"Looking for a good Eastern Front board game...." Topic

I am looking for an East Front board game as a diversion from painting over the Holiday break. I am hoping the good people of the TMP can recommend some good ones.

Here are the rules…
no "monster" games, the map(s) and charts etc can be no bigger than 60x30in (two standard card tables pushed together), it can be either the whole East front campaign (preferred) or an offensive or single battle, I can leave it up so it does not need to be concluded in an evening or even a day, it does not have to be a solitare game, but I will be playing it alone (at least over the break).

So what do YOU recommend?

Thanks to all who respond!

PanzerGruppe Guderian
Black Sea Black Death
A Victory Denied

This game is being well received by the players:
link

For solitaire try "Eastern Front Solitaire" from Omega Games link

Single Battles – "Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear" from Academy Games link

I'd recommend some but most are sadly out of print and unavailable.

Jovian1,

Recommend anyway! You never know, I or someone else who reads this post may be able to acquire the games you recommend.

have a look at Phillip Sabin's
Eastern Front 2
thats free to download.
simple, so you can play several times.
you may evn be able to find someone to PBEM it with.

link

If you like rolling handfuls of dice I would suggest Avalanche Press' Defiant Russia. Small map, about 150 pieces, and it covers Operation Barbarossa in 7 turns in about 3 hours. Simple and lots of fun.

I am partial to this one: link

There is a newer edition out, but has a larger map. link

I also recommend Eastern Front Solitaire from Omega Games. Very playable and re-playable. I travel a lot for my job, and this is a regular in my suit case.

A Victory Lost.

It has to be "Trial of Strength" by Panther Games. An excellent system and a very playable game covering the war at strategic level.

For me the best Eastern front game is columbia games East Front.

There are many others out there and I suspect a search of geeklists at boardgamegeek.com will result in a definitive list.

East Front is playable and for me give a good feel of the overall scope of the campaign.

I'd recommend Stalingrad Pocket II. It's readily available and it won't cost you an arm and a leg. Read about it here:

link

Have fun and good luck!

Stalingrad Pocket II, A victory Denied and the new Caucasus Campaign from GMT.

I'll second the new Caucasus Campaign from GMT. Can be easily set up and played, rules are not complicated and the counters are large, most are double sided and it seems to be rather balanced after having played a couple of games.

conflict of heroes: storm of steel nothing but good things about this game and can be played from 1 to 3 hours

For a good web source for games, I recommend "Wargame Depot". Great customer service.

Having played all the great "corp/army scale" Eastern Front campaign games (Russian Campaign, Sturm Nach Osten, Russian Front, Red Star Rising, East Front), I'd rate the new "Barbarossa" from World at War Magazine as the best- if you can find it. One map, 280 counters, no ZOC's:

link

Best campaign game that's readily avaiable? "No Retreat" by Victory Point Games, as above mentioned above. 1/2 map. 68 counters. $28. USD

For single campaign, I'd recommend two "simple" titles by Decision Games: "Drive on Stalingrad"

link

and "Drive on Moscow."

link

Drive on Stalingrad is a remake of the old SPI title, but one that actually works. Both games are two-mappers that use an updated version of Panzergruppe Guderian- division scale, no logistic/command points, no ZOC's:

Another vote for Eastern Front by Columbia Games.

While not designed for solitaire play, the fact the wooden playing pieces give you the "fog of war" by standing upright means when you play one side, you don't remember very well what the enemy forces are.

Which makes the game play out a bit better than top-down conventional diecut counters do. God's Eye View and all that. And the game comes with multiple scenarios, so you need not use the entire map set.

And as a possible added bonus, if you like the game, and eventually want to go West Front (or Med Front) you can stick with the same system, and go for one of the other games covering those fronts. You would already know most of the rules.

AND finally, if you were ever to have a larger table space, you could combine say, the West and East front games, and play out a very large game with multiple players.

Just a thought.

A victory lost

a victory denied

Storm over Stalingrad

all by MMP – all meet your requirements.

It's old, and it's OOP, but there's nothing much wrong with Avalon Hill's 'Russian Campaign'

One board, the entire Russian front from Barbarossa to the end of the war. You even get Hitler and Stalin counters :)

link

It went to a fourth edition in 2003

link

It plays well solo too.

There was a game I played several times years ago -- it belonged to my opponent so I don't remember who made it, etc., but the title was Russian Front. It was similar to Russian Campaign in size and scope, but an even better game.

Jovian's comment that "I'd recommend some but most are sadly out of print and unavailable" is unsupportable given the existence of ebay, and websites like Noble Knight. I've obtained copies of every tactical-level board wargame printed from 1969 to 1999, almost all of them unpunched, and I only started the bulk of my collection in the last four years. If there is a board game title you want, it doesn't matter how rare or when it was published, you can still obtain it. Perhaps not the next day, perhaps not for the price you might like, but there is simply no reason to let "out of print" stop anyone from thinking they can't obtain a copy of any game they want in this day and age. They are out there.

Avalon Hill's old Russian Campaign is still one of my favorite games…..I played it solitaire countless times and never was bored with it.

"Russian Front" was an Avalon Hill Game also.

link

I heard only good things about conflict of heroes: storm of steel (43) or awakening of the Bear (41)

It's old, and it's OOP, but there's nothing much wrong with Avalon Hill's 'Russian Campaign'

One of our group's favourite games of all time. Played many times.
--
Tim

Another vote here for Avalon Hill's (originally Jedko's) "Russian Campaign".

Of similar vintage, but at the operatinal level, I'd recommend SPI's "Kharkov" as the best game I've met that uses the "Panzergruppe Guderian" mechanics (with the possible exception of "Fulda Gap"). The great appeal of Kharkov, to me, is that it shows the difference between the German and Russian military systems to the extent that each player is almost playing to a different set of rules. This makes a nice change from the Russians being treated as inferior but more numerous Germans.

All the best,

John.