From: "Pat Collins" Subject: [consim-l] Moscow Option I've started to play some of my Command games that have been lying around punched, but unplayed. Also titled Guderian's Gambit, this uses the same system as Rommel at Gazala, and Budapest '45. The Germans are represented by units with only one side, a unit ID. There is a roster strength sheet entry for each unit. That lists the unit's attack/defense strength, and each decrement is a step. The other side, (here, Russians) have conventional units with attack/def/movement notation, and usually are two steps. The German units are usually face down, and are only revealed at the moment of combat resolution. But in this game the Russian units are "untried" on one side, and are also not revealed until their FIRST time in combat, at which time they are face up the rest of the game. The units are selected blindly, and so you have no idea if it's a 1-1-6, or a 5-4-6 you have. It makes for interesting FoW, and is very playable. The game posits a thrust on Moscow in the 1941 campaign, instead of going south. Victory is a little contrived in that it depends on having one, two or three Moscow hexes under control, and then rolling two dice & consulting a table. You must roll a number, or higher to get an automatic win. If the German does not win, he automatically loses. The earlier you are in Moscow, and the more hexes you control, the easier it is to win. To a certain, maybe large, extent, you play the game, and then at the end roll for a six to see if you win or not. But its fun. The Russians are locked by ZOCs, and can only exit one into a non-ZOC hex. This makes it easy for the German to "pocket" large groups, and encourages doublelines. The German must be within 8 hexes of the only road to be in supply, and so the Russian is encouraged to use his Cavalry and small tank units to try to block that line. The generic nature of units make set up quick, and it's quite possible to finish a game in two hours. While not the ultimate east front game, it manages to get a good amount of flavor and tactics in a small, fast playing package. Not perhaps a "classic" Cmmand game, but certainly a good one. Next up is Buena Vista. Regards, Pat pcollins@ivwnet.com Last Played: Cousin Jonathan, 3 Days of Gettysburg, Moscow Option