Released under Ziplock by VPG in 2008, No Retreat! won over many players with its simple, historically relevant mechanics. Two expansions (Na Berlin! and No Surrender!) completed the game. Given its success, GMT took over the game and released a Deluxe version including both expansions. But what does it offer that the original version didn’t?
HERVÉ BORG – VaeVictis 104 (May-June 2012)
The first major change is that the game now comes in a box! The original card was an A3 sheet folded in half, with an extension brought by Na Berlin! The GMT version is larger, with wider hexagons and even four extra rows of hexagons in the East. Above all, this map is cardboard like the Avalon Hill games of the heyday and is, in fact, a real game board, covering the western part of the USSR as well as the countries of Central and Eastern Europe with Berlin, Vienna and Prague. Finland, on the other hand, is only represented by an area above Leningrad.
The counters are quite large and really pre-cut. There’s no need for a cutter to ensure a clean cut, which is a nice touch. Units are illustrated with NATO symbols, but a second set of counters is provided for armored units, this time with tank silhouettes. While the map and counters are very well done, the other elements are a little less so. The A4-format game aids make us miss the original A5-format aids, which were ultimately easier to handle. The playing cards, meanwhile, are much more elegant, but lack a little charm. However, these reservations are minor: the game unquestionably deserves its “Deluxe” label.
THE BACKGROUND
We already criticized the No Retreat! system in issue 90 of VaeVictis. However, we’d like to reiterate the main points. The game’s basic gamble was to simulate the entire German-Soviet war with 40 counters, plus some 30 markers. Given that this was the most formidable conflict of all time, it seemed a daring move. And yet it works! Thanks to 100 km hexagons, two-month turns and some very clever rules.
Each player’s turn is as basic as can be: move, then fight. There is no reaction or exploitation. However, armored units can advance up to 3 hexes, provided the weather and terrain are clear. Given the scale of the game, this 3-hex advance can prove decisive.
Although No Retreat! uses playing cards, it cannot be classified as a CDG (Card Driven Cames) because, as in a classic strategy game, each player can move all his units during his turn without the aid of his cards. Each player’s hand consists of 4 to 6 cards displaying two events: one for the Axis, the other for the Soviets. These events can be triggered at different phases of the game: for example, to gain reinforcements at the start of the turn (“Troop Transfer” card) or to re-roll the die in battle (“Soviet Union Hero” card).
The great originality of these cards is that symbols are associated with certain events, meaning that they can only be played at certain times: a black cross requires the Axis to have the initiative (from June 1941 to March 1943), while a red star can only be used when the Soviet takes the initiative (after March 1943).
As a result, we frequently find ourselves with “unplayable” cards. In fact, these cards can be spent in different ways: to rebuild units, or to launch counters after the opponent has declared combat. This notion of “counter” is quite unusual. It allows the defender to force the attacker to attack him at a specific point. The main aim is to divert enemy forces from an objective deemed important or fragile. But, if you’re lucky, you can also provoke a result that allows the defender to launch a real counter-attack during the opponent’s turn!
Combat results are not classic. Firstly, they don’t involve a unilateral loss for the attacker. At worst, they allow the defender to counter-attack. Secondly, when pawns disappear as a result of combat, they are placed in different squares. If they are simply shattered, they return free of charge the following turn. If they are destroyed, you must spend a card for their return. If they’ve been surrounded and surrendered, two cards are required, and each such loss costs one victory point.
A great deal of attention has been paid to the evolution of the Red Army, traditionally a pitfall in terms of pawns. Up until 1944, Soviet “fronts” (the equivalent of Western army groups) had only one losing step (compared with 2 for German armies). But from 1942 onwards, these counters can use their more powerful reverse side to signify an increase in their resources. Here again, a simple, yet highly relevant mechanism.
Victory is awarded in three different ways. If the Axis controls 3 of the 5 objectives in the USSR (Leningrad, Moscow, Sevastopol, Stalingrad and the Grozny oilfields), it has won the game. Failing that, checks are made on certain turns to see if either side has enough victory points to declare it the winner. These points are cities, enhanced by certain events, some of which are automatic (such as D-Day) and others dependent on card use. Finally, any unit forced to surrender earns the opponent 1 victory point.
All in all, No Retreat! is a game that’s easy to play, delivers a real historical flavor and features two elements of chance: dice on the one hand, and cards on the other, one of which can compensate for the other. What’s more, with six scenarios plus the campaign, this is a game with a very long lifespan that can be used to initiate novice players.
WHAT’S NEW IN THE EAST?
Although not fundamental, there are a number of changes in the Deluxe version. First of all, a new combat result has been introduced: “Counter”. One of the attacking hexes receives a “Counter” marker, which forces the defender to attack on his turn, unless he decides to retreat. This represents the defender’s reaction to a bridgehead: try to reduce it or withdraw.
Winter, on the other hand, is divided into two different weather conditions. It begins with classic Snow, followed by a new weather condition: Long Winter, which limits mobility. To be honest, these names are a bit of a misnomer, as the first is Frost and the second is Snow.
As for the cards, half a dozen events have been renamed and a few others have had their effects slightly modified. What’s more, with the addition of 14 cards, some 30 new events have been introduced. Some of them allow you to draw additional new cards, provided you launch several attacks this turn, thus simulating large-scale offensives. All in all, these new events are interesting and help to renew the game. To conclude this theme, a “Joker” card has been introduced. The player who uses it can change his hand entirely, but then gives the Joker to his opponent, who can do the same.
On the support front, the rules have been reset to zero. It is no longer possible to spend cards to obtain support for attack or defense. From now on, each side has a single support counter, whose value is determined by its possession of the initiative. This counter is used only once per turn, but free of charge.
The use of cadre counters has also been completely overhauled. Frame counters are units that can appear when a friendly counter is destroyed, thus filling in the gaps. However, they cannot attack. Similarly, Abteilung counters allow the Axis to remove one of its infantry armies from the game and replace it with two counters which, like cadres, cannot attack. This principle is extended to the Red Army, with its “fortified fronts”. In addition, a mechanized Abtellung counter makes its appearance.
In the VPG version, the armies of the Axis allies (Hungarians, Romanians and Italians) had only one step of loss, and the reverse side of the counter served as a “frame”. The GMT version has isolated the frames on counters intended solely for this purpose. The reverse side of Allied armies now indicates the number of turns it will take for these units to return to play free of charge, which radically changes things for the Axis.
Last but not least, a “Reserves” counter is available for the Soviet player. The Soviet player is not allowed to stack his units before 1945, which makes him very vulnerable in the event of a loss, since one of his counters simply disappears from the board. The reserve counter has no combat value, but can be stacked with a front and attacked with it. Its role is to absorb a loss, thus preserving the front, which has combat strength.
Overall, then, there have been no revolutionary changes to the rules. However, these changes reinforce the coherence of the system and improve it without complicating it.
THE CHOICE IS YOURS
As a small bonus to this Deluxe Edition, we’re given a code to download a solitary supplement free of charge from VPG’s website. No doubt this is to remind GMT customers that VPG is No Retrat!’s first publisher! The download includes 12 cards designed exclusively for solitaire play, plus special rules. The Deluxe version already contains the associated markers. In the solitaire game, the player plays both sides, but embodies one in particular. During a victory check round, a solitaire card is drawn. Depending on the number of victory points compared with the threshold required to stop play, this card may force the player to change sides and continue the game. It also tells the player which objectives Hitler has set for the coming months, with victory points at stake.
When not playing for his own side, the player is bound by general rules such as “never abandon an objective city” or “always keep a card in your hand”. In addition, during battles, the defender’s behavior is dictated by the draw of a new solitaire card, indicating how many counter markers should be placed on the card. The aim is to introduce a certain amount of uncertainty, so as to force the player, when in doubt, to play his side as diligently as the opposing side. This module is far from essential to the game, but it can provide a framework for those who find it difficult to play solo. Others will live better without it. In any case, No Retreat! Deluxe is an excellent game, just like the original. It allows you to play with a very stable version of the rules, which have benefited from the experience of several years on the market. What’s more, the possibility of having such a well-kept version in terms of material is quite appreciable, even if this is at the expense of the boilerplate aspect of the original edition, which required very little space to be played. For those new to the game, the Deluxe version is a must.
For those who already own the full VPG version, the purchase is more questionable. However, the new rules and the quality of the material are a good motivator.
Qualities: a simple game with an intelligent system and a very well rendered historicity. Rules well adapted from the original version.
Weaknesses: more cumbersome than the original.