Posts made by cb4

For G36 latest (v1.2) rules regardless of 36 or 39 start it is the same. There is no ‘activating’ of units or rolling for units. Minors align with or are controlled by a major power. Table 4-4 Alignment Sphere of Influence (p.21) describes who and how:

Allies:

• Nations Align with the Allies if the Axis declare war on them.

• Nations come under Allied Control if they are Attacked by the Axis but the Attacking power is not at war with the Allies.

• US gets all minor powers in the western hemisphere.

• The British Commonwealth gets all the rest.

Axis:

• Nations Align with the Axis if the Allies or USSR declare war on them.

• Nations come under Axis Control if they are Attacked by the Allies or USSR but the Attacker (Allies or USSR) is not at war with the Axis.

• Japan gets Siam and Mongolia***.

• Germany gets all the rest.

Comintern:

• Mongolia and Republican Spain (if they won) Align with the USSR if any other nation declares war on them.

• These two come under USSR Control if they are Attacked by anyone but the USSR is not at war with the attacker.

***Not specified in the rules but the only option that makes historical sense.

In addition, there are Special Alignment Conditions for over a dozen countries that are outlined on p.22-23, but Greece and Yugoslavia are not among them. So

@Warwick:

An escorting vessel is committing its movement for a 6-month period to hunting subs. The DD unit marked as escort off Canada is actually ranging all along the convoy route from Canada to England but in a diffused manner. For game purposes the DD can be attacked in the Canadian coast space, however it is not present to block movement… If combat is conducted in the space the DD is included.

Yes, very well said! Your analogy provides a great explanation from the escort’s perspective. If I turned it around and expanded upon it from the raider’s perspective, it would go something like this.

A raiding sub is committing its movement to hunting convoys, during which it is actually ranging along the convoy route in a diffused manner. For game purposes, the sub is moved to a specific sea zone. While alone there, its placement is a virtual representation of its physical location as it ranges along the convoy line. However, when the SZ contains an escort then its virtual location becomes a physical one. This situation represents the chance encounter of an escort catching a sub “red-handed” i.e. while it is actively attacking a convoy. Therefore, escorts can only fire on a raiding sub if they both occupy the same SZ. All other effects of the DD escort on raiding are represented by and accounted for in the +1 modifier of its defending die roll.

In essence, the escort rules give units  that can’t otherwise detect subs (like a lone DD) the ability to do so. They just went a little overboard by allowing that detection to occur across an entire ocean. I could almost justify a “Raider” marker for subs (a future enhancement, maybe?).

Anyway, we decided to go with the following house rule:

• only an escort in the same sea zone can fire on a raiding sub

• planes from a carrier escort get their full defense roll; all others lack sub detection so get half of their defense roll rounded down but not less than 1

• against advanced subs, no escorts except planes from a carrier escort can fire on the raiding sub; the roll is half their defense rounded down

• the anti-sub warfare rule stands as is

• if advanced subs and anti-sub warfare are both in effect, escorts get +1, convoy lines defend on 2, but transports lose their defense roll

@Warwick:

The escort/raiding rules in GW36 are an imperfect representation of a very complex operation…

I agree 100%. And with just a few tweaks, the rules can better represent the reality of that operation.

The 36 start and sub build-up makes sense, but that raises another problem. Too many things to try and not enough time to try them :-( :-( :-(

Converting Italian units into German units likely ends the game. Say Rome is retaken 2 turns later. It restores Italy as a power but they just don’t get enough income to ever recover as a major power. Doing Vichy-type rolls for naval units makes it worse: 2 turns of their entire wartime income to replace one battleship.

Still, your post gave me an idea that is partly ‘historical’ and partly for game balance. Implement the A&A rule of 1 turn to take Rome back without penalty. After that, units in Europe and all navy become German controlled. To give Italy any chance, those surviving naval units must be saved. Territories in Europe become German aligned. All other Italian territories/units become neutral. If Rome is ever liberated, Italy can align those territories by landing troops. I think that will keep the game going and still allow Italy to achieve some victory points.

I would like to donate now (and also in the 2017 support drive). I don’t see a donate button and searching or “donate” didn’t help. Please advise.

Thanks,
cb4

Thanks for the ideas. We did discuss some Vichy-type alternatives. For our next game, though, I’ll just make sure that Rome is well-protected on the turn it attacks any neutral country. The British can’t declare war on Italy until Italy first attacks someone.

Sorry, but your answer does not make sense. The article you referenced doesn’t say “the Italian military all committed suicide after scuttling every ship in their navy”. Some Vichy-type rule of rolling for territories and navy or the A&A idea of taking Rome back the next turn can restore Italy as a major power makes much more sense.

The Italian National Ref chart says that when Rome is taken, ALL Italian units are immediately removed from the board. No other major or minor power has this same wording for its surrender. This seemingly bizarre rule has just ended our game as there is clearly no recovery for the Axis.

Is this correct? Must Italy devote such force to protect Rome that it can’t achieve its victory points for expansion? Help!

Thoughts?

[Much of this was posted as a reply in the Refusing the Dragon thread. I thought it appropriate to post separately for any follow-up.]

In my first game as Japan, I decided to go ‘all out’ against China and was quite successful. In a nod to Jinx1527, I call this the “Swallowing the Dragon” strategy.

It starts before Japan’s first move by getting the USSR to agree to the Japanese-Soviet Non-aggression Pact. That kills any possible USSR lend-lease to the KMT. It also eliminates the worry over border clashes and building up of troops in the north. Thus, the units in Manchuria are freed up to go south.

The CCP is hurting for money, so it seemed logical to go after the KMT first, especially the Burma Road to make sure they couldn’t buy artillery. I mobilized every available land unit and the entire Japanese air force against the KMT. I was able to take the remaining three ‘bonus’ territories (Peking, Zhejiang, Guangxi) and also Yunan by T2. That effectively ended any immediate KMT threat.

Although they are hurting for money, the CCP starts with 11 units plus they get a recruitment roll. After fighting the KMT, I still needed to reinforce my position against them. Initially, aircraft were used. In following turns, armor would be forthcoming from the two minor ICs, one in Henan and one in Zhejiang, placed at the end of T2. (These ICs will also be used to prepare for an overland invasion of the FEC.) With four additional infantry to be transported from Tokyo, there was really nothing the CCP could do so they stayed huddled in their two territories. Attack Communist China on T3. Note that we were also using the Fighting Railways expansion which gives Japan an armored railcar (8 movement) for transporting one unit into battle. Getting that extra unit around was very helpful…

From an IPC standpoint, Japan gets an additional 11 IPCs per turn by the end of T2 – that’s the same amount as all of the DEI without the hassles of being at war with the BC and France. Japan will get 2 more per turn for Communist China by the end of turn 3. This income will provide Japan a big boost in setting up for its next step, be it the DEI, FEC, Anzac, or Russia.

From a political standpoint, starting with this strategy has no significant consequences. Neither the British Commonwealth (BC) nor the US can declare war on Japan until Japan declares war “on another nation during the game”. So Japan can beat up on China all day with no worries. France is the only exception. While it can declare against Japan, it’s not realistic because France would have to pay 10 IPCs to do so. That’s half of its per turn income. It wouldn’t matter anyway because France cannot threaten Japan. It only has 2 land units and its navy is certainly no match for Japan’s. Other strategies, like Refusing the Dragon (see that thread for more), do have significant consequences.

Overall, Swallowing the Dragon gives Japan a good, solid, conservative start and it is very easy to implement.

In the HBG v1.2 Global War 1936 variant, they do implement the concept of air superiority. In the first round of combat, casualties caused by fighters have to first be taken by opposing aircraft. Remaining casualties are taken as normal. We are in our 1st game and, so far, it seems to work pretty well.

In the absence of escorts, or maybe if there is just one, I can see convoy raiding stealing a few IPCs here and there. My only other thought at this point is to see if I can get Britain to chase my subs down to Southern Africa. Mind you, I’m only in the 2nd turn of my 1st game.

Otherwise, I don’t see how it can be part of a sustained Axis strategy.

I was really glad someone asked because we had a similar question since USSR just did its T1 of our first game. Had to edit my post about 3 times because I was searching the rules and setups while I was replying. All’s well that end’s well :-D

Spoke to HBG a few days ago as we were trying to figure things out in advance of playing our first game. They know about the many v1.2 errors and inconsistencies and expect an update to be posted within the next few weeks.

Thanks! Lots of good ideas. HGB has a ton of options but we didn’t want to ‘go all out’ on pieces until playing it through at least once. Since they’ll be releasing a supplemental set, I may wait.

I like the place markers idea and already made some. After T1, Germany has 5 units on Luxembourg – it can’t fit half of one unit.

I should’ve bought the 4x8 map :cry:  Even so, I think the map still needs another rev. Squish all those empty USSR zones east and make some more room for Europe. Not accurate but…

My apologies - missed the reference to 1st edition. My answer is correct for the latest v1.2 rules.

cb4

The answer from SS is not correct.

I’m looking at the latest v1.2 (10/16) rules and setups here: http://www.historicalboardgaming.com/Download-Rules-for-GW-1936_c_660.html.

In table 4-4 (p.21): Mongolia aligns with the USSR if anyone declares war on it (per 8.1 the first attack is also a DOW). The v1.2 Neutrals Ref Card under the Mongolia 1939 setup affirms this with a note saying, “If Mongolia is attacked it Aligns with USSR.”

Also in table 4-4, it says that Siam will align with Japan and all other minor powers will align with Germany if attacked by the USSR. I strongly suspect this is an oversight – Mongolia should obviously align with Japan, not Germany.

If the USSR attacks any zone in Mongolia on T1, the remaining land zones and troops are immediately aligned to Japan. Rule 4.4 (p.20) says “Once Minor Powers are Aligned they become fully part of the Major Power and cease to exist as a separate country.” For all practical purposes, you can put Japanese markers on all remaining Mongolian zones and replace the Mongolian troops with Japanese troops.

Should the USSR attack any other Mongolian zones, they are now definitely at war with Japan.

FYI, I posted here while waiting for my login to be created by HBG. They turned off automatic account creation because of spammers.

@Whitshadw - thanks for your reply. My question is more aimed at the escort being able to fire on raiding subs after all raiding rolls are done. It was explained in the video and per the rules p.45 (my emphasis):

“Escorts forfeit any Attack during their turn but 2) Defend automatically against each unit
raiding any member of their Alliance and 1) provide a (cumulative) modifier against the
raiding rolls of submarines…”

So escorts first add modifiers to the raiding die rolls. After the raiding is all done, they then get to “Defend automatically against each” raiding sub i.e. they get to attack each sub with their defense value (1-4 on D12).

@Whitshadw:

…The (Escort Duty) marker on the Destroyer is suppose to represent that Destroyer “protecting” that whole line…

Your statement goes to the heart of my question. One destroyer can’t protect a whole line. Realistically, it can protect its own sea zone and that’s it. I see 2 problems with raiding as it stands:

1)  A destroyer escort in the sea zone by Quebec has a 1/3 chance to sink a sub in the sea zone by England. Wow, that’s a pretty long way to shoot a depth charge!

2. That an escort can attack every raiding sub is over-powered. No other unit has the ability to fire on a potentially unlimited number of enemy units. HBG says the point of raiding is to force the British to spread out their navy to protect their lines. But that’s not necessary if escorts attack raiders – the British only need to situate destroyer escorts at the end of each line to get a ~66% chance every turn to sink each raiding sub.

Here’s a very reasonable example. With 2 destroyer escorts vs. 2 raiding subs, on average Germany will lose 5 IPCs per turn (132% chance of 1 sub sunk) while the the Allies will lose 0 IPCs per turn for a 14 IPC investment (average raiding rolls will be even: 3.5 + 2 for both escort rolls and 3.5 + 2 for each of two sub rolls). It gets worse because the more Germany raids, the more it loses. Raiding for 3 turns will lose Germany 20 IPCs vs. zero raiding losses for the Allies (on average).

FYI, see HBG’s convoy raiding video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYqnmewT2N8

I’ve looked through the HBG forum and at the youtube video on convoy raiding. Didn’t find an answer to this question.

What is the justification for allowing an escort to remotely attack the raiding submarines when the escort may be several SZs (and thousands of miles) away from the sub?

In HBG’s convoy raiding youtube video, for example, escorts off the coast of Canada and Britain are able to fire halfway across the Atlantic at German subs. That they should get to fire at all is questionable. Conceptually, an escort is spending its resources to deter raiding. That deterrence is accounted for in the modifiers added to the die roll opposing the raider. Per the rules, I could understand a limited escort attack on the raider (something like: half normal attack value; only one attack per escort) if both were in the same sea zone. But it makes no sense to me how one ship could fire multiple times at targets several sea zones away.

Also, it seems to be at odds with the goal of forcing the British to “protect their lines rather than … stock up a massive … fleet in the channel” (quote is from an answer in the HBG forum). The Allies could just situate escorts on their coasts to get some defending die rolls rather than stringing escorts out into the middle of the ocean.

Am I missing something?

cb4

We just completed setup and are playing Turn 1 tonight (rest on Sunday). We will likely have 3 players, though a 4th may pick up Japan. I’m posting here while waiting for a login to the HBG forum at globalwargame.com. They don’t have an automated process for creating a login due to spammers.

Some observations so far. I’ll be as detailed as I can so you know what you’re getting in to. For starters, take a good look at the Needed Units for the Game doc here http://www.historicalboardgaming.com/Download-Rules-for-GW-1936_c_660.html.

• There are some typos and conflicts with the v1.2 setup. HBG already knows and expects an update in the next couple of weeks.

• Printed the manual in color double-sided and hole-punched at a copy shop ($60). Well worth it! Also saves time - no scrolling up/down on a laptop or tablet.

• Color printed, double-sided, and laminated all the National Reference charts at same copy shop ($30).

• If you want the option of a non-aggression treaty between Germany and USSR, you must use the 1936 setup for Finland (ignore the USSR setup for Vipuri).

• I bought the recommended markers ($60). They were very helpful, but you need about double the militia tokens than were included. You might save some $$ and use Risk pieces or pick up something cheap at a hobby store.

• It’s a tight fit in Europe. Couldn’t fit req’d pieces in small countries (East Prussia). The HBG tokens would work better with a smaller diameter.

• If you think using A&A Global 1940 pieces is enough, think again. We used ours but they were already supplemented with two sets (land, air, navy) of additional units we purchased from HBG (blue for UK-India, light green for France) and white infantry for neutrals. Even so, we were short on units

• Turning subs and destroyers on their sides for coastal subs and torpedo boats didn’t work so we cut 1/3 off the back of subs and destroyers to make coastal subs and torpedo boats.

• To make medium bombers for all but Germany, we clipped a little off the front wings and all of the rear wings of strategic bombers. For Germany, we used tac bombers as med. bombers because Germany had plenty and flipped fighters as tac bombers.

• For light armor, tried the on-the-side tank but no go, so cut the barrels off of tanks.

• We had leftover red Japanese fighters (from A&A Classic, I think) that became air transports.

That covers getting things set up. If this all seems like a lot, well, it has been more of an investment than I expected. Guess my expectations were a bit off;-) There’s good news on the pieces front. In about 2 months, HBG plans to release a supplemental set of pieces that will mesh with A&A Global 1940 to make a complete set.

Last comments. Obviously, read all the rules. But also read all of the National Ref charts for the other players. That’s the only way to get some idea about their IPP ramp-up, special units, country-specific abilities, and the consequences of declaring war.

I’m the Axis player - time to figure out my strategy for Germany and take my turn. More updates to follow…

cb4