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Kaliningrad Crucible Wargame
Developed with Mark Galeotti
Kaliningrad's Hope & Troubles
Geopolitical tensions amplify local unrest.
Kaliningrad Crucible is a public wargame co-created by Conducttr and author & consultant, Mark Galeotti. Five teams compete for the information domain in a geopolitical crisis around an impending dock workers uprising in Kaliningrad in 2028.
Scenario
In 2028, amidst Russia's strained European relations post-Ukraine war, Kaliningrad's reopened port offers economic hope. However, a strike led by Maxim Tarkovski over working conditions threatens operations, potentially sparking broader anti-government sentiment. With Moscow considering harsh responses and the EU desiring stability, the situation underscores the delicate balance between local discontent and wider geopolitical dynamics.
Exercise
Five teams competed for dominance of the information space: EU, Russia, Kaliningrad, Poland and a Norwegian fish exporting business. Each team had three groups – leadership, media and intelligence. The leadership group had approximately 5-8 individual roles with specific instructions while the media and intelligence groups had no individual roles but were given goals relevant to the group.

The game lasted 60 mins.
Environment
Participants pre-registered for the wargame and attended a public webinar where, after a brief introduction, they were given their login details.

Publishing, collaboration and negotiations were all conducted via Conducttr.

There were 4 people in Exercise Control - “Webcom” who managed the webinar and participant questions, “Controller” who managed the information environment, “Adjudication” who assessed player actions and Mark Galeotti who provided an analysis of activities.
Flowchart titled “Kaliningrad Crucible Battle Rhythm” shows a simulation loop with blocks for Player Action, Information Environment States 1.0 and 2.0, Adjudication, ExCon Action, and AI-assisted modules: Content Generation, Audience (PoL) Selection, and Scenario Trend.
Artificial Intelligence for Wargame
AI played a dual role: managing the information environment by integrating teams' strategic goals with key uncertainties (port status, Russia/EU influence), and embodying China, focusing on its geopolitical interests.

This innovative use of AI facilitated dynamic scenario development and immersive storytelling, enhancing realism and strategic depth in the simulation. Download the post-game report for further details.
Screenshot of a fictional website titled “Political Risk Consulting” showing an article called “Current Conflict in Kaliningrad – Introduction” with a photo of military tanks in a field. The text describes ongoing tensions involving Russia and Europe in 2028. The left side shows app icons like Internet, Mail, SharePoint, and Messenger; browser tabs are open for multiple sites, including “Government of China” and “Novosti Natsi.”
Story So Far
In any exercise it can be hard for players to know how the situation is evolving. In this wargame we used a fictional political risk consultancy to publish analysis updates “in game” to deliver a “story so far” without breaking the immersion.
Infographic titled “How to Be Effective in Kaliningrad Crucible” lists six action categories—Communicate, Co-opt, Reassure, Alert, Discredit, and Disseminate—each with bullet points describing tactics such as sending tweets, using hashtags, partnering with influencers, or conducting cyberattacks.
Player Advice
The slide on the left was available in-game and was shown through-out the game to remind players of the actions they could take.
Road to Crisis
This document was issued to registered players 3 days before the live participation

Download
Post-wargame Report
This report summarises Mark’s findings at the end of the exercise.

Download
Behind the Scenes Video
This video captures the essence of wargame and shows how the exercise operated behind the scenes.

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