The Second World War officially began with Germany’s invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939. “Officially”, because Hitler first wanted to launch the operation on 26 August. For diplomatic reasons, the launch was postponed. But not all the special units responsible for actions behind the Polish lines received the counter-order in time, leading to various clashes. SGS Fall Weiss (White Plan in German, the code name for the operation) covered the Polish campaign between September and October 1939.

The German forces appeared to be fast, brutal and unstoppable, thanks to a concept that was quickly described as “blitzkrieg”. In reality, the name “blitzkrieg” was coined by Western journalists and was not, strictly speaking, a concept constructed as such. The Germans don’t even use the word “blitzkrieg”. It was in fact a judicious exploitation of technical advances in the field of motorisation of radio resources, combined with the use of tanks to apply ideas developed by several military thinkers over the last two decades.

SGS Fall Weiss is a turn-based game. Each turn corresponds to two days of real time, for a campaign scenario that spans 19 turns (plus a “pre-turn” that lets you choose the options that will apply afterwards). The units, represented by counters, are at division, brigade or regiment level, with a few battalions (or battalion-equivalent units). It is therefore an operational-scale game.

One of the aims of SGS Fall Weiss is to help players understand how the conflict unfolded, as in an interactive history book. It gives you the chance to manoeuvre the units that clashed in Poland in September and up to October 1939, including the Slovakian and Soviet invasions (with units from the countries concerned). The player has at his disposal armoured, motorised, cavalry, infantry and artillery units, as well as armoured trains and river flotillas for the Poles. The respective air forces are also present.

To ensure rapid success while limiting losses, the attacking player must make balanced use of air support, armoured units, artillery and regular infantry, taking into account the effects of the terrain (woods, forests, rivers, etc.). He also has to deal with the cards in his hand, which simulate perfectly successful tactical or operational actions or events with a strategic dimension: from the bonuses brought about by the increasing use of Pervitin within German units to the increase in Polish replacements induced by popular support.