Warsaw Rising Up 1945-1980

About this board game

Warsaw Rising Up 1945-1980 is a board game for 2–5 players, with games lasting about 120 minutes, in which players rebuild and develop Warsaw after World War II.

Players take the roles of Polish urban planners, architects, engineers, and builders working within the Bureau for the Rebuilding of the Capital. Their challenge is to restore the destroyed city and revive its importance in administration, culture, and industry.

Reconstruction requires more than simply placing buildings. Players must acquire concrete, gather materials from the debris of the ruined capital, and use social funds inspired by those employed during Warsaw’s real rebuilding. The location of each project on the city map matters, as does the effective delegation of studio members.

• Manage project cards and workers, using their extra abilities to support your plans or hinder a rival’s progress.
• Acquire building materials from prefabricated elements and construct new panel blocks.
• Choose how Warsaw develops and decide whether historical plans will be followed.
• Consider major projects, including the possible location of the Palace of Culture and Science.

The game spans thirty-five years, bringing new tasks shaped by political doctrines, architectural tendencies, and Poland’s changing economic and developmental situation. Plans from the Six-Year Plan and later unrealized urban concepts offer alternatives to the reconstruction known from history.

Warsaw Rising Up 1945-1980 also includes a futuristic possibility: plans for two subway lines that existed in postwar Warsaw but were never built because of economic problems. Each game can therefore create a different version of the capital, from historically familiar development to an alternative city shaped by the players’ decisions.