October 12th: Columbus day games with Sam

Memoir '44

I got Columbus day (October 12th) off at work, but most folks I know did not. I got in touch with my friend/ex-coworker Sam. He had mentioned that he was very interested in trying out Memoir '44, a fairly simple tactical-level WWII game. We played through the first 4 scenarios, switching sides between each scenario.

In the first scenario, Pegasus Bridge, I played the Germans, and I was able to take advantage of my fortified position to hold off the assault on the northern bridge, and then launch an effective counterattack on the southern bridge, finishing off a fourth unit by forcing a retreat into the water.

In the second scenario (Ste. Mere-Eglese), the Allies have a pretty big advantage due to their ability to bring in paratroopers at the beginning of the scenario (by literally dropping units onto the board from about a foot above, which is a pretty cute gimmick). In addition to this, I drew very good cards and Sam never really stood a chance.

In the third scenario, Sword Beach, I again ended up playing the stronger side - I didn't really plan it that way, we just kept switching sides. The Germans are in a very strong, entrenched position, and can really let the allies have it as they come up the beaches. Sam started by making some strong inroads on my right flank, but my forces held well enough to deliver a vicious counter-attack and win 5-3.

In the fourth and final scenario that we played, Ponte du Hoc, I took on the allies and did a fairly effective job of divide-and-conquer on Sam's well fortified, but limited-in-number units. He did make it close and had a chance to snatch defeat from me after I overextended myself in the center region, but the dice didn't bounce his way, and I pulled off the 4-game sweep, though as much though the luck of the sides I played and the luck of the cards and dice as through anything else.

Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation

We put away Memoir '44 and decided to try Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation, a Stratego-like game (in that the opponent doesn't know which unit is which until combat takes place). It is a much more refined and complex game than Stratego,though it plays faster thanks to only 9 units per side and rules that pretty much force conflict to happen quickly.

This is definitely a game that rewards experience. It is hard to do well until you have a good grasp of the special powers of the units on each side, and it's hard to fully grasp them until you see them in action. As one would expect, Sam struggled in his first couple games (he stuck to the Fellowship side for all three), but managed to defeat me by getting Frodo past me and into Mordor in the third and final game.