When the first edition of Skies Above the Reich by Jerry White and Mark Aasted from GMT Games was released in 2018 I passed on it in great part because I was not interesting in solo-playing wargames. Six years on the RockyMountainNavy Boys—my primary gaming buddies—are growing up and (mostly) out of the house. Thus, I have taken to looking at more solo games to satisfy my wargaming itch. Which means I am looking at Skies Above the Reich, now in a second printing, for my personal first time.
Not long ago, I did a deep dive into a later “Skies” title in Skies Above Britain (GMT Games, 2022). Although I generally enjoyed the game, I bemoaned the long, programmed learning process. Not mentioned at the time, I thought that the ten-step tutorial learning approach was a Jerry White trademark, given I saw a similar approach used in Atlantic Chase (GMT Games, 2021…or is it 2020?).
When I opened the rule book for Skies Above the Reich I totally expected to see the same ten-step learning program. So imagine my surprise when I read:
So I pulled out the double-sided tri-fold and…well, what you get is not a rule book but guided instructions on how to start playing. No, that’s not quite correct. Once a player has “perused” the tri-fold play starts using the Basic Game Instructions bi-fold which will eventually directs a player to the Mission: Sequence of Play and Attack Phase: Sequence of Play cards.
This is certainly a…different approach to learning a wargame. It is not the “Jerry White Ten-Step Programed Process of Wargame Learning” I expected, nor is it the standard wargame rules lawyer Case Approach to writing a rule book. In the near future I will post my thoughts on Skies Above the Reich over at Armchair Dragoons who I need to thank for generously sending me their review copy for study.
Feature image courtesy RMN
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