Stargard Solstice
by
Three Crowns Games
It is 1945 and the Red Army is seeking vengeance for the horrors that were perpetrated in the Motherland. Conversely, the German Army is trying to hold back the red hordes from invading the Fatherland. The Germans are attempting to strike with Operation Solstice (Sonnenwende). Meanwhile, the Soviets are starting their East Pomeranian Campaign. The Germans are scraping the bottom of the barrel as far as manpower and armaments. The Soviets are also low on manpower, but they have plenty of artillery, tanks, and planes to support their offensive.
This is what Three Crown Games has to say about their game:
"Stargard Solstice starts with one of the last German offensives of 1945, ‘Operation Solstice’. At the beginning Guderian had planned a pincer move to relieve Küstrin, but Hitler wanted to save troops to retake Budapest. This resulted in changing objectives to the relief of Festung Arnswalde and trying to cut the Soviet supply route towards Küstrin. The historical objective for the Soviets was to drive the Germans out of Pomerania and thereby protect their right flank while preparing to take Küstrin and make the final thrust towards Berlin. Stargard Solstice is a game recreating this campaign in Pomerania from 15th February – 6th March, 1945."
This is what comes with the game:
A full color A1 map
16 page rulebook
286 high quality, 15mm die cut counters
Front and Back cover with game aids, charts and tables
Sturdy 100my ZIP-lock bag
Game Turn: 2 days
Hex: about 3 to about 4 km
Units: Battalion to Division
Solitaire Playability: High
Complexity Level: Medium
Players: 2 or more
Playing Time: 3-10 hours
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| Soviet counters |
The map is a standard size one. It has large hexes and is easy to read. The Turn Record Track and some German and Soviet holding boxes are on it. As far as wargames maps go this is pretty standard. On its plus side is that there is no ambiguity to the terrain in each hex. The counters are also large and easy to read. There is no difficulty in distinguishing between the counters for setup purpose. Their color is pretty standard also, black for SS, gray for Army (Heer), with the Soviet regular troops brown and the guards units being red. Watch out when dealing with the counters. They look like the older ones we are used to, but these want to detach from the sprues in a slight breeze. The Rulebook is in black and white on thick paper. It is printed in double columns and the type is large. The Rulebook is sixteen pages long. The actual rules are only twelve pages and then comes the setup, Optional Rules, Designer Notes, and finally Random Events. There are two cardstock full page Player Aids. These are in full color. Most of the writing is fine, but the Terrain Chart writing is small. What we have here is a fine group of components for a wargame.
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| German counters |
This is the Sequence of Play:
Air Unit Phase
Refitted Unit Return Segment
Grounded Unit Refitting Segment
Random Event Phase
Random Event Table Roll Segment
Command Phase
Command Segment
Movement Segment
Combat Segment
Supply Phase
Reinforcement Phase
Reinforcement Segment
Soviet Replacement Segment
Volkstrum Deployment Segment
End of Turn Phase
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| German counter with a Hetzer on it |
This is the fourth game in Three Crowns Games WWII Battle Series. Some of the other games in the system are:
Iskra, Tolling of the Bell, Konigsberg 45, Across the Narva
The game series has all the rules about everything we grognards expect to see: Fog of War, Command Chits, Regular and Strategic Movement, Rail Movement, Stacking, Reinforcements, Barrage, Retreats, Supply etc.
So, pretty much if it walks, and looks and plays like a grognards wargame, it is one. This game and all of Three Crown Games games are meat and potatoes for grognards. Nothing too overly fancy with great gameplay. I have always liked the Random Events that they come up with in all of their games I have played. One thing about the game in the Designer Notes is the fact that the OOBs for the game are probably not spot on for the actual battle. It has all of the major units listed but, especially on the German side, it is hard to say for certain. With the destruction of records and the German forces completely falling apart, to assemble a complete OOB without any errors would be practically impossible.
The game plays like any wargame about the Eastern front in 1945. As the Soviet player, you are supposed to charge forward and crush everything with your tank tracks. As the German player, you are really emulating Hans Brinker. The only problem is that you only have so many digits to plug the holes. The game adds some chrome with a counter for Rudel among other things.
The Victory Conditions are:
Soviet Sudden Death Victory: If the Soviets have any of the Victory Hexes in Stettin.
German Sudden Death Victory: If the German player can get three attack-capable units off the map through the Landsberg Supply Line.
The normal Victory Conditions are based on the Soviet possession of Victory Point Hexes.
Thank you, Three Crown Games, for allowing me to review another of your great wargames.
Robert
Three Crowns Games:
War Game Design | Three Crowns Games Production (3cg)
Stargard Solstice:
Stargard Solstice | 3CG (threecrownsgames.com)
Please see my review of their East Prussian Carnage:
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