Modular G40 Map Overlays: SZ Splits, Cartography fixes, New Victory Cities, and more!

Hi all, I’m starting work on some G40 map overlays to add some of the same experimental and expanded features from my AA50 map. As with that project, I will be using Tjoek’s incredible ‘restored’ G40 map file as my starting point, so if you haven’t seen his incredible work restoring, cleaning, and fixing the G40 map, you owe it to yourself to check it out!

For anyone not familiar with my AA50 “modular” overlays project, the idea here is to offer ‘ala carte’ (use what you want, ignore what you don’t) changes for the G40 map in a modular, reversible way: print & cut out the overlays you want, stick them on top of your current printout or OOB map with removable poster putty, and voila- new scenarios/strategies await!

So: what balancing/historical/experimental map changes would you like to see for G40? Below are some initial thoughts of mine, based again on the additions/tweaks I’ve already done for AA50:

More VCs

• Singapore
  – done
• Cape Town
• Rio
• Istanbul?
  – done

Add Recruitment Centers
More Islands worth IPCs?
Sea Zone tweaks?
Identify Straits & canals

USA

• EUS subdivision
• WUS subdivision

UK

• Maldives/Ceylon exchange?

FRA

• Free France implementation ala G40 Lite?

USSR

• White Sea Canal
  – done
• Northern Sea Route
  – done
• Trans-Siberian Railroad
  – done
• Vladivostok changes?
  – done

ANZAC

CHINA

• Communists?

GER

ITALY

• Strait of Messina

JAPAN

• Home Island subdivisions
  – done

@CentralCommando said in G40 Map Overlays:

@vodot Wow! I don’t have many suggestions, but here’s the ideas I thought of:

• Sierra Leone under British Control instead of Neutral
• Repurpose one IPC from Queensland and give it to New Guinea, highlighting its importance during the Pacific campaign.
• Represent Borneo as Dutch (perhaps you could split British Sarawak into its own territory.
• Represent Western Canada as Canadian.
• Add Sakhalin to Soviet Russia
• Create a land bridge between Sicily and Southern Italy.
• Pro Axis Iran
• Make Mexico a Pro-Allied Neutral.
• Make Argentina a Pro-Axis Neutral.

G40 is already a really complex game, so not too many more divisions should be made. A lot of your additions sound good though!

Thanks for the input, these are great!

What do you mean by “Represent Western Canada as Canadian?” ‘De-yellowing’ the territory?

@CentralCommando

Really? On the one I looked at earlier it’s Canadian-roundeled :) Maybe Renegade fixed it in their reprint? I’ll check some of my older AH boards tomorrow…

@CentralCommando well either way, here you go, my first G40 overlay :) Absolutely zero work on my part for this one- a copy-paste right from Tjoek’s raw map file.

Overlay #1: Candian Western Canada!

EDIT:

I found the offending version of the OOB map, complete with Honolulu in the wrong place and all of Hasbro’s other hilarious geographical shenanigans that Tjoek and many others worked so hard to document and correct :)

“Copyright 2012 HASBRO” in bottom corner.

@barnee said in G40 Map Overlays:

@vodot

Hi vodot

Make Columbia border the Carribbean the way BlackElk did with UHD

I hadn’t seen that map from Black Elk, I’ll take a look thanks @barnee!

@Titus said in Modular G40 Map Overlays:

@vodot Just as I sent my standard map out for printing! You bully! Looking forward to your work! I finally have a global setup and am working my way through my first game.

@Titus I’ve just sent out this file to be printed a bit larger than OOB. I made it using Tojak’s map as a template. Do you have any advice on uploading images that look good despite the dimension limits on this site?

Haha, well, take some time with the OOB map first and then let me know what you’d like to try as far as tweaks go.

RE: image uploads, I’ll echo @CentralCommando’s words above: I think the pic you uploaded there looks terrific for a preview, just like your AA50 version; for full size hi-res printable map files you would need a google drive share etc.

Starting where I left off with AA50, here are The North Sea Route and the White Sea-Baltic Canal. For the WSC on the G40 map I also added Lake Ladoga and moved Leningrad to where it belongs on the coast of the Gulf of Finland/Baltic Sea. I’m going to experiment with a 2/3 smaller font for map features like this, let me know what you think.

Provisional Rules would be the same as AA50:

2. White Sea Canal
If the USSR controls Leningrad and neither Sea Zone is hostile, then during the non-combat movement phase the Soviet player may choose to have up to one naval unit with IPC cost <9 in either Sea Zone 127 or 115 take the “White Sea Canal” between these two Sea Zones. Taking this route uses the entire movement allowance of the moving ship.

3. North Sea Route
If the USSR controls both Nenetsia and the Soviet Far East and neither Sea Zone is hostile, then during the non-combat movement phase the Soviet player may choose to have up to one naval unit in either Sea Zone 127 or 3 take the “North Sea Route” between these two Sea Zones. Taking this route uses the entire movement allowance of the moving ship.

Unless they are being transported by the transiting naval units, all land and air units completely ignore the presence of the White Sea Canal and the North Sea Route.

The Overlays:

For Context:

The second wave of overlays is here, mostly focused on the North Pacific:

4. Vladivostok
o Amur/Korea border somewhat fixed/extended southwards
o Amur raised to 2
o SZ 5 redraw
o Convoy Zone added to SZ 5 (did you know that fully half of US Lend-Lease to the Soviets- far more than any other port/route- arrived via Vladivostok?)
o (Optional) Recruitment Center added

5. SZ 6 Split
o …into 6a (Sea of Japan) and 6b (Pacific-facing Japanese Coast)

6. Kyushu
o 2 IPCs added
o Split off from Japan (optionally reduced to 6 IPC)
o A minor factory should go here in setup

7. Hokkaido
o (1) IPC, split off from Japan
o SZ redraws, now bridges SZ 5, 6b, and 6a

8. Aleutians updates
o 1 IPC added
o Connected to Alaskan Mainland
o Now bridges SZs 1, 2, and 8.

9. New Guinea updates
o Both halves now worth 1 IPC

Overlays:

!

Overview img:

…and the fourth: More Victory Cities and love for the global south!

10. Istanbul

11. Rio

12. Cape Town

13. Singapore