Against the Odds: Annual 2012 - Forlorn Hopes

The Japanese face an enemy already in control of much of the battlefield and fighting with their backs to the wall. They have a schedule crunch and must weigh to benefits of using high cost assets to gain objectives. The cost of success at too high a price is long term failure (and who will tell the Emperor?). BOTH players can choose to increase their available forces, representing greater emphasis in overall planning. But the reinforcements come at a cost in victory points that could tip the scales to the enemy. Both sides are charged with using assets as effectively as possible. This is not an easy win for either side. Forlorn Hopes, the 2012 Annual, delivers the extra size and contents you expect from ATO. Full color 22" x 34" map. 288 die-cut, full color large 5/8" counters provide players with the air, ground, and naval units which actually fought in the campaign, plus some which could have been there. Bonus Item: After war broke out in 1939, throughout the remainder of the year the most pressing problem for the Allied navies was to hunt down and destroy the German surface raider, Graf Spee. This "pocket battleship" was too quick to catch by the heavy ships, and too powerful to engage by lighter forces alone...an enclosed mini-game with this issue shows how it was done.

Forlorn Hopes and the 2012 ATO Magazine Annual

Maps - One full color 22"x34" mapsheet
Counters - 288 full color die-cut 5/8" pieces
Rules length - 16 pages
Charts and tables - 4 pages
Complexity - Medium
Solitaire suitability - Low
Playing time - 2 to 10 hours depending on the scenario