Bar-Lev: The 1973 Arab-Israeli War (1977)

Overview

"Bar-Lev: The 1973 Arab-Israeli War" is an Operational level board wargame of the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, referred to by the Israelis as the War of Atonement or the Yom Kippur War, and by the Arabs as the War of Ramadan. Players will represent the Israeli and Arab high commands and maneuver their units and conduct combat in an attempt to attain the objectives of their respective nations. Because of the two front nature of the war, Bar Lev is uniquely suited to a multi-player game, with one player commanding the Israelis, one the Egyptians, and one the Syrians. Additional players can also be added to allow one commander for each front for the Israelis, air force commanders, or commanders for the various Arab allies. The ground game can be played without the air game, but it is recommended that the air game be incorporated into play as soon as the players are familiar with the ground rules, after two or three games, for instance.

(from rulebook introduction)

Scale: Operational, Battalion-Regiment, 1 Day per turn, 3-6 Km/hex

Turn Sequence: 1. Recon units move, 2. Artillery phase, 3. Movement phase, 4. Enemy recon units move, 5. Direct Fire phase, 6. Enemy units regroup

Components:

Rulebook (10 pages of densely written rules with 3 pages of optional Air rules) Two 18 x 24 inch maps 528 Counters (with a 3rd combat factor for defense not in the first edition) 9 Charts: Israeli Armed Forces, Israeli Mobilization/Refit, Egyptian Armed Forces, Syrian Armed Forces, Ground CRT/Unit Identification, Air CRT/Unit Identification, Terrain Effects, Egyptian Operational Points, Syrian Operational Points

This game, though based on the 1974 design by John Hill, is a completely new one, with a different designer (Frank Chadwick).