Description

Introduction
This is a two player card game covering the experience of the British VIII Corps on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, July 1st 1916. The game follows the course of the pre-battle preparation and the first day of the battle itself.

It is not a balanced game and one where the British will find it very hard to win.

Game Overview
To win the game the British player must capture two of the three German Support Lines. To do this they must overcome the First and Second Lines of defence in sequence before succeeding in attacking the final German line of defence.

The game is turn based. The early turns consist of just one phase solely concerned with strategic actions by both sides. Later turns consist of a strategic phase followed by a tactical phase. A tactical phase consists of British attacks, and the much rarer German counter-attacks, played in sequence.

The switch to multi-phase turns represents the end of the initial bombardment and the beginning of the infantry battle. The exact timing of the switch depends on whether the British player decides to prolong the pre-battle barrage or not.

Attacks, be they strategic or tactical, are made by playing a selection of cards. Strategic cards can only be played in the strategic phase and likewise tactical cards can only be played in the tactical phase. Furthermore, many strategic cards must be played immediately in the turn in which they are drawn so players do not have a totally free hand in deciding which cards to play.

The British player always takes the initiative unless the German player has chosen to counter-attack at the end of the tactical phase when the playing order is reversed.

Once the turn contains a tactical phase and the infantry battle has commenced, the British player must initiate at least one attack in every tactical phase. If they cannot attack, this counts as a failure. Only when the British have completed all their attacks may the Germans counter-attack.

To reflect the difficulties faced by the British on the day, the game ends with a German victory if two consecutive British attacks have failed. Failure to defend a German counter-attack does not count toward victory or defeat.

Plan your tactics carefully!