Memoir '44
Encyclopedia
Memoir '44 is a light wargame
, or war-themed strategy
board game
, created by Richard Borg
, for two players. The game can also be played with up to six players if played in teams and up to eight players in the "Overlord" scenarios that require two copies of the game. It received the 2004 International Gamers Award
for General Strategy, 2-Player category and The Wargamer
2004 Award for Excellence. The game is published in English
and French
(as Mémoire 44) by Days of Wonder
.
Memoir '44 simulates over a dozen of the battles connected with the D-Day
invasions in World War II
. It uses an enhanced version of the same Command & Colors game system as found in Battle Cry
.
The battlefield is divided into three sections by two red dotted lines, giving each player a left flank, a center and a right flank section. You command your troops by playing a command card. Command cards are used to order your troops to move, battle and/or execute a special command. There are two types of command cards: Section cards and Tactic cards.
Section cards are used to order a move and/or battle in a specific section. These cards indicate in which section(s) of the battlefield you may order units and how many units you may order.
Tactic cards allow you to make special moves, battle in a specific way or take special actions, as explained on the card.
The object of the game is to be the first to win a set number of Victory Medals (usually 4 to 6, depending on the selected battle scenario’s victory conditions). A Victory Medal is gained for each enemy unit entirely eliminated from the battlefield. In some scenarios, additional Medals may be gained from the board map itself, for capturing and holding certain terrain hexes or battlefield objectives.
Another section online is devoted to scenarios the Memoir '44 owners themselves created. These are unofficial, although in rare cases these are made official, and so not playtested by the DoW team, but mostly by the creators themselves. These scenarios offer the Memoir '44 player to have experiences from other players as well.
A Command Card is played first to start your turn, then you order units (and let them battle etc.), after all orders are completed, you replenish your hand by drawing a new Command Card from the deck.
A special section card is Recon-1 (with particular section, left, center,right). You may only order 1 unit in a flank stated on the card but you may draw 2 command cards instead of one at the end of your turn. You may choose 1 and discard the other. This can be very helpful in designing your tactics on the board.
A unit does not necessarily have to be ordered, so when a player has 3 section cards that can move units on the left flank, but no units are present, he can play one, discard the card and draw another, however this consumes his turn. Every turn, a maximum of one card can be played, except for the Ambush Tactic Card, which is played against an action by the other player.
Examples include Armor Assault (Order 4 tank units, units in Close Assault, next to the enemy unit, may battle with an extra die) and Medics and Mechanics (order 1 unit, roll dice to 'heal/repair' the unit by adding figures according to number of dice, and let it move and battle). The tactic cards give the player extra tactical moves and attacks around the board to enforce a victory.
Terrain Pack
tanks and the ZIS-3
Artillery gun. It contains terrain, mainly winter terrain, badges, a Commissar Chip, and extra rules to play one of the 8 new scenarios included with the game.
Eastern Front
Simplified Campaign Rules and Blitz Rules are also added.
Winter Desert Board
light tanks, and the Type 88 75 mm AA Gun
used as artillery piece. The expansion also features new terrain tiles, all in Pacific style, with jungles, rice paddies and more. Also included are War Ships (destroyer, Aircraft carrier) and the night visibility chart, which influences fighting and range.
Pacific Theater
The 8 painted Aircraft are:
USA:
United Kingdom
Soviet Union:
Germany:
Japan:
Air Pack
, and Crusader tanks
. It also includes new terrain, obstacles, badges, rules, and 8 scenarios. It also includes a new class of equipment, special weapons.
Mediterranean Theater
Campaign Bag
Up to 4 players per side can play, creating an experience of the highs and lows of being part of a military-style chain of command.
Contains:
- An updated Overlord Rules Booklet, covering play on the Eastern Front and the Pacific Theater, as well as with the Air Pack
- 2 decks of 64 cards each, specifically redesigned for Overlord play
- 178 Tokens to represent American / Soviet & German / Japanese army figures if you don't have all the required figures
- A set of 8 additional Memoir '44 dice
An original copy of the Memoir '44 game and a ready-to-play Memoir '44 Battle map such as "Hedgerow Hell" is required to enjoy this expansion.
Operation Overlord
Hedgerow Hell
By early October 1944, the Soviets were in view of the Baltic Sea, near the port of Memel, definitively cutting off Army Group North from any retreat route through East Prussia.
Despite Guderian's plea for an evacuation by sea and subsequent redeployment in Central Europe where forces were desperately needed to help stabilize an increasingly dicey situation, Hitler stubbornly refused.
Instead, he ordered the 200,000+ German troops to entrench themselves, in the hope of using the Courland Pocket as a springboard for a future offensive.
The second installment in our series of Memoir '44 Battle Maps includes 2 Overlord scenarios, six Tiger Tanks and 2 bonus scenarios.
Tigers in the Snow
Having witnessed first-hand on the Russian steppe the devastating effectiveness of German Blitzkrieg tactics, Lt. General Zhukov turned the carpet-bombing of the city to his advantage. Anchoring his defense lines in bombed-out buildings that overlooked strategically important streets and squares, he ordered Soviet troops to "hug the enemy". Always keeping the front lines as close to the Germans as physically possible, often a mere floor or door frame away, he successfully negated much of the Germans' firepower and combined arms superiority.
Sword of Stalingrad
The landing beach was a mile long, with headlands at both ends and barbed wire across its entire length. At first, enemy fire was light, letting the landing troops - Essex Scottish Regiment on Red Beach and the Hamilton Light Infantry on White Beach - make it through a first row of wire and toward the sea wall with only minor losses. But tanks from the 14th Canadian Tank Battalion had not arrived ahead of the infantry landings as planned; and once landed, they could not get any traction on the loose beach pebbles. To make things worse, the men of the Royal Regiment landing on Blue Beach near Puys arrived late. They were pinned on the beach, unable to move west and take the eastern headlands before the main assault. The Germans, now on full alert, swept the exposed Canadian forces. Control of the Casino and surrounding pillboxes seasawed back and forth but to no avail. Four hours after landing, the Allied commanders were forced to call a retreat, leaving almost 60% of the men who'd landed killed, wounded or captured! The lessons learned from this debacle were painful, but were of considerable help in preparations for the landings in Normandy, two years later.
Disaster at Dieppe
It also includes 15, never-in-print-before scenarios, created by Jacques "jdRommel" David, and Memoir '44 author, Richard Borg. These scenarios cover the Western and Eastern Fronts, as well as the Mediterranean and Pacific Theaters and include classic battles such as: Operation Crusader; Operation Amherst; and two different renditions of Sword Beach - all designed for the 13 x 17 hex Breakthrough format.
Breakthrough Kit
Winter Wars
Wargaming
A wargame is a strategy game that deals with military operations of various types, real or fictional. Wargaming is the hobby dedicated to the play of such games, which can also be called conflict simulations, or consims for short. When used professionally to study warfare, it is generally known as...
, or war-themed strategy
Strategy game
A strategy game or strategic game is a game in which the players' uncoerced, and often autonomous decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome...
board game
Board game
A board game is a game which involves counters or pieces being moved on a pre-marked surface or "board", according to a set of rules. Games may be based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two, and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve...
, created by Richard Borg
Richard Borg
Richard Borg is a game designer.Games Richard has designed or co-designed include:*2000 Battle Cry *2001 Wyatt Earp...
, for two players. The game can also be played with up to six players if played in teams and up to eight players in the "Overlord" scenarios that require two copies of the game. It received the 2004 International Gamers Award
International Gamers Award
The International Gamers Awards is an award for strategy board games and historical simulation games.- Past winners :2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000- 2010 :- 2009 :- 2008 :- 2007 :- 2006 :- 2005 :- 2004 :...
for General Strategy, 2-Player category and The Wargamer
The Wargamer (website)
The Wargamer is a web site specializing in war and strategy gaming. Online since 1995, the site achieved recognition outside its niche around 2002, when it was recommended by PC Magazine and the generalist gaming book The Rough Guide to Videogaming...
2004 Award for Excellence. The game is published in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
(as Mémoire 44) by Days of Wonder
Days of Wonder
Days of Wonder is a board game publisher based in the United States and France. Founded in 2002, Days of Wonder distributes its games to 25 countries. It specialises in German-style board games and have branched out to include some online games. Days of Wonder has published games in English,...
.
Memoir '44 simulates over a dozen of the battles connected with the D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
invasions in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It uses an enhanced version of the same Command & Colors game system as found in Battle Cry
Battle Cry (game)
Battle Cry is a board wargame based on the American Civil War, designed by Richard Borg and published by Avalon Hill in 2000.While superficially similar to conventional board wargames, it borrows from miniatures wargaming with its use of plastic figures and its simplified rules.The map is initially...
.
Gameplay Summary
You start the game by choosing a scenario. Scenarios are available from the manual, the internet, or you could design your own. Each scenario represents a battle from World War II. The terrain and starting positions are laid out according to the scenario.The battlefield is divided into three sections by two red dotted lines, giving each player a left flank, a center and a right flank section. You command your troops by playing a command card. Command cards are used to order your troops to move, battle and/or execute a special command. There are two types of command cards: Section cards and Tactic cards.
Section cards are used to order a move and/or battle in a specific section. These cards indicate in which section(s) of the battlefield you may order units and how many units you may order.
Tactic cards allow you to make special moves, battle in a specific way or take special actions, as explained on the card.
The object of the game is to be the first to win a set number of Victory Medals (usually 4 to 6, depending on the selected battle scenario’s victory conditions). A Victory Medal is gained for each enemy unit entirely eliminated from the battlefield. In some scenarios, additional Medals may be gained from the board map itself, for capturing and holding certain terrain hexes or battlefield objectives.
Scenarios
In the base game and every expansion scenarios are included to play with. Most of these scenarios are created from the most famous battles in World War II. Official scenarios (the ones published in scenario booklets and on the Days of Wonder internet site) have full support from the DoW team and are thoroughly playtested to ensure balance between the two players (e.g. not a total overrun of German troops at the start of the Soviet campaign) and others represent more tough battles like the assault on Omaha Beach, where the Allied player has difficulty in crossing the beach inland.Another section online is devoted to scenarios the Memoir '44 owners themselves created. These are unofficial, although in rare cases these are made official, and so not playtested by the DoW team, but mostly by the creators themselves. These scenarios offer the Memoir '44 player to have experiences from other players as well.
Command Cards
Command Cards are needed to order soldiers around the board. These command cards are divided in two types: Section and Tactic cards. There are a total of 60 Command Cards which is divided into 40 section cards and 20 tactic cards.A Command Card is played first to start your turn, then you order units (and let them battle etc.), after all orders are completed, you replenish your hand by drawing a new Command Card from the deck.
Section Cards
Section cards are cards that specify the number of units ordered in a specific flank. These numbers run from 1-3 and All (meaning that all the units in a particular section can be ordered). Examples include Probe left flank (meaning you can order 2 units on the left flank) and Assault Right flank (meaning you can order all units in the right flank).A special section card is Recon-1 (with particular section, left, center,right). You may only order 1 unit in a flank stated on the card but you may draw 2 command cards instead of one at the end of your turn. You may choose 1 and discard the other. This can be very helpful in designing your tactics on the board.
A unit does not necessarily have to be ordered, so when a player has 3 section cards that can move units on the left flank, but no units are present, he can play one, discard the card and draw another, however this consumes his turn. Every turn, a maximum of one card can be played, except for the Ambush Tactic Card, which is played against an action by the other player.
Tactic Cards
Tactic Cards are different from section cards in that they do not specify exactly number of orders on a certain flank. These tactic cards consist of special actions or enhancements to battling (add an extra die).Examples include Armor Assault (Order 4 tank units, units in Close Assault, next to the enemy unit, may battle with an extra die) and Medics and Mechanics (order 1 unit, roll dice to 'heal/repair' the unit by adding figures according to number of dice, and let it move and battle). The tactic cards give the player extra tactical moves and attacks around the board to enforce a victory.
Expansions
Days of Wonder has released several expansions to the game. All these expansions require at least one copy of the original game to be played. The expansions are listed in chronological date of release.Terrain Pack
This expansion pack consists mostly of new terrain, landmarks and badges, and only 4 scenarios. Its main purpose is to allow for a much greater variety in scenario creation. Using its components players can design a wide variety of new scenarios, and are able to tap in to the hundreds of user-developed scenarios from the Memoir 44 website. Examples of tiles include landmarks like a radar station (with optional special rules), roads (which enhance movement), railroads and a train, new bridges and badges (Airborne, engineers).Terrain Pack
Eastern Front
This expansion pack comes with a new side, the Soviet Union. The Red Army consists of Infantry figures, T-34T-34
The T-34 was a Soviet medium tank produced from 1940 to 1958. Although its armour and armament were surpassed by later tanks of the era, it has been often credited as the most effective, efficient and influential design of World War II...
tanks and the ZIS-3
ZiS-3
The 76-mm divisional gun M1942 was a Soviet 76.2 mm divisional field gun used during World War II. ZiS was a factory designation and stood for Zavod imeni Stalina , the honorific title of Artillery Factory No...
Artillery gun. It contains terrain, mainly winter terrain, badges, a Commissar Chip, and extra rules to play one of the 8 new scenarios included with the game.
Eastern Front
Winter / Desert Board Map
This is a new board for use with the expansions. One side features a desert map for use with the Terrain Pack and Mediterranean Theatre expansion and the other side features a winter map for use with the Eastern Front expansion or snowy scenarios on the Western Front.Simplified Campaign Rules and Blitz Rules are also added.
Winter Desert Board
Pacific Theatre
This expansion features the Japanese army including infantry figures, Type 95 Ha-GoType 95 Ha-Go
The was a light tank used by the Imperial Japanese Army in combat operations of the Second Sino-Japanese War, at Nomonhan against the Soviet Union, and in the Second World War. It proved sufficient against infantry, however, like the American M3 Stuart, it was not designed to fight other tanks...
light tanks, and the Type 88 75 mm AA Gun
Type 88 75 mm AA Gun
The was an anti-aircraft gun used by the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. It replaced the earlier Type 11 75 mm AA Gun in front line combat service, and at the time was equal in performances to any of its contemporaries in western armies and was...
used as artillery piece. The expansion also features new terrain tiles, all in Pacific style, with jungles, rice paddies and more. Also included are War Ships (destroyer, Aircraft carrier) and the night visibility chart, which influences fighting and range.
Pacific Theater
Air Pack
This expansion pack, released on December 18, 2007, introduces airplanes into the scenarios. It includes a set of 8 painted miniature planes, air rules for scenarios, updated command cards, and updated scenarios. An included booklet contains a compilation of all the official Memoir '44 scenarios published to date, many being revised to take advantage of the many new terrain types and troops now available. The 120 card summary deck describes in detail every single terrain, special rule, troop type and nation introduced in the base game and the expansions published since the game's launch.The 8 painted Aircraft are:
USA:
- Lockheed P-38 Lightning
- Curtiss P-40 Warhawk
- Vought F4U Corsair
United Kingdom
- Supermarine SpitfireSupermarine SpitfireThe Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
Soviet Union:
- Yakovlev Yak-1Yakovlev Yak-1The Yakovlev Yak-1 was a World War II Soviet fighter aircraft. Produced from early 1940, it was a single-seat monoplane with a composite structure and wooden wings....
(also used for the 7 and 9 series)
Germany:
- Messerschmitt Bf 109Messerschmitt Bf 109The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
- Fieseler Fi 156 Storch
Japan:
- Mitsubishi A6M Zero
Air Pack
Mediterranean Theatre
This expansions introduces the British army, consisting of infantry, 25 pounder gun-howitzersOrdnance QF 25 pounder
The Ordnance QF 25 pounder, or more simply, 25-pounder or 25-pdr, was introduced into service just before World War II, during which it served as the major British field gun/howitzer. It was considered by many to be the best field artillery piece of the war, combining high rates of fire with a...
, and Crusader tanks
Crusader tank
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk VI or A15 Crusader was one of the primary British cruiser tanks of the early part Second World War and perhaps the most important British tank of the North African Campaign...
. It also includes new terrain, obstacles, badges, rules, and 8 scenarios. It also includes a new class of equipment, special weapons.
Mediterranean Theater
Campaign Bag
An olive drab game bag with several pockets. On the outside are Memoir 44 logos and other artwork. It is large enough to store two copies of the original game and all the current expansions. Comes with an additional two-sided paper breakthrough map. On one side of the new breakthrough map is regular terrain. On the other side is a brand new breakthrough scenario.Campaign Bag
Operation Overlord
Combined with an original copy of Memoir '44, this expansion includes all the material required to play Overlord games. Scenarios are not included; this expansion is designed to be played with the Memoir '44 Battle Map series of Overlord maps.Up to 4 players per side can play, creating an experience of the highs and lows of being part of a military-style chain of command.
Contains:
- An updated Overlord Rules Booklet, covering play on the Eastern Front and the Pacific Theater, as well as with the Air Pack
- 2 decks of 64 cards each, specifically redesigned for Overlord play
- 178 Tokens to represent American / Soviet & German / Japanese army figures if you don't have all the required figures
- A set of 8 additional Memoir '44 dice
An original copy of the Memoir '44 game and a ready-to-play Memoir '44 Battle map such as "Hedgerow Hell" is required to enjoy this expansion.
Operation Overlord
Battlemaps
Days of Wonder also chose to not only create Overlord scenarios for army packs or online only. They started to create battlemaps themselves. These battlemaps are large battles played in Overlord style (or even bigger, as is the case with Tigers in the Snow). Another feature of the battlemaps is that it includes extra materials, like miniatures or new cards. Currently, 4 battlemaps have been issued.Hedgerow Hell
The Hedgerow Hell Memoir '44 Overlord BattleMap expansion includes a large-scale, double-sided map with two new Memoir '44 Overlord Scenario's - Hedgerow Hell and The Cadets of Saumur, plus 6 new Dodge Truck miniature figures. The battlemap is set-up ready, meaning that the terrain is already in place with an indication of where to put the units before starting the battle. In Hedgerow Hell, Dodge trucks are used. They have the ability to repair / heal any unit.Hedgerow Hell
Tigers in the Snow
Hot on the heels of their success in Operatsiya Bagration, Soviet forces struck deep towards the Baltic coast, rapidly severing communications between German Army Group North and what little was left of Army Group Center.By early October 1944, the Soviets were in view of the Baltic Sea, near the port of Memel, definitively cutting off Army Group North from any retreat route through East Prussia.
Despite Guderian's plea for an evacuation by sea and subsequent redeployment in Central Europe where forces were desperately needed to help stabilize an increasingly dicey situation, Hitler stubbornly refused.
Instead, he ordered the 200,000+ German troops to entrench themselves, in the hope of using the Courland Pocket as a springboard for a future offensive.
The second installment in our series of Memoir '44 Battle Maps includes 2 Overlord scenarios, six Tiger Tanks and 2 bonus scenarios.
Tigers in the Snow
Sword of Stalingrad
By the end of August 1942, German troops had reached the Volga, north of Stalingrad. In a matter of days, 4th Panzer Army, headed for the river south of the city, effectively trapping many of the men and women of the Soviet 62nd Army. Stalin's order of July 27 - "Not a step back!" - was no longer just an obligation but a necessity, and its slogan "There is no land behind the Volga!" the harsh reality that now faced all of the city's inhabitants.Having witnessed first-hand on the Russian steppe the devastating effectiveness of German Blitzkrieg tactics, Lt. General Zhukov turned the carpet-bombing of the city to his advantage. Anchoring his defense lines in bombed-out buildings that overlooked strategically important streets and squares, he ordered Soviet troops to "hug the enemy". Always keeping the front lines as close to the Germans as physically possible, often a mere floor or door frame away, he successfully negated much of the Germans' firepower and combined arms superiority.
Sword of Stalingrad
Disaster at Dieppe
A raid on the German-occupied coastal town of Dieppe, Operation Jubilee was intended to demonstrate the Allies capacity to seize and hold a major port for a short while. The Canadians sent in just couldn't imagine how short their stay would be...The landing beach was a mile long, with headlands at both ends and barbed wire across its entire length. At first, enemy fire was light, letting the landing troops - Essex Scottish Regiment on Red Beach and the Hamilton Light Infantry on White Beach - make it through a first row of wire and toward the sea wall with only minor losses. But tanks from the 14th Canadian Tank Battalion had not arrived ahead of the infantry landings as planned; and once landed, they could not get any traction on the loose beach pebbles. To make things worse, the men of the Royal Regiment landing on Blue Beach near Puys arrived late. They were pinned on the beach, unable to move west and take the eastern headlands before the main assault. The Germans, now on full alert, swept the exposed Canadian forces. Control of the Casino and surrounding pillboxes seasawed back and forth but to no avail. Four hours after landing, the Allied commanders were forced to call a retreat, leaving almost 60% of the men who'd landed killed, wounded or captured! The lessons learned from this debacle were painful, but were of considerable help in preparations for the landings in Normandy, two years later.
Disaster at Dieppe
The Breakthrough Kit
The Kit consists of two, double-sided, 9-panel board maps covering all four Memoir '44 map environments - countryside, beach, winter and deserts These oversize boards are 13 x 17 hexes deep, opening up the Breakthrough format to new, more expansive scenarios.It also includes 15, never-in-print-before scenarios, created by Jacques "jdRommel" David, and Memoir '44 author, Richard Borg. These scenarios cover the Western and Eastern Fronts, as well as the Mediterranean and Pacific Theaters and include classic battles such as: Operation Crusader; Operation Amherst; and two different renditions of Sword Beach - all designed for the 13 x 17 hex Breakthrough format.
Breakthrough Kit
Winter Wars
This expansion contains ten scenarios, all focused on those crucial 2 weeks of Christmas 1944 in the Ardennes. The first six scenarios included are all standard scenarios, playable with a single base game and this expansion alone. The four scenarios that follow are gigantic Breakthrough renditions of the Battle of the Bulge. These require a single copy of the already released Eastern Front expansion, and the Breakthrough kit of board maps, in addition to the aforementionned expansion.Winter Wars
External links
- Memoir '44 official site, with rules and extra scenarios
- Brummbar '44 Fan site with painting tips and tutorials on making 3d terrain.
- Memoir '44 Blog Tips and Resources for the Memoir '44 Line of Board Games.