REVEW of Conflict of Heroes: Storms of Steel 3rd Edition

[@meenki347]

I have too many games in the shrink. And dozens more unpunched. I'm only buying one game a year for myself on Christmas. I'm sold!

[@meenki347]

Bart, you need a dice Tower.

[@ScotchTestDummies]

Boom! Chief

[@daveryan2148]

This entire series (especially in latest versions) threads the needle of hex wargame, boardgame, tactical fight, historical-ish combat. It's the perfect "first" for a lot of catogories. Probably the best solo AI solution available as well.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Yes yes yes

[@nickpn23]

I grew fed up with this series and its iterations. I have the first edition SoS. A year later another edition matched maps with the second edition of Awakening the bear (AtB). Now there are new rules for the series (again), solo and make-your-own card sets (but only for AtB), and a backlog of unrealised projects standing for over a decade.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

I have first editions too. Those maps work functionality wise with the new maps but the new ones are almost photo quality so it won’t work with the newer ones in my opinion. As far as the rules they really didn’t change much and you can pick and choose what you want and don’t want. I’ve always used three dice rolled secretly, using only the highest and lowest roll and then counting your AP’s up instead of down. Adds all kinds of fog of way to your opponent. Now the new AP dice adds fog of war to both players. I don’t like it as much.

[@deploribusrex4480]

Thanks for the great review, Chief! Been waiting for this one to be released (SoS 3rd Ed.) for a long time.

[@ScotchTestDummies]

Me too. I love this system. I always have my eye looking towards the next in the system. Fingers crossed

[@newpainter4601]

Great review. Really appreciate the comparison portions.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Thanks New. I love this system.

[@GeekCityUSA]

Hey, what a great video! Very informative, thanks so much! I still consider myself “new” to war games. I’ve played a few with a buddy but I have really wanted to get more involved in the genre. Awakening the Bear was on my radar over the last few years, and seeing this makes me realize how much I would dig this system. Again, great video and thanks so much for taking the time to go so in depth on all aspects of these games! Cheers!

[@ScotchTestDummies]

Thank you Geek City

[@BoxofDelights]

Great video. You nailed the content really well. Thank you for answering all my questions before I asked them! R.R.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Thank you Ricky

[@jamesmurray6752]

Can you play SoS 3rd with previous versions? Such as PoH and AtB?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Yes but if you didn’t have the SoS 3rd edition you would need to read the rules on Online and get a matching die (8 sided I think). Not a problem for most gamers. I think of the activations like this: Basic learning system you both get 7 AP’s (Action Points) and count your AP’s down as you use them. Fog of War. My preferred system you roll three 6 sided dice under a cup means test them, keep them hidden under the cup. Count your AP’s up until you run out then show opponent what’s under the cup, trust but verify. The new system is fog of war and command on you. You don’t know how far or what your own troops can do because the die roll could break against you.

[@mrmcmeowmeow]

Should the Russian unit be marked as stressed (@24:34) after passing the spent test?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Yes.

[@Crusader7077]

My gripe with the game trays involves the tray that holds the game cards. If the 65 cards (not including the 66th card that has the ad) are not sleeved, then it's fine. However, if the cards are sleeved, they will overflow in the tray. When putting the cover on, it will push down on the sleeved cards, and I do have a long-term concern regarding this. So I was very disappointed with the card tray. Academy Games should have included a deeper card tray to accommodate sleeved cards.

[@ScotchTestDummies]

Interesting. I never even thought about a sleeve issue. But I don’t sleeve cards so it’s good to hear that angle. Chief

[@robertmoffitt1336]

Box inserts are neat, but companies never seem to account for sleeved cards. If shuffling cards is involved, I'm sleeving my cards, and that generally torpedoes most game inserts, which is a shame really for the time and effort put into including them. Undaunted Normandy being another good case in point. Having something to organize your games for quick set up is a super good idea though, but sleeving cards can foul up the best game inserts and make an otherwise great insert irrelevant.

[@Crusader7077]

I do wonder if the 2nd edition Awakening the Bear game cards were taken into account into the design of the new card tray. I say that because if the 2nd edition ATB cards are sleeved and put into the new tray, it's just barely deep enough to fit each sleeved card into the tray without overflow. But keep in mind that 2nd edition ATB consists of 55 cards, and 3rd edition Storms of Steel has 65 cards, thus the overflow if the cards are sleeved.

[@raulflechamayordomo4357]

Hi, does a turn ends when the unit of a player is spent? Unit by unit for every player every turn? I am a new player and I think that, in a turn, every player only can activate one unit (or a group of unit grouped) and when the unit is spent, he can't activate another unit and turn ends. Is this correct? Thank you.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

A turn ends when both players both pass. Refresh all counters reduce smoke, draw any action cards if allowed bid for initiative and start again. Everything is very fast and back and fourth.

[@raulflechamayordomo4357]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs but when an unit is spent, that player can't activate other units for actions the same turn, no?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

I activate a unit and do some action and then you do the same. Then back to me and that unit gets spent. Then you activate a unit and then I activate another unit that is not spent. Then you go and then I use my CAPs Command Action Points to activate a spent unit that I really need to use. It keeps going like this until we both pass. Then that round or turn is over. It’s very fluid and fast.

[@raulflechamayordomo4357]

Thank you! 👍

[@dantes9811]

Hi Chief! Thank you for a review. What is your opinion about Storms of Steel! 3rd and Awakening the Bear 3rd. Which do you think is better? Is it possible for you to choose best of these two? I am on a budget now so could not decide which one to buy first. Which one has shorter scenarios/missions?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Storm has more tank action And adds in aircraft . Awakening has more foot troop. Mission wise. what’s your pleasure?

[@dantes9811]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs Ok i like more infantry firefights so it would be Awakening

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

That’s where I would start. The missions are really cool. They start you simple and ramp up as you progress. Not so much in length of time but in regards to new rules and complexity. This means you don’t have to read all the rules in order to start playing. And then you layer in more and more as you get deeper into the missions. It makes getting started really easy. COH is the system for gamers who want to try out their first tactical war game. Chief

[@malachor5ve]

Great review. Which would you recommend between storms of steel 3rd edition and Awakening the bear 3rd edition, what are the differences?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Storms of Steel is more tank heavy. Awakening the Bear is the first in the series and where I suggest people start. The Polish setting is nice because you always have the pols on one side fighting either Russia or Germany.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

To clarify the Polish setting is another standalone version of the game. Forgetting the title.

[@malachor5ve]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs Awesome, I just ordered Awakening the bear 3rd edition. With how many times you've recommended the conflict of heroes games I'm looking forward to playing it as my first wargame

[@vakporcovac]

Hello, Nice review...i was wondering if this game does have the solo mode implemented. If not, can it be combined with the eastern front solo expansion?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Hmm great question. The solo expansion was designed for ‘ awakening the bear’ but I think it can be used here too. I would direct you to Academy Games for the definitive answer

[@vakporcovac]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs thank you for the response...I did try to check on their website already and they are selling it in the category accessories and expansions to this game, but I am not sure as I didn't find definitive statement anywhere.

[@nickpn23]

The scenarios included in the solo card set are all using AtB components. The same with the DIY card set. They are expensive and the idea of buying parallel packs for each games is daunting. If you use the solo cards 'loosely' they will probably work fairly well with SOS.

[@gp4141]

Thank you for the review. I just bought the AtB 3rd edition and the solo expansion. I heard the solo expansion was made for the 2nd edition and some hex reference numbers may not all match. I’m sure I can some errata to help. I’m curious if you tried the solo expansion, how you like it, and if it’s compatible with the other CoH games? Thanks.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

I played it a couple times when it first came out and it worked well. It was for the 2nd edition but there were very few changes other then a special die used for your actions. You don’t have to use that die. I prefer to roll three dice using the mean and keeping them hidden. You count up as you take actions so your opponent never knows what a unit is capable of doing. Then when you exhaust the unit you reveal your rolled dice. Works really well.

[@gp4141]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs Thank you for the suggestion. I’m sure I’ll figure your idea out after I read the rulebook. Your suggestion of using three dice works for solo play as well?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

It could just for the mean. I like it best in two person play because it adds to the tension. Watching your opponent move as he counts up AP’s and you guess at what he can do and how far he can move. It’s the only way I’ll play. The AP dice ends up putting both the player and the opponent in the dark. Probably a bit more realistic in terms of lack of god like battlefield knowledge but less “delicious” thought space. Beauty is you can play whatever way you like.

[@davidwarren3221]

Great Review Chief,I just purchased the AtB ,3rd edition,and am enjoying it very well.I am a solo player and would love a video using the solo expansion with the new rules.Right now,I'm just playing both sides.

[@ScotchTestDummies]

I put a video out a few years ago on the solitaire system, please check that out. It’s not a play through but it does walk you around the system. Bart

[@uweeickert8061]

David Warren, the Solitaire system is the foundation of the 3rd Ed rules. Both play very similar.

[@awesome_claw]

I was initially put off by the spent die since I was worried it'd make the game a lot more random and make it a lot harder to plan. I come from a board gaming background so I'm usually put off by a lot of randomness in games - in a competitive game I'd rather be playing against my opponent rather than playing against the dice. However, with an unspent unit you always get to do your action, and a spent unit can still be used with CAPs or cards. I might still try the AP tracking method but I'll probably stick with the die most of the time.

[@ScotchTestDummies]

Great comment Harry and thanks for being a Patreon backer as well. Bart

[@bluebotic2327]

This review is top notch. Thanks.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Thank you Blue

[@danacoleman4007]

Great job, chief, and thank you very much! I'm not sure that I'm groggy enough or nardy enough to get into these types of games yet. But I sure have been thinking a lot about it lately. I'm getting to that age...

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Lol. You bet Dana. I hit that age at 13!!!!

[@olydon]

I just bought this for my thirteen year old last week as a birthday present...he lovez it!!!

[@robertmoffitt1336]

Great vid, I might have to check 3rd edition out. I really like the unknown fog of war aspect from the Band of Brothers system, sounds a lot like what 3rd edition CoH is going for now. Can you get 3rd edition SoS and use it to update 2nd edition AtB & Guadalcanal?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Yes you can use the weighted 10 sided die with the other systems. The thing I liked is that you can use anyone of the AP systems I mentioned with any one of the games. I honestly didn't think I was going to like the Action Point Die and planned on still using the 3 Dice in a cup system but no longer.

[@robertmoffitt1336]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs The three dice undercover was a slick way to do the action points, I liked it alot! If you like this new system, I'm down for checking it out! Again, it is very similar in nature to Worthington's Band of Brothers system for activating units. When neither player knows what is going to happen, it's great fun!

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

The hardest thing for me with the system is not knowing how far I can make a unit move. With the three dice you rolled and the made a plan. You have to plan more on the fly with the die.

[@robertmoffitt1336]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs Game should arrive tomorrow, thanks for the look see and review!

[@ScotchTestDummies]

You bet. 👍

[@Dekraa]

You sold the game, completely 👌

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Awesome. Thanks. Let Uwe know over at Academy. I’m a big fan of the system so my only downer is I want more boxes covering different years over the war. I hear 1940 is up next.

[@gadushholl3469]

Thanks for the review and happy new year. Waiting for 3 month for my 3rd edition now.....I want it now. Academy Games please put some pressure on that we can get it here in europe. Best regards.

[@ScotchTestDummies]

Thank you Holl. I’m making a Christmas wish that you get it soon. Chief

[@gadushholl3469]

@@ScotchTestDummies Hello Chief, got my games recently. But what do you think about the different cardstock for the cards? SoS are great. But AtB are almost transparent plastic? This is pretty bad in my opinion. Great game. But this is issue very annoying!

[@drohanp]

Wow that’s quite the bar!

[@douglaspearson1647]

I was wondering if you are planning a review of Tank Duel Enemy in the Crosshairs? It looks interesting. This may sound funny but one of the mechanics reminds me of Status Pro Baseball.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Not at this point. Who puts it out

[@douglaspearson1647]

GMT

[@douglaspearson1647]

GMT

[@JohnPywtorak]

My trayz clamped nicely unlike yours chief. You might want to ask Academy for replacements? Also Uwe made a great video where he showed using map weight down on the trayz and fill the box, by keeping the punch board at the bottom until that space is needed.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

I’ll watch that video. The way the counters sit is part of the problem. They need to lay down slightly and it always seems that I’m pulling an extra one out and moving one counter from here to there just to get the lid on. I’ll check the vid

[@JohnPywtorak]

@@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs Here is a link from their channel kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKGWpWt9rJ2gl8k

[@skinflutey]

Bonding With Board Games 20 counters per row is what each slot seems to be made to hold

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Roger that. Thank you.

[@skinflutey]

Bonding With Board Games you’re welcome

[@reftomgreen82]

Great review. Thanks. Definitely put this game on my radar.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

Boom