Released in August 2016, the original Konflikt ’47 was a standalone game that took the structure of Bolt Action: First Edition in an alt-history, weird-war direction with a diesel-punk atheistic. Unfortunately for K47, Bolt Action: Second Edition arrived less than two months later and quickly sucked all the air out of the room. While Bolt Action continued to gain popularity, K47 began to languish. Resurgence (released barely a year later) attempted to inject some life into the game by both adding new units and adjusting the rules to more closely align with Bolt Action: Second Edition, but the damage had been done. K47 would see one final release with Defiance in July 2018, but that was the last gasp of a dying game. Not even the addition of power-armored Italian gladiators was enough to stop the bleeding. K47 went dormant. That is … until now.

Allow me to reintroduce Konflikt ’47! Using our beloved Bolt Action: Third Edition as a base, the new and improved K47 is grimmer, darker, and a whole lot weirder with all-new background, fresh artwork, plastic kits, and free PDF Army Lists. My thoughts on the Army Lists will come later; for now, let’s focus on the game and world of Konflikt ’47.

I. The Setting

The first 40 pages of the Rulebook are devoted to the background of Konflikt ’47. As a new fictional universe, there is a lot of ground to cover. Each faction is introduced along with a piece of fantastic artwork. You don’t even need a copy of the book to get up to speed. Warlord already published an intro article for the Axis, the United States, the British Commonwealth, the Soviet Bloc, and the Empire of Japan on Warlord Community, so I won’t summarize each faction here. The Rulebook contains additional short stories and a timeline of events from 1939 to 1947 complete the job of setting the scene.

In brief, when the US completes the Trinity Test at Los Alamos on Feb. 6, 1944, the Atomic reaction opens the first Rift. The test was quickly followed by the dropping of an atomic bomb on Dresden, Germany, which opened a second Rift. These Rifts provide access to previously unimagined technology and terrifying genetic experimentation. Each of the five factions now wages total war against one another in a desperate attempt to harness more and more Rift-tech. To quote the back cover of the Konflict ’47 Rulebook:

In this horrifying new world, the only victory lies in survival. This is not war. This is the end.

Sold.

The Rulebook contains evocative new artwork from legend Stefan Kopinski that further creates a unique sense of atmosphere. With full access to the Osprey Publishing art catalog, there is never a shortage of well-produced artwork in Warlord books, but the nature of K47 as an alt-history setting means any artwork for the book needed to be a bespoke creation. Kopinski rose to the task and delivered some great work. I do wish we had more of it.

II. A Bolt Action Expansion?

The comparisons to Bolt Action cannot be ignored. The two games share the same foundational mechanic – Order Dice. But unlike the criminally forgotten and underappreciated Warlords of Erehwon, K47 includes entire paragraphs of verbatim rules text from Bolt Action. This is not inherently a bad thing. There are only so many ways one can describe taking an Order Test. K47 shares key DNA with Bolt Action – let’s take a closer look at the similarities and differences.

What’s the same?

Order Dice and Orders
Each unit gets its own Order Die. Units can be activated with one of six orders. In the most basic sense, if you have played a game of Bolt Action, you have played a (very toned-down) game of Konflikt ’47. Although the structure of the two games is the same; Advance lets you move and shoot, Fire is shooting at full effect, Rally removes Pins, etc, K47 feels very different. In Bolt Action, it can be rather difficult to remove a unit from the table. Not so in K47. The sheer firepower on hand (both at range and in assault) is terrifying. Your Basic Infantry don’t stand much of a chance against a Rift Unit. As a quick example, in K47, a unit with an Ambush order can charge into Close Quarters. That is something you absolutely cannot do in Bolt Action (not only is it not allowed, it would be foolish). Not so in K47. You have access to actual creatures of nightmare, and you want them to get into close combat. K47 may use the same basic ingredients as Bolt Action, but the end result is much different.

Pins
Pins are the second key game mechanic for Bolt Action, and thus, K47. Pins and their intuitive effect on Orders and Morale add that distinct fog of war feeling to the game. A player can never be completely certain that their units will follow orders. If your unit is hit by enemy fire, it takes (at least) one Pin. The more you Pin a unit, the less likely it is to successfully activate. A noteworthy distinction in K47 is the number of units that can ignore the effect of Pins. The introduction of new and terrifying Rift Weapons is met with pure insanity and fanaticism – an unstoppable force versus an unmovable object.

Shooting and Cover Saves
On the whole, shooting is the same. There are the same four Hit Modifies as Bolt Action and you must have at least 1″ of clearance to fire around friendly units. Cover Saves are there as well. Soft Cover, Hard Cover, and Down all play a part. The one critical difference is that in K47, you can fire into close combat (more on that later).

The Scenarios
The six Battle and five Story Scenarios are the same as Bolt Action. In fact, they are almost exact copies. For the Battle Scenarios:

1. Search and Destroy is the same as Bolt Action.
2. Key Positions has a slight difference in that if you go to place an objective and there is no more room on the table, you “Double Up” on an existing objective. Those count as two objectives when determining the victor. I like this twist.
3. Breakthrough is the same.
4. Top Secret is the same.
5. Demolition has a small change, there is no roll to see if you destroy the enemy base, it’s automatic.
6. Hold Until Relieved is the same.

For the Story Scenarios:

1. Envelopment is the same.
2. Manhunt is the same but includes a special callout for Heroes and Rift units.
3. Point Defense is the same.
4. Land Grab is the same.
5. Surrounded is the same.

So we have a repeat of the existing Bolt Action Rulebook scenarios. This might seem like a lazy reproduction; however, there is a critical difference. The K47 versions are much better written. The missions may be the same; same deployments, same objectives as Bolt Action, but this entire section of the K47 Rulebook (and every mission in it) is clearer and more concise (especially the victory conditions) than the Bolt Action version.

Force Selection
K47 uses the Bolt Action Third Edition Platoon Selectors. Where Bolt Action has the Rifle Platoon as the core building block, K47 has the Assault Platoon.

Assault Platoon
1 Platoon Commander
2 Specialist or Advanced Infantry Squads (any mix)
—————
0-2 Specialist or Advanced or Basic Infantry Squads (any mix)
0-1 Medic
0-1 Forward Observer
0-1 Sniper Team
0-1 Anti-tank Team
0-2 Light Mortar Teams
0-1 Transport Vehicle per Infantry unit in the Platoon

Looks familiar doesn’t it? The similarities continue:

• Heavy Weapons Platoon is the same as Bolt Action.
• Artillery Platoon is the same.
• Engineer Platoon is the same.
• Armored Platoon is the same. Even the required +10pt upgrade to make a Command Vehicle.
• Recce Infantry Platoon is the same, but there is an additional option to bring 0-1 Specialist Infantry.
• Armored Walker Platoon is new.

Armored Walker Platoon
1 Armored Walker
—————
0-2 Armored Walkers
0-1 Vehicle
0-2 Basic or Advanced Infantry Squads (any mix)
0-1 Specialist Infantry Squad
0-1 Anti-tank Team

I love this Armored Walker Platoon. You have the option to bring just a single Walker, no Command Vehicle upgrade required. Just a big ol’ piece of K47 Rift-tech marching down the battlefield. Or, you can build out the Walker Platoon with enough support to rival an Assault Platoon. You are required to make one Walker a Command Vehicle if you bring any of the additional units, and you must have enough transport capacity for all the infantry (like a Recce Infantry Platoon).

So they didn’t change much with the force organization, and that is alright with me. The Platoon Structure in Bolt Action is a blast to play around with. I’m glad they kept it for K47.

Special Rules
Many of the weapon and unit special rules from Bolt Action have made the jump to K47. Most are identical, but there are a few important differences, such as Tough Fighter granting additional attacks in Close Quarters (like Bolt Action: First Edition). The rules you’d expect to see are all here: Fast, Green, Infiltrator, Stubborn, etc. With plenty of additional K47-specific ones that add a lot of uniqueness and flavor to these newly enhanced units, such as Hard to Kill, Horror, Augmented, Deadly, Flight, Multi-legged, and Fearless. We will touch on this further in the next section, but a few of the special rules have been reworded to avoid confusion. Take Fieldcraft as an example. There is a specific mention that units with Fieldcraft ignore the Defensive Position bonus when assaulting through Rough Ground. This was not at all clear in Bolt Action.

What’s different?

Everything is cleaner
This new edition of K47 has the luxury of a clean slate. The writers are not tied down to adhere to what was done previously. And what that means is, the rules are just better. Better layout, more concise, more clearly written than Bolt Action. As an example, Movement:

Bolt Action – Advance and Run Moves

Konflikt ’47 – Advance & Run Orders

An advancing infantry unit can move up to its basic move rate. This is usually 6″ in any direction. Simply move each model up to a maximum of 6″. Remember that a unit must maintain a formation, so once the whole unit has moved no model can be separated from the formation by more than 1″. Remember that it is also necessary to leave a space between different units of more than 1″ for the sake of clarity as already explained.

Unless other stated, Infantry units have a basic movement rate of 6″. Infantry units executing an Advance Order can move up to their basic movement rate in any direction, remaining in Formation, and maintaining the One-Inch Gap.

Incredible. The rules for K47 are written in a modern style. They make use of Keywords and have removed much of the extraneous conversational fluff. I chalk this up to the K47 authors approaching the game with fresh eyes. The above Bolt Action rules are from the Third Edition Rulebook but are verbatim from the Second Edition Rulebook, which is also verbatim from the First Edition Rulebook. That’s right, this section of rules has not been updated since the original release in 2012, and it shows. To be clear, the way Bolt Action is written is not bad. Far from it! But K47 is written with more modern, precise language. And that is a breath of fresh air.

Pre-measuring
Pre-measuring is allowed! Yay! But only during your unit activation! Boo!

Players may not pre-measure distances indiscriminately. The only instance in which a player is allowed to pre-measure distances is when a unit is in the process of following its Order. At this time, the controlling player may pre-measure any distances to and from that unit, for example to establish its potential movement range or to identify any targets in range of its weapons, before committing fully to that action.

Huh. What an interesting distinction. I don’t think I’ve seen pre-measure implemented in this manner. So you can measure out your range after giving a unit a Fire Order, but not before. You must have decided to Fire, but you can then pick your target. Seems like a needlessly complex middle-ground. But I’ll take it as a step forward from the no pre-measuring in Bolt Action.

Rift Dice
The most immediate difference between K47 and Bolt Action is the Rift Dice. The details have been covered on Warlord Community, so I’ll keep it brief. This new mechanic allows players to strategically use Active and Surging Rift abilities at the cost of exhausting the Rift Die (and taking a negative effect). The Stahltruppen Heavy Infantry, for example, can exhaust their Rift Die to automatically pass an Advance Order Test and discard all their Pins. But, with the Rift Die now Exhausted, the unit is penalized with the Slow special rule. This push and pull / risk and reward mechanic is something that I really enjoy. A Tesla Cannon is already a powerful weapon, but what about when you exhaust the Rift Die and now you fire with Tesla Arcs, gaining additional shots, +1 To Hit against vehicles, and ignoring cover. Whoa.

Heroes
Heroes are a new unit type for K47, and they are worthy of the distinction. Not only will Heroes never accept defeat in Close Combat (you must cut them down as they will never surrender), they also have three Hero-only stats: Guts, Rift Mastery, and Luck. These stats are reminiscent of Might, Will, and Fate from Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game and give your Heroes that additional boost above other units.

• Guts can be used in a few different ways:
  • Spend a point of Guts to modify a die roll by +1/-1 after it has been rolled.
  • Spend a point of Guts to return an Order Die back to the bag, allowing a unit to activate twice in a turn.
  • If a Hero is removed as a casualty, roll a die and add their remaining Guts points. On a 7+ the Hero model remains in play and loses a point of Guts instead.
• Rift Mastery gives the Hero unit an additional Rift Die.
  • The Hero can allocate one of their Rift Dice to a friendly unit within 6″.
  • Combine two Active Rift Dice into one Surging Rift Die.
• Luck can be used:
  • Spend a point of Luck to re-roll any die.
  • If a Hero is removed as a casualty, remove one Luck point and leave the Hero in play.

These are some potential game-changing abilities, and I hope all five factions have access to multiple Hero units beyond the ones from the existing range.

Splitting Fire
As a general rule, any Infantry unit that contains both small arms and any weapons with a Pen Bonus can direct its heavy weapons at a single, separate enemy unit. The prevalence of embedded AT, HE, and Rift Weapons allows great tactical flexibility.

Close Quarters
Again, like much of K47, Close Quarters functions the same as in Bolt Action. Declaring assaults, the order of who fights, and taking casualties (no roll To Hit, just Damage). If you carry an Assault weapon, the Pen bonus applies to the combat (terrifying). But now for the critical difference. If the first round of combat is a draw, fight another round (just like Bolt Action). But if that second round of combat is also a draw, stop. The two units are now locked in Close Quarters, and you pause the fighting, pull a new Order Die, resolve it, and then go back and fight up to two more rounds of Close Quarters! Amazing. Just amazing. So you can get locked into combat, but you won’t stay for long. And don’t forget, you can fire into Close Quarters! Even with HE!

Game Size
It’s recommended to play at K47 1500pts. That’s a pretty significant jump from the 1,000pts recommended for Bolt Action. But with 30pt Specialist Infantry and Super-heavy Walkers on the table, yeah, it makes sense to bump up the point level for a typical game.

III. The Minis

The New
The release of the K47 Rulebook is accompanied by a mix of US and Axis units in plastic and resin:

• US:
  • Firefly Airborne Infantry in plastic
  • M2A5 Linebacker Jump Walker in plastic
  • M5 Stuart-T Light Tank in plastic with resin upgrade kit
• Axis:
  • Vogelspinne Light Walker in plastic
  • Stahltruppen Heavy Infantry in plastic
  • Nachtaleb in resin
  • Panzer IV X in plastic with resin

I can’t speak to the Nachtaleb, Stuart, or Panzer IV X, but I am impressed with the new plastic kits. They are well-designed and fun to build. The Fireflies are a significant upgrade over the original metal ones, and the Stahltruppen are exactly the kind of unit (in plastic) that K47 needs. I have only one critique on what we have seen so far; it’s not enough. Warlord needs more dedicated K47 kits and needs them immediately.

The Old
Every other unit we have seen for K47, from the previews to the photos in the Rulebook, is from the existing range. Many of these units are from the original 2016 release. I am sure Warlord has plans for significant additional unit releases and support. Still, it’s not a great feeling when you browse the British, Soviet Bloc, and Empire of Japan sections and see nothing but models that are almost 10 years old. For this game to succeed, it will require Bolt Action levels of support. Without that, the hype will surely fade away as it did with the original release.

Bolt Action units and minis in K47 – Yep! Besides the Basic Infantry included in the Konflikt ’47 Army Lists, you can add units from “the various Bolt Action Armies of … supplements into games of Konflikt ’47“. So long as both players agree. So your standard riflemen will always be allowed on the K47 table, but it’ll be up to players and events to decide if USMC Raiders Squads and Luftwaffe Field Division Squads are allowed.

IV. What’s Missing?

• The Army Lists – Unlike the Bolt Action Rulebook, the K47 Rulebook does not include any Army Lists or unit entries. The full Army Lists are available, for free, as PDF downloads from Warlord, similar to the 12 Further Axis & Allied Nations in Bolt Action. This may seem like a miss, but I’m actually a big fan. Not including the Army Lists significantly reduced the overall page count of the K47 Rulebook to a reasonable 200 pages. The Bolt Action Rulebook is 320 pages, with 80 of those for just the five Army Lists.
• More New Units – The new units I’ve seen all look great. The new kits I’ve had the chance to build are impressive. But we need more. I’m scraping through the Rulebook for hints of what might be next, and hopefully, the faction artwork is a preview of what’s to come in the form of a plastic kit:
  • Axis – Stahltruppen Heavy Infantry, check.
  • US – Firefly Airborne Infantry, check.
  • British Commonwealth – Automaton
  • Soviet Bloc – Moroz Gol Terror Troops
  • Empire of Japan – Ghost Attack Squad

V. Overall Impressions

You might have the impression that I’m taking digs at K47 with all the Bolt Action comparisons. I’m not. These similarities are positive. The parts that I love about Bolt Action are all here. Bolt Action has been my favorite tabletop wargame for many years. The elegance and simplicity of the Order Dice mechanic keeps me coming back again and again. Every game feels fresh and exciting. For me, the fact that it’s also WWII is just icing on the cake. K47 goes one further. This is a game for folks who want to play one of the best-designed wargames we’ve had in years but are not drawn in by the historical theme.

K47 walks a fine line. It must be its own, unique game. Different enough from Bolt Action to stand alone. But at the same time, it cannot be too different. One of K47‘s great strengths is the immediate cross-over appeal to the entire Bolt Action playerbase. The game must be similar enough to Bolt Action to allow players to quickly jump in. It would be a terrible idea to change how the six Orders function at a base level. Thus, the key distinctions and differences are add-ons. It’s Rift Dice and Walkers. Heroes and Guts. K47 is Bolt Action, but more. More units, more weapons, more options, more choice, more everything. K47 can be the historical gamers’ playground where anything is possible.

I am impressed with Konflikt ’47. Warlord has something special here. Now they need to support this initial splash release with additional plastic kits (new units and replacements for existing metal) to pull in new players and bring over the existing Bolt Action community. The hype is approaching critical levels to get these Soviet Bloc troops off my painting desk onto the table. I am excited to see how far this new edition of K47 can go.

---

Thank you to Warlord Games for providing a digital copy of the Konflikt ’47 Rulebook featured in this article.

---

More Konflict ’47 coverage:

• Chicago Dice Builds Firefly Airborne Infantry
• Chicago Dice Builds a Vogelspinne Light Walker
• Chicago Dice Builds Stahltruppen Heavy Infantry
• Chicago Dice Builds a Linebacker Jump Walker
• Chicago Dice Builds a Panzer IV Ausf. X Walker Tank