From Salerno to Rome: World War II – The Italian Campaign, 1943-1944

About this board game

From Salerno to Rome: World War II – The Italian Campaign, 1943-1944 is a two-player strategy game covering the first ten months of the Italian Campaign, from the Allied landing at Salerno in September 1943 to the liberation of Rome in June 1944. Playing time ranges from approximately two hours for the shortest scenario to 6–12 hours for the complete campaign.

The game begins with the American 5th Army at Salerno and the British 8th Army advancing through Apulia, while the Axis powers prepare a powerful counter-offensive. Across a map of the Italian peninsula, players fight over key operations and battles including Salerno, Cassino, Anzio, and Ortona.

Each turn represents one month and is divided into a varying number of impulses. Players receive activation points to place formations, divisions, or army corps under command. Activated forces can move, attack, shift strategically, enter reserve, and respond to an opponent’s actions within a flexible alternating structure.

• Use activation points for movement, combat, air cover, landings, defensive lines, reconnaissance, ULTRA, and reinforcements.
• Employ artillery and aircraft for bombardment, interdiction, and tactical support.
• Manage breakthroughs, supply, replacements, naval support, reserves, and victory conditions.

The activation system creates uncertainty and ensures that every game can develop differently. Strategic planning, desperate counter-attacks, and sudden surprises keep both players engaged throughout the campaign.

Six scenarios range from the one-turn battle at Ortona to the ten-turn Campaign Game using two maps. The hypothetical Kesselring’s Option: Foggia Counterattack gives the Axis initiative in an alternate struggle for Foggia and its valuable airfields. The Allies aim to conquer Rome while limiting losses; the Axis can win by stopping the Salerno landing, preventing Allied victory, or inflicting sufficient casualties.