Review of COMMAND #3: Samurai Sunset ==================================== In line with the earlier Command games it has more rules and sophistication than the recent ones. About 19 pages of rules. Unlike most Command games, air and naval units and operations are not abstracted with "points" or "shifts" but real honest-to-goodness naval task forces, with anti-air and anti-ship strengths appear; various types of planes appear too, like naval air, ground-based tac air, and strategic bombers. Allied task forces can carry ground units and naval air, which can be used for CAP. The Japanese have regular tac air, and kamikaze tac air, as well as a rocket kamikaze (Baka). Nice silhouettes for the aircraft by the way. The Japanese also have "koryu" suicide naval units which can be a minor irritant for the Americans. It is fun to attack with them! The map is all the Japanese islands except part of Hokkaido is cut off. The Americans want to land and seize control of Japanese cities and towns. Marines are bad-asses as is to be expected. The Japanese want to inflict casualties on the Americans and British. There is a political point track to keep track of who is winning; points shift it up and down for American casualties, Japanese cities captured, Japanese cities bombed out, and so forth. You keep track on a gazeeter of which Jap cities get smoked. Japanese can commit mass suicide to deny the Americans political points for capturing a city, but this in turn eliminates the need for the Americans to garrison it. Japanese can build units, from tank divisions to partisans, but their industry tends to get smoked which hurts their rebuilding. Japanese can get "samurai" leader units, which allow their units to make more effective fanatical attacks. Japanese and Americans use different CRT's to reflect the Japanese willingness to get exchanges and the American desire to retreat rather than get in a bloodbath. Limited intelligence makes air ops a little hairy. The Americans want to establish bases, probably on Kyushu, under the ground-based air umbrella of Okinawa, and then expand from there. The map and terrain is totally unfamiliar and makes for fascinating analysis. There are ZOC's, unusual for a Command game. Since the Americans can land anywhere and expand the beachhead, play is totally unpredictable and there is no telling what will happen. Oh yes, there is an Emperor counter the Japs want to keep out of American hands. Making him desert Tokyo is worth political points. Mt. Fuji is worth lots of points too. The U.S. player can slap down a "MacArthur's Headquarters" flag on a hex, making it worth double political points for both sides, which really raises the stakes if the hex is Tokyo or Mt. Fuji. Overall it is an immensely entertaining game. Last time I played it as the Japanese and won a total victory as the Americans sued for peace due to massive casualties. by Gary J. Robinson (grobinso@mailer.fsu.edu)