Board game on Israeli strike on Iran looks fascinating

Michael Peck, an editor for Training and Simulation Journal and Military Times, writes a fascinating review - in Foreign Policy! - of a board game that goes into great detail into the issues involved in a possible Israeli airstrike on Iran.

This weekend, I sat down on my dining room table and prepared to set the Middle East aflame. I was playing Persian Incursion, a board game of a hypothetical Israeli air campaign to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities. Or, at least so far it's hypothetical. On Tuesday, Nov. 8, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report suggesting that Iran has continued to build up its nuclear weapons program. And with Israel making serious noises about dropping bombs before Iran develops The Bomb, fiction could soon become reality. I set about seeing which side would win.


Persian Incursion is a paper war game, one of those fascinating yet complex beasts that appeals to armchair generals -- it combines the fun of a strategy game like Risk with the intellectual stimulation of reading contemporary nonfiction. The game was co-designed by techno-thriller writer Larry Bond, best known for co-authoring Red Storm Rising with Tom Clancy.  But Persian Incursion isn't a novel -- it's a reference library inside a game. The background information included is staggering. Besides the rules book, there is a target folder and a briefing booklet listing the precise dimensions of Iranian nuclear facilities down to the meter, as well as air defenses

As U.S. history has demonstrated for the last 65 years, before you blunder into a war, it's best to figure out exactly how you're going to win. Although Persian Incursion is a war game, destroying or protecting Iran's nuclear sites is only a means to victory -- not victory itself. The real prize is political. If Israel or Iran can knock down the other's morale enough through military or political action, it wins. Part of the goal, then, is to score points on "political tracks," which measure public opinion and morale. But it's not just Israel and Iran that have political tracks; the game simulates the pressure and acquiescence of other countries that have a dog in this fight, including the United States, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states, Russia, China, Jordan, and the United Nations (representing Europe and the rest of the world). Basically, the more supportive a country is toward Israel or Iran, the more political, intelligence, and military points it will provide to that belligerent. And these points are the currency of Persian Incursion; most every Israeli or Iranian action, from airstrikes to missile launches to terrorist attacks, requires them. Think of it as the Monopoly money you need to build your hotel empire.

To add to the unpredictability, Persian Incursion gives each player a chance before the game to purchase extra goodies. Iran's Colonel Noob buys GPS jammers to frustrate Israeli guided weapons, plus a couple of Chinese HQ-9 surface-to-air missile (SAM) batteries. And knowing that missiles will soon be headed Israel's way, I choose a third Arrow 2 anti-missile battalion, plus extra tanker aircraft for longer bombing sorties. The political tracks begin with Saudi Arabia somewhat supportive of my Israeli attack and with the United States, Turkey, and the United Nations offering lukewarm endorsement. On the other side, Russia is somewhat supportive of Iran, while China is a full-on ally. This situation is tenuous and fraught with danger for both players. If the Saudi political track shifts more toward Israel, Saudi aircraft could join in the fun. ("Oops, sorry Tehran! We were trying to attack the Jews' aircraft, but we accidentally bombed your reactor. Our king is most distraught.") On the other hand, China's support for Iran could mean an emergency airlift of Chinese weapons.

I begin with a special-forces operation that puts spotters on the ground to improve the accuracy of my airstrikes. Iran responds with a "propaganda barrage" and dice roll to see if it can get Saudi support for Israel to decline -- fortunately, for me, the gods decree otherwise. Israel executes its first airstrike. Combat basically involves Israeli aircraft progressing through successive "nodes" of Iranian interceptors and anti-aircraft weapons. I get lucky again: Iranian interceptors, outdated and often short of spare parts, can't hit worth a damn, and Israeli radar-jamming prowess helps neutralize Iranian surface-to-air missiles. Then, one of my F-16s is shot down, which means a hit on Israeli public opinion. But I've heavily damaged the Isfahan uranium conversion facility, and Iranian morale takes a hit.

The first game turn continues as Iran responds with missile strikes on Israeli cities, designed to lower Israeli morale. But one missile blows up on the launch pad, and another is shot down by my Arrow missiles. Of the two remaining missiles, one hit is a dud, but the other inflicts "major damage," which hurts my political track. Colonel Noob's turn is done.

Read the whole thing. Peck notes that some events that happened since the game was originally designed have changed things - Israel's strained relations with Turkey being the most obvious, but the entire Arab Spring a new important factor as well.. Also, puzzlingly, Hezbollah rockets are not mentioned in any scenario.

I don't know whether it includes possibilities of Israel accidentally bombing a civilian area, or Iran using chemical weapons in striking Israel, or (as Iran has threatened) Iran cutting off oil traffic from the Gulf or attacking Europe. There seem to be a huge number of variables.

Altogether, it sounds like a fascinating exercise.

The game costs $65 plus shipping.

I think I should get a free copy for posting this :)

(h/t Michael Peck)