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Shannon V. OKeets -> RE: optional rules (8/29/2006 10:35:14 PM)
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I am closing in on the last of these. I expect to finish them by the end of the month.
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[59][Offensive Chits][RAW 61 s. 16]
This optional rule models the ability of a major power to accumulate logistical strength in preparation for a major offensive effort. It is quite important for game dynamics. Specifically, it increases the ability of players to break strong defensive lines. Typically it is used by Germany to break the Allied defense of France and the Low Countries in 1940, but it’s also used by both sides in the USSR, and by the Allies when they need to break Fortress Europe. The Japanese and USA benefit too in the Pacific when they need to perform numerous naval invasions simultaneously. In general, it is a splendid rule that enhances the dynamics of the game - with the ever present caveat of increasing the complexity as well.
An offensive chit represents the assembly of large quantities of supplies and replacements for a major offensive. Each offensive chit costs 15 build points and takes 3 turns to build. You can use an offensive chit in one of the five ways listed below. Each active major power can use only 1 offensive chit per impulse. Neutral major powers cannot use an offensive chit. After you use an offensive chit, it is destroyed.
It is easiest to think of the different uses of offensive chits by the choice of Action you have taken for an impulse. The benefits are as follows:
Air action
∙ At the start of an air action designate 1 of your active HQs to distribute the logistics of the offensive chit. The HQ may not be on a naval transport.
∙ The range of the designated HQ is its reorganization value, measured in hexes and/or hex-dots. The range calculation ignores terrain, neutral countries, enemy units, and enemy ZOCs.
∙ All aircraft units controlled by your major power roll an extra die in any ground strike mission they conduct within range of the designated HQ. This is cumulative with surprise effects and the Tank Busters optional rule.
∙ All aircraft units controlled by your major power double their bombing factors in any other air mission (except naval-air or naval-air interception) they conduct within range of the designated HQ.
∙ Every aircraft unit reorganized by the designated HQ only costs half the usual reorganization point cost.
∙ The designated HQ can move, fight and/or reorganize units normally during the impulse it supplies benefits.
∙ At the end of the impulse, the HQ becomes passive (if it isn’t already).
Naval action
∙ At the start of a naval action designate 1 of your active HQs to distribute the logistics of the offensive chit. The HQ must be in a port hex and may not be on a naval transport.
∙ Immediately, every passive naval unit controlled by your major power becomes active if the unit is: (1) in the port, (2) in 1 designated sea area that the port borders, or (3) in every port that is adjacent to the designated sea area. If the HQ’s port borders two or more sea areas, then the player designates one of them to receive the benefits. Carrier air units receive this benefit too, if they are on carriers that qualify under one of the three listed conditions.
∙ At the end of the impulse, the HQ becomes passive (if it isn’t already).
Land action
∙ At the start of a land action designate 1 of your active HQs to distribute the logistics of the offensive chit. The HQ may not be on a naval transport.
∙ The range of the designated HQ is its reorganization value, measured in hexes and/or hex-dots. The range calculation ignores terrain, neutral countries, enemy units, and enemy ZOCs.
∙ You gain the ability to double the strength of your units during combat as described below. However, the number of units that can gain this benefit is limited to twice the designated HQ's reorganization value. For example, if the HQ has 3 reorganization points, then you can double the strength of 6 units.
∙ You can double the combat factors of the major power's land units within range of the designated HQ when you calculate the final odds for an overrun or land combat.
∙ You can double the same unit in more than one overrun or land combat but it counts against the designated HQ’s total each time.
∙ You can only double each unit once per overrun or land combat. This means you can not quadruple a unit’s combat strength.
∙ If you are using the Artillery optional rule, then for a field artillery unit within range of the designated HQ you can also (1) double the artillery unit’s combat factors for ground support or (2) receive an extra die roll during a ground strike by the artillery unit.
∙ Every land unit reorganized by the designated HQ only costs half the usual reorganization point cost. This benefit is completely separate from the doubling benefits.
∙ At the end of the impulse, the HQ becomes passive (if it isn’t already).
Combined action
∙ If you play an offensive chit at the start of a combined action, you can perform the maximum number of activities that would be allowed if you had chosen a naval, an air and a land action (e.g. as Germany you could perform unlimited air missions, naval moves, naval combats, land moves, and land combats, but only 3 rail moves).
∙ It only costs half the normal reorganization point cost of a combined action to reorganize each land, naval or aircraft unit. This benefit applies to all units reorganized by HQs, and also to those reorganized by air and naval transports.
Reorganize HQs
∙ Lastly, you can play an offensive chit at the start of a naval, air, land, or combined action, to make all of the passive HQs controlled by your major power active. This is in lieu of gaining any of the previous listed benefits.
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[60][Ukraine][RAW 62 s. 19.12]
This optional rule simulates a possible political decision that could have been made by either Germany or the USSR. Neither of them made this decision, so it is purely a “what if” optional rule.
The Ukrainian army represents the forces that could have been raised by both sides if a more tolerant attitude had been displayed towards the Ukrainians. At the start of the game, all Ukrainian units are removed from the game.
At the start of any Peace step, the major power controlling Kiev can expend an offensive chit to create the Ukrainian minor country.
If an Axis major power creates The Ukraine, Germany must destroy 1 of each type (militia, garrison, infantry, motorized, etc) of SS corps on the map or the production circle (owner's choice). If a corps of a type isn't on the map or production circle, 1 of that type taken from the force pool must be removed from the game instead (owner's choice). If the German player refuses to do this, then the Ukraine is not created.
When the Ukraine is created, all hexes in The Ukraine controlled by the creating side become Ukrainian home country hexes. As more hexes in the Ukraine become controlled by the creating side, they immediately revert to Ukrainian home country hexes.
All hexes in the Ukraine controlled by the other side remain under their control. However, their status changes to conquered Ukrainian hexes (except for Soviet controlled cities which remain part of the Soviet home country for supply only, and even then only until occupied by an Axis controlled unit).
Immediately upon creating the Ukraine, the Ukrainian militia is placed on the production circle to arrive as a reinforcement in the following turn. The remaining available Ukrainian units are added to the force pools and may be purchased from now on. In future years, as more units become available, those units too are added to the force pools. Soviet militia from cities in the Ukraine are removed from the game if they are not on the map. And if they are on the map when the Ukraine is created, then they are removed from the game when they are destroyed (i.e., they do not go back into the force pool).
Once created, the Ukraine is treated as a separate minor country with Kiev as its capital aligned with the installing major power (e.g. all blue factories are available to the owner, Kiev is a secondary supply source, etc). It can be conquered and liberated in the same manner as any other minor country.
Before the Ukrainian minor country is created, Soviet (not Ukrainian) partisans may be placed there. As soon as the Ukrainian minor country is created, remove all partisans in The Ukraine. Soviet partisans may no longer be placed there. Instead, whenever a roll for partisans in the Soviet Union is called for, you also make a separate roll for partisans in The Ukraine. The partisan number in the Ukraine is 10 and only affects enemy major powers (i.e. equivalent to the green partisans on the Partisan table).
For example, the Soviets control Kiev in May/Jun 1944. At the start of the production step, they expend an offensive chit to create the Ukrainian state. All partisans in the Ukraine are removed. During the next partisan step, the Partisan table calls for partisans to be rolled for in the Soviet Union. You would make two rolls, one for partisans in the Soviet Union and one for partisans in the Ukraine.
If a unit controlled by an Axis major power (except Ukrainian) enters or declares war on The Ukraine, the USSR can break the Nazi-Soviet pact during any Allied declaration of war step.
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[65][City Based Volunteers][RAW 67 s. 22.4.8]
This optional rule simulates the volunteers from certain select cities that potentially would have fought for specific major powers. As examples, Vlassov was a successful Soviet general who defected to the Germans after his capture, the SS recruited personnel from occupied areas and Japan used some Chinese and potentially would have used some Indians or Siberians as well.
These units become available to the respective major power when their home city is controlled by that major power. During any production step while this city is controlled, that major power may place that unit onto the production circle as if built that turn. These units are free the first time they are purchased and do not count for gearing limits. They arrive as reinforcements in their home city.
City based volunteers that arrive in cities in an aligned minor country, are units of that minor county. All other volunteers are major power units. If they are killed, they are returned to the controlling major power's force pool and may be built again later, but you have to pay and gear for them normally from their second build onwards.
When their city is occupied or conquered by an enemy major power, city based volunteers are removed from the game if they are in the force pool or on the production circle when the city falls. If instead they are on the map, then they remain under control of their controlling major power until they are destroyed.
Note that as their home cities may be controlled, lost, and then re-controlled during the game, these units can enter and leave the game several times. However, they are free only once nonetheless.
At the start of a campaign, it is assumed that none of the units have been brought into the game yet (e.g. the Austrian SS unit can be purchased free the first time it is built in any campaign).
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[75][Facility Repair][CWIF addition]
This optional rule will be replaced by the optional rule for Construction Engineers (4b) described previously.
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[76][Scrap Units][CWIF addition]
This optional rule simplifies play by removing any need for the players to make decisions about which units to scrap. The effect of this optional rule is stark: no unit is ever scrapped. Note that eliminating scrapping units can have a substantial impact on game play, though for the Barbarossa scenario it is not too bad.
Serious effort has been put into simplifying the decision making process for scrapping units. For example, there are recommendations/defaults for which units to scrap at the start of every scenario for every major power. Also, if you make your own decisions as to which units to scrap at the start of a scenario, those decisions can be saved to a file and reused for all future games.
Nonetheless, the concept of scrapping units can be difficult for beginners to understand, so this optional rule is provided as a way of making the game easier to play while climbing the learning curve.
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[80][Extended Game][CWIF addition]
This optional rule extends the game to August/September of 1948. Of course the game could always end sooner by mutual agreement of the players or by one side achieving an automatic victory.
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[81][Unrestricted Setup][CWIF addition]
This optional rule removes some historical constraints imposed on the players when setting up their units. WIF purists will say that this is a gross distortion of the game, but it is a common enough optional rule in computer games, so it is included here.
Instead of each player having his units separated into groups that have specific restrictions on where they set up, all of a player’s setup units at the start of a scenario are lumped into one large group and any unit can be placed in any hex the player controls. Normal stacking limits are in effect. Using this optional rule also removes the restriction on the German and USSR forces having to set up close to the front line in Barbarossa and many other scenarios.
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