BGG:N #1 LAUTAPELI

On November 9th of 2009, the world will mark the 20th Anniversary of the conclusion of the Cold War. That was the day that the Cold War's most tangible symbol, the Berlin Wall, was relegated to the ash heap of history. Unlike the 20th Century's other great conflict, the Cold War did not end in an explosion of neutrons, but rather, an explosion of human freedom and optimism. We had avoided what many thought inevitable - the destruction of mankind through armed conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States. Overnight, the face of Europe had changed. Suddenly, all things were possible.

That was 20 years ago. Sadly, we all learned that the end of the Cold War was not "the end of history." Mankind would find new ways to divide itself. While the threat of nuclear holocaust disappeared, newer and more sinister forms of conflict would take its place. Where once superpowers bestrode the globe, decentralized networks and even individuals now command the world's attention.

This Deluxe Edition of Twilight Struggle seeks to capture the feeling of that earlier era. Twilight Struggle is a two-player game simulating the forty-five year dance of intrigue, prestige, and occasional flares of warfare between the Soviet Union and the United States. Using the card-driven game mechanics pioneered in such award winning games as We the People and Hannibal: Rome vs. Carthage, Twilight Struggle recreates the conflict between the most powerful nation states the world has ever known. The scope of the game covers the entire world as it was found in 1945. Players move units and exert influence in attempts to gain allies and control for their superpower. As with GMT's other card-driven games, decision-making is a challenge; how to best use one's cards and units given consistently limited resources? Twilight Struggle's Event cards add cover a vast array of historical happenings, from the Berlin Airlift, to the Vietnam War and the U.S. peace movement, to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

This Deluxe Edition of Twilight Struggle marries world-class components, with the sort of world-class game play for which GMT is already known. We cannot think of a better way to commemorate this vital piece of world history. We invite you to relieve an era with the words uttered by one of its most iconic statesmen:

"Now the trumpet summons us again, not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are - but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle"
- John F. Kennedy

Components:
* Heavy duty 9 x 12 x 2 inch box
* Mounted map with revised graphics
* Two double-thick counter sheets with 228 counters
* Deck of 110 event cards (increased from 104)
* Revised rules and player aid cards
* Two six-sided dice

Game Features:
TIME SCALE approx. 3-5 years per turn
MAP SCALE Point-to-point system
UNIT SCALE Influence markers
NUMBER OF PLAYERS 1 - 2

The British Way: Counterinsurgency at the End of Empire is the first of several COIN multipacks, containing four separate games exploring a series of thematically related insurgencies.

Between 1945 and 1960, the British fought four major “emergencies,” as they referred to their counterinsurgency campaigns, each trying to manage their retreat from empire. The four games in this pack focus on exploring British counterinsurgent responses to a variety of different opponents, including communist insurgents in Malaya, militant nationalists in Kenya, and smaller and more clandestine terrorist organizations in Palestine and Cyprus. The games adjust the core COIN mechanics to provide a compelling new way of handling two-player conflicts, while also streamlining several mechanics to quicken gameplay. The British Way offers an approachable introduction to the COIN series for new players, while presenting experienced players with four mechanically distinct games to explore and compare.

Highlights:
* Four full games in one box: Explore four different conflicts set during the twilight of the British Empire in the 1940s and 1950s. Each game uses a unique ruleset building on the same general mechanical structure, ensuring that they are easy to pick up while still offering a distinctive experience.
* A new adaptation of the classic COIN system: Improved two-player sequence of play and a versatile Political Will track for determining victory.
* Unique mechanisms reflecting the British approach to each conflict: New Villages in Malaya, the ‘Pipeline’ in Kenya, Curfews in Cyprus, and Mass Detention in Palestine.
* Small board footprint with quick-but-deep gameplay: Each game plays in under 90 minutes and takes place on a single 17x22” board.
* An “End of Empire” Campaign: A campaign scenario allowing players to play the four games in a linked series with a cumulative scoring system, random ‘external’ events relating to British decolonization, and new mechanics to integrate each game into the campaign.

Malaya
The British Emergency in Malaya (1948-1960) is viewed by some as the classic case of a successful counterinsurgency campaign, fought against an insurgency led by the Malayan Communist Party. The Malayan Emergency significantly influenced counterinsurgency theory and would become a model case, later appealed to by commanders in conflicts ranging from Vietnam to the present. The British Way: Malaya is the perfect introduction for players new to the COIN series, offering a shorter two-player game experience that will give players some familiarity with Government and Insurgent factions in other modern COIN volumes, such as Cuba Libre or A Distant Plain. For experienced players, it also serves as a good introduction to the new core mechanics in The British Way by offering Factions and Operations that will be familiar from previous COIN volumes but with several new systems, such as the Political Will track, streamlined Sequence of Play, and a shifting British Commander Capability.

Kenya
The British Emergency in Kenya (1952-1960), fought against the Mau Mau insurgents, dramatically departed from the strategy modeled in many of the modern COIN volumes, with a heavy focus on coercion rather than winning ‘hearts and minds.’ In game terms, this means a shift away from building ‘Support’ towards new mechanics modeling various forms of repression used by the British in Kenya. However, their use of repression can have political consequences back in Britain, represented as a potential penalty to Political Will—as one British official noted, “If we sin, we must sin quietly.” The British player must balance this core tradeoff, while the Mau Mau player must mobilize the Kikuyu population and expand their revolt to survive the overwhelming British response. The British Way: Kenya depicts a dramatically asymmetrical conflict where an extremely poorly equipped insurgency must utilize clever (and in some cases brutal) tactics to try and ride out an overwhelmingly powerful, often unconstrained, and increasingly criticized counterinsurgency campaign.

Cyprus and Palestine: New Counter-Terrorism Mechanics
The next two conflicts in the pack depart more significantly from core COIN concepts because Britain’s two opponents in Cyprus and Palestine operated as smaller clandestine terrorist cells rather than the larger insurgencies depicted in Malaya and Kenya. Instead, new “counter-terrorism” tactics are modeled, such as Curfews, Intelligence, Arms Caches, and a more detailed Sabotage and Terror system. These two games offer a fresh approach to a different kind of conflict and provide an even quicker play experience for two-player COIN duels.

The British Emergency in Cyprus (1955-1959) was conducted under the shadow of international opinion and increasing pressure from the international community to respect human rights. As the British player tries to balance locking down the population while managing international pressure, the EOKA player will launch sabotage attacks in towns across the island while building their organization in the mountains. The British Way: Cyprus is probably the simplest of the four games in the pack, although the new counter-terrorism mechanics it introduces are significantly different from anything that has appeared in previous COIN volumes.

Likewise, during the Palestine campaign (1945-1947), the British player will be faced with the Jewish resistance groups Irgun and Lehi launching sabotage and terrorist attacks across Mandatory Palestine, while risking criticism from the US and other international observers if their response is too heavy-handed. The British Way: Palestine further develops the new counter-terrorism mechanics introduced in Cyprus, while also including unique game systems to model the British use of the blunt tool of Mass Detention, the shifting cooperation of Haganah (the Jewish Agency’s armed wing), and high-profile terrorist attacks such as the King David Hotel bombing.

A Note on “The British Way” of Counterinsurgency:
The historical simulations included in The British Way are designed to depict the full array of strategies used by the British during these conflicts, ranging from the more benevolent provision of material benefits through pacification programs to the horrific measures used to gain control over the local population. Many myths have arisen about an ‘enlightened’ British approach to counterinsurgency that emphasized the use of minimum force and focused on winning the population’s “hearts and minds,” compared with the supposedly more violent approaches taken by the United States in Vietnam or by France in Algeria. However, new scholarship on these conflicts has confirmed the brutality of the methods commonly used by the British in their counterinsurgency campaigns. As summarized by the historian Hew Strachan, these conflicts were often decided by “the firm smack of government,” not the popular winning of hearts and minds. This multipack is intended to help synthesize and present these crucial developments in our understanding of British counterinsurgency, even if that means the simulations depicted are at times more thought-provoking than fun. The designer’s main goal is that players find these games informative about what happened during each conflict and why, and that the gameplay leaves them wanting to learn more. Each game will come with a detailed Background booklet describing the events depicted and listing additional sources, while the combined Playbook will include comparative essays discussing British counterinsurgency across the four games and how it is depicted in conflict simulations.

Game components
* Two double-sided 17x22” mounted game boards
* 4 Game Event Decks and 1 Campaign Event Deck
* 54 Wooden Pieces
* 8 Pawns
* One full-color counter sheet
* Eleven double-sided player aids
* Two 6-sided dice
* 4 Combined Rule/Background Booklets
* 1 Combined Playbook/Campaign Guide

Number of players: 2

GAME DESIGN: Stephen Rangazas
DEVELOPER: Joe Dewhurst

In December 1956, paroled rebel Fidel Castro returned to Cuba to launch his revolution with virtually no political base and—after a disastrous initial encounter with government forces—a total of just 12 men. Two years later, through masterful propaganda and factional maneuver, Castro, his brother Raúl, and iconic revolutionary Che Guevara had united disparate guerrillas and exploited Cubans’ deep opposition to their dictator Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar. Castro’s takeover of the country became a model for Leftist insurgency.

Castro’s Insurgency
Following up on GMT Games’ Andean Abyss, the COIN Series next volume, Cuba Libre, takes 1 to 4 players into the Cuban Revolution. Castro’s Marxist “26 July Movement” must expand from its bases in the Sierra Maestra mountains to fight its way to Havana. Meanwhile, anti-communist student groups, urban guerrillas, and ex-patriots try to de-stabilize the Batista regime from inside and out, while trying not to pave the way for a new dictatorship under Castro. Batista’s Government must maintain steam to counter the twin insurgency, while managing two benefactors: its fragile US Alliance and its corrupting Syndicate skim. And in the midst of the turmoil, Meyer Lansky and his Syndicate bosses will jockey to keep their Cuban gangster paradise alive.

COIN Series, Volume II
Cuba Libre will be easy to learn for Andean Abyss players—both volumes share the same innovative COIN system. Like Volume I, Cuba Libre is equally playable solitaire or by multiple players up to 4—and with a shorter time to completion than Andean Abyss. But Cuba Libre’s situation and strategic challenges will be new. A deck of 48 fresh events brings 1950s Cuba to life and includes...

• The Twelve: The first wave’s escape to the Sierra Maestra—inspirational legend or harbinger of defeat?
• El Che and Raúl: Brilliant in the field, or bungling hostage-takers?
• Operation Fisherman: Can the Marxists pull off a second invasion?
• General Strike: Urban disruption or rebel embarrassment?
• Radio Rebelde: Are the masses tuning in, or just the Army direction finders?
• Pact of Caracas: Can the rebels unite?
• Armored Cars: Mobile striking power, but in whose hands?
• Rolando Masferrer: Brutal pro-government tactics—will they help or hurt?
• Fat Butcher: Can the Mob’s enforcer protect its casinos?
• Sinatra: Frankie’s Havana show a boom or bust, and who collects?
...and much more.

New twists match the COIN system to the situation in 1950s Cuba:
• It’s the insurgents who build lasting capabilities, while the Government is limited to fleeting bursts of momentum.
• The Syndicate’s bases are Casinos—expensive to build, but so important to Cuba no army will destroy them.
• Syndicate special activities include calling in the “muscle” of Government troops and police to protect mob assets.
• Stacks of Syndicate cash awaiting launder can fall in anyone’s hands—even the corrupt Government’s.
• The Government has its own terror tactic—reprisals—and can skim a portion of Syndicate profits.
• The eroding US Alliance with Batista overshadows all Government actions, not just through aid levels but also through the day-to-day ability of troops and police to operate.
• Even if Batista flees, the struggle may not end—the counterrevolutionary government may even become stronger!

Multiplayer, 2-Player, Solitaire
Cuba Libre provides up to 4 players with contrasting roles and overlapping victory conditions for rich diplomatic interaction. For 2- or 3-player games, players can represent alliances of factions, or the game system can control non-player factions. Or a single player as the Cuban Revolutionaries can attempt to topple Batista and seize power for themselves. The non-player sides will fight one another as well as the players, but too much power in the hands of any one of them will mean player defeat.

COIN Series Volume II
Cuba Libre like its predecessor Andean Abyss presents a game system on modern insurgency readily adaptable to other conflicts, particularly those featuring the interaction of many sides (thus our COunterINsurgency series). A rich and under-represented history of 20th-Century guerrilla warfare beckons. Volume III is A Distant Plain—Insurgency in Afghanistan, and Volume IV is Fire in the Lake—Insurgency in Vietnam."

Components:
* A 17”x22” mounted game board
* A deck of 52 cards
* 79 dark and light blue, red, green, and yellow wooden forces pieces, some embossed.
* 8 embossed cylinders
* One sheet of markers
* One background play book
* One rule book
* A Sequence of Play sheet
* 4 Faction player aid foldouts
* 2 Non-Player Aid foldouts
* 3 6-sided dice

Designers: Volko Ruhnke & Jeff Grossman

The 5th Marines
Fleet Marine Force Manual 6-4 Marine Rifle Company/Platoon - "The primary mission of the Marine rifle company and platoon is to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver or to repel his assault by fire and close combat." In Fields of Fire Vol. II: "With the Old Breed," you pin on your captain's bars and take command of a rifle company in the 5th Marines, the most decorated regiment in the US Marine Corps. Test your mettle in three campaigns spanning World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Battle ashore in the blazing heat of Peleliu in September 1944 to discover the Japanese have changed their strategy and you are forced to dig them out of the coral ridges. Flares reveal waves of Chinese pouring over the rugged mountains of the Chosin Reservoir, Korea, in sub zero weather in November 1950. Fight house to house in Hue City, Vietnam in February 1968. These three campaigns live on in the legends and history of the United States Marine Corps.

Fields of Fire is a solitaire game system that gives players the challenge of commanding a rifle company between World War II and Present Day. The game is different from many tactical games in that it is diceless and card based. There are two decks used to play. The Terrain Deck is based on a specific region and is used to build a map for the various missions your company must perform. The Action deck serves many purposes in controlling combat, command and control, various activity attempts. The units of the company are counters representing headquarters elements, squads, weapons teams, forward observers, individual vehicles or helicopters. A single playing is a mission and several missions from an historical campaign are strung together for the player to manage experience and replacements. A mission can be played in about 1 – 2 hours.

This volume of Fields of Fire is based on three actual campaigns experienced by units of the 5th Marines of the 1st Marine Division "Blue Diamond" in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam and is the second volume of the Fields of Fire series.

New features in Volume II:
* Amphibious Operations
* Urban warfare
* Flame throwers
* Demolitions
* Large squads and good order rifle teams
* Japanese fanaticism and Chinese Human Wave attacks
* Expanded Experience Options

Rules streamlining for use in Volume I and II
* Simplified Prisoner Handling
* Simplified use of Pyrotechnics

Components:
* Action Deck + Hint Cards - 55 Cards
* 3 Terrain Decks of 55 Cards, total of 165 Terrain Cards
* Rule Booklet
* Campaign Briefing Booklet
* Extended Examples of Play Booklet
* Company Log Pad (8.5x11 – expendable)
* 1 x 8.5 x 11 Command Asset Holding Display (Two Sided - WWII/Korea on one side, Vietnam on the other)
* 1 x 8.5 x 11 Command Track (for tracking commands saved and activations)
* 1 x 8.5 x 11 Aircraft Control Card (Two Sided - USMC on one, US Army on the other for use with Volume I)
* 1 x 8.5 x 11 Player Aid Card Action Menu Front – Vehicle Info Back
* 1 Tri-Fold Player Aid Card
* 1 x 8.5 x 11 Enemy Activity Card
* 5 Sheets of large counters and markers (880)
* Includes USMC, Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), Communist Chinese Forces (CCF), and North Vietnamese Army (NVA) units, vehicles and informational markers.

Campaigns:
* Peleliu September-October 1944 (8 Offensive Missions=
* Chosin Reservoir November-December 1950 (4 Defensive, 3 Offensive Missions)
* Hue City February 1968 (6 Offensive Missions)

Designer: Ben Hull
Developer: Ricky Gray

Flashpoint: South China Sea is a two-player strategy game that simulates the complex geopolitical contest currently taking place between the United States and China in a disputed region of the South China Sea. The game is driven by a card deck that captures developments ripped straight from today’s headlines, bolstered by cards with a context-setting reading of recent history, and a set of speculative cards capturing a diverse range of potential future events. 

The Chinese player works to influence other countries in the region, establish territorial claims and regional hegemony, and improve its world standing. The U.S. player works to maintain influence with allied countries in the region, secure freedom of navigation, and keep China in check. Success for both players hinges on the support and allegiance of non-player countries in the region. The game stops short of dealing with a potential full-scale military conflict. Rather, it requires the nuanced exercise of political, economic, and military resources, in a form of prima facie diplomacy – on the waters, in the air, and ultimately in the minds of the people – to achieve victory.

Each player manages a hand of cards that can be used immediately for various operations, or may be held for future operations under more favorable circumstances. 

Strategically, there are several key focal points for the players:
* First, the US player bears the burden of keeping the region’s shipping lanes free and open. If the US player falls behind in Freedom of Navigation Operations, Chinese claims grow and game momentum will shift.
* Both players must take heed of the game’s Tension Track, which directly influences the impact of events. If the Track is not managed properly, a high level of tension can increase the stakes and derail the 'best-laid plans'. 
* The Chinese player must work to improve Chinese World Standing, which affords them added influence as their World Standing increases. The US player can win by reducing Chinese World Standing to a critically low level. 
* Protagonist countries in the region are key influence battlegrounds for the players. This represents the pragmatic reality that claimant countries in the region have unique impact on international dispute resolution mechanisms. If the Chinese can influence them to the point that they will not exercise those claims, the Chinese position is strengthened. If the US can influence and support them to consistently exercise their claims, China’s position is weakened. In the game, both players attempt to assert economic and military influence on these claimant countries.
* In order to increase the strength of their claims in the region, the Chinese can develop islands. This development will cost influence in the region and increase Tension, but is a cornerstone of Chinese strategy. To counter these claims, the United States must conduct offsetting Freedom of Navigation Operations. These Freedom of Navigation Operations help keep the Chinese claims in check but must be diligently maintained.

As the United States player, can you defend the claims of your allies, stare down the Chinese player in a high stakes game of chicken, and use your economic and military influence in the region to thwart China’s expansion? Can you erode or limit Chinese World Standing while frustrating their ambitions, without allowing Tension to get out of control? 

As the Chinese player, can you use your developing economic and military power in the region to solidify your claims and develop strategic dominance of the region?

Flashpoint: South China Sea lets you determine how this conflict will play out in a fast-to-play, easy-to-learn game.

COMPONENTS:
* 22 x 17" mounted map board
* 35 wooden influence cubes and markers
* 63 cards
* Rulebook, Solitaire Rulebook, and Playbook
* 3 Player Aids

DESIGNER: Harold Buchanan
DEVELOPER: Jason Carr
GRAPHICS: Terry Leeds
PRODUCERS: Mark Simonitch, Tony Curtis, Andy Lewis, Gene Billingsley

On June 29, 2014, ISIL proclaimed a worldwide caliphate based on an Islamic State carved out of swaths of Iraq and Syria, with its capital city in Ar-Raqqah, Syria. Its forces moved forward quickly, capturing Mosul and threatening Baghdad and key areas of Syria. The Caliphate reached its territorial high water mark in late 2015. The Obama Doctrine called for local allies to bear the brunt of the fighting after being trained and organized by US Forces, and supported by an extra-heavy dose of Allied Air Power. Would this slow but methodical approach reclaim the recently lost territory or would the Jihadist Jugernaught continue its unstoppable advance?

A year later, on January 20, 2017, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th President of the United States. It did not take long for him to exert his brand of leadership on the national and world stage. Immediate efforts were made to secure US borders from both illegal immigration and access by terrorists. Trump also followed the previous policies of the Obama administration to dismantle ISIL primarily from the air, with focused operations by Special Forces to lead regional allies in rolling back the Caliphate. ISIL was effectively disenfranchised as a land-holding power by November 2017. Trump did distance himself from Obama by pledging to withdraw from the Iran Nuclear Deal, which he accomplished on May 8, 2018, much to the dismay of his European allies. International tensions played out in Asia as well with both North Korea and China requiring lengthy negotiations. Europe displayed an autonomy of action that frequently misaligned with US interests. And then there was Russia, who played their game both face-to- face and online!

Now it’s your turn to be the President. Can you use the machinery of state to achieve better results than “the Donald”, or will you be distracted in your pursuit of US prestige and international security by numerous global and domestic adversaries?

Labyrinth: The Forever War, 2015 - ? is a 1-2 player card-driven boardgame simulating at the strategic level the ongoing bid by Islamist extremists to impose their brand of religious rule on the Muslim world. It continues where Labyrinth: The Awakening, 2010 - ? left off and adds new event cards and rules to cover the last five years of history. Since publication of Labyrinth and its first expansion, fans of the game have expressed a desire to update it based on more recent events, and a variety of event card ideas and variants have been freely shared online. This second expansion to the Labyrinth game series fulfills that continuing interest by providing up-to-date event cards and allows the game to continue to serve as an effective strategic level model of the ongoing struggles in the Muslim world.

Labyrinth: The Forever War, 2015 - ? uses the exact same rules, victory conditions, map, components, and charts as its predecessor game and expansion. Ownership of Labyrinth and Labyrinth: The Awakening, 2010 - ? is required for play. Much has happened in the Muslim World since the end of the Labyrinth: Awakening event deck (roughly 2015), with a number of sub-themes across the globe that give rise to a new narrative that has been playing out over the last five years; these include:

* Growth and then Collapse of the physical Islamic State Caliphate
* Increased Iranian/Saudi Arabian Rivalry and Proxy War
* Government Repression of Expression (Syria, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, etc.)
* Increased Women’s Rights Activism across the region
* Increased Russian and other International involvement in the Middle East
* Incredible violence outside the Middle East from ISIL and others across Europe, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and elsewhere
* Impact of President Donald Trump and his personality on US Foreign Policy
* Continued activity of African Jihadists
* Plight of International Refugees
* Emerging Main-Power Rivalry between the US, Russia, China, EU and the UK
* US ceding some degree of autonomy in portions of the globe in exchange for greater regional security

Except for the first item on this list, none of these have been fully resolved, though some have made movements in one direction or the other. Labyrinth: Forever War is designed to explore each of the above issues as part of the larger conflict between the West and Jihadist elements, which continues to this day, even if at a lower intensity than seen in the previous 15 years.

During the time from covered by the Labyrinth: The Forever War expansion (2015-to present), much has transpired: the physical Islamic State has collapsed, and no new nations have fallen into Civil War. Governance has improved in other areas too, with both Syria and Nigeria in the process of stabilizing, though the conflicts in Yemen and Libya still are unresolved and the former is growing to replace Syria as the country with the current greatest threat to the human condition within its borders. Forever War will explore all of the above in a competitive political-military simulation, and as a current events game, perhaps help each of us understand the ongoing and evolving global rivalries in a better light.

Labyrinth The: Forever War comes with four scenarios, two of which can be linked to the previous games to allow up to 360 event card combinations for near endless variety and discussion. No new major rules are introduced in this expansion, allowing players familiar with Labyrinth and Awakening to get right into the game with minimal reading. The Rule and Play Book includes game expansion design analysis and a detailed description of all 120 events cards and the thoughts behind the effects represented in the game. The solitaire system will allow play for both sides and will include enhancements to the Bots for all three games in the series. For fans of the Labyrinth series and of current events in general, this bargain purchase will add increased value and enjoyment to your collection and provide many hours of gaming enjoyment and political discussion.

Note: This expansion uses the same map, base rules, victory conditions, components and charts, from its predecessor games, thus ownership of Labyrinth: The War on Terror, 2001 - ? and Labyrinth: The Awakening, 2010 - ? is required for play.

COMPONENTS:
* Combined Rules of Play and Play Book
* 120 Event Cards
* 3 Double-sided 8 x 11 Card Stock Reference Cards (1 side for updated tables and 5 sides for Bot charts)
* 13 new markers (16 Events (3 double sided)) 9/16 of an inch and 1 larger 9/16 x 1.5 inch counter
* Large, Game Expansion style Zip-loc bag in-lieu of box

DESIGNER Trevor Bender
ORIGINAL Labyrinth DESIGNER Volko Ruhnke
DEVELOPERS Jason Carr and Joel Toppen
BOTs DEVELOPER Adam Zahm

This third Next War supplement will contain the following items:
* An expansion map containing the rest of Kaliningrad and a larger portion of Lithuania including the strategically important railroad connection.
* Optional expansion map which depict the islands of Bornholm and Gotland as hex based maps as well as rules to integrate them into the game.
* Two counter sheets containing additional and updated counters for most of the nationalities in Poland including:
- New and additional ground OOB for Russia
- Typhoons w/ Meteor
- Additional ground units for Poland
- Belgian F-35s
- US F/A-18s w/ AMRAAMs
- Belarus Su-30s
* Additional counters for other games in the series including:
- Indian S-400s
- PRC DF21s/26s
- Updated ROK Order of Battle for Next War: Korea (either edition)
* Additional counters and Player Aid Cards for revamped Cyber Warfare rules. These new rules use the Cyber War counters from previous Supplements.
* A few optional rules.

Effectively, this supplement is an upgrade kit for Next War: Poland, 1st Edition to the 2nd Edition, but, of course, it also includes goodies such as the additional counters, the ROK OoB, new Cyber Warfare rules, and assorted other optional rules.

Game Designer: Mitchell Land

You can say that the story of "People Power" in the Philippines started with one airplane arriving in Manila and ended with another one departing. On August 21, 1983, exiled opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. returned from the United States to his homeland. He expected to be arrested, but also fatefully contemplated, as his plane approached Manila, the possibility that he might not survive the homecoming. Tragically, moments after disembarking, he was shot dead by a conspirator on the airport tarmac.

This episode would embolden and mobilize the opposition to the Marcos regime and set in motion a chain of events that would conclude with the departure of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos some three years later, after more than twenty years of autocratic rule. This is a story of greed and corruption at the highest levels of government, of a dictator who ruled with an iron fist, and of a grass-roots opposition that stood up to him, revolted, and eventually drove him from power in disgrace. It was a revolution that displayed that there is great power in a united, determined group of individuals. Just a few short years before the Iron Curtain fell in Germany, Filipino patriots showed the world the power of a people united to topple a tyrant. At its heart, it is the story of "People Power."

People Power: Insurgency in the Philippines, 1983-1986 is volume XI of the highly-praised and popular COIN Series originally designed by Volko Ruhnke. People Power features three separate factions, instead of the customary four.

* The first faction is the Government, symbolized by the personal rule of Ferdinand Marcos, his wife Imelda, and his political cronies and military forces.
* Second are the NPA. Inspired by successful Marxist revolutions in China, Cuba and Nicaragua, these insurgents sought a national uprising from both the urban and rural populace and desired to replace the Marcos government with their own brand of autonomy.
* The third and final faction is the non-violent Reformers, embodied by Aquino’s widow, Corazon. She, along with her allies and supporters in that moment of tragedy, revived a platform of social justice and unrelenting momentum that would irrevocably change the Philippine political landscape immeasurably.

For players new to the COIN Series, or for those looking to teach the the series to their friends, People Power will serve as an excellent introductory game. Aiming for a 2 hour playtime and accessible complexity, People Power utilizes many of the basic COIN Series mechanics in new and familiar ways. The 22" x 17" map aids in introducing the game to a new player, as it presents only two types of terrain - Cities and Countrysides (where the latter amalgamates the rural settings of the island nation as well as much lightly-habitable terrain of jungles and mountains). Don't let the fast play and basic systems fool you, though. There are still plenty of strategic puzzles and inter-player backstabbing to be had! Also, People Power includes a new feature for the COIN Series - a Key Personality mini-hand procedure that represents the effectiveness of various generals and power brokers adding a new dimension to player actions and decisions.

As with most of the COIN Series games, People Power immerses players in an unfolding dramatic narrative that pits insurgent forces against a government that seeks to defeat them, while a third party seeks to thwart both. For you COIN Series veterans, here's a brief synopsis of how People Power presents the inter-faction dynamics:

* NPA Victory comes in the form of amassing NPA Bases, and instead of Support or Opposition, NPA "Resistance". Their Operations and Special Activities are not only indicative of most Cold War era revolutionary movements but also distinct in its application to its domestic agendas.
* The Government uses Support and Control to funnel patronage to cronies and the Marcos' family. Their Operations and Special Activities allow them to operate against the NPA (as in previous COIN volumes) and to subvert the activities and thwart the plans of the non-violent Reformers, as well.
* The Reformers (the historical victors) win by having both Reformer Bases and Opposition. Their Operations and Special Activities tools are not as powerful or intimidating as their armed foes but are crafted to provide them with persuasive social impact in a war of ideas.

Here's a bit more detail on some of the COIN Series modifications and additions that you'll get in People Power:

* People Power is one of the lower complexity COIN games with a much shorter play time, which can be utilized as a primer for those who wish to learn the system as a gateway to the other more complex games in the series.
* Propaganda Turns have been replaced by a two-turn Election cycle.
* The Personality Cards are representations of political, military and cultural figures; the “Newsmakers” of their time. Each card grants a different 'momentum' effect for each campaign.
* The Acts of Desperation deck serves to model the chaotic final three days of the People Power Revolution by giving players secret objectives that are scored during the final victory check.

We have crafted People Power to deliver a simple and fast game that will challenge and delight both veterans and newcomers to the COIN Series. It's designed to be a fast, fun, nail-biter of a game that never plays the same way twice. Like all of our COIN Series games, People Power also transports players to a (perhaps unfamiliar) historical setting and immerses them in the issues and conflicts of that place and time. Although it is first and foremost a competitive game, we believe it also presents great value with its historical insight and analysis about those fateful years that brought a country to the brink of civil war, then resolved the drama with an unprecedented reawakening of democracy, freedom, and hope.

COMPONENTS:
* 17x22 inch mounted mapboard
* One Event Deck
* Card-Driven Solo-System Deck
* 80 Wooden Pieces
* 12 pawns
* One full-size, full-color counter sheet
* Rules of Play booklet
* Playbook booklet
* Three 6-sided dice
* Three foldout play aid sheets

DESIGNER: Kenneth Tee
DEVELOPERS: Eric Harvey and Jason Carr
GRAPHIC ART: Donal Hegarty, Eric Harvey, and Mark Simonitch

TIME SCALE: Yearly turns
MAP SCALE: Area map
PLAY TIME: 2-3 hours
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 1 - 3

Phantom Leader – Solitaire

What’s New in the Deluxe Edition?
Add Air Force and Navy Campaigns for the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis
Upgrade to a mounted 11"x17" Tactical Display
We have expanded and updated the original Phantom Leader game to the high standard set by our Hornet Leader game.

Increase the cards from 165 to 330
- All pilots get all 6 experience levels
- Add new aircraft: Air Force F-5, Air Force A-7, Navy A-5
- Add more pilots for all aircraft types
- Add more Target cards
- Add more Special Event cards
- Revise the 6 original Campaigns to include the new Targets and Aircraft

Phantom Leader places you in command of a US Air Force or US Navy Tactical Fighter squadron in Vietnam between 1964 and 1972. You must not only destroy the targets but you must also balance the delicate political repercussions of your attacks. If you strike too hard, your air offensive might be put on hold, strike to light, and you’ll be blamed for losing the war.

Welcome to the Vietnam Air War!

Each of the campaigns can be played with either an Air Force or Navy squadron. The targets assigned to each service are different and change the complexion of the campaigns. Each campaign can be played with three different durations of: Skirmish, Conflict, or War.

Each mission takes roughly 30 minutes to set-up, plan, and resolve.

Each of your pilots has their own skills. Selecting the right pilots and weapons for a mission is vital to its success. As you fly missions, your pilots will gain experience and fatigue. With experience, their skills improve, but as their fatigue increases, their skills decrease and they might not be able to fly for several missions.

For those of you familiar with our modern era Hornet Leader series of games, you might be wondering what’s different about Phantom Leader...

The freedom of being able to select the best mission based on military objectives is something that is commonplace for today’s military. Back in Vietnam, the military was responsible for carrying out their orders, while at the same time being extremely limited in the weapons and tactics they were allowed to use to complete those orders. In many cases, the specific weapons, approach paths, and bombing altitudes were generated target-by-target at the White House. The mission specifics were then sent down the chain of command to the individual pilots flying the mission. As you can imagine, this was not the best way to run an air campaign.

Every target has a Political value. If you destroy it, you move the Political counter to the right a number of spaces equal to its value. As the counter gets moved to the right, your future target choices are reduced to those that are less politically sensitive. Which target you choose not to attack is also important. You get to move the Political counter to the left a number of spaces equal its Political value.

This means that while you might like to flatten a big enemy target and rack up the victory points, it might be better for you to choose a pointless target and move the Political counter in your favor instead.

Another difference is in combat power. For the last couple decades, the US Air Force and Navy have enjoyed air superiority due to training and technology. Such was not the case in the skies over Vietnam. The enemy had different, but just as capable, equipment. They also had the training and will to use it to its utmost.

They soon became aware of the limitations placed on the US forces by the politicians, and used those limitations to their advantage.

For example, at times, US pilots were not permitted to fire on enemy aircraft until they were visually identified. This negated any range advantage conveyed by the radar-homing AIM-7 Sparrow missiles. It was also a common limitation that enemy aircraft could only be attacked in the air. US pilots were not allowed to attack enemy airbases. US aircraft were also limited to flying predictable flight paths, at set times. This made setting up ambushes much easier for the enemy.

So, while you might be a Hornet Leader ace, Vietnam is a whole different ballgame!

Components:
* 330 Full color Cards
* Full Color Rulebook
* 2 Full Color Counter Sheets (176 - 5/8” counters)
* 8 Full Color Campaign Sheets
* 1 11”x17” Full Color Mounted Tactical Display
* 2 Full Color Sheets
* 1 Ten-sided die
* 1 Full Color Player Log

Scheduled Aircraft:
* F-4 Phantom IIs (USAF)
* F-105 Thunderchiefs (USAF)
* F-100 Super Sabers (USAF)
* F-104 Starfighters (USAF)
* F-105G Wild Weasels (USAF)
* F-5 Freedom Fighters (USAF)
* A-7 Corsair IIs (USAF)
* EB-66 (USAF)

* F-4 Phantom IIs (USN)
* A-4 Skyhawks (USN)
* A-6 Intruders (USN)
* F-8 Crusaders (USN)
* A-7 Corsair IIs (USN)
* A-5 Vigilantes (USN)
* EA-6 (USN)

Scheduled Campaigns:
* 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis (USAF)
* 1964 War in the South (USAF)
* 1967 Rolling Thunder (USAF)
* 1972 Linebacker (USAF)
* 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis (USN)
* 1964 War in the South (USN)
* 1967 Rolling Thunder (USN)
* 1972 Linebacker (USN)

The Air War Over the Baltic, 1987

Red Storm: Baltic Approaches is the first expansion for GMT’s Red Storm game of operational level air combat between NATO and the Warsaw Pact. Red Storm: Baltic Approaches adds the air forces of three new countries (Denmark, Sweden, and Poland) along with additional units for nations represented in Red Storm, including US Marine Corps aircraft. The game will also add naval units, anti-ship missiles, maritime weather, and rules covering other facets of air combat in the predominantly maritime domain of the western Baltic.

Scenarios featuring mission types from Red Storm (close air support, interdiction, air defense suppression, and deep strike) will be joined by new types focused on raids against enemy ships, amphibious operation support, airborne drops, and aerial mining. Solo scenarios, using the Bot system introduced in Red Storm, will also be included.

  New aircraft types will include the F-4S Phantom, AV-8B Harrier II, F/A-18A Hornet, A-6E Intruder, EA-6B Prowler, Atlantic 2, P-3C Orion, F-35XD Draken, JA-37/AJ-37 Viggen, Tu-22M Backfire, Su-20 Fitter, Tu-95 Bear, IL-38 May, and more. Naval units range from cruisers and destroyers down through amphibious ships, missile patrol craft, and other types from the various countries whose navies would be engaged in the area.

Important: Players will need a copy of Red Storm: The Air War Over Central Germany, 1987 to play Red Storm: Baltic Approaches .

COMPONENTS:
* 2 x Maps (34" x 22")
* 1 x Rules booklet
* 1 x Scenario booklet
* 1 x Appendices booklet
* 1 x Counter Sheet
* 1 x Player Aid Card (11 x 17)
* 1 x USSR/Poland Aircraft Data Card
* 1 x NATO/Sweden Aircraft Data Card
* 1 x USN/USMC Aircraft Data Card
* 1 x Warsaw Pact Naval Data Card
* 1 x NATO Naval Data Card
* 1 x Pad of Naval Unit Log Sheets

SYSTEM DESIGNER: Lee Brimmicombe-Wood
MAP and COUNTER ART: Dariusz Buraczewski and Mark Simonitch
PRODUCTION COORDINATOR: Tony Curtis
PRODUCERS: Andy Lewis, Mark Simonitch, Tony Curtis, Rodger MacGowan, Gene Billingsley

Twilight Struggle: Red Sea – Conflict in the Horn of Africa is a two-player, stand-alone, card-driven game that builds on the award-winning Twilight Struggle.

The year is 1974, and the Soviet Union and the United States have been locked in a life-or-death struggle across the globe. As so often happened during the Cold War, a relatively obscure region of the world suddenly took center stage. Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia, a bedrock U.S. ally in Africa, had grown old and increasingly dictatorial. In 1974, a group of young Marxist officers staged a coup and took hold of the the reins of power. This revolutionary leadership sparked a chain of events that upset the regional balance of power and unleashed all the familiar elements of Cold War competition in the Horn of Africa.

Twilight Struggle: Red Sea asks players to once more answer the summons of the trumpets and bear the burden of a twilight struggle, this time centered around East Africa, the Arabian Gulf, and the vital sea lanes stretching between them. Twilight Struggle: Red Sea is an addition to GMT's Lunchtime Series and packs deep decision-making into a time frame that allows players to get in a quick game or explore different strategies several times in one session. With a more limited scope and much shorter playtime, Twilight Struggle: Red Sea is the perfect way to introduce new players to the Twilight Struggle system. And yet, this game maintains all the tension, decision making, and theme of the original classic. 

As an added bonus for a longer game, cards from Twilight Struggle can be integrated in TS: Red Sea and players can add new decisions and Cold War events to their games of Twilight Struggle by incorporating cards from TS: Red Sea.

GAME CONTENTS:
* One 20" x 14" Mounted Map
* 51 Event Cards
* 1 Countersheet
* 2 Player Aids
* 2 Solo Aids
* Rules Booklet
* Solo Rules & Background Booklet
* Two custom 6-sided dice

Playing Time: 35 minutes for the base game.

Game Designer: Jason Matthews