Downfall: Conquest of the Third Reich

Manufacturer: GMT Games

Downfall is a two-player game on the conquest of the Third Reich in World War II. One player controls the Western Allies and the other the Soviet Union in their joint effort to destroy the Axis. Though the two players share the goal of defeating the Reich, each seeks a victory that favors their dominance in post-war Europe.

To this end, each player controls an Allied and an Axis faction and seeks to defeat the Axis on one front while staving off Axis collapse on the other front. The Western player commands the Wester faction, led by the United States and United Kingdom, and also commands the OKH faction; that is the Axis armies battling the Soviet Union. The Soviet player commands the Soviet factions and the OKW factions; that is the Axis armies fighting the Western allies.

Downfall begins at the high-water mark of Axis expansion in 1942 and ends in 1945 at Germany's surrender. The players control land units, air units, partisans, fleets, and submarines in this titanic struggle. With both players commanding factions on opposite fronts, each must launch offensives and conduct desperate defenses.

Gameplay is driven by Downfall's innovative initiative track. The faction with the initiative chooses an order, pays its initiative cost by advancing their marker along the track, and performs the order. Then, the faction with the initiative (based on the updated positions of the markers) chooses the next order. There is no set sequence of play; initiative expenditures determine who goes next. The progress of faction markers along the track also trigger strategic events, changes in weather, and advancement of game turns.

Order markers include operational orders used to move units and initiate combat and general orders for recruitment, mechanization, partisan warfare, logistics, and strategic warfare.

Strategic event cards drive game mechanics such as air support, supply checks, reinforcements, upgrades, and the distribution of Action Cards.

Action cards represent capabilities unique to each faction and can be played to augment orders or gain advantages in combat.

Contents:
2 Game Sheets (22" x 34")
351 Cardboard Playing Pieces
110 Playing Cards
10 Player Aids
4 Six-sided Dice

Ages: 14+
Players: 2
Game Length: 360-720 minutes

Mechanisms:
• Dice Rolling
• Grid Movement
• Hexagon Grid
• Simulation
• Variable Phase Order