Fortress Europa

About this board game

Fortress Europa is a two-player game with an approximately four-hour playing time that recreates the Allied campaign in Western Europe from D-Day to March 1945. First published in 1978, it places one player in command of the Allied invasion and advance, while the other directs Germany’s efforts to resist and delay it.

The Allied player must select an invasion site, make a successful landing, break out of the beachhead, drive across France, and push deep into Germany. The German player seeks to prevent the invasion or, if that fails, conduct an orderly withdrawal across France while constantly delaying the Allied advance before launching a winter counterattack.

The basic game lasts 37 turns, while several scenarios provide shorter ways to play. Sudden Death Victory Conditions offer another option for shortening the basic game, giving players additional formats for exploring the campaign.

• A three-part mounted 22 × 24-inch map board
• 520 double-sided die-cut cardboard counters
• Allied and German Order of Battle charts
• An Aircraft Mission and Replacement Chart
• A Time Record Chart and a six-sided die
• A 16-page rule booklet covering play, optional rules, and scenarios

Fortress Europa is the successor to Avalon Hill’s highly acclaimed Russian Campaign. The game was supplied in an 8.5 × 11.5 × 2-inch box, with cardstock player aids supporting play and tracking the forces in the campaign.

A separate Play By Mail kit was also published for Fortress Europa. It included instructions and double-sided German and Allied Order of Battle Charts designed for tracking PBM games.