Go here for POG 2019 Tournament
POG 2016 Tournament News (7/25/2020): The tournament is complete.
In the tenth, and final, round, Nick Anner (8-1) defeated Tom Gregorio (9-1). They met in an earlier round with Tom’s CP winning on Turn 20 when he withstood Nick’s attempt to breach the Brussels to Strassbourg line. In the finals, Nick was the CP and he was able to take Russia out as well as hold a forward line in France which saw him through to victory, despite having a losing position in the Balkans and Near East.
Congratulations, Nick!
Final match records for BPA VII are here.
Useful Links: FAQ Page. Optional Cards Usage Tourney Admin Log. CSW POG Discussion.
Introduction: A little over a century ago the great powers of Europe were engulfed in a war like no other: Millions would die, empires would collapse, and the world would never be the same. Now you are in command of the Allied or Central Powers and it’s your duty to bring “your” vision of peace to Western Civilization. Come join us in the Seventh Boardgame Players Association-sponsored Play-by-email Paths of Glory tournament!
1.0 Tournament Format
Everybody who joins in Round 1 will be able to play at least two games. This tournament will be a double elimination event. As long as possible, players will be matched up with players with similar records but players with a different number of losses will be matched to prevent issuing byes. The final two players will be matched in a winner-take-all match for the tournament championship.
Prizes: Fame, fortune, AREA points, and BPA Plaques and Laurels. Maybe more, stay tuned.
Late Starts & Byes: Late registering players may join in on the second round but they will be credited with a tournament loss, i.e., latecomers are effectively now in a single-elimination tournament. In the event of an odd number of players in a round, byes will first be considered for the set of players with the most wins in this event. Among this set, former PBEM top finishers, with most recent champions being given precedence, will then be favored. If these criteria are not met, random selection will be used. Byes may be declined but a player will never get more than one bye offer in this tournament until all other active players have had a bye offered to them.
2.0 Tournament Administration
The GM will be Tom Gregorio and Michael Dauer and Paul Hubbard will serve as assistant GMs. Tom, MIchael, and Paul will be individually assigned to games as moderators; the moderator is your first point of contact for any issues related to that game. The moderator has the right to escalate any issue to the other GMs. GM rulings are final. Participants need to alert Tom by September 26th of their interest, matches will commence on October 1st. The first two rounds will be 4 months in duration with subsequent rounds being about 3.5 months. All participants must be members of the BPA; it should be noted that $10 gets you access to all BPA sponsored PBEM events.
3.0 Playing the Match
All games will be played on ACTS in a match set up by the GMs. Please make sure you have a 
valid ACTS account established prior to your game starting. (www.warhorsesim.com) All dice will be ‘thrown’ using the ACTS interface. The historical scenario, as used at the World Boardgaming Championships, will be the default scenario. The GMT Living Rules for POG (2010) are in effect.
- Players may agree, IN ADVANCE, to use a different scenario, rules, and supply warnings; any such agreements should be noted in the ACTS player log and the moderator alerted if a new ACTS game has to be created to accommodate the agreed upon scenario.
- Individuals are not required to exchange move files or VASSAL logs; the ACTS log is THE authoritative record of the game for all GM purposes.
- Players are strongly encouraged to NOT use anonymous ACTS accounts – please use your full name as this simplifies match setups for the moderators and helps your ACTS opponents who may have multiple games going on.
- VASSAL is strongly recommended as the PBEM platform. The POG 7.2.2.1 module is the latest – it provides a map with updates with the current WBC Historical Scenario updates. (Example: Minsk is no longer a VP space.)
- If you want to play using the optional cards, and your opponent agrees, go here for information on a variant that was playtested at the 2016 World Boardgaming Championships.
4.0 WBC Tournament Historical Scenario: This scenario has been used at the World Boardgaming Championships and other organized POG events for more than ten years. While this is the default scenario for tournament matches, both players may consent to play another scenario as long as they record their agreement in the log and their game conduct abides by all other event rules. (Example of the latter: Players may not decide that they can take six months to finish their match.) “Peace Terms (16.5)” are not allowed. The AP wins all draws.
4.1 Optional and Special Rules
Optional Rule 4.2.4—AH and RU corps in Lutsk and Stanislaw
Optional Rule 11.2.10—Trench roll modification
Add CP trench in Strasbourg.
Remove AP trench in Brussels.
Add AP trenches in Verona, Asiago, Maggiore and Udine.
4.2 VP Space Changes:
Ahwaz, Venice, Minsk, Jerusalem and Kharput are not VP spaces.
Kovno, Sedan, Amiens, Koblenz and Aachen are VP spaces.
4.3 RP Change
The CP receives 1 GE RP each turn during Total War (i.e., after it has drawn Total War cards) if it controls Sedan and two additional French/Belgian spaces during the RP interphase.
4.4 WBC Historical Scenario Rules
1. Set up using the complete optional setup.
2. The optional 8 card-hand is being used.
3. The CP must open with Guns of August as an Event.
4. Entrench may not be played as an Event on Turn 1
5. A British MO automatically becomes a French MO on Turn 1.
6. Until the AP War Commitment Level is Total War, only Austrian and Italian armies may operate in Italy (move, attack, SR, or advance into or through any space in Italy). Additionally, until the AP War Commitment Level is Total War, no German armies may end their movement (by move or SR) in Trent, Villach or Trieste.
7. The following cards may double as OPS when played as Events: Landships, Zimmermann Telegram, Over There, Tsar Takes Command, Fall of the Tsar, Bolshevik Revolution.
8. Royal Tank Corp may be used in clear spaces in Germany.
9. If the game ends with an Armistice or at the end of Turn 20, add one VP for each US Army reinforcement card not played as an event.
10. If the game ends with an Armistice or at the end of Turn 20, subtract two VP if the Tsar has not fallen.
4.5 Bidding for Sides
Bidding is conducted as per 5.6.2. Note – no negative bids are allowed. A random roll by the players will determine which side bids first once players confirm the scenario and rules. In recent organized competition using the WBC scenario, the average bid was around 1 for the AP. (Giving the CP 1 VP at the end of the game.) Please contact the moderator if you need assistance with changing the assigned sides in the ACTS game.
5.0 Reporting for Duty
Recruiting has ended for this event. Finally tally was 115 participants. If you can’t find answers to your questions about the event on the POG Tourney FAQ page, please don’t hesitate to send your query to Tom.
6.0 Tourney Participants: Did you answer the call?