- BGG rank
- BGG #4,479
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Battle for Germany
- 2–4 players
- 180 min
- Complexity 2.1/5
- 1975
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Expansion for Afrika Korps: The Desert War – Platoon Level Combat in World War II: A Panzer Grenadier Game
Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces
2006
Rules assistance for Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2 players
- 120 min
- 12+
- Complexity 2.6/5
Rules assistant for Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces is an expansion for Afrika Korps: The Desert War – Platoon Level Combat in World War II: A Panzer Grenadier Game released in 2006 for 2 players, 120 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Michael Bennighof and its main mechanics are Hexagon Grid.
Similar games
- BGG rank
- BGG #8,655
- BGG rating
- 7.3
Second World War at Sea: Bomb Alley
- 2 players
- 360 min
- Complexity 3.1/5
- 2002
- BGG rank
- BGG #9,444
- BGG rating
- 7.0
Battle of the Bulge: Platoon Level Combat in World War II – A Panzer Grenadier Game
- 2 players
- 30–360 min
- Complexity 2.7/5
- 2002
- BGG rank
- BGG #7,482
- BGG rating
- 7.0
Eastern Front: A Panzer Grenadier Game
- 2 players
- 120 min
- Complexity 2.8/5
- 2005
- BGG rank
- BGG #8,610
- BGG rating
- 7.4
Road to Berlin: Platoon Level Combat in World War II – A Panzer Grenadier Game
- 2 players
- 120 min
- Complexity 2.8/5
- 2005
- BGG rank
- BGG #9,332
- BGG rating
- 7.6
Elsenborn Ridge: Tactical Combat During the Battle of the Bulge – A Panzer Grenadier Game
- 2 players
- 60 min
- Complexity 3.1/5
- 2008
- BGG rank
- BGG #8,372
- BGG rating
- 6.9
Great War at Sea: The Mediterranean
- 2 players
- 120 min
- Complexity 2.8/5
- 1996
- BGG rank
- BGG #9,028
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Great War at Sea: Jutland
- 2 players
- 30–120 min
- Complexity 3.1/5
- 2006
- BGG rank
- BGG #226
- BGG rating
- 7.5
Memoir '44
- 2–4 players
- 30–45 min
- Complexity 2.3/5
- 2004
- BGG rank
- BGG #283
- BGG rating
- 8.0
Combat Commander: Europe
- 2 players
- 60–180 min
- Complexity 3.3/5
- 2006
- BGG rank
- BGG #589
- BGG rating
- 7.7
Undaunted: North Africa
- 2 players
- 45–60 min
- Complexity 2.4/5
- 2020
- BGG rank
- BGG #601
- BGG rating
- 8.0
Advanced Squad Leader
- 2 players
- 120–480 min
- Complexity 4.7/5
- 1985
About the game
The four years of brutal warfare on the Eastern Front brought the political troops of both sides into front-line fighting. Formed to control civilians rather than fight armed enemies, the Soviet NKVD and the much larger German Waffen SS each committed mass murders in the name of ideology and from simple animal barbarism. Knowing their well-deserved fate if captured, they often fought with suicidal fanaticism. Sinister Forces brings background articles and scenarios covering these troops and their battles to the Panzer Grenadier game system. It is not playable by itself, but requires Eastern Front to play most of the scenarios, and Afrika Korps or Desert Rats to play all of them. Scenarios take place on the Eastern Front. The SS troops are of generally lower quality than the corresponding German Army pieces of Eastern Front, reflecting the lower standards of training and recruitment for these political formations. Background articles place the scenarios in the full context of the war in Russia. New weapons also appear. The SS wield huge 220mm mortars seized from the French army in 1940, French-made B1 heavy tanks, B1 tanks converted to carry flamethrowers, Soviet-made T-34 tanks, and new forms of transport: light SPW 250 half-tracks and fast Volkswagen personnel carriers, the famous Kubelwagen. There are SS units included of high combat value: special pieces and scenarios for the Norwegian ski battalion and for the Finnish SS battalion. This game is part of the Panzer Grenadier series Expands: Eastern Front: A Panzer Grenadier Game Afrika Korps: The Desert War – Platoon Level Combat in World War II: A Panzer Grenadier Game Panzer Grenadier: Desert Rats Expanded by: Panzer Grenadier: March on Leningrad Panzer Grenadier: Siege of Leningrad
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Avalanche Press Ltd.
Questions and answers
Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces is 120 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces for ages 12 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces has a complexity rating of 2.6 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces belongs to these categories: Wargame, World War II, and Expansion for Base-game. Its main mechanics are Hexagon Grid. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces are: Michael Bennighof. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Panzer Grenadier: Sinister Forces as an expansion for Afrika Korps: The Desert War – Platoon Level Combat in World War II: A Panzer Grenadier Game. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Afrika Korps: The Desert War – Platoon Level Combat in World War II: A Panzer Grenadier Game to use it. Check that your edition of Afrika Korps: The Desert War – Platoon Level Combat in World War II: A Panzer Grenadier Game is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.