The Guns of August (1981)

(from the back of the box :)

The thunder of the guns that August would deafen all Europe. For the next four years there would be no quiet: on the western front in France, on the eastern front in Russia, in the Italian Alps and the Balkan foothills, the only peace would be among the dead.

Ten Historical Scenarios From the summer of 1914 through the final surrender on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day and month of 1918, GUNS OF AUGUST spans the entire First World War in monthly Game-Turns; each player maneuvers hundreds of infantry and cavalry corps and their supporting artillery and engineer regiments. And in addition to this mammoth campaign game, separate scenarios for each front during each year of the war, which can be combined into two-front scenarios for 1914, 1915, 1916, and 1917, have been specially designed to allow players to vary the size, difficulty, and playing time of their games.
For those who think that World War I Is an unexciting subject for a game, GUNS OF AUGUST will prove a shock comparable to the appearance of British tanks at Cambrai, and German stosstrupen at Caporetto.

COMPLEXITY: Rated "5" on a scale of 1 (easy) to 10 (hard)

(BGG description :)

Avalon Hill's definitive World War I game.
Comes with 4 mapboard panels showing all of the major theaters of the war to end all wars. Cardboard cut out counters are colored the same as the uniforms of the respective countries. Several charts included for weather (rain creates mud), entry of new combatant countries, and combat results tables.

Magazine References:

The GENERAL Index Article List:

• The GENERAL Vol.18,No.3
  • Guns of August – “The Schlieffen Plan - Application of the Grand Strategy to Guns of August” (Strategy) Wayne E. Helie
  • Guns of August – “The Decisions of August - A Plan of Attack for the Central Powers in Guns of August” (Strategy) John H. Berry
  • Design Analysis - Guns of August Designer Notes, Rob Beyma
  • Guns of August – “Diplomacy During the World War - Variable Entry in Guns of August” (Variant) Leon W. Tenney
  • Guns of August – “Mobilization of Armies in the World War - Unit Production in Guns of August” (Variant) Leon W. Tenney
  • Guns of August – “Naval Action During the World War - Fleets in the Guns of August” (Variant) Leon W. Tenney
  • The Question Box - Guns of August
• The GENERAL Vol.20,No.2
  • Guns of August – “Another Look: The Early Months in Guns of August” (Strategy) By James Lutz
  • The Question Box - Guns of August
• The GENERAL Vol.20,No.6
  • Guns of August – “The Second Balkan War - A Scenario for Guns of August” (Strategy) By Gerald McDaniel
• The GENERAL Vol.22,No.3
  • Guns of August – “The Battle for the Trenches - Tactics and Units in Guns of August” (Strategy) By James Lutz
• The GENERAL Vol.25,No.5
  • Guns of August – “Guns of September - Updating 2nd edition Guns of August” (Designer Notes) Rob Beyma
  • The Question Box - Guns of August
• The GENERAL Vol.28,No.6
  • Guns of August – “The Guns Of August: Streamlined Rules for Avalon Hill's Game of the Great War” (Variant) John Bolash

BattlePlan Index Article List:

• Battleplan,No.5 November-December 1987
  • "Guns of August - Complete mega-variant with additional units", Bruce Harper