Category: Preorder Alert

Ariete is a Tactical Combat Series (TCS) game covering the Italian Ariete Division’s defense of Bir el Gubi, Libya, on November 19, 1941. The well-equipped yet inexperienced British 22nd Armoured Brigade saw an opportunity to season itself against a supposedly weak Italian formation. At full-strength with 162 brand-new Crusader tanks, the British were eager to emulate the easy victories against the Italian 10th Army the previous winter. What actually ensued was a swirling desert battle between evenly matched opponents. [Forum]

Brazen Chariots is a Battalion Combat Series (BCS) game that chronicles fighting in the North African desert towards the end of 1941. Once Axis forces under Rommel had laid siege to Tobruk, they then set about trying to take it. Meanwhile, Commonwealth forces pushed back to the Egyptian border launched several attempts to break into and relieve the fortress. Two of these efforts, BREVITY and BATTLEAXE, lacked the depth needed to accomplish this goal and were utter failures. The third, CRUSADER, was a massive undertaking that successfully opened communications to Tobruk and proved to the British 8th Army that Rommel could be beaten. It also set the stage for Rommel's Gazala offensive in 1942. [Forum]

Time of Crisis is the game that allows 2-4 players to re-create the Roman Crisis of the Third Century, leading separate dynasties in a struggle for control of an empire beset by threats both internal and external. The Time of Crisis Expansion provides new choices for players to build their influence, exert their Imperial power, and even play alone! [Forum]

The Dark Summer: Normandy 1944 is the latest in Ted S. Raicer's WWII operational series that began with The Dark Valley: The East Front Campaign 1941-45. The game uses a chit-pull activation system that determines both the order and type of each sides' actions during the game's ten action-packed turns, covering June 6 to August 21, 1944. [Forum]

Beneath the Med is a solitaire tactical-level game placing you in command of an Italian submarine during WWII. This is the fourth game in the The Hunters series, and covers one of the largest fleets of submarines in the world at the time. You command one of many submarine models available starting in 1940, and look to successfully complete patrols until the armistice in September 1943. Not only is this a standalone game, but fans of The Hunters will enjoy having the capability to complete Italian careers in one of the many interesting classes of Italian submarine. [Forum]

Nevsky is a board wargame about the storied clash between Latin Teutonic and Orthodox Russian powers along the Baltic frontier of the mid-13th-Century. It is the first volume in GMT Games’ Levy & Campaign Series portraying military operations in a variety of pre-industrial conflicts. In Nevsky, players raise and equip their armies, then provision and maneuver them to ravage or conquer enemy territory or defeat enemy forces in battle. Feudal politics obligate an array of lords and vassals to serve on campaign—but only for limited periods. Players must keep an eye on the calendar and reward lords to keep their armies in the field. [Forum]

Blitzkrieg in the West is a simulation of the German campaign in Western Europe, 1940 by game designer, Ty Bomba. The Wehrmacht stunned the world by defeating the Allied armies in a few short weeks. Yet prior to the start of the campaign, no one expected such a victory. [Forum]

Limited to 250 KS copies. War Along the Gulf Coast allows gamers to refight Andrew Jackson's campaign against British General Pakenham's British invaders. The game uses the proven Blue & Gray combat system where morale is as important as the number of soldiers. You are limited in how many units you may move based on the number of action points you receive, plus a random number of action points based on your commander. This means no two games will play alike. [Forum]

Great War Commander (GWC) is a wargame based on the popular Combat Commander series created by Chad Jensen where two players take turns playing “Fate cards” in order to activate military units on the mapboard. GWC offers many new and unique elements to its parent system. The maps are deeper, allowing more playing surface to maneuver two battalion-size forces facing each other. [Forum]

A full Vietnam War miniatures Axis & Allies type wargame board game covering the entire war in Vietnam from 1965 to 1975 that can be finished in a few weekends or less! This is the first and only game of its kind about the Vietnam War. Designed by a West Pointer whom has been studying the war in Vietnam for decades, this game is the definitive portrayal of a conflict that permanently changed the notions and perceptions of how wars are fought and won.

Pragmatic Sanction is for two to eight players, based on the events of the War of the Austrian Succession. Players represent the crowned heads of the great powers of Europe: Austria, Prussia, Russia, Sweden, Britain, France, Spain and the Ottoman Empire. It uses the same game engine as our Soldier Kings game, and is very similar to Soldier Emperor. This complete game features full-color player aids, silky-smooth pieces and top-quality playing cards. [Forum]

Campaign Ends in Two Days! Normandy, “The Beginning of the End”, is the fourth installment in the War Storm Series (WSS) designed by Niko Eskubi and Juan Carlos Cebrián. Alone in the Storm in an expansion pack that enables solo and cooperative games mode, implements fog of war and many other features and it is compatible with previous titles of the saga. [Forum]

Forgotten Legions, Designer Signature Edition, marks the return of not just one, but two wargaming classics by Vance von Borries: Drive on Damascus and Bloody Keren, both now published together for the first time in the same package and with the same basic rules set. They have been re-mastered and updated into all-new, super-sized editions. These were well regarded by many as balanced and thoughtful games. They cover fascinating, almost forgotten conflicts that would guide the course of WW II in the Mediterranean Theater. Forgotten Legions is yet another Classic Reborn by Compass Games! [Forum]

a two-player, card-driven game simulating the War of the Austrian Succession. One player represents the Austrian interest and the other player represents the challengers to the Austrians, the Bavarian rival for the Imperial title, Charles Albert and his supporters. This game continues the series pioneered and excellently portrayed by Don Herndon’s No Peace Without Spain! and expanded upon by Nine Years: War of the Grand Alliance 1688-1697. The basic NPWS system is ported to APW but expanded and adapted to model the campaign. [Forum]

covers the two major attempts to capture the Confederate Capital City. Gates of Richmond covers the Seven Days Battles with Robert E Lee facing down George McClellan. If It Takes All Summer is Ulysses S. Grant’s overland campaign of 1864, which added the names of Wilderness, Spotsylvania Courthouse and Cold Harbor to Civil War history. Each game can be picked up and learned in under 30 minutes, and played entirely through in 4 hours or less. The cards, leaders and Wilderness/Magruder tables add a level of chrome and history to the games without making them difficult. Combined with the hidden strengths and dummy counters, no two games are ever the same. [Forum]

People Power: Insurgency in the Philippines, 1983-1986 is volume XI of the highly-praised and popular COIN series originally designed by Volko Ruhnke. This is one of only two games in the COIN series that feature three separate factions, instead of the customary four. For players new to the COIN Series, or for those looking to teach the the series to their friends, People Power will serve as an excellent introductory game. It was designed for simplicity and quick play, utilizing many of the basic COIN Series mechanics. [Forum]

Flashpoint: South China Sea is a two-player strategy game that simulates the complex geopolitical contest currently taking place between the United States and China in a disputed region of the South China Sea. The game is driven by a card deck that captures developments ripped straight from today’s headlines, bolstered by cards with a context-setting reading of recent history, and a set of speculative cards capturing a diverse range of potential future events.

1862: Railway Mania in the Eastern Counties is an '18xx' game, one of many rail games by different designers inspired by Francis Tresham's 1829. Although it shares many traits in common with the other 18XX games, it has several unique features is set in this cauldron of railway construction. Players will vie to start railway companies, invest money in railway shares, and attempt to run the railways they control for personal gain, trying to keep them afloat in changeable economic times.

Hastings 1066 is a short card game for two players using a simple “board” and cards representing the units. One player is the Saxons (English) led by Harold Godwinson (King Harold II); the other is the Normans, led by William of Normandy, later known as William the Conqueror because he was lucky enough to survive and win the battle. [Forum]

The Europa Incident is a science fiction boardgame from 2 to 4 players, about the control of the most strategically and economically useful sites in the Main Asteroid Belt of our Solar System by mega-corporations, transnational agencies, and armed organizations. The game rules allow players to control and expand an area of space within the asteroid belt, interfering with opponents and seeking dominance of one or another Faction through war operations.