Before we get into this series of Event Card Spoilers I want to say this. Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948 is not a glorification of Nazism. Nor is it an attempt to change the narrative, although this game is an alternate reality look at the occupation of Germany by the Allies immediately following the fall of Berlin and the resistance from various groups to that occupation. This game will not be for everyone and may offend some with its portrayal of the events and participants in this struggle. I would say give it a chance to develop over the next year or so as the game has just been placed on pre-order with Legion Wargames. I have long been enthralled with the COIN Series from GMT Games for its attempt to tell the less than squeaky clean side of some of the most infamous struggles in history. This game is not an official part of that series but is COIN Series inspired.

I have seen lots of information put out by the design team of Clint Warren-Davey and Ben Fiene and it appears that these two have done their homework and extrapolated some theories that may or may not have been totally 100% accurate but are based in some semblance of plans or partial historical information. I think that it is good to explore history in these type of games.

With all of that being said, we were contacted by our good friend Randy Lein from Legion Wargames a few months ago about this project and asked if we would be interested in doing some coverage through an interview and possibly some other mediums, such as our Event Card Spoilers format that we have used in other games, and we were immediately intrigued by the concept and the fact that the game uses some of the elements of one of our favorite series. I have been in communication with one of the designers Clint Warren-Davey since that time and he has shared lots of information with me, including the rules and some of their background work on this one, and I wanted to make sure we gave it some light to give you a chance to understand what the game is so that you can make an informed decision about whether you plan to order this one or not. Clint has been great to work with and has agreed to write a series of short articles on the Event Cards and their basis in history as well as how they are used in the game.

If you are interested in ordering Werwolf: Insurgency in Occupied Germany, 1945-1948, you can pre-order a copy for $72.00 from the Legion Wargames website at the following link: https://www.legionwargames.com/legion_WER.html

#75 Berlin Blockade

Berlin was the focal point of the Cold War and the Berlin Blockade was the first major international crisis of the post-WW2 world. After 1945 the city was divided between a British, French and American occupied western half and a Soviet occupied eastern half, but the entire city itself was located deep within Soviet-occupied East Germany. This made it extremely vulnerable to being encircled or besieged if Stalin chose to do so, which did in fact happen in 1948. When the East German population rejected communist parties in the 1946 elections and the West tried to introduce a new, stable currency to all of Germany in response to Soviet debasement of the Reichsmark, the Soviets responded by completely cutting off Berlin from the rest of Germany. Supplies of food and fuel were critically low, especially for a city that had been so devastated by war that its population had fallen from 4.3 million to 2.8 million since 1939. The Western Allies responded with the Berlin Air Lift, a titanic airborne supply operation that defied all expectations by delivering all the required supplies with transport planes.

This card is one of many in the Event Deck that represents a historical event pretty much just as it happened with minimal exaggeration to fit the alternate history timeline. It gives the Soviets the option of carrying out the blockade, thereby placing blockade markers on roads leading to Berlin. This has the effect of hurting the economy of both the Allies and the Soviets, but if successful it will shift both West and East Berlin 1 step towards Soviet Loyalty as the populace cowers before communist domination. The Allies can avoid this fate by carrying out their historical air lift. If they are eligible to act that turn, the Allies need to pay 4 resources and air lift at least some troops into West Berlin. The strategy around this card is interesting as it can provide costs and benefits to the Soviets and the Allies. Indeed, the Werwolf or Edelweiss players might play the card if possible, to remove passive Allied loyalty in West Berlin and (especially in conjunction with guerrillas marching onto roads) put a stranglehold on the supply lines of the occupying powers. The card also increases Cold War tensions by 2, which can shift the occupiers very close to open war. As such, the Soviet player might even use espionage to avoid it happening entirely. It is a powerful card that can fundamentally shift the power dynamics in the game, usually in favor of the Soviet player but sometimes in the interests of the insurgents.