One of the key tasks in the development of First to Fight was to verify that the victory conditions set forth in the game provided the players with a challenge, and yet also reflected with reasonable accuracy the historical probabilities of the campaign. Setting such victory conditions is extremely difficult for any wargame, but perhaps even more so for an Europa game. Because playing time tends to be long, frequent replays are difficult to fit into the production schedule. In the case of a real monster game such as Fire in the EastlScorched Earth, cunning strategies can take years to concoct and refine. (This is one reason why Second Front is taking so long to finish!)

This short report lists the events of a late playtest game in which the German player kept to his timetable for conquest and yet in the final analysis didn't fare any too well. Potential German field marshals should take note of the pitfalls encountered on this trip to Warsaw, and seek to avoid them.

The German player, impressed with the fact that speed was of the utmost importance, noted approvingly that the revised CRT (first presented in Balkan Front) guaranteed the attacker kills at such odds as 4:1 even and 2:1 (+3), if the defending units were surrounded. He was prepared to take a few losses if this would speed the Polish collapse.

The Polish player planned to experiment with the latest rendition of "The Runaway Defense", and was intent on getting as many of his divisions as possible safely behind the Narew-Vistula- San line. Under his plan the first Polish line of defense (consisting of the cheapest possible combination of non-overrunable units with ZOCs) was placed at the border to block the Germans invaders at the frontier, albeit temporarily. The second line was as far back as possible, in hopes German units would not be able to engage it with ZOCs during the exploitation phase. The "crimson and white" would then be free to use full movement to get as far away from the fighting as possible. The plan envisioned that this would allow them enough breathing space to reform in good terrain.

The German forces slammed hard into the Polish front line, seizing Katowice, Czestochowa, Kalisz, Poznan, Gdynia, and Mlawa on game turn 1. They also broke through east of Krakow and encircled the Polish forces near that city, including some mechanized units. During this action the Polish forces in the south were demolished, but in the process the Germans had three infantry divisions cadred, along with an engineer and artillery regiment eliminated. For their part the Poles celebrated an AS result at 3:1 (-1) at Bydgoszcz. The Poles then ran for their lives, taking full advantage of the breakwater this delaying action provided.,

Turn 2 saw the Germans reduce Krakow, Lodz, and Grudziadz. They also forged a bridgehead across the Dunijec River in the south, as most of their armored divisions lunged eastward towards Lublin. The Poles again fled, although buoyed by the reduction of two more German divisions to cadre and yet another AS result at Bydgoszcz.

On turn 3 the German player, in a lather to close to Warsaw, made a rather foolish attack against Pruszkow using a light armored division with its mere +2 modifier as the spearhead. The bloody 3:1 attack came up an HX, but the now overextended German forces moved into the two clear hexes of 37:2321 and 2421 anyway. The stage was set for Polish glory. Throwing in every reserve available the Polish player managed to oust the Germans from both hexes with a DR and HX result.

Things didn't go well for the Poles thereafter. The government had to evacuate on turn 4, and by turn 7 the game was over.

Content with his rapid conquest, the German player was in for one last rude surprise. The final tally was Germany 118 vs. Poland 107.5, a bare marginal victory for Hitler's minions.

The lesson of this playing was "Don't be in such a hurry!". As the Pole you will only hasten your demise by running too fast. And as the German it may be that your losses become the most critical factor. There is probably plenty of time to party in Warsaw, but you can not make up for those awful exchanges once they are rolled. Be advised!