Memoir '44: Operation Overlord is an expansion to
Memoir '44 that allows you to play huge "overlord" games with up to eight players.
Players: 2-8
Playing Time: 1-2 hours
Operation Overlord can't be played standalone. Besides
Memoir '44 you'll also need one or more releases from the Battle Map Series.
Components
Memoir '44 has long supported the Overlord style of play, which requires a double-sized map and many more troops. However traditionally you've had to purchase a second copy of the base Memoir '44 game to play. The Operation Overlord supplement gives you everything you need to play without forcing you to buy a second game--except the maps, as noted below.
Rules: The rules for Overlord play have long been available online, but you now get a printed copy as part of this supplement, including integration rules for recent supplements like the Eastern Front, the Pacific Theatre, and Air Pack.
Cards: You need two decks of cards to play Overlord, which this supplement includes, but these new cards also go the extra step, because they're specialized for Overlord play, with precise rules for how each card is used in the multiplayer setup, a real boon.
Dice: A new set of eight Memoir '44 dice.
Chits: Overlord players also need more troops than can be found in just one Memoir '44 set. Rather than including lots of plastic troops (and presumably increasing the price too much), this expansion gives you cardboard chits that you can use to replace plastic troops when you run out of them--and you generally won't have enough for Overlord scenarios, so expect to use these. The chits are linen-textured cardboard with pictures of German, American, Russian, or Japanese units.
Maps: You need a double-sized map to play an Overlord game. You can accomplish this with either a second copy of the basic game's map (which allows you to play Overlord scenarios available in various Memoir '44 supplements and online) or a release from the Battle Map series, which provides a large double-sided paper map (and thus two original scenarios). Neither of these is included in the Operation Overlord supplement, thus you'll need to buy something extra to get started.
Overall, this set is a minimalistic way to play Overlord. The cards and dice are great, but the chits just won't look as nice as all of your "real" troops. However, once presumes that players are interested in this product because they want to get into Overlord play for a lower price point, and that's exactly what this box allows.
(Though, I think there's some possibility that existing Overlord players might be interested in the box as well, primarily to the Overlord Command cards.)
Though the graphics are all up to Days of Wonder's usual high standards, the very purpose of this supplement keeps its Style down to an average "3" out of "5".
The Gameplay
Besides offering a much larger playing field, Overlord also supports play with up to 8 players.
Supporting Multiple Players: Overlord supports multiple players by creating four roles on each side of the conflict. The commander-in-chief is responsible for collecting the command cards and dispensing them each turn. Then there are three field generals, each responsible for one flank on the (much larger) game board: left, center, or middle.
With less than eight players, roles can be combined. I think a 6-player game probably works just as well, with a commander-in-chief also acting as the central field general.
Order of Play: On each turn a side plays through the following phases:
- Choose cards to play
- Play cards
- Draw cards
Choose Cards: The commander-in-chief decides which cards will be played each turn, optionally talking with no more than one of his field generals. This allows him to plan strategy but still maintain some "fog of war." He then plays cards by distributing up to three cards from his hand.
He may keep up to one tactics card intended for use by the commander-in-chief, such as Barrage. He may give each field general no more than one tactics cards or no more than two section cards. Cards must be legally playable by the field general (e.g., you can't an Attack Center card to your right field general).
Some cards work subtlety differently than in the original Memoir '44 game, such as Pincer Move, which now either lets the right field general or the left field general move 2 forces, and Recon in Force, which lets a field general move forces in both of his sections (a concept that's explained in a moment).
Play Cards: First, the commander-in-chief plays any tactics card that he kept himself. Then, the field generals may play their cards.
Each field general has a flank, but each flank is broken up into two sections. Most cards (such as the aforementioned Attack 3) only allow a general to move forces in one of his two sections. If a field general was given two section cards, he must play one on each of his two sections, thus preserving the basic idea in Memoir '44 that each unit can only move once a turn.
Field General Initiative. If a Field General didn't receive a card, he can choose to act on his own initiative. He rolls one die, and the result identifies what (one) unit he's allowed to move: infantry; armor; or his choice (star). Flags result in a unit instead retreating and grenades in a unit losing a figure.
Draw Cards: When all of the cards handed out for the turn have been played, the commander-in-chief draws two cards, up to a maximum of his original hand size. Recon cards played allow the commander-in-chief to instead draw three cards (which makes them much more useful than in the original game).
Note that this means that a commander-in-chief's hand size can fluctuate, since he plays one to three cards, but only draws two.
Ending the Game: Beyond this, Memoir '44: Operation Overlord works exactly like the original game, though required victory point totals are often higher.
Relationship to Other Games
Operation Overlord is an expansion to the original Memoir '44 game. It requires a Battle Map like Hedgerow Hell to play.
The Game Design
Memoir '44: Operation Overlord offers a compelling way to turn the 2-player Memoir '44 game into a truly multiplayer affair.
On the one hand, it successfully uses the multiplayer gameplay to expand Memoir '44's core concepts of a chaotic battle field where orders sometimes go astray. This is thanks to a commander-in-chief distributing orders without getting to consult with all of his troops.
On the other hand, it successfully keeps all the players involved in the game both as team mates and as independent planners. Whenever you have a battle card to play, you're totally involved with the game. The fact that you get to roll a die even if you haven't been given a card is a great way to keep even the players on a less important flank in the game.
To a certain extent I feel like Memoir '44 plays a little better as a 2-player game, due mainly to issues of length. However, that could easily be due to the fact that I've got almost fifty 2-player Memoir '44 games under my belt, while I'm still getting used to the longer (90- to 120-minute) multiplayer play. It's certainly still a reasonable game length for a military game of this sort.
I've given Memoir '44: Operation Overlord a "4" out of "5" for Substance: it's great to make this excellent 2-player game available to audiences interested in playing with more people--and it's great to see the more epic battles that result too.
Conclusion
Memoir '44: Operation Overlord allows you to play Memoir '44 with more players, with the result being bigger, more substantial (and longer) battles, where you really get to consult with a whole staff of generals. It's a cheaper alternative than buying multiple sets of the game in order to play Overlord games, but still requires the purchase of additional maps to play.
Review Summary