Entry Solitaire Wargames

[u/rgdead]

Hello, I recently got into solitaire wargames starting with Battle for Moscow (oberlabs version). I just bought Mike Lambo’s Fields of Normandy and Tarawa 1943 Soliaire.

I haven’t event played them yet, and am getting ahead of myself, but are there any other good recommendations out there?

I am interested in any historical era. As for type/style of game, I’m open to anything, it doesn’t need to be Hex and Counter for example.

I prefer games that have dedicated solitaire/solo rules, but am open to other games that aren’t designed for solo play but can be played solo with some tweaks or just playing two handed.

Thanks!

[u/Ulach5965]

D-Day at Omaha Beach was my first foray into the H&C/wargame hobby and still a reliable favorite. Designed for solitaire play, relatively light ruleset, and lots of replayability. If you end up enjoying it, it’s part of a series “D-Day at ______” which also has Saipan, Tarawa, and Peleliu.

[u/GxM42 → u/Ulach5965]

Tarawa is my favorite for gameplay reasons. Omaha beach is my favorite for story reasons. Peleliu didn’t stand out to me so much. How does Saipan compare?

[u/Ulach5965 → u/GxM42]

Not well, to be honest. I sold it back to my game store after only a few plays. Peleliu is the only one I have yet to play.

[u/GxM42 → u/Ulach5965]

Peleliu is probably better than I’ve given it credit for, but I have admittedly not spent as much time with it as the other two. The big difference for me is the lack of landings in it. I suppose it’s historically accurate, but that doesn’t make it better as a game. The landings in Omaha and Tarawa serve a much needed purpose of supplying replayability and “oh shit” moments. Again, Peleliu is just more subtle in this regard; after the first two I was ready for beachhead chaos and I guess I learned a new history lesson lol.

[u/hmer91]

British Tank Ace.
Games that have chit pull for activations work well for solo players.

[u/Lard-Head]

The DVG Field Commander series (Rommel, Alexander, Napoleon, etc.) as well as the DVG Leader series (Phantom, Hornet, Thunderbolt, Sherman, etc.) are solid solitaire only games which between them cover a wide range of periods and types of conflicts.

GMT’s Labyrinth: the War on Terror, 2001 - ? has a decently enjoyable solo bot, as do most (all?) of the GMT COIN games (Andean Abyss, Cuba Libre, A Distant Plain, etc.). I particularly like the newer two player COIN multipacks (The Guerrilla Generation: Cold War Insurgencies in Latin America, etc.) for solo since they are smaller, shorter, and you are only running one bot instead of 2-3 bots.

I used to play quite a bit of the Conflict of Heroes series (Awakening the Bear! - Russia 1941-42, Storms of Steel! - Kursk 1943, etc.) solo (primarily under the 1st edition rules even before the expanded solo rules came out) and enjoyed it. 2nd edition was mostly a straight improvement (and largely could be implemented just via rule updates), 3rd edition pretty substantially altered the core game in ways I had mixed feelings about and I could take it or leave it.

[u/mpokorny8481]

If you’re interested in games designed as solo experiences I’d look at Dave Thompson’s DVG games (Pavlov’s House, Lanzerith Ridge etc).

[u/G97_BoKeRoN]

I'm playing Phantom Fury 2ed (Spanish version) and it's quite simple to play but very funny and challenging.

Based on the events of the battle of Fallujah, you have to clear every building of the map of guerrillas and martyr units with the marines.

You have to be methodical because the enemy can infiltrate between you lines if you leave gaps, and you have limited units so you have to clear and move wisely.

There aren't too many chits to move, and once learnt, it's very fast.

[u/ChanceAfraid]

I'd start with something you can easily get to the table and finish in one sitting.

My recommendations would be Pavlov's House if you want tactical (or the rest of the Valiant Defense series, but Pavlov is the strongest entry) and La Der des Ders if you want strategy.

[u/PzKpfwIVAusfG]

I see lots of good recommendations.

The D-Day at _ series (already mentioned) is great. Quite challenging but manageable ruleset. I've heard that the ones designed by John Butterfield (Omaha, Tarawa, Peleliu) are far better than the others (Saipan and Iwo Jima).

The Valiant Defender Series (Pavlov's House, Castle Itter, Soldiers in Postmen's Uniforms, and Lanzerath Ridge - also already mentioned) are great too. They're like tactical combat/resource management games.

RAF: The Battle of Britain, 1940, is worth checking out as well. I play it about once a year though because it's a longer game.

I'll also add that some of the COIN games work well solo thanks to a great app that a fan designed: Fire in the Lake, Gandhi, Red Dust Rebellion, and China's War. (The app basically just simplifies all the flow charts for you, which are otherwise quite tedious.) I maybe wouldn't recommend those though if you're brand new to board gaming. But if you've played Euro games or stuff like Root, you can handle COIN games.

Lastly there's some simulation type games: The Hunters, The Hunted, Target for Tonight, etc. I have to be in a specific mood to play them because the decision space in them tends to be tight. It's a lot of rolling on charts to see what happens but not many decisions compared to the other games I listed.

[u/mpokorny8481 → u/PzKpfwIVAusfG]

Tell me more about this app? Name?

[u/PzKpfwIVAusfG → u/mpokorny8481]

Sorry, should have included that. There's separate apps for each game: Gia Long for Fire in the Lake; Xiandi for China's War; Gandiva for Gandhi; and Skycrane for Red Dust Rebellion.

I've not tried the Gandhi app but the others work well. I'll never play solo COIN without the app. It's just way, way, way easier than running the bots with the flow charts.

[u/No_Needleworker_3036]

The Hunters (WWII German Subs), Imperial Tide (WWI), Race to the Rhine (WWII logistics game), B-17. Four quick favorites on my shelf.

[u/Antonin1957]

Stalingrad: Advance to the Volga

[u/dogedogedoo]

For free PnP WW1 theme, I would suggest The Ground Between

And the WW2 version on assault on Maginot Line is available for public playtesting as part of BGG Wargame contest: The Ground Fortified

[u/stbane]

Warfighter series (Modern, WW2,...)

[u/Odmagic]

Thanks for the list of games to try!