Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Released in 1965, Blitzkrieg is one of the most influential board wargames ever designed. In this video, we examine why this classic title mattered so much to the development of modern wargaming and how it helped define the concept of the “monster wargame.”
From fictional nations and grand strategic scope to zones of control, combined arms warfare, and scalable rules, Blitzkrieg pushed the boundaries of what board games could do at the time. We discuss what made the game innovative, where it struggled, how later rule revisions addressed its flaws, and why its legacy still matters more than 60 years later. If you’re interested in classic wargames, the history of the hobby, or understanding how modern designs evolved, this is a must-watch.
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@avalonhill #blitzkrieg #blitzkrieggame
Blitzkrieg is one of Avalon Hill's earlier releases, and is a classic hex and counter board game. The game is a fictional representation of the breakout of World War II. Five minor countries become engulfed in a tremendous conflict for territory waged by Great Blue and Big Red, the major antagonists. Units represented are infantry, airborne, rangers, armor, artillery, fighters and bombers. Naval action is included but abstracted.
Rules are introduced at three levels: the basic game, the advanced game, and a tournament game, as well as optional rules players can include as they choose. The advanced game adds special unit abilities, supply restrictions, air war and strategic bombing, naval invasions, commando raids, special desert supply restrictions, etc. Tournament play was intended for play at game conventions such as the annual world board-gaming convention in Harrisburg, Pa.
The nice thing about Blitzkrieg is that it uses a system that is similar to most other hex and counter games, so once one learns one game, the learning curve of a similar game is not as steep. Such is the case with many of the old Avalon Hill Classics. Once you learned one game all of the others played the same way with some minor variation, only the campaign is different.
Also in combat, terrain affects combat. A defender in a city or mountain would have their defense rating doubled. For example, a 1-4 infantry in the mountains would defend as a combat rating of 2. Odds are rounded in favor of the defender. From the example above if that 4-4 infantry was defending in a city against those three 4-4 infantry, the odds would now be 12-8, only 1-1 odds (better bring up more attacking troops).
When Blitzkrieg came out this type of map wargame was relatively new, so this game was very novel in its time. It is still a good two player game and there is enough variation so it won't get stale. It has a WWII or early cold war feel to it. The two antagonists are abstract, Big Red and Great Blue, which had more to do with the simple printing colors Avalon Hill used back in the early 1960's than any national commentary.
In the late seventies and eighties many panned Blitzkrieg since many games seemed to grind to a stalemate in the middle of the map. But as a training game this isn't such a bad thing, since that can give a new gamer some confidence to play to a draw.
Released in 1965, Blitzkrieg is one of the most influential board wargames ever designed. In this video, we examine why this classic title mattered so much to the development of modern wargaming and how it helped define the concept of the “monster wargame.”
From fictional nations and grand strategic scope to zones of control, combined arms warfare, and scalable rules, Blitzkrieg pushed the boundaries of what board games could do at the time. We discuss what made the game innovative, where it struggled, how later rule revisions addressed its flaws, and why its legacy still matters more than 60 years later. If you’re interested in classic wargames, the history of the hobby, or understanding how modern designs evolved, this is a must-watch.
To support our channel directly, please become a member and get access to bonus content: youtube.com/channel/UCRarNme4iUanPLflogg-Ntg/join
__________________________________________________________
TWITTER: twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=LegendaryTacti1
EMAIL: legendarytactics2020@gmail.com
WEBSITE: legendarytactics.ca
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/legendarytactics
DISCORD: discord.com/invite/Kquf34pVQd
__________________________________________________________
@avalonhill #blitzkrieg #blitzkrieggame
Blitzkrieg is one of Avalon Hill's earlier releases, and is a classic hex and counter board game. The game is a fictional representation of the breakout of World War II. Five minor countries become engulfed in a tremendous conflict for territory waged by Great Blue and Big Red, the major antagonists. Units represented are infantry, airborne, rangers, armor, artillery, fighters and bombers. Naval action is included but abstracted.
Rules are introduced at three levels: the basic game, the advanced game, and a tournament game, as well as optional rules players can include as they choose. The advanced game adds special unit abilities, supply restrictions, air war and strategic bombing, naval invasions, commando raids, special desert supply restrictions, etc. Tournament play was intended for play at game conventions such as the annual world board-gaming convention in Harrisburg, Pa.
The nice thing about Blitzkrieg is that it uses a system that is similar to most other hex and counter games, so once one learns one game, the learning curve of a similar game is not as steep. Such is the case with many of the old Avalon Hill Classics. Once you learned one game all of the others played the same way with some minor variation, only the campaign is different.
Also in combat, terrain affects combat. A defender in a city or mountain would have their defense rating doubled. For example, a 1-4 infantry in the mountains would defend as a combat rating of 2. Odds are rounded in favor of the defender. From the example above if that 4-4 infantry was defending in a city against those three 4-4 infantry, the odds would now be 12-8, only 1-1 odds (better bring up more attacking troops).
When Blitzkrieg came out this type of map wargame was relatively new, so this game was very novel in its time. It is still a good two player game and there is enough variation so it won't get stale. It has a WWII or early cold war feel to it. The two antagonists are abstract, Big Red and Great Blue, which had more to do with the simple printing colors Avalon Hill used back in the early 1960's than any national commentary.
In the late seventies and eighties many panned Blitzkrieg since many games seemed to grind to a stalemate in the middle of the map. But as a training game this isn't such a bad thing, since that can give a new gamer some confidence to play to a draw.
