Caporetto 1917
by
Europa Simulazioni
No one truly knows the actual casualty figures for the Italian Front in World War I. If you subscribe to the "Lions led by Donkeys" idea of the English Army on the Western Front let me introduce you to the Italian High Command in World War I. I am not sure what you could call what the Italian Army was forced to do on this front. Field Marshal Luigi Cadorna, commander of the Italian Army, seems to have had no strategic, operational, or tactical thinking in his body. He seemed to believe that his plans were the greatest thing since sliced bread. The only reason the Italian Army was not in Vienna was because of useless subordinates and cowardly troops under his command. His plans consisted of charging straight ahead time after time. What is that old adage about the definition of insanity? Including the Battle of Caporetto, there are 12 Battles of the Isonzo River. Almost all of them were Italians attacking the Austro-Hungarians. Several times, by the sheer weight of numbers, the Austro-Hungarians' line came close to collapsing. Unfortunately, Cadorna would not change his plan of battle to take advantage of these moments. So, we come to 1917, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire is on the ropes. Their massive casualty lists from the Italian and Russian Fronts have just about finished them. Now with the Russians out of the war you would think that they had a chance for revenge against the Italians. Unfortunately for them, this is not true. The Hapsburg Emperor asks the Germans for another favor. He wants to have a joint German and Austro-Hungarian attack on the Italian Front to push back the Italians and give his Army some breathing room. So, the stage is set for the Battle of Caporetto. We do have to introduce a young German officer by the name of Rommel. He has been promised the 'Pour le Merite', the highest Prussian Medal, if he captures Monte Majur. He actually does so but gets semi-cheated out of the medal by another officer. The mistake is rectified eventually, and Rommel will be seen in his World War II pictures with the Blue Max firmly in place. Onto the game!
This is what Europa Simulazioni has to say about the game:
"After Strafexpedition 1916, and Gorizia 1916, the third chapter is added to the Great War series: Caporetto 1917. Caporetto 1917 proposes the rules of the system in their updated version, to recreate, at battalion and company level, the most famous, tragic and controversial event of the Great War on the Italian Front.
Caporetto is a picturesque mountain village, located in the upper Soča valley. It has always been a border town; his German name is Karfreit, and its Slovenian name is Kobarid, but for the story he has the Italian name. Probably the most famous battle in Italian history, it is synonymous with "catastrophe", and in use in the Italian language with the same meaning. Also known as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, the Battle of Caporetto was the aftermath of the Eleventh Battle of the Isonzo, which saw the Italian army advance across the Isonzo River, creating a dangerous salient for both Ljubljana and Trieste. To drive the Italians back and make them unable to carry out new offensives quickly, an offensive was needed, but the weakened Austro-Hungarian Empire lacked sufficient resources. German help was therefore needed. Aid materialized in the 14th Army, composed of some of the best German divisions, experienced in mountain warfare, and returning from successes in Riga and Romania. But above all that they employed unknown tactics and materials on the Italian front. Operation "Waffentreue " (Fedeltà d'Armi) was born, with the aim of pushing back the Italians to the Tagliamento. The results went beyond expectations. Recall the story of the first fateful days of that battle.
The game system has been updated and refined in version 2.0. It is based on the concept of action and reaction by the formations, typically brigades or regiments, which make up the opposing armies. It is a system that requires planning in the activation of formations, provides for a lot of interaction between them, and, at first glance, it may seem demanding. The use of artillery is greatly important, as it is the morale of the fighting troops, which can deteriorate as a result of fatigue or fighting.
The third volume of the series proposes, in turns of 12 hours each, the first four decisive days of the battle of Caporetto, in four scenarios:
1. The historical battle: The complete battle in the first four days, with the historical disposition of the Italian Army, in which the two players are both attacking and defending, respectively manoeuvering one wing of each side: attacking with an Austro-German wing, defending with the Italian one opposite the opponent. Each player, or team of players, will have to reach their goals faster than the opponent.
2. The battle that might have been: The battle as it might have been if the Italians had been better prepared. The clash is between the Italian player, who can arrange his troops more carefully and respond more quickly to the enemy manoeuvres, and the Austro-German player, however stronger, who must break through against a prepared enemy.
3. The Battle of Cividale: The final phase of the breakthrough on the Italian right flank. A short scenario, to learn the system, or commit a little time.
4. The Fall of Monte Maggiore: The final phase of the breakthrough on the Italian left flank. This is also a short and undemanding scenario."
I was lucky enough to do a review of Gorizia 1916 for Europa Simulazioni; links will be below. However, it took a long time to find a copy of Strafexpedition 1916, and it was worth its weight in hens' teeth.
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| Close-up of the map |
This is what comes with the game:
Two 22"x34" maps covering the battlefield area, from Monte Canin and Rombon in the West, to the bridgehead of Tolmino in the East, from Bovec and Monte Nero in the North to Cividale and the Friuli plain in the South
A reduced map of the Tolmin beachhead, for managing artillery in that congested sector
1400 counters
System rules and specific rules for the game, including Rommel Grouping ( Rommel Abteilung ), Stosstruppen, gas and mine attacks, the Fog of Caporetto, and more
Very detailed order of battle, the result of years of research and information gathering
Terrain Effects Chart, Assault and Bombardment Tables sheet; sheets to contain: German battalions, which can be divided into companies
Assignment sheet for Italian formations
Sheet for eliminated units, Turn Record Track and Logistics Points.
Boxed
I was given a large coffee table book as a child about the great battles of history. For some unknown reason the Battle of Caporetto really stuck with me, and I have endeavored to get every book and game in English about this battle. While it is true that this game only shows us the first four days and a limited amount of the battle area on the map, it is by far the best representation I have found of the battle as of yet.
Both maps are beauties. They have large hexes, instead of ones the same size as the counters. The Printing on the maps is also nice and large. The terrain and elevation is incredibly varied in the area, so Europa Simulazioni has done a great job in not making it busy looking. The hexes do have different terrain in most of them. The rulebook uses the expedient of whatever terrain the dot in the center of the hex is that hexes terrain. So, there should be no arguments between players. The one-page Tolmin beachhead is an elegant way to deal with the artillery in that area.
The Rulebook is 28 pages long. It is in black and white and has two columns of type on each page. It does not have any examples of play, but it does have a few photos from the time. The actual length of the rules is about 21 pages. The reset of the rulebook is taken up by the different scenario information and historical notes along with design notes. The game comes with seven player aids. These are in full color and done in card stock. They are in both English and Italian. So, the player aids are either double-sided or separate sheets. The type on these is large and very easy to read. There is also a set of thick paper tear-off sheets for all for the different scenario setups and reinforcements, etc.
The counters are small at 1/2". As you can see below, the information on them is a bit busy. The leader counters have a small picture of the commander on them. This gives them a nice historical touch. I am on the fence about the counters. From a purely artwork point of view, they are excellent. It is just their size and the amount of information on them that gives me pause. However, I totally understand that to have around 1000 counters to show all of the troops involved, something had to give. As it is, the map does not show all of the area of the battle, just the main parts. To have larger counters would have caused the game to become a true monster wargame. Do I need to sometimes pick them up to read them, yes. Is this something I have been doing since the late 1960's, yes. So, my thoughts definitely fall onto the side of the counters are great, but I wish they were larger.
Other than my hemming and hawing over the counter size the components of the game are excellent. The maps are worth the admission price by themselves. It is now so easy to understand all of the books about the battle and why the battle progressed in the way it did. This is something that you, unfortunately, only get with a wargame about a campaign or battle and I am eternally grateful to designers for them. If I cannot understand what a writer is trying to tell me about the terrain, or why things happened in wars, wargames always come to the rescue.
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| Counter samples including you know who. |
So, components be damned, how does this beautiful Italian car drive? The rules and the maps etc. give the player a real World War I battlefield to move your counters around on. This is not just a cut and paste set of rules that would be just at home with tanks or elephants. The troops that you can control are:
Infantry
Mountain Infantry
Bersaglieri
Bicycle
Cavalry
Machine Guns
Engineer
Flamethrowers
Infiltration Capable Infantry - The Italian Arditi and the Central Powers Stormtroops.
The artillery units you can control, after all artillery was the king in World War I:
Light Artillery
Medium Artillery
Heavy Artillery
Bombard/Minenwerfer
The rules include Command Range, Stacking, Supply, Reaction, and yes, those horrific gas attacks. Playing as the Austro-Hungarian/German you need to act like water or oil. Do not attack needlessly and get bottled up against stiff Italian resistance. Flow like water trying to find the holes in a sieve. Press on for as fast and hard as you can. Once you have pierced the armor of the Italian crocodile, continue to surge forward into the Italian vitals. As the Italian player, play like you have played the Russians during Operation Barbarossa. Sacrifice your troops to gain time and space. You will be left reeling after the initial attack. However, try and make the A/H/G player dance to your tune. Try and channel them to where your reinforcements can stop them and then counterattack. Depending on the grognardness of the opposing player, this game can be a real nail biter. The first scenario has the interesting, but not unheard of, idea of one player controlling some troops from both sides during the battle. Therefore, you get to play as the attacker and defender at the same time but on different parts of the battlefield. Scenarios three and four are both two turn short ones. These both have a particularly important part of the battle but can also be used to learn the system before charging into the two larger scenarios. Scenario two is by far my favorite. This allows the Italian player to have either replaced Cadorna or given him something to turn his left lobe on. As the Italian player you can try and setup a defense against the A/H/G player. You are not left hanging out to dry when you realize that a hurricane is going to be let loose on you. This scenario represents most of the battles of World War I. Both sides know exactly where the other side is going to attack and take certain measures. I am not saying the A/H/G player cannot win but it is almost an entirely different game.
Thank you, Europa Simulazioni, for allowing me to review this excellent portrayal of one of World War I's greatest battles. I have been looking for this game for a long time.
Robert Peterson
Here are some of my Europa Simulations reviews:
Custoza Fields of Doom by Europa Simulazioni - A Wargamers Needful Things
Piacenza 1746 by Europa Simulazioni - A Wargamers Needful Things
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