The Europa Series

[grognard]

Any other Europa buffs out there?

I first got into The Europa Series because of my fascination with the Eastern Front/Great Patriotic War. Fire in the East covered June 1941 through March 1942, and the follow-up, Scorched Earth, covered the rest of that conflict. Two division level games that included historical reinforcements and withdrawals, divisional upgrades--and the air air was practically a game in itself! Long learning curve, not enough time or space to play the darn things--but wow!! They even OBs that were unavailable anywhere else--in English anyway--at the time.
And the publisher, GRD (currently Multiman), covered World War Two in Europe/The Med completely with the original series.

[TRDG]

Yes, the Eastern front action, I'm very curious on the early war years there. I am playing an E-Mail game that is being tested for production maybe, along with the designer, to a game store near you!! (MAYBE)

Cheers, I am playing the Russians and I am losing big time, they just took Tula, and I think it is October of 1942......

Thanks for the thread grognard, your thoughts on the "early' war section of your game please?

Tom

[Airchallenged]

I own Europa Universal 3 but haven't been able to play it that much because my school comp doesn't like to run games. I was playing as the British but was losing major ground to the French.

[Whiterook]

Hmmmm, I have to look into this. Sounds like one of those "Mega Games" of old, ala Avalon Hill's "The Longest Day", or the current Avalance Press gem (which I just bought this Winter, "Alamein". Huge maps, huge OOB's, huge rules, huge playing commitment. Am I reading this correct?

[Airchallenged]

Originally Posted by Whiterook

Hmmmm, I have to look into this. Sounds like one of those "Mega Games" of old, ala Avalon Hill's "The Longest Day", or the current Avalance Press gem (which I just bought this Winter, "Alamein". Huge maps, huge OOB's, huge rules, huge playing commitment. Am I reading this correct?

Yeah, Think of the Total War Series on Larger Maps (world for EU3) where you don't control the battles (main reason I am losing) and with more economic and social factors.

[Whiterook]

Originally Posted by Airchallenged

Yeah, Think of the Total War Series on Larger Maps (world for EU3) where you don't control the battles (main reason I am losing) and with more economic and social factors.

Interesting! But if I'm following this correctly, your Europa is a computer game, and grognards is a board game. Perhaps based on the same game format?

[grognard]

The Europa series has 16 mile\hex maps covering all of Europe and the Med and the Near East. The oobs are division level with other counters for AA, some brigades and battalions, etc. (2000 counters, give or take for Fire in the East). The series covers WWII in the ETO|MTO and has games\modules that include:
the Spanish Civil War, (For Whom the bell tolls),
First to Fight (Poland 1939)
Winter War (Finland-USSR 1940)
Storm over Scandanavia (guess where, 1940)
Fall of France and Their Finest Hour--not updated
Balkan Front--everything from Italy\Greece 1940 to the partisans in Yugoslavia through 1945
Several games that cover all the African fighting (yes, including Ethiopia)/Malta, etc.
Second Front--Italy and France, etc. 1943-1945
And the aformentioned German-USSR games.

Being the Russians early is tough--I once lost Moscow in Dec 1941--(the weather stayed mild).

Suggestions include fortifying and using delaying tactics. Any relatively small units that can force the Germans to fight rather than keep moving are worth sacrificing. Tear up the railroads to increase German supply problems. Try to let them overstretch and than counterattack with reserves. Does the game use NKVD troops as defensive boosts? Historically, the NKVD and the ruthlessness of some generals led to "it takes a brave man to be a coward in the Russian army".
Use the air assets any way possible--anything that stops or slows German flying artillery is a good thing.

[Whiterook]

That's amazing! MUST NOT BUY GAME, MUST NOT BUY GAME, WIFE WILL DIVORCE...

[grognard]

Originally Posted by Whiterook

Interesting! But if I'm following this correctly, your Europa is a computer game, and grognards is a board game. Perhaps based on the same game format?

The Europa series is a mega-series, and the ones covering the German\Russian part of the conflict are megagames in themselves. What little I know about Europa Universalis leads me to conclude that they are not based on the same format.

I've never had enough room to get all the maps out at once, but have set up the Fire in the East maps and hoped to play a few turns the 1941-1942 scenarios.

Did I mention that one turn encompasses two weeks? So playing from June 1941 to March 1942 is 16-18 turns: and each turn means dealing with the whole front--all 3 army groups or the Soviet equivalents. Great game for team play if someone has a garage or empty basement and a few people can spare the same weekend.
PS: each air counter represents about 40-50 A/C.

[TRDG]

Did I mention that one turn encompasses two weeks?

So no smaller "actions" that we might be able to game here I see.....

Cheers, correct?

Thanks for the great info!!

Tom