Anyone got the skinny on this game? A friend of mine bought a copy and the components are insanely good... I haven't had a chance to play but I thought I'd throw this up to see if anyone here had.
Only scary thing is its a game of nazis vs. communists called "conflict of heroes" and the designer is a german guy from argentina. The whole thing just screams... well you know.
I'm not too worried. Conflict of Heroes is the name of the game series. Uwe intends to expand the system with games covering Western Europe, North Afrca, Pacific Theatre, etc. Awakening the Bear is just the first installment.
Personally I haven't played the game but from what I've read everything about CoH from production values to gameplay sounds top-notch. I placed a pre-order so I'm looking forward to giving the game a try myself.
You know, I really really really want to be excited about this game but I just can't muster any enthusiasm for it whatsoever. It looks great component-wise, the rules sound solid, and it sounds like it'd be fun. But I'm so over WWII right now that I doubt I'll even buy it as another shelf-warming wargame that gets played once or twice a year.
Between TIDE OF IRON and DAYS OF THE FOX, COMBAT COMMANDER and its expansions, and ASL...not to mention UP FRONT...I think I have pretty much everything about WWII covered that I'm interested in, at least for a while. I've got ToI for the big, baroque widescreen treatment, CC for the narrative and drama, and ASL for the detail and depth. Beyond that, I really don't see getting all that excited about any WWII game for some time to come.
I almost didn't get ESPANA 1936 because it dovetails into WWII...I'm glad I took the dive though, it's pretty awesome so far.
This one has me somewhat intrigued as I still have room for 1 more WWII game. Plus, though I'd frequently scoffed at the notion of people so locked into narrow topics, I *really* am a sucker for East Front gaming. Any tactical-level game that has me up to my neck in the Stalingrad Tractor Works seems to just grab me by my nuts [and Arnhem is close behind].... I'm looking forward to some real "I actually played this game and here's how it went..." reviews [so get on it Hancock! before I pull the trigger, but it looks really damned cool.
And, Michael, I hear where you're at on WWII; though, I guess I haven't quite scratched that itch entirely yet. I passed on TOI and started to get interested in ASL but, thanks to MMPs inability to keep large portions of the game in print [e.g., the British OOB and the entire PTO] combined with their upcoming release of a map pack that dovetails beautifully with the absolutely huge mass of converted scenarios has driven me into the arms of ATS. [Why bother paying $1 meeeellleion dollars to track down all those OOP ASL modules and scenarios when you can combine the maps with the seemingly well-done scenario conversions Todd Larsen has done; MMP has done their own flagship game a real disservice with their inability to keep a steady supply of product available anywhere. I can't really understand why it's so god damned hard to keep OOB countersets and/or friggin' scenario bundles in print.].
ATS won some extra points in my eyes as they have expanded the system beyond the desert into a proper tactical infantry and combined arms system *AND* expanded it outside WWII [although I'm not sure how badly I want to get my ass handed to me in Dien Bien Phu or the Chosin Resevoir]. More intriguing is that they are is "porting" their system to the ACW with Gettysburg and a subsequent Little Round Top expansion. Fighting something like G'burg at a 50-yard hex tactical scale based on a rule set I'd already be familiar with offers narrative potential that I've never really seen before [though I'm not an ACW freak, so I don't know what's come before]. I have *no* idea how well that's going to work, but I'm tremendously interested in finding out for myself.
Finally--where did you pick up Espana? I've been hunting around for it and have yet to find a copy for sale in any of my usual local or online haunts.
This looks much better than Combat Commander to me. As does the upcoming WWII version of Eisenbach Gap (Nations at War). As does Panzer Blitz II. Damn, 3 kind of similar-ish games that I will probably end up buying regardless.
As mentioned above, it particularly scores as it covers the Eastern Front, and neither ToI or CC have done that yet. Plus it can cope with 4 players...
I watched part of a game because a friend who normally only plays abstracts was oohing and aahing over a game.
It is perhaps at the rules complexity of C&C:A, but the game has that Squad Leader "one wrong move" feel.
The best part by far is the damage chit thing. When a unit comes under solid fire, you have no earthly idea what it is going to do. It feels like what Richard Borg was trying to do with command and control in the C&C series, but applied at the proper point.
Will buy. Might even coerce Barnes to play it if he'll ever brave the humidity again.
Oh yeah, I meant to preorder this game, but then there were rumors of a German version around, so I didn't do it. The game in German would be named Angriff!!; German for attack, instead of the Heroes title. Still, I guess you can find some pretty heroic Soviet soldiers, for example:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Matrosov
.
So, I'm currently waiting until the German version appears, which I hope will be cheaper than to import an English version, and I also want to see more reviews/ratings, which I hardly consult, but I already got a few tactical WWII games. While I wait, I play one of those .
What's all this talk about CC not having the Russian front? The Russians are in the basic set for goodness sake. Get a grip guys!
Yea, but the best RF scenario was the bonus one from the preorders (#101); the rest are kind of crap. Now, once the Stalingrad battlepack hits on the other hand... [Man, I can't wait for that....]
Bumping this up. Have any of you guys played this or got your copy yet? My birthday is coming up and I don't have any new wargames for it; it's been around 4 or 5 months since I bought a game so I figure I'm due.
I'd really like some more opinions on this. Buzz is very, very good, and not just from the reliable "shiny wargame!" folks on BGG and CSW, also from a lot of less hype driven players. I like the overall wargame crowd over here, anyone want to give me more opinions (and I already read Tom's article, which was a great help). I try not to buy games based on release buzz though, so maybe somebody can chime in.
My copy showed up a couple days ago and it looks really good. Here are my thoughts so far:
First thing I noticed is that this sucker is heavy. When you pick it up you feel like your getting good bang for your dollar.
The five 14.5" x 19" maps are mounted on really thick cardboard which fold in half. They scream "durable", are modular, one sided ,and most importantly, look good. The 56 action cards are on glossy stock and seem fairly durable. It would have been nice if they had a linen finish but since the game isn't card driven, like say Combat Commander, I'm not sure how much wear and tear they will be subjected to. I plan to just stick them in card sleeves anyway.
For play aids there are 2 Soviet and 2 German track sheets along with one double sided game summary sheet. The track sheets help you keep tabs on your Victory Points, Action Points, and Command Action points during the game. The summary sheet is a nice quick reference that keeps you from having to dig through the rulebook every five minutes. All of it is laid out well and easy to read but they are printed on heavy paper. After the lengths they went through with the maps it seems like these got skimped on. Looks like a job for sheet protectors.
Component wise the real gem is the counters. Quite simply, they are beautiful. At one inch square and damn near as thick as the boards, these things are impressive. The art and combat values printed on them is top notch as well. GMT, MMP and other wargame publishers should take note. The component quality bar has been raised. Included in the game box are trays to hold the counters for you. That was a nice touch.
Next we come to the part of the game where I'm at currently. The rulebook and scenario (called Firefights) book. Both are really large in size like the ones from FFG. The Firefights book has 10 scenarios starting with really small (5 units /side) infantry only engagements to multi map affairs that use combined arms and large numbers of units (18 units /side). The rulebook is laid out in a tutorial manner similar to the original Squad Leader and Up Front. (ie you read a couple of pages of rules then a paragraph tells you that you're ready to play Firefight #1, etc.) This teaches the game in easy to understand chunks and slowly introduces new mechanics each time you move on to the next scenario. As I was reading the rules I was really impressed with how easy it was to absorb the game rules. Sometimes it feels like you have to fight through the rulebook of a wargame to actually get at the game. Not so with CoH. Concepts like how to move and fire a unit were explained quickly and without a lot of verbiage. After five and a half pages of rules you can play the first scenario. And it's worth noting those five and a half pages had a lot of play examples and designers' notes. When you take it all together there are only 10 pages of rules for CoH.
So far I've read the rulebook and I like what I've seen. I plan to play out the first two scenarios solitaire in preparation for some face to face games on Monday. It's also worth noting that the designer Uwe has been really good at supporting the game online. His website already has a bonus Firefight posted. Let's see if my initial high opinion continues after I have some games under my belt.
Thanks man, keep me updated, I'm still on the fence.
I also read online his plans for other games and they are definitely not all Eastern front WWII. Which is awesome for me. Makes me more likely to buy it.
Ok my friend Frank came over last Monday and we broke out my brand new copy of CoH. We played Firefight #1 twice and here are my thoughts after playing the game FtF:
Teaching the game is a snap. Granted Frank has a lot of wargame experience but it took me less than 15 minutes to explain the base CoH mechanics.
The Firefight book is laid out really well. Not only does it list the forces involved and the maps used, but it also has a turn track and the terrain effect chart printed on it. No more fumbling in the rulebook for how a forest affects combat. Every type of terrain that's on the scenario's map has its rules printed right there for ease of reference. Nice.
The alternate unit activation and expediture of Action Points works very well. The turns move quickly and with the ability to use reaction fire, both players are actively involved throughout.
Command Action Points and how to use them is a game in of itself. Every turn you will agonize over how to spend them. Do you blow 5 CAPs now to rally the mg34 team, or do you hold those CAPs to fend off the incoming Soviet assault? Good stuff.
Combat is easy and intuitive. Add up your FP and roll 2d6. If the result is equal to or higher than the defense of your target they draw a hit marker. Results can vary from pinning a unit in place to the rare eliminated in 1 shot. If a unit gathers 2 hit markers then it's toast. You can blow 5 APs/CAPs or a combination thereof to "rally" a unit and attempt to get rid of a hit marker. Don't let those hit markers pile up or you'll see your forces melt away into nothingness.
All together these rules work together to create a fast (each play took less than 1 hour) and fun paced game that rewards the use of sound battlefield tactics. In our games we were using MG nests to suppress enemy units in preparation for close combat assaults and/or flanking manouvres. The wise use of terrain and cover will definitely increase the longevity of your cardboard soldiers. Also the differences between the Soviets and the Whermacht are well represented. Because of their poor quality training and command, Soviet units have a high cost (in APs/CAPs) to fire. This makes them feel ponderous and slow. The Germans on the other hand, require fewer APs for the smae actions so they feel more "nimble" on the battlefield.
In the end I was pleased and give it a very early rating of a 7/10. I could see CoH scratching my WW2 tactical itch in the same way C&C:Ancients scratches my ancients itch. Realistic enough to give me a feel for the period. Fast enough that you can play it multiple games in one sitting. Fun enough that you want to play it again and again. I will definitely be trying out the other CoH scenarios to see if it lives up to this potential. I'll keep you all posted.
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before I pull the trigger, but it looks really damned cool.
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