Operation Greif (game)

Cover of the 2nd edition (1981)

Operation Greif is a variant for Avalon Hill's 1965 wargame Battle of the Bulge self-published by Don Lowry in 1970. It is a game recreation of the World War II Operation Greif.

Historical background

During the World War II Battle of the Bulge, Operation Greif (German for Griffin) was a special false flag operation commanded by Waffen-SS commando Otto Skorzeny where German soldiers, wearing captured British and U.S. Army uniforms, attempted to capture bridges over the Meuse River and cause confusion in the Allied rear echelons.[1]

Description

Operation Greif is a two-person variant for the 1965 edition of Battle of the Bulge, later updated to conform to the 1981 edition. Only new counters and rules are provided; the original map board from Battle of the Bulge is required for play.

Components

The game consists of[2]

  • 11" x 17" sheet folded in half to form a 4-page rules folder
  • sheet of paper with printout of 313 counters, to be cut apart and glued to 1/2" cardboard counters
  • two Order of Battle sheets, one for Allies, one for Germans

Publication history

In 1965, Avalon Hill published Battle of the Bulge, a wargame that simulated the German surprise offensive of December 1944–January 1945. In 1970, game editor Don Lowry designed a variant for the game based on Operation Greif and sold it through his mail order business.[2] Lowry also sold a number of copies to the International Federation of Wargamers (IFW). The IFW subsequently distributed the copies to members via its newsmagazine The International Wargamer.[2]

In 1981, with permission of Lowry, game designer Chester Hendrix published a revised second edition.[2] The same year, Avalon Hill published a new and much revised edition of Battle of the Bulge. Several years later, Hendrix published a third edition of Operation Greif that was updated to the new Bulge rules.[2]

Reviews

  • Strategy & Tactics Guide to Conflict Simulation Games, Periodicals and Publications in Print, Issue 1 No. 157
  • Panzerfaust Magazine No. 59 (July–August 1973)

References

  1. ^ Bergström, Christer (2014). The Ardennes: Hitler's Winter Offensive 1944–1945. Havertown: Casemate Publishers.
  2. ^ a b c d e Scoleri, Joe (July 2004). "Operation Greif". Simulacrum. No. 21. p. 42.