The Arab Israeli Wars First Look

[@GotoHere]

You can line the maps up 4 in a line or 4 across. Makes for interesting games.

[@davidcook8230]

Wow, only $11 and in such good condition for the box. I thought I had done well at $40 for one with minor shelf wear but pristine contents. Some are fussing about balance. Well the Israelis pretty much won everything, so it is merely a matter of adjusting the victory scale or points. An even simpler fix is keeping perspective as the Arabs. One should compare one's performance to that of historical counterparts to derive a sense of accomplishment or failure. I bought it again last month, and my friend and I have enjoyed working our way through half of the scenarios. After a short break for a Victory in the Pacific contest, we will do the other half.

[@Peter_Schiavo]

I saw this on the shelf in the toy department at Sears. My mom bought it for me when I was 14. I didn't have anybody to play with at first, so I would do one half of a turn each afternoon after school. That's right kids, Sears had a massive toy department and carried war games, DnD, a huge plastic models aisle.

[@CenturionsReview]

That's awesome. I wish Sears still carrier wargames.

[@conflictmagazine]

Oh HELL yes! This was one that my older brother got me into when I was a kid. That copy looks excellent (fingers crossed all the counters are there). Wow...lot of memories on this one... And that sells for around $80-$100 in that condition so you got a deal...

[@CenturionsReview]

I keep hearing good things about this game. I'll have to try it soon.

[@Xurrah]

Got mine for about $20, complete, and in decent condition. Previous owner even tossed in some articles from "General". My only gripe was that ALL the pieces were basically dumped in a single baggie. Ugh! Worth it though. Great game!

[@charleslatora5750]

As I like to call it one of the three AH triplets: Panzer blitz Panzer Leader and Arab Israeli Wars. Love the way they handle the scenarios too. Basic standard n advance.

[@jobu88]

One of my favorites back in the day, they had fixed most of the issues with Panzer Blitz / Panzer Leader by the time they released Arab-Israeli Wars. Only drawback was that it was released in the pre-computer age and the scenarios were limited. Still a lot of fun, and it just about forced the arab player to rely on mass while the Israeli player relied on quality most of the time.

[@rags417]

I played my version for the first time in ages just before the COVID hit. We played one of the Syrian assault missions twice, once from each side. Playing as the Syrians I won (barely) by a careful mix of rushing and shooting, still it is VERY hard to win as the Arabs.

[@cipherthedemonlord8057]

I saw this on a Facebook marketplace ad and that's why I'm here.

[@richmcgee434]

I see the balance issues have already been brought up. Other than that, quite decent as an unofficial third game in the Panzer Blitz/Leader series. Polished that engine about as well as could be - and then dropped the ball on the scenarios.

[@rags417]

This game IS winnable by the Arabs but you have to play a near flawless game, if you ever get it and play against new players then let them play the Israelis, they can make a lot of errors and still win.

[@charleslatora5750]

Wish I had thought to make a copy so I wouldn't have to cut out the turn record track careful if you do cut out the dotted doesn't line up on the one side, doesn't really posirion well with what's printed on the other side.

[@Steelwhip2001]

turn record track is intended to be cut out. So no flipping of counters ;)

[@CenturionsReview]

Thanks! That makes much more sense now.

[@Steelwhip2001]

@@CenturionsReview you can even see the dotted lines that run around the outside of the turn track of where you should cut.

[@CenturionsReview]

@@Steelwhip2001 Yes, I see them now. Thanks!

[@NoEnemiesHere]

Thanks, Dave.

[@CenturionsReview]

You're welcome Duce.

[@GrumblingGrognard]

Great game with TERRIBLE scenarios. Seriously, the final version of the rules started in "Panzer Blitz" and refined in "Panzer Leader" this game gets the RULES right...but the scenarios really suck. Do not expect anything resembling balance in any of the scenarios (except the last one is sort of close).

[@CenturionsReview]

Good to know. Thanks!

[@neeleyfolk]

$11, that's a bargin.let us know how it plays.

[@CenturionsReview]

Will do. I look forward to trying this one. I've always had an interest in the Arab-Israeli wars.

[@jimsmith7445]

OH LORD! AIW! I've had this game for a long while.... the boards are great, the units... very much like PanzerBlitz and Panzer Leader. I WAS, at the time hoping for a great play out of this game, but it failed! For all the thought they put into this one, and (presumably) all the options, it is so weighed against the Arabs, it turns out to be a slaughter-fest for Israel. The balance has to be "house ruled". I kept the game, largely because of its production values, and the fact I could play "What IF" with th components. I find that when some of these games were created, it was assumed that one side was the "good guys" and the other side had to "eat it"! Strange but I've noticed that so many games, especially the East Front games, emphasize the Russian breakout, where the Germans are being run over. OH... I'm so sick of this crap! I understand the bias but it gets more than a little heavy handed at times. How many games have to focus on Napoleon the genius, versus "The Battle of Leipzig" where "The Little Corporal" got his ass handed to him, with a vengeance? Where I see the balance in PB/PL, I couldn't see any balance in AIW. Just like the 1,000th Gettysburg game... I think we all know who wins most of the time. Strange you don't see games about Fredericksburg, Chickamauga or other Confederate victories. This is why I applaud companies like Legion, and GMT, who have introduced innovative games like Commanceria, Navajo Wars... or Legion's Maori Wars. There's so many great battle games out there that can be made.... The Golden Hoarde, The Mexican Revolution, Russia's failure in the Afghan war, The Boer Wars, etc.. As of now, I have a ton of games about highly publicized battles... when you're talking about The Crimean War, The Russo-Japanese War, The Boxer Rebellion, you have my attention. Show me more "Armageddon Wars", or "Boots on the ground", or "A Week in Hell"!

[@CenturionsReview]

Thanks!

[@JimFinley11]

Another example of the ridiculously unbalanced is AH's Midway, but in their defense, that game was made before the government let people know they'd broken the Japanese codes and were reading their signals. Without that edge, the Japanese would probably have won, as they almost always do if you play the game by the box rules.