Games Session
|
|
| Date: |
1st October 2004 |
| Game Played: |
Memoir '44 |
|
|
| Players |
Result |
Win |
Ratings |
| John |
4 |
P |
8 |
| Nige |
4 |
P |
7 |
| Mark G |
3 |
|
9 |
| Garry |
3 |
|
8 |
This
week's session was held at John's house and I took along Memoir '44,
hoping to show the others why it was voted best 2 player game in the
International Gamers Awards this year. We played the Pegasus Bridge
scenario with John and NIge taking control of the Axis forces while Mark G
and I were the Allies.
Memoir '44 is a light card-driven war
game designed by Richard Borg, set around the D-Day landings in World War
2. It is beautifully produced by Days of Wonder and the game has lots of
replay potential as there are 12 different scenarios described in the rule
book and more available on Days of Wonder's website. The aim of the game
is to be the first to win a certain number of victory medals ( 4 in
Pegasus Bridge) and these are awarded for eliminating an enemy unit or
controlling certain strategic terrain ( like bridges over the Orne River
and Caen Canal). The scenario describes the layout of the map and the
types of terrain involved (open countryside, villages, woodland etc.) and
where each side's forces begin the game. A turn involves firstly playing a
command card, which determines the orders you can issue that turn. You
then announce which units you are issuing orders to, move those units,
attack enemy units, determine the outcome of any battles, and draw a new
command card. The command cards are critical as they restrict what you can
do on a turn and you often cannot do what you would like to ideally.
Combat is resolved by rolling dice: the number being determined by the
type of unit attacking, the distance between the battling units and the
terrain being fought over. The dice can either show a hit, miss or
retreat. Each hit results in a piece being lost from the unit being
attacked and retreats require any remaining pieces in the unit moving
backwards one hex for each retreat result. If a unit is eliminated, the
attacker is rewarded with a victory medal. As soon as one side wins the
required number of medals, it wins the game.
In our Pegasus Bridge scenario, there
was a lot of whining going on from the Axis players. Their initial two
command cards didn't allow them to order any of their units so we let them
draw two new cards to get them on their way. They quickly took control of
the two bridges and got rid of one of our units, which meant they could
have won the game on the second turn with the right die rolls. After that
though, the Allies used their greater numbers to take back Orne Bridge and
whittle down a few units. The Axis forces were looking very depleted and
the Allies moved in for the kill against a lone infantry piece in the
countryside. However, the sneaky Axis players revealed an Ambush card (a
card which we didn't know existed) wiping out the attacking Allied unit,
and followed it up with a Barrage card (another card we were unaware of),
targeting a lone Allied infantryman, which had been left well out of the
way of enemy forces, with 4 battle dice. The inevitable elimination of
that piece gave the Axis forces their fourth victory medal and won them
the game. The Allies felt extremely hard done by (and rightly so) but had
to admit they had been out-manoeuvred on this occasion.
Everyone thought this was a very good
game and the team play worked nicely, even though the game is really meant
for two. It plays very quickly and there is quite a bit of tension. Even
though there is some luck in the die rolls and your cards limit what you
can do on a turn, it is great fun and the amazing components make the game
really shine.
