Battle for Moscow

About this board game

Battle for Moscow is a two-player operational-level World War II board wargame that simulates the German push toward Moscow in late 1941, with an approximate play time of 90 minutes.

The German faction aims to capture and hold Moscow using blitzkrieg, while the Soviet faction tries to prevent that advance through strategic retreats. The game presents a relatively simple framework for exploring the opposing demands of a rapid offensive and a defensive withdrawal.

Although streamlined, Battle for Moscow includes many familiar elements of traditional wargaming. Movement, combat, terrain, strength, and control all interact across a sequence of game phases, while weather conditions introduce mud that affects play.

• Zones of control shape how opposing forces influence the map.
• A combat results table resolves battles.
• Movement and combat values distinguish unit capabilities.
• Units can operate at full strength or half strength.
• Terrain affects both movement and combat.
• Turns are divided into phases, with mud representing changing weather conditions.

The basic game lasts seven turns for each side. The expansion What happens next doubles that length, offering a longer version of the same central struggle.

Released in 1986, this free board wargame provides a compact setting for the 1941 campaign. It is also worth noting that the Victory Point Games reimplementation, Battle for Moscow: Operation Typhoon, 1941, is not the same game. A web-based version of that reimplementation, including a computer opponent, is available at oberlabs.com/b4m.