by Ellis Simpson MISSIONS: The setting is a campaign. In each campaign there are mission (cards). Each mission shows you a base location (card) for each side and a layout of other locations (cards). The base cards are specified. For example, in "Action Report 319", The Soviet base location is Dukovka Road Junction worth 17 victory points. The German base location is Zimitsov's Farm worth 36 victory points. The card shows there are two other Soviet controlled locations and two other German controlled locations. You draw these randomly and away you go. The mission card shows links - namely which locations you can move to from each location - and specifies which side goes first. Compact and easy. ACTION: At the start you choose a number of formation cards - determined on the mission card - and normally the opponent gets to discard one. Then you randomly sort out a separate reinforcements deck. better formations get fewer reinforcements. Then you shuffle all your cards - formations, attachments, action cards etc and draw a starting hand. Each side's maximum and minimum hand is specified by the formation. LOCATIONS: Each location has an attack position and a defend position. But the attacker can get a single formation to a flank or an infiltrate position. Each location varies by the amount of defence [protection] available and cover [which affects visibility]. So, "The Church", like most locations gives the attacker no cover and no defence. From the flank defence goes up to one. Infiltration makes it defence and cover up to one. You have to study the location cards. Incidentally, the Church gives the defender a whopping 5 defence and 2 cover... STACKING: The Campaigns give you one organisation apiece. In Drive on Stalingrad it's the 9th Panzer Division against the 18th Tank Corps. Each organisation has groups that can stack being higher level assets. But otherwise you can only stack one symbol in a location. For example, the Soviet 181st Tank Brigade has a crescent symbol. Only crescent symbols and the higher level assets can be in a location at the same time. PLAY You use orders as action points. Orders are determined by card from your deck. Some cards give you the chance of more orders. Each troop/headquarters and other card has text that allows you to do things. For example, march gets you to a friendly location and advance gets you to an enemy location. Combat gets you to fight and so on. The twists are that each card can only use its text once. But another card can use it. For example, an observer on one card can fire another artillery card even if it is used. No Magic style tapping here to show use. You put your own markers on to show this. The combat is attack strength - varies - against defence strength with a random modifier. You draw the results from the deck. IMPRESSIONS The game has hidden depths. The card powers allow you to do funny things like order the cards so, if it goes right, you can tell the random number for your next combat. It's not easy - and we rarely got that - but it can be done. WARNING We enjoyed it and got through a couple of missions easily inside a couple of hours. But, this would not have happened unless I had prepared beforehand. The rules in the box are poor. The online FAQ is essential reading and is still not clear. You get a game with core combat and movement mechanics that are glossed over. Shame. But having done that work - and I did a single sheet playsheet for speed of reference - you do get a fast playing manageable game. Drive on Stalingrad is one of four campaigns to which you can add a higher echelon deck. You can build a deck like those other games but there are quite historical restrictions. It's fun and I will want to try it again. Simulationists stay away. But if you like card games and have any interest in the period you will love it. The cards are good quality with tons of flavour like quotes and pictures. There is excellent value in the box with a ton of replay value. No two games will be close to the same. Perfect for that long train journey. Back to Perfidious Albion #104 Table of Contents Back to Perfidious Albion List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2004 by Charles and Teresa Vasey. 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