WW2
Dust Warfare — Review and Musings
Well the boys over at the D6 Generation do it again with an outstanding review of Dust Warfare (skip to 2:22 to get right to the review). Along with Romeo Filip, from BattleFoam, they go over the rules, models and gameplay of Fantasy Flight Games’ new sci-fi 28mm tabletop wargame Dust Warfare. They then follow that up with an interesting interview with Mack Martin, co-designer of Dust Warfare.
Your powers are weak, old man.
Russ’ Jedi Mind Tricks won’t work on us this time! Well ok…maybe we did buy the rulebook and some minis but…err…just for review! Overall we probably agree with Craig the most. The rules do look very good but the printed book is a tad expensive. Thankfully FFG released a PDF version of the rules at half the price. As iPad fans we thought this was a great move. We also found some of the original comics via ComiXology on the iPad or even better directly with the Dust Comic app (iPad and Android). We can’t say the stories are all that great but the art and overall world are quite amazing. The general background fluff in the rules is also very well done.
As the guys discuss, the vehicle models are outstanding but the infantry troops have some issues. The un-armored troops pivot at the waist. This allows for some varied posing options but also causes them to look a bit odd. Many players will want to cut them apart and glue them. Also, while they are not as bendy at the ankles as Romeo claims, a few of the running figures are perhaps just a tad so but not really enough to matter. The Zombies may be what Romeo is referring to as they are quite bendy but unlike plastic or resin not really fragile. Of course the majority of the weapon barrels we have seen are bent and this is a problem. The armored troops are very beefy but also have the bent weapons and even the beefier weapons on the regular troops are often bent. But the detail on the figures is impressive and this is perhaps the problem. Because the figs are so nicely detailed most folks will want to paint them but then you have to deal with the bent weapons. Leaving them just primed is a shame but certainly better than bare metal/plastic we suppose. Of course as Russ demonstrated in one of his Twitter posts just some quick touch-ups can make the figures look pretty darn good.
Frankly we’ve given up on 25/28mm+ ‘army scale’ games. This scale is simply too big for larger scale actions in our opinion. For skirmish games it works out great but as soon as you get above about a platoon 28mm just gets odd especially when vehicles are included. A standard gaming table is just too small to adequately accommodate the movement and weapon range differences between infantry and vehicles except in the most constricted terrain. This is quite noticeable in Dust Warfare where you have these great walker vehicles but they are only moving 6″-12″ and firing, at most, 36″ and more often under 24″. This just seems odd especially when next to troops moving at least as fast and firing out to 16″ or so. This game should have been done in 15mm. But the walkers are so nice, as are many of the troops, that we are tempted to at least do some smaller battles with them — perhaps vehicle heavy forces with just a few squads of infantry. But of course for those who like company-plus sized battles in 28mm Dust Warfare gives you quite a tactically interesting system combined with mostly nice miniatures.
Our first thought when we saw the miniatures was that we could use them for something else. The most obvious choice would be to use them for Incursion. They scale pretty well. The armored troops fit in just fine. The unarmored troops are perhaps a tad tall compared to Incursion figs. Of course the Dust Tactics minis are such a good deal it is easy to replace all of the Incursion figs with them. The armored troopers especially could easily fit into almost any sci-fi setting such as Space Hulk and the like.
Another idea is to use the rules with 15mm troops. Flames of War infantry would work perfectly. In Dust Warfare each ‘squad’ is essentially a section/team which is exactly what a FoW troop stand represents. Being WW2 there is plenty of variety to choose from that would fit right in. 15mm sci-fi troops could be used for the armored troops such as those from Blue Moon Manufacturing. The Orion troops are great proxies for the Allied Heavy Ranger units. One would just need to make some minor adjustments for using stands versus individually based troops but this is trivial. Of course there is also nothing stopping one from basing 15mm figures individually and playing the rules straight up. The big advantage to 15mm, besides cost savings, is now you can easily have larger scale battles.
Using 15mm vehicles makes even more sense. Perhaps add 6″-12″ to larger weapon’s ranges to better represent appropriate range distinctions between man-packed and vehicle mounted weapons. Clockwork Goblin is starting to make some 15mm vehicles that are almost perfect for games of Dust Warfare. Their Konflikt 1947 line includes WW2-era power armor, walkers, and Tesla powered tanks. You can of course easily proxy regular WW2 minis such as the M5 Stuart tank for the M2 Series Walker but trading tracks for legs is no fun. Other 15mm options to consider are: The Rebel Minis Vipers and HAMR suits make great choices. The ARC Fleet Walkers from Critical Mass Games along with the various Protolene Battlesuits give you more options. The various walkers from Ground Zero Games are also useful. The OrcTank HABAT is a nice proxy for the Allied M6 Series Heavy Walker. The Project Slipstream infantry and vehicles are also well suited. With just a bit of thought it would not be that hard to come up with suitable 15mm proxies for all of the walkers in Dust Warfare.
So overall it looks like Fantasy Flight Games has a hit on their hands with Dust Warfare. We look forward to seeing how the rules and the universe expand.
Don’t forget to get the latest FAQ as well as other play aids from FFG. Also don’t miss Russ’ painting video, the official FFG Dust Warfare video and check YouTube for tons of Dust Warfare/Tactics videos. The blokes over at Beasts of War have a video Just what is Dust Warfare? and they have an interview with co-designer Mack Martin as well. Bell of Lost Souls also gets in the act with some good info and video with The Tectonic Shift – Dust Warfare Arrives. BattleTactics.TV has some nice looks at the various miniatures. Also for the truly deep pocketed there is always the Dust Tactics Premium version. Finally be sure not to miss Paolo Parente’s Dust site.
Below we have a selection of comparison photos showing the Dust Tactics figures compared with AT-43, Incursion, and Games Workshop miniatures. Briefly, they fit well with AT-43 and Incursion but not so well with GW because the Dust minis are more realistically proportioned. Even the light walkers for Dust are well over an inch taller than 40K Dreadnoughts.
Also see Dust Warfare — Revisited and Dust Warfare Resources.
[Updated: 29MAR13]
Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear — Computer Game
Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear computer game is now available. Conflict of Heroes is one of our favorite games and on our Top Picks list. The game appears to be a great adaptation of the board game.
There is a new large (1.1GB) v1.14 update available.
Designed and developed in cooperation with Uwe Eickert, the original designer of Conflict of Heroes, and Western Civilization Software, the award-winning computer wargame studio, no effort has been spared to bring the outstanding Conflict of Heroes gameplay to the computer. Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear! includes an AI opponent as well as full multiplayer support with an integrated forum and game lobby. To remain true to the core gameplay of the board game, the PC version is designed to be fun, fast and easy to play, though hard to master. The game design is also historically accurate and teaches and rewards platoon and company-level combined arms tactics without overwhelming the player with rules.
Much effort went into distinguishing the units in the game by highlighting their historical strengths and weaknesses. For example, each tank defense rating takes into account relative armor thickness, armor slope deflection percentage, speed, size, targeting mechanics, and crew training. All these factors are represented in an easy to learn target number system.
Also included are all ten original Awakening the Bear! scenarios as well as eleven new Frontier scenarios, five new Commanding Heights scenarios and a very flexible “Partisan Road” Point Buy scenario. For those with a creative urge, Conflict of Heroes also comes with a scenario editor which allows players to create and share completely new scenarios using the Awakening the Bear! units.
The included scenarios, many of which you can play in about an hour, are designed to depict the pivotal points in a given battle. You can learn enough of the game to play the first scenario in ten minutes and a full set of in-game tutorials is included, as well as a full-color printed manual.
[Updated: 4JAN13]
Battle of the Bulge — iPad Edition
The folks over at Shenandoah Studio have decided to use Kickstarter to launch their first iPad game. Battle of the Bulge: The Simulation Game for the iPad is a light operational-level wargame about the Battle of the Bulge designed by John Butterfield. It appears that there will also be a printed version of the game as well and supporters at the $150+ level get both the iPad version and the printed boardgame.
We’ve been watching Shenandoah Studio for awhile now and are happy they chose to use Kickstarter. Considering the success of Ogre Designer’s Edition on Kickstarter it should be easy for Battle of the Bulge to reach its $20,000 goal. In fact it is already past $5,000 on its first day. If design is any indication of the quality of the game Battle of the Bulge should be a real winner. With luck we will see more iPad titles from Shenandoah Studio in the future.
Update: As an added incentive Shenandoah Studio announced the next game in the Crisis in Command Series, El Alamein. All those pledging $20 or more will get both games. There does not seem to be a boardgame version of El Alamein.
As of this writing they are just a few dollars shy of their goal so the project is certainly a go.
Update: The game reached almost twice its goal and is now live in the App Store. It is a great game.
[Updated: 15DEC12]
Combat Mission: Touch — Now Available!
Well iPad wargaming is finally here! First we get Battle Academy and now Battlefront.com just announced and released Combat Mission: Touch for the iPad. It is a lighter version of the computer game but well done overall.
Combat Mission: Touch is the result of a collaboration between Battlefront.com, the critically acclaimed creators of the genre defining Combat Mission series of wargames for now over 10 years, and Dromedary LLC. Using Combat Mission’s unique WeGo turn-based play mode of simultaneous planning and execution phases, and a vast 3D environment, it combines the fun of fast paced action with the strategy of turns. Make no mistake, fun as it is, “Combat Mission: Touch” is a true wargame, with a number of mind-blowing features that were available, until now, only on the desktop. More…
A quick update: I’ve gotten in a few goes at two scenarios with it now and have gotten waxed by the AI. See our Twitter posts for some screen shots. The game is not the full PC/Mac version of Combat Mission (unlike Battle Academy) but it is similar. Movement seems sped up a bit and the graphics are not as good but still quite good for a tablet. Seven scenarios are included and if the game does well enough I suspect we’ll see lots of add-on packs for those. If you like CM you will like this game. If you are new to wargaming or tactical combat games it is a very good place to start. The tutorial is well done and quite funny. Get out your War Finger!
Another quick update: The quality of the game certainly centers on the scenarios. The Crossroads scenario we enjoy a lot but the speed of the German advance makes it hinge on the American initial setup. The Uncle Red Beach scenario disappointed us quite a bit and it is the first scenario in the game if one plays in order. The terrain is practically featureless. The tactical nuance comes from the folds in the ground. This is a strength of the PC/Mac game but on the iPad the slightly awkward map manipulation (and we are on the iPad3) and weaker graphics overall makes taking advantage of terrain more a nuisance than an enjoyable activity. Various bugs also became apparent with units getting hung up and there is an oddity at certain zoom levels where units suddenly bend over. We need more play but unit auto-reactions may be buggy as well but this may also simply be a line of site issue which, again, is more difficult on the iPad. The game is absolutely worth the $5 but it is also not a replacement for the desktop version of the game and probably needs some bug fixes.
Also see The Apple iPad3 and Gaming.
[Updated: 13APR12]
Flames of War — Sold Out!!
Well it looks like we are not the only ones excited about the new Version 3 of Flames of War and all of the new goodies. Battlefront just announced:
Breaking News
As of twenty minutes ago the first printing of third edition rulebooks is completely sold out. Although we thought we would be okay for the first three months we have eaten through our stock much faster than anticipated in the last four weeks. This means our second printing, which we ordered ten days ago, is already being worked on but will not get out to the world until May.
While you 
are waiting you can check out the excellent video series Battlefront is putting together on how to play Flames of War third edition. There is also the new FoW introductory set, Achtung!, due out soon that features Battlefront’s first all-plastic tanks. It also includes the full mini rulebook.
[Note: As of 26APR12 the rules are back in stock.]
[Updated: 27APR12]
Flames of War Update — March 2012
Battlefront continues to release goodies after goodies. The biggest news of course is the new FoW Third Edition rules. Battlefront released a small free paperback copy of the rules for veteran players and the new large Third Edition hardback is also now available. Physically the rules look amazing and are well organized. We managed to get in a game with the new rules and we like them a lot. Just enough changes and streamlining to improve play but not enough changes to make the change a big deal for veteran players. Tip: Keep the new Quick Reference sheet handy it really helps. For newcomers to FoW this is a great time to enter the hobby.
Of equal significance for us is the announcement of Blood, Guts & Glory the latest American forces book. After years of waiting we finally get our Easy Eights! The book focuses on the tank battles in the Lorraine Valley, September 1944 to January 1945. We finally get Patton as a warrior option as well as all of the Sherman variants. With the Bulge book coming soon it is a great time to be a late war U.S. player.
The Germans get some new lists as well representing the more ragged troops of the withdrawal phase of the war. Also see the nice Beasts of War look at FoW:BG&G.
If all of that wasn’t enough Battlefront is releasing some great new terrain as well — although the long mentioned European buildings are still MIA with not a peep about their fate. There are new obstacles, wire, trenches, fields and Russian front buildings and a whole lot more. With luck we may see new European buildings with the release of the Bulge book.
All in all it is a great time to be a Flames of War fan. It should be an interesting year.
Combat Mission: Battle for Normandy – Commonwealth Forces — Now Available
Battlefront.com released the newest expansion for their WW2 tactical computer wargame Combat Mission: Battle for Normandy. Commonwealth Forces brings…err…well…Commonwealth forces to the game.
Commonwealth Forces”, the first module to the Wargame of the Year 2011 (Wargamer.com Community Award) “Combat Mission> Battle for Normandy” tactical WW2 ground warfare simulation, and includes all new, meticulously researched and historically accurate UK, Canadian and Polish Free Forces units and formations, dozens of new scenarios and QuickBattle maps and two in-depth campaigns. The full range of Commonwealth weaponry is brought to life with the same amazing level of detail and simulation fidelity found in the previous Combat Mission titles.
This module also brings you new German formations, such as the “Waffen SS” and the Luftwaffe Field Divisions. Several variants of the iconic Churchill tank, the Cromwell, Stuart and Firefly are included along with many other new units. The Germans see the mighty King Tiger and the Jagdpanther in their arsenal among several other additions.
Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear — Computer Game!
We were very surprised, and very happy, to learn Matrix Games and Academy Games teamed up to produce a computer version of Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear. Even better it should be available soon.
COH has long been our favorite WW2 tactical wargame. The computer version looks great and if it faithfully mimics the boardgame should be a must get.
Designed and developed in cooperation with Uwe Eickert, the original designer of Conflict of Heroes, and Western Civlization Software, the award-winning computer wargame studio, no effort has been spared to bring the outstanding Conflict of Heroes gameplay to the computer. Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear! includes an AI opponent as well as full multiplayer support with an integrated forum and game lobby. To remain true to the core gameplay of the board game, the PC version is designed to be fun, fast and easy to play, though hard to master. The game design is also historically accurate and teaches and rewards platoon and company-level combined arms tactics without overwhelming the player with rules.
The year is 1941. Germany has defeated Poland, Denmark, Norway, and France with ease. In the morning hours of June 22 over 3 million German soldiers attacked Soviet forces along a 1600 kilometer front heralding the beginning of Operation Barbarossa. Complete surprise was achieved and the Germans struck deep into Soviet territory. The Germans thought that the Soviets would fold like a house of cards. Their officer cadre had been massacred by Stalin, training was poor, and morale low. The Blitzkrieg catches the Soviets by surprise and they lose over 1.75 million men in the first two months alone.
The Germans are unstoppable, their Panzers pushing to the very gates of Moscow. But then winter hit and the cold drained the German’s resources, strength, and morale. The Soviets began striking back in the dead of winter and the momentum began to shift in their favor through the following spring. The bear had awoken!
Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear! takes you to the Eastern Front of World War II during Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union. This release includes a historical roster of infantry, artillery, mechanized and support units for the Axis and Soviet forces for the time frame of Operation Barbarossa.
Command Ops: Highway to the Reich
Matrix Games recently released Command Ops: Highway to the Reich. CO:HttR is an expansion for their excellent Command Ops: Battles from the Bulge computer wargame. CO:HttR is also the spiritual successor to Airborne Assault: Highway to the Reich one of our favorite computer wargames. The new expansion includes 13 scenarios.
The scenarios cover every major engagement along Hell’s Highway, from the surprise capture of Joe’s Bridge by the Irish Guards a week before the offensive to the final battles on “The Island” south of Arnhem. The dramatic parachute and glider landings of the US 82nd and 101st Airborne, The British 1st Airborne and the Polish Brigade are all represented on some of the largest maps ever created for the series and the largest “campaign” scenario in this system to date. More than just a conversion of the old scenarios to play on the new system, the Expansion Pack represents a major update of Panther Games ground breaking classic game Highway to the Reich, incorporating numerous corrections to Maps, Orders of Battle, Unit Compositions, Reinforcement Schedules, and overall game play.
If you like solid operational wargames or just can’t resist Market-Garden check it out.
Unity of Command — Review
Matrix Games recently released a new operational-level computer wargame by 2×2 Games. Unity of Command covers the battle for Stalingrad during World War Two. Each hex in the game is 20km and each turn is four days.
The interface uses a very simple and clean click methodology that highlights available actions. Visually the game looks great but can turn off some folks at first blush. The map and interface are very clean and stark but then the units themselves are 3D vehicles and, uniquely, figure busts for infantry. This of course immediately raises concerns by veteran wargamers that this is not a serious game. But you quickly get used to the unit designs and they do aid in information delivery with different unit types represented by different 3D models. But for those still not happy, supposedly an alternate unit set is in the works as a mod.
The game manages to stride that tough line of being a simple game to learn but still provides enough depth and challenge to engage veteran players. The center piece of the game design is certainly the supply system. Unlike almost all other wargames Unity of Command uses proportional supply where you actually see your supply wither the further it gets from supply points. Again the interface makes this very clear. It is a key point in the game and managing your supply properly is crucial to victory.
The AI is challenging and over 17 scenarios are included so replay value is very high. You can also play in hot-seat mode and over the Internet.
Unity of Command comes with a very well done manual. It is a 40-page full color PDF with plenty of illustrations. It explains the game mechanics quite well except, oddly, it doesn’t provide as much information on the supply mechanic as we would have liked. A few examples of how one gets out of supply and perhaps how one could alleviate certain conditions would have been nice. But overall you have more than enough to get you going and make you feel you understand what is going on underneath with the game.
The Three Moves Ahead podcast Episode 148 has a great 48 minute discussion/review of all facets of Unity of Command. If you have any interest in the game this is a must listen. The Wargamer also has a short but useful review.
[Updated: 28DEC11]
The View from the Turret 
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