By dicebrothers 
Decision (2015)
Played this solitaire game once before – in hospital in the UK with Nigel Drury in March when we played it cooperatively/jointly (and were eventually sunk by Eisenhower’s deep disapproval).
Game I
Turn 1
Anglo-French Air Offensive: places all Anglo-French air and helicopter units in the Available Allied Air Box
Turn -1 to 8
Hungarian Insurrection: plus one turn [1d6 turns gained]
Turn +1 to 9
Turn 2
Anglo-French Amphibious Offensive: 2 marine units from Allied Reinforcements to Staging Area. Allied air strikes [3 x 2] hit Suez City and Ismailia, causing one loss in each city. Port Said is subject to Naval Bombardment, but without effect.
Turn -1 to 8
Ike Is Not Pleased: as there are no Allied units in Egypt, Ike is not that angry [only one turn is lost].
Turn -1 to 7.
Turn 3
– Anglo-French Airborne Assault: 2 French elite airborne brigades to the Staging Area from Reinforcements.
– The two available Marine brigades (one British, one French) land in Port Said after air strikes have crushed the defenders.
Turn -1 to 6
Guerillas: no effect.
Turn -1 to 5
Turn 4
– Operation Kadesh. Israeli units placed. The GHQR division and the 202 Brigade attack Gaza, overwhelming the enemy Garrison [a 1-1]. The garrison of the Egyptian fortifications at Abu Ageila having been neutralised by air strikes, the Israeli 38th & 77th Mechanised Divisions move to Qusseima with the aim of destroying the Egyptian formation at
– Leaving the French Marines to garrison Port Said, the British Royal Marine Brigade advances and captures undefended Ismailia – air strikes had earlier annihilated the defenders.
– Similarly, air power had cleared the way for a helicopter-assisted landing in Suez by one of the French airborne brigades. The other brigade was successfully parachuted into the Fayed airbase.
Turn -2 to 3
Egyptian Counter Offensive: the Egyptian 1st Infantry Division [a Replacement] attacks the Royal Marines at Ismailia but is beaten off. Otherwise, of eight Egyptian formations, only two move towards the enemy [of eight in total on a 50:50 chance].
Turn +0 to 3
Turn 5
Psywar: [two turns gained]
Air strikes remove Egyptian units from Rafah and Quesseima. Naval Bombardment destroys the Alexandria.
The French move their Marine Brigade in Port Said to occupy Aexandria, reshuffling their units along the Canal to ensure that all three key [VP] locations are occupied (Port Said, Ismailia and Suez).
Egyptian Air Offensive: no effect as Allied Air Offensive has already been played.
Turn +2 to 5
Anglo-French win: they occupy four VP locations (Alexandria and the three along the canal) and there are no Egyptian units east of the Canal.
Postmortem
It seems too easy. Only one card – Egyptian Counter Offensive – moves the Egyptians, and only this and one other (Nasser rallies) produce replacements. In addition, as with Khe Sanh, air power is far too effective.
I am inclined to try the following changes:
– The number of air units is halved, and no more than one air unit per space may be deployed.
– Card additions:
- a) Nasser Rallies: adds “All Egyptian units move one space closer to the nearest Allied unit”
- b) Guerilla Warfare: add one Egyptian Replacement and al Egyptian units move one space closer to the nearest Allied force.
