1943 1945 The Soft Underbelly is a curious, short, sharp game
This game is a real departure from the other two games I have from this designer, Give Us Victories and From Salerno to Rome. Where they are both full-scale hex and counter games that could take 8-12 hours if you decide to play the full game, The Soft Underbelly is an area movement game that's playable in a hour. Not only that, it comes in a much smaller box (roughly 8.5" x 6") with far fewer components.
That said, the components are lovely. The counters are pre-rounded and the map is mounted. The main units are small wooden cubes.
The full map is approx 16" x 12
Notice the yellow stars on the map. Those are the victory locations. If the Allies ever occupy all of them, or the one with Munich in it, it's an automatic victory. Failing that, if the game goes the distance (8 turns), whoever controls the most VP areas is the winner.
A closer look at the map with some pieces on board
Some Allied pieces
Some Axis pieces
The initial setup has a decent-sized Allied force facing a much smaller force in Tunisia. The entire rest of the Axis OOB is placed anywhere in Italy or southern Europe as the Axis player sees fit. Given that the Allies are really allowed to invade anywhere, there will be some tough decisions. Spread it all out thinly or stack it up in the victory areas?
The Sequence of Play is straightforward:
- Initiative: A simple roll off to see who gets to decide who goes first
- Reinforcements: Each turn, each side gets some fresh cubes. 4 or 3 for the Allies, 2 for the Axis.
- Conversion. Each side and convert cubes into counters (tank units, air units, paratroops, elite formations, etc.)
- Impulses: This is the action of the game. Each turn has 4 impulses, 2 for each player. The first player moves all their units and can designate up to 3 battles, which are then resolved. Then the second player does the same, then the first again and then the second again.
- Supply Phase: Axis must trace supply back to any of the VP locations in southern Europe. The Allies just have to trace to a space adjacent to a sea.
- End of Turn: All used air/naval/tank counters get flipped to their fresh side and we move the turn marker and start again
The stacking limits are 4 cubes plus two counters per space. Movement is unlimited as long as it's through controlled spaces. And of course, there are special rules for Allied landings.
Combat is a straight dice off with no drms. However, this is where those counters come. Each side gets one die per cube in the battle and they hit on a 6. But if you have a tank or air counter participating, then you hit on a 5 or 6. And if you have both, you hit on 4,5,or 6. Battle lasts a maximum of three rounds. The defender can satisfy one loss per round by retreating a unit out of the combat space. As well, each side can absorb a loss by flipping a tank unit to the used side, where it will be treated as a cube for the rest of the turn. After teh first round of combat is done, the defender can also voluntarily retreat every piece. So pretty straightforward stuff.
There's a bit of a twist in that each side gets a menu of actions listing their effects and how often they can be used. As well, they get 6 tokens to purchase these events. So six events each per game.
These are incredibly valuable and you'll want to spend them wisely.
As mentioned earlier, the game runs 8 turns and if the Allies haven't fulfilled their automatic victory conditions before that, then the winner is whoever controls most of the yellow star locations. I played it a few times, and once I got into it, an hour was a reasonable amout of time for a playing.
I really liked having a game that plays so quickly but has plenty of decisions. I like the simplicity of the cubes and counters for the pieces. And the simplicity of the combat system.
But the Allied Landing options seem a bit strange to me. The Allies can land anywhere along the Italian coast, either side. That means they can land on the Adriatic side as well, all the way up to Trieste. Once landed, their units are in supply as long as they can trace a path to the sea. Almost every space on the board is adjacent to the sea. So why would the Allies do the historical thing and start their campaign in Sicily and then move up the boot? The three VP areas in Italy are Naples, Rome, and Trieste. Unless all are hugely fortified, why not attack those directly? Or the adjacent spaces directly? The Axis player doesn't have enough forces to defend all of Italy in strength.
A successful landing is not a sure thing. The Axis gets to defend with its fleet, its U-Boat, and any air units in range. It is possible for an invasion to be crippled and called off, and the Allied player tries again the next impulse. But eventually the Allies will land and the Axis will try to throw them back into the sea before they can break out. Of course, the Allies can attempt another landing next turn as well, so the Axis might be fighting the invaders in two spots. In any case, it's very unlikely the Allies will land in Sicily and face a series of defended lines as they move north. While I like the sandbox nature of the Allies being able to attack anywhere, it still feels like there should be bigger costs associated with landings the farther away from Tunisia you land.
Another thing that was a little strange was the determination of range for air units. There are a couple small rulers and you measure from the edge of your air counter to the space you want to operate in. This makes counter placement possibly important in a game that otherwise has no tactical elements. A better idea would have been to have a dot in each area and use the rulers to trace from dot to dot rather than the counters.
The range rulers
If I let go of my crankiness over the landing options, it's a fun game. Along with the Tanks and Planes, the Germans have an Elite unit counter and three Fortified Line markers. The Allies have a Paratroop counter and a Partisans counter. Each adds a little spice. And even with the total choice of landing zones, the Allies will have a tough slog of it. The ease of movement means the Axis will react to wherever the Allies land. So it's fun to play. Time will tell how many times it gets played before its played out, but I can see having it in the bad as good filler at conventions.
See more about the game direct from the publisher, Di Simula
Or if in North America, order it from Noble Knight
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