A New (Unofficial) 2011 Scenario For Labyrinth
by Mark D., Harvey Mossman & Fred W. Manzo
Overview
In early 2011, popular uprisings begin to erupt all over North Africa and the Middle East as citizens fed up with decades of poor governance finally decide to take matters into their own hands. Jihadist organizations around the globe move quickly to gain influence within the various national uprisings and to spread unrest to other countries in the Middle East and northern Africa, but it is still not known how successful they will be. The United States must strike a balance between support for the aspirations of the affected peoples, and support for the oppressive governments who nonetheless represent stability in traditionally unstable parts of the world. World governments, both inside and outside the affected region, fear the repercussions of potential new Islamist states. Will the “Jasmine Revolution” bring freedom and democracy? Or Islamic Rule and Sharia?.
Note: This scenario has not been extensively play tested. It’s just a diversion that we whipped up to see how the game plays when modified to reflect the current situation in the Middle East and North Africa, and it has made for some interesting games so far. Also, this scenario is not designed for solitaire play.
Click HERE for PDF version of scenario instructions.
Markers
Prestige: 3
GWOT: US Hard; World: ??? (see “Special Testing and Posture Checks”, below)
Troops: War
Funding: 7
Good Resources: 0
Islamist Rule Resources: 0
Fair/Good Countries: 5
Poor/Islamist Rule Countries: ??? (see “Special Testing and Posture Checks”, below)
Countries
Syria: Fair Adversary
Iraq: Fair Ally, 2 Troops, 1 Cell (NO regime change marker)
Iran: 1 Cell
Saudia Arabia: Poor Ally, 1 Cell
Gulf States: Fair Ally, 2 Troops, 1 Cell
Pakistan: Poor Ally, 2 Cells, “FATA” marker
Afghanistan: Poor Ally, 6 Troops, 2 Cells, Regime Change Marker (Tan)
Somalia: Beseiged Regime Marker
Lebanon: Poor Adversary, 1 Cell, Beseiged Regime Marker
Philippines: Soft, 1 Cell, “Moro Talks”
United Kingdom: Soft
Russia: Hard
Special Testing and Posture Checks
First, test Algeria, Libya, Egypt and Yemen with the following modifications to the die roll result:
1 = Islamist Rule
2 = Poor, Neutral, Beseiged Regime Marker
3-5 = Poor, Neutral
6 = Fair NeutralNext, roll Posture for each Schengen country, with the following modification:
+1 if Algeria, Libya, or Egypt under Islamist Rule.
In addition, each player is then allowed 1 re-roll for any Schengen country, Jihadist first.
After all rolls are completed, update the GWOT Relations Table accordingly.
Events in Effect
Patriot Act
NEST
Enhanced Measures
Renditions
FATA
Remove Cards
Patriot Act (#43)
NEST (#5)
Iraqi WMD (#37)
Benazir Bhutto (#33)
Bhutto Shot (#60)
Anbar Awakening (#13)
Al-Anbar (#58)
Saddam Captured (#27)
Saddam (#92)
FREs (#51)
Tony Blair (#29)
UN Nation Building (#30)
Vieira de Mello Slain (#56)
Hariri Killed (#64)
Tora Bora (#109)
KSM (#116)
Moro Talks (#4)
Substitute Events
All the following Event cards remain in play, and the card affiliation (i.e. US, Jihadist or Unassociated) and operations value remain the same. The Event text however should be replaced with the instructions from the list below:
Special thanks to Jakub Glazik for using his considerable talents to create cards to go along with the New Events listed below. Be sure to pass along your thanks to Jakub when you run across him on BoardGameGeek! (He posts under the name “rzabcio”)Download his
PDF file with card graphics here.
| Event Card |
New Event Name |
New Event Description |
| Schroeder & Chirac |
Hu and Medvedev |
Play if US Hard. Set CHINA and RUSSIA to Soft. -1 Prestige. – REMOVE |
| Abu Ghurayb |
Bagram |
Play if US has Troops in AFGHANISTAN. Draw 2 cards. -2 Prestige. Shift an Ally to Neutral. – REMOVE |
| Zarqawi |
Islamic Hero |
May only play if CENTRAL ASIA is “Poor” (Test if necessary).
A new dynamic al-Qaeda leader emerges in CENTRAL ASIA.
If US play, then US has killed the new leader. Add +1 Prestige and shift Governance to Fair.
If Jihadist play, place a cell in CENTRAL ASIA if available, or a Cadre if a cell is not available. Roll a single die. On a result of 1-3, one WMD Plot marker is moved from the “Loose Nuke, HEU and Kazakh Strain” box (if any) to the available Plots mix. – REMOVE |
| Hizballah |
Hizballah Activates |
If US play, remove a cell from LEBANON or, if no Cells in LEBANON, from any other country within 3 countries of LEBANON.
If Jihadist play, place Cell and random Plot in ISRAEL. If no Cells on Funding Track, travel a Cell from any country within 3 countries of LEBANON to ISRAEL, with automatic success. |
| Saleh |
Mubarak’s Last Stand |
Egyptian leader fights desperately to retain power.
If US play, and EGYPT not Islamist Rule, Mubarak is successful. Shift to Ally and place 1 Aid. If EGYPT under Islamist Rule change to Poor Adversary.
If Jihadist play, Mubarak is not successful. Shift EGYPT 1 box toward Adversary (if not already Islamist Rule) and place Beseiged Regime marker. If already under Islamist Rule, -2 Prestige instead. |
| Hamas Elected |
Moroccan Uprising |
Test Morocco, if necessary.
If US play, then Islamist agitators have been captured and executed. +1 Prestige. Improve Governance one level.
If Jihadist play, shift one box toward Adversary and place Beseiged Regime marker. -2 Prestige and any US Troops in MOROCCO must leave as soon as possible (highest priority). – REMOVE |
| Al-Azhar |
Al-Qaradawi |
The “Center for Moderation” in Qatar. Improve Governance in GULF STATES by 1 level. If new governance level is now Good, -4 Funding. Otherwise -2 Funding. |
| Musharraf |
Pakistani Unrest |
Islamists gain influence in PAKISTAN, threatening unrest and dividing loyalties within the military.
If US play, then the military has prevailed and military rule has been restored. Improve Governance by one level and set to Ally. Remove one WMD Plot marker from the available mix (if any).
If Jihadist play, set Pakistan to Poor Neutral. Add one WMD Plot marker (from the Pakistani Arsenal) to the available Plots mix. |
Victory Conditions
The victory conditions remain unchanged, except that at least one deck must be played to completion before victory can be declared. In other words, the “Sudden Death” aspect of the victory conditions are suspended for the duration of the first deck. At the end of the first deck, one player or the other may declare victory. If victory cannot be declared, the game continues, reinstating the “Sudden Death” aspect. From that point on, players may declare victory the instant their victory objectives are achieved.
