* * * *
The AVALON HILL
Published First Day O f Every Other Month
- - -
VOLUME 1, NO. 6 Publication Office: 210 West 28th Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21211
THE "BULGE"
New Battle Game Bein r Featured at New York General McAuliff e Added
Toy Show, March 8-13 to Advisory Staff
T h e week of M a r c h 8 - 13 a big is
one f o r t h e toy and g a m e people. It is
t h e week d u r i n g which e v e r y o n e t h a t is
anyone i n the toy b u s i n e s s c o n g r e g a t e s
i n N e w Y o r k t o s e e w h a t ' s new f o r 1965.
P r o b a b l y 114th of t h e y e a r ' s toy buying
will b e done d u r i n g t h i s week-long - Fair.
The - F a i r is not open t o the g e n e r a l pub-
lit, h o w e v e r , a s i t i s s e t up t o b e a
s h o w c a s e f o r m a n u f a c t u r e r s and pub-
l i s h e r s exhibiting t h e i r new w a r e s t o
w h o l e s a l e and r e t a i l b u y e r s .
T h u s , t h e Toy F a i r b e c o m e s t h e
show c a s e f o r Avalon H i l l ' s l a t e s t b a t t l e
g a m e , l l B a t t l e of t h e Bulge." I t s i n -
troduction m a r k s t h e completion of
a n o t h e r c y c l e i n the wild world of g a m e
designing. It is now on d i s p l a y i n r o o m
#455 of t h e 200 Fifth Avenue Building.
G a m e D e s i e n i n e is a 5 - S t e ~Cvcle
T h e r e a r e f i v e m a j o r sbeps along t h e
d e s i g n path f r o m i d e a s t a g e t o i i n i s h e d
product.
F i r s t , the s u b j e c t on which to b a s e
t h e new g a m e m u s t b e c h o s e n . Secondly,
t h e background and h i s t o r i c a l d a t a f o r
t h e c h o s e n s u b j e c t is r e s e a r c h e d . T h i r d -
l y , a roughed out prototype is play-
t e s t e d i n t h e office by t h e d e s i g n staff.
Fourthly, mock-ups a r e printed and
office t e s t e d by m e m b e r s of t h e con-
s u m e r t e s t panel. And fifthly, final
a r t w o r k on a l l p a r t s i s p r e p a r e d f r o m
which a f i r s t r u n of finished g a m e s i s
printed, ready for distribution to the
w h o l e s a l e r s and r e t a i l e r s .
Why "Battle of t h e B u l g e ? I t
Well, g a m e f a n s . . . you s e l e c t e d
t h i s s u b j e c t ; by your s u r v e y r e p l i e s ; by
your r e g i s t r a t i o n c a r d s u g g e s t i o n s ; a n d
through r e a m s of s u g g e s t i o n s v i a r e g u -
l a r , unsolicited c o r r e s p o n d e n c e . SO,
we l i s t e n e d . O u r R e s e a r c h a n d Design
staff then s a t down and had a hexagonal
t a b l e d i s c u s s i o n . S i n c e the "Bulge" had
been a m o n g the m o s t r e q u e s t e d t i t l e s ,
being s o t i m e l y a s u b j e c t ( 2 0 t h a n n i v e r s -
a r y ) , it b e c a m e a n a t u r a l choice a s t h e
next b a t t l e g a m e f o r Avalon Hill.
- UNVEILED AT TOY FAIR
GENERAL ANTHONY C. M c A U L I F F E - a l i t t l e , n o n - d e s c r i p t wing of t h e Club.
In D e c e m b e r 1944, then Brig. - General,
h e p a r a c h u t e d into F r a n c e with h i s
l O l s t A i r b o r n e Division. H i s defiant
r e p l y of I1nutsftt o the G e r m a n s u r r e n d e r
d e m a n d w a s t h e s t i l l - r e m e m b e r e d in-
s p i r a t i o n t o h i s e n c i r c l e d f o r c e s at
Bastogne who h e l d out a g a i n s t o v e r -
whelming odds .-
Needed ...a Concept Change
Normally, t h e n e x t s t e p would b e t o
put a junior m e m b e r of o u r r e s e a r c h
staff on a b u s a n d pack h i m off t o t h e
L i b r a r y of C o n g r e s s f o r a few d a y s .
But i n t h e c a s e of t h e l l B u l g e l rw e f e l t
that a l i t t l e r e s e a r c h a n d d e s i g n change
w a s needed, if only t o k e e p f r o m b e -
coming s t e r e o t y p e d . T h u s , we c a l l e d
upon s o m e additional design h e l p t o in-
ject s o m e f r e s h , exciting a p p r o a c h e s
t o t h e b a s i c Avalon Hill play concept.
(Continued o n P a g e 12)
"Bulge" Available April 1
Battle of t h e Bulge will not b e r e -
l e a s e d to t h e public until A p r i l 1 s t . A t
t h a t t i m e , t h i s g a m e will be found a t
m o s t of your l o c a l o u t l e t s o r d i r e c t l y
f r o m Avalon Hill. Mail o r d e r s r e c e i v -
e d p r i o r t o t h i s d a t e cannot b e p r o c e s -
s e d until t h i s t i m e .
SUBSCRIPTION
$4.98
MARCH 1965
When one e n t e r s the Army-Navy
Club in Washington. D. C., one is i m -
m e d i a t e l y i m p r e s s e d with t h e quiet m a j -
e s t y of t h e place. Browsing a r o u n d a
b i t one s e e s m i l i t a r y p i c t u r e s , paintings
a n d documents on walls, e n c a s e d in
g l a s s a n d bound i n a l b u m s j u s t about
e v e r y w h e r e f o r t h e c a s u a l e y e t o ob-
s e r v e . T h e r e is a m o m e n t a r y excite-
m e n t a s one b e c o m e s suddenly a w a r e of
t h e m i l i t a r y g r e a t n e s s t h a t is o u r na-
tional h e r i t a g e . . . a greatness that i s
a l l too often f o r g o t t e n by t h e a v e r a g e
American.
O u r f i r s t m e e t i n g with one of t h e s e
g r e a t s w a s s o m e w h a t paradoxical. We
m e t G e n e r a l Anthony C. McAuliffe in
T h e G e n e r a l , a solidlv b u i l t m a n even
twenty y e a r s a f t e r the event, still r e -
f l e c t e d h i s m i l i t a r y b e a r i n g a s h e looked
u s s t r a i g h t in t h e eye. We f e l t a sub-
conscious compulsion t o s a l u t e .
Instead, we introduced h i m t o D-Day.
We showed h i m t h e m a p b o a r d and t r o o p
c o u n t e r s a n d went about "teaching" h i m
a l l about t h e g a m e t h a t r e - c a p t u r e d t h i s
g r e a t invasion of which h i s l O l s t A i r -
b o r n e Division had taken s o monumental
a part.
C o m m e r c i a l i s m Not O u r Intent
At t h i s point the G e n e r a l waxed
somewhat n o s t a l g i c a s i t b e c a m e c l e a r
t o h i m t h a t Avalon Hill w a s m o r e than
j u s t a c o m m e r c i a l v e n t u r e . H i s initial
r e s e r v a t i o n s about u s ("I, General
McAuliffe, think Avalon Hill t a s t e s
.
good b e c a u s e . . It) d i s a p p e a r e d and h e
b e c a m e imbued with t h e i d e a t h a t h e r e
w a s a dandy way t o r e - e d u c a t e t h e pub-
l i c o n t h e h i s t o r i c a l i m p o r t of t h e a c t u a l
B a t t l e of t h e Bulge.
T h e G e n e r a l m a d e i t quite c l e a r t h a t
Avalon Hill w a s not t o m a k e h i m o u t a
h e r o figure. A f t e r a l l , t h e Bastogne
incident w a s j u s t one s e g m e n t of t h e
e n t i r e A r d e n n e s campaign and, too,
t h e r e w a s a long list of unsung h e r o
t y p e s i n h i s c o m m a n d t h a t will n e v e r
(Continued o n P a g e 2)
THE GENERAL
.
. . a bi-monthly magazine mailed pretty
close to the first day of January, March, May,
July, Septen~berand November.
The Avalon Hill General is edited and pub-
lished by the Aralon Hill Company, Baltimore,
Maryland.
Baltimore, Maryland.
Printed i n U. S . A .
-
Copyright 1964 T . A . H. C.
McAuliffe Added to Staff
b e a c c o r d e d the plaudits they s o r i c h l y
deserved.
But t o check o v e r the g a m e f o r h i s -
t o r i c a l a c c u r a c y - y e s - he would b e
m o s t happy t o do t h i s .
T e s t - G a m e Not 100% A c c u r a t e
On succeeding visits, General
McAuliffe checked o v e r a l l t h e g a m e
p a r t s . To o u r e m b a r r a s s m e n t h e found
a n e r r o r i n t h e l i s t i n g of division i n h i s
own command. He a l s o gave u s a l i t t l e -
known insight into the t r u e G e r m a n a t -
t a c k timetable. T h i s n e c e s s i t a t e d a
sweeping change t o t h e T i m e R e c o r d
C a r d and a change i n the conditions of
v i c t o r y a l r e a d y s e t f o r t h in t h e proto-
types being t e s t e d a t t h a t t i m e . He w a s
a l s o quick to point out s o m e excellent
source material for troop dispositions
t h a t h e , h i m s e l f , w a s not a w a r e of a t
the t i m e .
T h e r e i s a good d e a l of outstanding
s o u r c e s a v a i l a b l e a t public l i b r a r i e s
on t h e Battle of the Bulge. After con-
sulting m u c h of i t and tieing the con-
flicting ends together with G e n e r a l
McAuliffels a i d we a r e a s confident of
t h i s g a m e ' s a c c u r a c y a s we w e r e with
Midway u n d e r the guidance of R e a r
A d m i r a l C . Wade McClusky.. . who
now i s joined by G e n e r a l McAuliffe on
Avalon Hill's Technical A d v i s o r y Staff.
A Critique -
"Afrika Korps Re-Played"
In the November i s s u e we began a
new f e a t u r e that r e c a p p e d a s e r i e s of
m o v e s f o r A f r i k a K o r p s culmonating
with a m a j o r d e c i s i o n r e q u i r e d on t h e
p a r t of the G e r m a n p l a y e r . We a s k e d
for - your decision - a n d , man, we got
'em.
G e r m a n s Must A t t a c k T o b r u k
The c o n s e n s u s of opinion w a s 62% i n
f a v o r of attacking T o b r u k i m m e d i a t e l y .
S e v e r a l s e n t i n excellent a t t a c k p l a n s ,
while quite a few c a m e up with s o m e
PAGE 2
outstanding c o u n t e r - offensives f o r the s t a r t allows f o r a s t r o n g f o r c e in Fin-
B r i t i s h . But of a l l the many, many land t h a t will e l i m i n a t e the m a x i m u m
l e t t e r s r e c e i v e d , no two pedple had n u m b e r of G e r m a n Units allowed i n
identical .plans. S e v e r a l of t h e m o r e
"stirring" letters a r e re-printed else-
Finland within 4 t u r n s . Units not shown
below will b e a s s u m e d t o be i n Finland.
w h e r e in t h i s i s s u e . A l s o , e l s e w h e r e Note that m o s t of the f a s t e r moving
i s o u r second f e a t u r e entitled "Stalin- R u s s i a n Units a r e placed in Finland a t
g r a d Re-played. " the s t a r t .
RUSSIAN ORDER OF BAllLE
Stalingrad Re-Played
S t a l i n g r a d , introduced in 1963, h a s
proven quite popular a s a g a m e of g r a n d
s t r a t e g y . However, once p l a y e r s b e -
c o m e f a m i l i a r with i t , the R u s s i a n
p l a y e r u s u a l l y h a s t h e b e s t of it. T h e
German player must either catch his
opponent napping o r t e a r into t h e R u s -
s i a n s with r e c k l e s s abandon r i g h t f r o m
t h e s t a r t . The f o r m e r possibility is
unlikely between top-flight p l a y e r s .
But t h e l a t t e r , shown in a s e r i e s of r e -
capped m o v e s below, produced a f a i r l y
e a s y G e r m a n v i c t o r y i n one of the m o s t
s t a r t l i n g g a m e s e v e r w i t n e s s e d down i n
our testing catacombs.
June 1941 - G e r m a n T u r n
Attack a t 1-2
All F i n n s a n d 8 Attack F a c t o r s of
G e r m a n Units a r e placed in Finland t o
In m o s t g a m e s the G e r m a n p l a y e r
s t a r t . T h e s e Units will not b e l i s t e d
plods along t u r n a f t e r turn, attacking
below.
a t 3-1 o r b e t t e r . P l a y b e c o m e s s t e r e o -
typed a s Stalingrad and Moscow f a l l GERMAN ORDER OF BATTLE
with t i m e running out b e f o r e L e n i n g r a d
c a n be t a k e n f o r a G e r m a n victory.
How, then, c a n the G e r m a n p l a y e r w i n ?
One solution is in the unusual a p p r o a c h
shown below. The G e r m a n p l a y e r a t -
t a c k s viciously - a t 1-2 odds m o s t of
the time. S u r p r i s e d ? So w a s the R u s -
s i a n p l a y e r a s h e saw h i s defensive
l i n e f o r c e d b a c k in m a n y p l a c e s t i m e
after time.
H e r e a r e the f i r s t 3 t u r n s of one of
the m o s t unorthodox s c h e m e s e v e r s e e n
on the S t a l i n g r a d gameboard:
Official G r i d S y s t e m
Since c u r r e n t S t a l i n g r a d M a p b o a r d s
do no contain a n y g r i d n u m b e r s , we
m u s t acquaint you r i g h t off w i t h o u r
new s y s t e m . ( L e t t e r s A through WW
r u n along the e a s t and w e s t e d g e s ;
n u m b e r s 1 through 57 r u n along t h e
n o r t h and south e d g e s . The l e t t e r s
r e p r e s e n t the r o w s of s q u a r e s that r u n
d i r e c t l y e a s t and w e s t s t a r t i n g in t h e
n o r t h e a s t c o r n e r while the n u m b e r e d
s q u a r e s a r e angled s o u t h w e s t e r l y ; low-
e s t n u m b e r s beginning a t the southwest
c o r n e r of the b o a r d . E x a m p l e s ; Sofia
i s T T - 3 , W a r s a w i s 2 - 1 3 , Helsinki i s
J-26, L e n i n g r a d i s K-31, Moscow i s
S-34 and S t a l i n g r a d i s HH-36. ) Now, on T h e G e r m a n player fights along
with the g a m e . e v e r y f r o n t . He g e t s t h r e e a u t o m a t i c s
a g a i n s t t h e 2 - 3 - 6 ' s ; fights 12, 1-2 bat-
At the S t a r t t l e s plus one, 1 - 1 battle. According
t o t h e l a w of a v e r a g e s the G e r m a n
F o r g e t about Finland. The d e f e n s i v e p l a y e r should l o s e half of a l l Units i n
s e t u p f o r the R u s s i a n player a t t h e combat a t 1-2 while eliminating 116th
THE GENERAL
of the enemy and pushing back another
116th. The German player elected not
to attack a t 1-1 for s e v e r a l reasons;
, t o r s ; Russians l o s t 23 defense factors.
he could only fight half a s many battles
and his own elimination probability
would s t i l l be the s a m e a s a t 1-2.
While the German player engaged
the Russians a l l along the front, he
did not commit too many Units in the
South. Units can really be tied up in
this a r e a and a d v e r s e battle r e s u l t s
can hamstring maneuverability h e r e .
The North-central a r e a i s m o r e diffi-
cult to defend f o r the Russians thus a
g r e a t e r concentration of German effort
i s directed here. In fact, the only 1-1
battle being fought i s against Square
U-20. And you will notice the clever
tactic of including 4 Attack F a c t o r s ex-
t r a (5th C o r p s ) than i s necessary. In
the event an exchange o c c u r s the 5th
Corps can c r o s s the r i v e r onto U-20.
Battle Results, s t a r t i n g with the a t -
tack against R-18, a r e : (die r o l l s in
parenthesis)
1. ( 1 ) Russian 24th r e t r e a t e d to P-20;
German 3 r d c r o s s e s t o R-18.
2. ( 4 ) German 43rd, soaking off against
Russian 28th. r e t r e a t e d to T-16.
3. ( 4 ) German R-4 and 26th r e t r e a t e d
to U-16. Too bad because a victory
h e r e (die r o l l of 1 ) would have enabled
Germans to surround the Russian 28th
a t S- 18. Attack $4 gives Germans an-
other shot a t it.
4. ( 5 ) GermanR-Cavand 3R eliminated.
Again, too bad - 2 chances to surround
the 28th "shot. I '
5. ( 1 ) Russian 65th r e t r e a t e d to S-21;
German 53rd moved a c r o s s to U-20.
(Movement of a l l 3 German Units would
have left them open to becoming s u r -
rounded i n the event of a Russian
counter-attack. )
6. (6) German R-5 and 5R eliminated.
7. Russian 2-3-6 Unit automatically
eliminated.
8. ( 3 ) German 49th and 10th r e t r e a t e d
to X-14.
9. (3) German 9th and 30th. attacking
Russian 8th in the stack, r e t r e a t e d to
2-13.
10. (4) German R- 1, soaking off against
1l t h , i s eliminated.
1 1. (6) German 13th. soaking off against
3rd, i s eliminated.
12. (2) German 8th and I l t h a n d R u s s i a n
29th eliminated in a n exchange.
13. (3) German R-2 and 6th r e t r e a t e d
to CC-12.
14. Russian 2nd automatically elimi-
nated.
15. (6) German R11 and 2nd, attacking
Russian 37th in the stack, a r e elimi-
nated.
16. (1) Russian 35th r e t r e a t e d to JJ-17.
17. ( 2 ) German4th a n d 4 3 r d a n d R u s s i a n
14th eliminated in a n exchange.
18. ( 5 ) German 29th and48th eliminated.
19. Russian 15th automatically elimi-
nated.
Total kill; Germans l o s t 50 attack fac-
June 1941 - Russian T u r n
RUSSIAN ORDER OF BAITLE
Now the overall effectiveness of the
German gambit becomes apparent. The
Russians a r e hurting a t the Nemunas
River s o that they cannot even u s e i t
another time a s a doubled-up defense
-
line unless - t h e y counter-attack. The
alternative is to pull a l l the way back
t o the Divina River - Minsk line which
would mean giving up a n awful lot of
t e r r i t o r y right a t the s t a r t of the cam-
paign. But by attacking a t the Nemunas
River, the Russians will give up l e s s
ground. In addition, they can s t i l l con-
t r o l the pivotal position a t Brest-Lito-
vsk. In the 21 t o 4 attack, the German
53rd is eliminated on a die r o l l of 6.
Unfortunately, a die roll of 5 eliminated
the Russian 24th in the 1-3 soak-off
against the German 5th and 41st Units.
July 1941 - German Turn
GERMAN ORDER OF BATTLE
g e ; g4 4 q ; q 9 4-4p m @
EI&~ JA3 ca ~1 JL5 5 2 WI
T h e r e is a slight let-up i n t h e feroc-
ity of the German attack plan. It i s
not n e c e s s a r y to force the i s s u e west of
the Bug River in the Brest-Litovsk
a r e a because the Russian player will
PAGE 3
most s u r e l y pull out of there in his
next turn anyway. The Russian posi-
tion in the south i s becoming untenable
especially since the Germans a r e al-
lowed to move into Hungary on this
2nd turn. In this German turn, the
Russians will l o s e a t l e a s t 12 defense
factors, probably more. And from
this point on, h e will be hard put to
find enough Units to defend along the
entire front. This p r e s s u r e put on in
these f i r s t two turns might force the
premature t r a n s f e r of Russian Units
f r o m Finland which, in turn, will en-
able yet undefeated German and Fin-
nish Units i n Finland to cause the Ger-
man player a g r e a t deal m o r e h a r r a s s -
ment in that a r e a than expected. Battle
Results, starting a t Riga, are:
1. (3) German 3 r d and 10th. attacking
Russian 12th. r e t r e a t e d to P20.
2. (5) German R-4 and 26th. attacking
Russian 64th, a r e eliminated.
3. ( 5 ) German 5th and 43rd andRussian
65th eliminated in an exchange.
4. Russian 27th surrounded and auto-
matically eliminated a t 5- 1 odds.
5. ( 5 ) German 49th. soaking-off against
Russian 3rd, i s eliminated.
6. (6) Russian 16th i s eliminated; Ger-
man 12th and 23rd occupy GG- 12.
7. (3) German 1R and R-3 retreated to
LL- 14.
8. ( 2 ) German 34th and 54th andRussian
9th a r e eliminated in an exchange.
Even with the die r o l l s slightly
against the German player, he has ac-
quired much ground. Both sides have
considerable l o s s e s with such situation
hurting the Russian player much m o r e
than the German player a t this -point.
July 1941 - Russian Turn
RUSSIAN ORDER OF BAmE
The Russian player can no longer
think attack - h e must fall back in a
way that delays German advance with
l e a s t l o s s to h i s own. Since i t will be
two turns before replacements come
on, the Russian player can ill afford
to throw out delay Units with reckless
abandon. Thus he gives up consider-
able t e r r i t o r y in the north which i s
now his weakest a r e a .
Aueust 1941 - German Turn
In his 3 r d Turn the German player
cuts down on the ferocity of his offen-
THE GENERAL
sive; predicated mostly on the fact that
the Russian player hasn't offered h i m
much to attack.
GERMAN ORDER OF BATTLE
Battle Results, s t a r t in a t U-22, a r e :
1. Russian 42nd i s automatically eli-
minated a t 7 - 1.
2. (1) Russian 17th i s eliminated a t
'- x forced to r e l y upon luck to find the Jap.
3-1.
3. Russian 1l t h i s surrounded and auto-
matically eliminated a t 5- 1.
4. ( 2 ) German 7th and 35th and R u s s i a n
22nd a r e eliminated in an exchange.
5. ( 1 ) Russian 37th r e t r e a t e d to GG-18;
German R - 3 and 1R move a c r o s s the
r i v e r to ii- 17.
Suddenly the G e r m a n picture in the south
looks much b r i g h t e r . The key battle
was #5 above. But even if that battle
had been l o s t , where a r e a l l the Rus-
s i a n Units?
Thus in just t h r e e t u r n s , t h e R u s s i a n
situation h a s disintegrated. And a s the
game turned out, the G e r m a n player
p r e s s e d h i s advantage in the south even-
tually taking Stalingrad f i r s t . The Rus-
sian player brought Units out of Fin-
land and halted the G e r m a n advance in
the north t o a s n a i l ' s pace especially
since the G e r m a n player changed to a
conservative offense. The Russian
player went c r a z y switching h i s Units
between f r o n t s and finally called i t quits
in September 1942 with but a half dozen
Units on b o a r d and Stalingrad and Mos-
cow in enemy hands.
Sure-fire Plan?
In r e t r o s ~ e c we
t do not f e e l that the
luck-of-the-die was with the G e r m a n
player - if anything, i t went against
him. I s this approach, then, the s u r e -
f i r e plan f o r winning with the G e r m a n ?
Experimentation will produce a b e t t e r
s t a r t i n g Russian set-up but r e g a r d l e s s
of where they a r e placed, the German
player should attack in the s a m e fero-
cious manner a s shown above. T r y i t
and see. Maybe YOU can come up with
the fool-proof Russian plan that counter-
a c t s the s u r e - f i r e G e r m a n plan.
The laps Have the
Best of it In Midway
by John E. Curtis
A m e r . fleet m u s t get off the f i r s t
a s s a u l t , must do s o without having been
previously discovered when h e was
within range of the Jap fleet, m u s t do
s o just before nightfall, and m u s t s u s -
tain a minimum of l o s s e s t o himself
while inflicting a t l e a s t a s i x point l o s s
upon his opponent.
If this i s successfully done, the
A m e r . fleet can afford to l o s e Midway
island to the Japanese. But, the A m e r .
fleet m u s t then continue to elude the
Jap f l e e t f o r the r e m a i n d e r of the game,
unless the f i r s t and subsequent dusk
r a i d s have reduced Jap. a i r power by
a t l e a s t one half, preferably two-thirds.
It i s therefore essential that the
A m e r . fighter f o r c e r e m a i n a t full
strength, since i t i s nearly impossible
f o r the A m e r . fleet to avoid a carefully
placed Jap. c r u i s e r s c r e e n .
Summary: The A m e r . f o r c e s a r e
f l e e t ( s ) without being themselves de-
tected during the day. On the other
hand, if that Jap. contingent which
comes on during the f i r s t d a y l i g h t t u r n s
can avoid A m e r . r a i d s during the f i r s t
day, the Jap. fleet c a l l s a l l the shots
during the second day, and can deal
out a s much a s i t r e c e i v e s , which i s dis-
a s t e r p u s for the A m e r i c a n s .
In other words, t h e r e i s need f o r
something which would allow the A m e r .
f l e e t to hide during the day, like
weather, f o r instance.
I haven't gone to the trouble of out-
lining a blow by blow description of how
to defeat the A m e r . fleet, but I a m
c e r t a i n that the Jap. fleet can make
judicious u s e of a i r c a l l s and c r u i s e r
screening to ( a ) elude A m e r . a i r calls,
and ( b ) discover the A m e r . fleet. This
inequality may not apply t o those who
don't get a s involved with the games a s
much a s the m o r e avid fans do, but i t i s ,
to u s e analogy, a s bad a s the initial
inequality of the Afrika Korps game be-
f o r e that game was modified.
A Blue First Move
in Tactics II
by Ronald Lininger
1 ) Position a l l my a r m o r n e a r a s pos-
sible to C43-43, the capital and C28-51,
in the initial s e t up of my pieces.
2 ) Seize C8-16 by paratroop assault.
a f t e r destroying Red's 1 s t Headquarters.
3 ) Attack Red's F i r s t A r m y Group
Headquarters with 3 a r m o r e d units
(giving m e 6- 1 and a 50% chance of cap-
turing the valuable m i s s i l e .
4 ) Immediately g a r r i s o n C8- 16 with
units f r o m my IV Corps and replace-
ment units, a s well a s my second a r m y
headquarters missile.
5 ) Position my 11-C units on the East
side of C19-27, and my 111-C on the
West side of C27-29.
6 ) Seize 3-28 by paratroop a s s a u l t and
g a r r i s o n i t with a few units f r o m my
r e p l a c e m e n t units.
7 ) Advance my I-C toward my capital
f o r a n eventual s e a a s s a u l t .
8 ) P r o t e c t my a r m o r e d division in the
Red Capital by landing amphibious units
a t 11-3 to prevent a counter attack by
R e d ' s I-C. It i s a l s o imperative to
s e a l the bridge e n t r i e s to the Red capi-
tal.
Thus the f i r s t move ends with four
Red cities captured and s e v e r a l valu-
able pieces destroyed o r captured.
WherevGr Red attempts to counter a t -
tack, my I-C i s ready to augment my
troops. If R e d ' s m i s s i l e i s captured,
mopping up h i s I-C becomes easy, and
then his 13-16 becomes f a i r l y easy to
attack on the next turn. Once his island
a r e a i s s e c u r e , my a r m o r e d units col-
l e c t e d t h e r e can b e rushed by s e a , if
n e c e s s a r y , t o overcome any counter
attack which might b e aimed up the
middle. Usually Red can never r e -
cover f r o m the initial s u r g e and makes
a final stand in t h e SW s e c t o r .
Any comments you maywish to offer
may be a d d r e s s e d to: Ronald Lininger,
3592 R e a l i s t i c Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Make These Schools
Your Choice
In answer t o many of you who thought
that l a s t i s s u e ' s bit on colleges was a
jolly thing to do, we a r e listing addi-
tional schools and the n a m e s of Avalon
Hill people with whom we have been in
recent 'Ontact: John S. P i t z e r a t U. of
Wisconsin. Madison; Stephen Barnett a t
Williams College, Williamston, Mass;
Cadet B r i a n Clevenger #81 a t Penn.
Military College, Chester, P a ; Arthur
L. McClure a t Oberlin College, Oberlin,
Ohio, Maynard Calick a t N. Y. State
University College, New Paltz, N. Y. ;
Robert Dieli a t Boston College, Boston;
Robert M o r s z a l e n a t Norwich U., North-
field, Vermont; William P. Flanagan a t
North Georgia College, Dahlonega; Tim
McGarry a t U. of Maryland, College
P a r k ; George D. J. Phillies a t M. I. T.,
Cambridge, M a s s ; Gerald Swanson a t
Michigan State, E. Lansing; Michael
Humphrey a t S h i m e r College. Mount
C a r r o l l , Illinois; Cadet Richard Thoden,
West Point, N. Y.; John M. L. Yount,
Peabody College, Nashville, Tenn;
William R. Douglas a t Utah U., Salt
Lake City.
THE GENERAL
& Question Box
AFRIKA KORPS:
Q: Suppose movement after combat,
say onto an escarpment, places the
attacker adjacent to any enemy Supply
Unitat the end of the turn, does he cap-
ture that Supply Unit?
A: No. Capture cannot occur after
combat h a s been resolved.
Q: Can you move directly from E-18
to F-19?
A: No. In addition, attacks between
opposing Units on these squares i s not
allowed.
Q: Suppose a German 4-5-6 Unit a t -
tacks two Allied 2-2-6 Units doubled up
in Tobruk. Odds a r e 1 to 2 and an ex-
change occurs. Should one o r both Al-
lied Units be removed?
.
A: No.. remove just one 2-2-6 Unit.
The rule of thumb is: the weaker side
removes a l l of his Units. If the weaker
side was the attacker, then the stronger
side removes Units whose defense fac-
t o r s (computed a t b a s i c , double o r triple
depending upon t e r r a i n ) total a t l e a s t
that of the weaker side's attack factors
removed. If the weaker side was the
defender, then the stronger side r e -
moves Units whose attack factors total
a t l e a s t that of the weaker s i d e ' s de-
fense factors (computed a t basic, dou-
ble o r triple depending upon t e r r a i n )
removed.
Q: If a Supply Unit i s adjacent to a
friendly Unit and an enemy combat Unit
places itself adjacent to the Supply Unit
but not to the combat Unit, i s the Sup-
ply Unit captured?
A: Yes, and i t can be moved and used
in combat in that s a m e turn.
Q: Can a 7-7-10 Unit that i s isolated
-
attack a 1 1-6 Unit to break out of the
isolation?.
A: Yes; because this attack c r e a t e s an
automatic victory situation which in
turn eliminates the 1- 1-61 s zone of con-
trol which in turn c r e a t e s a c l e a r path
from the isolated 7-7-10 Unit to a Sup-
ply Unit outside the isolation.
MIDWAY:
Q: Suppose a player attacks a ship with
say, 12 Torpedo Squadrons. Does he
have to use a T-12 counter o r can he
break it down into two o r m o r e counters
totaling 12 squadrons ?
A: Yes. However, r e m e m b e r that one
screening ship may f i r e at all of those
counters providing they a r e attacking
the same ship f r o m the s a m e rectangle.
Q: If a ship i s sunk before all a i r at-
tacks on it have been resolved, can the
remaining sqtiadrons shift their attack
to another ship?
A: No. Once the commitment h a s been
made, all a i r c r a f t sqiiadrons must go
through with the attacks.
Q: Can Jap Battleships that a r e on the
I sTALINGRAD: Correcting a n e r r o r in
Midway square use their surface com-
bat factors to reduce Midway's relative
fortification strength?
A: No, their surface combat factors
screening factors a r e of no value against
or
Midway. The only effect their presence
has in reducing Midway's relative forti-
fication strength i s a t the r a t e of 1 point
f o r each battleship for each turn.
Q: Is i t legal to attack a position, and
after learning what's there, call off the
dive bombers and torpedo planes and
send them home without attacking, but
engage in a fighter dual?
A: Yes.
CONTEST NO. 6
The "General" completes i t s f i r s t
full year of publication with this issue.
The enthusiasm generated by sub-
s c r i b e r s for this publication has been
overwhelming. As s o r t of a bonus
feature, especially for those whose sub-
scriptions run out with this issue, we
a r e making contest #6 one of a "general"
nature s o that all will have an equal
chance to win.
Are Youa Typical AvalonHill G a m e s t e r ?
If you think that you a r e the average
I want to mutilate your magazine may
Avalon Hill player, this contest will be
.
a snap to win.. all you have to do i s to
select which of the Avalon Hill games
you thinkwere the most popular in 1964.
We have listed every game in al-
phabetical order. Tothe left state their
o r d e r of popularity by placing the num-
ber "1I' next to your choice for the m o s t
SALES POPULARITY
I Afrika Korps
I -
I -Baseball Strategy
I Bismarck
I -
I -D-Day
I Dispatcher
I to December 31, 1964.
Football Strategy
I -
Gettysburg (all versions)
Le Mans
Management
Midway
-Stalingrad
Tactics I1
PAGE 5
peated:
-
the January issue the question is re-
Q: If a stack of two Units has been s u r -
rounded and the top Unit has been elim-
inated but the bottom Unit survived,
can the surviving Unit move one square
to get better odds in his forced attack ?
A: No. He must attack where he is un-
l e s s it i s possible f o r him to move
-
completely out of enemy zones of con-
t r o l in which case he may re-enter that
enemy zone f r o m a different square.
Q: Can Rumanian troops be started in
Poland o r Finland?
A: Yes, either place.
popular, "2" next to the second m o s t
popular, etc.
How To Enter
This contest i s f r e e to all sub-
s c r i b e r s . Simply fill in the Sales Pop-
ularity F o r m and mail to; The Avalon
Hill Company, 210 W. 28th Street,
Baltimore, Maryland, 21211 - - Contest
Dept. Entries m u s t be postmarkedon o r
before April 4, 1965. P r i n t your name
and address clearly and make s u r e you
l i s t the Avalon Hill game you wish as
winning prize. Those of you who do not
send a copy o r photostat. Naturally,
only one to a subscriber allowed.
Ten Winners
Ten (10) winners will be named.
T i e s will be broken in favor of the en-
t r a n t s who come closest to guessing the
total number of Midway games that have
been sold up to December 31, 1964.
----- -CUT HERE- ---
-U-Boat
-Verdict I1
Waterloo
TIE Breaker:
Midway Games sold up
NAME
ADDRESS
CITY
STATE
Avalon Hill P r i z e
THE GENERAL
- - --
--letters, Yes We Get Letters.. .
Sir:
Afrika Korps-Re-played and Re-
hashed requests, a t the tail of the
article, comments f r o m the 'armchair
generals1. What would I, a s Rommel
do a t the end of the May 2 t u r n ? Cry !
The a r t i c l e might better be titled, "How
to lose the Africa Korps in Four Turns. l 1
Without bothering to send a full
situation r e p o r t we shall go to the
Allied May 2 turn. The Knights bridge
'Gap1 a t J-25 allows the allied to en-
circle the majority of the Korps and
the movement of 7A-2 to R-25 prevents
even a single counter move in the June
1 turn for the Germans.
The f i r s t requirement for any good
general, a r m c h a i r o r otherwise, i s a
thorough appreciation of the strategic
and tactical situation. This i s a war-
- brought into play. Also, the German
game a n d a s such i s different f r o m War
presenting a different situation.
Arguments that.. . 'It doesn't happen
that way in r e a l life. ', a r e merely
excuses for failing to recognize and
appreciate a situation.. . J a m e s G.
Smith, 3219 Chadwick Dr., Los Angeles
Calif. 90032.
Sir:
In reference to your January i s s u e
of the "The General", come now, you
must be joking. When you said that the
original British move could have been
improved upon, you became guilty of
the greatestunderstatement of the year.
When I, a s the British Commander, get
through with the Afrika Korps i t will be
Contest #5 Ends in 11-Way Tie
Congratulations a r e in order for the
following who a l l turned in identical
winning entries. The criterion was
based on lowest effective ratio taking
into consideration Chance Table prob-
abilities and the fact that each l1hitl1
against the C a r r i e r Akagi was worth
twice that of the Mogami in points
earned. The winning entry showed:
TZ Haruna
e
I more of a (pardon the pun) Korpse than
anything else.
Let me now unfold for you what I
call, for want of a better name, Plan
Gotterdamerung. The f i r s t phase of
the plan will entail the destruction of
the Germans immediate source of
supplies. This will be accomplished
by the 31 Motorized Brigade, the
3 1st will move down to KnightSbridge
and then a c r o s s Rommel's HQ and out
to the road, i t will proceed up the road,
destory the German supply and block
the pass on square F-18.
This i s the main blow, the r e s t i s
something of a n anti-climax, although
just a s important. Next the pass below
Mechili will be blocked to prevent the
r e s t of the German supply f r o m being
Infantry unit and Recon Battalion below
Tobruck will be surrounded. These
moves a r e :
7A/1-L26 4115-N-25
7A/2-M-22 4117-1-26
9A/20-G-25 41111-M-30
Pol- J-28 Supply #1-G-25
22 Gds-J-20 Supply #2-1-28
7131-F-18 Supply #3-K-62
Now that I have tipped my hand i t ' s
your turn. F e s s up now! You werenFt
serious when you published that article,
o r were you? Whatever the answer i s
I would certainly appreciate a reply.
James F. Dunnigan, 85 12 Fifth Ave. ,
Brooklyn 11209.
AH Note: Ve giff op!
Those submitting the above entry, in
o r d e r of receipt a r e : ,
Carlton Lett, 5 Minetta Street, N.Y. ,
N.Y.
Laurence Rusiecki, 34 Sharon S t . ,
Brooklyn, N. Y.
Ed Blackmore, 1032 Colgate Drive,
Tucson, Arizona.
Thomas Fancher, 26 River Street,
Sidney, N. Y.
John Nichols, 5606 23rd Parkway,
Hillcrest Heights, Md.
Mark Maxim. 71 Hillcrest Drive,
Spencerport, N. Y.
.
Richard Horvath, 12306 Shady Oak
Blvd. , Garfield Hgts. Ohio.
Lawrence Uzzell, 42 P r e s c o t t St.,
I Garden City, N. Y.
9. Charles Hickok, Windy Hill, H a r r i s -
burg, Pennsylvania.
10. Michael McCabe. 1460 N. W. 61st
Ave. , F o r t Lauderdale, Fla.
11. Norman A. MacDonald, 3110 Wash-
ington St., Boston. Mass.
PAGE 6
New Mail Play Equipment
Play-by-Mail Pads a r e now avail-
able for D-Day, Stalingrad, and Water-
loo. As on the Tactics I1 and Gettys-
burg Pads, introduced l a s t year, both
Army's Order of Battle sheets a r e on
the same Pad. Thus it is only necessary
to purchase one Pad regardless of
which side you take.
Pads for all 6 of the Play-by-Mail
games a r e 50$ each, postpaid in the
United States and Canada. Instructions,
sufficient for all games, costs 15$.
New Play-by-Mail Pads for Afrika
Korps a r e also available. These, too.
have both Army's on the same Pad.
When playing Waterloo, D-Day and
Stalingrad by mail it will be necessary
for you to establish your own grid-
system a s grid coordinates have not a s
yet been printed on the mapboards of
these particular games. We will even-
tually have them printed a s soon a s it
becomes necessary to print new map-
boards.
Play-by-Mail m a t e r i a l must be
ordered directly from us. .. it i s not
available in any r e t a i l outlets. F o r
speedy delivery, add 65$ Special De-
livery Charge.
Discount Offer
The Coupon shownbelow i s for the bene-
fit of the full-year subscriber. As soon
a s you have accumulated 4 such cou-
pons, 1 each from this and succeeding
issues. you a r e entitled to a $1.00 dis-
count applied t o the purchase of any
Avalon Hill game.
Here's how i t works
Each coupon i s worth 25$. But one
coupon alone does not entitle you to a
25$ credit. You must accumulate 4
different coupons before taking advant-
age of the $1.00 credit. When you have
accumulated 4 coupons, then you clip
them a l l together and send them in with
your o r d e r for a n Avalon Hill game.
When ordering in this manner, you
simply send u s a check o r money-order
for $1.00 l e s s than the usual retail value
of the game.
Coupons a r e valid only when order-
ing games by mail directly from The
Avalon Hill Company. Coupons can not
be redeemed a t any retail outlet.
SAVE THIS COUPON
GOOD ONLY WHEN APPLIED
TOWARD THE PURCHASE OF
AVALON HILL GAMES
THE GENERAL
Play-by-Mail Table
for Afrika Korps
The l a t e s t instruction revision to
Afrika Korps incorporated a German
Supply table that necessitated a die roll
for supplies a t the beginning of every
turn. F o r those playing this game by
mail i t i s necessary t o provide a Play-
by-Mail Results Table t o determine
whether o r not the German player i s
due supplies a t the beginning of every
turn.
The German player automatically
receives one Supply Unit a t the beginning
of the game. But a t the end of the
Allied f i r s t turn, the Allied player
selects a Stock for Supplies in the s a m e
manner he does when conducting a t -
tacks.
Upon receipt of the Allied turn, the
German player checks the Stock t r a n s -
action r e s u l t s to s e e if he gets a Supply
Counter a t the s t a r t of his 2nd turn.
F o r all April 1941 through June 1941
turns, last-digit r e s u l t s of 1. 2 and 3
"sinks" the supplies; July through No-
vember 1941, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 sinks
supplies; December through the end of
the game. 1 and 2 sinks supplies.
The above procedure i s followed by
both players, a t the end of every turn
of the game.
Wargameis Newsletter
Donald F. Featherstone's War-
gamer's Newsletter s e e m s to be getting
thicker a t each printing. Obviously,
the word i s spreading about the v a s t
amount of interesting a r t i c l e s included
in this periodical. While it c a t e r s m o r e
to the devotee of ''sand box battles1'
nevertheless we recommend it because
of the lengthy discussions of battle tac-
tics and strategies that can very well be
applied to Avalon Hill wargaming. In
addition, there i s always a recommend-
ed book l i s t plus many and sundry
articles of i n t e r e s t on the use of r e a l i s -
tic models of t e r r a i n features and
soldiers themselves. F o r complete
information, write to: Wargamer's
Newsletter, D. F. Featherstone, Editor,
59 Hill Lane. Southampton, England.
Multiple Commander
Play-by-Mail Game
by Donald Paul Balla
As f a r a s I know, multiple comman-
der play-by-mail (m. c. p-b-m) games
originated in idea in California by the
Woodland Hills club. This idea .was
eagerly gobbled up by the Summit Con-
ference, a club started in Illinois, and
after practical rule maneuvers, the
f i r s t m. c. p-b-m game was born in the
f o r m of a Tactics I1 game which is, a t
present, running smoothly. This f o r m
of game was a non-complicated, fun
method f o r fourteen persons.
With the Summit Conference s e t of
rules, a turn would take about a month,
longer than dual play-by-mail games.
but shortest possible for almost any
other kind of m. c. p-b-m games. Also
with these rules, an ultimate idea in
wargaming i s born--Armies !
Armies a r e a group ofAH players in
one club. I have noticed advertisements
for several clubs of play-by-mail fans
already and this i s ' a step in the right
direction, yet these a r e clubs where
members play against each other. I
propose a club where members play
with each other against other clubs!
Any present club that wishes may write
to m e about this m. c. p-b-m advantage.
If asked, I could send a l i s t of
a l l persons to whom I have sent in-
structions and these will be a r m i e s to
challenge.
I suggest that no more than 12 mem-
b e r s be in a club, otherwise i t becomes
l e s s personal and l e s s fun, however.
a l a r g e club could boast of four o r five
a r m i e s which play other clubs o r even
each other.
All who wish to s t a r t their own
m. c. p-b-m a r m y and be able to play in
one of the f i r s t m.c.p-b-m games simp-
l y write to m e at: 6235 S. 75th Ave.,
Argo, Ill. I will send a copy of the
Summit Conferences's m.c.p-b-m rules.
9 December 1940
By Albert A. Nofi
The 9th day of December 1940 is the
opening day of S i r Richard O'Connor's
brilliant d e s e r t offensive which result-
ed in the virtual annihilation of Marshal
Rudolfo Graziani's far superior--in
everything but equipment--Italian a r m y
in Lybia.
When Afrika Korps was issued many
may have noted, a s I did, that the game
begins in April 1941 with the a r r i v a l of
Rommel in the deserts. There a r e
most excellent reasons historically.
and probably also production-wise, a s
to why this was so, however such a
truly brilliant operation a s O'Connor's
was should not be ignored.
F o r those interested in trying their
hands a t generaling in this campaign.
I offer this scheme for converting the
Afrika Korps equipment into material
for use in duplicating the e a r l i e r cam-
paign.
- -
Mapboard: - As in Afrika Korps in
a l l particulars.
PAGE 7
British Western Desert Force: - To
be located in thevicinity of Fuka (K-53).
7thArmDiv(two 4-4-7's and the S.G. )
4th IndDiv(four i- 1- 6's )
Ind InfBdes(tw0 1-1-6's)
Italian F o r c e s : - Divided into three
groups:
Tenth Army: - Locate in the vicinity
of Bardia(H-32) in Lybia.
Five InfDivs(two 2-2-4's and three
2-3-4's)
~ i ~ TankBns(Use
h t Folgore but r e -
duce to 1-1-6)
Corps: - Locate about Gazala (G-21)
Three InfDivs(one 2-3-4 and two 2-
2-4-'9)
-
Corps: Locate about Benghazi (H-2)
Two InfDivs(one 2-2-4 and one Ger-
man InfRegt but reduce to 2-3-4)
The play should follow a l l Afrika,
Korps rules except these governing sup-
ply units. Such pieces a r e to be ex-
cluded from the play for no other reason
than that I a m unable to figure out how
to include them (Help? ). To be isolat-
ed a unit must be cut off from i t ' s home
base.
The opening turn will be the f i r s t
week of September 1940 giving some
fourteen bi-monthly turns before Rom-
me1 a r r i v e s in April 1941 a t which time
the game ends.
If the Italians avoid defeat by the
l a s t March 1941 turn they have won.
Otherwise the rules for victory a r e a s
in Afrika Korps.
The British player,
- . though
- numeric-
ally inferior, has the better troops and
equipment and i t i s upon him that the
main burden of play falls since the
weakness of the Italian forces pre-
cludes really active Italian participa-
tion until the lighter British forces
have been eliminated.
Comments and suggestions should
be directed to Albert A. Nofi, 85-17
9 l s t Avenue, Woodhaven, N. Y. 11421.
Naval Affairs
1 t
Walter Guerry Green I11
- B % 3,
P . 0. Box 621
Burlington, N. Carolina
Bismarck Modified
by Walter Guerry Green, I11
L a s t i s s u e I promised to write on
some of my ideas for the modification
of Bismarck. Accordingly. I will s t a r t
with some of the simpler ones and de-
vote a l a t e r a r t i c l e to my more com-
plex theories. All of the changes in-
cluded h e r e a r e of such a nature that
they require no r e a l modification of
the set.
 THE GENERAL
E n e l i s h Channel Can B e Used
T o s t a r t off with t h e b o a r d , I allow
movement i n both t h e I r i s h S e a a n d t h e
English Channel, both of which a r e out
of bounds on the n o r m a l b o a r d . F o r
p r a c t i c a l r e a s o n s I d o not allow t h e
G e r m a n s t o u s e t h e I r i s h S e a , but both
s i d e s m a y u s e the Channel. T h i s is
f i r m l y b a s e d on r e a l i t y a s one m a y s e e
e a s i l y by studying t h e f a m o u s G e r m a n
Channel Dash of F e b r u a r y 1942 when
the b a t t l e s h i p s S c h a r n h o r s t and Gneisnau
a c c o m p a n i e d by t h e c r u i s e r P r i n z Eugen
r a n f r o m B r e s t u p t h e Channel t o B r u n s -
buttel, sustaining only m i n o r m i n e d a -
mage. I deny t h e G e r m a n s u s e of t h e
I r i s h S e a b e c a u s e h e r e they would b e
without a i r c o v e r and exposed t o t h e
full f o r c e of RN light c r a f t a n d R A F
B o m b e r and C o a s t a l C o m m a n d s .
A second change is t h a t I allow Rod-
ney t o u s e h e r s e c o n d a r y guns f o r s t e r n
- T o u r n a m e n t designed t o s e t t l e the p r e s s -
f i r e , which is only l o g i c a l when one
considers that i t was possible to bring
8 of h e r 12 6" guns t o b e a r i n that di-
rection. Iri f a c t if m y s o u r c e s a r e c o r -
r e c t , s h e w a s designed e s p e c i a l l y s o
t h a t h e r s e c o n d a r i e s could i n s o m e way
c o v e r t h i s v u l n e r a b l e a-rea.
Convov R e s t r i c t i o n s
R e g a r d i n g convoys I h a v e m a d e i t
i m p o s s i b l e t o h a v e and therefcfre t o
a t t a c k convoys i n a r e a s 8 A , B. C, D, E ,
F, G, H a n d 7 F , G, H. It is inconceiv-
a b l e t o m e t h a t convoys would b e found
i n t h e s e a r e a s when i t w a s known t h a t a n
e n e m y capital v e s s e l w a s a l s o c l o s e by.
Even o t h e r w i s e i t is difficult t o i m a g i n e
finding a full s i z e B r i t i s h convoy a t t h e
e n t r a n c e t o St. N a z a i r e , although Chan--
n e l convoys w e r e quite common.
A final change is t h a t I allow t h e G e r -
m a n s t o b e f r e e of a i r a t t a c k i n a r e a s 8
E , F, G, H and 7 F. G,H. T h e s e a r e a s
a r e c l o s e enough t o a x i s t e r r i t o r y t h a t
a b a l a n c e of a i r equality would e x i s t
allowing t h e G e r m a n s t o c o v e r t h e i r
v e s s e l with p r o t e c t i v e f i g h t e r s . Op-
tional air s u p p o r t m i g h t a l s o b e allowed
i n 8 A, B, C, D with a r o l l of 2 , 4 , o r 6
defeating air a t t a c k s ' b e f o r e t h e y a r e
even a b l e t o launch t h e i r weapons.
We s e e m t o h a v e e n t e r e d a n o t h e r
phase i n t h e p e r p e t u a l s u b m a r i n e q u e s -
tion. M r . J. K. N o r r i s i n f o r m s m e
t h a t the I m p e r i a l War M u s e u m h a s a n
e n t i r e l y d i f f e r e n t v e r s i o n of the a c t i o n
r e l a t e d i n m y l a s t column. A p p a r e n t l y
i t w a s the T o r r i c e l l i which w a s en-
gaged i n t h e R e d S e a , a n d s h e w a s s u n k
with n o l o s s t o H. M. s h i p s . T h e n e x t
d a y HMS K h a r t o u m w a s d a m a g e d b y a n
i n t e r n a l explosion of a t o r p e d o air v e s -
s e l and had to b e beached to prevent
sinking. It s e e m s t h a t until f u r t h e r
challenge m y contention h a s b e e n up-
held again.
New England
T h o m a s S. L a F a r g e
Groton School
Groton, M a s s a c h u s e t t s
EDITOR - New England covering Maine,
V e r m o n t , New H a m p s h i r e , Massachu-.
s e t t s , Connecticut and Rhode Island.
A Call to Arms
by T h o m a s S. L a F a r g e
Gentlemen of Maine, of New Hamp-
s h i r e and V e r m o n t , of Connecticut,
M a s s a c h u s e t t s , a n d Rhode Island, I b i d
you r i s e t o g r e e t the advent of a G e n e r a l
ing question of Championship in t h i s
c o r n e r of the country: the New England
M i l i t a r y E x e r c i s e s Sealing Interyankee
Solidity. Gentlemen, (with g l i t t e r i n g
w i n e - g l a s s r a i s e d high in t h e a i r i n a n
attitude of s a l u t e ) I give you NEMESIS.
The time has come for a hero to a r i s e ,
t o defend t h e honor of New England
against all comers.
T h e way I conceive of t h i s plan,
NEMESIS will b e r u n l i k e a tennis m a t c h ,
t o wit, a n individual b a t t l e will b e fought
and the winner will move up t o the next
s t a g e - w h e r e t h e r e will only b e half
a s m a n y c o n t e s t a n t s a s i n the l a s t s t a g e ,
t h e s e being t h e w i n n e r s i n t h a t s t a g e - selves; sharpen the swords, oil the
a n d play s o m e o n e e l s e , and the winner
of t h a t will move up, and s o on through
- s e m i - f i n a l s a n d f i n a l s t o t h e Champion-
ship. If you have the g r e a t good f o r t u n e
t o b e a New E n g l a n d e r , a n d would l i k e .
t o e n t e r , (and if you h a v e n o n - s u b s c r i b -
ing f r i e n d s who might l i k e t o e n t e r )
p l e a s e send m e a p o s t - c a r d , a t the a d -
d r e s s above, stating: a ) y o u r n a m e a n d
a d d r e s s ; b ) t h e Avalon Hill g a m e s t h a t
you own, l i s t e d i n o r d e r of p r e f e r e n c e
f o r u s e i n a m a t c h , and not f o r g e t t i n g
t o mention what P l a y - b y - M a i l s e t s you
own; c ) t h e n a m e s of a n y people that you
know a r e e n t e r i n g , and t h a t you would
both l i k e a n d be a b l e t o play - this will
g r e a t l y h e l p p r o b l e m s of initial o r g a n i -
zation; a n d d ) whether you a r e i n f a v o r
of the i d e a of i n t e r m e d i a t e s t a t e c h a m -
pionships a s explained below. T h e s e
c a r d s should b e i n m y hands by M a r c h
17th, s i n c e m y E a s t e r vacation begins
a r o u n d then, and t h a t ' s when I ' l l s t a r t
o r g a n i z i n g things.
The starting set-up may be a little
u n f a i r , s i n c e i t ' s not v e r y p r o b a b l e t h a t
the n u m b e r of e n t r i e s will b e e x a c t l y
thirty-two o r sixty-four, which would
b e perfect numbers a s f a r a s setting
t h e t o u r n a m e n t up g o e s ; t h i s m e a n s
s o m e people would b e a b l e t o s t a r t i n a
l a t e r s t a g e than o t h e r s . T h e p r o b l e m
PAGE 8
would b e somewhat l e s s deadly if a
S t a t e - l e v e l championship w e r e r u n off
f i r s t , b e c a u s e then one would b e hand-
l i n g s i x t o u r n a m e n t s , e a c h with r a t h e r
m o r e manageable quantities of people.
State Champs v s S t a t e Champs
Then e a c h of the s i x s t a t e Champions
would play each of the o t h e r five, b e s t
two g a m e s out of t h r e e , and the one
with the m o s t v i c t o r i e s would be The
New England Champion. The one d r a w -
back to this i d e a i s that i t would r e p r e -
s e n t much m o r e of a n a c h i e v e m e n t t o be
M a s s a c h u s e t t s Champion, s a y , that it
would t o be Rhode Island Champion, b e -
c a u s e , judging f r o m t h e S u b s c r i b e r s '
D i r e c t o r y , t h e r e a r e m o r e Avalon Hill
f a n s i n t h e f o r m e r s t a t e than in the l a t -
t e r . However, I ' m l e a v i n g t h i s one up
t o t h o s e who want t o e n t e r .
Another p r o b l e m , t h a t will involve
s o m e e f f o r t on the p a r t of the c o n t e s t -
a n t s , is the a r r a n g e m e n t of m e e t i n g s
f o r play-offs. 'ILivet' m a t c h e s a r e
p r e f e r a b l e t o Play-by-Mail s i n c e not
everybody h a s a P l a y - b y - M a i l s e t , a n d
s i n c e they t a k e m u c h l e s s t i m e . Hope-
fully many of t h e f i r s t s e r i e s of m a t c h e s
c a n take p l a c e between f r i e n d s and
n e i g h b o r s , s u c h t h a t only r e a s o n a b l y
b i g w i n n e r s m a y have t o go out of t h e i r
w a y s , and I r e s p e c t f u l l y s u b m i t i t m a y
b e worth t h e i r while a t t h a t level.
If you c a n s e e a b e t t e r way of a r -
ranging NEMESIS, o r ways of ironing
out one o r a n o t h e r p r o b l e m , p l e a s e
s e n d it in. But i n a n y event, g i r d your-
m a c e , polish the a n c e s t r a l a r m o r , and
shoot in your p o s t c a r d s . T h i s is a Call
t o A r m s : NEMESIS s t r i k e s f o r speedy
mobilization. Eventually, and t h e idea
is d e a r to o u r h e a r t , t h e r e m a y be a
National T o u r n a m e n t , and we m u s t have
o u r m a n r e a d y t o plunge into t h e f r a y .
Gentlemen of New England, NEMESIS
c a l l upon you t o s t a n d up and be counted
when the t r u m p e t sounds.
I Middle Atlantic I
V i c t o r Madeja
287 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, N. Y. 11211
EDITOR - - Middle Atlantic covering
New York, New J e r s e y a n d Pennsylvania.
Stalingrad
by Victor Madeja
On D e c e m b e r 5, - 1941 G e r m a n pene-
t r a t i o n s into R u s s i a extended f r o m the
s i e g e of L e n i n g r a d i n t h e North t o j u s t
W of Rostov i n t h e South. T h e b a t t l e
f o r Moscow had l e f t t h e G e r m a n s 25
THE GENERAL
m i l e s N of Moscow a n d 100 m i l e s SE
of the city. In a g a m e i t i s v e r y r a r e
that the G e r m a n player d o e s even one
of t h e s e things in twice the t i m e , if a t
all. T h e r e a r e s e v e r a l changes that
could b e m a d e in the p r e s e n t r u l e s t o
provide a m o r e r e a l i s t i c situation.
1. Use automatic v i c t o r y a s outlin-
ed in A f r i k a ' K o r p s .
2. Make two months = t o 3 t u r n s
(movement unchanged).
3. The G e r m a n p l a y e r can not u s e
R a i l r o a d section f o r one t u r n a f t e r h e
c a p t u r e s it. It would t a k e about 3 weeks
to r e p a i r a l l d a m a g e a n d change the
gauge of the t r a c k s t o s u i t t h e m t o G e r -
m a n locomotives.
4. F i n l a n d - a ) The defense f a c t o r of
a l l Finnish units i s doubled i n Finland.
The n u m e r o u s l a k e s (250/oof the t e r r a i n )
provide s t r o n g defensive bottlenecks,
and l a r g e "home guard'' a r m y would
g r e a t l y l i m i t a n a t t a c k e r ' s gains. In
the Soviet-Finnish W a r , N of L a k e L a -
doga, about 4 divisions stopped a l l a t -
t a c k s of 3 Soviet A r m i e s (17 d i v + ) .
b ) No G e r m a n Units allowed in F i n -
land. Although t h e r e w e r e two Mt.
C o r p s ( f r o m Norway), both of t h e s e
o p e r a t e d t o the n o r t h of t h e g a m e b o a r d
area.
5. Replacements: G e r m a n s r e c e i v e
3 f a c t o r s p e r t u r n in W a r s a w (2nd t u r n
on). R u s s i a n - Sept. 1941 (5th t u r n )
Leningrad, Moscow, a n d S t a l i n g r a d a r e
each 3 f a c t o r s ; Dec. 1941 additions -
Kubishev i s worth 3 a n d Maikop, 1
(total: 13); May 1942 additions Grozny,
Batum a n d A r c h a n g e l a r e each 1 (total:
16).
-
Optional T h e s e two r u l e s a r e flexi-
ble enough t o b e changed a t your d i s -
c r e s s i o n t o shift play b a l a n c e e i t h e r
way (if you find i t unsuitable).
a ) F o r e v e r y 3 shaded c i t i e s the
R u s s i a n c o n t r o l s (excluding Moscow,
Stalingrad, a n d L e n i n g r a d ) , he r e c e i v e s
1 f a c t o r (maximum: 4 ) . The G e r m a n
- e t s 1 f a c t o r f o r e v e r y 6 such c i t i e s h e
g EDITOR - Midwest covering Wisconsin,
c a p t u r e s ( t h e r e a r e 15 of t h e m ) . To-
w a r d s the end of t h e w a r about 1 com-
pany of e a c h G e r m a n battalion w a s R u s -
s i a n - n e a r l y 1 million s o l d i e r s .
b ) In addition, f o r e v e r y 8 defense
f a c t o r s d e s t r o y e d 1 def. infantry f a c t o r
i s r e c r e a t e d . T h i s a p p l i e s only t o t h o s e
units t h a t h a d a r e t r e a t r o u t e a n d w e r e
not automatically eliminated. The G e r -
m a n d o e s not r e c e i v e t h i s d u r i n g Snow
months.
All above R u s s i a n r e p l a c e m e n t s
r e f e r t o defensive f a c t o r s , they a r e
placed in the t h r e e p r i m a r y c i t i e s o r i n
Kubishev. My p u r p o s e in r e d i s t r i b u t -
ing r e p l a c e m e n t c e n t e r s w a s t o give
e m p h a s i s to: population ( m a j o r c i t i e s
and E a s t e r n R u s s i a b y way of Kubishev),
r a w m a t e r i a l s ( C a u c a s u s ) , Lend L e a s e
(Archangel), a s well a s i n d u s t r i a l a n d
political c e n t e r s .
I have found t h a t t h e s e r u l e s often
provide a highly i n t e r e s t i n g a n d r e a l i s -
t i c game. Foul: g a m e s involved a 1941-
42 Winter battle f o r Moscow.
Total War
In m o s t of the w a r g a m e s , units a r e
c o n s i d e r e d eliminated even though
a c t u a l c a s u a l t i e s , h i s t o r i c a l l y speaking,
w e r e usually l e s s than 20%. H e r e i s a
s i m p l e way t o p e r m i t combat until t h e
involved units a r e completely d e s t r o y -
ed. (It d o e s not apply t o Stalingrad. )
Multiply all combat f a c t o r s by 5.
E a c h t i m e the unit would n o r m a l l y b e
eliminated, b y combat o r isolation, de-
c r e a s e t h e multiple by 1 a n d r e t r e a t i t
one sq. (in combat). If t h i s i s not pos-
s i b l e b e c a u s e of t e r r a i n o r e n e m y zones
of control the unit r e m a i n s in place but
l o s s e s 2 multiples. One multiple is
equivalent t o one-fifth of the u n i t ' s
strength.-
Stacking l i m i t s : Waterloo 75 f a c - -
t o r s p e r sq; D-Day & A f r i k a Korps - 3
units (2 units f o r Allied i n D-Day) o r
the equivalent in "weakened" ones. A
unit m a y be brought up t o full s t r e n g t h
by deducting f a c t o r s f r o m o t h e r u n i t s
of the s a m e type.
The G e r m a n r e p l a c e m e n t r a t e i n
D-Day i s 25 f a c t o r s p e r turn.
F o r g r e a t e r r e a l i s m , l a r g e r multi-
ples m a y b e used. T h i s would p e r m i t
assigning a "combat penalty" t o both
attacker(s) and defender(s), where each
would l o s e a m u l t i p l e ( s ) b e s i d e s regu-
l a r die roll casualties.
9
Midwest
C a r l F. Knabe I1
1258 State S t r e e t C o u r t s
We s t Lafayette. Iti'diana
Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio.
AH N0TE:due t o mid-terms, M r . Knabe was
n o t able to forward h i s column f o r t h i s
issue...too bad since Mr. Knabe had come
out on top, according t o r e s u l t s of l a s t
i s s u e ' s survey.
I
South Atlantic
Hilary Smith
7805 Maple Ridge Rd.
If
Bethesda 14, Maryland
A#=.< '
EDITOR - South Atlantic covering
Maryland, D. C . , West Virginia, V i r -
ginia, Kentucky, North Carolina. South
C a r o l i n a , Georgia, Alabama, M i s s i s -
sippi and F l o r i d a .
PAGE 9
We Include Naval Power
by H i l a r y Smith
F i r s t . I would l i k e t o apologize t o
.he people (Alas, n u m e r o u s ) who have
written m e and r e c e i v e d no a n s w e r .
l'o you, I apologize.
O r e a n i z i n e Navies on the Board
T h i s i s s u e I a m going t o w r i t e on
low we o r g a n i z e the navies on o u r
3oard. We do not put a l l the n a m e
ships on the b o a r d , but r a t h e r the
major s h i p s such a s battleships, c a r -
r i e r s , heavy c r u i s e r s and s o on. F o r
the m i n o r s h i p s w e put t h e m into groups.
two o r t h r e e t o a group. This i s done
mainly f o r light c r u i s e r s . F o r d e s -
t r o y e r s we put t h e m into c l a s s e s by
which t h e r e m a y b e up to 25 ships i n a
c l a s s . T h i s s e e m s t o w o r k out f a i r l y
well. F o r s u b m a r i n e s we put only a
f r a c t i o n of the amount of s u b m a r i n e s
on the board. T h i s i s put into a r a t i o
a c c o r d i n g t o the n u m b e r of s u b m a r i n e s
a country had, a t t h e t i m e of the out-
b r e a k of the w a r (WW 11).
T o s t a r t the g a m e we allow a l m o s t
f r e e movement of, r a t h e r f r e e posi-
tioning of the n a v i e s , in o t h e r w o r d s we
don't have t o s e t up o u r navies the way
they actually w e r e a t the beginning of
the war.
A l l Combat Considered Broadside
O u r s h i p s can engage combat a t two
r a n g e s , a s i n B i s m a r c k . But unlike
B i s m a r c k we do not shoot bows, o r
s t e r n s but r a t h e r e v e r y encounter i s
c o n s i d e r e d to b e one a t b r o a d s i d e s . We
a l s o do not switch t o a b a t t l e b o a r d t o
fight o u r b a t t l e s , but r a t h e r keep t h e m
on the playing board. Battleships en-
gage combat a t B r a n g e when a s q u a r e
s e p a r a t e s them. C r u i s e r s both heavy
a n d light fight a t B r a n g e when they a r e
adjacent t o each o t h e r . D e s t r o y e r s do
not fight until they a r e on top of each
o t h e r . T o c l o s e t o A r a n g e the s h i p s
m e r e l y c l o s e a n o t h e r s q u a r e with the
exception of the d e s t r o y e r s which wait
another t u r n , s o t o s p e a k b e f o r e i t can
c l o s e t o i t s "A1' r a n g e . It i s the s a m e
position r e l a t i v e l y to the ship i t i s
fighting, but that i t i s now i n even
c l o s e r , o r we s a y i t i s . During t h i s
wait the ship. g e t s i t s "Closing F i r e " .
What we m e a n when we s a y closing
f i r e i s that if a ship, s a y a c r u i s e r , i s
closing on a b a t t l e s h i p the c r u i s e r will
b e out of r a n g e when a s q u a r e s e p a r a t e s
t h e m , but the b a t t l e s h i p i s not; s o the
b a t t l e s h i p i s allowed t o f i r e i t s full
b r o a d s i d e a t the closing c r u i s e r while
the c r u i s e r i s allowed no s h o t s a t the
battleship. T h i s i s called closing f i r e
a n d each t i m e the s h i p c l o s e s a r a n g e
the b a t t l e s h i p g e t s i t s full closing f i r e .
T h i s i s applicable t o all s h i p s closing
THE GENERAL
into the ranges of o t h e r s while them-
selves being out of range.
Our ships a r e allowed to stay out
one y e a r before they m u s t r e t u r n to a
friendly port for r e p a i r s , fuel, ammuni-
tion, etc. This makes the conquering
of n e u t r a l s s o m e t i m e s n e c e s s a r y f o r
the securing of ports. Each ship h a s
a n a n t i - a i r c r a f t fireback capacity which
i s r a t e d on the type of ship i t i s and the
c
defensive a r m a m e n t i t c a r r i e s .
Central
Daniel Hughes
1634 North Sheiidan
Wichita, Kansas 67203
EDITOR - - Central covering North Da-
kota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Ne-
b r a s k a , Iowa, Kansas and Missouri.
Strategy of Waterloo
by Daniel Hughes
Waterloo i s , in my estimation, one
of the b e s t AH games and certainly one
of the b e s t balanced. I feel that luck
on the dice plays l e s s a p a r t in this
game than in the o t h e r s . C o r r e c t u s e
of t e r r a i n can compensate f o r a l l but
the w o r s t possible luck on t h e roll.
The F r e n c h player may choose the
a r e a s where the battle will be fought.
Due t o the original dispositions, he h a s
two disadvantages. F i r s t , while he i s
a t a l m o s t full strength and the Allied
player i s relatively weak, the F r e n c h
player cannot close f o r battle f o r two
o r t h r e e turns. This gives the Allies
ample t i m e t o fortify the c e n t e r hill
a r e a south of Quatre B r a s . The second
disadvantage of the disposition i s that
deception i s difficult. If the F r e n c h
r e f u s e s t o a s s a u l t the c e n t e r hill, a s
he usually must, any a t t e m p t t o flank
the Allies can b e detected because of
the f o r e s t s around which he m u s t move.
Allied Side Quite Difficult
T h e r e a r e a l s o s e v e r a l difficulties
confronting the Allies. They have
enough t r o o p s to block the c e n t r a l a r e a s
but should the F r e n c h split into 3 f o r c e s ,
they can b e h a r d - p r e s s e d to defend the
western flank a t ~ i v e l l e s . In addition
to being difficult to defend with original
f o r c e s , this a r e a i s c r u c i a l t o t h e A l l i e s ,
because a F r e n c h breakthrough h e r e
makes a l l o t h e r defense l i n e s south of
Braine La Leude untenable. The big
advantage, if used carefully, i s this:
While the F r e n c h a r e handicapped in
movement and a t t a c k by t e r r a i n . Allied
defense l i n e s a r e well backed by roads.
Communications t o the c r u c i a l "Nivelles
gapu a r e excellent, but a r e vulnerable
along the f o r e s t s running adjacent to
the road.
B e s t F r e n c h Course of Action
Since the Allied s t r a t e g y i s basically
the c o r r e c t reaction to the F r e n c h
t h r u s t s , I s h a l l outline what I feel i s the
b e s t Course f o r the F r e n c h to follow.
A s m a l l holding f o r c e should r e m a i n
in the center hill a r e a . This i s to t i e
down Allied troops. The main effort
should be put in a wide sweep t o the
northeast of Tilly. Although this line
of advance i s along a r i v e r , the Allies
do not usually have enough f o r c e s h e r e
to defend against F r e n c h c r o s s i n g s a t
a l l points, a t l e a s t not under sustained
attack. A secondary f o r c e should
advance to the Nivelles a r e a . It should
not attack until the battle on the F r e n c h
Right h a s been joined. Whether the a t -
tack h e r e should be simultaneous with
the one in the F r e n c h Right ( e a s t ) i s
dependent upon the individual situation,
and this can be a n important decision.
A s a reaction to this, the Allied
player should a t the beginning of the
game s a c r i f i c e s o m e s m a l l units around
Tilly t o buy time. This can b e done
economically in the n a r r o w defiles a -
long the r i v e r c o r r i d o r . The center
a r e a m u s t be defended, but can b e l e s s
strongly held a s the F r e n c h split up
f o r their double envelopment. Some
f o r c e s should be sent to both flanks,
but the amount m u s t depend on the
F r e n c h effort a t each side. Disposi-
tion of f o r c e s i s extremely c r u c i a l , e s -
pecially in the NE where communica-
tions a r e t e r r i b l e . However, if too
many f o r c e s a r e placed t h e r e , it i s
impossible to get them back to the cen-
ter area.
T e r r a i n Saves Allies
If I s e e m to imply that a g r e a t ad-
vantage l i e s with the F r e n c h , I do not
intend to. It takes skillful manipulation
of F r e n c h units t o overcome tactical
t e r r a i n difficulties. Many t i m e s the
t e r r a i n h a s saved the Allies f r o m de-
feat. Moreover, if e i t h e r flank f o r c e
should be defeated, the o t h e r s cannot
a i d it. Another danger i s heavy Allied
f o r c e s attacking the center line. F r e n c h
f o r c e s h e r e a r e completely out in t h e
open. Even if the F r e n c h envelopments
should succeed, heavy opposition can be
r a i s e d by the Allies in the Mont St. J e a n
area.
-
To s u m m a r i z e : F r e n c h a double
envelopment t o inflict maximum casu-
a l t i e s in minimum t i m e by over-extend-
-
ing Allies. Allies Use t e r r a i n , light
units, and communications to t r a d e
s p a c e f o r time. Get a s much a s possible
back t o St. Jean, but s o m e casualties
m u s t b e inflicted on F r e n c h before then.
P e r h a p s the m o s t important decision i s
when to begin the s t r a t e g i c r e t r e a t .
PAGE 10
Southwest
SISGT. Louis Zocchi
139 Belvedere C i r c l e
Biloxi, M i s s i s s i p p i
EDITOR - Southwest covering Arizona,
New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkan-
s a s and Louisiana.
Amero Have it Made in Midway
The only t i m e I open my mouth i s
when I ' m changing feet. To prove that
I love hanging out on a limb, I ' m going
to s t a t e that the Japanese c a n ' t possibly
sink any A m e r i c a n CV's if my defensive
s y s t e m i s employed and the J a p t s use
2 CV's f o r the attack. If the J a p s t r i k e s
with 3 CV's a t once, the A m e r i c a n h a s
a good chance of beating off the attack
with no CV's l o s t . If the J a p attacks
with 4 C V t s h e will probably sink one
A m e r i c a n CV. If you a r e not careful
he could sink 2. The Jap i s weakest a t
the beginning of the game. If you can
attack h i m before 1500 H r s . on June
3 r d , you can bag a t l e a s t 2 CV's and
probably 2 CAts.
A m e r i c a n s Must Consolidate
The A m e r i c a n should keep a l l h i s
shibs together. This makes them h a r d
to spot and provides excellent protec-
tion f o r the C a r r i e r s . H e r e i s my bat-
t l e board s e t up. C5 New O r l e a n s , C7
Portland, C9 North Hampton, C11 Min-
neapolis. E6 E n t e r p r i s e , E 8 Yorktown,
E l 0 Hornet, G5 Vincennes, G7 Astoria.
G9 Atlanta, G11 Pensacola. Ships
around the edges of the F l e e t a r e a t -
tacked the m o s t s o I have placed our
s t r o n g e s t C A t s in the danger spots.
Keeping a l l the C V t s together allows
you t o s t r i k e h a r d when you have the
chance. If the Jap s p l i t s his fleet up,
you can overwhelm his defenses, sink
m o r e of h i s ships, and keep your a i r -
c r a f t l o s s e s low. By keeping a l l your
s h i p s together you will f o r c e the J a p t o
do the s a m e .
Get The Atago
If you f a i l t o a t t a c k the m a i n Jap
C V t s on the f i r s t day, t r y to pick up the
Atago when i t c o m e s in. You will have
plenty of po\ker t o sink h i s escorting
ships on the f i r s t s t r i k e . Your second
s t r i k e a t the Atago should be the clinch-
e r . I don't go a l l o u t - t o sink the Atago
on the f i r s t attack because i t is usually
too well protected. The Jap finds it
difficult t o protect the Atago and the
Zuiho a t the s a m e time, which means
THE GENERAL I
PAGE 11
that you can get one o r the other your A m e r i c a n s can sink 2 CV's. With them, If anybody i s interested in knowing
f i r s t t i m e around. The CV's that elud- he can only sink one. how many a i r c r a f t the Japanese really
ed you on the f i r s t day will probably Striking into the unsearched a r e a s had, they should buy "ZERO" published
abandon t h e i r movement towards mid- i s not a s h a i r y a s i t a p p e a r s . Let's by Ballantine Books. P a g e s 30 to 35
way s o that they can get a c r a c k a t your s a y that the l a s t known A m e r i c a n posi- l i s t e v e r y ship in the J a p navy, how
CVts. Move your midway a i r c r a f t t o tion was D4 a r e a , E zone. You both many a i r c r a f t w e r e on e a c h ship, and
one of your C V ' S a t the f i r s t opportunity. move and he spots your fleet in A4 what types of a i r c r a f t they had. P a g e s
The Jap knows where midway i s , and a r e a , E zone. It i s your t u r n to s e a r c h . 126 & 127 l i s t s the Names, displace-
will t r y to s t r i k e i t when you l e a s t ex- You should t r y C4 because he could b e ment, lengths, speeds and dates of
pect it. He doesn't always know w h e r e in any one of the 3 zones t h e r e . If no completion of e v e r y CV in the J a p Navy.
to find your CV's. If you spot 2 lone luck, t r y D4 to s e e if h e h a s moved. This book h a s the f a c t s and F i g u r e s l ' d o
Jap CV's, 5 Torpeado and 12 Dive If he h a s , t r y C3 o r C5. If you t r y C3 it yourself'' War G a m e r s need.
bombers a r e m o r e than enough t o sink and get no reply, he i s probably in C5 If you want t o balance the game s o
them both s o go ahead, even if i t ' s a a r e a , C zone. Now c o m e s the writing that the A m e r i c a n s have a better chance,
1 way mission. You can afford t o t r a d e of operations. He thinks he h a s eluded t r y this. No ship m a y f i r e a t m o r e
2 of his CV's for one of yours. you s o he probably will not cap his fleet. than one group of a i r c r a f t . If you play
He will send everything he h a s t o a t - this way, the Americans can do much
Japs Will Avoid Combat tack you. If you launch an attack you m o r e damage with their dive bombers.
could probably catch him flat footed. This a l s o m e a n s that bunching up your
The Japanese player should keep This tactic i s m o s t effective if this CV's i s a s u r e way to lose. If you
his CV's together with his CA's and happens to b e the l a s t daylight move. have 8 CA's and 1 CV, you couldn't
BB's and t r y t o s t a y away f r o m the Attacking just before nightfall gives the f i r e on m o r e than 9 s e p a r a t e a i r c r a f t
A m e r i c a n until a f t e r 1500 h r s . on the A m e r i c a n s 3 moves t o get l o s t b e f o r e groups. Thus, if the enemy b r e a k s his
f i r s t day. When those 4 new CA's come you can effectively s e a r c h f o r him again. attack down into 12 groups, 3 will at-
in, join up with the CV's immediately s o " Z e r o q ' - The Book F o r tack without having to withstand the
you can defend your fleet f r o m a i r a t - Do-It-Yourselfers m a i n a r m o r fire.
tack. Without those e x t r a CA's the

A s a f r e e s e r v i c e t o s u b s c r i b e r s the following a d s a r e i n s e r t e d exactly a s they a r e sub-

Opponenf~Wanted
I will command either the Ruesians
(Stalir~grad), Germans (D-Day). or b s
~ o m m c l ,the Japanese in the respective
g a m e . 1'11 take either side in Bi8-
,,,.rck. If you are not easily humiliated
Mike McCaulsy. 36 Hershay
Avenue. Lnncastar. Penna.
[.not thare anyone in Midland T e n .
who playa AH games? Can c r w h you
in A f r b Korpa, D-Day. Stdingrad, o r
Midway. Anyone who wisha* to be
mIaughtered,plenssnotifyBrucs Sullivan
2412 Seaboard. Midland. Taxas -phone:
MU 2-1447.
Am interested in forming an Avalon
Hill Wargame* Club in the Kalamasoo
area. o r joining one if one exists in tbe
area. If anyone i s interested, plea*=
call 685-5791. Tom Wehater. 379
103rd Ave.. Plainwell. Michigan.
97-1 Odd. for Victory? Hal I challenge
the "Brain Trust" mentioned in C a r l
Knahe's column. in the Jan. issue of
"The Gonoral", to a game of D-Day,
Waterloo. SULingr.d. Afrika Korpa. I
will take the Germans PDA, German..
olthor side. Write: Miehaol McCahe.
1 6 0 NW 61.t Avs.. F o r t Laudcrdale.
Florlda 33313.
Wanted: Anyone who would like to en-
gage in r Play-by-Mall game ofmsAfrik.
Korpe." lwould liks to play someone
who doe. consider himself an ex-
pert. Write O: Buddy Mass.. 307 E.
8th St.. Cwkevillc, Teno. 38501 In- - Allis. Wisconein 53219.
clude the midc you prefer m y rule or
deviation not included in "Afrika Korpe"
orlginal rule..
High School Stlldent wishes to engage
able opponent in life and deathetrugglc.
Will play Tactics I1 (I will take either
sidc a d he victoriow; only optional
-
rule isolation) or Afrika Korps (again
take either side - n e w rule*). If you
think yaur force can annihilate mine.
try me. Contact: Thonus Vaicntioo.
116-15 Union Tnmnpike. Foreat Hill.
75. New Y o r k
Will play llvo or by mail either side of
thefollowing game.: D-Day. Stalingrad.
Tactics If. M r i k r Korps. B i ~ m a r c k .
U-Boat and Midway. Please contact
by mail: Richard J. Parrcka, c / o
John E. Begley. R.D. (1, Main Street.
Herkimcr. New York 13350.
TACTICS U ENTHUSIASTS. .upporters
of r Loetcause, and thoee who just think
that Tactics U etiil holds promis? (all
other madmen quits delcome). how
would you liks n real challenge? Play
Supsr-Tactics. Write: George Pstroni.
814 Fifth St., Cambridge. N. J. 08075.
Due to the ahsurdcomplexity of the game
- battle can only be joined in the flesh.
mitted. A ~ received
S a f t e r the 15th day of the month preceding publication date will ap-
pear in the following i s s u e . P l e a s e keep a d s within 50 words.
I I
mLNTXYERiENCED opponent for l%ctiss
u (I prefer Blue with fi.et move).
Gettyaburg '64 sither side and Afrika
~ o r p soitber side. Play-hy-Mail for
all. Write: John Kosmicki. Marple
Route Box 34. Alliance. Neb.
"A five yea. veteran of A-H warfare
would like to find an experienced op-
ponsntto share large Old Toam. Chicago
aparrmeot and expsnacm. Regular play
and construction of A-H games in-
cluded. Age 21-29. Contact Robert
Olmon, c / o C. W. Olson and Co.. 175
W. Jackson Blvd.. Chicago, lllinols
HA 7-0480."
Allied or Axis Admiral. wanted for
Play-hy-Mail Game of Midway o r Bis-
marck. Write: Robert Parkin. 17 Val-
- ley View Road. Hyde Park. N.Y.
Wanted: Opponents in area
who would like to play any of our 11
(eleven) Avalon Hill games. All thoac
intcrcmted could help to form an Avalon
Hill club. Please Write or Phone: Bob
and Steve Reuscbloln. 2225 Kcyea Ave.,
Madison. Wi~eonsin53711. AL 5-2866.
Our games are a ~ f o l l o w ~AfrikaKorps,
:
Bismarck. Chrmccllorsvills,Di~~patcher,
Football Strategy. Gatty~burg '61,
Gettyehurg '64. Le Mans. Midway.
Tactics 11. and Word Power.
Opponents wanted for Gsttyahurg. Tac-
tics U or D-Day by mail. Apply: Bruce
T. Klem. 2463 South 80th Street. West
Adults Only (20 or over). Will not
guarantee victory or defeat but will
assure bard fought. well planned game
of D-Day. Staiingrad. Afrika Korp.,
Waterloo. Bismarck. Gettysburg (64).
or Midway. By mail or in person. call
or write Jim Dunnigan. 851 2 5th Ave..
Brooklyn. N.Y. 11209. Phone: 839-
1082.
WANTED: Expert. who w i ~ hto plny
Afrika Korps. D-Day, Stalingrad.
Waterloo, Midway. Gcttyeburg '61 or
'64. Chancellorsville. All opponents
will he given an interesting andexciting
game though they will 1o.s. Write ro-
questing any game, any side to: THE
T.A.S.E. CLUB. c / o Mark Diamond.
5747 Avle.boro A"=.. Pitteburgh. Pa.
All East Bay peasants "ARISE" we
must defeat the troops of Jack Grseno.
Jr. Your help ia needed! No axperi-
encc needed. The cruel king of 'the
peninsula must be defeated. If .'you
are interested contact: L a r r y Jagard.
5300 & r e n Ave.. Richmond. Calif.
Play-hy-Mail D-Day and Gettysburg
'64 opponent* wanted. Write: Mark
Diamond. 5747 Ayteahoro Ava.. Pitts-
burgh. Pennsylvania 15217.
I I Someone
I a m interested i s contacting anyone in
thi. a r e a in order to play almost any
Avalilon Hill game or possibly organize
a club. Either write ol call me a t
homo. (tol. 525-4699) David Halprin,
486 E. 25th St., Patereon. N. J.
Gettyaburg, anyone? I need a Play-hy-
Mail opponent. Write: Peter Nicuchsas
(OOP.. I mean Niewvhof). 25 McGilvray
Cres.. Georgetown, Ontario. Can.da.
Will play any opponent in a game of
Stalingrad, Chancellorsvitlo, or Water-
loo. 1'11 be either side. Please con-
tact Jeff Kilsoin. 605 S. Thomas St..
Bedford. Pa. 15522.
Two undefeated Generals (Admirals)
need opponents. Write to Larry 30s
Burstyn. Box 31. Frederick College.
Portsmouth. Va. andlor PFC D. J.
Farrow. ER13799779. 517th Mad. Co.
LClr.). APO 252, N. Y.. N. Y. 09752.
SAN FRANCISCONIANS AND PENIN-
SULARIANS, W Y i I I The dread
retches of the East Bay. H.Q. 5300
Barrett Ave., Richmond. Calif. 94508.
lead by the purple clod. are about to
ATTEMPT the destructionoftha colos-
mal Poninaularian Empire. RESIST l l
Learn how you can destroy the haatban
mobs of tho East. (communi~ticlead)
by writing to our benevolent Majesty.
King JackGroene the First. 67ODarrcll
Rd.. Hili~borough.Calif., 94010. The
Great Cause Calls.
Achtmg: Wanted one opponent to do
battle on the sands of Africa. Ruaeia.
or on the belches a t Normandy. I also
play Bismarck. Cbancellorsville. and
Gettysburg (old version). I would pre-
fer an opponent that lives in my area
but will except play-by-mail for the
firet three game. mentlonad. Also
anyone in the Twln Cities a r e a that
would like to joln an Avalon Hill club
please contact me. even if you live in
St. Louis Park. My address is: David
L. Armemon. 1496 Hartford Avc.. St.
Paul. Minnesota 55116. If you live in
my area you can call 698-6300.
War-Gamer* attending the University
of Ponnsylvaniri Arc you interested
in wiping out tho blot on our school'^
name for mot having a war-game. club.
Anyone who might be interested in or-
ganizing a war game. club, please
write: George Petroais. 814 Fifth
Street. Cambridge. N. J. 08075. Please
state whather you are r commuter o r a
resident.
Two experienced and able generals will
play any Avalon Hill battle game. Pick
any side and send opening move. and
rules to: Ronald and Arthur Wright.
36 Reid Terrace, Fond du Lac. Wisc.
ATTENTION ALL GENERAL+.%Do yo-
livo cast of the Minsissippi River ?
Would you like tobs in command of your
etate or of a section thereof? Would
you like to engage In iotor-state and
inter-~ectional conflicts? If your an-
swer to any of these q u c s t i a n ~m
writ.: Brian Hoavey. 4413 Willow
i *.
Wood. Dr.. Annandals. Va.. Com-
mander in Chlof of Sp.Eho. (Specill
-
Efficacy for Counter Intelligence,
Revenge, and Ertcrminatlon), formally
the Norther. Va. F i r a t Army.
Midshipman 4lc David Troutmnn. USNR
in an effort to practice the principles
of military science, needs an
opponent. Playing by the revised
rule. (and either side). I will prove
Clauzwita rlght. Contact me at: 2715
Portland. L. A. 7. Callfornlr (the
University of Southern California).
Wanted: An opponent for almost m y
A. H. game. Rules must be same as
those included in game. 1 wlil take
any side. By the way. anybody who
plays m e should be a good Loser, be-
cause be r i l l he loming most of the
time. John Emerson. 242 b c u s t St..
Danvcrs. Mas.. , phone: 774-7327.
Will take either side in game ofGettym-
burg (original '58 version). Reply with
moves if interested. Am 17 and senior
in hixh echool. Randv Jones. Rhodea-
d a l e , - ~ d . 21659. . Will take either side and will plny with
Corps and Army Commander needed
for country-wide club. Poaition going
fast. f l r s t = m e , firat nerve. Contact:
Peter McDonald. 4827 65th St.. Woud-
eids 77. New York.
WANTED: VERY. VERY INEXPERI-
-
ENCED player-by-mail of TACTICS U.
That would fit mv ~otential. Your
choice of side. 858 edition. Prisoner.
I~otrtion. Nuclear. Weather. Supply
rules. C b r i s t o ~ h e rJones. 66 Stull St..
Kinchalos A. F.B. Micb. 49788.
Wanted: Any Allied. British, Russian.
Field Marehal to face unbeaten German
Field Marshal in D-Day. Afrika Korpa
or Stalingrad. Will play livo in Boetos
area, by mail anywhere ole=. Write:
Robert F. Disli. 236 Jamaicaway.
Boston. Mass. 02130.
Buffalo Area WilliamsvUle, New York.
I am lookine for mature o ~ p a n e n t sover
21 years old; for D-D.;; ~ l c t i c s11.
Afrlkr Korps, Midway, or Gettyshurg.
Would like to play in person. Frank A.
Tureeon. 4712BrentsvoodDr.. Williams-
ville-, N.Y. 14221.
CQ CQ CQ DE WAZIAD: Any active
"hams" interested in an "A-H gaming
QSO*,. coetasr me. Mv QTH i.: 29 E.
Welling Avenue. ~ o n n l n g t o hN. J. 73's
(and88'. to the YL's) KttGoll(WA2IAD).
wishing a good thrashing on
the Steppe. of Russia. the Deserts of
Africa or the plains of France. Death
rate f o r opponaot. is high so coward.
need not write. I get Germane in all
three. I welcome foreign letter..
Eddie Rohisheaux. 4405 Driftwood.
Corpus Christi, Texas.
I am in need of a good thrashing on the
&.arts of Africa, via Play-by-Mail.
Rueb dispatch to: Dave Boyer, Jr..
1342 Cashman. La. Vegas. Nev.d..
Would anyone like to play the new
Gettysburg with me (Robert Borrie.)
in the mail and be the Northerner.?
My address in: Robert Borrios. P.O.
Box 832. Groan Cove Springs. F ~ L .
Lonely A.H. game player wish=, to
meet opponent. Object: To relieve the
boredom of playing alone. I have
STALINGRAD. TACTICS U, and WATER-
LOO. Plaaae call a t AUdubon 6-0029.
or wrlte William Polyniak. 640 West
139th Street. N. Y., N.Y. 10031.
MULTI-PLAYER WATERLOO GAME1
Send name, address. experience, side
preference and command preferenca.
Army Group. Army and Corpe c a n -
mand. available. Write: Bruce Evans.
74 Taylor Drive. Cloetsr. New J e r s o c
Opponent wanted. Muat have a defeat-
ist attitude and willing tobe d u l b t e i o d
in a game of Afrika Korp. or Midway.
m y rule supplemeate within reason.
Douglrss Burke. 1108 Hiland Avenue.
Corao~olis, Penru. 15108.
Wanted: New M e m h d r ~(in thin area)
for r young Avalon Hill Gamer. Club.
The charter member. of this club have .
logged 2.000 game hour. with A-H
game.. Write: Ron Gruben. 2902
3rd PI.. A-14. Lubbock, T e n s or call
)
806 PO. 3-8635.
Wanted: an cxperiencod Britimh Com-
mander to lose r game of M r b K o r p s .
Please contact Field Marahall John
Kester. 7056 Tulane Ave., St. Loui.
30. Mo.
Will play Stalingrad. I have a system
against which no player ha. yet lasted
more than three turn.. Send your as-
ceptance (for Germans). initial m w e
(Russian.). andlor surrender toGeorge
Pbillios. 2235 Burton Houme, 420
Memorial Dr.. Cambridge 39. Ma..
My term. are the same as thoaa of the
M. 1. T. War Game. Society (see Vol. 1,
No. 5).
WANTED: Someone to teach two gen-
erals the meltling of the word defeat.
Will play Afrika Korp. (either). or D-
Day (Germans). Please contact. Tim
T w e r y . 2720 Lomhardy. Port A~thu..
Texas.
THE GENERAL
I I
Pacific Coast
I J
Jon P e r i c a
5663 Ramara Avenue
Woodland Hills,
California 91364
EDITOR --
Pacific Coast c o v e r i n a a -
waii, California, Oregon, Washington
and the F a r East.
The Granddaddy
of All War Games
by Jon P e r i c a
E v e r since Gettysburg f i r s t came on
the m a r k e t in 1958, the Avalon Hill
Company has been turning out a g r e a t
variety of war games. Because of this
g r e a t production, the Avalon Hill
Company has rightly earned the title of
father of military games. However,
some credit should be r e s e r v e d f o r the
grand-daddy of all war games, H. G.
Wells.
When he was not writing science
fiction o r history, Wells was busy
charging all over his back lawn on hands
and knees advanceing battalions of -toy
soldiers. F r o m these e a r l y exploits a
book called Little Wars was published
in 1913 t h a t x o - r u l e s to follow
when playing -miniature war games.
About this s a m e time, the German High
Command was playing. Kriegspiel, a
strategic map game which enabled them
to plan the b e s t way to attach France.
A c e r t a i n Colonel Mark Sykes began
plying Wells with questions about how to
improve c e r t a i n "hypothetical" situa-
tions. By 1914, these "hypothetical"
situations had become World War I.
This e a r l y i n t e r e s t in miniature
soldiers has grown rapidly until a t
present, just about anyone can r e c r e a t e
a famous battle. One of m y fellow
r e a d e r s , Mr. Ken Allan. 4861 Reforma,
Woodland Hills, Calif. has been kind
enough to explain to me how he went
about recreating famous scenes f r o m
the battle of Gettysburg in complete
miniatures.
The f i r s t thing Ken did was to pur-
chase 112 inch plastic soldiers f r o m a
local hobby shop f o r a penny a piece
along with exact scale caissons, wagons,
cannons and horses. The company that
makes the Civil War miniatures, the
Airfax Company of London, England,
a l s o makes Afrika Korps, 8th Army,
Japanese. Arabian, Russian and Con-
tiental German and English soliders.
A complete line of vehicles f o r these men
can a l s o be purchased in perfect HO
scale. T o construct the battle board,
Ken took some heavy plywood and p r e -
ceeded to c r d a t e his t e r r a i n w i t h p l a s t e r
of p a r is, crushed rocke and HO t r e e s
and plants. The next s t e p was to paint
the soldiers withoil paints right down to
the l a s t stripe on the sergeant's sleeve.
Lastly, Ken mounted his men on the
board and before his eyes was Pickett
leading his famous charge up Cemetery
Ridge with row upon row of Confederate
infantry behind him.
Those of you who like the added touch
of r e a l i s m will enjoy creating your own
battles just a s Ken did.
This month's book review includes
these favorites;
1. Patton-Ordeal & a Triumph by
LadeIas
2.
Farago. Madallon
T h e F o r t r e s s by Catherine Gavin.
Book
Balantine Book
3. -
The Goebbels Diaries. Eagle Book
4. Andersonville by Mac Kinlay
Kantor .
5. Stalingrad by Theodore Plievier.
Madallon Book
New Battle Game
(Continued f r o m Page 1.
Theyhadan "in" with the U.S. War Col-
lege, Washington, D. C . , and f r o m
them w e r e able to obtain the entire
historical material including the com-
plete o r d e r of battle right down to the
a c c u r a t e placement of regiments a t
any given time during the actual cam-
paign. Meanwhile, other staff mem-
b e r s were in contact with r e t i r e d Brig.
General Anthony C. McAuliffe, hero of
the battle of Bastogne.
As with a l l p r e v i ~ u s battle games
the historical data i s next assimilated
out of which comes a black and white
t e r r a i n map over which a crude set of
troop counters a r e maneuvered. In-
formation on the troop counters r e s u l t s
f r o m correlating a l l such relative data
a s : number of men involved; weapons;
leadership; and morale. Some thought
i s even given to actual performance of
individual Units in the r e a l campaign.
Office T e s t Games Follow Real
Campaigns
The design staff m e m b e r s run through
the f i r s t few t e s t games by following
the actual course of the r e a l battles,
just to make s u r e that relative strengths
have been accurately portrayed. In
many c a s e s i t i s necessary to make
changes to the map and to the troop
counters. Then they play in earnest.
They play to win ..
. often friendly bets
a r e made on the outcome. T h e r e a r e
m o r e changes and adjustments. Then
suddenly, our design fellows (in unison)
r i s e up out of their cloistered a r e a in
the game-playing catacombs and file
past President E a r l Sparling's office,
the right hand held high in salute a s the
signal that "it i s ready.
PAGE 12
The Acid Tqst
Mock-up games a r e prepared by the
A r t Department. Outside players a r e
invited iq to t e s t under close supervi-
sion. This fourth s t e p in the cycle i s
most important because i t i s the only
time during which we can really tell
what i s good And bad about the new
game. These players, who become our
consumer t e s t panel, a r e carefully
screened and the c r i t e r i a for their
selection is based to a g r e a t deal on
their ability to be objective. It i s most
important that their comments be honest
and frank. If we got a llbombll, we
must know i t right then and there. If
we a r e not entirely satisfied with these
r e s u l t s we might send out additional
mock-ups to Avalon Hill friends for
further testing. But because these
t e s t s cannot be under personal super-
vision, their findings a r e re-hashed and
further tested by consumer t e s t panel
m e m b e r s back in the .office.
This phase of "Battle of the Bulge"
took longer than usual because of the
many changes made to the basic format,
including a completely re-designed
Combat Table which a l t e r e d play a t the
tactical level.
Watch and Wait
The l a s t step i s production. The
A r t Department p r e p a r e s final a r t that
i s sent to our own printing department.
About a month afterward the f i r s t copy
off the assembly line i s sent to our
President . .. who then winds his way
down to the catacombs to salute the de-
sign staff. The tlballn i s passed to
Kenneth Johnson. Sales Manager, and
then we watch and wait.
This is only part of the story. In the
May i s s u e we will elaborate on what's
behind the scenes - the legal and the
promotional end of game publishing.
Chief of Staff's
Reading List. . .
-
This l i s t i s indorsed by General Max-
well D. Taylor a s basic professional
reading recommended for Army offi-
cers.
The Direction Of War, by Air Mar-
shall Edw. J. Kingston-McCloughry,
1955.
Forging A New Sword, by Col. W.R.
Kintner, Col. J. I. Coffey, and R. J .
Albrieht.
- " . 1958.
Nuclear Weapons And Foreign Policy
by Henry A. Kissinger, 1957.
War Potential Of Nations, by Klaus
E. Knorr, 1956.
The Middle E a s t In World Affairs,
by George Lenczowski. 1956.