Game of the Week, Apr 21 to 27
Hi everyone,
It’s Monday again, and it’s time for Game of the Week!
This week’s Game of the Week is John Tiller’s first independent game, Panzer Campaigns: Smolensk ‘41. Smolensk ’41 has aged well with multiple updates for both game system and game play over the years. It has also been mentioned as one of the more dynamic titles for both maneuver and action in the Panzer Campaigns series.
Panzer Campaigns: Smolensk ‘41 covers one of the initial actions by the Soviets to blunt the Axis Barbarossa offensive. Starting on July 7th, two weeks after the Russo-German war began, a failed Soviet mechanized attack allowed Guderian a chance to cross the Dnepr River. Understanding the significance of the breaching of this river barrier, newly activated Russian army formations were moved to protect the road to Moscow, through Smolensk. What was to follow was the first real check on the German advance.
Panzer Campaigns: Smolensk ‘41 is the latest 4.05.1 version, and our product description encapsulates this campaign well:
This title covers the German operational level attack on Smolensk, the gateway to Moscow, in July 1941. This battle is one of exploitation, where units race across the steppes in an effort to encircle masses of Russian troops. The first in the Series and still the favorite of many Panzer Campaign Players. In the summer of 1941, the German invasion of the Soviet Union was sweeping over the forward defenses. As Army Group Center approached the Dnepr River, the Red Army regrouped in an attempt to hold them in the vicinity of the historic city of Smolensk. Who will win this campaign in the Russian heartland?
The game comes with 46 scenarios which include all the historical forces that were allocated to the campaign.
The longest campaign scenario is a very manageable 170 turns, with most scenarios a very playable sub-30 turns.
The master map (83,916 hexes) covers the entire area from the Drut River in the west to Smolensk, Yelnya and Vyazma on the major highway to Moscow.
As well as the aforementioned scenarios and campaigns, Panzer Campaigns: Smolensk ‘41 includes a Getting Started scenario to introduce new players to the game system. The included scenarios are a good mix of small (Division), medium (Corps) and large (Army/Army Group) engagements.
The Order of Battle has over 4,500 units from the German, German SS, Luftwaffe, NKVD, and Russian forces that participated in the campaign.
We also included a lot of historical documentation and notes with this title. You can review each by clicking on the links below.
There has been a range of books covering The Smolensk battles in 1941. Following are some representative books for anyone that would like some more background on the campaign. You can click on the book images below to be taken to the Publisher or Amazon, if applicable.
Informational
“Barbarossa Derailed: The Battle for Smolensk 10 July-10 September 1941 - Volume 1: The German Advance, The Encirclement Battle and The First And Second Soviet Counteroffensives, 10 July-24 August 1941” by David M. Glantz.
David M. Glantz is no stranger to any serious Eastern Front devotee. This title is the first book in a four-book series covering the campaign. Glantz uses both German and Soviet Archival material to provide a balanced view of the nations newly at war, and the chaos of these early battles.
For reference, here are links to volumes 2, 3, and the dedicated atlas. All are available in Kindle if desired.
“Guderian 1941: The Barbarossa Campaign” by David R Higgins.
A great overview that reveals the lack of planning for an extended campaign on the German’s part: An in-depth account of the advance of Heinz Guderian’s Second Panzer Group across the central Soviet Union during Operation Barbarossa. During the first few weeks of Operation Barbarossa, Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, Heinz Guderian's Second Panzer Group played a leading role, cutting through the defenses on the border, then taking part in the massive encirclement battles near Minsk, Smolensk, and Kiev. The extraordinary speed of the advance reflects the experience of the Wehrmacht as a whole during the first phase of the war on the Eastern Front.
“Barbarossa 1941: An Atlas of German Army Situation Maps” by Kevin Boylan
For anyone wanting to understand the distances and time involved in the Smolensk and Barbarossa campaign, this atlas is for you: This atlas uses the contemporary daily situation maps produced by the German Army's General Staff to provide a clear historical and geographical picture of one of the pivotal campaigns of World War II. These maps show the configuration of the front line and the locations of major Axis combat formations, as well as the deployments and movements of Soviet combat units as the German military intelligence understood them. The maps are supported by a detailed commentary summarizing and analyzing the operations depicted, tracing the day-to-day progress of the fighting on the Eastern Front.
Now for video content:
The Mack has thirteen episodes covering Panzer Campaigns: Smolensk ’41. The introduction episode is below:
The full playlist is here:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZF8xPbQMJqdVtRxT3nfPcYmmsM_iMpXB
Leigh58 has a play through of the Smolensk '41, Tutorial 2 scenario:
War Academy has an excellent overview video here:
Following are some in-game screen shots of what to expect. Each image can be clicked for a full-sized view.
As mentioned, the build we are making available today is a the newest 4.05.1. A range of new features were included, and you can read the Changelog here. All new purchases will be this latest version.
If you don’t already own this title, what are you waiting for? You can buy it directly from the dedicated product page.
We hope you enjoy this week’s Game of the Week. Like all WDS titles, there is a lot of game play included at a very attractive price.
It is hopped for decades that the Smolensk’41 map be expanded, as a big part of the battlefield is still missing.
In early 2000, the PC capacity did not allow for such a big map. But 25 years later, there is no more issue in expanding it. I hope that this issue will be adressed anytime soon.
The panzer campaigns are the games I have played the least and therefore I appreciate being able to pick them up on sale for future play. The book recommendations are great, nothing prepares you for a game like reading up on the details of the battles ahead of time and the Barbarossa Derailed trilogy looks like a good read to me. I also appreciate the video links, The Mack for play throughs, others for overview of the battle. Looking forward to trying this one soon.
I agree fully with David. This is my favorite amongst all the Eastern Front games. And thats up against some pretty stiff competion. If you dont own it, you must buy it now. And, of course, read the Glantz books and compare. You will have the perfect study of the campaign. I have a game going now and the fighting around Orsha and Vitebsk is fierce.
Great title, my first Panzer Campaigns title, great battle! Must have if you want to maneuver and fight with Grudarian’s Second Panzer Grp and Hoth’s Third Panzer Grp equipped Panzer III’s and IV’s backed by 88’s, the Luftwaffe and the experience gained from Poland and France to smash though a stiffining Soviet resistance as the Timoshenko sends in anything he can find, BT-2’s, BT-7’s, T-34’s, and KV’s plus lots infantry and guns (most of them untried) to stop you and hold Smolensk. Should Grudarian wait for the infantry? Ten days? Or seize the opportunity to rush the Soviets before they form a credible defensive line and let the flanks take care of themselves? From meeting engagements, forced river crossings, to desperate holding actions and counterattacks, all to possess Smolensk, the key to Moscow!
This was my first Panzer Campaigns title (I own them all), and it is still my favorite.
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