Labyrinth: The Awakening, 2010 - ?
An expansion for Labyrinth: The War on Terror, 2001 – ? designed by <PERSON>
"We have the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator ... America must use all our influence to encourage reform in the region ... we need to speak honestly about the principles that we believe in, with friend and foe alike."
- President <PERSON>, May 19, 2011
Introduction
From my earliest awareness of events in the big wide world growing up, the Middle East has always been a place in conflict and turmoil. The reasons for this are many and complicated.
It's relatively easy to model a military conflict in the area, but much harder to do so on a political level, which is what <PERSON> did in Labyrinth: The War on Terror, 2001 – ?which came out in 2010.
<PERSON> argued in histhat Labyrinth was flawed as a simulation, a view that I happen to agree with. In my own, I stated in my concluding remarks that the game resolved in a way that did not ring true for me.
I mention this up front in the interests of being forthright and provide some context. My opinion aside, Labyrinth remains very popular, as witnessed by its recent third print run.
Fast forward to now. The situation on the ground has changed quite substantially. This expansion picks up in 2010 with the early seeds of the so-called Arab Spring and beyond.
Components
This expansion, as is common for GMT, comes in a ziploc bag and includes a combo rule and playbook. There are 7 full pages of designer notes about the research that went into the expansion. Before even taking the shrink wrap off the cards, I would strongly recommend reading them.
Image by <PERSON> (drmark64)
In addition to the rules, there are 120 event cards, 20 wooden cylinders, three double sided player aid cards, and a sheet of counters.
Rules and Game Play
The designer called this expansion a second chapter in the ongoing story started in Labyrinth. The expansion adds several new rules and concepts.
First, there's popular action, reflecting the actions of the people becoming more involved in their governance. We saw these events unfold during the so-called Arab Spring. There are some new icons introduced to the cards as well.
Second, there's civil war. These rules are added to reflect the descent into civil war that happened in Libya, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. 92
In the context of the game of course, this can happen to other countries too.
Third, there is a miscellany of minor tweaks to reflect the updated situation in the Middle East (and surrounding environs - Libya is in Africa after all).
The expansion comes with the following scenarios:
1. Awakening (2010) - following the self-immolation of <PERSON> in Tunisia, this scenario is about the triggering of the Arab Spring.
2. <PERSON>'s Turn - An alternate history where <PERSON> or <PERSON> become president instead, modifying the Obama Doctrine card and pushing the US harder to the right in terms of foreign policy and the potential consequences.
3. Arab Spring - a more tailored approach to the first scenario where the draw deck is seeded in a more chronological fashion. If you want to play the game out in a manner more resembling how it actually happened, then this is the option for you. Actual results will vary, of course!
4. Status of Forces Agreement (2011) - December 18, 2011 saw the final withdrawal of US boots on the ground in Iraq. It asks the question - what will the US do?
5. Assad Alone (2012) - This two turn scenario examines the civil war in Syria and if the US player can get Syria into Good Governance they win, if the Jihadist player gets them into Islamic Rule they win, and all else is a draw. Art imitates life...
6. Islamic State of Iraq & the Levant (ISIL) (2014) - Call them ISIS, call them Daesh, call them what you will, there is no denying that the rise of this mercenary state has put the entire region into turmoil and caused tensions to rise globally. The list of international terrorist incidents linked to them is, in a word, alarming.
7. Campaign Game (2001-2015 - start post 9/11 as posited in the original game and link it up to this expansion.
Conclusions
Some years ago, I acquired the back issue of Strategy & Tactics with , a game designed in 1980 during the Cold War. The copy I received included a copy of a variant called Operation STOSS based on a post-analysis published in the Nov-Dec 1994 issue of Armor magazine. Turns out the Warsaw Pact's actual capabilities were badly underestimated, and the NATO capabilities similarly overestimated.
In my title, I used the words "Too Soon? 597