Paths of Glory
World War I was played out at my house Saturday morning when Jose joined me for a game of PoG. I've owned the game for about 3 years and this was my first opportunity to play. Jose started out with the typical German offensives in Belgium and Northern France. I maintained a thin line of French troops while I bringing in fresh reinforcements. My Russians were eager for battle so I massed several armies and began plugging away at Austria-Hungary. Things were looking good...and then I brought Italy into the war. I was initially overjoyed by all the strategic redoployments of AH and German troops down to Trieste and the Alps as they met the Italian threat. The grin on my face turned to despair as AH rolled over the Italians. I was eventually able to bring some British armies down to back up Italy but it was too little, too late. The Central Powers achieved an auto victory in early 1916.
I really like this game. I think it captures the broad scope of the war very well. The decisions are agonizing as you never have enough resources to do everything you want or need to. With all the available strategies and lots of optional rules, I don't see this game becoming boring or repetitive. Our game took about 4 hours to play. Considering the amount of time spent setting up and learning rules, I think a game that lasts until 1918 could easily be played in 5-6 hrs by experienced players. I can't wait to play again. I will definitely be downloading the Vassal module for this.
posted by Mark @ 4:02 PM
6 comments
6 Comments:
This is high on my list to play, as I too have had the game languishing for three years. Thanks for the nice write-up.
I need to play this again. I've got 3 plays under my belt, although none of those games went more than 1-2 turns into the middle war, due to time constraints (and one game where a large chunk of the Russian army got its supply cut).
The rules aren't that bad, although there are the fiddly mid-east rules.
Good report, Mark. I have not tried this game nor have I played any of the other games that use this point-to-point system. I would like to try it some time.
The whole point-to-point + CDG mechanic is brilliant. Before I tried it I thought P2P was railroading and too limiting. Now I realize that it focuses the game on the interesting points, streamlines the rules and makes wargames playable in a single evening.
CDGs are the best! Hannibal, Here I Stand, Successors, Wilderness War are good ones I've enjoyed. I'm working to get my head around Napoleonic Wars now.
Wilderness war and Shifting Sands are high on my priority list
Post a Comment
<< Home