My journey into Wargames commenced with the conventional Hex & Counters titles. Over the years, as my hobby expanded, I delved into numerous types of conflict simulations, yet my affection for these games remained steadfast. The fluidity of frontline movements, breakthroughs, encirclements, and more; I appreciated and continue to appreciate every aspect. Through a plethora of designs – ranging from simple I-Go, You-Go mechanisms to chit pull and card-assisted systems – each endeavor aimed to encapsulate the dynamism of battlefield initiative, the ebb and flow of action, and the sheer chaos of warfare.

Today I would like to focus on one of the hallmark Dean Essig creations – the Standard Combat System, also known as SCS and released by Multi-Man Publishing. In essence, I will talk about the title most appealing to me from historical perspective and which gave me a lot of joy – Heights of Courage by Steve Newhouse. Let us start!

The System

Designed to provide players with a low complexity game system that also conveys great historical detail and a touch of realism, the Standard Combat Series (SCS) is truly an ideal choice for wargamers of all ability levels. The titles are simple to play and quick to learn, with relatively low counter number (oftentimes no more than 280) and short set-up .

At the core of the SCS system lies a set of standardized rules and procedures, carefully crafted to simulate a wide array of historical conflicts spanning various eras and theaters of war. These rules provide a framework for resolving combat, movement, supply, and other essential aspects of warfare, offering players a deep and engaging experience while maintaining a manageable level of complexity.

What I like about it is its emphasis on operational-level warfare, allowing players to command entire armies or theater-level commands rather than focusing on individual units or skirmishes. This approach enables players to experience the strategic and logistical challenges faced by military commanders during historical campaigns, from coordinating large-scale offensives to managing supply lines and reinforcements.

Another important feature is that the SCS system also boasts a modular design, with each game in the series focusing on a specific historical conflict or campaign. This modular approach not only allows players to explore a diverse range of historical scenarios but also facilitates easy integration of additional modules and expansions, providing endless opportunities for replayability and customization.

Compared to other distinctive MMP’s publications – like Operational Combat Series (OCS) or Battalion Combat Series (BCS) it is definitely less intricate while still offering the challenge of executing well-planned and prepared operations. It is a good entry system!

The Game

A very thematic box cover

Heights of Courage: The Battle for the Golan Heights, October 1973, is a game covering the Golan Heights portion during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. In October, 1973, Syria and her allies lead a surprise attack to recapture the Golan Heights in conjunction with an Egyptian assault across the Suez Canal into the Sinai.

For a little over two weeks, massed Syrian armor tried to swamp the Israeli defenders who were buying time to allow mobilized reserves to arrive. They succeeded and managed to turn the tide launching their own offensive toward Damascus.

Destroyed Syrian T62 Tank after Yom-Kipur war near Ortal. In the background is Mount Shifon.

Because both sides have offensive and defensive phases of the battle to enjoy, victory is determined by comparing the best Syrian performance in their early offensive to the Israeli offensive results at the end of the game. This forces both sides to fight tooth and nail on both the offense and defense with enormous time pressure to achieve targets rapidly.

The game captures all the high level elements of the fast-paced armored battle with enough detail to give the game the appropriate level of depth. For example, it uses an innovative two tempo operational speed, to both players as the battle goes beyond the endurance of the forces involved. Each player can select to go “fast” in order to fight more or “slow” in order to get more replacements.

Scenario Specifics

The game allows for four scenarios which provide different looks at the 17 turn full campaign (note: turn length might vary based on when a cease-fire occurs). Here they are:

  • The Historical Battle for the Golan Heights (17 turn long version)
  • The Historical Battle for the Golan Heights (10 turn short version)
  • Operation Badhr (6 turn look at the initial Syrian offensive)
  • Operation Al-Owda (Original Syrian plan – which can be played in the 6, 10 or 17 turn versions)

For the purpose of presenting the game in this article I am playing the shortest scenario – initial Syrian offensive (Operation Badhr). Still, the most fun from the game can be derived playing full campaign, when Israeli forces can bring its reinforcements and the tide of battle turns.

Operation Badhr: This covers the initial Syrian offensive and the start of the Israeli counter-attack on Oct. 8-9. The action in the first few days was some of the most intense of the entire campaign. Both sides must be aggressive to win. Game will last 6 turns.

Victory Conditions: Victory Points are awarded to the Syrian player only. Each of the following is worth one Victory Point if occupied by the Syrian player at the end of the game: El Rom (21.12), Nafakh (31.10), El Al (51.10). Will mark them on map appropriately.

In addition, we award the Syrian player one Victory Point (maximum) if they control one or more Victory Point locations adjacent to the Jordan River at the end of any game turns. The Syrians win the game if they earn two Victory Points. If they earn only one, then it is a draw. If they do not earn any, the Israelis win.

Session Report

With that prolonged introduction we are now ready to look at one of my session reports and then experiences with the game. Of course (you know me!) presentation of the involved forces, map and objectives is best done visually, so please enjoy my picture-rich session report! And feel free to click any of below images to expand them in new window for more details.

Operation Badhr (third scenario) set-up; I marked the demarcation line before Syrian attack, the concentrations of Arab divisions as well as three key objective points for the assault.
Close-up on the northern part of the front; 7th Infantry Division (Syrian) and Moroccan Brigade will be attacking here; key target – El Rom.
Close-up on the southern part of the front, where much bigger attack will come; 5th & 9th Infantry Divisions (Syrian) will have only token Israeli forces facing them.
Turn track not only shows us where we are in the scenario, but also the air support for both sides, the reinforcements as well as if there is a Cease-Fire roll to be made.
The attack starts in the North, with some very limited Syrian progress (and almost no Moroccan); it takes several turns to finally eliminate few of the Israeli strongpoints and cross anti-tank ditch.
The developments in the south are not so fortunate for defenders; especially 9th Syrian division achieve huge gains in central front; the 5th Syrian is contained and turns south.
The situation on central front turns critical for Israelis; only quick counter-attack by incoming reinforcements allows for situation to be temporarily stabilized.
Zvika Force arrives on the front and Syrian tanks start to have much harder time with advance; that unit represents Zvi Greengold and his tank crew who accomplished extraordinary feats during the first 20 hours of invasion.
Central front crumbles as Syrian units – despite losses (see flipped tank units above) manage to get in vicinity of Nafakh, one of the victory points for Arabs.
Similarly, in South, tanks are visible nearby El Al, another, third, victory point for Syrians. Israelis are mobilizing the last remnants of their forces to mount a defense.
The situation at the end of the game; huge Syrian progress in Center, very decent in South, stalemate in North. Big gap in center clearly marked – fortunately for Israelis, not exploited on time by Arabs.

That was really interesting and intense experience; as you might see, Israeli forces were mainly defending during those early stages but it would soon change (in longer scenario) when their significant reinforcements would join and enter battlefield.

Impressions & Comments

Time to share now my impressions, observations, things I liked after that couple of plays and elements which I found less impressive. Let us see:

  • What I really like about that game is possibility for both sides to attack. Usually in wargames you have one side on advance, and the other on defense (not counting some small counter-attacks). Here we really have a complete switch of situation and thus also specifically adjusted victory conditions, which compare maximum Syrian progress with maximum Israeli advances.
  • We are getting here multiple scenarios, from short ones – like 6 turns, through medium-sized, like 10 turns, to full campaign which is 17. That way you can adjust the length of play to time available and also use some of the set-ups (shorter ones) for solo play.
  • The game, unlike some very large footprint Operational Combat Series (OCS) or Battalion Combat Series (BCS) titles, uses not too much space, is quick to set-up and relatively reasonable when time to play full campaign is considered.
  • For me, it is sometimes pretty hard to differentiate several of the counters – which division they are part of / what the small font says.
  • Also, for best aesthetical experience make sure to counter-clip all the counters – otherwise they does not look so impressively.
  • Another important thing is storing and sorting all the components. Cube4Me storage solution helps greatly!

As you can see, I really appreciate SCS system, and especially Heights of Courage. While not too complicated, sometimes even simple, this is great entry series of positions which can also appeal to seasoned grognards tastes. Highly Recommended!