A well-designed and attractive board can significantly enhance the enjoyment of a wargame. The board can draw you in, make you feel present in the setting, and set the stage for thematic immersion. This article delves into the captivating world of board games set in North Africa, exploring the artistic and strategic elements that make them so appealing.
The Allure of North Africa in Wargaming
There are several reasons to love a good North Africa wargame. The focus on supply and the difficulties in this theater, along with the various elements of infrastructure used to perform that supply, such as shipping, ports, and trucks, are always engaging. The scope and scale of the North African Theater are also appealing. The front covered an area over 2,000 miles, stretching from Morocco on the western coast of the Atlantic, through Algeria, Libya, and onto Egypt. Key locations like Tunis, Kasserine Pass, Tripoli, Benghazi, Tobruk, El Alamein, and Malta (though not part of Africa, a crucial element in this theater) add to the theater's historical significance.
Pairing this interesting theater with a great system, such as the ’40X Series, and a talented designer and artist creates a recipe for a truly enjoyable experience. Mark Simonitch, a veteran game designer and artist known for his map and counter artwork, exemplifies this. His style is clear and functional, with nice touches on terrain and essential aspects like bridges, roads, and cities. His maps seem to pop and set a great mood for his games.
North Africa ’41: A Closer Look
Such is the case with the board for North Africa ’41: The Western Desert, March to December, 1941 from GMT Games. The game includes two large boards, a 22” x 34” Map Sheet and a 22” x 28” Map Sheet. These boards take up a significant amount of space on the gaming table. One of the defining characteristics of a North Africa game is the size and scope of the theater.
The front covered an area over 2,000 miles, stretching from Morocco on the western coast of the Atlantic, through Algeria, Libya, and onto Egypt. Key locations such as Tunis, Kasserine Pass, Tripoli, Benghazi, Tobruk, El Alamein, and Malta add to the theater's impressiveness. The overall aesthetic of the board works well, even with its shades of brown, tan, sandy yellow, and grey.
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Terrain and Strategic Elements
Consider the area of the Jebel Akhdar, a heavily forested, fertile upland area in northeastern Libya. Mark uses darker shades of brown to differentiate this area from the surrounding desert. The use of broken-up dark colors like black and gray to represent elevated terrain and mountains is a nice graphical touch. The black highlights of lines represent the rise and fall of the high plateau, giving the hexes a solid and immovable feel. These tracks are vital for the Allied players, as they need a continual transit of truck units bringing units and supply points back to the ports.
Mastering the land and maneuvering through its inhospitable terrain is crucial. Failure to do so can lead to trouble for your units and efforts.
North Africa '41 -- Play Demonstration -- How to Play
Ports and Supply
Moving east of the Jebel Akhdar, we find the port of Derna. The Port Box, located above the anchor symbol in the Mediterranean Sea, indicates the Port Capacity. This number is multiplied by two to determine the number of units it can keep in supply. Port Supply is similar to regular supply, but Ports may only supply a limited number of units. The player controlling the port must decide which units are in supply during each of their Supply Phases. The Axis player can supply a number of units on the board based on the supply they derive from their various ports. Ports may be damaged by the owning player (to prevent enemy benefit) or the enemy player through a die roll on the Port Demolition and Bombing Table.
Tobruk: A Key Strategic Location
Further east lies the major port of Tobruk, a key piece of the North African puzzle. Tobruk has a strong, naturally protected deep harbor, making it the best natural port in northern Africa. Escarpments to the south of Tobruk, common across Cyrenaica, create a substantial physical barrier. These are identified by dark and thick lines across the north hexside of each Escarpment hex, with cross-hatching showing the slope and its direction. Non-Mechanized units spend an additional MP to cross an Escarpment hexside, while Mechanized Units are prohibited from crossing them, creating a significant barrier to movement.
Trackless Desert and Marshes
Another interesting graphical choice is the representation of the Trackless Desert terrain, distinguished by the absence of the hexagonal grid. This highlights the area and minimizes its sense of use in the game. No unit may move into more than two consecutive Trackless Desert hexes in a single Movement or Combat Phase. Marshes are identified clearly with gray, smaller green dashes, and bushy grasses, though they don't significantly affect gameplay due to the road network through these areas.
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The Campaign for North Africa: A Complex Simulation
The Campaign for North Africa, designed by the late Richard Berg, is renowned for its complexity. The game covers the WWII operations in Libya and Egypt between 1940 and 1943. It requires ten players, five Allied and five Axis, each managing a specialized division. The Front-line and Air Commanders issue orders, the Rear and Logistics Commanders manage supplies, and the Commander-in-Chief handles strategic decisions. Calculations necessitate close attention to details like fuel reserves and the size of the barrels containing those reserves.
The game includes historical details such as the "pasta rule," where the Italian player must distribute an extra water ration to their forces to boil their pasta. Despite its complexity, the game aims to provide a historically accurate and immersive experience.
Originally published by SPI in 1978, The Campaign for North Africa simulates the entire North African campaign of World War II. It is considered one of the most complex wargames ever published, with an estimated total playtime of 1,500 hours and a complexity rating of 10+.
Complexity and Design
The complete campaign game takes 100 turns, each representing one week of game time. Before playing, players must create unit organization charts for every one of the hundreds of counters on their side. Responding to player feedback in the mid-1970s, SPI envisioned several huge wargames, leading to the creation of CNA. Richard Berg completed the game after other developers left the project. Following the demise of SPI, Decision Games acquired the rights to CNA and began streamlining the rules for a new edition.
Reviewers have noted the game's immense size and complexity. Some found the logistics system simple but laborious, while the air game was overly complex. Designer Richard Berg admitted to this in the Designer’s Notes.
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Critical Reception and Legacy
Critics have described the game as a history lesson and a pure simulation, rather than just a game. The game's complexity is highlighted by details such as each unit losing 3% of its fuel due to evaporation, except for British units, which lose 7% due to using 50-gallon drums instead of jerry cans.
The Campaign for North Africa even made an appearance in an episode of The Big Bang Theory, where Sheldon Cooper suggests playing it while waiting for Bernadette to go into labor.
Undaunted: North Africa
The Undaunted series continues with a two-player deck-building game of tactical combat, pitting Britain's Long Range Desert Group against Italian forces in the North African Theater of World War II. Players lead their sides through a series of missions, with casualties impacting the players' decks, forcing them to adapt to changing tactical circumstances.
| Game Title | Designer | Publisher | Complexity | Players |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Africa ’41: The Western Desert, March to December, 1941 | Mark Simonitch | GMT Games | Medium | 2 |
| The Campaign for North Africa | Richard Berg | SPI/Decision Games | Very High | 10 |
| Undaunted: North Africa | David Thompson | Osprey Games | Medium | 2 |
In conclusion, board games set in North Africa offer a rich blend of historical detail, strategic depth, and artistic design. Whether you prefer the intricate simulation of The Campaign for North Africa, the tactical combat of Undaunted: North Africa, or the balanced gameplay and aesthetic appeal of North Africa ’41, there's a North African wargame to suit every taste.
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