Indo-Pakistani Wars
(S&T #174).
Review by Alan Sharif.

No doubt you are all familiar vvith the expression `never judye a book
by its cover'. Well I'd iike to add 'never judge a wargame by its
subject'. Those of you who thought Indo-Pakistani War, yuk, should take
particular note. The border between West Pakistan and India is
comparable in size to the eastern front during WW2, at the start of
Operation Barbarossa, 1941. In the North is the mountainous region of
the Kashmir, a disputed region to this very day. Further South is the
Punjab plain, flat open terrain ideal for mobile operations. Still
further South is the Thar desert after which the border ends with the
Rann of Kutch, a region of salt marshes also disputed over by these two
nations. Meanwhile, East Pakistan, (now Bangladesh atter Pakistan's
defeat in the 1971 war), is entirely flat open terrain and surrounded by
either lndia or ocean. The area is highly suitable susceptible to mobile
assault. If geography alone could make a wargame good I think we would
already be on to a winner.

Indo-Pakistani Wars, (abbreviated IPW in S&T), is a simple game that
simulates the historical wars of l965 and 1971, plus has a hypothetical
1990's scenario for those who like that kind of thing. To give the game
a wider appeal, the designer has added rules and units to allow both
U.S. and Soviet intervention in any scenario. Whilst I see the business
logic behind this, I personally have no interest in any other than the
historical scenarios.

A game turn starts with the phasing player receiving reinforcements, and
moving his units. This is a simple game and the procedures used are
pretty standard. Air units are also moved to target hexes within range
during this phase. Enemy zones of control can be infiltrated at a cost
in movement points. Movement allowances are quite small so this does not
allow units to roam the map at will. Once movement is completed the
non-phasing player has a limited reaction phase with his air units, and
some ground units, being able to support or reinforce any hex due to be
assaulted and within range.

Air to air combat is resolved first, with surviving units being able to
make ground attacks against enemy ground units or railway lines. As an
alternative victory points can be earned by successfully bombing the oil
fields or nuclear establishments marked on the map. All of this is
resolved by simply adding the combat factors involved and rolling a die.
The results are either no effect, disruption or elimination. Ground
combat is resolved via the usual odds based CRT with retreats and/or
disruptions being the result. A disrupted unit receiving a second
disruption is eliminated instead. Disruption results in reduced movement
and combat factors and a loss of zone of control. As an added twist
units have what is called a survivability rating, a measure of how much
damage they can sustain. A unit can retreat through enemy zones of
control if it passes a die roll check against this rating. Once all
movement and combat is resolved the phasing player mav get to repeat the
entire procedure for a second, or even third time, depending upon the
scenario being played. Add to this the fact that the non phasing player
may not always get a reaction phase and you end up with a very fast
moving and fluid game.

A player turn concludes with disrupted units attempting to recover to
good order, resolved via a die roll. Units that are out of supply cannot
attempt to rally, and any units in good order now found to be out of
supply become disordered themselves. Supply rules are simple with just a
path of up to three hexes to a road or rail line leading to a supply
source being required. Alternatively, a small number of supply units
exist which can be used to increase the length of the path back to a
road or rail line. Once this phase is completed the non phasing player
repeats the sequence to complete a game turn.

What makes this game reallv great is the number of strategic options
open to both players. Players can earn victory points for destroying
enemy units, capturing cities, towns or hexes in the disputed salt marsh
region, and for successful airstrikcs. There are armour divisions,
airmobile infantry, paratroops, mountain troops and many other unit
types, plus a great variety of terrain types as well, requiring
different tactics for each. The replay value of this game is high, even
if East Pakistan is doomed, the Indian player still needs to settle the
score there quickly so as to withdraw troops to the main front. Playable
solo, suitable for beginners, dont judge this game by its subject, this
is one of the best magazine issue games I've plaved and it deserves a
wider audience.