. Ney hadfailed to defeat Wellington while he had thechance - but he had successfully withdrawn hisown forces when outnumbered; and he hadprevented Wellington from giving aid to Blucher,who had been figqting for his life in the battle ofLigny, to the east.

LIGNYOn the morning of the 16th June, Prince

Blucher's three available corps were formed forbattle against the main body of the French army.Although the concentration of the Prussian armytook place at Sombreffe at dusk on the 15th,Bulow's IV Corps did not get its orders due to amiscarriage in the issuance of these orders, anddid not begin to march from Liege until themorning of the 16th. The Prussian army on thebattlefield was deployed thus: I Corps held thevillages of St. Amand and Ligny; the III Corps,on its left, held a line running from Sombreffeeastward. The II Corps was in reserve; and thosefragments of I Corps still serving rear-guard dutyin Fleurus (a few miles south) were withdrawn.

Napoleon, at the head of the lead columns(nominally led by Grouchy), came throughFleurus at about 0900 on the 16th. While histroops organized for battle, he surveyed thePrussian position and decided to throw his maineffort against the villages of Ligny aGd St. Amandin the center. To that end, he detailed Vand­amme's III Corps, reinforced with Girard's divi­sion, to the left. In the center was Gerard's IVCorps. On the French right, watching Thiele­mann, was Grouchy, with Pajol's and Exelman'scavalry corps. Napoleon held the Guard, Mil­haud's cavalry corps, and VI Corps in reserve.The preparations were still going on at 1400when Napoleon had Soult send off a dispatch toNey, calling on him to march on the Prussians'exposed right flank. Ney, heavily engaged by thetime it reached him, was unable to comply.

It must be noted that the Prussians weredrastically outnumbered on the field of Ligny;even with the absence of Bulow the Prussiansnumbered some 83,000. This slightly exceededthe totals of the French forces on hand - some72,000 or so, greatly aided by a superiority inartillery.

Vandamme's corps, Lefol's division in the lead,opened the engagement at 1430 with a driveagainst St. Amand. Initially successful, the Frenchwere driven back by fierce resistance by Stein­metz' brigade. Similar results took place at Ligny.Gerard's corps drove into the town, whose de­fenders had been protected by the buildings fromthe French artillery. The streets and buildingsquickly became choked with living and dead men.Seesaw, confused fighting in both towns provedinconclusive, and the French poured in more ofthe two corps; the Prussians found it necessary tocommit Jagow's and Henkel's brigades.

Vandamme, heavily engaged in St. Amand, sentGirard's division to his left, into the village of St.Amand-la-Haye. Blucher reacted by throwing inthe 2nd Brigade. During the fracas that ensued,Girard was killed but his troops succeeded intaking most of the village despite extreme losses.

Further to the west, a large Prussian force,headed by Tippelskirchen's 5th Brigade, advancedon Girard's flank at Wagnelee. This was met byVandamme's reserves - his cavalry and part ofHabert's division. This Prussian attack was re­pulsed.

The fighting in Ligny continued with mountingcasualties on both sides. Henkel and Jagow werenow backed up by the 6th and 8th Brigades.Napoleon had thrown in the artillery of theImperial Guard to support Gerard's beleagueredcorps. The fighting continued without any sign ofresolution.

On the French right, Grouchy engaged in onlyminimal and inconclusive skirmishes with Thiele­mann. The French made some attempts to ma­neuver around the Prussian left, but were unsuc­cessful.

With Vandamme's reserves committed, andwith increasing Prussian strength appearing in theFrench center and left, the French were shockedwhen, at 1700, a large column of troops appeared

THE GENERALin the distance, beyond and behind the Frenchleft flank. This force was reported to be un­friendly. Napoleon, who had been preparing thedecisive attack against the Prussian center, wasforced to send off Subervie's cavalry division andpart of the Young Guard to cover his flankagainst this new menace. The subsequent revela­tion that these mystery forces were those of theelusive D'Erlon was not known to Napoleon untilan hour and half had passed.

D'Erlon's forces, before countermarching forQuatre Bras, sent Jacquinot's cavalry divisionforward in reconnaissance; this unit encountereda Prussian cavalry brigade under a Col. Marwitz,who was forced to withdraw. This kept strayPrussian cavalry off of Napoleon's left.

By 2000, it became apparent that the Prussianarmy was in a bad way. Only the 9th Brigade wasleft in the army reserve. The Prussian forces inthe center, particularly in Ligny, were runningout of both stamina and ammunition. And so itwas that these forces were ill-prepared for themain French offensive at 2030. Napoleon threwhis entire reserve - Milhaud, Lobau, and most ofthe Imperial Guard, against the Ligny-St. Amand

sector. Covered by a rainstorm that had begun atdusk, the French struck the Prussian center inone great smash. The Prussian line disintegrated.Blucher scraped together what cavalry was avail­able and led it in a desperate charge to save thesituation. The 73-year-old Blucher almost came togrief then and there; his horse was killed, androlling over, fell on him. Briefly, the Prince andhis aide were in the midst of a mass ofCuirasseurs (who failed to see them in thedarkness and confusion); then, the Prussiancavalry returned long enough for the aide, CountNostitz, to carry Blucher off the field.

The battle of Ligny continued until midnight,protracted by confused skirmishes. In the con­fusion and rain the Prussians withdrew, beatenbut still intact. They had lost, from casualties ­and desertions by Rhenish troops - about 25,000men. The French had suffered about l2,000casualties. The French army settled down for thenight on the battlefield.

The Prussian army, now under the commandof Gneisenau, withdrew to the northeast, towardsthe town of Gembloux. Thielemann's corps re-

PAGE 10

mained near the battlefield as a rearguard; scat­tered Prussians made their way from the field totheir units.

Two missing personages appeared out of thenight in the Gembloux area. Bulow and his corps,18 hours late, appeared on the road from Namur.And Blucher, shaken but safe, appeared in thenearby village of Melioreux and established hisheadquarters. Before retiring, he made two im­portant decisions for the morrow. The Prince,largely over Gneisenau's objections, decided tomaintain close contact with WelliiJgton's armyrather than fall back on the Meuse. For thispurpose, Blucher elected to shift his suppliesfrom Liege and Namur to Maastricht and Lou­vain; his supply line now paralleled that of hisally.

So ended the engagement at Ligny. The courseof battle in the next two days would hinge onwhether or not Blucher could rally his army tosave Wellington from being crushed by Napoleon.On the morning of the 17th his army would notas yet be able to act effectively. The initiativehad passed to Napoleon as a result of Ligny ­Wellington now stood alone.

Assault front the South:

STALINGRADA SHORT COURSE ON THE OFFENSIVE

Rick Moyer636 Garden Rd.Glenside, Pa. 19038

"All warfare is based on deception. Hence, whenable to attack, we must seem unable; when usingour forces, we must seem inactive; when we arenear, we must make the enemy believe that we areaway; when far away we must make him believe weare near. Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feigndisorder, and crush him. "

"Appear at points which the enemy musthasten to defend, march swiftlY to places whereyou are not expected.

"Rapidity is the essence of war; take advantageof the enemy's unreadiness, make your way byunexpected routes, and attack unguarded spots. "

SUN TZU, The Art of War - 500 B.C.

"Avoid a fronlal attack on a long establishedposition; instead, seek 10 turn it by flank move­ment, so that a more penelrable side is exposedto the thrust.

B.H. Liddell Hart

Introduction:

In June of 1941 when Adolf Hitler launchedhis Wehrmacht on "Case Barbarossa" he wastrying, in effect, to cover his rear from attack sothat he might eventually concentrate the fullweight of Germany on Great Britain. Throughmistaken in telligence reports and the SovietUnion's poor showing in Finland Hitler assumedRussia would be another Poland, only on agrander scale (these faulty intelligence reportsexclude Col. Gen. Guderian's more objectivestudy; where he purposely underestimated the

number of active Soviet armored divisions. Hiseventual total was lower than the real numberand was still greeted with astonishment anddisbelief in Germany). The campaign, Hitlerassured his hesitant Generals, would be completedwithin six weeks.

The majority of the Soviet military strengthwas concentrated in the South. Even with therapid collapse of the other Fronts the progress inthis area was slow, too slow for the German HighCommand whose whole plan was to gain freedomof movement. The strong Russian resistance inthis sector proved to be a constant source ofanxiety to the German military until it wasfinally broken by the encirclement at Kiev.Although a great deal of men and material werelost in the pocket, it was this battle that sparedMoscow.

In the Avalon Hill game of Stalingrad manyplayers shy away from the Southern campaign, infavor of the quicker and at most times the moredisastrous route in the North and Center. As inreal life, an attack where it is least expected canquite often reap great benefits for the aggressor.

To briefly outline the plus characteristics ofattacking in the South, one must first take intoconsideration the primary goal of the Germans inthe game; which is the capture and occupation ofthe three Russian cities, Moscow, Leningrad andStalingrad before time and Soviet replacementstake the initiative away from him. While theGerman maintains the upper hand HE must be

the one to designate where the campaign will befought. I have played too many games in theNorth where I have been counter-attacked on thefirst few turns after impulsively pushing myarmor across the Nemunas River. Of course, onecould always play it safe and slowly move hisspearheads through the Nemunas and Lwow gaps.This is all well and good but, remember that timeis against you and this is exactly what theRussian wants. This does not mean however, thatyou should pick the area that is defended mostheavily for your attack. Remain flexible, andkeep in mind that a clear terrain square gainedbeside a river without any losses is as good orsometimes better than draining your reservescrossing it!

Opening Moves:

When launching your main attack from theSouth, I have found two basically excellentopening objectives for the Wehrmacht. The firstand better of the two being square NN-14. In allmy games I have not come across, as yet, a betterlocale than this area for a grand pincer move­ment. Many Russians I have played fortify thissquare to the brim and neglect its flanks leavingit more or less in an unprotected salient. Asimple two-pronged attack from squares MM and00-14, with a minor soak-off (and NO advanceacross the river), can leave the Russian in a verydifficult predicament. (See diagram I) So, for theloss of perhaps one or two Infantry Corps, you

PAGE 11 THE GENERAL

Attacks

I. versus 14th Inf. Corps; 3-1, NO advance!Exchange: 39th, 56th PZ.

2. Vtrsus 65th Inf. Corps; 3-1 surrounded.Exchange: IR, 2R, 3R Inf.

3. versus 36th, 64th Inf. Corps 1-5.

GermanRum. 4th Inf. CorpsRum. 5th Inf. CorpsRum. II th Inf. Corps14th Pz. Corps39th Pz. Corps56th Pz. Corps41 st Pz. Corps47th PZ. Corps57th Pz. Co;psRum. 1st Inf. CorpsRum. 2nd Inf. CorpsIR Inf. Corps2R Inf. Corps3R Inf. Corps

2

5

4

3

Reference Key:Russian

A = 9th Inf. CorpsB = 28th Inf. CorpsC = 10th Inf. CorpsD = 12th Inf. CorpsE = 35th Inf. Corps

Attacks

I. versus 10th, 28th Inf. Corps 1-6.

2. versus 12th Inf. Corps 3-1, NO advance!Exchange: 39th, 56th Pz.

3. versus 35th Inf. Corps 1-4.

Conclusion:

This type of assault is not as dangerous asmany make it out to be. A token force of Rumaniansand between four and six German Infantry Corpsstretched along the length of the Nemunas Riverwill preclude any chance of a Russian counter­stroke against Warsaw. Timing plays an importantrole here. If you commit your Panzer arm tooearly, the Russian will be able to bring up troopsfrom his northern defenses to greet you on theDnepr, and this, of course, you do not want.Wait awhile and take advantage of the railwaysystem before you throw your entire weight into

Before each movement portion of your turnlook over the front and see exactly how theRussian is holding up. Check his accumulatedreplacements (there shouldn't be any) and figurein your mind's eye which Soviet units you will beeliminating this month. If things are going welland if your infantry and armor have not sufferedany staggering losses, the time is now ripe foryour thrust at Stalingrad. If you have positionedyour Panzer units in the South correctly (prefer­ably anywhere between squares KK-24 andMM-21 along the railroad) move them now intothe Straits of Azov with the goal of outflankingthe Russians through the Crimea. (A Soviet 2-3-6sitting behind the Kuban River will not pose athreat to your attack.) I have found that manytimes this is all it takes to break the Russianfront running the length of the board; providingyour attack against Moscow has not been stalled.

With the fall of Stalingrad, the Russian willfind himself, and not you, overextended and theremainder of the campaign breaks down into amopping up operation.

Diagram III

German16th Inf. Corps2 Rum. 2nd Inf. Corps37th Inf. Corps48th Inf. Corps

9th Inf. Corps5 = 12th Inf. Corps

13th Inf. Corps

Diagram II

two and any reinforcements needed in the Southmust be sent the long way around the PripyatMarshes. A strong thrust into the Nemunas gap inconjunction with the attack across the Bug leavesalso the very tempting idea of isolating all thetroops in and' around Brest, if your opponentelects to stand and fight. (Remember, remainflexible!!) Strong Panzer Grenadier and reservePanzer formations deployed on the Hungarianborder (squares MM-8 and 9) should prove morethan ample in breaking any Soviet defense in theCarpathians. Follow up the Russian withdrawaland the river lines along your right flank willbreak out of necessity as you progress towardsKiev. Once again the city should be in yourpossession by December 194 I.

Exploitation:

Once you are across the Dnepr River it is yourdecision where you should go from there. De­pending on the state of the Russian forces Imany times take advantage of the lack' ofdefensive terrain and move from Kiev dU:ectly onMoscow. This will stretch the Soviet front to themaximum and sometimes necessitate the aban­donment of Stalingrad. However, it is rarely thatyou find the opponent who will willingly giveyou the city as a present and you will more thanlikely be forced to take it by storm. This iswhere Phase II of the campaign enters thepicture.

As soon as your bridgehead across the Dnepr issecure, send your Panzers northeast with the longrange goal of capturing Bryansk. This will takethe pressure off the Soviet Southern flank tempo­rarily and all eyes will be on Moscow Howeverleave eighteen Panzer attack factors in Dnepro:Petrovsk (if you have it in your possession, if not,on the railroad leading into the Crimea andSevastopol). Press forcefully towards Moscow; itwill be snowing by this time and movement willbe slow but, do not cut your drive short andmaintain your momentum.

Reference Key:Russian

A = 8th Inf. CorpsB = 4th Inf. Corps

5th Inf. CorpsC = 3rd Inf. Corps

German14th PZ. Corps39th PZ. Corps56th PZ. Corps41 st PZ. Corps47th PZ. Corps57th PZ. Corps1R Inf. Corps2R Inf. Corps3R Inf. Corps6R PZ. Corps43rd PZ. Gren.Rum. 1st Inf.2nd Inf. Corps26th Inf. Corps28th ·Inf. Corps

2

3

5

4

Reference Key:Rilssian

A = 37th Inf. CorpsB = 16th Inf. CorpsC = 14th Inf. CorpsD = 36th Inf. Corps

64th Inf. Corps65 th Inf. Corps

can net possibly two Russians through combatand the two or three in the bag! Right from theoutset you have not only achieved a numericalsuperiority, but also have your opponent on therun and very worried (his morale rating at thistime is practically zero).

In order to achieve the upper hand here, it isnecessary for you to commit the bulk of yourPanzer Corps south of the Carpathians. Thiscould prove disastrous if you fail to meet yourobjectives on the first turn. In an effort to getaround this flaw, leave between eighteen andtwenty-four Panzer attack factors in the Center.The purpose of this is threefold: I) it leaves youwith enough striking power around Warsaw toestablish a bridgehead across the Neniunas River(the only objective of Army Group North); (seediagram II), 2) it serves to mislead the Russian sohe doesn't strip the area bare of defense, and 3)it gives you the ability to crack the Dnestr fromthe rear if your main body gets stranded betweenrivers. While you are working on interior lines theRussian cannot be too hasty to commit the bulkof his defenses to where he suspects you aregoing. By the time he finally realizes you aremoving on Kiev he will not be strong enough tohold the length of the Dnepr firmly and youshould have the city in your possession byNovember-December 1941.

The second and perhaps the more time con­suming alternative, is launching an attack acrossthe Bug River at square CC-15 (again with NOadvance). The purpose of this is to cut theBrest-Litovsk - Kiev railroad. (see diagram III)With this rail line cut the Russian Army is split in

THE GENERALthe fray. The sight of a strong Panzer Group inBrest will serve you better than to have them sitdormant behind the front line outside Kiev. Donot hesitate to attack strong, doubled Sovietpositions without infantry support to absorblosses in an Exchange. Early in the game is thetime to make as much headway as possible. Gainas much territory as you can, sustaining the leastamount of losses, before the onset of the firstWinter. Accumulate your replacement capabilitiesand use them only to bring your Panzer Armiesup to full strength. Four 8-8-6's and two 7-7-6'scan attack a doubled Soviet 5-7-4 at 3-1 and

many times these will be the battles that decidethe game. After the Dnepr there is a lot ofterritory between doubled positions and you willsoon discover how easy it is to turn a strategicwithdrawal into a disorderly rout' Once you areacross the Dnepr River and if you have playedyour cards right, you should find the going agood deal easier in the steppes of the Ukraine.

The success of this campaign relies heavily onyour ability to maintain a clear head. Keep inmind who is on the offensive and who has the

PAGE 12early advantage. Beware of easy victories thatwould lead you far away from your objective.Study the board, pick your targets and stick tothem. In the expanses of Russia speed is ofprimary importance. Keep the Soviets on therun. If you see that a mud or snow month iscoming up hold the front line with infantry anddeploy your tanks and Panzer Grenadiers on arailroad behind the lines. If you plan ahead andknow exactly where you are going, this strategywill work as well for you as it has for me. Iwould welcome any comments and/or variationson this theme.

Franc8,1840:A Fighting Chance for the Allies

Admittedly, the Germans have the edge inFRANCE-40. Some say they are unbeatable (theysaid the same thing about the GERMANS inSTALINGRAD way-back-when), but this has yetto be proved. If the Allies are going to win (orcome close to it) the initial positioning of thedefense becomes critical.

The Allied player in France 1940 faces aformidable task. In the historical situation, heconfronts a far superior enemy along a windingfrontier, the defense of which stretches his forcesso thin that breakthroughs are inevitable. Worse,much of this fron tier belongs to Du tch andBelgian forces that the German can largelydestroy before any reinforcement is possible,opening up wide corridors for panzer units to rollalong on their way toward France. The Maginotline takes up some slack along the frontier, but acompetent German player will soon pierce thisbulwark and open up even more of the Alliedline to breakthroughs. Allied reinforcements,coming from Paris, begin to trickle in too late tobe of much use, while German reinforcements areready for combat soon after entering the game.Finally, the Allied air units are outnumbered 4 toI and have a shorter range than their Germancounterparts so that they can be knocked outearly in the game, in 2 or 3 turns, serving littleuseful purpose other than to add 20 victorypoints to the German score.

The basic plan which I will present here isdesigned to minimize the effect of the inherentweaknesses of the Allied position in the historicalgame, and to give the Allied player a fair chanceof winning. Using the optional Allied OBs, ofcourse, will greatly improve Allied chances usingthis plan.

First of all, in a line extending straight acrossthe board from 820 to 839, place all French 6-6s,3-4s, and 4-6s, and the British 6-8; the latterought to be placed fairly close to Paris. Use theweaker 3-4s and 4-6s on hexes where they will beprotected from the front by rivers (hexes 820,821, 824, 825, 826, and 831). Behind this line,about 3 or 4 hexes apart, place the British 8-8,and the remaining French and British rese~es;

stack the latter units so that each pile of 3 willhave a combat strength of 5. These are the Allied

reserves, and may be used against panzer unitswhich may break through the front line. InHolland, place one Dutch 4-6 each on 812, 813,and 841. Place 5 Belgian 4-6s in a line from 814to 819, and the Belgian units, one per hex, in aline from 842 to 846. Place the British air uniton 1225 and the French air unit on 1226.

While this line of defense is long, it isconsiderably shorter than the Allied frontier withGermany; it places Dutch and Belgian units in asstrong a position for defense as possible, and itallows a coordinated Allied defense even beforethe German violates Belgian neutrality. Shouldthe German player not violate Belgian neutrality,Belgian units can still be moved several hexes tothe rear to maintain a continuous line in theevent adjoining French units are forced to retreat.

The German player cannot bring much force. tobear until the 3rd turn at least, and cannot usefull force until turn 4. In a game of 10 turns, thisis a great handicap. His reinforcements, which hereceives in any case, will likewise take 3-4 turnsto reach the front, weakening their effect. TheAllied line, on the other hand, may be rearrangedduring the several turns that it takes the Germanto get into position, and Allied reinforcementswill reach the line quickly even if German airpower is used to slow them down.

Allied air power is placed where it will beinconvenient for the German to destroy it, yetclose enough to Paris and to the Allied line to beof as much help as such a badly outnumberedforce can be.

Allied reserves, while not strong enough tothrow back all German breakthroughs, should beable to weaken the German player's ability tocause Allied retreats. Retreats may usually bemade in an orderly fashion, and the fact thatAllied reinforcements are nearby and begin toarrive at about the same time that the Germanattack in earnest should help to replace Alliedlosses. Too, the line will shorten as the Alliesretreat, and this helps to take up slack. OnceBelgian and Dutch neutralities are violated, thesecond line of defense in these nations becomesavailable for replacements in the Allied line as awhole. The German is almost certain to violateBelgian neutrality, of course, since he wouldotherwise have to fight his way through theMaginot line in order to en ter France, and this

would delay the arrival of his infantry at theAllied line by at least one additional turn. Ofcourse, since the German will probably have toconcentrate most of his forces against thesouthern portion of the Allied line in order tohave much chance of reaching Paris in 6 turns,and since this portion of the line is farthest fromGermany, he may need an additional turn or twoin order to seriously threaten this area in anyevent. An advantage accruing to the Allies is thefact that the southern portion of this line is thatsector closest to the reinforcement base at Paris,from which new units enter the game beginningon turn 4.

Some additional guidelines may be helpful:Pull the British 6-8 out of the front line as soonas you can, replacing it with a French 6-6; usethe 6-8 as part of the mobile reserves. Alsoreplace the 3-4's in the same way, if you are able,after reinforcements begin to arrive. Shift someof the mobile reserves to allow additional con­centration in those areas most threatened, butbeware of German feints. Maintain your reservesfor as long as possible, so as to push back at leastsome of the panzer breakthroughs. Move rein­forcements from Paris to the front as quickly aspossible. Sacrifice French units for the sake ofBritiSh, since the latter give the German morevictory points. Attempt, if possible, to destroy Ior 2 German air units before your own areknocked out; since the German needs a 3-1victory point ratio, this will help the Alliedcause significantly. Of course, a canny Germanwill use his 2 hex range advantage to knock outAllied air units before they can get in a lick.

One means of protecting air units is to set upthe front line along the basic pattern indicatedabove, but from 689-715; here, the German mustadvance before he can mount attacks againstAllied air units. An additional advantage ofplacing the line here is that· the German hasfarther to advance in order to take Paris. How­ever, this line offers no river shelter for French3-4s and 4-6s, stretches the Belgian line ratherthin, and delays arrival of Allied reinforcementsfor an additional turn. Sure-fired? No. A fightingchance? Hopefully.J. Richard Wagner2933 North 70Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53210

Each coupon is worth 25 cents. How­ever, no less than 4 coupons can be used in anyone purchase. Orders received accompanied Dythree coupons or less will be returned unfilled.Any number above 4 may be used in any singlepurchase. No photostats please.

Good Towards the Purchase of ALL PRODUCTS

Sir:With all the work which goes into the design­

ing of one of your games it is tragic that AfrikaKorps is nearly unplayable, in a competativesense.

Within the first three 'months' the German sidealmost without fail is reduced to ineffectivenessas a fighting unit.

I have tried a few ideas to make the gamemore playable and at the same time retain all thebasic factors within.

I have found the flaw to be in the combatresults table.

When an Allied 2-2-6 can be exchanged for aGerman 7-7-10 than something is lacking inrealism. The same results are possible if an allied1-1·6 is on an escarpment. The German side ismuch too quickly eliminated through 'exchanges:

My suggestion is to make every 'exchange' onthe combat results table into a 'contact.'

This is a more realistic outcome of an 'even'battle. It is also more advantageous to thedefense than a 'back 2' as the defender holds hisposition and can launch his counterattack fromthat superior position instead of trying to regainvaluable ground (escarpment, city) occupied bythe enemy in a 'back 2' situation.

Each 'contact' would require a counterattackor retreat. Any retreating piece would be free toattack elsewhere. All counterattacks would re­quire supporting supply wagons.

I have found under these rules that theGerman can usually capture Tobruk in a touch­and-go battle and will still have 'sufficient strengthfor a drive on El Alamein.

The battle USUALLY ends with fierce fightingaround EI Alamein with the British (Allies)pulling out a victory either through battle superi­ority or simply hanging on until time runs out.The German supply situation many times be­comes the key to victory or defeat.

Under these rules the Allies don't simplyoverwhelm the Axis. They must fight a smartdelaying action and pick strategic b a:tles in whichto launch a counterattack.Comments welcomed.

advancing units. CIRCLE supply units used inattacks. Contest deadline is March 31, 1973.Contests not indicating choice for best article willbe voided

Defender Attacker Oads Retreat DeL to:

9A/20

2/3

41/5

41/7

41/1 1

(Headline of this issue's "Best Article")

City _

Name _

Steto Zip _

Street Address _

As a preview of coming attractions, we presenthere an actual situation from a game-in-progress

• that will be presented in a future issue of the: GENERAL as a game-analysis vehicle. The prob­

lem is straightforward: It is the German's secondMay turn. The only losses sustained to either sidehas been the British 2!2SG at Bengasi. TheItalians are guarding a sizeable force of two2-2-6's and two l-I-6's, and two supply wagonsin the escarpment area along the coast roadbetween Bengasi and Tobruch. CARPATHIAN isen route to Tobruch from HB via the coast road.No units are at sea. The Germans have threesupply units on board. The line drawn on themap shows the limits of advance (from the west)of the Ariete Division and the 15th Pz. Division_As the German player, only the forces show areat your disposal. Your objective: move and attackin a decisive fashion that affords the be!!t oppor­tunity of capturing Tobruch before the BritishJune reinforcements arrive.

To fill out the contest entry; a) fill out theaccompanying chart for any attacks; b) on theMAP, place the AITACK FACfOR (one number)in the hex where you have moved your units.Indicate the Rommel unit by uR," and supplyunits by "sn, "8/2" etc. Indicate advances aftercombat (if any) by placing a BOX around the

Gentlemen:Did you ever get tired of fighting a battle of

attrition in D-DA Y? Ever wish there was some·thing you could do about that? Well, now thereis something! Call for General George Patton, J r.

and his "PATION"ed Third Army.Here's the way to do it. First, remove all Third

Army units. They are as follows:ARMOUR: 4th, 5th, 6th, and the 7th US

Armoured and the 2nd French ArmouredINFANTRY: 5th, 8th, 28th, 35th, 79th, 80th,

83rd, 90thYou may also remove the 2nd US Armoured if

you wish for Patton controlJed it at certain times.I would suggest this if the game is still uneven forthe US.

Change these units in the following manner:4th Armoured becomes a 8-8-65th. 6th, and 7th US Armoured become 7-6-6's2nd French Armoured becomes a 6-5~5

8th, 79th, 83rd, and 90th Infantry become5-4-5'5

5th, 28th, 35th, 80th tnfantry become 4-4-5',

The 2nd US Armoured, if you use it, is thesame as the 4th.

These charged-up units enter on a time table.The 8th, 79th, 83rd, 90th must be on the boardbefore the 7th turn. The 6th US Armoured isalso included with the aforementioned units. Therest of these units appear on the 7th turn. Besure though that you follow order of arrivalspecifications for your invasion site.

These units remain charged-up un(i1 the 14thturn. Then the foHowing units revert to their oldselves: the 5th, 28th, 35th, and the 80th tnfan·try; the 5th and 7th US Armoured and the 2ndFrench Armoured.

If you're wondering about that time table. It'sthe one for Operation Cobra when the ThirdArmy became operational.

I'm interested in hearing comments on thisvarient, so feel free to write.Keith Lewis Kenneth E. McGurn7531 Sharp Rd. 312 Calle Miramar No. AMt. Vernon, Ohio 43050 Redondo 8each, Calif. 90277

r············C(jNTEST·····NO~·········53·············...: ~'c;j:)S! ~: AT 0-28

the Editors.toLetters

are extremely rare - we haven't had one yet. Inthe rare occassion of a tie, a two--game playoffswapping sides, should resolve the tie. In case ofa forfeiture, we recommend awarding 285 pointsto the victor - 265 for his half of the totalpoints and 20 for the average point spread.

I will be delighted to respond to those readerswho write to me with game results and descrip­tive comments.

Karl Skadowski-AAPresident Macon SICL Chapter1526 North Atwood DriveMacon. Ga. 31204 .

COUPON

Thomas H. VerdelApt. E·2, 1000 Collier Rd, NWAtlanta, Ga. 30318

Dear Sirs:As an Army officer of some eight years

standing (now a Reservist), I have had occasionto observe Corps and Division commanders "atwork" in combat and have been schooled at leastto consider some of the decisions that general,.officers face. As an infantry division plans officerI've also had some experience in formulat!pg thealternatives among which generals choosEi'and indealing with some of the restrictions wMich bindthe decision·making process in combat.

It first appeared to me in "Stalingrad," then in"1914" and now in "France 19tO, , that AH isnot overtly dealing with some ar s of decision­making which are most significan at the strategiclevel. I'm speaking first of all of organization forcombat. Placing battalions, brigades, and divisionsinto some sort of command structure is asignificant function. Deciding which divisions (orhow many) will make up a certain corps and howmany corps will compose this or that army orarmy group has considerable influence on thecourse of a campaign. Once the fighting starts,one army commander is reluctant to give up acorps or an armored divisiqn to another armycommander even in the situations where this ispossible given the movement and logistics prob­lems involved in such a transfer. In many situa­tions it is not possible or possible only within atime frame or at a cost that would invalidate thereasons for the transfer. "Stalingrad" perhaps bestillustrates this where the front becomes divided attimes due to terrain. In a strategic game thissituation could be duplicated by requiring eachplayer to prepare an Order of Battle card prior tothe first move of the game. For games dealingwith units or corps size, the players should berequired to compose armies. To make the rulemeaningful there should be a movement penaltyof some appropriate amount whenever a corps orsmaller unit is transferred to another army.

At this point I would like to suggest anotherrestriction inherent in real-life combat which tiesin with what I mentioned above. This is, inconventional warfare, the restriction of the "zoneof action" or "axis of advance/direction ofattack." These are control measures whereby amilitary organization is restricted to conductingcombat within reasonably well-defined lateralIimits_ The reasons for these and the advantagesand disadvantages of them I am sure you know.Suffice it to say that this feature could also beincorporated into a strategic game by requiringplayers to select a control measure to go alongwith his organization for combat. Mapsheets suchas the ones included in "Jutland" and "1914"would be required. The control measure selectedwould extend into enemy territory a sufficientdistance to control the maneuver of friendly unitsonly for the first one or two moves of the game,thereby simulating the time required to adjust tothe tactical situation. In this way the game coulddeal with the necessity of planning a campaignand the difficulty of altering those plans onceengaged with the enemy.

DISCOUNT

Gentlemen:Using the Luftwaffe tournament game with a

change in victory conditions has vastly increasedthe excitment and playabilitY of the game tomany of our Macon SICL chapter members andwe would like to share the method with yourreaders.

If, in the war, an aircraft factory campaign waschosen by the US, the bomber command (andthe commander) would be evaluated by theoverall performance ratio of mission successes vs.losses. It wou Id not be necessary to destroy 100%of all German aircraft factories to rate thecampaign a success. Mission successes and bomberlosses in the big picture of the war would brandthe campaign a victory or a failure. Otherbombing campaigns would be needed as this onewas being waged, requiring bombers. If theaircraft factory campaign was determined to befailing, the planes would be transferred toanother campaign, say the ball bearing factoriesor the oil industry. The main idea of bombing isto destroy enough of the war-making potential ofthe enemy to stop the war. A Phyrric victory inthis campaign would be detrimental to the totalUS war effort and would not be acceptable. If,by April '45, the target/bomber destructionwould be evaluated, and if determined unfavor­able, the campaign would probably be scrubbed.

Similarly, Germany could not afford to mis­manage its fighters. Fighter losses vs. bomber andaircraft factory destruction would be evaluated todetermine the Luftwaffe commanders' com­petence, that is, whether or not he shou Id go tothe Russian Front. Again it was overall per­formance that counted, (political and personalconsiderations aside,) quality as well as quantity.It is felt that the game's victory conditionsshould reflect this.

Victory is not on a yes/no basis, not just thefact that 100% of the German aircraft factoriesare destroyed or they are not, but on a totalperformance evaluation. There is a greater rewardfor both sides if a quality victory, not a Phyrricvictory is achieved.

Points are scored as follows: The US playergets two points for each factory destroyed andone for each German airplane factor destroyed.Also, he gets one point for each US airplanefactor not destroyed by end of game. TheLuftwaffe player gets one point for each USbomber and fighter destroyed, one point for eachGerman fighter factor not destroyed by end ofgame and two points for each factory notdestroyed by end of game. All 530 points will bescored in the game by one side or the other, with266 needed to win. Thorough play testing so farhas found the average point spread betweenwinner and loser to be 20 points. (Yes, theGerman replacements he didn't accrue due tobombed factories are scored as losses, and thosethat were accrued but not used are scored for theGermans.) Suicide attacks by either side are notprofitable and a demoralized or battle fatigued

player just one turn near game end, can lose aclose game by goofing off.

Total points accumulated in the series of gamesplayed determine the tourney winner, secondplace, third, etc. Draws under this point system

Using AH tournament rules and replacementrates, the US' targets are the German aircraftfactories and the Luftwaffe's mission is to stopthe bombers, as usual. The maximum possibleGerman replacements are 10x10=100 fighterfactors, worth one point each. The aircraftfactories are worth two points each. US fightersand bombers are one point each. This yields thefollowing table:

Tournament Game US Luftwaffe PointsFiahters 40 104 144Bombers 44 44Replacement fighters 52 100 152Re lacement bombers 104 104Aircraft factories 2x43 8"Total Points 240 290 530

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READER BUYER'S GUIDE ~!Il~ @1]1[;~~l!®~ rn®~

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IJ!III

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BLITZKRIEG:

Q. Would the USA player receive points for 'NoUnderstanding' in areas where there are controlcounters?A. Yes.

LUFTWAFFE:

Q. [n a given attack, which side states FIRSTwhether or not he is dropping tanks?A. The attacker.

ORIGINS:

Q. Can THREE countries share control of anarea if their national objectives allow it?A. No. Only two countries may share control ofan area .

Q. If a unit is automatically eliminated bystrategic bombing attack, may ground units passthrough it's zone of control?A. Only during an advance after combat. "Air­craft units remain stationary until the end of theground unit movement portion of the turn. Theycan then be moved to the squares they wish toattack." Therefore, the A V would not have takenplace until AFTER the ground units had alreadymoved.

STALINGRAD:

Q. If a German 3-3-4 and a 4-4-4 attack twostacked Russian 5-7-4's at 1-2 odds, and rolls anexchange, how many Russian units are removed?A. Both Russian 5-7-4's are removed. The rulesclearly state that exchanges are resolved by anequal elimination of ATTACK factors. In thiscase, the German removes 7 ATTACK factors,and the Russian removes lOAITACK factors.(NOTE: a previous question, similar to this,which appeared in tile QB was answered incor­rectly.)

tiolls alld do research for you, but the largealllot/Ilt of nwil we receille prohibits this. We wil!be glad to allSwer questions 011 the play of thegame, but \lie canl/ot. Ulllor!ulIately, aI/sIVer thoseon technical or historical poil/ts nor call weresearch data for those of yOIl desigl/ing yourown games.

4.) Keep orders alld other mail separate fromquestions. Separating the items of your lellersinto different departments takes time and delaysyour reply.

MIDWAY:

When submittillg questions to us for answers,please note the following·

1.) Include a stamped, self-addressed enllelope.The letters that include one are al/swered first.Those that do not are answered last: as a result,these letters get back to you at least a week later.

2.) If your question refers to a specific situa­tiOIl, please include a diagram of the situation. Ittakes a good deal of time to answer the lellerotherwise, which will delay your reply.

3.) We wish we could answer techllical ques-

Q. Can 'wave' attacks be assigned, resolved, andhits recorded, ONE wave at a time. or must theaircraft in total be assigned all at once to a targeteven though attacking in waves?A. They must be assigned their targets all at onceas in normal attacks. It is only in resolvingattacks that the wave method differs from thenormal method.

PANZERBLlTZ:

Q. Assume three AT guns (attack factor ='-7each) are firing at an infantry unit. Is the totalattack factor 3+3+3=9 OR7/2+7/2+7/2=21/2= I 0'1A. 3+3+3=9. Units are halved and fractions arelost individually.

Q. In PBM play, a unit is being fired on atpossible elimination odds; if I want to move oneof my units through the hex containing the unitbeing fired upon (in the event my fire eliminatesit) how do I indicate this?A. Only if the unit being fired upon has a 100%chance of being eliminated in the FIRE (orOVERRUN) phase of your turn, may you makesuch an indication. Otherwise, the moving unitcannot go through that hex. (In essence, an'automatic victory' situation is required).

FRANCE. 1940:

Q. On the first turn are Allied planes consideredto be grounded such that the French cannotlaunch CAP over their ground support elementson the first turn?A. Yes

Q. Docs an aircraft element flying CAP over ahex stacked with three ground support elementsdefend the entire stack against an air superiorityattack, or just one ground support element?A. Just one ground support clement.

Q. Suppose that Belgium is neutral and theDutch Army has been cut off from the northedge of the board; arc the Dutch out of supply?A. Yes. Also, note that the northern supplyroute exists only for the Game-turn in which theNetherlands is invaded and the following Game­turn.

q ("111., ~'L.,{c01(~'-~ ~ '"

UL\J'f~~~~

U\. ~::~~,~~.~U][l ,."]: C"l"L ,,. ". I:lJ 1i?J>£ 39.

CITY

STATE

A

The review sheet may be cut out, photocopied,or merely drawn on a separate sheet of paper.Mail it to our 4517 Harford Road address withyour contest entry or opponents wanted ad. Marksuch correspondence to the attention of the R &D Department.

INSTRUCTIONS; Rate all categories by placing anumber ranging from 1 through 9 in the ap­propriate spaces to the right (1 equating excel­lent; 5·average; and 9-terriblel. EXCEPTION:Rate item No. 10 in terms of minutes necessaryto play game as recorded in 10-minute incre­ments. EXAMPLE: If you've found that it takestwo and a half hours to play FRANCE 1940, youwould give it a GAME LENGTH rating of "15."

Participate in these reviews only if you arefamiliar with the game in question.

TITLE: Luftwaffe PRICE: $11.00SUBJECT: Aerial Combat over Germany.

1943-45

1. Physical Quality2. Maphoard3. Components4. Ease of Understanding5. Completeness of Rules6. Play Balance7. Realism8. Excitement Level9. Overall Value

10. Game Length

Game to he reviewed next: _

2.00.. 3.00. 2.03

4.03 ­- 3.00

3.062:Os

__2.07_ 2.05~

1) Print your city and state in Box A above.2) Insert copy where required on lines provided.3) Print your name and address where indicated.

Opponents

Wanted

1. Physical Quality2. Maphuard3. Components4. Ease of Understanding5. Completeness of Rules ....6. Play Balance7. Realism8. Excitement LeveL.9. Overall Value

10. Game Length

Again, the RBG results tend to reinforce whatwas already known: 'Pallzerblitz' is a very popu­lar game. However, some aspects of the surveydeserve special comment. Evidently the map­board, with a '3.00' rating, isn't quite as popularas the 'France-40' type of board. In all proba­bility, this is due to the LOS rules which havecaused problems with some players. This isfurther supported by the '4.03' rating the Ease ofUnderstanding category received. The' 14' ratingfor game length surprised LIS - we thought thegames were averaging! about 80 minutes. Theoverall value, however, received an excellent'2.05'. As a side light, 'PanzerbJitz' received anaccumulated average of 2.58 to 'FranceAO's'2.82. As this series goes on, this comparativefigure should prove interesting.

TITLE: Panzerblitz PRICE: $9.00

SUBJECT: Tactical combat on the easternfront

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We're experiencing growing pains. More subscribers means more Want Ads. We just don't have the space Ifor every subscriber to wax rhetorical as in the past. To make it easier, and more meaningful for all Iconcerned, we introduce the Mini-ad.· :

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PAGE 15

The "Operation Contact" fervor is spreading.Lee Atwood of Box 837, Wes. Sta., Middletown,Ct. 06457 reports that he has a list of 110Connecticut wargamers which he'll send to anyinterested party who will send him a stamped,self-addressed envelope.

Along simi liar lines, Kevin Slimak of 3 Ames St.,Cambridge, Ma. 02139 is publishing the NORTH·EAST PATHFINDER, an up-to-date listing ofwargamers in New York and New England. Kevinpasses on the results of his toil for a mere 10 cents.

Some confusion arose from the fact that thereare two programs underway called 'OperationContact: One is run by Avalon Hill in our full-linecatalogue and it's purpose is to aid the uninitiatedbeginners in the hobby by putting them in contactwith well-known game clubs. The other, and muchmore useful to General subscribers, is run byAlister Macintyre, 2729 Stratford Ave., Cincinnati,Ohio, 45220. This organization is mu Itifacetedwith the primary purpose of informing gamers ofother players in their area. Do yourself, and thehobby, a big favor today: Drop Alister a postcardwith your name, address, phone, and gaminginterest on it. You won't be sorry ...

OPE RATI ON CONTACT is currently compilingan index to adult games on the market today. Theindex will be catalogued by types of games and willalso have a short section listing major clubs and'zines. Since it will include over 500 games, 25seperate sources of miniatures and other relatedmaterial, a nominal price will be charged. If yOllhave information on little-known adult games(especially sports games), send the title, publisher,and price to Operation Contact. The date of releasefor the index has not yet been made public.

CONG RATULATIONS to Russell Powell andSpartan International, Inc., on the fine articleabout SII in the December issue of Esquiremagazine. The multi-paged article included manyfine color photographs of Spartan activities at theirFall River convention this past summer. The storycopy was written in a fair-minded style that helpeddispel the usual "super-complexity" myth. Nogroup is more deserving of the publicity thanSpartan International. Their hard work and dili­gence at legitimizing the hobby during the past sixyears is beginning to payoff handsomely. Nogaming organization can match Sil's consistentperformance of sponsoring cash tournaments, pub·lishing gaming periodicals, and in general giving thehobbyist more than his· money's worth. Spartanmembers are by far the best informed and best

serviced group of gamers in the hobby today. Beassured bigger and better things are forthcoming.Perhaps now, after all of these years, the HOBBYof simulation gaming is 'over the hump:

GAMES AND PUZZLES is a professionallypublished British magazine covering a fantasticrange of gaming subjects. Of two issues reviewed,both contained a wide range of articles fromScrabble to miniatures, AH games, and Diplomacy.If you are looking for a unique broad·spectrummagazine, contact G&P's U.S. agent, John Board­man, 234 E. 19th St., Brooklyn, NY 11226. Subsare $9.00/year surface mail and $12.00/year air

mail.

PHOENIX DEPT: Conflict magazine, after aslow start, is alive and well and living in San Diego.Issue number three contains the game of ASSAS­SIN! and a feature article on the Invasion ofNorway, 1940. Dana Lombardy, the managing

Infiltrator~s Reporteditor, has seemingly gotten the publication backon schedule after receiving fresh financial support.Graphically, Conflict is a superior product that isimproving with each issue. Subscriptions are avail­able for $7.98/year from Simu lations Design Corp.,Dept. G, P.O. Box 19096, San Diago CA, 92119.

PROBABLY THE FINEST '<Imateur gaming­news magazine is John Mansfield's SIGNAL, whichcan be obtained from John's P.O. Box 830, CFPO5056, Belleville, Ontario, Canada address. Pub­lished bi-weekly, SIGNAL is six issues/$1.00 or 25issues/$3.00.

SLE EPE R DEPT: one of the small gems thatoccasionally pop up was 'discovered' by this staffin the May, 1971 back-issue of the SpartanInternational Monthly (now Quarterly). Containedtherein is a 'pull·out' game called ARNHEM,OPERATION MARKET GARDEN. This is one ofthe best games ever published in an 'amateur'magazine. If you are looking for a short stimulatinggame of surprising quality, order the May, 1971back-issue of the SIM for $1.25 from SII's 4121Long Beach Blvd., Long Beach CA 90805 address.

A NOTE TO CONTRIBUTORS: we are pres­ently swamped with articles for publication dealingwith varients to Avalon Hill games. If you wouldlike to see your work published in the General, beadvised that good, solid, well·thought-out articleson tactics and strategy of AH games have publish­ing priority over varient articles.

NEW REGIME DEPT: Gamer's Guide, the mostpopular gaming·news-advertising 'zine, has beenpurchased by Spartan International. Ken Borecki,the former owner of the magazine, cited lack oftime as the main reason for the sale. SII announcedthat it will publish GG in an off-set format similarto The Gladiator Report. The first issue publishedunder new management clearly shows the superi­ority of this format and GG should continue to bean outstanding information source for the hobby.Subscriptions are $3.00/ year from SII.

CONVENTIONS '73: time is already drawingnear for submission of news items relating toupcoming conventions. Any organization wishingto publicize their convention or get-togethershould send this information to the General ASAP.Only news releases citing FI RM convention loca­tions and dates will be published (to save somepoor gamer the agony of traveling 600 miles just tobe a weekend too early as has happened in thepast.)

A new convention date was announced bySpartan International: the BIG ONE, East CoastConvention is to be held the weekend of July 7,1973 in the McAlpen Hotel on 34th St. andBroadway in the heart of New York City. Thismight well prove to be the biggest convention onthe East Coast due to its NYC location. Beginplanning (and saving) NOW if you want to attend.Contact Spartan International for pre-registration,information, or to volunteer services. If you havenever attended a wargaming convention, you don'tknow what you are missing!

WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED of the existenceof (another) new game company. The ConflictGames Company has two titles out: The Brother­hood, and Verdun. The former is their effort into

THE GENERAL

the mafioso scene a la The Godfather Game, andthe latter is reputed to be a land board game. Norecommendation is intended since we have notseen any examples of either product yet.

CONTEST NO. 52, created by one of our lessexperienced contest designers, irked a few of thecontestants because of it's less concrete objectives."Sink at least one American vessel while taking asfew casualties as possible" evidently confused somepeople. Over 95% of the contestants sank one shipwith less than five squadrons lost. But, if we applyThis contest to a real game situation we see that itis more important to hurt the American Fleet thanto curtail attacks to save aircraft. About a dozenentries sunk at least two ships. Even though theiraircraft losses were higher, they left about half theAmerican Fleet in very sad shape. In more than afew cases the Enterprise averaged over 4.00 hits(best was 4.33) and two other vessels were sunkoutright. Much more weight should have beengiven to sinking ships than to conserving aircraft.The entry presented here is a typical example ofproperly we ighted objectives.

TARGET ATIACKING PLANES IN SQUARE'

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The ten best entries in the opinion of our judgeswere submitted by: George Paulik, Manistee,Mich.; John Dowling, Wheaton, Md.; JohnBukowski, Detroit, Mich.; George Southrey, Bar­rington, NJ; Peter Strand, Ironwood, Mich.; Capt.Steven Brooks, Tucson, AZ; Robert Nevett,Orange, Conn.; Charles Cottle. East Haven, Conn.;Dave Callis, EI Paso, TX; and Jim Folsom, Kensing­ton, Md.

THE OVERWHELMING FAVORITE in lastissue was The Midway Thesis, by Harold Tottenand Don Greenwood which garnered better than80% of the vote. A Blitzkrieg Offensive, by WilliamSearight; Fortress Europe, by Jon Lockwood;Capt. Harry Roach's Giap's Juggernaut; and theCampaign at Waterloo series by Bob Harmonfollowed in that order. Free games went to all ofthe above for their literary efforts.

LOYAL SUBSCRIBER'S DEAL: To rewardour full time subscribers for their loyalty wecontinue to offer various parts and materials athalf price. The items described may be purchasedby cutting out and sending in the DISCOUNTSTAR AND ACCOMPANYING DESCRIPTIVECOPY. This offer expires March 31, 1973. Besure to mark your order "Loyal SubscriberDeal-Parts Dept." and enclose an additional 50cents postage and handling charge. The items thismonth are:

~PANZERBLITZ RULES 25 centsLUFTWAFFE RULES 25 centsLUFTWAFFE COUNTER S(each) 50 cents

OPPONENTS WANTED

Expert/Average player wants PBM games, France1940. Jutland, P,Jnzerblitz, Battlc of the Bulge.Nokin Rene, Kclle 6, Lasne, Belgium, 1338I am average player of college adult age desiring:FTF and/PBM opponents for S'Grad. AK, 80m,Luft., P.Blilz. Tyrone Newby, 226 Grand Ave.East 354-5420, Chatham, Onl Canada.Average player of high school age desiring POMopponents for Luftw:affe, AK, Amic, I).Day,s-Grad, Guad.. Midway. Bulge. Bill Tieleman.P.O. Box 95. Torino, British Columbia. Canada.725-3428Wish PBM opponents for Jutland or Luftwaffe.and join WarxamiJlJ Oub. Adult, midium experi­ence. Michatl Raymond, ApI. 212, 150 CosbornAve. Toronto. Canada 425-7613.Try your strena:th against BrilWl expert! SttkPBM opponents for D-Day I Bulge, s-Grad, Mid­way, 1914, Diplomacy. Please write airmail to3voKl delaying the struggle! Nicholas Palmer.Lehwaklsvej 3. SC, 2800 Lyngby, DenmarkAverage player of high school age desiring FTFopponents for Waterloo, Battle of the ·Bulge,Luftwaffe, Panzerblitz, 1914,Genysburg. Mark P.Gergen, 4269 Sharpsburg Dr. Mountain Brook,Ala. 35213,879-2300.EJ!.pert player of adult age desiring FlF oppo-

~:;~:::a~sA~~u~~~dt.S::=rIA~:d~:~y~~~~~Nausta, Adak Is., Alaska, FPC Seattle 98791.'Average player of college adult age desiring FlFopponcnts for Blitl.krie~, Stalingrnd, AfrikaCorps, Panzerblitz, Waterloo. R. Mack Frnzier,3802 N. 28th St., Phoenix, Ariz. 85016.602-253-5148.274-1829. _You say you ve never made a lorced march at 1am in pouring rain? PBM Hard Core W'Loo. Isend the rules, you pick your side. RichardCochran 2914 E. Moreland, Phoenix Arizona85008, 275-3723I will buy Trafalger. Gary Graber. 8718 N. 42ndAve. Phoenix, Arizona 85021Info. on clubs and/or players in the state of Ariz.for Operation Contact. Everyone in Arizonaplease write. Richard loomis, 8149 E. Thomas,Scottsdale, Ariz. 85251. 945-6917.Average &: Expert players 01 high school desiringFTF opponents for P-Blitz, A-K, Blitz, France 40,Bulge, s-Grad, t).Day, K·Spiel, U-Boat, L-Waffe,W-Loa, c.bura. Will PBM P·Blitz, K-Spiel. Alsoseek members for International WargamingLeaaue. Keith Wilhite, c/o I.W.L P.O. Box 171,McGehee, Arkansas, 71654. 222-3762

Will sell old games: Tacttcs 11, Nieuchess,Manq:ement, Civil War, etc. Please n:ply to G.N.Wulfsbera, 270 19o Way, Boukler Creek, Ca.95006. 4Q8..-33S-3689.Competent pbyer, college age, seeks PBM formost A-H pmes. Haven'l lost game in threeyears. Woukl like peopk interested in gameinstead of fantasy. D.LCole, Box 84, Cutten,Calif. 95534.FTF opponents wanted for Diplomacy. Alsomore names for Operation Contact listing for Bayarea. Send Info. for inclusion, 32c in stamps for acopy. Andrew Phillips, 128 Oliver St. Daly City,Ca. 94014, 415-77600103Novice player of high school age, desiring PBMfor P'Blitz, Anzio. Can buy any game. JimCriscione, 11042 E. McGirk, Elmonte, CA. 9173,213-443-9165Wanted:PBM opponents for 1914 and Blitzkrieg.Jim Tracy, 8082 Central, Garden Grove, CA.92644A proficient player of unmentionable age willgrind into dust ::111 FTF opponents in most HAgames. Please don't shed tears on my game­boards! David Denniston, 188 Brandon Dr.Goleta, CA 93017, 968-2454Adult player and two juvenile lieutenants willtake on all challengers, FTF in Panzerblitz,BlitZkrieg, Waterloo, Tactics II. J.M.Eunice, 317Monteehico, Monterey Park, Calif. 91754,288-6182Expert players of high school age guaranteeingthat you will lose in P-Blitz, PBM. We play eitherside. Jim Farnsworth, 157 Walford Dr. Moraga,CA. 415-376-4579Will FTF almost any AH game. PBM, D-Day,S-Grad, BUlge, AK, Blitz, Chess. Would like tomeet people interested in fanning WG club inarea. L. Davidyepp, 1418 E. 32nd St. Oakland,CA. 94602Wanted: Face to face opponents for S.l.C.LPoint Mugu Chapter. AH miniatures, Multi-playergames.. Join the S.l.C.L, S.l.M.P.L, and S.I.M.LWrite: Mark S. Boyce, 1950 Lantana Apt.No.I09, Oxnard, Calif. 93030. 485-8577.

NOVice pliyn wants t~ PBM s-Grad. Will buyoutof print Cen's., and will pay $2.00 for Vol. 8 No.4 Gen'l good coodtion. F.Lee Johnson, 1411Edl;ewood Dr. Palo Alia, CA. 94301,415-324-1651Will sell or trade t).Day, Jutland, Shiloh, Neb-19,Nova. $«k pmers Redlands vicinity FlF France'40. Thomas Halsey, 1419 W. Cypress., Redlands.,CA 92373 793-3791Will sell AH pmes plus Civil War, \VW1, WWIl,and various military history books.. Send needs..Rob Ellis, 8410 Denison Ct, Sacramento, CA.95826 383-6432PSM AK opponents wanted for an interestinggame. Mike George, 2560 Carmel Dr. San Bruno,CA 94066, 873·1767PBM anywhere, FTF San Diego area. Prefer PBMOrigins, Anzio, 1914, Luft. Will be third player,game master too. Have info. on Military-Politicaleconomic Multi·player PBM simulation games. M.Measel 6921 Wallscy, Dan Diego, CA 92119I seek any information about the "Wild, Wild,West" game. "Send your papers" to ColonelMartin Hessler. Colonel Martin Hessler, 1960Fifteenth Ave. San Francisco, CA 94116Opponents ror AH games. Have all but a few.Also minatures-modern PI3M, FTF. Several gamesfor sale. Wm. F. Buller, 922 Rodney Dr. SanLeandro, CA 94577 483·1140Wanted: PBM AK. K·Spiel, .!-uft, Bulge, S·Grad,Have PBM kil for AK. Me as German in all

OPPONENTS WANTED

games. Lee Leonard, 340 Foothill, San LuisObispo, CA 93401 543-4149

Adult mterested In F t r: opponents of all ages forall board wargames. Will buy Anzio. Tom Oleson,1200 High Ridge Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 93103805·966-2351.Big Mark rules S. ca. Will be any Side m BuJgC(PBM) and Win! Can you beat me! Also. lookingfor info. on all naval war games. Mark Robinson.2807 Pearl St. Santa Monica, CA. 90405396-6826Have 12 AH games now out of pnnt for sale.Cannot menlion titles in keeping witll new adpolicy. Forward stamped envdope for particularslist. G.LRoss, 1331 18th St. Santa Monica, CA90404 213-828-6220ExceUent pbyer collqe aac wanls reliable oppo­nent. for PBM Slalin, B Of 5, Panzer, FTF anyAH or bring Spartan sames. Jeff Driemeyer, 400Fairview Te, Sierra Madn:, CA 91024,213·355-6627Novice player wishes to PBM P-blil2, France'4O,AK, also wish to buy Battle of Brilian. MichaelBeavers, 1113 Lincoln St., Watsonville, Ca. 95076Average adult player PBM D-Day, Afrika K.Waterloo, $-gBd, P-blit.t, Battle Bulge, F-1940.Also FTF all AH games but Origins. Melvin D.Yarwood, 1600 Madrone Ave. No. 29, W. SactoCA, 95691, 371-1185Average player of' college age desiring FlF oppo­nents for any AH game. (I own 20) Mike Ward1268 Cherokee, Denver, Colo. 80204.

Average player of college age desiring PBMopponents for Blitzkrieg. Gary' Taylor, CorbettHall room 423, Ft. Collins, Colorado 8052\.491-4682.Will FTF AK, G-cana1. Do not have PBM kit butif you will share yours I will pay half. Will tradeor buy games. John Stocking, 36 Bliss Ave.,Hamden, Conn. 06517, 203-288-6522

Expert players for any AH games. (FTF) RichardS. Griffith, 19 Frederick St, Htfd, Conn. 06105523-4724Desperate need FlF for Bulge, Blitz, Midway,1914, Luftwaffe, Anzio, either side. And PBM forAnzio. Joel Graebe, 561 Forest Rd, Northfordcr, 06472, 484-2270For sale - Guadalcanal and Blitzk.rteg - both inexcellent condition for 56.50 each postage paidn:ply to: Robert Nevett, 677 £Stellect, Orange,Conn. 06477, 795-0012Average piiyer Oi adUlt age desiring r: IF oppo­nents for P-Blitz., Bulge, Stalingrad or Whatever.Will trade Blitz.kreia, Guadalcanal, France'40.Jell)' Schott, 120 Pine Ridge Drive, Ft. lauder·dale, Florida 33314. 581·2296.Will sell u:cdlent Jutland, Bulge, Gettysburg,Midway, Guadalcanal, Bismarck, Football forSI.25 each. You pay postage: Want PBM forWaterloo and Afrika (also F-F) Contact MichaelSincavase, 16930 SW 300 St. Homestead. F1a.33030Average playec or adult age <Sesiring FlF and allAH games. Also seek members for a new club.Mike DuBose. 1913 Art Museum Dr. Apt25,Jacksonville, Fla. 32207. 904-398-4716.Expert player or adult age desiring FTF and PBMopponents for almost all Avalon Hill Games. Willtrade or buy G-burg hex mapboard. Robert R.Kestner 11, 2358 Riverside Ave. Apt. 3, J~ckson­

ville, Fla. 32204,388-8040.Average player of adult age desiring FlF oppo­nents for Bulge, Midway, Panzerblitz, Luftwaffe.Richard Lawrence, II-C Athens Arms Apt.,Athens, Georgia, 30601, 549-6516Opponents wanted ror all A.H. games. Alsoattempting to form club in Atlanta area. Iflhterested call 482·6774. Keith Nelson. 52 Btreeview Dr. Decatur, Ga. 30034. 482-6774.Macon SICL chaptcr wants ftf members for allAH, miniatures. Saturday mornings at Robt.Train Rec. Center. Karl Skadowski, 1526 N.Atwood Drive, Macon, Georgia, 31204 746-3314Expert player Of high school age desiring FTFand/or PBM opponents for Guadacanal, S. Mar­ket, Origins. Want Tactics II. WII trade or sellGuadacanal. 212 Devonshire, Savannah, Georgia,31404.912-897-1788.Ave~ge player of college age desiring FlF andPBM opponents for most AH games. SP4 RichardFisher, 204-42-3754, USASTRAT COM COSOUTH, Honolulu, Hawaii. APO SF 96558.86-2705.If you Idaho gamers aren't afraid of the breatestGeneral that ever lived, drop me a line. (I'mmagniflCCnt!) Wanted: Lensman, Bulge, Waterloo.AK. Das Konig von Arnor, 141 E. 23rd, IdahoFalls. Idaho, 83401, 208-523-5097Help! I am lookina for a opponent for any AH orother game, miniatures, etc. Am willing to tryany ganz any side. Gn:gory W. Novak, NO.4 819W. Lincoln, Charleston, III. 61920 348-8339wm trade or sell c:<inal will buy or barter forblank unit counters of any and all colo~ RichardVillella, 5316 S. Dorchester No. 206, Chicago,Illinois 60615.NOYice player of college adult age desiring PBMopponenls fOr Mjdway. Bill Cook, 7424 Winne­mac, Chicago, 111. 60656, 867-8552

Average player of college age seeking FTF opp. inBlitz, D-day, Bulge, Midway, 1940, P·blitz, 1914.

OPPONENTS WANTED

That I own or S-grad, Tacll th3t you own.Gcolle A. Stcszycki, SVCBTRY 1/3FA2AD, Ft.Hood, Texas, 76546, 685-6131

Average player or adult age wanting PBM oppo­nents for Luff and K-spiel. Kell)' Mann, 477 5th

.Ave. ApJ ~, ~Iarion, Iowa 52302 377-7444Novice player of high school age desiring FlFand/or PBM opponenls for D-Day. Have PBM kitsfor sale or trade from other games. Tim Hyland,301 N. Center St. Zearing, Iowa 50278,487·2181.Average player of adult ase desiring FTF oppo­nents for AH ga~s. Cha H. Bogart, 201 PinOak Pl Frankfort, Ky. 40601, 227-2436Expert player wanting to play AK, D-Day, £gad,Anzio, France '40, Luftwaffe, Bulge. Bill Rands-­dell, 6844 Green Meadow Gr. Louisville, Ken~

tucky, 40207 502-$95·5352Will swap year old Panurblitt in good condition(plus cash if ne«SS3ry)for Anoo. Seek info. onMaine wuganrrs. Al Currier, P.O.Box 14, Min­turn, Maine, 04659 201-526-2585

Novia: vlayer college age wants opponents forPBM Luftwaffe. John R. Avery, 129 Hopkins Rd.Balto. Md. 21212, 377-7564.Average player of adult age desiring: 1) FlFopponents for AH games; 2) PBM Bulge; 3)members for Columbia game club. John A Lang11,5137 Homecoming La., Columbia, Md. 11044,730-4665.-Expert player of high school age wanting play­by-phone opponents for Midway, Pant-B, Situa­tion 207, Chess. Will crush all opponents!! PaulDietz. 9017 Manordale Lane; Ellicott City, ,Md.21043. 465-6446.

Average player of high school age is seeking FTFor PBM opponents for Blitz, Midway, Gettysburg,Luft, Jutland or 1914. Interested in joining aclub. John McPhillips, 5610 39th Ave. Hyatts·ville, Md. 2078l 864.()322

Novice player of high school age, looking for aFTF and/or PBM opponent for Stalingrad, France'40, and Panzerblitz. Am interested in buyingU-Boat. Roy Furr, Jr. 326 Yorktown Road,Lexington Park, told. 20653, (301) 863-7080. .Average player of adult age desiring FlF oppo­nents for AH games. Donak! Corrig.,n, 3 DelawareDrive. Oxon Hill, Md. 20021. 839·5643.Total destruction or your forces is my goal Iown all AH games. My annies will crush yOu in

'PBM_ Joe Sherfy, 6921 Racehorse Lane, Rock­ville, Md. 20852 (301) 881-3860.

FTF anylhing.. UlMcAneny, 516 Thayer Ave.No. 101, Silverspring, Md. 20910, 589-5440Will pAM Waterloo, Battle of Bulge, Stalingad,Chess, Diplomacy. I gamemaster Diplomacygames for a small fee. Wish to start up a FTFFootball StrateIY lealue. John Dowling, 2713Urbana Drive, Wheaton, Md. 20906.942-7243Opera'ticn Contact (Northeast): A directory' ofNE garners will' be available Mid·November formore info. contact: Kevin Slimak, 3 Ames St.,~bridge, Ma. 02139, 494-8813.

I am looking for PBM opponents for P-Blitz. AlsoFTF in any game (as long as you have it.) Arethere any wargamers at Northeastern! DouglasPrescott, 153 Hemenway St, Boston, Mass. 02115I am novice of high school age desiring FlFand/or PBM opponents for AH, and other games.Jonathan Gingerich, 100 Avon Hill St. Cam­bridge, Mass. 02140. 876-6556Average player desiring FTF opponents for mostAH games. Ray Thorne, 31 Porter Rd, Chelms­ford, Mass. 01824, 256-6392Age 23, novice seeks PBM FTF for any/allwargames. Has Blitzkrieg/Akorps. Would join war­game club to gain experience. Francis Keough,546 Hampshire St., Apt. 4, Lawrence, Mass.0184\.Will sell up to 8 games or trade up to 8.Excellent condition. Mlirk Swanson, 531 Chip­pewa Dr., Fremont, Mich. 49412, 924- 4546DetrOit area's only regularly meetmg wargamingclub, "Interest Group: Highland Park" MOWaffiliated. No red tape. Please write to (No phonecalls) Mike Bartnikowski, 943 Stewart, LincolnPark, Mich. 48146Need players m sagmaw Valley area. I can'tbelieve it's the warpme desert it appears to be.Raymond E. Kinney, 1259 N. II Mile Rd.linwood, lIotich. 48634, 517-879-4695PBM Waterloo. I'm French, Blitzkrieg, Battle ofthe Bulge. I can give you a real tough game. 1 canplay most Avalon Hill pmes. Les Lightstone,16091 Harden Circle, Southfield, Mich. 48075.557-4898Adult player desires FTF wargaming adversariesof any age in Twin City metropolitan area. JimDiehl, 5008 Normandale Hi&hlands Drive, Bloom­ington, Minn. 55437,831-8898Average player or college age desiring FTF oppo­nents for aU AH games. Please reply to: DouglasW. Allen, 217 Avenue E, Ooquet, Minn. 55720.(218) 879-8647

:.Expert adult ate player seeks opponents forD-Day, France '40 Panzerblitz, Bulge or othergames.. Want to buy Jutland and 1914, Midway.Thomas Jetzer, 917 Essex SE, Mpls, Minn.55414,378-1720Average player of hiah school age desiring FlFopponents for Jutland, Midway and Luftwaffe.Chris Henze, 15917 Minnetonka Blvd., Minne­tonka, Minn. 55343, 93S-7082Will trade Tactics II. Also PBM France '40, Bulge,Stalingrad. Robert Schindler, 210 Patterson,Farmington, Miss. 63640 (314) 756·6318Average player adult age deSIres paM lor all AH.Have out-of.print Atl games to sell: Verdict (l

and Management. Leroy Thompson, 35 Kalen, St.Louis, Mo. 63114Avernge player Of high school age desires PBMopponents for Waterloo and Bulge. Carrick David­son, 104 Harms St. West Plains, MO. 65775,256-2545I will humiliate and destroy any fool in Gettys-

OPPONENTS WANTED

burg. Of course: I will lead the Army of NorthernVa. Gary Cox, 2720 Ellsworth Omaha, Neb.68123,291-2156Malure PBM opponents wanted for Fr-40, S-Grad,W-Loo, Bulge, Panzerblitz, D-Day and AK. Allletters answered. John J. Kawe, 5K ColonialDrive. Lillie Fal&, New Jersey, 07424.201-785-2280Average player of 6th &fIde wanted ror Jut. andKrieg. For anyone in the NJ. area. Must bewithin 20 mik area of Millburn. Peter C'hristian,439 Wyoming Ave. Millburn NJ. 07041201-319-6744Wanted: "Trafalii? game published by Roger C.Cormier about 1966 -67. Name your price. D.Peter Dungan, II Park Place, Princeton, N.J.0854()Will sell or trade A-Korps, Stalina, B. of Britain,Tactics H, Bismarck, and LeMans. Would likeGettysburg. (Hex). Tim Christensen, 118 WalterN.E. Abluquerque, N.Mex. 87102, 242-3176Average player or ffiih school age wants PBMopponents for Krieppiel. Will buy Gettysburgand Afrika Korps. S. Wickham, P.O. Box 1059,Santa Fe, N.M. 87501. .Above average player of about college age wantsFTF opponents for any of some 55 games I have.Thomas Hilton, 252 74th SI. Brooklyn, N.Y.11209, TE-6-<I830Want PBM opponents for Chess. Also would liketo purchase Air Empire. Send info. on conditionand price. Peter Valeri, 2024 E. 27th SI. Brook­lyn N.Y. 11229,212-646-3041Average player 01 high school age desiring PBMopponents for: Luftwaffe, Blitz, P-Blitz, 1914,Midway, B-of-Britain, Also seeking members forDcs Besateung Des Tellfels. Henry Kramer, 36Huron St., Glen Head, N.Y. 11545, ORI-8416Out-of-shape wargamer looking for FTF competi­tion in Ithaca area; will play any game, most AHwith reasonable competence. Eric Carter, 316 FallCreek Drive, Ithaca, N.Y, 14850,272-1286The Military Studies Society would like maturewargamers to join its ranks. Will face to faceanyone in Long Island and N.Y.C. Contact ITSPres.. Rich Meehan, 23 Sterbrooke Rd., Linden­hurst, N.Y. 11757, Call 884-7866Average adult player looking for Russian oppo­nent for 4-5-6 S-srad. Send initial set-up to:Maurice Maloney, 610 Grand St., Mechanicville,N. Y., 12118,664-3536Expert but accident prone player age 27 lookingfor FTF opponents for all AH games, especiallyBlitzkrieg, Slalingrad, Whitley Strieber, 8-H, 347West 55th St., New York, N.Y. 10019,757-8651Average player of high school age, I am willing toplay AK or D-Day either PBM or FlF. BrucePopp, Box 384, Potsdam, N.Y. 13676,315-265-4553Average player of hiih school. seeking FTFopponents for Panurblitt, Slalingnd, Jutland,Midway. Looking to join wargamers club. Will sellexcellent Chanoellorville. David Engler, 183Round Hill Rd., Roslyn Heipls, N.Y. 11577,516--mai&222setO:k adult or coliege ale players ror fTF orsmall group play. Wish to sell Trafalgar, Con­frontation and Chancellorville for best: offers..Jack Morrell, 280 Westmar Dr. W. Rochesler,N.Y. 14624,247-1443Average player or high school ale will play FTFand/or PBM s-grad A.K. Battle of Bulge, France·40 or Blitz. Ray Reeves, 17 Deb Ellen Dr.Rochester, N.Y. 14624Inexperienced adult desires FlF opponents inG-buJl:, AK, D·Day, France 1940, 1914, Blitz·krieg, and Tactics 11. John Vinal, 228 Tyvola Dr.Apt. 2 Charlotte, N.C. 28210, 525-3764Novice player grade school deSITCs German oppo'nents for D-Day, PBM. Will answer all letters. HalBurdick, 108 Emerald Circle, Durham, N.C.27707,919-544-1459Wanted FTF 1940, Anzio, Midway, Adult averagenovice. Rasmussen, James C., 734 S. Main St.Apt. E, Mt. Holly, N.C. 28120,827-6978Fight tyranny, play wargames through Der Stutt­gart Empire. Newsletter covers every phase war­gamming. Provides more servicc, lower fees(Origins, Diplomacy) 20 cents/sample $2.00/tenissues! Hurry! Dave Staples, RR I, Box 120,Fargo, N.Dak. 58102,282-4358College age player desires FrF opponents ror anywargame. Am also interested in buying Battle ofBritain. Don Schafer, 2323 11th St., Akron.Ohio,44314FTF P-blitz, BlilZ, Midway, A.K., L-waffe, 1914.Ronald Dietz, 1335 Concord Ave., S.W. Canton,Ohio 44710Will sell Jutland, 1914, D-Day, Guad, TadI,Gettys.. Management, Midway. Want Panzerblitz.PBM opponents also, and FTF gamers in vicinity.Jim Evans, 1139-llth St. N.W., Canlon, Ohio44703, 454-5043FlF Opponents Unlimited: To locate nearestFTF opponents, send name, address, types ofgames with 10 cents and self-add~, stampedenvelope to Operalion Contact c/o Alister Wm.Macintyre, 2729 Sln-lford Avenue, Cincinnati,Ohio. 45220 513-221-6601

Help! Frustrated warg,amer of Jr. High age withno opponents will meet all FTF in: Stalingrad,D-Day. Panzerblitz, Franoe-40, Anzio, GettysbergWaterloo, Luftwaffe. Robe.rt Kunath, 620 Syca­more Dr, Euclid, Ohio 44132, 731-5564Attention all wargnmers In NE OhlO. pleasecontact me. Am trying to organize FTF oppo­nents.. Will play FTF Antio, France-40, others.Will PBM Bulge. Thomas Hannaford, Jr. P.O.Box402, Hudson, Ohio, 44236, 216-653-6323Will PBM Chess. Wish to buy good conditionChancellorsville. Send offer to; John Nixon,R.R.I, Lebanon, Ohio, 45036NOVIce to Average player seekmg a paM Germanopponent for Stalingrad. Will sell V·Boat, MarkFritze, 3201 N.W. 61 PI. Oklahoma City, Okla­homa 73112, 842-0764Games for sale. Jutland, 1914, Anzio, Midway,S5.00 apiece. Bismarck, Tactics II, $4.00 apiece.Contact Neil Albcrt, 1000 P3Uerson St., Eugene,Oregon 97401.

OPPONENTS WANTED

College student seeking opponents for Bulge,$-Grad, Waterloo and most other AH games. Alsointerested in buying non·AH games and publica·tions. L Donald Sanders, Room 108 Burgess Uof 0, Eugene, Oregon 97403, 686-5340Average player oj college ase desmng PBMopponents for Stalingrad, Afrika Korp$. RollieRussell, 11624 N.E. Fargo, Ponland Oregon,91220,252-4102Expert player desmn& opponents lor panzerhliu,1940, Staling,rad, AK, Blitzkrieg, PBM Bulge,1914, B"attle of Poland, Baltle of Berlin. ThomasWise, 114O-F Qoverly Rd, Hanisbufl, Fa. 17104,234-5113Average wargamer of HoS. q:e ready to sendtroops marching: Victory or death in: AX., Anzio,Bulge, Blitz, G-Canal, J·Land, M·Way, PzBlitz,S-Grad, U-Boat. France-40. Jack C. Thomas., 409Cocoa, Hershey, Pa. 17033, (939) 533-%16Are there any hip school players in the area?(Lansdale) Will play anything FTF. Call 699-5093Jack Moriarty, 120 White Oarle. Rd, N. Wales, Pa.19454.Naval slrategy is not dead. Seek opponents forMidway, Jutland, Bismark, Football. Will alsolearn U-Boat but do not have game. Fritz Hansen,7th & Smith Field, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15219.471-9266Anyone desiring to get his pants beat off face toface in any AH land baltle pmes please call.Sorry, only Pittsburghers. Joseph Scioscia, II, 260Lincoln Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa. 15202.761-4555I will play Jutland, M.Way, Bismarck, Football.Will someone please mail me a drawn facsimile ofthe U-Boat Game board. I have all other neces­sary parts. Fritz Vonerik, 504 Dunn Dr., Pitts­burgh, Pa. 15227, 471·9266Average player of adult age desires FTF oppo­ncnts for W-Ioo, G-burg, M-way, and other games.Bruce Allan Brinser, 406 Meadow\dew Lane,Phoenixville, Pol. 19460, 2 I5-935-1293Average player of college·adult age looking forexperienced PBM opponents for Anzio III andFrance 40. All games played to conclusion at areasonably rapid pace. Dave Jeffery, Apt.l-F, 116N. 31st St. Nashville, Tenn. 37203Will trnde old editions of square Gettysbura andTactics II for France-40, Anzio, Origins, orJutland. Mark O'Steen, 4126 Craigmont Drive,Raleigh, Tenn 38128, 386-3637Will trade or sell games. B-krieg, Kriegspiel,Luftwaffe. Please reply to: Mark Drake, 1701Richland, Abilene, Texas 79603, 672-9786I am coI.lege age desiring FTF andlor PBMopponents for any AH g,ame. Also seek membersfor Jagdpanther. Will game master Diplomacy,Origins of WWII and team limited Intelligence,Blitzkrieg. Stephen Cole, 1540 Parr, Amarillo,Texas., 19106, 352-2163Nuclear Destruclion, Official Moderator: IS centsper turn. eed enlries for 100 player game, too.Write Dave Callis, 5820 Tautap, EI Paso, Texas.,79924,915-751-5976 for rules etc.I will pay five ants per sheet for Anzio PBMpads. Min. 20 sheets. No max. Bill Johnson, 620Nottingham Oaks Trail, o. 211, Houston, Texas.,77024.For sale: Luftwaffe, Tactics II, G-canal, FTFmost AH games. PBM AK, B of B, P-bliu, D-Day.Stuart MacPherson, 3 Parkside Dr. Montpelier,yr. 05602, 802-223-6775Wish FTF opponents. Wish to buy all AH gamescancelled before 1971. fTF opponents for allother AH games. Michael Hilton, 3622 BarcroftView No. 204, Baileys Crossroads, Va. 22041,820-7286Experienced player of college age desires FTF orPBM opponents for Anzio, Bulge, P-Blitz. $-gradand others. Donald Egan, 3305 Cannon Gate Rd.No.2, Fairfax, Va. 22030, 203-573-1594Expert adult player deSIres paM allied or Russianopponents for S-grad AK 1914 France-40. Willbuy Luftwaffe. Dean Miller, 8701 Duvall St.,Fairfax, Va. 22030A-korps, S-grad, B-krieg exc. condo Expertlynumbered for PBM each with unused PBM kit forsale as group $15 and postage Bargain. DavidCarawan, 5916 Dinwiddie St., Springfield, Va.22150Will sell new AH games and mail to you. I'll paypostage. Also want good loser for FTF games. Iwork weekends. Dean Hoodeshel, P.O.Box 567,Va.Beach, ;.ta. 23451,425.7241PBM P-Blitz, 24 games series situations I through12. One game at a time alternating German/Rus­sian with each situation also PBM Luftwaffe,Stalingrad, AX.. Bradford S. Nelson, 2338-lQthAve Eo, Apt. 105, Seattle, Washington 98102.Able colkge or adult victims wanled for FTF allAH games and PBM P·Blilz and olhers. Want tobuy AH's Bismark in good condition John M.Weswig, 12721 47th Ave SW, Tacoma, Wash.98499. Phone: 582-1470.

FTF opponents wanted for AH, and mmatun:sgames. Will sell Kriegspiel, Midway $5, poslageuncluded. Also, 3M Twixt for $1.00 Jim C.Lampman, 5727 N. 13th, Tacoma, Wash. 98406,752-7541

Average player of high school desiring PBM orFTF on W-Loo, s-Grad and olher AH pmes.. Willtrade or sell games. Steve Ulik, 17890 LincrestDr., Brookfield, Wise. 53005. Phone: 781-2347.

All leiters will be answered. Desire France-40 andW-Loo opponents. I also play other games.Interested in Napoleons. Will trade or sell wargames. Steven Ulik, 17890 Lincrest Dr. Brook·field, WI. 53005, 781-2347Avernge player of high school age. \ViII play anyAH game. Will deal with Guad. and/or Krieg. Orpay for some games. (Any ftf). Richard Ward,4025 Birch Ave., Madison, Wise. 537!1,238-0429

Adult average player desires FTF opponents forBlitz, Bulge or other strategy games, mine 5Jr.yours. Also need "Diplomacy opponents. DavidW.Sielaff, 8337 Jackson PIc. Blvd. Wauwatosa, Wis.(Milwaukee) 53213, 453-1778