Overlord is the new second edition from Conflict Games of an old favorite which suffered from bad mistakes in the Order of Battle and some problems with the rules. The new Overlord, attractively boxed and mounted, represents a happily thorough effort to correct these discrepancies, while still retaining the welcome playability and simplicity which is a trademark of the Conflict Games line.

The Mapboard

Perhaps one of the most striking aspects of Overlord is the pleasant yet accurate map of the entire Normandy front area of Northern France, faithfully capturing the peculiar "bocage" and hedgerow area. The dominating heights have been added a realistically unique way of introducing a high degree of tactical flavor which influenced the strategic conduct of this particular campaign.

The Caen-Falaise plains open, gently rolling tank country have been rendered well, while the broken terrain between Caen and St. Lo that caused so much Allied heartbreak has been mastered perfectly. Finally, to the west of St. Lo we have the great marshy depression area, where Hill 84 represents typical high ground which gave the defenders such an advantage over the flat wastelands in the Carentan vicinity during June and July.

Hedgerows, originally means of marking property boundaries and of service in sheltering crops and cattle from fierce sea winds, are tall "fences" composed half of hedge and earth. In Normandy, they effectively divided the landscape into tiny fields, providing excellent defensive lines while turning the small plots they enclosed into killing grounds. This vital Normandy facet has been particularly well symbolized.

The mapboard unfortunately suffers from the gaping channel of the Seine River, which effectively seals Le Havre off from the remainder of on-board France. The rivers are not labeled (my pet peeve only), and hexes 2310, 2210, and 2111 should definitely be swamp and not clear terrain - a critical factor in any opening moves toward Cherbourg.

Overall, however, the playing board is a visual masterpiece properly matching geographical realism with wargaming playability. The colors and map symbols are harmonious and of tremendous benefit in easing game play.

Order of Battle - The Counters

The color selection demonstrates once again sensitive consideration toward matching nationality and branch of service (Germans) with the most appropriate tone, and adds another dimension to the visual appeal of this game. However, much more impressive is the flawless Order of Battle researched for both sides. Not only is every division and separate brigade present but all divisional components have been done without error! Even the famous U.S. 3rd Infantry Regiment the "Old Guard" which now guards the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier - and the U.S. 29th Negro "Line of Communications" Infantry Regiment, both independent, are included. This is indeed a significant achievement.

Of the independent U.S. Armoured Groups (3d, 6th, 7th, 11th) only the 6th "Special" is represented since the Group tank battalions were parcelled out among the divisions, the same being true of the 1st - 7th Tank Destroyer Groups. The Armoured Cavalry Groups, which did participate as separate combat entities, are all accounted for. Though an old issue of Panzerfaust magazine (No. 69, P. 8) - in offering an OB update to correct 1st edition Overlord - listed the U.S. 401st Glider Regiment as a participant, Conflict Games wisely omitted this unit, as only its 2nd battalion actually served. The British OB, often the worst hit in U.S.designed wargames, is without fault.

In order to allow the German player a better shot at stalling the early "Cotentin Peninsula collapse" I recommend the optional addition of the Seventh Army Sturm Battalion (use a 3-2-8 "Recce") under 91st divisional control at hex 1808 at the start. This will greatly enhance play balance by giving the German player a little more mobile flexibility in that area. Also, another actual German formation, the 8th Nebetwerfer Brigade (4-0-4, as the 7th) should probably come in Turn 1 on Road 1 or 2.

In the area of symbology it would have been a nice touch as well as very functional to have given the special "crossed arrows" sign to the Allied units qualified under the Commando Rule (Rule 16).

For those who desire historicality, and feel the game just doesn't "break open" the way the campaign did after a lot of hard slugging, try the following optional reinforcement rule. After Cherbourg is in Allied control, allow the Allied player one regiment /brigade of his choice from the eliminated pile per turn, except commando - rangers or parachutist. No unit may ever be used after being eliminated a second time. This rule has realistic background as during the Normandy campaign there were liberal quantities of spare tanks, vehicles, and human replacements available to forces hit hard in battle; a source of manpower and material the Germans of course never come close to matching.

The Rules

Overlord's rules are clear and allow for a game without a lot of maddening technicality, but close attention must be paid to the armor (Rule 17) and Naval Gunfire (Rule 12)/Tactical Air Strikes (Rule 13) sections - as these points must be firmly grasped to avoid critical misunderstandings. Also of special consequence is the breakthrough potential, which can be devastating in cracking a German line stripped of reserves if done on a road network. In general the Overlord rules work well and are tailored to reproduce the essentials of Normandy combat.

However, there is a problem with Rule 13 (Tactical Air Strikes) since its effect is to simply negate Allied interdiction of roads during the critical German first move of the game. This is patently absurd given the deliberate Allied interdiction of the French road system on June 6, and can be corrected by simply allowing the Allies to initially place 6 planes for interdiction purposes anywhere on the board. This does go a long way toward keeping the British Army ashore. Careful placement of these aircraft could block the vital 12th SS "Hitler Jugend" gang for a while.

Rule 14 has also come under attack, and my objection is that the carpet bombing attacks are too weak. They do not force the German player to scatter his armoured divisions, since the threat posed by the bombing is too diluted to offset risking an Allied breakout into open country due to lack of defensive staying (i.e. stacking) power. Since the effectiveness of carpet bombing is one of the hottest on-going military arguments, I suggest players can agree to abide by or change the rule to suit their own preferences.

Overlord - The Game

In Overlord, the players have a choice of six games, all of varying lengths and victory conditions, and all of which depict the sluggishness of the Normandy in-fighting. Thus, since the campaign game - though very long does allow some long-range objectives which influence opening strategy and fast action at the end - the rest of this article will address the campaign game lasting 29 turns form June 6 through August 30, 1944.

Both sides start the game established on French soil. As Steve Kane pointed out in Panzerfaust No. 69, why not re-create the actual invasion? Unfortunately, like the 1st edition, 2nd edition Overlord also neglects what might be an interesting start, especially since all the participating units are included in the game which does, after all, start on June 6, the invasion date. If one desired an invasion, Kane's article on "Historical Overlord", Panzerfaust No. 69 (Sep-Oct 75) should be consulted for general guidelines, though of course some slight modification will be needed to reflect the fact that this is a 2nd edition version. At this point, the British beach mass should be properly divided into the respective invasion beach-sites; Gold (hexes 1917, 1918), Juno (1919, 1920), and Sword (1921, 1821, 1822).

Since the game commences with the Germans moving first, the Allied player will find himself fighting to retain the British beaches, where the Germans will have excellent chances of squashing the 6th Airborne and 1st S.S. Commandoes to the east of Caen. At the least they should be able to pin Bitish units in unfavorable positions close to the water where any retreat could end disastarously in not only a blow to British honor but in drowning as well. This shallow British beachhead can be aggressively reduced, despite the British naval gunfire.

In order to concentrate on this target, the German player will most likely make a holding action due to lack of assets at Omaha, unless he goes for broke against both beaches. In the west, the Germans must do everything to keep the American beaches (Omaha and Utah) from linking up, a difficult task due to the slippery U.S. composite Ranger regiment (actually the combined 2nd and 5th Ranger battalions), but made easier by terrain so tailored for defense that Eisenhower must have wondered whose side God was on. Carentan and its adjacent hex to the east are the vital lynchpins in this area. Because of the importance of Cherbourg (in light of the fact that the Allies are limited to 4 attacks per turn until its liberation, as well as any added value if the optional reinforcement rule is used), the Germans must mount a stubborn delaying action against the Utah force. The Americans can complicate the German headache by either going directly for the city, or concentrate on cutting off the neck of the Cotentin Peninsula, thus leaving stranded defenders out of supply and halved in effectiveness. The latter tactic is particularly hard because of the miserable territory over which such an offensive must be conducted.

In these first turns the Allies, limited to four attacks, must carefully distribute this offensive capacity to allow maximum gains (or stave off impending doom). Needless to add, an ambitious drive to cut off the Cotentin Peninsula or a quick seizure of Cherbourg will deprive other sectors of firepower. During this phase Allied air interdiction of roads is probably the best use of air points. The fewer units the Germans can muster until the Allies gain full offensive freedom, the more time can be bought for the hard-pressed British who face the most promising Nazi reinforcements. The Germans would be wise to remember that arriving reinforcements can be divided among roads so as not to let Allied air interdiction concentrate on all a division's assets on one particular route.

Though the rules are not specific, unlimited attacking potential should not be extended to all Allied forces, even if Cherbourg falls, unless all Allied beachheads out of which such offensive capacity is used are at least linked up.

The first stage of the game will then probably witness concentrated German efforts to annihilate the British beaches (perhaps even Omaha) and to take advantage of any American overextensions to chop them up, Caen will be firmly in German hands, and the Germans will fight a vigorous delayIng contest to prevent the early loss of Cherbourg. Actually, a blocking action against Omaha might be in the best German interests, since any attack launched out of Omaha only ends up in the heart of bocage and poses little threat to the overall German defense. Again, an attack on Omaha will strip assets from crushing the British beaches. The Allied capacity to counterattack to rectify a threatened situation (unit or land) is severely restricted.

The second stage begins with the Allied capture of Cherbourg. At this point the Cotentin defense becomes quite pointless to the Germans and the German player will now set up the inevitable east-west "solid defense" line anchored in all sorts of messy bocage, behind convenient rivers, and on top of troublesome heights. Due to the unique retreat rules which literally kill units if they cannot move as far as the retreat results direct, all armor will have roads behind them if possible. To take advantage of any breakthroughs after combat, the Allied player will use his armor along lanes of possible rapid advance. By this point the German will probably find his assets stretched but still adequate.

The Allies can take advantage of the inflexibility of the German defense, despite its toughness to crack outright. Pressure applied at the two opposite wings, Caen and the road toward Granville along the western French coast, will threaten flanking of the middle and force a resulting weakening of better defensive positions there. If possible, confusing and stabbing attacks might be worth their cost if they tie down important German formations and force premature commitment of his reserves, which will become scarcer as the days wear on. Thus this second stage sees a slow grinding match bitterly contested along important Axis defense lines and in the open country of the British zone, which the Germans will be forced to defend in order to prevent breakthrough and resulting disaster on that flank. Often the Allies will have no choice but to resort to predictably methodical drives made unproductive because such tactics allow the Germans anticipation and ability to employ certain countermeasures. Sometime during this stage, the players will find they're on the, new July/August Combat Results Table (CRT) which favors the Allies in that it's bloodier and the Allies can afford to sustain more losses in an outright battle of attrition.

Once a breakthrough of significant proportions is made, or the German line has been whittled down to the point where continued defense of everything is impossible, the game will move into the third, open stage. Now the Allies will have the run of the board, sending their columns racing along unguarded or lightly defended roadways. The German center will be forced to flee favorable ground that, up to this time, they have exacted a good price for. If the Germans choose to hole up in the hedgerows they will be isolated and halved; if they are chased out they will be cut up by converging Allied armor. The very real problem in this final stage, which will still last some time, is that the Allies might simply not have enough left to annihilate every petty German unit on the board by the conclusion of the game in order to meet the victory conditions. This is the exact reason why I strongly recommend allowing the Allied optional replacement of battle losses (see Order of Battle - The Counters for details).

Conclusion

Overlord is a fine example of an enjoyable and accurate wargame. While it is due criticism for set-up time and game- length, I believe this game achieves in a limited space and with simple rules the spirit of the Normandy campaign. Representing as it does impeccable research and design skill, I would consider this as one of the better wargames on the Battle of France to be published.