Panzerknacker

Game Rules Review

Review by Chris Scruton
US Co-Ordinator for the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers

One of the best things about Panzerknacker from my perspective is that it concentrates on an appropriate level of detail - no need for excessive charts to determine hit location, etc. The dual rationale provided (that panzerknackers would always strive to strike at the the most effective point of attack and that a certain randomness prevails in the real world and, therefore, no chart [no matter how detailed] can account for all the weird things that actually happen in the real world) is right on the money; in my opinion, the hit effects chart is more realistic than nominally more detailed systems provided in other rules. Furthermore, I couldn't agree more with the point made in the designer's notes about the necessity of keeping the system 'lean' so that the main point (i.e. a fast-moving, fluid situation) can be achieved with maximum fun and believable results. In terms of design philosophy, I love the fact that the game focuses on historical tactics - the engagement sequence forces tankers to follow standard practice (i.e., using their machineguns before they waste an HE round on a lone infantryman) and the game appears to reward teamwork for the 'panzerknackers' employing historical techniques (i.e. using smoke to blind the enemy before a close assault with AT weapons). I also enjoy all the randomness / anarchy (accident tables, etc.). I'm glad to see weather rules; I'm amazed at the number of 100-page rulesets that waste barrels of ink counting rivets and forget important details like weather, random local variations in terrain, etc. Excellent ! Thanks for the opportunity to review Panzerknacker - I'm planning to use it as the foundation for a SOTCW North America Breslau or Konigsberg convention game. PanzerKnacker - £ 6.95 inc.postage to subscribers in the UK from Mark Hannam and $12 from Craig Martelle in the U.S. (see Page 3 for contact info) Back to The Gauntlet No. 14 Table of Contents Back to The Gauntlet List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 1998 by Craig Martelle Publications This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com