Wacht am Rhein (game)
Wacht am Rhein is a grand tactical monster board wargame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1977 that simulates Germany's Battle of the Bulge offensive in late 1944 during World War II. Description. In December 1944, in an operation codenamed ""Wacht am Rhein"" ("Watch on the Rhine"), the German army tried to break through the lightly guarded Ardennes Forest sector in an attempt to drive a wedge through the Allied armies, take the port of Antwerp and force a separate negotiated peace with the British, French and American allies. "Wacht am Rhein" is a  simulation of that conflict, a grand tactical two-player wargame set at the battalion and company level. With 1400 counters, it is considered a "monster" wargame. Components. The game was packaged in either a clear plastic flat box that incorporated counter trays, or a standard cardboard bookshelf game box. Both boxes included: Scenarios. Two smaller scenarios use limited counters and only one of the four maps, and are designed to allow the players to learn the rules. Two larger scenarios use all four maps joined together into a 44" x 68" master map representing the entire front of the U.S.  V and VII Corps, and use all 1400 counters. Gameplay. Each day is divided into a morning turn representing 4 hours, an afternoon turn representing 4 hours, and an evening turn representing 15 hours. At the start of each morning turn the Allied player randomly determines the weather conditions for the day, and both players allocate their air missions for the day. Both players also check to see if any of their isolated units have surrendered. During each turn, the Allied player acts first: Once the Allied player is finished, the German player gets the same phases. Once both players  have completed their turn, there is a Mutual Fatigue Reduction phase. At the end of each night game turn, but before the start of the next day, each player — the Allied player first and then the German player — may choose to take a Night Bonus Game Turn. Any units that move during this Bonus Turn have a chance to be "fatigued" the next day, halving their movement and attack factors until they recover; and any units that are involved in night combat are always fatigued the next day until they recover. There are also several optional rules that can be  used with the agreement of both players, including new artillery rules, engineer rules for the German forces, and morale rules. Publication history. SPI had previously published two small board wargames about the "Battle of the Bulge": "The Ardennes Offensive" (1973), and "Bastogne: The Desperate Defense" (1976). "Wacht am Rhein", considerably larger and more complex than either of its predecessors, was designed by Jim Dunnigan, with cartography and artwork by Redmond Simonsen, and was published by SPI in 1977. Several errors and ambiguities in the rules and set up were discovered after the game's release, and SPI published a set  of errata in "Fire & Movement" #8. "Wacht am Rhein" was not a bestsller for SPI. Although the game was #2 in SPI sales in April 1977, it fell to 10th place only two months later, and permanently disappeared off SPI's Top 10 list by the end of the summer. When TSR took over SPI in 1983 and sought to get an immediate return on its money by re-printing a number of SPI titles, "Wacht am Rhein" was not included. Reception. In Issue 40 of "Moves", Jim Govostes liked some of the innovative rules such as the Night Bonus  Game Turn, and overall found the scenarios to be balanced, and the effects of the terrain and limited roads equally as frustrating for both players. Govostes thought that leader counters should have been included, as they were in SPI's "Highway to the Reich" (1977), pointing out that "There were several prominent men who affected the outcome of the battle." Despite some quibbles about various rules, Govostes concluded with a strong recommendation, saying, "I heartily and highly recommend "Wacht am Rhein". While there are flaws, they are small. The guts of the game system is a thing to behold. The  game can take one from the very heights of euphoria to the depths of utter frustration easily. It is one of my choices for SPI's best." The website "SPI Wargame Resources" believes that "Wacht am Rhein" "has stood the test of time to become one of the top 5 monster games in history."