Last Battles: East Prussia, 1945 (1994)

Last Battles: East Prussia, 1945: East Prussia has been a battleground for 1,000 years. In January 1945, Soviet forces were poised to bring war home to the Germans. The invasion posed a number of problems for the Soviet high command. The German defenses were organized in depth, and consisted of powerful permanent fortifications, a series of trench lines and anti-tank ditches, artillery emplacements, etc. In addition, the terrain was difficult, laced with lakes, rivers, marshes and canals.

The two attacking Soviet fronts mustered between them some 3,800 tanks and assault guns, 25,000 artillery pieces, 3,00 aircraft and 1.2 million assault troops. Opposing them were 780,000 Germans, with 8,200 cannon, 700 to 800 tanks, and about 775 planes. Bolstering the defense were such elite units as the Hermann Goering and Gross Deutschland Divisions. With the Germans fighting on their own soil, and the Soviets determined to deliver the death blow to the Third Reich, the scene was set for what became the most bitter fighting since Stalingrad.

LAST BATTLES: EAST PRUSSIA, 1945 -- from PEOPLE'S WAR GAMES via CoSi via 3W. CoSi is a German game company and got the right to publish this game in Europe. 3W imported this into the U.S. direct in 1994.

Mid-high complexity system, with high solitaire suitability. 300 NATO-symbols counters, detailed 34x22" map. The game features extensive artillery rules. Many combat modifiers.

The rules mention Gary Helmer as designer and Jack Radey as developer.

• in fact this is the second edition of "To The Wolf's Lair" from People's War Games (1983) and should thereby referred to this previous wargame*

Game Scale:
Turn: 1 day
Hex: 5 miles / 8 Km
Units: Battalion to Army

Game Inventory:
One 22 x 34" full color map
Two dual-side printed countersheet (300 1/2" counters)
One 20-page rulebook
Six player aid cards
One 10-sided dice

Solitaire Playability: High
Complexity Level: Medium-High
Players: 2 or more
Playing Time: 3-20 hours