Posts made by Chris_Henry

@Wolfshanze:

I don’t want to spoil the ending for you, but at the end of the book… the Germans win.

Yea…definitely know that. As I said, if you read my post, I know the basic history of the battle. Costly paratroop operation, lacking defensive forces, etc. It was the intimate details that were new to me as someone who hadn’t read about the battle in depth before.

And if we’re being technical, they lose in the end! As I said, the book covers the resistance/end of the war as well. Don’t want to spoil WWII history for you, but at the end of the war…the Germans lose.  8-)

I’m just finishing Crete 1941: The Battle and the Resistance, by Antony Beevor. It’s a great read. I’ve heard his name before but never read any of his books, but I’ll be searching them out now and highly recommend this one. Classic example, for me, of a subject on the war that I knew about generally, but not a ton of the specifics. The biggest surprise to me was Freyberg’s misunderstanding of the invasion, thinking the main assault would come by sea, thus giving paratroopers more time to regroup and take Malame airfield. Beevor has done great research and made everything very compelling to read. I loved that he prefaced with the mainland invasion of Greece first, and also went into the resistance to the occupation as well. The actual invasion is enough for a book itself, but I always love more context. Great read.

We got another round in this last Saturday! Wasn’t extremely eventful, but here it is before I forget!

TURN 3

Germany - Irritated by Il Duce’s newest level of incompetence, German forces are ordered into Greece to finish what the Italians could not. With war looming in the east, the Allies are not quite sure what to expect from the Germans. Tanks are built in Norway, and transports are created in SZ112. Operation Sealion is maybe not out of the picture just yet…

USSR - Stalin, a bit unsure of what to make of German transports, is still playing cautious and continues to build infantry for defense of the Motherland. Though he sees opportunity to prepare offensive forces. Next turn will be telling…

Japan - Imperial forces continue their slog west into China, though with a small setback, it can be seen that they are slowing down. While Shensi was taken with ease, the Chinese garrison in Kansu fights back hard and eliminates all but one advancing unit. The Burma Road is not touched this turn. Yamamoto orders all the fleet back to Japan, where the naval base there expands their options.

USA - Still unable to do anything yet, American forces continue to build up naval forces in the Pacific, and more transports in the Atlantic. Warhawks finally win the day though and, rather than wait for disaster, declare war on the Axis powers! American military might will now be felt next turn, how will Axis forces respond…

China - Encouraged stiff resistance in the north, Chiang Kai-Shek decides to hold positions this round, but bolsters the northern defenses more. Now that the US has entered the war, more Western support can be expected in the form of reinforcements from India!

UK - While American entrance into the war is encouraging, a long road still stands for their English cousins. Positive news abroad in the Empire! French Indo-China and Siam are liberated from Japanese oppression, and naval forces consolidate in Celebes. In Africa, Italy’s east African forces are overrun, but a large threat still looms on Cairo. The home front is the darkest. Defensive forces are prepared in London, hopeful they can hold out until American support arrives. The added German transports, along with the strong Luftwaffe presence, may just be enough to invade…

Italy - While the loss of forces in east Africa is regrettable, Italy overruns Cairo with relative ease! UK incompetence with the dice strikes again. Gibraltar also falls, closing off the Mediterranean to Allied shipping for the time being. But French allies have a better go of it, and hold out in Morocco! This denies Italy an NO, as well as leaves open a safe landing point for hoped for American reinforcements!

ANZAC - Without wanting to commit much until the Japanese show their hand, ANZAC troops consolidate back in Sydney, ready to move out to where most needed.

France - With Italian forces eliminated, French infantry easily liberate Anglo-Egyptian Sudan for their English brothers in arms.

Thanks guys!

Yea taamvan, I hear you there. Like I said, my brother knows the game, just not necessarily all the different strategies as I might. But I agree, it makes it fun to not have every game scripted the same, keeps me on my toes! That, and the die can really make a difference sometimes depending on how well or badly you rolled! I’ll hopefully be posting updates soon!

I don’t know about all of you, but I always loved seeing the battle/war reports from peoples’ games. I foolishly didn’t take any pictures from our game we started this weekend, but I like these anyways  :-)

My dad, brother and I started a game on Sunday for Father’s Day, and got through the first 2 rounds Who knows when we’ll play again, between all of us working, but I’ll post here when we do!

We’ve all played for a long time. My dad, for all he tries, just doesn’t seem to see the whole table all the time. I have a hard time (thought he wants me to since he doesn’t see them) not pointing out things he should do during his turn. My brother is a good sport about it, but also wants moderation. My brother has not played in a while. As you’ll see below, he made a couple of errors that he kicked himself over immediately following his turns, but nothing as of yet that has drastically altered the game this early on! Point to all this being, there will be mistakes here you may not always see in your games.

Here’s the layout:

Brian (my brother) - Axis Powers
Pat (my dad) - UK, ANZAC, France
Chris (me) - USSR, USA, China

TURN 1

Germany - The Fuhrer is ready to unleash his hordes. Germany invades France, easily felling Paris with the loss of only two infantry. Normandy also falls to the wayside. Southern France is left for Il Duce. UK naval forces in Scapa Flow (SZ 111) are wiped out, with a limping Bismarck left remaining. Goering, to Hitler’s extreme frustrations and in typical Goering fashion, forgot to take out the Allied navies SZ110, causing great consternation. The UK ships in SZ109 also sank to the bottom. Yugoslavia fell to the Wehrmacht as well. In their free movement, Finland joined the Axis cause in hopes of revenge against the hated Red Army. Soldiers begin moving eastwards…

USSR - Stalin wonders what to think of German forces moving towards his borders. Surely his ally would not betray him? The Red Army pulls back from the borders, leaving an infantry in each territory, and moves reinforcements up closer to feel out the next moves.

Japan - The Sino-Japanese War rages on! Imperial ground troops take control of more Chinese land, moving into Chahar, Anhwe, and Hunan. Most of the Japanese navy consolidates in SZ6, a curious move from the cunning Admiral Yamamoto. A minor industrial complex is built in Korea to help bolster the mainland forces.

USA - The USA continues it’s isolationist ways. Worry of Japanese attack from the large naval buildup in SZ6 causes a naval buildup out of San Francisco. Destroyers are sent to sea to block potential Japanese movement to the north.

China - Chiang does what he can to hold onto the Burma road as long as possible, consolidating most troops to the south, leaving token resistance in the north. Anything for more Western supplies!

UK - The PM cries for the country to fight back across the world! The remaining UK fleet from SZ110, and Canadian based naval forces, as well as the cruiser from SZ91, takes out the remaining U-Boats off of SZ109, consolidating the entirety of the UK Atlantic fleet. The Bismarck is destroyed. Curiously, the Mediterranean fleet decided on the easy victory of the small Italian fleet at SZ96, leaving the Italian navy largely intact. The best outcomes were the UK receiving secret intelligence from their Yankee cousins that both a German and an Italian transport were left undefended, the RAF in Malta and London gladly took the easy kills, while Fascist leaders steamed at the mistake. Far East Command sends troops to Sumatra.

Italy - Mussolini wishes to impress his mightier ally to the north, and longs to bring Italy back to it’s former glory! Italian forces overrun Southern France, ridding the Allies of their last mainland bastion. The UK Mediterranean Fleet is predictably sent to the bottom. The French fleet is also destroyed in SZ93 Tunisia is overrun, and Kenya is taken as the Abyssinian arm moves out. Italian forces then move to activate Bulgaria to join their cause.

ANZAC - With little at their disposal, the Aussies and Kiwis mount an expedition to Celebes to help bolster the outer defenses.

France - de Gaulle calls for all Frenchmen to resist! Colonial troops maneuver where they can, the French Fleet in the Channel merges with the UK fleet in the Irish Sea. de Gaulle demands to be treated as an equal partner in London…

TURN 2

Germany - The Wehrmacht rests and reorganizes. The Allied navies pay for leaving their whole navy in one place: the entire Luftwaffe annihilates every last ship, as well as Allied fighter planes that scrambled to support, with only a couple planes lost in the process. Goering has made good on his earlier lapse of not destroying the UK navy earlier! A minor industrial complex is built in Norway…Hitler grins menacingly to the east…

USSR - News of the Allied defeats at sea begin to worry Stalin even more. How will he be supported? Reds continue to maneuver, staying close to the front, but out of harms way. If war comes, Stalin hopes to catch the German hordes in a mistake…

Japan - The Imperial Army continues to brush aside measly Chinese resistance. Suiyuyan, Hopei, and Yunnan all fall. With the fall of France, the Japanese move into French Indo China, ignoring Vichy cries of protest. A large portion of Yamamoto’s fleet moves to the Marianas Islands in SZ22, another consternating move that the Japanese loathed in hindsight, as they were taken out of range of the Hawaiian islands.

USA - With Japanese Navy leaving question marks, the American government continues to pour naval resources to the Pacific. Small forces begin to gather on the east coast as well for training.

China - Chiang Kai-Shek knows that if there was ever a time to fight the time was now! The Burma Road must be kept open at all costs! A Chinese force counterattacks the Japanese forces in Yunnan, with support from the Flying Tigers, and reclaims the territory for their own. Supplies can continue to flow…for now.

UK - Greatly troubled by the loss of the entire Atlantic fleet, 10 Downing Street struggles with what to do. Though German naval assets are weak, the Luftwaffe has hardly been hurt. With the loss of fighter support at home, the enemy air superiority could very well be all that’s needed to overrun the island…if Goering is willing to accept that kind of loss to his forces. Infantry are built to bolster the defenses. South African troops are moving north in the hopes of taking out the Italians in east Africa. The garrison in Sumatra jumps to Java. If the Japanese are consolidated so far north, the British Raj will take advantage and risk spreading itself thin. Ground troops begin to move closer to the Chinese border.

Italy - Mussolini, feeling invigorated by his Bulgarian allies, foolishly attempts an attack on Greece with an inadequate force. The Greeks hold on with a single division remaining, and join the Allied cause. Hitler fumes at his ally’s incompetence, and now realizes fully he’ll need to assist him in the Mediterranean. Alexandria falls to Italian forces, as well as Anglo-Egyptian Sudan and Algeria.

ANZAC - Still unsure of what to do at this point, the ANZAC continue defensive preparations, but are also ready to jump on the offensive. All depends on what the Japanese Navy has in store…

France - French forces continue to maneuver where they seem best to help. A destroyer supports at SZ81 at the Suez Canal, French Equatorial Africa is reinforced in hopes of slowing the Italians down. Algerian troops had fallen back to Morocco the round before, in hopes of holding the ground for an eventual Allied landing.

We only got through the first two rounds. As I stated above, my brother didn’t kill the UK navy right away, but got seriously lucky in the second round that my dad A) consolidated his whole force in one spot, and B) that the die were in his favor and he only lost I think two planes and a sub for the loss of a UK battleship, 2 UK and a French Cruiser, two destroyers, a transport, and 2 RAF fighters and a French fighter! This was slightly balanced by his attack on Greece with just 6 infantry and a tank that ended in ruin there. His Japanese navy movements are puzzling to me. He really was mad that he moved to the Marianas islands with no NB. But his moves do have me on edge as the US player and is drawing most of my resources to the Pacific because of it, at a time where they could be used in Europe based on the UK navy’s current state.

I’ll post more once we get to play again!

Sweet, thanks all. IWNGU, hopefully you’ll be hearing from me soon!  :-D

Thanks all. The site was listing a bundle of the dice, which I’d never noticed there before. Admittedly, I hadn’t visited their site for a while either though.

Thanks IWNGU, good to hear I can access somewhere still!

Anyone know how responsive they have or have not been? I’m thinking of finally getting around to buying those sweet battle dice, but don’t want to place an order if I’m not going to hear anything from them at all.

@Whitshadw:

HBG has added " Spanish Civil War" expansion that further " excuse my pun" Expands on the war it self. For example if on the German players turn they roll a specific number on the random events chart one of the abilities is that the Nationals are able to invade Gibraltar it self. Very fun very interesting but ultimately it always boils down to DICE right?  I do hope you are able to play the game it is absolutely fun.

Yes, that’s right, I forgot all about those random events in the new Spanish Civil War Expansion! Even more intrigue to it! But also very true, the dice giveth and taketh away.

Definitely hope to play soon! We’re working on some plywood and felt in order to actually fit it somewhere. And again, just got to find somewhere to keep it set up long periods of time! Once work quiets down a bit, I hope to push the issue a bit more though!

Great topic and thread. I’ll preface by saying I have not yet had the opportunity to play my game just yet, work gets in the way, and having someplace to keep the awesome, hulking map, set up for extended periods of time alludes us.

I’ve done my best to familiarize myself with the game and rules though.

Point here as it relates to this topic, is that the Spanish Civil War really does play into this strategy a lot as well when you think of it. If the goal for Italy/Mediterranean Axis is Gibraltar, doesn’t making sure the Nationalists win the Spanish Civil War take on a whole great importance? As you say in your original post, the amphibious attacking is brutally costly. Activation and alignment of an Axis Spain though would alleviate the need for an amphibious assault on the Rock.

I’m sure that has not alluded you or anyone else here, that’s not my point. The point was that when discussing Italian objectives being Gibraltar, I think you need to add the Spanish Civil War into the wider spectrum of steps to attaining that goal.

That just adds to the fun and intrigue of the game for me. Thinking that one thing, maybe seemingly not connected to an action, truly is in the grander scheme of strategy!

I agree with IL above re maps. The 1936 map I have is just awesome. Though I can understand you’d want to make changes to cater to your game, I would agree that adopting the 1936 map would be a better way to go to get larger support here.

Also, one way you could alleviate so many changes would be to just sit down and talk about what you want. By that I mean, when you look at a single turn of your game, what is the scope? Is it a single month? Six months? Point being, the areas being too small for you (using your post on the Pacific being too small) and greatly be altered by what you want a turn to be. If a turn is one month, for example, ships from the US should more than be able to reach Australia within a single turn based on how long it would take a ship in real life to travel the distance.

What I mean is, if you want the naval/air war in the Pacific to last longer, or whatever your goal may be, maybe find an alternative to changing the map so much. I’ve thought about that too, and one thing I’ve toyed with would be ships/planes having to “search” for each other. There could be a dice roll where maybe you just couldn’t find the enemy ships, etc.

With that said, that also changes based on turn length. If a turn represents a month, it would be unrealistic to say on a single dice roll that no action occurred that month because they couldn’t find each other.

Just trying to think of ways where you won’t have to alter maps so much!  :-)

I’d have to go back and look at the rulebook, but do the DEI income go to the UK, or do they go to FEC? That might make a difference.

Germany wouldn’t be giving UK that money, it would essentially be Japan’s issue to deal with the DEI income in the Pacific.

Thank you for the quote Simon! I must have missed that reading through!

Don’t get me wrong, I agree with you that the emblem on the territory makes sense, but you could see how that could leave a gray area (outside of what Simon just pointed out to me) and debate on the subject without a definitive explanation (which, again, Simon’s quote shows).

Thanks!

@simon33:

@Chris_Henry:

Major in Shanghai, thank you YG! That was always a point of contention for us! My argument was always that you cannot, even though it starts the game in Japanese hands, it isn’t technically considered Japanese originally owned. We would go round and round about this. Glad to get more definitive proof here though!

Surely the definitive proof is in the rulebook.

I don’t recall seeing it there. Nothing that definitively says you can’t build a Major on Shanghai. If you’re so sure though, I’d love for you to point it out to me.

Major in Shanghai, thank you YG! That was always a point of contention for us! My argument was always that you cannot, even though it starts the game in Japanese hands, it isn’t technically considered Japanese originally owned. We would go round and round about this. Glad to get more definitive proof here though!

I was thinking a lot of the same as CWO Marc as I was reading. I wouldn’t include Alaska, most definitely not Bessarabia and the Baltic States, and to Greater Southern Germany as well, though the last one I could MAYBE understand a bit more, but for me, I still wouldn’t include.

China is hard as well. I probably wouldn’t give it to all of China, that wouldn’t seem terribly accurate to me either.

You know what, we’re talking about different games! I was discussing the 1936 game, not 1939. 36 has France going after the UK still. Sorry for all the confusion!

Sorry, I meant in the rule set they sent me. They sent a copy of the rules along with the set up chart downloads, and it apparently wasn’t the 7.2 rules. Thanks for letting me know though!

Ah, that could be the problem. I literally bought the game 5 days ago and was just reading over the rulebook download I got. That has them at #5 still (seems odd they wouldn’t change that). Sorry to add to confusion!

But Panzer is saying Paris hasn’t yet fallen, so there is no Vichy/Free France yet. Shouldn’t this mean that France still stays at #5 just after the UK at #4 in the turn order, and conduct activities on their own?