Downfall: Conquest of the Third Reich, 1942-1945

Downfall is a two-player game on the conquest of the Third Reich in World War II. One player controls the Western Allies and the other the Soviet Union in their joint effort to destroy the Axis. Though the two players share the goal of defeating the Reich, each seeks a victory that favors their dominance in post-war Europe. To this end, each player controls two factions:

The Western player commands the Western Allies faction and the OKH faction, that is the German and minor Axis armies battling the Soviet Union in the east (Oberkommando des Heeres).

The Soviet player commands the Soviet faction and the OKW faction, that is the German and Italian armies facing the Western allies in the west (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht).

Gameplay is driven by Downfall’s innovative initiative track. The faction with the initiative chooses an order, pays its initiative cost by advancing their marker along the track, and performs the order. Then, the faction with the initiative (based on the updated positions of the markers) chooses the next order. There is no set sequence of play; initiative expenditures determine who goes next. The progress of faction markers along the track also trigger strategic events, changes in weather, and advancement of game turns.

Order chits include operational orders used to move units and initiate combat and general orders for recruitment, mechanization, partisan warfare, logistics, and strategic warfare.

Strategic event cards drive game mechanics such as air support, supply checks, reinforcements, upgrades, and the distribution of Action Cards.

Action cards represent capabilities unique to each faction and can be played to augment orders or gain advantages in combat.

Downfall begins at the high-water mark of Axis expansion in November 1942 and ends in May 1945 at Germany’s surrender. The players control land units, air units, partisans, fleets, and submarines in this titanic struggle. With both players in command of factions on opposite fronts, each is constantly challenged to launch offensives and conduct desperate defenses. On the east front, the greatest land war in history sweeps from Stalingrad to Berlin; in the west, land warfare, naval operations, amphibious invasions, and strategic warfare combine in the quest for victory.

Chad Jensen researched and experimented with Downfall over a ten-year period, taking inspiration from classic strategic WWII games and incorporating ideas from his Fighting Formations initiative system to arrive at the four-faction, two-front design approach. John Butterfield has picked up the design where Chad left off, bringing it to completion.