In the Name of Roma

Fellow Lardy Chris Stoesen wrote In the Name of Roma as a supplement for I Ain’t Been Shot Mum, Troops Weapons and Tactics and Chain of Command. All I can say is this is so much more than a wargaming supplement. It tells the early campaign history of the Italian forces in Russia in great detail. While I have read a much about the Russian Front the Italians part in the campaign is an area that I knew little of outside of the Stalingrad campaign. This supplement fills a large gap in my knowledge of the campaign and has me looking for more. Thank fully Chris offers that "more".

This eBook is broken down into several blocks. There is one that covers the history of the 1941 campaign for the Italians in general and the 80o Roma Infantry Regiment in particular. Order of Battle and gaming materials are next followed by the six campaigns and 30 scenarios. While this is a TOOFATLardy supplement, it is easily used for any platoon or company level game system.

Chris Stoesen covers the units and the order of battle in great detail. We read of the L3/33 being used successfully against Soviet infantry and their T37 tankettes. There are games were the Italians are using their Legion (CCNN), Bersaglieri or Esploratori platoons. All interesting and colorful units in both the history and for the table top.

There is the struggle on the Italian side of using their limited transport capabilities (often civilian vehicles) to move their battalions around. Logistics being almost more of an obstacle for the Italian Corps in Russia (CSIR) than the Soviet troops. These troops were promised both a short campaign and logistics from the Germans. They received neither.

With six campaigns and game aids any arm chair historian or wargamer will find this meaningful reading. At 285 pages there is a lot of meat here. The bibliography alone is worth the price of this eBook. I hope Chris Stoesen will continue to write such insightful supplements.