Capture of Parry

by GeneralHowitzer | Jul 25, 2025 | 1944, Armor, Artillery, Beach, Campaign Book: V2, Infantry, Jungle, Location: Pacific, Medal Objectives, Memoir 44, Scenario, Strategic, Theater: Pacific

Capture of Parry

Capture-of-Parry_title

Capture-of-Parry_description

Parry Island was a textbook assault—our 4th Marines hit the beach with tanks rolling, guns blazing, and the Navy pounding from offshore. The enemy was dug in and ready to die, and they did—every last one of them. In just over a day, we turned their fortress into a smoking ruin. That win locked down Kwajalein and put us one step closer to Japan’s front porch. Fast, brutal, and effective—just the way war ought to be fought.

~~ General Howitzer

6 VP’s

Card Balance:

Allies – 6

Axis – 4

Complexity:

3

Conditions:

Beach & Jungle

Context:

Location:

Marshall Islands

Year:

1944

Theater:

Western

Campaign:

Marshall Islands

Codename:

Operation Flintlock

Summary:

Objectives:

6 VP’s

Battlefield:

Beach.

Troops:

Allies – 9 Infantry, 6 Armor, 1 Artillery

Axis – 9 Infantry, 2 Armor, 1 Artillery

Allied Strategy:

1.

Axis Strategy

1.

Battle Reports

Author:

Days of Wonder

Resource:

Campaign Book, Volume 2

Singapore

by GeneralHowitzer | Jul 5, 2025 | 1942, Armor, Artillery, Beach, Campaign Book: V2, Destroyer, Infantry, Jungle, Location: Pacific, Medal Objectives, Memoir 44, Scenario, Special Weapons, Strategic, Theater: Pacific

Singapore

Terrain setup

Scenario Description

Full Map

Right

Center

Left

IMG_0802

The Battle of Singapore in February 1942 was the climactic phase of Japan’s “Bicycle Blitzkrieg” during the Mare Shinko Sakusen (Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere offensive). Japanese forces, using speed, surprise, and bicycles to maneuver swiftly through Malaya, overwhelmed British Commonwealth defenses and pushed them back to Singapore.

Despite its strong coastal defenses, Singapore fell after a week of land-based attacks and psychological warfare. General Percival surrendered on February 15, 1942, in one of Britain’s worst military defeats, with over 80,000 Allied troops taken prisoner. The fall of Singapore stunned the Allies and gave Japan control over a key strategic stronghold in Southeast Asia.

General Howitzer sums it up in one sentence:
The Japanese rolled through Malaya on – can you believe it! – bicycles, outmaneuvered the Brits, and took Singapore without breaking stride—proof that arrogance and poor leadership lose wars faster than bullets.

11 VP’s, including at least 5 Medal Objectives for the Axis player.

Card Balance:

Allies – 5

Axis – 6

Complexity:

4

Conditions:

Jungle Beach

Context:

Historical

Location:

Singapore

Year:

1942

Theater:

Pacific

Campaign:

Bicycle Blitzkreig

Codename:

Summary:

Objectives:

11 VP’s including Permanent Medal and Temporary Majority Medal Objectives

Battlefield:

Combination of beach assault and jungle terrain and the city of Singapore.

Troops:

Allies – 10 Infantry including Machine Gun, 2 Artillery, a gun boat, and optional British Hawker Hurricanes

Axis – 10 Infantry, 4 Armor, 3 Artillery

Allied Strategy:

1. You have a gun boat in the corner right next to the enemy. Use it as many times as you can before they take it out.

2. You have a couple of Artillery. Use them well, but note that the unit at Changi only has enough ammo for three hits.

3. You have many Permanent Medal Objectives to guard, so in most cases you will need to keep your forces in a defensive position.

4. Air rules are optional. It is important for British defenses to make use of them as you have two Hawker Hurricanes at your disposal.

Axis Strategy

1. You have many forces which can be brought to bear but you will need to use your landing craft to get them ashore.

2. You need to take out the enemy gun boat in the corner of your right flank ASAP. That will only take one Grenade.

3. Once you have dealt with immediate threats near the beach, you can take some time to repair the causeway, which will take two Stars. Then you can advance your three Armor units into battle.

4. Your right flank is your strongest. Once you get your forces ashore with the landing craft, you can advance against Tengah and capture your first Medal Objective. Then you can continue deep into enemy territory.

Battle Reports

Author:

Days of Wonder

Resource:

Campaign Book, Volume 2

Namur

by GeneralHowitzer | Jul 3, 2025 | 1944, Armor, Beach, Campaign Book: V2, Destroyer, Infantry, Jungle, Location: Pacific, Medal Objectives, Memoir 44, Scenario, Strategic, Theater: Pacific

Namur

IMG_0776

IMG_0775

The Battle of Namur took place on February 1–2, 1944, as part of the U.S. assault on the Marshall Islands during World War II. U.S. 2nd Marine Division forces landed on Namur Island, part of the Kwajalein Atoll, facing fierce resistance from well-entrenched Japanese defenders. The battle saw intense close-quarters combat, complicated by Japanese bunkers, sniper fire, and booby traps. A massive explosion at a Japanese ammunition dump—triggered by American fire—caused heavy U.S. casualties but also disrupted enemy defenses. After two days of brutal fighting, the Marines secured the island. Namur’s capture was a key step in the U.S. island-hopping campaign, giving the Allies a critical foothold in the central Pacific and weakening Japan’s outer defensive ring.

General Howitzer’s summary:

Namur was a two-day slugfest—our 2nd Marines hit the beach and ran headfirst into bunkers, snipers, and traps laid by fanatical Japanese soldiers dug in like ticks. One hell of a blast tore through their ammo dump—and some of our boys with it—but it cracked their line wide open. When the smoke cleared, Namur was ours, and we had a solid damn grip in the Marshalls. Another island down, and one step closer to Tokyo.

5 VP’s

Card Balance:

Allies – 5

Axis – 5

Complexity:

3

Conditions:

Jungle Beach

Context:

Historical

Location:

Marshall Islands

Year:

1944

Theater:

Pacific

Campaign:

Codename:

Operation Flintlock

Summary:

Objectives:

5 VP’s plus the Ammunition Bunker Permanent Medal Objective

Battlefield:

Combination of beach assault and jungle terrain with some small villages.

Troops:

Allies – 9 Infantry, 7 Armor, and a Destroyer ship

Axis – 12 Infantry

Allied Strategy:

1. Like all beach scenarios, the first objective is to get off of the beach as quickly as possible and assemble all of your forces into a cohesive fighting unit.

2. You have a Destroyer which has an attack range and power of 3,3,2,2,1,1,1,1; so 8 hexes deep! Plus with a successful hit you gain a targetting reticule upon the hex, which increases the dice by one until the hex is destroyed or vacated. Use it!

3. Use your Armor to soften up the enemy at a distance, should any of them venture near the shore. Remember that because of the Seishin Kyoiku principle, and full-force Japanese units attack with four dice at Close Range. So hit each one at least once before venturing near them.

4. The Ammunition Bunker is a Permanent Medal Objective(!) – if you can blow it up. So occupy it and roll two dice, and hope for a star; but a grenade will kill one of your Marine figures, so be careful!

Axis Strategy

1. You have superior numbers on your right flank and central section. So move your forces into the jungles and town hexes to hold off the enemy forces.

2. Get close and then by combining the Banzai two-hex Close Assault attack with any full-force units, you can hit them with the Seishin Kyoiku princple and roll four-dice with each attack.

3. Guard the ammunition bunker so that the enemy does not get an easy Permanent Medal Objective.

4. With all of the enemy tanks in the area, do not get any of your forces caught in the open.

Battle Reports

Author:

Days of Wonder

Resource:

Campaign Book, Volume 2

Cape Torokina Landings

by GeneralHowitzer | May 31, 2025 | 1943, Armor, Artillery, Beach, Destroyer, Infantry, Jungle, Location: Pacific, Medal Objectives, Memoir 44, Overlord, Overlord Game, Scenario, Special Weapons, Strategic, Theater: Pacific

Cape Torokina Landings (Overlord Map)

Cape-Torokina_title

Cape-Torokina_right2

Cape-Torokina_right1

Cape-Torokina_Left2

Cape-Torokina_Left1

Cape-Torokina_center2

Cape-Torokina_center1

IMG_1012

IMG_1013

IMG_1014

IMG_1015

“Listen up, men! On November 1st, 1943, our boys hit those beaches at Cape Torokina like a thunderbolt. Those Marines of the 1st and 3rd Divisions didn’t blink at the sight of jungle, mud, and dug-in enemy troops. They took that beachhead by the throat and held on like bulldogs!

This wasn’t just another island—it was the gateway to busting open Rabaul and cutting off those Japanese forces. The jungle was a green hell, but we cut through it, took the ground, and started building the airstrips and supply bases to keep the hammer coming down.

That’s how you do it, boys—land hard, fight harder, and don’t stop until you’ve got a fortress behind you and the enemy on the run. That’s what those Marines did at Cape Torokina—they paved the road to victory in the Pacific!”

~~ General Howitzer

Timeline of the Cape Torokina Landings (Bougainville)

November 1, 1943 – D-Day for Cape Torokina:
U.S. 1st and 3rd Marine Divisions land at Cape Torokina. Initial beachhead secured despite Japanese resistance and tough jungle terrain.
November 2–3, 1943 –
Marines expand the perimeter, clearing Japanese defenses in nearby jungle areas.
Mid-November 1943 –
Seabees and engineers begin constructing airfields and supply bases within the beachhead.
December 1943–January 1944 –
Marines fortify positions, repel repeated Japanese counterattacks.
Japanese strongpoints isolated and bypassed.
March–April 1944 –
U.S. Army relieves Marines; continuing operations to expand and secure the beachhead.

15 VP’s

Card Balance:

Allies (Marines) – 9

Axis (Japan) – 8

Complexity:

4

Conditions:

Beach

Context:

Historical

Location:

Solomon Islands

Year:

1943

Theater:

Pacific

Campaign:

Bougainville

Codename:

Summary:

Objectives:

15 VP’s with various Medal Objectives for various territorial control.

Battlefield:

Islands with many rivers, roads, jungles, and hills

Troops:

Allies – 21 Infantry, 4 Armor, 2 Destroyers, with Landing Crafts to bring them ashore

Axis – 18 Infantry some with Special Weapons, 1 Armor, 1 Artillery

Allied Strategy:

1. There are a number of special rules which you need to be aware as commander of the Allied forces. First, there are two islands (Torokina & Puruata), which must be taken. Because the enemy begins the battle with forces on the islands, they start the battle with two victory medals. As soon as you eliminate the enemy from an island, you will cause them to lose a victory medal, but you will NOT gain one. Also note that because the Landing Crafts (LC’s) leave after dropping off your troops, they will be stranded on that island. So make sure you commit enough troops to win, but not too many.

2. There are also three Field Bunkers which provide Temporary Territorial Medals to whichever side occupies them. But you must remain in the bunker to keep the medals.

3. What this means then, is that although you begin the battle with overwhelming force, in order to clear the islands, and then occupy the Field Bunkers, you will need to be leaving troops at each of those locations. So your attack force will be diminished for each parcel of land which you capture. This must be factored into your planning commander!

Axis Strategy

1. Your primary role in this battle is a defensive one, but that does not mean passive. You have troops which need to be prepared to fight and brought into the battle arena.

2. You have an Armor unit stuck in the corner in the right flank. Get it into the action as soon as you can.

3. You also have an Artillery which you should use at every opportunity to attack the enemy as they come ashore.

4. Make use of the Seishin Kyoiku doctrine to attack with your full force units at every opportunity in order to maximize your extra firepower while they are still strong.

5. You have a lot of forces on the two islands. Make the enemy pay for every inch of ground they take on the islands in order to reduce their main attack force.

Battle Reports

Author:

Days of Wonder

Link:

Disaster at Dieppe

by GeneralHowitzer | May 22, 2025 | 1942, Armor, Artillery, Beach, Infantry, Medal Objectives, Memoir 44, Overlord Game, Scenario, Strategic

Disaster at Dieppe (Overlord Map)

Disaster_titlejpg

Disaster_Right2

Disaster_Right1

Disaster_Left2

Disaster_Left1

Disaster_Center2

Disaster_Center1

Alright, listen up—

The raid on Dieppe? That was a damn mess. We sent in brave boys—mostly Canadians—straight into a meat grinder without proper prep, cover, or firepower. The plan? Hit the Germans fast, grab intel, wreck their defenses, and get out. But hell, it was all wrong from the get-go. No real surprise, no heavy bombing to soften ’em up, and we landed right on their gun barrels.

The beaches were narrow, rocky deathtraps. Our tanks got stuck, the infantry got chewed up, and the Navy couldn’t do a damn thing once the chaos started. Over half the force was wiped out, captured, or bleeding in the surf. It was a bloody disaster—but those boys fought like hell.

And I’ll tell you this: we learned. We learned what not to do. Next time, we brought the whole hammer—air, sea, tanks, everything. That’s how you do it. That’s how we did it on D-Day. Dieppe was a painful lesson—but it paid off in Normandy.

~~ General Howitzer

10 VP’s

Card Balance:

Allies – 7

Axis – 8

Complexity:

4

Conditions:

Beach

Context:

Historical

Location:

Baltic area

Year:

1944

Theater:

Eastern

Campaign:

Codename:

Operation Jubilee

Summary:

Objectives:

10 VP’s with Temporary Medal Objectives for two bridges, a casino, and a chateau.

Battlefield:

A beach with towns, ridges, and a river cutting through the center.

Troops:

Allies – 20 Infantry, 5 Armor, 2 Half-Tracks

Axis – 15 Infanty, 4 Artillery

Allied Strategy:

1.

Axis Strategy

1.

Battle Reports

Author:

Days of Wonder

Link:

[Ukraine] Soviet raid on Grigorevka

by GeneralHowitzer | Apr 29, 2025 | 1941, Artillery, Beach, Breakthrough Game, Combat Cards, Countryside, Destroyer, Infantry, Scenario, Strategic, Theater: Eastern

Soviet Raid on Grigorevka

September 1941—Odessa’s under siege, and the Soviets are getting hammered by Romanian artillery. So what do they do? They go on the offensive—hard.

Captain Koren takes the lead at sea with the 3rd Naval Infantry Regiment, nearly 2,000 marines, while a small team of 23 paratroopers drops inland. The plan? Hit ’em from the front and the rear—paralyze their command, cut their lines, and blow those damned guns to hell.

Night of September 21st, the paratroopers jump near Hill 57.3—not clean, not pretty, but they get the job done. Took out a whole Romanian regimental HQ—with two dozen men. Meanwhile, Koren’s marines land at Grigorevka under a curtain of naval fire from the destroyers Bojkij and Bezuprechnyj, and they take those artillery batteries by storm.

By sunrise, they’re linking up with the 421st Rifle Division, and the Romanians? They’re pulling back—the 13th and 15th Divisions, thrown into reverse. That’s pressure off Odessa, and a big black eye for the Axis.

This wasn’t some massive Soviet steamroller. This was initiative, coordination, and guts. A rare joint strike—air, land, and sea—and it worked. Captain Koren didn’t wait to be hit—he hit first.

That’s how you win a war. Not by sitting in the trenches—but by getting out, striking hard, and making the enemy bleed where they thought they were safe.

~~ General Howitzer

12 VP’s

Card Balance:

Allies – 5

Axis – 4

Complexity:

4.5

Conditions:

Countryside

Context:

Historical

Location:

Ukraine

Year:

1941

Theater:

Eastern

Campaign:

Codename:

Summary:

Objectives:

12 VP’s, plus Objective Medals for Allies for the Romanian HQ, and each Artillery battery destroyed.

Battlefield:

Countrsyide and beach in a deep breakthrough battlemap

Troops:

Allies (Soviet Union) – 14 Infantry, 2 Destroyers!

Axis (Romania ) – 10 Infantry, 3 Artillery

Allied Strategy:

1. Soviets, as Allies, do a six unit paradrop. Drop them where you have the best set of cards to assist your attack.

Also, note that the paratroopers will not battle the first turn they are dropped, so they have to endure one round of enemy fire before they can attack.

2. The Axis outnumber you on your right flank at the start of the game, and the three forward units are in strong defensive positions, which suggests attacking elsewhere.

3. The Allies have two Destroyers at the start of the game. Two factors affecting their performance are visibility and location.

Visibility: Because of the night visibility rules, the Axis units may have time to move out of range of the ship guns before daylight arrives.

Location: This concerns the ability to get the Destroyers onto the border line so they have more flexibility on which section cards can activate them.

Once daylight arrives the Destroyers have a range of eight hexes, so their maximum firing range is row ten. Of course, that is their maximum range, but their effective firing range (of 2D attacks), is actually row six.

Axis Strategy

1. Your first defensive objective is to respond to wherever the Allied paratroopers happen to land. Respond immediately with available Infantry and Artillery to address the threat.

2. Bring your reserve units into play as soon as you can by moving the rear units forward on the map.

3. Because each Artillery unit is worth two! Medals, you will need to protect them in some way. Either move them back from the Destroyers’ range, or protect them from Infantry attacks by bring your own Infantry into play.