State of Play: WWII Commander: Battle of the Bulge (solo, second run)

  

I took another stab at WWII Commander: Battle of the Bulge (Compass Games, 2020) the other day, sticking with the three-turn scenario, as I only had a little less than two yours available. I’m pleased to report that I believe the only mistakes I made this time around were all tactical.

I’m playing both sides, obviously, but I’ve been putting the most effort into trying to attain success as the Germans. This casts the Allies (Americans all in this scenario) in a defensive posture, which is about right historically, and is very simple to play – just look at what the Germans are trying to do and do what you can to thwart that. So far, the Allies have been successful taking this stance.

I was determined to try to make the run to the Meuse, at least to get a unit in an adjacent area, if not actually gaining full control by the end of the third day (December 18). I’s still convinced it should be possible, but that goal eluded me this time out as well. To be fair, I’ve been playing the American forces pretty aggressively, as soon as they actually can act; the Germans get three uncontested activations before the December 16 turn starts. The thing is, I now believe I haven’t been making the best use of those early activations.

Morning, December 17 (Beginning of turn 2).

The key for the Germans is mobility, and the key to mobility is controlling the road network, or at least enough of it to be able to funnel their armour forward (west), toward the Meuse. Things are going to get more difficult with the arrival of reinforcements in the second turn, so it’s crucial to move up as many units as you can in the initial push, but there lies the rub.

Armour units can move two spaces (three during strategic movement, but only on roads and within controlled spaces, and for the Germans, only from turn 2 (17^th December). I need to find a way to push my infantry units west to secure (Control) farther regions to expedite armour movement.

Thus far, I’ve been thinking like an old-school wargamer (analogous to a role-player treating an investigative scenario like a dungeon crawl). Playing a wargame, you’d think that this would be the right approach, but now I’m wondering. I was catching up on The War Room on YouTube. Thomas Van Hare (from Historic Wings) was talking about the reaction of some reviewers to his game SOE: Lysander (Historic Wings, 2023). Many reviewers have complained that the missions are too tough, but Van Hare suggested that they are approaching the missions like a wargamer, when they should be thinking like a pilot. He said, if a mission was shaping up to be too difficult, instead of ploughing on regardless and hoping for a miracle, a pilot would turn around and head home, and try again the next night.

Not every enemy unit has to be destroyed to take it out of the game. It was one of those times when you read the rules, and you comprehend the rules, but it’s not until you engage with the game that you understand the rules. I read the rules about out of supply units (can’t move, can’t initiate combat, and when they defend, it’s at the value shown on the Out of Supply marker placed on top of the unit. In the south I managed to get German troops forward far enough to envelope the American 4^th Infantry, cutting off their supply lines, and essentially enfeebling them. In the north, though, the weaker infantry and recon (Greyhound) units have been goading me to attack, and I’ve bitten each time. This has cost me dearly, tying up valuable resources, because as weak as they may seem, I haven’t been able to dislodge them in a single action, no matter what I throw as them. Better to envelope these pesky units like I did with the 4^th, then move on (if at all possible).

End of the third (final) turn. Closer, but no Meuse.

The Germans were more successful at removing American units from the board than the first time I played, but that doesn’t amount to victory. Well, some “elite” units on both sides have a one-victory-point value, but neither have enough of them to make wholesale massacre a winning strategy. If the Germans don’t meet their goals, and in a timely manner, before the fuel starts to run out, then it’s the Allies game. Mark Herman quipped that the Germans lose every Bulge game, but the fun part is watching how they lose.

Allied casualties (not not a VP among them).

All in all, I think I feel confident enough with WWII Commander to introduce someone else to the game now, but I want to take one more run at the short scenario, and maybe double-handed solo a full game if I can carve out a big enough chunk of time to do it justice. Unfortunately, there are other things vying for my attention at the moment; Pacific Tide (Compass Games, 2019) arrived last week, and I’ve been reading through the rules. It’s a very high-level take on the entire Pacific theatre from 1941-45 and, being a Greg Smith design, it has a dedicated solitaire mode. I’m preparing an unboxing treatment and will probably try to get it to the table very soon.

I also have a couple of GMT unboxing posts in the wings courtesy of their recent Thank You Sale, but I’ll keep them as a surprise. But I’ll offer a clue; one of the games involves livestock, another visits sunnier climes.