Task Force 421 is an attempted simulation of the most important combined naval and air battle of the Iran-Iraq War 1980-1988, named Operation Morvarid (pearl), in a tactical/operational level. This particular battle took place in two days, during 27 and 28 November 1980; initiated by Iran landing a small Special Forces demolition team aboard the Iraqi al-Bakr offshore platform. Al-Bakr was a significant intelligence gathering post, and a safe haven for the Iraqi missile boats, from which to operate against the Iranian shipping. Before the start of the war, over one-third of the Iraq’s oil was exported via al-Bakr and the nearby al-Omayeh platform.
The main map illustrates the northern Persian Gulf and parts of the Iranian, Iraqi and Kuwaiti coasts, divided into flat-up hexes, each representing a distance of 4.5 kilometers across.
A unit is an individual naval vessel or aircraft. The counters represent the Iranian and Iraqi naval and air forces, distinguishable by color, and their national flags. The Iraqi counters have beige background, while the Iranian counters have grey background.