Conflict of Heroes

[jbbnbsmith]

This game has been getting a lot of attention on BGG. Not that there is any shortage of squad-level WWII wargames, but this one has caught my attention. I'm not sure if I'm ready to jump into another "squad-leader light" system, but so far the reviews are pretty good. I'll probably wait and see what people are saying after the prerelease hype subsides a bit.

I can see it now (wavy lines as we move to a daydream sequence. It's game night at my house.)

ME: "So what should we play tonight? I've got Squad Leader, Advanced Squad Leader, Lock N Load: Band of Heroes, Tide of Iron, Memoir '44, UpFront, and Combat Commander Europe."

THEM: "Don't you have anythng different?"

ME: "Oh yes! I almost forgot. I have this brand new game called Conflict of Heroes."

THEM: "That's sounds good. What's it about?"

ME: "It's a game of WWII squad level tactics on the Eastern Front!"

THEM: (groan)

[/daydream]

This is why I play so many games solitaire!

[jbbnbsmith]

This game is starting to ship. It is one of the highest rated war games at the moment, though obviously much of that is prelease hype. I'm interested to see how the game fairs once it hits a few more game tables. If anyone has a chance to play it at Gen-Con (assuming it's there) I'd love to hear your feedback, especially if you've played some of the competition (Squad Leader, Tide of Iron, Combat Commander:Europe -probably the closest competitor, Lock n Load, etc) There's something about WWII tactical games that sucks me right in.

Edit: It is the highest rated war game at the moment.

[jbbnbsmith]

Still no takers on this game? I may take the plunge soon. It would make a great Christmas gift.

[LilNewbie]

Originally Posted by jbbnbsmith

Still no takers on this game? I may take the plunge soon. It would make a great Christmas gift.

I recently purchased this game. The production value on the game is extremely high with great looking maps and easy to read unit chits (which are 1" square). The game includes 5 geomorphic maps but you can get a 6th map from the publisher called the Swamp. It was an exclusive handed out at some conventions. Here is the BGG page about the 6th map and a link to the publisher's website:

BGG Page: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/38216

Publisher's Website: http://www.conflictofheroes.com/ordering.html

I haven't had a chance to play the game but really like what I've read in the rules. From initial looks, this appears as a medium weight game but probably can be played by anyone interested in games or even in the subject matter.

Newb.

[wdgrant]

I picked it up at GenCon. I got a chance to do a quick demo there, and had heard good things (ie hype) on BGG. I've read through the rules and really want to play. I'm waiting for a good friend of mine to get into town from a 4 month overseas job, because he will love this game, and I will finally get some plays. I'll probably have a better (at least more informed) opinion late Novemberish.

[Aldin]

Originally Posted by jbbnbsmith

ME: "So what should we play tonight? I've got Squad Leader, Advanced Squad Leader, Lock N Load: Band of Heroes, Tide of Iron, Memoir '44, UpFront, and Combat Commander Europe."

UpFront, of course. Best of the batch by a long shot. Also quick to set up and quick to play. How many of the expansions do you have? I get a kick out of playing the 18 member squad Italians...

~Aldin, RNC 6

[jbbnbsmith]

Originally Posted by Aldin

UpFront, of course. Best of the batch by a long shot. Also quick to set up and quick to play. How many of the expansions do you have? I get a kick out of playing the 18 member squad Italians...

~Aldin, RNC 6

Well, the truth is I actually sold my copy of Up Front a few years ago. I always liked the games, but had a hard time finding people to play it. It doesn't work very well solitaire (which is how I often play many war games these days), so since it was fetching a nice return on Ebay (about twice what I had paid for it) I sold it.

I agree it was a great concept for a squad level game; very innovative and created a nice story line. But for whatever reason it was a hard sell to my friends who were used to maps and counters, and some people had trouble grasping the relative range concept.

So there is my confession. I hope you do not think any less of me for it.

And while I'm at it, I've also sold off my ASL collection (which was never very big). I still have my original copy of Squad Leader, though. That was one of my first war games, along with Panzer Blitz, that I got as a Christmas gift when I was about 13. It's a keeper!

[jbbnbsmith]

I just ordered Conflict of Heroes and it should arrive on Wednesday Nov 12. It was going to be a Christmas present, but I may have to open it early. I also picked up Dominion. That can be a Christmas gift.

[jbbnbsmith]

I played my first few games of CoH, and I really like this game.

The rules use a programmed approach that allows you to learn new rules and play scenarios that introduce those rules before moving onto the rest of the rules. I read through the first two sections over lunch yesterday (about 30 minutes), then later in the evening I set up the first scenario.

The box includes four cardboard trays to hold the various counters; a cheap solution that seems to work, but I'll probably be breaking out the ziplock baggies very soon to make set up a little bit faster. Set-up is not too bad, especially for a small scenario like the first one which only uses one map board, about a dozen counters, and no cards. As I played through the first game (solo) I only needed to make an occassional reference to the rules, and that was simply to verify that I was playing correctly. I found the rules to be very straightforward and easy to remember, and playing through the scenario helped iron out any confusion.

After finishing the game, I went back and reread the rules to see if I was doing anything wrong. There were a few minor errors in my play, the biggest being I was using group movement which is not supposed to be used until the second scenario.

Today during lunch I set up the board again and played through scenario 1 once more. This game really has a nice flow to it, and it captures the feel of WWII combat very well (this based upon my extensive research via watching Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers ). The rules become very intuitive quickly and unlike many other games, I'm rarely checking the rules anymore. I especially like the way tactics come into play. Since unit facing matters, you can truly outflank your opponent. There is also a constant tension as to how to spend your command action points, and whether or not to take an opportunity action now, or what until your turn. Should I try to rally my squad, or just get them to provide covering fire and hope that they don't take another hit? Should I spend my last command point to boast my die roll, or save it for one more round of machine gun fire? Lots of decisions in this game, yet it moves along pretty quickly.

I'm looking forward to moving on to the next scenarios.

[wdgrant]

I finally got my first game in yesterday. Played Scenario 1, and it was as good as I hoped. Most of the game spent playing, not consulting rulebook. The idea to break up the rulebook into pieces with scenarios to match was genius. I hope it continues to build and become more complex and engaging.

[jbbnbsmith]

Glad to see some more players. I am up to scenario 4 - just about ready to add some tanks. I must say I appreciate the elegance of this game. I used to play Squad Leader years ago, but never very often. It seemed like I never really got my head around the rules for vehicles and armor. Every time I'd set the game aside for a month or so it was like starting from scratch with those blasted rules. The bulk of the rule set was fairly straightforward, but it was something about that one section that was a major headache to me.

The CoH armor rules are very simple to learn, pretty intuitive, and easy to remember.

My only complaint with the game is that I play solo quite a bit and about half of the scenarios use some form of hidden units.

[A_Train]

I've been watching this game on BBG for a while now, and think i am getting ready to take the plunge and buy it (and if not that, ask for it as a gift for my bday in June)
My worry is introducing it to other players. How hard is it to explain it to another player, in your opinion?
Are you still playing it regularly? This will be my first expansion into gaming beyond Heroscape, and I want it to be a good experience.



You mention hidden units a come up lot. In the example on this page (http://www.conflictofheroes.com/Examples.html) is the shaded unit behind the trees completely hidden to the Soviet player? I mean, is it on the board and he just can't target it?

I'd love to hear some more experiences about this game.