The Waffen SS in Tactical
Wargames
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The depiction of
Waffen SS soldiers has been at times a controversial subject in the
history of tactical wargaming. The controversy has stemmed not from
the sensible dilemma of how best to portray their training, doctrine
and actual abilities in combat - these problems are applied to all
military forces that designers seek to depict in tactical wargames -
but rather from the problem of how to reconcile their record of
warcrimes with their military achievements. As most tactical
wargames depict fighting at the sharp end, and most war crimes, even
those committed by combat units, occurred away from the front line,
that element of controversy, at least, ceases to be relevant to the
tactical game designer.
Other Problems
In an age of increased sensitivity to issues of racism, equality,
and hatred, and an increased ability for mere symbols to acquire
power, exception has been taken in some quarters by the granting of
special symbols or abilities to Waffen SS troops. Such uneasiness
has even extended to German Army units.
For example, M. Evan Brooks, in two PC game reviews, stated online
that:
PANZER COMMANDER
(I-95 CD) Strategic Simulations, Inc.; Rick Martinez; 1998; ***
Int/Land/Tac-Op
A detailed armor simulation of World War II, it only covered
campaigns on the Russian Front. Infantry/combined arms
operations still came up short, but the more objectionable
aspect of the design was allowing the player to be a member of
certain questionable divisions -- while Grossdeutschland was
not a Waffen SS division, there is sufficient historical
evidence to question its participation in war crimes.
(emphasis added)
PANZER GRENADIER
(A/C/Ap) Strategic Simulations, Inc.; Roger Damon; 1985; ***
Beg/Land/Tac
A tactical simulation of armored warfare on the Eastern Front
during World War II, it was marred by historical inaccuracy.
Reconnaissance by fire was overemphasized, and opportunity fire
was hit-and-miss. It lacked the panache and élan to yield an
enduring game experience. Also, I found it somewhat
disturbing that the game identified so closely with the "Grossdeutschland"
Panzer Grenadier Division. Historically, that Division was not
formed until 1944, and since game scenarios occurred in 1942, it
would seem obvious that the reference is to the "Grossdeutschland"
Panzer Division; while not a criminal organization like the
Waffen SS, "Grossdeutschland" was not adverse to being escorted
by Einsatzkommando extermination groups. The close
identification with a "tainted" unit left me with an
uncomfortable feeling. (emphasis added)
Similar comments have
been made in most online forums for games ranging from Combat
Mission to Advanced Squad Leader.
Cross of Iron - Special Rules
Of all the tactical games yet published, perhaps the Squad
Leader/Advanced Squad Leader series has gone to the greatest
length to impart on the Waffen SS unique capabilities. In general,
SL/ASL has exceeded other game systems with its national
characteristic rules.
Cross of Iron (Avalon Hill, 1979), the first sequel to
Squad Leader, the successful squad-level game published by
Avalon Hill in 1977, treated Waffen SS troops with an entire rules
section. The Designer's Notes read:
The German SS
units were elite formations by virtue of their superior
training, and morale. They were not the supermen the German
propaganda would have the world believe. On the Eastern Front,
however, the Death's Head insignia meant just that for any SS
trooper unfortunate enough to fall into Russian hands. Surrender
was akin to suicide. As the war progressed and the front drew
ever closer to Germany, the SS was composed more and more of
desperate men.
From left to right; the
original counters in Cross of Iron - a first line squad
above a red berserk counter; the "casual" posed squad counters
supplied in G.I.: Anvil of Victory; the blue SS from
Beyond Valor; the return of the black SS in A Bridge Too
Far; and the "purple" SS from Kampgruppe Peiper.
SS troops were depicted in COI by white on black counters, and were
given special characteristics, applying only in Eastern Front
scenarios. This included a lessened subjection to Desperation Morale
penalties (i.e. a penalty on broken units attempting to rally if
subjected to enemy fire in the preceding turn), a higher morale
rating when broken (indicating that they were quick to rally, the
only troops in the Squad Leader system so treated to that
point in time), ability to use flamethrowers and demo charges, an
exemption from being taken prisoner by Russian units, and a rule
that all SS units were subject to the special Berserk rules of the
Russians (which made a unit immune to morale checks and required it
to charge the nearest enemy unit to engage it in close combat).
Whether or not the rules are particularly accurate, Squad Leader
tended to exaggerate national characteristics to give a distinct "flavour"
and in that regard, the SS rules were no more or less accurate than
those recognizing all Americans as automatically proficient with
captured weapons, or later rules that saw British troops treated as
"cool under fire."
G.I.: Anvil of Victory
The final game in the original Squad Leader series released
in 1983 replaced many of the original counters of the first two
games to reflect updates to the rules. The SS counters were rendered
in white and black once again, though the Berserk counters were
deleted (Berserk status had been extended to all units of all
nationalities in Crescendo of Doom (Avalon Hill, 1980), the
third entry in the series, though Russian and SS units remained more
likely to go Berserk than those of other nationalities.) No changes
in capabilities were made.
Advanced Squad Leader
Four rulebooks later, the living game system was consolidated into
one "Advanced" rulebook, and, controversially, the unit and system
counters were replaced en masse. To those that were paying
attention, the SS were replaced with blue counters, though the
distinctive SS runes were added to the upper corner.
Capabilities in the new game system were similar to the original;
broken-side morale was higher than normal (a capability now extended
in the Advanced game to some other nationalities, most notably the
Americans); SS units still did not surrender to Russian units, were
permitted to carry out the new "Massacre" function - the rejection
of an enemy surrender - and could not become Disrupted (a severe
type of morale loss) when opposing Russians.
ASL should have been the final incarnation of the SS counters, but
the Historical ASL module A Bridge Too Far (MMP, 1999)
depicting the fighting at the Arnhem Bridge in September 1944
reintroduced SS units in black, "as a throwback to the old Squad
Leader series." Some SS units had been included in
Kampfgruppe Peiper, another HASL Module released in two parts,
with counters (mis)printed in an odd shade of purple rather than the
standard German blue. These additional releases also included German
units with values other than the standard 6-5-8
firepower/range/morale, reflecting a more greater recognition that
SS units in reality varied greatly in composition, training and
equipment.
What Does It All Mean
As someone who went out and bought Cross of Iron in the
autumn of 1984 at the age of 15 with hard-earned allowance money,
the white on black counters always seemed stark and dramatic,
highlighting the reputation that the Waffen SS had for no quarter on
the battlefield. The stark contrast, the colour of death, all spoke
to the fact that these characters were bad-asses. It was
visceral.
Allied troops in the field felt the same way. One could ask the
Canadians in Normandy whose unarmed friends were murdered shortly
after D-Day, or the Americans after the Baugnez crossroads massacre
near Malmedy in the Battle of the Bulge. One soldier in The Royal
Winnipeg Rifles was reported as saying that after word of the
murders by the 12th SS Division in the early days of the Normandy
fighting, the Canadians weren't taking prisoners. "Any SS man we
see, we just give him the works, now."
Canadian soldiers of Le
Régiment de la Chaudière with an SS prisoner a little the worse
for wear, Normandy, 1944. Public Archives of Canada Photo.
Allied troops genuinely believed the SS were badasses too and
expected, and often gave, no quarter. The sight of those "evil"
black counters is a subtle reminder of that - a history lesson
achieved at a glance.
Master Gamers
Not to compare a game to what anyone goes through in battle, but
even the over-confidence of a smug, arrogant gamer pulling out a set
of black counters kind of matches that smug, arrogant
over-confidence the Master Race had when they made their insane
attempt to take over the world. I experienced a bit of that myself
in 1984, and 1985, playing COI with guys who loved the black
counters, who called their intramural volleyball team "Ball Waffe"
and drew runes on their school textbooks. It made the games
entertaining because you wanted to do nothing more than show them
that a black counter didn't impart any special powers or ascendancy
over the rules any more than runes or blood group tattoos had
granted ascendancy over the realities of 25-pounder or 155mm HE, a
company of Shermans, and a battalion of determined men set on doing
them bodily harm. I suspect my buddies were equally keen to show me
that regimental cap badges and archaic names like The Sherwood
Foresters or Fife and Forfar Yeomanry or The Calgary Highlanders
didn't make one's troops bulletproof either. The victories -
whomever won them - were sweeter given the level of friendly rivalry
that those little black counters inflamed.
Other Games
Up Front, billed as the "Squad Leader Card Game", not
surprisingly, given its relationship to the board game, had special
rules for SS troops, though these were minor. Rule 39.6 gives an SS
player two discards if he has taken one, or no, actions during his
turn. I'm not aware of other games that impart some special
abilities on the SS, other than a reflection of the status of their
first 10 or divisions in receiving an increased scale of weapons and
equipment by higher attack factors in operational level games, or
greater mobility reflected by additional movement factors in those
same games.
My Final Word
If there is an argument that the black counters somehow "glorifies"
the SS, I personally think it rings false, and loudly. In the end,
it is a matter for personal interpretation. If one chooses to get
offended by a game piece, that is their decision. There are many
"legitimate" reasons to see the SS given a dramatic representation
on the gaming table.
My Question To You
Have I missed any? Which tactical games out there depict the SS with
special rules?
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