Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
Hunt down and sink the Bismarck. Three levels of play.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Grid Movement
Move pieces between adjacent spaces on a regular grid.
Hidden Movement
One or more pieces move secretly while opponents infer their locations.
Dice Rolling
Roll dice to introduce uncertainty into actions, production, movement, or resolution.
Paper-and-Pencil
Record choices and results directly on a personal sheet.
Minimap Resolution
Resolve broader movement or conflict on a smaller linked representation of the map.
Read the full game description
Hunt down and sink the Bismarck. Three levels of play. In the advanced game, you use miniatures rules for the combat. Hidden movement by the use of separate search boards. The original Bismarck game from AH was remarkable for one reason: the ONLY playing piece that the German player had was the Bismarck! A straight forward move-and-search naval game. If the British player finds the Bismarck, a battle ensues. The game is played for points. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins. The game ends when: 1) the Bismarck is sunk, 2) the Bismarck enters Bergen, St. Nazaire, or Ferrol after patrolling, 3) the German gains so many points it is impossible for the British player to win, or 4) time runs out. Avalon Hill Complexity ratings Basic Game - 4 Intermediate Game - 6 Advanced Game - 7 Re-implemented by: Bismarck (Second Edition)