Unboxing Flames of War Tobruk Starter set – the war’s heating up!

• Posted on 18 February 2022
• By Simon Thurtle
• Posted in 15mm, Flames of War, FoW, Unboxing
• 0

Unboxing the Tobruk Starter set

Unboxing Flames of War Tobruk Starter set – the war’s heating up!

The battles of mid-World War II are back in focus for the team at Battlefront and their amazing game, Flames of War (FoW). With the release of the epic North Africa Mid-War Forces book (review here), all the main players in the battle have new toys to play with. There’s never been a better time to get some sand on your boots and give it a try!

This month sees the release of two, two-player starter boxes, covering the big four factions. We’ve reviewed the Kasserine box here, which pits the Germans against the US. But if you’re more a British or Italian fan, you’ll be needing this box, Tobruk.

What’s the Tobruk box all about?

The Siege of Tobruk was one of the defining moments of the mid-war period. Lasting an astounding 241 days in 1941, the siege saw Allied forces defend this crucial port on the Libyan coast from wave after wave of Axis attack.

The Tobruk box lets you re-fight this monstrous struggle with the starter box containing two great armies for the British and Italian combatants as well as the unit cards for the various options you can field, but more about that in a minute. These are perfect forces for new players, but also offer great value for existing players who want a new army or to expand their existing force.

The box also contains everything you need to get started with Flames of War, including a full, A5 rulebook. This contains all the rules you need to play and missions to give flavour to your games as well.

If you just want to dive straight in, there’s also a quick, core rules guide to get you started faster.

You’ll also find dice, and really helpful objective markers and tokens on the side of the box too.

If you’re familiar with Flame of War, you’ll know the miniatures come unbuilt and unpainted. However, the different forces are in different colours, so if you want, you can wait on painting them and get straight to the action once they are built.

The box contains a full guide on how to build your tanks and guns. Where necessary, with the British Crusader IIs, it’s really clear on how to build which options.

But what will you have when everything’s all built up? We’re glad you asked…

Italian Forces

The Italian force is based around an M14/41 tank company with some added flavour in the form of the fearsome 88mm anti-tank guns. The force includes:

Headquarters

1 x M14/41 tank

Tank Platoon

4 x M14/41 tanks

Assault gun battery

5 x Semovente Assault Guns

Anti-tank gun battery

2 x 88mm Guns

In total, this gives you 43 points of army. A standard FoW game is around 100 points, so you’re well on your way to a full, fighting force!

British Forces

The British forces are all about the tanks. The core formation in the box is a Crusader Armoured Squadron, which includes:

Headquarters

3 x Crusader Tanks

Tank Platoon

3 x Crusader Tanks

Tank Platoon

3 x Grant Tanks

Tank Platoon

3 x M4 Sherman Tanks

A note for new players; the British Crusader tanks may be built in one of three different ways. The instructions clearly show the difference. If you plan to use only the miniatures in the box, then we recommend that you build your Crusaders as follows:

2 x Crusader CS for your HQ

1 x Crusader II 6 pdr for your HQ

3 x Crusader II 6 pdr for your tank platoon

This will give you a total army of 55 points.

If you choose to build Crusader IIIs in place of the IIs in your platoon, then you will end up with a 57-point army. Choosing the IIs minimises the point differences between the Italian and British units in the box so is better if you’re just starting out.

Is Tobruk a good value starter?

In short? Yes, very.

Whether you’re an experience player or a newcomer to the game, Tobruk is excellent value and includes useful units as well.

For the modest price of €48.95, you’ll get miniatures which retail at over €165, saving you more than €110. Plus, you’ll also get the full rulebook, dice, and unit cards.

With that kind of price, they sell out quick, so head over to our store and pick yourself one up today. If you want to know what else you should add to the box or if you’ve got any questions, follow us on Facebook.

Keep an eye out for hobby blogs on this box in the coming weeks and, if you’re lucky, maybe even some battle reports of the units in action!