Nu“

$4

The game that is history.

a
. .

“1‘0
World War II in Europe m

In this issue:
Complete list of German Unit IDs
New Map Art
Inside Europa
News from GRD
and much more!
GAMA
 Now, and for the future, Europa. . .

Europa on line
Game Research/Design and
GEnie, the General Electric network
information exchange, have joined forces to
give you access to the best gaming system
through your computer and modem.
GRID will now offer electronic Europa.
Some of these features will include:
PElectronic mail
GEnie PGame Library information
has a special pCurrent Errata
offer for Europa DBulletin Board of what's what
players for a limited PNational Real Time Conference
period of time... DOpponents Wanted
"Europa - by - Computer
Cost to join the PMagazine articles
GEnie network neoming events
$0 DDirect communication with GRID
and anything else we can think of...

Here's how you join, using your existing telephone modem - fl

Set your terminal sofware for 300 or 1200 baud, 8nl. Dial the
toll free number - 1 800-638-9636. At the connect enter HHH
and press return. At the U#= prompt enter XTX99610,Europa
When you call have your credit card or checking account
number ready to open your account and receive your personal
password from GEnie. GEnie will make electronic transfers from
your checking account if you don't want to use a credit card.
They will guide you through the setup and get you on-line very
quickly. Remember, joining fees are waived!
GRID is already on the bulletin board and we will be
downloading files to the library shortly. Our national
conference will begin ASAP. Watch for announcements on
GEnie.
 (S'urntta
The Official Magazine of the (hay. System

January/February 1990

CONTENTS
News from GRD
by Winston Hamilton ....................................................... 2

¢- Edlt' Inside Europa

M23330”?!
g

-
by John Astell ................................................................. 4
-

From, The Editor

by Rick Gayler................................................................ 10
Gary Swim
commlm The 2nd Australian Imperial Force
by Stuart Lee .............................................................. 14
The Yugoslav Royal Air Force
by Jason Long ............................................................... 21

Touring the (tuna. Seashore [Norway, south of M0]

by A.E. Goodwin ............................................................ 29
Design Update: Fol no: “IE BELL ’I‘IILIJ
by Jeff Millefoglie ........................................................... 33
Computer Assisted Europa
by Mark van Rokel .......................................................... 36
Rules Court
by Rick Gayler................................................................ 37
- - -
EXchange....................................................................39
E A5290:'at'
5533a” blitb UK
RéaéopWauagky'. Europafest Update Report
.. .. by Mark Swenholt .......................................................... 42
Preregistration Form and Event Map .................... 43-44

Credits: Layout-WJ Hamilton; Magazine Designer-John Greer; Proof-

reading- Darla Hamilton; Cover Illustration: Hemz original an tor Marita-Merkur.
Scanning: Microtek MSF 3006 - Layout on an Apple Ilcx using a LaserWn'ter IINT
and Ready Set Go“. "The enemy diversion you are ignoring is the main attack."
Page 2
Situation. Report:
game 93¢?“ch $c8igu
Welcome to the 90's everybody.
We have a slightly new look, a
slightly bigger magazine, a
slightly different name, and
continue to evolve up the ladder.
The Europe News has changed its
name to Europa. A minor change
to be sure, but it will suit our
purposes. Rick Gayler, John
Astell, Deen Wood, and myself
are getting better equipment,
thanks to Mark Van Roekel. John
Greer is helpful as ever on
magazine design; Jason Long has
signed on as text manager
(glorified entry grunt), which will
help to no end; Tom Johnson
(a.k.a. Task Force Johnson) now
leads the gritty gang of gamers at
the demos: Stephanie resides in
the back making sure that things
get sent and work gets done; and
my wife runs the business end of
the business. We are getting
bigger; we are getting better!
The Second Front Playtest Kit is
out and about. First and second
waves have landed in the testers'
mailboxes and everyone is busy
cutting out about 6,000 counters. I
did the entry on the Mac for these
counters and they are only
playtest versions. The final
counters will look great. We did a
mock-up on some here in the print
shop and they looked good on our
equipment. When we get the first
draft of the Balkan Front
counters done it will be on a 2400
dots per inch machine and should
really look super. The playtest kit
was a monster to do. I spent much
time and effort getting the
counters done. Many other souls
participated in the preparation of
the kits and we all owe them a
debt of thanks.
Now want to discuss a topic that
I facets of the hobby.
has appeared on GEnie and in the
mail to me. Most of you know
by:Winston
who John Astell is; what he does
is a known fact. The same can't be
said for me. have seen
I
speculation as to who I am and
what do. Well, the short course
I
on me is as follows:
lwas born here in Grinnell, lowa.
I enlisted in the US. Army when
turned 17 and did a tour in the
RVN (camping out with guns).
After that I attended college for
two years, became involved in
WAW (Vietnam Vets Against the
War). became a union organizer,
moved back to Grinnell when my
father wanted to retire, and took
over his business. I have a wife of
ten years (Darla) and we are in
business in Grinnell.
I
own and operate an insurance
company in Grinnell (third
generation); my wife, Darla, and
own and operate a printing
company (Grinnell Graphix); and
John Astell and own and
I
operate Game Research/Design.
am also the Secretary of the
Game Manufacturers Association
(GAMA) and will be taking over
the Executive Directorship of the
same this next Origins. Now, that
is one full plate and to break it
down it goes as follows:
insurance for the money, printing
for the interesting work, and GRD
- well. as a young boy alwaysI
wanted to produce wargames, run
a wargame company, and be
involved with the industry (which
many of us gamers grew up
wanting to do, I suspect). work I
for GAMA because I want to be
heavily involved in the
organization of the gaming
community and want to have a
hand in building this fine
association that will benefit all
I
have had a close association
Hamilton
with GDW and knew Frank
Chadwick when he was attending
college in Rock Island, Illinois in
the early 1970's before there was
a GDW. I became addicted to
Europa (as most of us did) when
DNO came out. Since that time l
have worked with GDW as a
I
playtester and was honored to
help develop some games with
that company. My official title is
Chief of the Department of
History of GDW which earns me a
free parking space at the
company HQ in Normal, Illinois,
and two free copies of each title
produced. (I also have a complete
collection of unfolded maps of all
the titles they have produced. Oh
boy!)
And now on to more important
stuff.
I
And the winners are... We are
pleased to announce the winners
for the Europa magazine "Best
I
Awards“. These awards are
presented to authors who have
produced the best article for the
year in one of two categories:
Historical Article and Gaming
Article. There were many fine
articles to choose from and we
deeply appreciate all the time our
contributors have taken to help us
produce this magazine. The
awards for 1989 were determined
by the staff. In the last issue of
this year's magazine there will be
a ballot and we will determine
the winners for 1990 based on
how you, the readers, vote. But
this year's winners are: Jack
Radey, “The Battle for Kiev“,
issue #7 for Historical Article; and
Roy Lane, “Russian Tactical
Doctrine', issue #7 for Gaming
Article. Congratulations. Watch
for this year's ballot in issue #16
of Europa.
 Page 3

Ghost drawing winner: Well, I

went and did a silly thing. did
I
not announce a deadline for entry
a number of reasons. Next year
The game is designed to appeal to we are going to be there in
the general market as well as the several categories. encourage
I

for the Ghost of Europa drawing
for a free game. Now, the
deadline for entry (postmarked)
will be as follows: Issue #10 and
#11 are combined and the
tried and true old guard of the
system. It should stimulate the
series, increase exposure of the
system, and bring in some new
players. Given the state of the
everyone to vote on the Origins
Ballot that will be included in the
next issue and strongly urge
everyone to vote for us next year
for the origins awards. also
I

deadline is March 31, 1990. As wargame market at this time, it believe that our system should be
each Ghost is presented you will should be a shot in the arm. voted into the Hall of Fame as
be told what the deadline is. Can't
one of the most outstanding and
really say who the Ghost for #10 Media Review and a Plug: certainly the longest running
is yet, but we will announce in
series of WWII games ever to hit
Issue #12 the Ghost for #10 and I
would like to say a few words the market.
#11, along with the winners of about the magazine trade in our
the two drawings. We are going field of WW II gaming. I
would like to start the campaign
to offer the winner of each Ghost for putting the series in the “Hall
contest a free game of choice. There is a current state of unrest of Fame“ right now and ask all of
The list of games available to in the market as a period of
choose from will be mailed to you to vote for Europa next year
“adjustment" is upon us. In the when the ballot comes out.
each winner. next issue of our magazine we
will be publishing a ballot for your That wraps up this edition. G'day
Balkan Front votes on the "best" in a number of mates.
categories. This year we did not
Get thee ready. BF is getting enter the field of publications for The Ghost is below. (2
ready for playtest. Elsewhere in
the magazine there is a more
detailed ad for the game. We are
about to send out the auto-ship
order forms to the distributors.
THE GHOST OF EUROPA
My estimation for the release is
now May/June of this year. We A bit of trickery here, chaps. Below is a tank, obviously.
will want some playtest time to
insure that the game works and to But what kind of tank, whose tank , and where did this
double check "things" in the tank see service. What we are looking for is the make,
production stream (my model, nationality and any other tidbits you can tell us
responsibility). The box art has about this hunk of steel. Deadline for entry: 1 Apr 90.
been completed (neat) for the
Collector Series' box. Say
goodbye to the grid. We are doing
something that has never been
done before to my knowledge and
it should prove to be a distinctive
box. The black and gold color
scheme will get the attention of
anyone looking at games, the
remainder of the box will be
useful and interesting to look at.
We will have our name and
address on this box and 3 UPC
label (Uniform Product Code) as
well. The game will feature
revised 085 for the national
armies that took part in the actual
campaign, more scenarios, more
forces (the Bulgarians), and a few
other items, such as the new
maps, which should be well
received. This will be no small
matter to us here at GRD. This is
our first real game and we will do
a good job of presenting it to you.
Page 4
31:8“:
John
EVOLUTION, REVOLUTION,
or STASIS
Europa is a living, growing game
system. As with living things,
growth means change. ls change
necessary? It depends upon the
change, but in general the answer
is yes. We could try to lock the
existing parts of Europa into
stasis, but this wouldn't help the
system. It wouldn't speed the
completion of Europa , which is
paced mostly by the ongoing
historical research, the designing
of rules to cover new material,
and the testing of new games. It
also wouldn't improve Europa.
Instead, it would result in a game
system that when "finished"
would already have a list of
improvements waiting in the
wings. This makes little sense to
me - let's add the improvements
to Europa as we come up with
them.
Given change, should it be
evolutionary or revolutionary? If
you have followed the series for
any length of time, you'll know
the answer to that onel Europa
supports evolutionary change.
Revolutionary changes would be
made if something was seriously
wrong with the core system. That
hasn't happened yet, as Europa is
built on a solid foundation, and I
hope it never will. Evolutionary
change means working within the
existing rules and components.
changing or enhancing them only
when definite, worthwhile
improvements are developed.
Administrative movement is a
case in point. Up until Western
Desert (WD), admin. movement
(faster movement for units that
don't engage in combat
operations or enter enemy
territory) wasn't covered in
Europa, mostly because it wasn't
especially needed. In earlier
games if you needed faster
Europa
by Astell
movement, you could take the
train. There were rail lines
everywhere, with no rail capacity
or regauging bottlenecks to slow
you down. In WD, admin.
movement was necessary due to
the lack of rail lines in many
areas. The admin. movement rule
in WD was very conservative: it
got the job done in a form I was
certain wouldn't upset the play of
the other games. As I worked on
subsequent games, gradually
I
relaxed and expanded the admin.
movement rule, based on my and
other Europa players cumulative
experience with the rule. Each
time the rule became more
powerful, and the process
continues (and, I hope, ends) with
Second Front. (More on this
later.) This evolutionary process
has ensured that the rule works
throughout Europe. Had I tried to
get the full rule into WD in one
shot, it might have taken a form
that caused problems in the other
games.
The latest evolutionary change is
happening with the maps. Over
the years, a variety of
geographical information not
displayed on the maps has crept
into the rules, such as ports, port
sizes, special crossable sea
hexsides, and so on. Rather than
require players to remember it all,
I've long wished that it could be
displayed directly on the maps,
together with the names of
various features. When GRID
undertook the commitment to
reprint all of the Europe games,
this made it possible to consider
upgrading the maps. The upgrade
will make the maps easier and
more interesting to use, but will
only slightly change their look.
We won't be changing the colors
or dimensions of the maps, or
anything else that would disturb
their ”look and feel'. Instead, the
upgrade mainly involves the
following areas:
1) In a few places, the coastline
will be redrawn to eliminate
movement problems.
2) Ports will be designated with
specific symbols, showing their
location and size.
3) Fortifiedhexsides will be
printed on the maps, in place of
the 'wandering' fortified hexside
counters.
4) Crossing points for sea and lake
hexsides will be shown on the
maps. These will display the
crossable hexsides such as the
Kerch Straits, the Bosporus, the
Straits of Massina, and so on,
replacing the special rules on
them.
5) Reference points and names
will be added to the maps, in
small type. These will locate and
name small but important cities,
rivers, major mountains, and so
forth - Bastogne, the Volga River,
and Shewvood Forest will be
named on the maps. (I'm just
kidding about Sherwood Forest.)
6) Currently, "roads“ on the maps
are more often low-capacity
railroads (hence Scorched
Earth's upgrading rule) than just
roads. We'll distinguish between
the two cases on the new maps.
And, now for the big point. The
new style maps don't make your
current ones obsolete! You'll be
able to mix and match both types.
using whatever combination of
them you have on hand. While
there'll be a very limited number
of overlap discrepancies. there'll
be no more than the overlap
problems among the existing
maps - which doesn't cause any
real trouble - and these will be
listed in a guide. Not only will the
two map styles work together
functionally, they will also be
esthetically compatible. Mate
,
W
them up, step back, take a look,
and the enhanced new style maps
will be virtually indistinguishable
from the current ones. You'll
notice the difference only through
the ease of play the new ones
allow.
MARCHING ORDERS

Duane Romfoe's article on march

rates ("Forward . .. March!“ in
issue #10) is the best work I've
seen on this area for Europa, ever
- and l've been seeing comments
on this area ever since got
I

involved in Europa design in

1978. However, don't go out and
buy heavy duty boots for your
infantry counters - they're not
going to do extra marchingl
Duane concludes that movement
rates are understated in Europa,
based on historical examples and
on various armies' doctrines for
sustainable rates of march. He's
right as far as he goes. but he
doesn't go far enough. One
problem is that actual conditions
deviate from the theoretical ones.
Sure, the Soviets expect to
sustain a rate of 7.4 to 14.8 miles
per day in snow and cold.
However, as one example, this
attacker has fresh, trained troops
and achieves surprise over the
enemy at the start of a campaign.
This case is taken into account in
the games through the surprise
attack rules, which add an extra
turn of movement and combat.)
Another problem involves the
slipperiness of some historical
examples. Duane mentions that
leading elements of the German
121st Infantry Division were east
of Daugavpils on 28 June 1941.
'Leading elements“ doesn't mean
the full division, and what are
these leading elements? In the
case of the 121st, i don't know,
but have my suspicions. Let's
I

swing south a bit and look at

Guderian's drive. By mid-July,
elements of Guderian's infantry
divisions had reached the Dnepr
River around Mogilev, as
Guderian states in his book.
Panzer Leader. Guderian then
reveals that these elements are
just the recon units and the few
motorized units of these divisions.
The bulk of the infantry was far to
the west, marching hard to catch
up. A division in Europa is
represented by a tidy, single
counter, but reality at times is
much messier, which causes
Page 5

of march are not sustainable

rate doesn't take blizzards into
account. When a blizzard comes in
- and they do fairly frequently in
the Russian winter - movement is
reduced to nothing, for several
days on end. This sort of thing
isn't confined to the winter either.
For example, German Panzer
forces spearheading the drive into
the USSR in July 1941 were
slowed down by thunderstorms,
which temporarily turned the dirt
roads being used to mud. Non-
physical factors also intrude here.
Armies march to campaign plans
and battle plans, which rarely
survive contact with the enemy.
As plan meets reality, the plan
must change, not reality.
Adapting a plan of campaign to
the actual conditions encountered
can't always be done on the run;
it often takes time and causes
delays - in effect slowing the
actual rate of movement. (And,
I
argue, a well-conceived plan has
the best chance of success if the
difficulties when you try to
compare the game and any
specific historical fact. One last
example concerns Soviet units
marching like hell to escape
encirclement. Yes, there are
exciting cases of this, but in many
instances these are the remnants
of smashed units oozing back to
the Soviets. ln Europa terms,
these more often are special
replacements flowing into the
replacement system rather than
intact, hero units rejoining the
front line.
The core problem here revolves
around what is meant by
sustainable rates of march - a
sustainable rate is not an
indefinitely sustainable rate.
Europe is a long game, with very
many 15-day turns in it. Duane's
longest examples of marches are
26 and 27 days long, not even
two full Europa turns. If you look
at the larger picture, these rates
indefinitely, turn after turn.
Instead, armies tend to move at
sustainable rates, or faster, for
short periods, followed by periods
where the armies recover from
their exertions. In other words.
“sustainable‘ really isn't
sustainable. Yes, the German lI
Corps marched at 15 miles per
day for 27 days, with 11 battle
days and no rest days, at the start
of World War l. They, and the rest
of the German outer wing, were
required to march without rest
days - called for by German
doctrine - in order to maintain the
rate of advance the Schlieffen
Plan required for success. They
paid the price of this advance
when they reached the Marne.
Their exhaustion was a big pan of
why they lost the Battle of the
Marne and the chance to knock
out France. For a World War II
example, let's look at Barbarossa.
The Germans marched
themselves silly in June and July
and had to rest up to recover. in
fact, they marched too hard at
first and killed off large numbers
of their horses through
overexertion. This caused all sorts
of problems, such the lagging or
outright abandonment of many
horse-drawn artillery pieces.
So, armies march and then rest.
Europa averages this out. A unit
in Europa is rated on its long-
term average combat and
movement abilities, not its short-
term maximum or even
'sustainable' abilities. This is a
convenient and, for our purposes,
excellent way to handle things.
Instead of averaging things out,
we could have had a system
where units have 'maximum'
abilities, but they quickly rack up
attrition and fatigue penalties as
they operate. The big drawback
here is that this approach requires
either a ridiculous number of
counters to keep track of things,
or a mind—numbing amount of
bookkeeping and paperwork.
Either way, it wouldn't be very
practical or fun to play - and, if it
worked right, it would average
out over the long run to the way
things work now.
Page 6
Duane's comments about mobile
defenses and envelopments being
made “impossible, or. . . far less
common than they should be" by
the movement system is off-base.
Both are possible and present in
the game. Massive, deep
envelopments are possible, with
the classic problem of trying to
close off the pocket with
motorized forces while the
infantry takes a turn to come up.
Mobile defense is present,
exactly in the form that Duane
claims is missing: trading space
for time and launching
counterattacks against targets of
opportunity. Indeed, more often
I
get the complaint that mobile
defense is too powerful in the
game! Pulling back in the face of
the enemy and launching hit and
run armored attacks against a
haphazard advance can be very
effective. Perhaps things don't
work exactly the way they would
if Duane had designed the game,
but that's a different subject than
movement rates.
Duane and I come close to
agreement concerning what he
calls unopposed movement (I call
it follow-up movement), although
we go about it differently. When I
originally designed the admin.
movement rules, I was
conservative, as I mention above.
I'm relaxing the admin. movement
rules in the Second Front
playtest to test my current
thinking on the subject. In
essence, l'm removing the
restriction that a unit may admin.
move only in territory owned by
its side at start of its turn.
Instead, a unit may admin. move
in territory that is friendly owned
at the time it moves, including
territory that other units have
gained ownership of during that
turn. This requires only one more
rule to make it work: a unit
doesn't exert a 2°C in the
movement phase in which it uses
admin. movement. This prevents
an admin. moving unit from
gaining ownership and thus an
admin. route of advance for itself
as it moves.
YOU ASK. l ANSWER
' your ”Inside Europa" last
In
issue, you said that USAAF P-38D
counters cover models D and 6
together. But. these models are
actually very diffean and you
list P—3865 on the 08, but no 05.
What gives?
Sorry. my typo. meant the P-
I
47Ds covered models D and G,
which are similar.
’ What's OFFICIAL Europe? The
magazine has so many rules
suggestions. variants, additional
counters, etc., that I get confused
trying to figure out what rules l'm
supposed to be using. Help!
Don't let all the Europe ~ talk mix
you up. The published games,
together with the published
errata sheets, are official Europa,
and nothing else is. If it's not in
the rules of a game or on the
errata sheet, it's not official, and
you don't have to bother with it if
you don't want to. Supplementing
this is the semiofficial 'Rules
Court", which appears regularly in
this magazine. 'Flules Court‘ is
based on rules questions players
send in - it's the answer you'd get
if you wrote in with that question.
It mostly clarifies ambiguities and
resolves mistaken impressions of
how the rules work. Rick Geyler
does an excellent job in
answering the questions, and he
regularly hits me with the really
hard ones (yeah, thanks a lot,
Rick). If you have a rules problem
that's been covered in the court,
you can use the answer.
However, ‘Rules Court‘ isn't fully
official. as it isn't guaranteed to
be completely right all the time -
at least, know that I occasionally
I
gave the wrong answer when I
answered rules questions. Also.
some answers involve subtle
interpretations, which may
change after further thought and
experimentation. The important
material in 'Flules Court" will
eventually make its way into the
official errata sheets. In the
meantime, the verdicts of the
court serve as a guide to rules
questions, but you're not required
to use them when playing the
games.
The only other semiofficial
material is my “Rails through the
Russias' article in TEN #7. This
addresses a problem area in
Scorched Earth's rule on
upgrading roads to railroads. It
isn't completely official, for two
reasons: 1) It hasn't been tested
thoroughly enough, Although it
should work. there possibly may
be a problem or two lurking in it -
which will be discovered through
repeated play. 2) It's a somewhat
messy fix to the problem,
introducing more rules and
counters. Do we really need to
add 27 0-6 German railroad
engineer battalions to the game? I
hope that can think of a better
I
fix here. (Currently, I think it may
be possible to cut the battalions.
The basic problem is that the
German's don't have enough
higher headquarters to absorb all
the battalions at the start of the
game. hesitate to make up
I
fictitious regiments to absorb the
extra battalions, as this plays
needless games with the
otherwise sound historical
research. However, we might be
able to get around this by
backdating the three German
railroad engineer brigades to the
start of the game and cutting the
battalions. Although this is a
small historical distortion, as the
brigades don't exist in June 1941,.
it may be acceptable.)
Everything else is unofficial. The
magazine is on the cutting edge
of Europa, giving you the latest
news, speculations, and
aspirations in the series. You've
seen and will continue to see
many experimental rules,
variants, suggestions, and second
guessing in the pages of TEN. It's
there for your information and
enjoyment. If you like to tinker
with your games (many do, and
there are no rules police to arrest
you if you modify the rules to suit
yourself), or if you see something
you particularly like, go ahead
and use it. If you want to play by
the official rules, stick to the
published games and errata
 m
————-—______—______—_
sheets.
* In "War in the Desert”,
how is it
possible that an Italian tank
division has far greater strength
and is much more economical to
supply in combat than the British?
An attack strength of 7 with 2 REs
yields 3.5 attack strength per RE
for an Italian armored division,
while a British armored division
at 3 REs and a strength of 8 yields
a paltry 2.6 attack strength per
RE. (The mighty Panzers, at 2 REs
and strength 9, yield 4.5.) I
thought the British would be
better than the Italians, not
worse.
In
II,
the early stages of World War
the British operated under an
erroneous theory of armored
warfare, while lacking sufficient
resources and experience in their
armored forces. In the 19305, the
British Army favored the idea of
all-armor tank formations: large
armored formations should
consist of little more (or,
extremely, nothing more) than
tanks, which would sweep the
enemy from the field. While the
British didn't field tank-only
armored divisions, they did form
tank-heavy divisions. WW ll
showed the all-armor theory to be
wrong. Instead, the combined
arms approach was proven to be
the best use of armored forces:
the tanks needed to be supported
by sufficient motorized infantry
and artillery to achieve their full
abilities. Without proper support,
tanks to equip new units and
replace losses, especially with
newer models possessing heavier
armor and armament. In action,
the armored division had far too
many tanks and far too little
infantry and artillery to operate
effectively. This formula, as all
nations that used tank-heavy
formations found, led to
excessive tank losses in combat.
As the British battled the
Germans and gained bitter
experience, they reorganized
their armored divisions for
greater effectiveness. By the time
of the Battle of El Alamein, the
British armored division had
become a well-balanced
combined arms formation. Based
around one armored brigade, one
infantry brigade, and the
divisional artillery HQ, the
division had these battalions
totals: 3 armored, 1 armored car,
4 motorized infantry, 3 artillery, 1
antitank, 1 AA, and 1 engineer. At
full strength, the division had 172
tanks (including 164 Shermans)
plus 14 AA tanks. With the US. in
the war, Britain's need for many,
high-quality tanks was being met
with American Shermans,
perhaps the best a|l~around tank
sent to Africa.
Europa shows this evolution of
British armor in 'War in the
Desert" and Western Desert,
The British do start off with 3-FlE
armored divisions averaging only
2.6 attack strength points per RE.
Page

mortars, and machine guns). 3

artillery, 1 AA, and 1 antitank.
With around 190 tanks, it was a
reasonable formation, worth its
3.5 attack strength points per RE.

Fire in the East/Scorched

* In
Earth. why don‘t German
assault gun battalions have full
ATEC from the start of the game?

German assault guns were armed

with low-velocity guns until the
spring of 1942. These guns were
good at firing high explosive
rounds, which made them
effective direct fire weapons
against soft targets. Although
they could fire armor piercing
rounds, their low-velocity guns
made them less effective against
tanks than high-velocity tank and
antitank guns. In 1942, assault
guns armed with high velocity
guns become available, making
them highly effective tank killers.
* Why do the Russians gain
strength just by converting a
regular unit into a Guards unit?
Soviet Guards units are no
different from regular units in
most cases.
Actually, the Guards are different
from the regulars. They tend to
have more and better men,
equipment, and replacements
than the regulars. While they
weren't substantially better than
the regulars, they have enough of
an edge to be rated slightly
7

the tanks would be at a higher.

disadvantage in situations
requiring infantry or artillery. The
British armored forces learned
these lessons the hard way -
through battle against the
Germans.
In the desert, the British armored
divisions initially were organized
around two armored brigades and
one support group, with the
following battalion totals: 6
armored, 2 motorized infantry, 1
artillery, 1 combined AA/antitank,
and 2/3 engineer. At full strength.
the division had 340 tanks,
although British production wasn‘t
always able to provide enough
They and up, however, with 2-RE
divisions averaging 4 attack
strength points per RE, a
substantial improvement.
As for the Italians, they have a
number of problems with their
armored forces, particularly with
low production rates and
undersized tanks. Their
organization, on the other hand,
was a fairly sound combined arms
approach. With one tank
regiment, one motorized infantry
regiment, and one artillery
regiment, an Italian armored
division typically fielded these
battalions: 3 tank, 2 motorized
infantry, 1 weapons (a mix of AA,
' Why do 4-3-8 Tiger battalions
have split attack and defense
strengtth Whenever a Tiger tank
showed up on the battlefield, the
Allied troops yelled for help!
Tank-only formations are good at
taking ground rapidly, but poor at
holding it on the defense. To hold
the ground, you really need
infantry present. and some
artillery never hurts - combined
arms again! In Europa, this
deficiency is reflected in the
defense ratings of tank-only and
tank-heavy units, hence 2-1-10
Panzer battalions, 3-2-8 tank
brigades, and so on. Ignoring their
Page 8
"mobile pillbox' aspect, the Tigers
Would rate 4-2-8, but I boosted
them to 4-3-8 to cover their
defensive abilities. think 4-8
I
would overrate them defensively.
* Why can 't a divisional unit use
its own organic engineer
capabilities to build fortifications?
This may surprise you, but it can
and it does. You don‘t see this
directly, as it's built into the way
Europa works. The Europa
combat system assumes that
units build field fortifications
whenever they can - which is
essentially all the time. Troops
can dig in very quickly on their
own, and the divisional engineers
can help out by building bunkers,
antitank ditches. weapons pits,
and so on. At the time scales
we're dealing with in Europa, field
fortifications need not be
considered separately and instead
are intrinsic to the system.
Other types of fortifications are
another case. An Europa fort
represents much more than just
field fortifications. It involves
substantial augmentation of the
defensive abilities of the local
terrain, involving an appreciable
expenditure of resources.
Divisional engineers aren't up to
this task. In particular, divisional
engineers have their hands full
performing their usual tasks, such
as building field fortifications,
repairing and maintaining the
local roads. and so on. They
haven't the time nor sufficient
equipment or manpower to take
on a new, big task such as
building an Europa -Ieve| fort.
Instead, you have to bring in the
construction troops.
“‘
Many early Europa games
gave exact placements , hex by
hex, for the units at the start of
the games. Recent games no
longer do this. Why?
In part to save both of us time,
and in part because exact
placement is somewhat
meaningless. It takes me a lot of
research time to pin down the
precise starting locations of all
the important units, and it takes
a lot of typing time simply to
enter this information correctly. It
takes you a lot of time to set up
units using exact placements -
much more than sorting and
placing them according to their
assignment in higher
headquarters. My time's limited.
and suspect yours is. too, so we
I
should only spend the time here if
it's worthwhile. But, is it? don't
I
think so. For historical interest.
it's fun to have a snapshot of the
exact dispositions at the start of
the campaign. Beyond this, exact
placement has at best a
meaningless impact on play and
at worst a harmful one. It's
meaningless in that the first time
you move a unit a single hex
you've already broken the
precision of the exact placement.
Also, Europa gives you command
of the armies and allows you to
conduct the campaign as you see
fit, within historical guidelines. It
doesn't force you to move the
forces exactly as your historical
counterparts did - you're playing a
game, not staging a reenactment.
Why should you be forced to
deploy your forces exactly as
your historical counterparts did?
Instead, it makes sense to me to
allow you to deploy your forces
as you want, within historical
guidelines.
Exact placement can actually
harm the playing of the games. in
some cases. The reason for this is
that it can give the attacker an
unfair advantage over the
defender. Armies not engaged in
military operations tend to keep
their forces spread out, for a
variety of reasons (such as not
wanting to disrupt the civilian
economy). When operations
begin, both sides quickly
implement their attack or defense
plans. The attacker crosses the
border, moving along preplanned
routes with specific goals in mind.
The defender concentrates his
frontier forces and brings up
defensive reserves and
counterattack forces. This goes on
simultaneously in reality, but
Europa abstracts reality through
sequential movement. Allowing
the attacker to pour across while
the defender is stuck in his
peacetime positions until the
next player turn isn't always
correct. Sometimes, it captures
the surprise attack correctly.
sometimes not. In Fire in the
East/Scorched Earth, it doesn't.
The Soviet forces are spread out
on 22 June 1941, with rarely
more than a division per hex. If
the game forced these
placements, we'd have a game
more resembling Pacman than
Barbarossa - feldgrau stacks
munching on (overrunning) all
Soviets within reach. Despite the
surprise the Germans did achieve
at the start of the campaign, it
wasn't of Pacman magnitude.
Instead, the Soviet field forces
reacted as best they could, with
the frontier forces falling back
under attack and local reserves
being rushed fowvard to stiffen up
the front line. While the Germans
broke through at important points,
which lead to the pocketing and
subsequent destruction of maior
Soviet forces, they did have to
break through, and not simply
march forward in triumph. The
deployment rules in FITEISE
attempt to recreate these
conditions, by allowing the
Soviets to deploy their frontier
forces in a reasonable defensive
line, which the Germans then
smash as best they can.
' You had unkind words for
Manteuffel in a recent column,
yet his Panzer Battles is one of
my favorite books on WW II. Why
are you down on him?
Actually, Manteuffel‘s Panzer
Battles is one of my favorites.
too. He gives a very interesting
account of his experiences in the
war. and he does it
entertainingly. However, his book
is by no means impartial, nor is it
always accurate, especially about
his enemies. This is also the case
for the books by the other
German generals, such as
Guderian's Panzer Leader and
Manstein's Lost Victories. Their
books give many useful insights
on the war, particularly
concerning German military
M
———————____—_—____—__

'
operations. However, the books
lack objectivity in many areas,
such as:
1) Hitler and the Nazis. With
Hitler dead and the Nazis
discredited after the war, they
got blamed for all the mistakes in
the war, by the generals and by
many other Germans. While Hitler
was responsible for a large share
of the blunders, the generals
weren't blameless themselves.
2) The Soviets. The Soviets,
particularly the Communists, are
often portrayed as inhuman
beings resorting to measures
outside civilized behavior. This
view, tinged with Nazi racial
propaganda and fear of
Communism. helps justify the
atrocities perpetuated by the
Germans themselves in the
USSR. Also, the books foster the
false image of noble German
warriors going down to defeat
solely due to the mass attacks of
Slavic and Asiatic hordes. This
hides the fact that the German
generals themselves were
defeated in the field by their
Soviet counterparts, both
strategically and, by the end of
the war. operationally.
3) War Crimes. Many German
through my lines, he often sends
weak, motorized AA and antitank
units out by themselves to cut
railroads and block supply lines.
These are support units, which
wouldn't do that under real
conditions. Shouldn’t there be a
rule preventing this?
No! What's going on are several
things, all good: 1) Breakthroughs.
An enemy breakthrough is a very
disruptive event for the
defenders, causing all sorts of
confusion as enemy units fanned
out. If anything, the
disruptiveness of breakthroughs
are understated, and i don't want
to further limit their
effectiveness. 2) Defense in
Depth. You really shouldn't have
all your front line forces right on
the front line itself. Instead, have
divisions (units with ZOCsl one or
two hexes behind the line,
covering the area with ZOCs. This
way, even if your front line is
pierced, the exploiting forces are
slowed down as they try to push
through the ZOCs. If done well,
then there will be fewer targets
of opportunity for the 'support'
units to grab. And, yes. l've heard
the argument that no one has
enough forces to do this well
everywhere, but that's part of the
fortunes of war. You do your best
Page

should encourage active player

involvement, not passive, where
point. The rules allow players to
take active measures to limit
breakthroughs, such as building a
defense in depth and maintaining
reserves. This is much better (and
more accurate) than rules that
passively reward players. such as
limiting the exploitation abilities
of enemy units.
“‘
All the above is fine concerning
breakthroughs, but you're ignoring
my point about SUPPORT UNITS.
No way is a bunch of 37mm
antitank guns towed by trucks
going to drive off by itself into
the enemy rear areas!
Europa shows, as it must, the
formal order of battle
organizations of the combatants'
armies. However, most WW II
armies would reorganize their
forces into temporary tactical
groupings, tailored to the task at
hand - task forces. Kampfgruppen,
Raggruppamenti, and so on. This
is far beyond the abilities of
Europa to show directly, as we'd
have to let units break down into
battalions and companies and
then reassemble into mixed-arms
battle groups. Instead, this goes
on indirectly in Europa, with the
9

possible, and this area is a case in

generals, particularly those on the
eastern front. were involved in
war crimes, either actively
endorsing them or passively
condoning them. The books try to
rehabilitate the reputation of the
German Army by minimizing the
atrocities and by implying that
only a few fanatics were
responsible for them.
The books aren't all bad, and they
contain lots of useful material,
not only about the Germans but
also occasionally about enemy
operations. For example,
Manteuffel's comments about
how poorly the British handled
their armored forces in the desert
campaigns are very good. it's just
that you can't trust everything he
says, particularly concerning the
Soviets, as being accurate all the
time.
' When the German player breaks
- if the enemy breaks through in a
weak sector, you take your lumps
and try to do better next time. 3)
Reserves. Despite the claims of
some, Europa does reward those
who maintain reserves. Among
other things, reserves limit the
damage done by breakthroughs.
The enemy's weak motorized
units will be less effective
exploiting into your rear area if
you have reserve forces guarding
key points there. Again, sure, no
one has enough forces to
maintain reserves everywhere —
fortunes of war. But, do you
maintain reserves anywhere?
What, no reserves, no defense in
depth, and a front line which can
be pierced by enemy motorized
forces? Maybe you'd better check
your playing style instead of the
rules!
By the way, believe the rules
I
game system assuming the units
stacked together in a hex form
the proper tactical groupings as
needed. The only time it seems
odd is when a small unit goes off
by itself. Sure, a motorized
antitank battalion is unlikely to
drive 160 miles forward to seize a
rail junction by itself. However, it
is reasonable that a battalion-
sized battle group could and
would do so - say, a scratch force
of a motorized infantry company,
an antitank gun battery, and a
recon or machine gun company.
Since this level of breakdown is
beyond the scope of Europa,
letting the motorized antitank
battalion stand in for such a
battle group works fine.
That's all for now. l'll be back next
time with a whole new showl Q
Page 10
FROM THE EDITOR:
Hlndsight and a Look Ahead
-'Educetion is learning what you
didn't even know you didn't
know." --- Daniel J. Boorstin
Well, 1989 is over, drawing the
curtain on a very hectic, yet most
exciting year. After ten months as
editor of The Europa News my
enthusiasm is undimmed, despite
being administered several strong
doses of reality. During this
period have been learning my
I
new craft through on-the-iob
training and no small amount of
trial and error. Being a
perfectionist by nature, this has
been a frustrating process. There
just aren‘t enough hours in a day
to lavish unlimited attention upon
each issue, keep up with my
reading, play Europa. and meet
the demands of a real-life job and
family simultaneously.
. "Whoever wants to reach a
distant goal must take many small
steps.‘ --- Helmut Schmidt
However, looking back on the
past year I must conclude that the
magazine is steadily improving.
This improvement is the direct
result of the momentum
established by Winston Hamilton
and Ben Knight, the outstanding
articles submitted by our authors,
the thoughtful advice and input
from our readers, the growing
wizardry of Winston‘s graphics,
and perhaps most importantly,
the personal involvement of John
Astell. To all of those who have
helped TEN progress and mature,
you have my heartfelt thanks.
Things still go wrong, however.
TEN #10 suffered from an acute
shortage of time brought on by an
exceptionally heavy schedule at
my company and the demands of
the holiday season. Due to
logistics problems. a higher than
usual number of errors crept in,
especially in the area of charts.
These were discovered so late in
the process that correction would
have delayed shipment of the
magazines by more than two
weeks. This was unacceptable as
we were already late, so the
errors stayed. The more notable
ones are hereby documented for
correction:
Page 5: The third division in Table
One's 2-6 lnf XX section should
be 62, not a duplicate 61. The
two regiments of this division
should be the 1 15 and 116.
Page 22: The two Gds SP Arty III
in the 6th Guards Army Chart
should be numbered 333 and 335.
In the Guards Combined Arms
Army Chart, the 1 Gds Army on
5.12.42 was redesignated 3 Gds
XXXX (not XXX). 7 Gds Army
was formed from 64 XXXX (not
XXX). 9 Gds Army was formed
from 7 XXXX and various Gds
Abn xx, and should reference
the note <3>.
Page 23: The 5th Guards Army
Chart is actually the 5th Guards
Tank Army Chart. in the Guards
Tank Army Chart at the top right
of the page, the line between 2
and 3 XXXX is misdrawn. It
should be one row higher. falling
between Cmdrs:... and 5.43... .
Also, the note <2> does not apply
to 4 Tank Army, but only 5 Tank
Army.
Page 24: The Cavalry-Mechanized
Group consisted of 4 Gds Cav
XXX and 1 Gds Mach XXX (not
XXl.
Page 25: The 144 Tank Destroyer
unit in the 3rd Gds Cavalry Corps
is a regiment.
Page 26: 9 Gds Tank Corps was
formed 20.11.44.
- "The trouble with the future is
by Rick Gayler
that it usually arrives before
we're ready for it." Arnold H.
Glesow
With 1989 gone, what is on tap
for 1990 for TEN .7 First if all, the
magazine is no longer The Europa
News; our publication is now
entitled the Europa magazine.
For 1990 we have an abundance
of first class material in the
pipeline. There will be up-to-date
reports on pending Europa
releases; historical articles on a
wide variety of Europa -related
topics; and "how-to" articles on
game play covering such subjects
as the proper usage of engineer
units, a "forward defense" set-up
for the Soviets in FitE/SE/Urals,
and a discussion of strategy in the
new '1943 Scenario' from the
Urals, to name just a few items.
If all goes according to plan, one
should start to note a shift in
balance towards more game-play
articles during the course of the
year.
i would like to extend to each
reader a personal invitation to
contribute some material to the
Europa magazine during 1990.
There are so many interesting
points to be examined. Need a
suggestion or two? How about an
article on the "Panther Line?“
Luftwaffe jet fighter forces? The
'Wallonien Legion“? Pro—Axis
partisans? How to make the best
use of truck units in SE?
Presenting a case for insertion of
a resource point schedule into
'War in the Desert“ to keep
construction within reasonable
bounds? An article on strategy
and tactics in your favorite game?
The possibilities are endless.
During 1990 we plan to publish a
number of scenarios and variants.
i
am particularly interested in
developing a group of Europa
mini-games, tentatively titled
“The Europa Battle Series", for
publication in these pages. These
games would last 3-6 turns and
would cover a specific battle or
short campaign of the war. They
would use one (or part of one)
map and a manageable number of
existing counters. 'The Battle
Series' games would be easy to
set up. playable in one sitting,
and could be used for competitive
or tournament play. A bare
minimum of special rules would
be used; the simpler, the better!
As a hypothetical example, "The
Battle of Kasserine Pass' would
use only Map 25, start on Feb I!
43 and and May I! 43, and rely on
existing counters and basic rules.
Malta and all rear areas would be
"factored out". The 08s would
address only forces active in the
Tunisian Campaign and victory
conditions would be extremely
competitive. Sound interesting?
Several of these games are
currently in the early stages of
development and cover such
engagements as Operation Husky
(the invasion of Sicily in 1943),
the Crimean Campaigns of 1941-
42, Operation Market-Garden,
and (as mentioned above) the
Battle of Kasserine Pass. Here is
another area where input from
our readers is invaluable. A few
of you may actually have a
variant or scenario of this nature
in rough, or even finished form.
Or perhaps you would like to try
your hand at doing such a mini-
game. Finally, we need to do
some playtesting prior to
publication. If you are willing to
help in any of the above areas.
drop me a line and let's get
together.
-”Expert advice is a great
comfort. even when it's wrong." --
- Ellen Currie
During my tenure as editor have
I
slowly been developing a network
of Europa volunteers to assist in
reviewing articles and providing
feedback on the many new
concepts of play which land in my
mailbox. The most steadfast and
willing of these volunteers has
been Dean Wood. Because of his
hard work and invaluable service.
Dean was recently accorded the
position of Assistant Editor.
In addition to being a genuinely
delightful fellow. Dean brings to
the magazine a tremendous
knowledge of military history
(WW I! in particular) and a love of
the Europa system. Although an
old hand at wargaming, having
been playing since the ripe old
age of 10, he is a relative
newcomer to Europa, having
joined our brotherhood only about
three years ago. i view this as a
benefit; Deen lends a fresh
perspective and sometimes sees
things we old-timers have
overlooked through force of habit.
Dean hooked up with Europa in a
somewhat novel way. He had just
won $750 from the SSG computer
game company, having tied for
first place in a contest to design
the best scenario for their
'Battlefront System.‘ Flush with
cash, Dean was flipping through
the pages of The Grenadier
trying to decide what to splurge
on when an “Europa Notes”
article caught his eye. It
mentioned the game DNO, which
Deen had seen and admired back
in his college days. At the end of
the article he spied a GDW
advertisement on the Europa
series and was so taken with it
that he ordered every game at
one shot, sight unseen!
Deen has two degrees from Texas
A&M, one in engineering and
another in marketing. For the last
six and a half years he has
worked in the field of oil and gas
exploration. most recently
concentrating on natural gas
pipeline distribution. Welcome
aboard, pardner!
Another notable addition to the
masthead is Jason Long. who has
assumed the position of Text
Manager (which means he gets to
key articles onto disk that were
submitted in manuscript form). l
have no doubt Jason will prove a
valuable contributor to the team.
- 'Everything in war is very
simple, but the simplest thing is
difficult.“ Karl von Clausewitz
And so it goes with the playtest
kits. But do not despair! Be of
good humor, for your patience
will be rewarded: Second Front
and For Whom the Bell Tolls
playtest kits are now reaching
players hands and the playtesters
are swinging into action. Jeff
Millefoglie's prototype FWBT kit
looks fantastic! Jeff (who
provides insight on the game's
design in this issue's "FWBT
Design Update") and John Gee
are to be congratulated. And for a
brief look at the Second Front
kit, see this issue's “First
impressions: Second Front".
- "Idon't want to achieve
immortality through my work. I
want to achieve immortality
through not dying." Woody
Allen
Ben Knight recently asked me if I
got my idea for "Slick and Sick
Tricks' from Nuts & Bolts‘ ‘Tricks
8i Treats“. This hadn't specifically
occurred to me, but after some
reflection concluded 'Tricks &
I
Treats“ probably was my
inspiration, as I had greatly
enjoyed these and wished there
had been more. (i don't apologize;
after all, imitation is the sincerest
form of flattery.) In any case,
!
was soon scrambling for my N&B
notebook to reacquaint myself
with these oldie-goldies. It turned
out there were even fewer 'Tricks
& Treats" than had recalled,
I
numbering only six in all, with
five appearing in issue #10/11 and
one lone trick (or was it a treat?)
showing up in issue #12. No
author is credited. For this
month's "Slick and Sick Tricks', I'd
like to review these Nuts & Bolts
classics, along with some
commentary on their applicability
to current play of SE.
Trick #1: FitE Soviets
'Base elements of the Baltic Fleet
in forward positions. The Fleet
can add tremendous power to the
defense of Riga. Such ships do
Page 12

m
not run the risk of destruction
until they withdraw back to
Leningrad. A Battleship and a
Heavy Cruiser can add seven
points to the defense {not to
mention the additional flak)!
Basing Fleet elements at Hango is
counterproductive as the Fleet
must sail back to the Soviet Union
for replenishment. '
This is indeed a tactic which a
Soviet player determined to wage
a forward defense and hold Riga
into July might wish to employ.
However, as written above, this
trick contains a major
misconception, namely that "Such
ships do not run the risk of
destruction until they withdraw
back to Leningrad." Ships in the
Riga hex must either be 'at sea”
or "in port". If 'at see” they not
only risk destruction via
Luftwaffe tactical bombing (SE
optional rule 38E is especially
useful for this task), but are
further susceptible to the slings
and arrows of Baltic Restrictions
Rule 2885. This would argue that
the units be declared 'in port," but
then they run a 33% chance of
being scuttled (Rule 2834) if the

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Join The (Europa Association.
Germans take the city. And. of
course, ships can be bombed in
port, also! Taken together. this
leaves even a 88 with poor
prospects of making it back to
Leningrad afloat. Smaller ships
would almost surely perish. My
personal opinion is that this is
extremely shortsighted strategy.
Such losses in the Red Banner
Fleet for the sake of holding Riga
an extra turn or so could
ultimately cripple the more crucial
defense of Leningrad.
Another apparent misconception
is the implication that the AA of
any ships present at Riga would
aid in the defense of the city
itself. Not so! Rule ZZBb clearly
excludes ships from firing their
AA except in certain specific
cases involving naval bombing
missions. In fact, any ship AA in
Riga would not be allowed to fire
with the non-ship AA at a ground
support mission attacking Rigal
There is one very good point
mentioned here. The
replenishment rule (2833i
specifies that Soviet ships may
only replenish at Soviet-owned

For your1990 membership you will

ports in the USSR. However,
Hango, per rule 3H, is not part of
the USSR! This means that to
replenish a ship in Hango would
require periodic excursions
through the dangerous waters of
the Gulf of Finland. Some people
overlook this nicety and base
Soviet ships in Hango, only to see
them sunk by U-boats or scuttled
from lack of replenishment later.
Trick #2: FitE Soviets

"Attempt to hold Hango. Basing a

fighter there will disrupt the
attempts to airlift or transfer
German equipment or planes to
the Arctic Theater. Remember
Hango is the only ice-free port on
the Finnish coast.’
Well... you can try this, but the
only probable result will be the
unnecessary loss of a fighter.
With a patrol range of only two
hexes, it is hard to imagine a lone
Soviet fighter disrupting
Luftwaffe transfers to the Arctic.
On the other hand, if Hango
could somehow be retained by
the Soviets until winter it would
block the naval transfer of Axis
RPs and other cargo into the only
ice-free port in Finland on the
Baltic Sea. Unfortunately, the
chances of holding this port until
cold weather defy reality.
Trick #3: FitE Axis

"Occupation of hexes 18:2024 and

2125 will deter a Soviet
reoeivelhefollowing: amphibious landing breaking the
rail line.”
0 6 Issues of the Europa magazine. Oh boy, can't you see it? Ships of
0 Official 2 inch, three ring binder. the Red Banner Fleet moves
umpteen hexes through U-boat
0 Product discounts of up to 20%. infested waters to reach one of
the above hexes. After checking
0 and free extras only members get! for damage they remains in the
hex where they disembarked their
To join send US$29.95 with your name, cargo. While there, the Luftwaffe
can bomb them mercilessly. As a
address, (phone optional), and let us know reward for this bravery. the ships
must then move another umpteen
that you want to join. hexes through those same U-
boats in a vain attempt to get
back to port. And the purpose of
GRD, PO Box 591, Grinnell, IA 50112 all this is to interdict two rail
hexes which don't amount to
M
m—
much anyway, as the Germans
will undoubtedly have alternate
supply and rail routes to the
Baltic States running from Kaunas
through Riga and/or Daugavpils.
once played against an Axis
player who was so conservative
that he garrisoned these two
hexes. He later conceded the
game on the Aug ll 41 turn.
Scratch this onel
Trick #4: FitE Axis
"If the Soviets should leave any
Baltic ports ungarrisoned, a
Brandenburger unit can be
inserted by air during the surprise
turn and a regular division can be
shipped in during the regular Jun
I] turn.‘
I
This is the best trick of the lot. To
this day, unwary or inexperienced
Soviets continue to get burned on
this one. The most recent report
of such a mishap came from a
game waged at Europafest last
summer. The port of choice is
Parnu as Riga, Narva, and Tallinn
all have mandatory garrisons in
SE. Also note that in SE the
Kriegsmarine commando can sub
for the Burger. However, whether
using a Burger or the KM
commando, the mission must be
PLANNED in advance. (Notice
that this ploy works, while my
sick trick from TEN #8 was illegal,
due to the presence of the port at
Parnu, which allows the German
naval transports to lend their
cargo and remain in the hex in the
friendly port.)
The lesson to be learned here is
NEVER, EVER leave Parnu
unoccupied in the opening
deployment. Letting the Axis land
a bunch of guys in your rear is
equivalent to strategic suicide.
Even one 0-1-10 m It AA II can
wreck havoc with the
transportation net and supply
lines in the Baltic States, and
allowing the creation of a division
strength enclave in your rear is
criminal.
The Soviets can readily garrison
Parnu during the deployment of
the border military districts with a
non-divisional unit from the Baltic
MD forces. More effective,
however, is to play dumb and
leave Parnu vacant during the
deployment of the border MDs to
sucker the Germans into
committing a commando plan
against the city. Then during the
deployment of the interior MDs. a
point of position AA can be
stationed at the intrinsic airbase
there. The Germans then have
wasted a commando. since these
0-strength units can not displace
the position AA, even though it is
also a 0-strength unit.
Trick #5: FitE Axis
"If the Soviets should leave any
airfields ungarrisoned, a
Brandenburger unit can be
inserted by air during the surprise
turn. Using regular transport
missions, then land unsupported
infantry (as much as transport and
the tactical situation will allow)
during the surprise air phase. On
the regular Jun II turn these
infantry units may move their full
movement allowance. This
technique is a good way of
getting infantry behind Soviet
Iines.‘
This one works, too. if the Soviets
are foolish enough to let it
The 3-6 D6 of a 7-6 division then
would cost only 4 points to
rebuild versus the 8-6 division's 5
points. But then there is also the
l-strength unit in the dead pile to
consider... Well, you be the judge.
Potpourri
- 'Handle them carefully, for
words have more power than
atom bombs.“ Pearl Strachan
The recent summit meeting
between President Bush and
Soviet Leader Gorbachev was not
the first high-level meeting to be
held on Malta. On January 30,
1945, Churchill and Roosevelt met
on Malta for a conference with
the Allied Chiefs of General Staff.
A few days later, Churchill and
Roosevelt moved on to Yalta,
where Stalin, referring to the
separate meeting of the two
Western leaders earlier, is
supposed to have greeted his
partners with the sarcastic words,
'I said Yalta not Maltal“
two games to be rated with four
stars in Fire and Movement #63's
anthology of WWII Eastern Front
operational games. “Enormous in
scope, meticulously researched,
—
Finally, it should not pass without
notice that FitE was one of only
Page 13
happen. Most of the commentary and lavishly produced, Fire in the
for Trick #4 applies in this case East stands as the definitive
also. Notice that Tricks #4 and #5 operational treatment of the
only work to good effect (if at all) entire East Front." couldn't have I
during the Jun ll 41 turn while the said it better myself!
mechanics of the German double
move are in force. Congratulations to GDW and John
Astell. Q
Trick #6: FitE Axis
'If the option is there. reduce a 7-
6 division, rather than an 8-6; this :
' '
Aiso’ciation”
will cost less to rebuild.‘
39““
'
2
: :
Who in their right mind would
reduce an 8-6 in preference to a They/Association: uns o'nfgan
annual Subscription basiswith
7-6, all other things being equal? I
the term running from '1—l‘of
suppose the point is to deploy
each ‘y’earuto’ 12~31 of hat
your attack forces with this in year.
mind. Or perhaps the trick refers
,
to cases where losses amount to
at least 8 points and there is a
lf youjoin at: any tirne, during
one strength point unit present the year, you receive; the ;
,
which, along with a 7-6. could benefits 'fdr'thefiein‘tire Ye.
make up the 8 points of losses.
Page 14
FROM THE WORLD DESK:
AUSTRALIA
by Stuart Lee
INTRODUCTION
For some time I
have been
investigating the Australian
forces as they appear in Europa.
This article presents the first
results of my research into the
land forces, and incidentally
uncovers some more questions
about railroad construction and
railroad engineers.
John Astell published an OB for
the Australian Forces in an article
entitled "The Aussies" in E TO #6.
l
have used John's 08 as the
basis for the OB presented in this
article.
Unlike the 1st Australian Imperial
Force (its World War | forerunner),
the 2nd Australian lmperial Force
(AIF) was formed as a Corps; that
is, it had a full quota of
supporting units and did not need
to rely on the British Army for
those support units. The Corps
units are not shown in John's 03,
so I have attempted to fill in the
gaps.
So what are the missing Corps
units? In Europa terms, the only
units that matter are the artillery,
the engineers, the railroad
engineers, and (probably) the
pioneer units; I will also discuss
the forestry units (but they could
only have a small influence in
Their Finest Hour), and a
significant "what if” unit, 1
Australian Armoured XX. But first
a small diversion.
ALLIED COOPERATION
The commander of the 2nd AIF
(Blamey) was given clear
direction in writing from the
Australian Government that it
was to be employed as a national
force, and not dispersed across a
number of British formations. This
was the root cause of many
disputes between senior British
The 2nd Australian
Imperial Force
and Australian commanders. and
of the high level (Churchill-
Menzies etc) wrangling over the
evacuation from Tobruk.
Further, although many of the
Australian (and other dominion)
commanders were obvious
choices for higher command, they
were passed over for less senior
members of what was known as
'the British general’s club." Nor
was staff work in high level
British formations well regarded
by the Australians.
Much friction, and many
disputes, occurred prior to the
Australians suffering any real
losses. Although the losses in
Greece exacerbated the situation,
they did not create it. As a result
think the rule on ”precarious"
Australians should be reviewed.
Even if the Australians have not
had any units in the replacement
pool and none are isolated, but
they are scattered throughout the
Middle East, the Allied player
should lose VPs (representing the
inter-governmental conflict that
would have been sure to ensue).
Since the Australians were
formally organised as a Corps, I
suggest that the Australian forces
be issued a Corps counter (I Aus)
and the section of Rule 32F2 in
'War in the Desert' be modified
as follows:
'Whilst there are more than four
REs of Australian units in the
theatre, the Allied player loses 1/
2 victory point per turn for every
non-engineer Australian RE that
cannot trace a valid supply line
(overland and road elements only)
to the | Aus Corps marker in each
Allied initial phase.”
CORPS ARTlLLEFlY
The Corps artillery was originally
planned as two Med Rgts, an AA
Rgt, a Lt AA Rgt, and two Field
Rgts (2/7th and 218th). As usual
for Australian units, there was
much reassignment during the
early part of the war.
The field artillery regiments of
the 2nd AlF were numbered the 2/
1st to 2/15th inclusive. A medium
regiment was also formed. The
final assignments were (I think):
6 XX Art: 2/1st, 2/2nd. and 2/3rd
Fd Rgt
7 XX Art: 2/4th. 2/5th, and 2/6th
Fd Rgt
8XXAm www.mum,mdw
15th Fd Rgt
I 9 XX Art: 2/7th, 2/8th, and 2/
12th Fd Rgt
l Corps: 2/9th, 2/1‘lth, and 2/13th
Fd Rgt l?), 2/1st Med Rgt
The 2/10th and 2/15th were in
Malaya with the 8 Aus XX and
captured there along with it. The
2/14th was in DaMin during the
Malayan campaign and was never
sent to the Middle East. The rest
were in the Middle East.
The Field Rgts were organised on
the British pattern, being
equipped with twenty-four 25
pdrs. In the early part of the war.
they were often equipped with a
mixture of 18 pdrs and 4.5"
howitzers, and the 2/15th was
equipped with 3' mortars on
arrival in Singapore.
The 2/1st Med Rgt had been for a
time the 2/13th Fd Rgt and I do
not think the 2/13th was
subsequently reformed. The 2/1st
Med Rgt was sent to the Middle
East for the Syrian campaign,
arriving too late to participate. It
was equipped with Schneider
155mm C175. have not found
1
any evidence that the second
 planned medium regiment was
formed.
I do
not yet know if the Corps AA
and Lt AA Rgts were formed.
in any case at least three Rgts (Bn
sized units) of artillery represent
a Corps level asset, perhaps a 38
Art X, | Aus.
ENGINEERING UNITS
By March of 41, all the
engineering units had arrived in
the Middle East. They were:
6 XX Eng:
2/22nd Fd Pk Coy, 2/1st, 2/2nd,
and 2/8th Fd Coy
7 XX Eng:
2/25th Fd Pk Coy. 2/4th, 2/51h, and
2/6th Fd Coy
9 XX Eng:
2/24th Fd Pk Coy, 2/3rd, mm and,
2/13th Fd Coy
I
Corps:
2/23rd Fd Pk Coy, 2/9th, 2/14th, 2/
15th, and 2/16th Fd Coy, l Aus
Corps Petrol Coy
Zilst Fd Park Coy was converted
to 2/13th Fd Coy, and 2/2nd
through 2/5th were renumbered
to 2/22nd through 2/25th to avoid
confusion with the Fd Coys.
The 8 XX Eng at this time were:
2/26th Fd Pk Coy (perhaps not
renumbered), 2/10th Fd Coy. 2/
11th Fd Coy, 2/12th Fd Coy. These
latter 8 XX units were not
deployed to the Middle East.
So what are we left with? Four Fd
Eng Coy, a Fd Park Coy and a
Petrol Coy. Together these are
the equivalent of a Bn.
Each company consisted of HO
and four sections (later called
platoons). Each section (65 men of
all ranks) had four sub-sections.
each of 12 men under an NCO,
and each with its own 3-ton truck.
Every man had a place in a
vehicle, with room for his kit and
hand tools. In addition the section
had tool lorries. Sub-sections
specialised to some extent, but all
were trained as infantry. Sub-
sections were sufficiently self-
contained to be detached for days
at a time in support of an lnf Bn.
My guess at a rating would be a
1-8 Mot Eng Bn. I Aus.
RAILROAD ENGINEERS
The railroad engineers were also
Corps units, but I will treat them
separately due to their
specialised nature. The Railway
Construction and Maintenance
Group (RCMG) was authorised 28
Feb 40. the units being raised in
April.
The HO, 2/2nd Railway
Construction Coy (RCC) and half
of the 2/3rd RCC were diverted to
the UK, arriving in mid July. After
being used for siding construction
and repair of bomb damaged
tracks, they sailed for the Middle
East in January 41, arriving at the
Canal 10 March 41.
The 2/1st Railway Survey Coy,
the 2/1st RCC and the other half
of 2/3rd RCC were delayed in
Fremantle, reaching the Middle
East in October 40. Work included
reconditioning of the Afula-
Nablus-Talkarm railway, an ammo
depot at Wadi Sarar, 30 miles of
sidings at Rafa, and other sidings
at Barbara.
Tasks of the reassembled RCMG
included work on the Kantara
East-El Shatt railway following
mining of the Suez Canal in April
41 (the railway on the western
side of the canal was shown to be
unable to cope), handed over to
SA Engineering Corps later; work
on the Western Desert railway,
particularly near Amiriya; and
construction of a rail line from
Ma’an to Naqb Ashtar using
material from the 70 miles of the
Ma’an to Saudi Arabia line
destroyed by Lawrence in WW1
which linked up with the road
from Naqb Ashtar to Aqaba built
by the Royal Engineers, and the
port of Aqaba built by the NZ
engineers in case the canal zone
was captured.
Also during Aug 1941, the 2/1st
and 2/2nd Boring Sections were
formed in Syria and Palestine
respectively. They assisted with
tunneling.
The RCMG built the Beirut-Tripoli
section (66 miles) of the Haifa-
Tripoli railway, supported by
labourers including African
Auxiliary Pioneers from
Basutoland, Bechuanaland and
Swaziland. The decision to build
the line was taken in 1940, and
the 280 km stretch was completed
in less than 1 year, 6 months
ahead of schedule. The project
required considerable tunneling
and bridging. The Haifa-Beirut
section was built by the SA
Engineering Corps and NZ
Engineers. The RCMG moved to
Syria between Sep 41 and Mar
42. Two tunnels in the Australian
section were driven by 61st
Tunnelling Coy SAEC, specially
raised from experienced Rand
;
miners. The route was opened 20
Dec 42 and put to use the next
day.
The Railway Construction
Company organization provided
for dilution by unskilled labour of
4:1, in practice generally 10:1 and
sometimes 30:1. RCMG (about
1,000 all ranks) supervised 2100
African Auxiliary Pioneers, and up
to 8,000 skilled and unskilled
civilian labourers during
construction of Beirut to Tripoli
line.
On 28 Jan 43 2/1 st and 2/3rd
ley Cons Coys embarked at
Suez with RCMG HQ for
Australia. The rest sailed a few
days later.
So, ignoring the impact of a half
Bn of RR engineers in the UK in
1940, we can say that by 10 Mar
41 there was an Australian RR
engineer Bn in the Middle East.
My guess at a rating would be 0-6
RR Eng Bn. RCMG.
THOUGHTS 0N RAILROAD
consrnucriow
The RCMG does raise a few
interesting questions, particularly
Page 1 6
————-——-—-———
in light of John Astell's ”Rails
through the Russias' in TEN #7.
Clearly in the Levant construction
units did get ”into the railroad
business” even if this was ”a
major distortion of their
function”. Indeed the Australian
formation was designed to be
diluted with unskilled labour, and
was so used. How does this stack
up against the latest prohibition
on using construction units
together with RR engineers for
quick construction?
I
suggest that for the Australian
units at least we solve the
problem by adding an ”available
for assembly” option to the OB,
that allows the Commonwealth
player to assemble the Australian
RR eng unit and any British
construction brigade into a BB
Engineer brigade. The brigade
could breakdown into four RR
Engineer battalions as for the
Germans. Then we wouldn't need
a special rule allowing a
construction unit to assist the
Australian RR Engineer.
The fouran thus formed could be
designated l/RCMG through IV/
RCMG. and rated as 0-6 RR Eng
[Is
How do we account for
construction of roads, railroads,
and ports such as completed by
the Allies to give them an
alternative supply route through
Aqaba in the event the Canal
zone was lost? Where are the NZ
and SA Eng units?
A word on terrain. Under SE
rules, the Levant RR could not be
built, as one hex is a mountain
hex. In fact it was. Conversely,
the existing narrow gauge line to
Dames could be regauged easily
under SE rules, yet the Allies
discarded this route as too
difficult for the standard gauge
link and chose the coast route
(really only a road) instead. We
can fix the first of these issues by
prohibiting upgrades in hexes
containing ONLY the mountain
terrain symbol, or across
mountain hexsides. The second is
probably not fixable unless we
begin to distinguish between
roads, minor railroads and major
railroads.
AUSTRALIAN PIONEERS AND
MG BNS
The pioneers and MG an in the
Australian army were Corps units,
but there was normally one of
each attached to each Infantry
Division. The pioneers were not
just engineers but full fledged
infantry battalions, sewing in the
line at Tobruk and in the assault
on the fortress of Merdjayoun in
Syria. for example. am surprised
I
the Pnr an are not specifically
represented as the divisions are
only rated as 7-8. For example, to
compare the components of 9 Aus
XX, 51 Brit XX and 44 Brit XX at
Alamein shows apart from the
basic nine battalions of infantry in
the three brigades and the three
regiments of artillery:
9 Aus XX:
9 Aus Div Cav Rgt, 2/2nd (MG)
Bn, 2/3rd Aus Pnr Bn.
44 Brit XX:
6 Cheshire (MG) Bn
51 Brit XX:
1/7 Mx (MG) Bn, 51 Reece Rgt
44 XX is rated 7-8, 51st is rated
8-8. Even without the 2/3rd Pnr it
looks as though 9 Aus XX should
rate as 8-8. (By the way 44 XX, a
first line territorial division, was
disbanded in the Middle East 31
Jan 43. Also 51 XX appearing in
”WitD' is a second line territorial
division redesignated from 9 XX
to 51 XX to replace the 51
regular XX lost in France which
appears in FoF). In the early part
of the game 2 NZ division rates as
8-8 on the basis of the extra 28
(Maori) Infantry Bn.
would also complain on behalf of
I
SA division, which had an Armd
1 East until after Alamein.
Car Rgt and two MG an.
So if the pioneers are not in the
divisions where are they? Ra-
rating the divisions would deny
the use of these as engineers.
particularly now that divisional
engineers have been scrapped. It
may be better to represent them
as a 2-8 Eng X, l Aus Pnr or even
to bracket them with the Corps
engineers as a 3-8 Eng X, Aus
I
Pnr. Since they were not as
mobile as the Corps engineers, |
incline to the former.
FORESTRY UNITS
Two companies of the forestry
group were raised in April 1940,
and were in the UK by mid July,
forming a part of the anti-
invasion forces. In Sep 40 they
were sent north to their proper
task. The third did not arrive until
1941, when the group was
formed. These units were trained
as infantry, with emergency
stations on the East Coast, and
should be considered when
valuing other units in the area. I
do not know if the large numbers
of Canadian forestry troops
should be similarly regarded.
"WHAT IF" UNITS - 1 AUS
ARMD XX AND 8 XX
The decision to form 1st
Australian Armoured division for
service in the Middle East was
taken in Nov 1940. Its units were
formed during July 1941. By
December it was grouped for
embarkation, but was still
virtually without tanks. It was
expected that the British would
equip it on arrival in the Middle
East. The Japanese involvement
in the War effectively prevented
deployment of the division to the
Middle East, but it need not have.
Indeed the British even offered to
transfer two infantry divisions to
Australia if the Armoured division
were released.
It was under a similar scheme
whereby the US agreed to send a
division to Australia that the 9
Aus XX remained in the Middle
The 1st Aus Armd Division was
organised along British lines, that
is, it would be an 8-7-10 Armd
XX, 1 Aus with a 3-8 Armd Cadre,
1 Aus on the back. To reflect the
lack of tanks it should only
 become available as a cadre, to
be rebuilt with British armour
points.
The 8th Division was never sent
to the Middle East as planned. It
would also be a 7-8 lnf XX. If it
were sent then it is likely that its
associated Pioneer Bn would also
have been sent. This could be
covered by conversion of the 2-8
Eng X, l Aus Pnr to a 3-8 Eng X.
INITIAL DIVISIONAL TO&E
At the outbreak of war Australia
had five infantry divisions (1 Aus
through 5 Aus XX) organised
along first world war British lines.
The 6 Aus XX formed along the
new British establishment, except
that it had four an instead of
three in each brigade. Units in the
initial convoys were overstrength
and carried initial replacement
drafts, so I think the brigades
should be shown as 3-8 until
converted to three Bn
establishment.
RECRUITMENT
AlF monthly recruiting figures are
shown in the table attached,
taken from Hasluck.
The AlF was an entirely volunteer
force. The recruitment figures
vary from 217 (Feb 40) to 48,496
(Jun 40). Other peaks occurred in
May 41 and Dec 41. Clearly the
number of volunteers responded
to overseas events (France, Crete
and Japanese entry), and some
provision for this in game terms is
desirable. Just how is not
immediately clear.
I
have also attached a table (from
Robertson) showing the quarterly
flow of Australian aircrew to the
UK under the Empire Air Training
Scheme. 21,530 such aircrew
reached the UK. Herington gives
3,678 arrivals at Bournemouth for
posting in 1942 (Robertson had a
flow of 3,671). These were made
up of 1,913 pilots: 846 Observers;
501 Wireless Operator-Air
Gunners: 418 Air Gunners. So
about half (52% for the pedantic)
were pilots. do not know how to
I
translate this into GA increases
for the Commonwealth. It must be
more complex than number of
pilots divided by 40 (approximate
size of an Europa air unit) as if
the same ratio of pilots to aircrew
applies, Australia would have
provided some 434 pilots per two
month cycle to the UK in the last
half of 1941. Looking at the RAF
Europa OB we see a GA increase
of only 15 for that six month
period (three cycles) from all
sources.
PRODUCTION
Australia started the war with
307 18 pdrs and 105 4.5"
howitzers: enough to equip each
of the 17 militia regiments with
24 guns. Only 30 obsolete 3' AA
guns were held. Rifles and Vickers
MG were in production, with
orders in for Bren LMG, MG
carriers and 3' mortars. Apart
from 40 3.7" AA guns, only rifles
and Vickers MG were produced in
1940. In 1941 Bren LMG (1,077), 2
pdr AT guns (576), 25 pdr Field
Guns (193), Owen SMG (102), 3"
mortars (1,444) and MG carriers
(1,544) were also produced. By
1942 Australia was able to
largely equip its own forces
(except armoured formations),
producing for example 1,122 AT
guns and 877 25 pdrs.
The system of equipment points
introduced in TFH would
adequately deal with this
situation. All Australian units
would appear as unsupported
brigades, to be supported by
expenditure of an equipment
point. Once supported the
components could be assembled
to form a division. A simplistic
approach would focus on the field
artillery only and equate an
equipment point to 24 field guns.
Australia would thus start with 17
equipment points, and production
would be nil for 1939 and 1940, 8
in 1941, 36 in 1942, 18 in 1943, 25
in 1944 and 1 in 1945. British
equipment points could be used to
equip Australian brigades (as
obviously happened prior to
Australian production) and
Australian equipment points could
be used to equip other
Commonwealth brigades (as a
portion of Australian production
was allocated to the UK and New
Zealand).
Limiting the Commonwealth
players likely tendency to strip
Australia of all artillery will be
necessary, and it must be
rewarding to replace the militia
divisions equipment with more
modern gear as it becomes
available.
Rates per month would be 0 in
1939, 0 in 1940, 2 in 1941 (Sep to
Dec), 3 in 1942, 1.5 in 1943 (i.e., 2
 Production Totals .» ,. .
' ' '

AustralIan Production of Selected Munitions for the Army 1939 1945

.

. -

Janu‘rv ‘0 1' 1942 :7

; 1943 Wamme
>

1 j.
1939..
.
31 December
.

.. 1949 1941- .
1944 1945 Totals
Rifles 303m. n/a- 20,942 279,858 101,600 145,900 47,000 15, 690 4.1.1..050. .

.Vickers MG 303i 846 :.1.046 .31 436

,.

.i'h/a : 1.97.1. '} 2,224 -

1,993 '

.Bren Gun .303In

.

1077
.

.:.-:' 6,812 3,152 778 ..17 434

’ ’

.
..
.2 pdr.AT Gun 576.
' .

1.580
~' '
.
I:
- ;

,GpdrATGun.
.

- .- fl’.900'.;'
.217pdrAT Gun. .
'
104' 326' ‘_

;25 pdr Guns-

' .
.

522 q 11.905 ‘

:25 pdr Guns (shottf

.

75 , 219
.40. mm AA Gun: 75 290
3.7m. AAGun :3j:-' .:'-: 497
Owen SMG .21. 555 8,710' 45, 463
2, 283 1'6 565
.

,AUsten .SM :
1,057. 19. 905 V.
l-j'. 1..2.83 717, '
-. 2,000
"
».

932‘ '3 837 @393:

,

.. .1, 444. ’CE-“ 3.0.0.633

7o
. . ,

.4.2.in.j'Mor-tar 1 -229 - 300-

2251-
. .
,
"
.
_.
” MG Carriers-V“ 1,544 .1084 " 4,983 "
.

-
104 -~‘
. ‘

source Reports 3-65 (passim) by the Director General of Munitions, 1

Nov 40 to Jan 46. CRS A2670(M) . .
,.

on odd months, 1 on even transport counters to avoid Cnv: 2 x 3.8 Inf X 16 Aus,
months), 2 in 1944, O in 1945. abuses. In this case units 17 Aus
available in Australia can be in
TRANSFERS TO/FROM the Middle East within two turns, to: 3 x 2-8 lnf X 16 Aus, 17 Aus,
AUSTRALIA but the transports will take two 19 Aus
more turns to get back.
Based on the actual convoys and May I 40
their travel times, think a I
ORDER OF APPEARANCE 1x 3-8 Inf X 18 Aus
suitable abstraction is to have
off-map boxes for Australia. Allunits appear in Australia Jun ll 40
Columbo, and Cape Town. Units unless otherwise noted. Units not 1 x Inf XXX Counter | Aus
in an off-map box can move as available to be sent to the
follows: European theatre are not shown. Jul ll 40
Division H0 appearances are still Cnv: 1 x 3-8 Inf X 18 Aus
Australia: shown, rather than equipment to: 1 x 2-8 lnf X 18 Aus
Cape Town box or Columbo box. points. The 8 Aus XX is still and 1
x1-6Ian25 Aus
omitted.
Columbo: Oct ll 40
Cape Town box, Australia box or Jan I 40 2 x 2-8 Inf X 20, 21 Aus
any Suez, Red See or Persian Gulf 1 x 3~8 Inf X 16 Aus
port. Novl40
Aprl40 1x8|anXHO 6Aus
Cape Town:
Australia box, Columbo box,
1 x 3-8 Ian 17 Aus
Dec I 40
Gibraltar, any UK, French For this conversion, 16 Aus X and Cnv: 1x 16 Inf X 25 Aus
Atlantic, Suez, Red See or Persian 17 Aus X must be able to trace an to: 1 x 2-8 Inf X 25 Aus
Gulf Port. LOC between them. Simply
substitute the new 16 Aus X and Jan I 41
Any of these movements require
expenditure of all a unit's MPs.
17 Aus X counters for the old and 1x8lanX HO 9Aus
stack the 19 Aus X counter with 2 x 2-8 Inf X 24 Aus, 26 Aus
either. Of course they must be in
Because of the large distances a city to convert. Feb I 41
involved, it will probably be 1x8lanX HO 7 Aus
necessary to use abstracted May II 40 1x1—8 Mot Eng Eh I
Corps
1 x 0-6 RR Eng Bn RCMG Feb I 42 (JE +4)
withdraw: Recruitment Table.
1x8|anX H0 7Aus
‘

Apr 41 l
A.i.F. Gross, Mommy
1 x 2-8 Eng X lAus Pnr 3 x 2-8 Inf X 18 Aus, 21 Aus,
25 Aus Recruiting Figures 1
'
5

May I 41 1 x 1-8 Mot Eng || lAus September waste .

Replacements: 1Aus inf 1 x 2-8 Eng X lAus Pnr December 1941, f

1x3-8ArtX IAus .1939‘. .

..
Jul I 41 September . _

Replacements: 1Aus inf Cnv: x 7-8 lnf XX 9 Aus

_

1
Octoben
to: 1 x 8-8 lnf XX 9 Aus Novemwer
Aug I 41 December .
'

Replacements: 1 Aus inf Mar I 42 (JE +6)

1 x 3-8 Art X (I Aus) withdraw: r1940f:;'f," »- '5.
1x8lanXHQ 6Aus January .
,811
x
.

Available for Assembly: 1 x 0-2-6 3 x 2-8 lnf 16 Aus, 17 Aus. February”.

‘

217:
RR Eng X (RCMG X) 19 Aus March'.;_j 1,316
x lnf XXX Counter Aus 5,441"
V

|
April
_

from: 1 x 0-6 RR Eng ll (RCMG) Mayrf. 8,000

and 1 x British Cons X (any) CLEARANCE OF AXIS FORCES June‘n‘? ’1

348,196"
Sap l 41 The 9 Aus XX was held in the
July
Augu'sts:_
‘
11,022:
“-32.524"
Replacements: 1 Aus inf Middle East to help counter the September ,
"1.048
threat to Egypt. Without that October
'
895
Nov I 41 threat it would have departed November '
1,028
Replacements: 1 Aus inf sooner, and it may have stayed December 2,4415
longer had the threat continued.
Dec I 41 Accordingly if in any 1,9451
1 x 3-8 Armd Cadre 1 Aus Commonwealth initial phase on or January
,'

2,572,
after JE+6 there are no Axis units February. 2,594
‘

'

Apr I 42 in Cyrenaica nor any in Egypt, 9 March "

8,512
Replacements: 1 Aus inf Aus XX must be placed on April 4.746
garrison duty in the delta or May 1
. 9,815
Sap I 42 Palestine. If the conditions are Jun'e. '
35,782
Aus inf July:
_

Replacements: 1 still met in the following two , 15.9.10,

Commonwealth initial phases, August“ 7,622
‘

JAPANESE ENTRY then withdraw 9 Aus XX and the

7

September .. 4.453,
RCM G. October 4,016
Historically, Japan entered the November 4,702
war Dec 41, aborting plans to
I
Dec I 42 (Clear) December 10 669
send 1 Aus Armd XX to the
Middle East. If variable Japanese to garrison:
entry (JE) is used, then from JE no 1x8|anX HQ 9Aus
further reinforcements may be 3 x 2-8 lnf X 20 Aus, XX to be withdrawn at any time
sent to the Middle East. The 24 Aus, 26 Aus on or after JE+6. If this is done
however. the 41 US XX is
_

British proposed to send two

divisions to Australia from the UK Jan ll 43 (Clear +2) available to the US player (the
if Australia would send 1 Aus list was sent to Australia as part
Armd XX to the Middle East, so withdraw: of the deal to keep 9 Aus XX in
OPTIONALLY on JE if 1 Aus Armd 1x8lanXHQ 9Aus the Middle Eastl.
XX is in the Middle East allow it 3 x 2-8 lnf X 20 Aus, 24 Aus, 26
to be retained there providing 2 x Aus REFERENCES
7-8 Inf XX from UK are
withdrawn to Australia. When 9 disassemble: Gavin Long (ed.), AUSTRALIA lN
Aus XX is left alone, it still has an x 0—2~6 RR Eng X RCMG
1 THE WAR OF 1939—45 Series 1
attached MG Ba and Pioneer 8n. to: 1 x 06 RR Eng ll RCMG (ARMY)
The conversion from a 7—8 to 8-8 and 1 x British Construction Unit I.To Benghazi by Gavin Long,
reflects this. 1952
withdraw: II. Greece, Crete and Syria by
Doe I 41 (JEI 1 x 0-6 RR Eng ll RCMG Gavin Long. 1953
withdraw: III. Tobruk and El Alamein by
1 x 3-8 Armd Cadre 1 Aus As an OPTION, allow the 9 Aus Barton Maughan, 1966
Page 20

Memorial
John
ETC #6
M.

Desert', GDW

M
————_—_——___—_
Canberra, Australian War

Astell, ‘The Aussies“,

John M. Astell, ‘War in the

Richard Berg, Campaign

North Africa, SPI

Major-General R.N.L. Hopkins,

Australian Armour: A History of
the Royal Australian Armoured
Corps 1927- 1972; Australian War
Memorial and AGPS. Canberra.
1978: CWRL 940.541294 HOP
E.F. Aitken, The

It
2/2nd Australian
Pioneer Battalion, AI.F.,
for
Melbourne, 1953
John Robertson, Australia at War
1939-1945, Heinemann,
Melbourne, 1981, CWRL 940.5394
ROB

B. Fitzsimons (ed.), The Illustrated

Encyclopaedia of 20th Century
Weapons and Warfare, Phoebus,
New York, 1971/77/78.
Cliffe Whitelocke, Gunners in the
Jungle, The 2/15th Field Regiment
Association, Eastwood. 1983
H.F. Joslen, Orders of Battle.
and Colonial Formations and
Units in the Second World War
1939-45; HMSO, London, 1960;
VSL sf 940.541242 G79 0r

ANZIO BRIDGEHEAD

was just before dawn one miserable morning in black ‘44,

when the forward commander was told to 'sit tight',
when he asked that his men be withdrawn.
And the Generals gave thanks as the other ranks
held back the enemy tanks, for awhile.
And the Anzio Bridgehead was held for the price of
a few hundred ordinary lives.
And kind old King George sent mother a note
when he heard that father was gone.
UK
John Hetherington, Blarney, The
biography of Field-Marshall Sir
Thomas Blamey, Cheshire,
Melbourne, 1954
John H. Moore, Morshead, A
biography of Lieut. General Sir
Leslie Morshead, Haldane,
Sydney, 1976, CWRL 923.594
Mor
D.M. Horner (ed), The
Commanders, Australian military
leadership in the twentieth
century, George Allen and Unwin,
Sydney, 1984; CWRL 355.00922
COM

Sir Sydney F. Rowell, Full Circle,

Melbourne University Press, 1974
CWRL 923.594 Row

Maj Gen R. R. McNicoll C.B.E.,

A.M., The Royal Australian
Engineers Volume 3: 1919 to
1945: Teeth and Tail, Corps
Committee of the Royal
Australian Engineers. Canberra,
1982
Gavin Long (ed), The Six Years
War— Australia in the 1939—45
War, Australian War
Memorial,Canberra, 1973
Australia in the War of 1939-45,
Series 4, Civil
Volume I, The Government and
It was I recall, in the form of a scroll the People, 1939-41 by Paul
with gold leaf put on. Hasluck, 1952
Volume III, War Economy, 1939412
And I found it one day in a drawer of old photographs, by S.J. Butlin, 1955
hidden away. Australian War Memorial.
Canberra
And my eyes still grow damp to remember
his majesty signed it with his own rubber stamp. Maj. E.V. Haywood MC RAA, Six
Years in Support - Official History
It was dark all around, there was frost in the ground, of 2/15! Aus Fd Fiat, Angus and
when the Tigers broke free. Robertson 1959
And no one survived from the Royal Fusiliers, Snowden, The Guns of the
Company C. Regiment

They were all left behind, most of them dead,

the rest of them dying.
STUART LEE is a member of
And that's how the high command P.E.P., the Pacific Europa Players.
took my daddy from me. He lives and works in Melbourne,
Australia. Other of our overseas
From 'The Film' by Pink Floyd readers should write to the editor
for their articles to be published
in the World Desk column

Yugoslav Royal Air Force
by Jason Long
Production History
By the late 1930's the threat of
war hung heavy over Europe. and
many nations were anxiously
attempting to upgrade their
armed forces. The Yugoslav
government was no exception
and initiated a major reequipment
program for the Jugosovensko
Kraljevsko Ratno
Vazduhoplovstvo (JKRV), the
Yugoslav Royal Air Force. with
the acquisition of modern aircraft
such as the Bristol Blenheim 1,
Savoia-Marchetti SM.79, and
Dornier Do 17K bombers. Hawker
Hurricanes and Messerschmitt Me
109E's were bought to reequip the
fighter regiments. Indigenous
aircraft such as the "(-2 were also
placed into production, but in very
small numbers. To guarantee
supplies of aircraft and spares
and to minimize the loss of
precious hard currency, the
government bought production
licences for all of the above types
with the exception of the SM.79
and the Me 109E.
Negotiations began with Bristol in
the spring of 1936, even before
the first flight of the production
Blenheim, but the needs of the
RAF. and the intransigence of
the British Foreign Office were to
delay delivery of the two pattern
aircraft until November 1937 and
approval of the licence for
another year. Under pressure
from the Yugoslav government,
Ikarus began production of 40
airframes, the Mercury VIII
engines being built by Bristol.
Bristol could only guarantee 50
engines due to a variety of
circumstances and Ikarus
frantically began searching for
alternative sources. Negotiations
began with PZL of Poland, but
were abruptly terminated when
the Germans invaded that
country. Bristol suggested the
Bristol Perseus engine that was
licence-built by Alfa Romeo and
powered the SM.79's entering
service with the JKRV. In
November 1939, Ikarus placed an
order for 100 Italian-built Perseus
engines, complete with all
accessories.
Ikarus was able to complete 26
Blenheim aircraft by early 1940
after begging Bristol for a few
more engines. The entry of Italy
into the war in June 1940 cut off
the Italian supply and Ikarus
reopened negotiations with the
German<controlled PZL factory
and received enough engines to
finish the remaining 16 aircraft by
the middle of 1940.
Concerned by the slow delivery of
Blenheims by Ikarus, the JKRV
pressed for aircraft to be supplied
direct from Britain. After the first
request for 40 Blenheim 4's was
refused, agreement was reached
in August 1939 on the supply of
20 new Blenheim 1's which were
delivered in February and March
by air.
After the request for a licence to
build 50 Blenheim 4's and to buy
100 Mercury XV engines was
denied, Ikarus began construction
of a further 20 aircraft that were
to have a long nose based on that
of the Blenheim 4 and much
improved armament with
additional 7.7mm Browning
machine guns in the nose and the
ventral hatch and with the
Browning in the turret replaced
by a Breda 12.7mm machine gun.
Further negotiations with the
Germans resulted in the supply of
42 more engines to power the
aircraft. After the conquest of
Yugoslavia. the 20 incomplete
airframes were sold to Finland
and used in the production of
Blenheim 4‘s.
The Yugoslav government had
begun to attach a high degree of
urgency to the reequipment and
Page 21
expansion of the JKRV by mid-
1938. The Italians offered rapid
delivery as an incentive to
purchase SM.79's. Thirty were
delivered in late 1938 by the
diversion of the aircraft that were
to reequip 10 Stormi at Bresso.
The remaining 15 aircraft were
delivered during September-
October 1939.
The JKRV was very impressed by
the performance of the Do 17M
V1 at the Dubendorf International
Flying Meeting of July 1937,
where it was faster than every
fighter present and easily won
the "Circuit of the Alps”. An order
for 36 Do 17K's and a licence for a
further 100 was arranged very
quickly in light of Germany‘s
desperate need for foreign
exchange and the first of 20 Do
17Ka-1's was delivered on 25
October 1937. The Ka-1 and the
Ka-Z versions were based on the
Do 17E airframe with the Ka-1
used as a bomber and the Ka-2
optimized for long—range
reconnaissance with only a
secondary bombing capability.
Two Do 17Kb-1 bombers were
delivered as pattern aircraft,
finishing the German contract,
and were based on the Do 17M
with improved payload and range
over the Ka—1 bombers. The Do
17K's were true mongrel aircraft
with their German-built airframes
powered by French Gnome-Rhone
14Na engines, armed with three
Belgian machine guns, and
equipped with Yugoslav bomb
racks and bombsight. Yugoslav
production of the Do 17Kb-1
began in 1939 with deliveries
commencing from early 1940.
Only 36 or so aircraft had been
finished by April 1941 as
production of the engines was
unable to keep pace with airframe
deliveries. Thus only a total of 70
of these aircraft were in service
on 6 April 1941 when the
Germans struck.
 Page 22

E
24 Hurricane 1's were bought
from Britain in 2 batches with
deliveries of the first batch
commencing on 15 December
1938 and the second in February
1940 along with a licence to build
them in Yugoslavia. Orders were
placed for 60 aircraft by the Zmaj
factory and an additional 40 by
Rogozarski, with production
expected to reach 8 a month from
each factory by mid-1941. At any
rate, Zmaj had produced only 20
aircraft by the time Yugoslavia
was overrun. In an interesting
experiment, the Yugoslavs
mounted a DB 601A engine from
a Me 1095 in a Hurricane as a
part of a program to evaluate
new engines for the lK-Z fighter.
This hybrid could outclimb both
the Hurricane and the Me 109E
and was only slightly slower than
the latter.
Negotiations began with the
Germans as early as January
1938 over the supply of Me 109's.
Goring tried to dissuade the
Yugoslavs, commenting "There is
too much with which your pilots
are unfamiliar in this new aircraft.
They should convert by degrees
to such fast warplanes or they
will suffer many casualties,
particularly during landings, and
will develop a fear of really
advanced fighters." Nevertheless,
the Yugoslavs persisted and
eventually signed a contract for
50 Me 109E's and 25 spare
engines on 5 April 1939. A
supplementary contract was
signed in June for another 50
aircraft. They were to be paid for
by deliveries of raw materials.
Deliveries began in the early
autumn of 1939, but only 73 had
actually been delivered by April
1941. The provision of spares
proved to be grossly inadequate
and the Me 1098 spent most of
the time grounded. The Me 109,
with its difficult ground-handling
characteristics, proved Goring
correct, as many Yugoslav pilots
transitioning on to the Me 109.
The Yugoslavs had a very
competent indigenous aircraft
design and manufacturing
capability as exemplified by the
Ikarus IK-2 and lK-Z fighters. The
lK-2 was a high-wing monoplane
powered by a 920 hp Hispano-
Suiza 12Ycrs engine with an
armament of a 20mm cannon and
2 x 7.92mm Browning machine
guns.Eight survivors of the twelve
ordered were in service when the
Germans invaded. The lK-Z was a
low-wing monoplane with a
retractable undercarriage that
had the same engine and
armament as the lK-2. Despite
the low-powered engine, the lK—Z
was as fast as the Hurricane and
more maneuverable than either
the Me 109 or the Hurricane, but
was shorter-ranged. The initial
order for 12 had been completed
by April 1941, but after the
Rogozarski factory finished its 40
Hurricanes it was to build another
25 lK-Z's. Four were in overhaul
when the Germans attacked. A
Merlin engine had been installed
in another IK-Z for tests designed
to check the suitability of the IK-Z
airframe for more powerful
engines (as the H-8 12Y—51
engines of 1,100 hp planned for
the second batch had become
unavailable when France fell), but
this had not flown by the time the
Germans invaded.
The Yugoslavs were working on
several new aircraft designs
when they were overrun. These
included the lK-S, a twin-engined
fighter that was to be built in two
versions. a single-seat interceptor
and a two~seat destroyer.
Construction of the prototype had
just begun by April 1941. There
was a program for a fast attack
bomber that had three
competitors: the Ikarus Orkan,
Rogozarski R-313 and the Zmai R-
1. The prototype Orkan was
powered by two 840 hp Fiat A 74
low-powered engines (although
performance of the production
versions would have suffered,
due to the additional weight of
armaments and radios). It had a
planned maximum bomb-load of
1764 pounds with a forward-firing
armament of 2 x 20mm cannon
and 2 x 12.7mm Breda machine
guns with 1 x 20mm cannon in the
dorsal position and a 7.92mm
Darne machine gun firing through
a ventral hatch. The Rogozarski Fl-
313 prototype was of all wooden
construction and was powered by
two Walter Sagitta l-SR engines
of 500 hp and was delivered in
early 1940. It carried 882 lbs. of
bombs and was armed with a
20mm cannon in the nose and a
dorsal 8mm Browning. Maximum
speed of the prototype was 286
mph and the range was some 800
miles. A decision to power the
production R-313's with either the
Marlin or the DB 601 had not
been made by the time of the
German invasion. The prototype
crashed at Niksic airfield when it
was taking off to escape to
Greece. l'm still trying to locate
information on the H-1, but l'm
certain that the prototype was
never finished. [See Chart at end]
Europa 03:
Apr I 40:
1
1
1
1
1
x Fury

x Blen
1xSM.79
1 x Do 22K
2F2 0/5
x Me109E7F5 1/7
x Hurri 1 5F5 0/8
x Do 17Ka 3B3 1-1/19
1

Group Allowance: 7
Nov I 41:
1 x Hurri

Jan I 42:
1 x Do 17Kb
1
333 14/20
233 1-2/21
152 1/25

5F5 0/8

4B3 2-2/17
GA increase: +1;

had a difficult time converting
from the forgiving Fury biplane.
Some pilots had to spend 10
hours on the more docile
Hurricane, then 20 hours on the
Me 108 liaison plane, before
RC 38 engines that produced an
estimated top speed of 342 mph
with a range of 1394 miles
without any armament. This was
truly outstanding performance
from a plane powered by such
Service History
The primary goal of Fliegerkorps
Vlll in the south. aside from
providing ground support, was the
neutralization of the JKRV.
Attacks on airfields were planned
to try to catch the Yugoslav
planes on the ground, but this
 Ewas less than perfectly executed
as the Yugoslavs were expecting
the German attack. The Luftwaffe
did gain some successes in the
south as 17 Me 109's of l(J)/LG 2
with a few Me110's of "/26 26
attacked the Furies of 32 Grupa,
destroying 11 Furies and
damaging two more while losing
one Me 109 and two Me 110's,
including one that was rammed
by a Fury. A similar effort was
planned for 35 Grupa, but the Me
109E's couldn't find the well-
camouflaged Furies and had to
settle for destroying the 16
Breguet XlX's of 2 VIGrupa at a
nearby airfield. The Do 17K's of
63 Grupa at Petrovac suffered a
similar fate with German attacks
leaving only four Do 17's flyable.
Upon hearing of the disaster
which befall their sister unit. 64
Grupa immediately took off and
bombed the German armor which
was still in a 17 mile-long column
in Bulgaria, but without much
effect. While waiting for their
next target, 64 Grupa was strafed
by 10 Me 109's that destroyed or
damaged 15 Do 17's. Total losses
by Fliegerkorps Vlll for the day
included seven Me 109's. two Me
110's, two Ju 87's, two Do 17's,
two Hs 126's and a Hs 123,
although this includes losses due
to accidents.
In the North the primary mission
of Luftflotte 4 was to punish the
Belgrade government, as per
Fuhrer Directive 25. A massive
punitive mission of 74 Ju 87's and
160 He 111P and D0172 bombers
of KG 2, 3 and 4, escorted by Me
110's of l/ZG 26 and 100 Me 109's
of JG 54 and 77 was intercepted
by 29 Me 109 and 5 lK-Z fighters
of 32 and 51 Grupa. The
Yugoslavs lost seven Me 109's
and two lK-Z's in this first combat.
Additional raids continued
throughout the day, with German
losses totaling one Me 109, five
Me 110's, two Do 17's and four Ju
87's. The Germans continued to
was shot down by flak.
The Yugoslav defenses in the
west were limited to some AA
guns and the nine fighters of the
Independent Fighter Eskadrila at
Mostar. Attacks by 4 Squadra
Aera and Fliegerkorps X based
in Italy and Sicily destroyed only
two Avia BH-33's. two SM.79‘s
and damaged several more
aircraft for the loss of a Cant
Z.1007bis and a Ju 87.
The Yugoslav bombers played
little part in the day's activities.
Aside from the ill-fated Dorniers,
only a few sorties were flown.
Targets in Austria, Albania, and
Rumania were attacked with little
result for the loss of four
Blenheims. Sonics for the day
totaled 474: 377 by fighters, 93
by bombers, and 4 by recon
planes. Losses totaled 47 fighters,
45 bombers. and 3 reconnaissance
planes destroyed or damaged.
The fighters defending Belgrade
took their toll of the German
attackers on 7 April, but suffered
in the process, shooting down
three Ju 88's and a Do 17 while
the JKRV lost eight Me 109's shot
down and others damaged. Two
Hurricanes of the independent
Fighter Flight intercepted a small
formation of Ju 88‘s, but were
bounced by escorting Me 109's
and shot down. With the fighters
flying defensive patrols, the
bombers flew unescorted
missions against Hungarian
airfields, Austrian railroads, and
German columns in Yugoslavia
losing nine Blenheims shot down
by fighters and flak, and eleven
more damaged. Meanwhile 3 and
7 VIGrupa and 201 Training
were wiped out by marauding Me
110's and Stukas.
Grupa

On 8 April, the Yugoslav bombers

in the south concentrated their
attacks on the 8 mile long column
in the Kacanik Gorge. The low
page 23

Three Blenheims, one Hind, one

Do 17, and one Hurricane were
shot down or crashed.
Heavy snowfalls on 9 April
prevented aircraft from flying
except in the north where Ill/JG
54 shot down two Hurricanes and
one IK-2 of 4 Puk for the loss of
one Me 109. The Italians attacked
the seaplane base at Tijesno,
destroying three Sim XlV's and
damaging two more. The rumor of
approaching German troops
caused 31 Grupa to burn their
snowbound Me 109's, only to
discover that the Germans were
still some 40 miles distant.

Similar rumors on 10 April caused

bomb Belgrade throughout the
night, dropping a total of 360 tons
of bombs. The 4 and 6 VIGrupa
were essentially annihilated by
Ju 87's of ll/StG 77 escorted by
Me 109's of JG 77, one of which
cloud cover forced everyone but
the SM.79's, who found gaps in
the clouds, to attack from
underneath the cloud base at 300-
500 feet where they were
vulnerable to small-arms fire.
most of the Yugoslav aircraft still
serviceable to attempt to fly to
more secure bases in marginal
weather. Three Hurricanes, two
Blenheims, one Do 17, and a
SM.79 crashed during these
attempts.
With morale low due to the
overwhelming power of the
Luftwaffe and the Croatian
uprising. several aircraft
attempted to flee the country on
11 April. Eight SM.79's of 7 Puk
attempted to fly to Russia, but
only four reached that country,
the others crashing or landing in
Hungary. A Do 17 also landed in
that country. while one Yugoslav
pilot defected with a Blenheim
which was used as a light
transport for several years. One
00 17 was flown to Bulgaria
where it was absorbed by the
Royal Bulgarian Air Force.
12 April saw the destruction of
much of the remaining aircraft of
the JKRV as Me 110's of l/ZG 26
strafed Bjeljina, where aircraft of
6 Puk and 11 Grupa had flown for
refuge, destroying 17 Blenheims,
three Hurricanes and the Breguet
XlX's of 1 and 6 VIGrupa. Another
two Hurricanes, two Blenheims
and a Do 17 either were shot
down or crashed while flying their
missions.
On 13 April German units entered
Belgrade while the Luftwaffe
attacked troop concentrations.
Page 22
%
24 Hurricane 1's were bought
from Britain in 2 batches with
deliveries of the first batch
commencing on 15 December
1938 and the second in February
1940 along with a licence to build
them in Yugoslavia. Orders were
placed for 60 aircraft by the Zmaj
factory and an additional 40 by
Rogozarski, with production
expected to reach 8 a month from
each factory by mid-1941. At any
rate, Zmaj had produced only 20
aircraft by the time Yugoslavia
was overrun. in an interesting
experiment, the Yugoslavs
mounted a DB 601A engine from
a Me 109E in a Hurricane as a
part of a program to evaluate
new engines for the lK-Z fighter.
This hybrid could outclimb both
the Hurricane and the Me 109E
and was only slightly slower than
the latter.
Negotiations began with the
Germans as early as January
1938 over the supply of Me 109's.
Goring tried to dissuade the
Yugoslavs, commenting "There is
too much with which your pilots
are unfamiliar in this new aircraft.
They should convert by degrees
to such fast warplanes or they
will suffer many casualties,
particularly during landings, and
will develop a fear of really
advanced fighters.“ Nevertheless,
the Yugoslavs persisted and
eventually signed a contract for
50 Me 109E's and 25 spare
engines on 5 April 1939. A
supplementary contract was
signed in June for another 50
aircraft. They were to be paid for
by deliveries of raw materials.
Deliveries began in the early
autumn of 1939, but only 73 had
actually been delivered by April
1941. The provision of spares
proved to be grossly inadequate
and the Me 1093 spent most of
the time grounded. The Me 109,
with its difficult ground-handling
characteristics, proved Goring
correct, as many Yugoslav pilots
had a difficult time convening
from the forgiving Fury biplane.
Some pilots had to spend 10
hours on the more docile
Hurricane. then 20 hours on the
Me 108 liaison plane, before
transitioning on to the Me 109.
The Yugoslavs had a very
competent indigenous aircraft
design and manufacturing
capability as exemplified by the
lkarus lK-2 and ”(-2 fighters. The
lK-Z was a high-wing monoplane
powered by a 920 hp Hispano—
Suiza 12Ycrs engine with an
armament of a 20mm cannon and
2 x7.92mm Browning machine
guns.Eight survivors of the twelve
ordered were in service when the
Germans invaded. The lK-Z was a
low-wing monoplane with a
retractable undercarriage that
had the same engine and
armament as the IK-Z. Despite
the low-powered engine, the lK-Z
was as fast as the Hurricane and
more maneuverable than either
the Me 109 or the Hurricane, but
was shorter-ranged. The initial
order for 12 had been completed
by April 1941, but after the
Hogozarski factory finished its 40
Hurricanes it was to build another
25 lK-Z's. Four were in overhaul
when the Germans attacked. A
Merlin engine had been installed
in another lK-Z for tests designed
to check the suitability of the lK-Z
airframe for more powerful
engines (as the H-5 12Y-51
engines of 1,100 hp planned for
the second batch had become
unavailable when France fell), but
this had not flown by the time the
Germans invaded.
low-powered engines (although
performance of the production
versions would have suffered,
due to the additional weight of
armaments and radios). It had a
planned maximum bomb-load of
1764 pounds with a forward-firing
armament of 2 x 20mm cannon
and 2 x 12.7mm Breda machine
guns with 1 x 20mm cannon in the
dorsal position and a 7.92mm
Darne machine gun firing through
a ventral hatch. The Rogozarski R-
313 prototype was of all wooden
construction and was powered by
two Walter Sagitta l-SR engines
of 500 hp and was delivered in
early 1940. It carried 882 lbs. of
bombs and was armed with a
20mm cannon in the nose and a
dorsal 8mm Browning. Maximum
speed of the prototype was 286
mph and the range was some 800
miles. A decision to power the
production R-313's with either the
Merlin or the DB 601 had not
been made by the time of the
German invasion. The prototype
crashed at Niksic airfield when it
was taking off to escape to
Greece. I'm still trying to locate
information on the FM, but I'm
certain that the prototype was
never finished. [See Chart at end]
Europa OB:
Apr I 40:
1
1
x Fury 2F2 0/5
x Me 109E7F5 1/7
1 x Hurri 1 5F5 0/8
g
1 x Do 17Ka 3B3
1-1/19
The Yugoslavs were working on 1 x Blen 1 383 1-1/20
several new aircraft designs 1xSM.79 233 1-2/21
when they were overrun. These 1 x Do 22K 182 1/25
included the lK-5, a twin-engined Group Allowance: 7
fighter that was to be built in two
versions, 8 single-seat interceptor Nov I 41:
and a two-seat destroyer. 1 x Hurri1 5F5 0/8
Construction of the prototype had
just begun by April 1941. There
Jan I 42:
was a program for a fast attack 1 x Do 17Kb 4B3 2-2/17
bomber that had three GA increase: +1;
competitors: the lkarus Orkan,
Rogozarski R-313 and the Zmaj R- Service History
1. The prototype Orkan was
powered by two 840 hp Fiat A 74 The primary goal of Fliagerkorps
RC 38 engines that produced an Vlll in the south. aside from
estimated top speed of 342 mph providing ground support, was the
with a range of 1394 miles neutralization of the JKRV.
without any armament. This was Attacks on airfields were planned
truly outstanding performance to try to catch the Yugoslav
from a plane powered by such planes on the ground, but this
 mwas less than perfectly executed
as the Yugoslavs were expecting
the German attack. The Luftwaffe
did gain some successes in the
south as 17 Me 109's of llJilLG 2
with a few Me110's of “/26 26
attacked the Furies of 32 Grupa,
destroying 11 Furies and
damaging two more while losing
one Me 109 and two Me 110's,
including one that was rammed
by a Fury. A similar effort was
planned for 35 Grupa, but the Me
109E's couldn't find the well-
camouflaged Furies and had to
settle for destroying the 16
Breguet XlX‘s of 2 VIGrupa at a
nearby airfield. The Do 17K's of
63 Grupa at Petrovac suffered a
similar fate with German attacks
leaving only four Do 17's flyable.
Upon hearing of the disaster
which befell their sister unit, 64
Grupa immediately took off and
bombed the German armor which
was still in a 17 mile-long column
in Bulgaria, but without much
effect. While waiting for their
next target, 64 Grupa was strafed
by 10 Me 109's that destroyed or
damaged 15 Do 17's. Total losses
by Fliegerkorps VIH for the day
included-seven Me 109's, two Me
110's, two Ju 87's, two Do 17's,
two Hs 126's and a Hs 123,
although this includes losses due
to accidents.
In the North the primary mission
of Luftflotte 4 was to punish the
Belgrade government, as per
Fuhrer Directive 25. A massive
punitive mission of 74 Ju 87's and
was shot down by flak.
The Yugoslav defenses in the
west were limited to some AA
guns and the nine fighters of the
Independent Fighter Eskadrila at
Mostar. Attacks by 4 Squadra
Aera and Fliagerkorps X based
in Italy and Sicily destroyed only
two Avia BH-33's, two $M.79's
and damaged several more
aircraft for the loss of a Cant
2.1007bis and 5 Ju 87.
The Yugoslav bombers played
little part in the day's activities.
Aside from the ill-fated Dorniers,
only a few sorties were flown.
Targets in Austria, Albania, and
Rumania were attacked with little
result for the loss of four
Blenheims. Sorties for the day
totaled 474: 377 by fighters, 93
by bombers, and 4 by recon
planes. Losses totaled 47 fighters,
45 bombers, and 3 reconnaissance
planes destroyed or damaged.
The fighters defending Belgrade
took their toll of the German
attackers on 7 April, but suffered
in the process, shooting down
three Ju 88's and a Do 17 while
the JKRV lost eight Me 109's shot
down and others damaged. Two
Hurricanes of the lndependent
Fighter Flight intercepted a small
formation of Ju 88's, but were
bounced by escorting Me 109’s
and shot down. With the fighters
flying defensive patrols, the
bombers flew unescorted
missions against Hungarian
shot down or crashed.
Page 23

Three Blenheims, one Hind, one

Do 17, and one Hurricane were

Heavy snowfalls on 9 April

prevented aircraft from flying
except in the north where Ill/JG
54 shot down two Hurricanes and
one lK-2 of 4 Puk for the loss of
one Me 109. The Italians attacked
the seaplane base at Tijesno,
destroying three Sim XIV's and
damaging two more. The rumor of
approaching German troops
caused 31 Grupa to burn their
snowbound Me 109's, only to
discover that the Germans were
still some 40 miles distant.

Similar rumors on 10 April caused

160 He 111P and Do 17Z bombers
of K6 2, 3 and 4, escorted by Me
110's of |/ZG 26 and 100 Me 109's
of JG 54 and 77 was intercepted
by 29 Me 109 and 5 IK-Z fighters
of 32 and 51 Grupa. The
Yugoslavs lost seven Me 109‘s
and two lK-Z's in this first combat.
Additional raids continued
throughout the day, with German
losses totaling one Me 109, five
Me 110's, two Do17's and four Ju
87's. The Germans continued to
bomb Belgrade throughout the
night, dropping a total of 360 tons
of bombs. The 4 and 6 VIGrupa
were essentially annihilated by
Ju 87's of Il/StG 77 escorted by
Me 109's of JG 77, one of which
airfields, Austrian railroads, and
German columns in Yugoslavia
losing nine Blenheims shot down
by fighters and flak, and eleven
more damaged. Meanwhile 3 and
7 VIGrupa and 201 Training Grupa
were wiped out by marauding Me
110's and Stukas.
0n 8 April, the Yugoslav bombers
in the south concentrated their
attacks on the 8 mile long column
in the Kacanik Gorge. The low
cloud cover forced everyone but
the SM.79's, who found gaps in
the clouds, to attack from
underneath the cloud base at 300-
500 feet where they were
vulnerable to small-arms fire.
most of the Yugoslav aircraft still
serviceable to attempt to fly to
more secure bases in marginal
weather. Three Hurricanes, two
Blenheims. one Do 17, and a
SM.79 crashed during these
attempts.
With morale low due to the
overwhelming power of the
Luftwaffe and the Croatian
uprising, several aircraft
attempted to flee the country on
11 April. Eight SM.79's of 7 Puk
attempted to fly to Russia. but
only four reached that country.
the others crashing or landing in
Hungary. A Do 17 also landed in
that country, while one Yugoslav
pilot defected with a Blenheim
which was used as a light
transport for several years. One
Do 17 was flown to Bulgaria
where it was absorbed by the
Royal Bulgarian Air Force.
12 April saw the destruction of
much of the remaining aircraft of
the JKRV as Me 110's of l/ZG 26
strafed Bjeljina, where aircraft of
6 Puk and 11 Grupa had flown for
refuge, destroying 17 Blenheims,
three Hurricanes and the Breguet
XlX's of 1 and 6 VIGrupa. Another
two Hurricanes, two Blenheims
and a Do 17 either were shot
down or crashed while flying their
missions.
On 13 April German units entered
Belgrade while the Luftwaffe
attacked troop concentrations.
Page 24

m
——_——_———_—____—__—_
The Italians attacked Mostar
airfield, destroying several
SM.79's and a Me 109.
The Germans captured Bjeljina
airfield in a coup de main on 14
April when 17 Ju 52's, escorted
by 11 Ju 87's, 23 Me 110's, and 18
Me 109's, landed troops which
swiftly overwhelmed the
defenders; they captured 210
Yugoslavs while losing 3 dead
and 4 wounded.
The Yugoslavs started an 'air
bridge" to Greece on 15 April with
the few remaining serviceable
aircraft, mostly Do 17's, Do 22's,
and $M.79's. The Yugoslav
government fled to Greece via
the air bridge along with much of
the country's gold reserves. Two
Hurricanes, two Furies, 3 SM. 79,
and a Do 17 were captured along
with numerous trainers and 28
floatplanes. Approximately 40
aircraft of all types reached
Greece, but many were destroyed
by the enemy once their airfields
were discovered. Only four
SM.79's, two Do 17's, eight Do
22's, and a Sim XIV escaped the
German onslaught and reached
Egypt
The SM.79's were assigned to 117
squadron where they supported
the route between Takoradi, the
Gold Coast, and Khartoum. Sudan
by which most of the aircraft
delivered to the Middle East. The
last one was written-off in
January 1944. Of captured
aircraft, the Italians only

All new - all cotton - all yours

for only $9.95
The 1990 Europa T-Shirt with the
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We have two sizes, large and
recovered one
airworthy SM.79,
but another had
escaped to Hungary
where it was
exchanged in 1942
for 2 CR.42's.
The Do 22's served
as 2 (Yugoslav)
'Talkback', Air Enthusiast, 1:6,
November, 1971, p.306
Bowyer, Chaz: Bristol Blenheim
Center for Military History: The
German Campaign in the Balkans
(Spring 1941)
Green: William: Augsburg Eagle,
2nd Ed.
Green, William: Fighters, Vols. 2
and 4 of Warp/anes of the Second
World War
Green, William: Floatplanes, Vol.
6 of Warplanes of the Second
World War
Green, William: Warp/shes of the
Third Reich
Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
”The Annals of the 'Pencil", Air
Enthusiast 30, March-June, 1986
Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
“The Bristol Blenheim Family", Air
Enthusiast 28, 1985
Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
'The Caproni that Nearly Joined
the RAF" Air Enthusiast, 1:2,
July, 1971
Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
”Half-Century Hurricane", Air
International, 32:4-6, 33:1, April-
July. 1987
Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
"Plane Facts" Air Enthusiast, 1:2,

@
squadron under July, 1971
Xlarge. Please indicate your R.A.F. command. Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
choice when you order from us. Some 40 pilots flew "Plane Facts" Air Enthusiast. 2:3.
out to join the March, 1972

(M1130a m—a-n-y.
“hill-p
Allies, as well as
some 200 aircrew.
The saga of the
Yugoslav aircraft
Green, W. and Swanborough, G.:
'SM.79: The Hunchbacked
Sparrow" Air International, 27:1-
2. July’August, 1984
Jerin, Zoran: “The Blenheim in
was not quite over Yugoslavia", Air Enthusiast 16,
as the Croatian Air 1981
Force used several Mason, Francis: The Hawker
Blenheims that Hurricane
were repaired by Prieskop, Franklyn G.: "The
lkarus after the Yugoslav Army', The Grenadier,
collapse of No. 7, August, 1979
organized Shores, Christopher and Cull,
resistance. but Brian: Air War for Yugoslavia,
serviceability was Greece, and Crete
Order your T-Shirt from us by low and they rarely Weal, Elke et al: Combat Aircraft
flew. Also, eleven of World War Two (2
sending name, address 8: $9.95 Do 17Kb-1's, were
+ $1 shipping and handling to: ultimately
GRD transferred to the
PO BOX 591 Bulgarian Air Force
from the Croatian
GRINNELL, IA 50112 Air Force.
ALLOW 4-6 WEEKS DELIVERY
Bibliography:
Abate, Rosario:
Order of Battle - 6 April 1941
Unit Base Equipment Supporting
Vrhovna Komanda [Air Force High Command]
11 Ind. Grupa Burma 9 Blenheim 1, 2 Hind 21 81 22 Eskadrila [Flight]
81 Grupa Master 14 SM.79 261 81 262 Eskadrila
Ind. Fighter Eskadrila Mostar 3 Hurri 1, 3 Me 109E,
3 Avia BH-33E
1 Lovacka Vazduhoplovna Brigada [Fighter Air Brigade]
2 Puk [Regimentlz
31 Grupa Susicko Folio 19 Me 109E 101 and 141 Eskadrila
52 Grupa Knic 15 Hurricane 1 163 and 164 Eskadrila
6 Puk:
32 Grupa Prnjavor 27 Me 109E 103, 104. and 142 Eskadrila
51 Grupa Belgrade 10 Me 109E, 6 lK-Z 102, 161, 162 Eskadrila
2 Mesovita Vazduhoplovna Brigade [Mixed Air Brigade]
4 Puk:
33 Grupa Aleksandrovac 13 Hurricane 1 105 and 106 Eskadrila
34 Grupa Aleksandrovac 7 Hurricane 1 and 8 lK-2
107 and 108 Eskadrila
8 Puk:
68 Grupa Rovine 12 Blenheim 1 215 and 216 Eskadrila
69 Grupa Rovine 12 Blenheim 1 217 and 218 Eskadrila
3 Mesovita Vazdulloplovna Brigada
3 Puk:
63 Grupa Petrovac 30 Do 17K 205-207 Eskadrila
64 Grupa Petrovac 30 Do 17K 208-210 Eskadrila
5 Puk:
35 Grupa Kosancic 15 Fury 109 and 110 Eskadrila
36 Grupa Rezanovacka 15 Fury and 112 Eskadrila
111
4 Bombarderska Vazduhoplovna Brigada [Bomber Air Brigade]
1 Puk:
61 Grupa Davidovac 11 Blenheim 1 201 and 202 Eskadrila
62 Grupa Bjeljina 12 Blenheim 1 203 and 204 Eskadrila
7 Puk:
66 Grupa Preljina 13 SM.79 211 and 212 Eskadrila
67 Grupa Gorobiije 13 SM.79 213 and 214 Eskadrila
Army Aviation equipped with Potez 25 and Breguet XIX):
(all
1 VlGrupa Ruma 15 planes 131 Army
2 VlGrupa Sorlince 16 planes 5th Army
3 VlGrupa Stare Topolje 19 planes 2nd Army
4 VlGrupa Kurilovac 18 planes 4th Army
5 VlGrupa Tetovo 14 planes 3rd Army
6 VlGrupa Brezice 16 planes 7th Army
7 VlGrupa Sm. Palanka 18 planes 6th Army
Coastal Army Commando Mostair 4 planes

Naval Aviation:
2 Hidroplanska Komanda [Floatplane Command]
3 Hidrogrupa:
5 Hidroeskadrila Tijesno 5 Sim XIV
25 Hidroeskadrila Zlarin 6 Do 22K], 1 PVT-H
4 Hidrogrupa:
26 Hidroeskadrila Krapanj 5 Do Wei, 1 PVT-H 4 more Blenhelms were undergoms_ _

15 Hidroeskadrila Vodice 2 Sim XIV, 6—7 I0, 1 Sim/XII overhaul at the time of the invasion,
'

3 Hidroplanska Komanda but reached 11 Grupa before the end

1
Hidrogrupa: of the campaign.
1 Hidroeskadrila S. Krtole 5 Sim XIV
11 Hidroeskadrila S. Rosa 2-3 Sim XIV, 1 He 8 Abbreviations:
2 Hidrogrupa: VlGrupa = Air Reconnaissance Group
20 Hidroeskadrila Orahovac 6 Do 22K]
21 Hidroeskadrila Dobrota 6 Do Wal, 1 Do D, 2 PVT-H
Page 26
{Filmer}
[1mest
The first wave of Second Front
(SF) playtest kits set sail in eafly
Febmary 1990, and I. like many other
eager Europa testers, received mine
with a great deal of delight. For those
readers of the magazine not involved
in the playtest. l have prepared this
article to share a brief look at the
playtest mics and 08s. and the
impending changes and
enhancements to the system they will
bring. Understand that there has not
been time to revise maps, paste and
cut counters, or actually play the
game prior to this report. Likewise. my
views on how the SF changes will
impact previously published games in
the series when retrofitted are
necessarily preliminary as well, and so
not presented here. With those
disclaimers out of the way, let‘s hit the
beach.
D-Day
One of the first questions to be
answered in the design of SF was
how to pack all the units of the
Overlord invasion force imo a
beachhead of several hexes. John
Astell, the designer. has addressed
this with a major modification to the
stacking rule. Briefly stated. there are
no stacking limits in SF (although
John is toying with the idea of
establishing a 50 RE maximum).
However. before you get too
enthused with the concept of huge
stacks overmnning everything in
sight. let me fill in some details. Only
those units which adhere to the
normal Europa stacking limits (i.e.,
the frontline units) are actually kept on
the board. The remainder of the
overstacked units are represented by
a corps marker and placed in its box
off-board. While overstacked. these
excess units do not contribute to the
attack or defense, nor are they
considered in exchange calculations,
but they do suffer any adverse effects
Wind]
iftheir hex is attacked (in other words.
the potential of destroying the
invasion force on the beach is very
real if the Germans are able to mount a
viable counterattack). Units may be
swapped in and out of this corps
marker anytime during a player's turn.
Needless to say. there are also many
rules pertaining to amphibious assault
and naval movement. These in fact
make up the largest part of the new
rules. I will not attempt to explain or
interpret them at this time. would
I
anticipate. however , that creative
gamers will exercise these quite
thoroughly. testing the effect of
further invasions, as well as alternate
D-Day sites, on the course of the
game.
Westwall
At the start of play the Westwall is in a
state of neglect; however, the
German player may refurbish it by
declaring an emergency restoration if
an Allied unit is within 14 hexes of a
Westwall hex. While this consumes all
his resource points and RAD
(equivalent to the "Soviet Workers")
capabilities for two turns. it sounds
like a great buy. After restoration the
Westwall hexes are treated as follows:
Westwall hexes negate AEC, units
defending in them are not required to
retreat. and the number printed in the
Westwall hex (ranging from one to
three) is subtracted from the Allied
attackers die roll. it captured by the
Allies, they are considered destroyed
and have no further effect on contat.
The German will also get some benefit
from the destroyed Maginot Line
Ourvrages. These, for now at least.
are treated as forts. without any
expenditures for restoration. As |
interpret the rule. the Allies receive
the same benefit upon capturing any
of these hexes.
[Fatima
by Rick Gayler
The Bulge
The stacking limit modification
mentioned earlier applies to the
Germans also, so big stacks might
appear on the German side of the line
prior to the jump—off of the Ardennes
Offensive. One could hardly disguise
this. so anticipated a Surprise Attack
I
rule might be included. However.
there is no provision for one at this
time. instead, the Germans have the
ability once per game to ”declare an
emergency." Once declared, the
German player receives emergency
replacements at a rate of 12 infantry
and 20 armor RPs on the turn of
I
each month for three consecutive
months. suppose the Germans can
I
accumulate quite a few of these, use
them all at once to raise new units and
rebuild weakened ones, rush them to
the front. and launch their “surprise
attack" in that fashion.
The effects of poor weather on
combat will henceforth be more
directly felt by one's cardboard
minions. There is now a -2 modifier for
all attacks made in mud weather and a
—1
for all attacks in snow and winter
weather. This latter constitutes a new
weather category falling between
frost and snow in severity and
covering “typical western European
winter conditions: rainy, muddy
weather with occasional frost or
snowy spells. and snow in the
mountains." However. there is now a
provision for partial AEC in winter and
snow weather; if one's stack has 1/2
or more AECA or AECD. there is a -1
modifier to the die roll. would imagine
I
the Germans would wait for such a
turn to launch their armored offensive
on a section of the Allied front held
primarily by infantry. Sound familiar?
The Air War
As expected. the huge USAF will
require some changes to airbase
M
—-—_———_—___—_—_—__
considerations. This is addressed by
allowing players to build up to four
airbases in a hex.
The "Strat Air" campaign is currently
handled 'in the background.“ This will
cut down on some of the counter
clutter as both sides generally
maintain their strat air assets off-board
in a special Available Box. These may
be called up several times during
each year (eight times for the Allies
and lourlor the Gemians) to make
"special efforts," greatly increasing (at
least for the Allies) the tactical air
punch available (the Allied air blitzes
which periodically broke the stalemate
in Italy come to mind),
Carpet bombing appears in SF, and
although i haven’t fully digested it yet,
it looks messy. suspect players
I
try this a few times to see how it
works, achieve something less than
may
optimal results, and abandon it as a
viable mission. It so, that would be a
pretty realistic representation!
A slightly modified version of Ben
Knight's "Base Hit!” suggestion from
TEN #3 will no doubt bring the
bombing of airbases into vogue. Per
this rule a hit on an airbase decreases
the capacity by one (as always). but
also hits one air unit stationed there,
bombing player‘s choice. Any hit on
an air unit works the same as under
the old air unit bombing mission,
which is now absorbed by the above
(almost like two missions for the price
of one). This sounds like bad news for
Goring's guys.
The Opponents
I will
make only a few comments here
about some of the new units and
related details.
One poim of interest is that the
Germans continue to rule supreme in
the area of special replacements, still
being the only national force (other
than the Finns), to have a 25%
recovery rate for unisolated losses.
This surprised me somewhat; had I
thought the Americans were the ones
to break easily, but quickly ralty (or is
that another game?).
The first units to catch my eye were
the Hitler Jugend SS units. No
ordinary punks these; they are
represented currently by a 20-10 and
16-10 Panzer XX, along with a 12-10
Panzer Grenadier XX. Then there are
the V—Weapons. These allow the
Germans (while within range) to strike
at Allied ports and London, damaging
the ports and inflicting resource and
replacement point losses on the
British if successful.
;[—D
Range-in hexes:
Attack
Die
Roll
Modifiers:
~1
gf—D
1
2
3
4
_5
6
for an intercepted V1 attack
9 Hexes
-1 for a V1 attack that received an A or K result
from AA fire
Tucked away in the US counters next
V-WEAPONS CHART
v1 Attack
to the trucks, there is a counter
bearing the name "Little David". This
counter accompanies a US siege
artillery unit (rated 4-0-6) around the
board and represents the ability of
this unit to launch an atomic bomb
attack against Reich torces. if "Little
David“ supports an Allied ground
attack against an adjacent Gemian
occupied hex. the counter is
expended and the result of the attack
is an automatic DE. This blows a hole
in the German line of course
(although units with cadres would
yield some potential survivors), but
the US player has to think twice about
dashing through. Any unit entering
the hex during that or the next tum
suffers possible radiation sickness,
which afflicts units with a 33% chance
of elimination. (For the curious, John
explains it is unlikely that the bomb
would have been delivered by air due
MISS
MISS
MISS
MISS
HIT
HIT
Other System Changes
Page 27
to the chance of being intercepted
and shot down en route.) Since this
unit isn't projected on the Allied OB
umil Aug ll 45, it is unlikely to see use
in a normal SF game.
Panisans, while abstracted, are
represented with a rather potent array
of partisan attacks as per SE rule 33.
Surprisingly (at least to me), the Italian
partisans are more active than the
French, with three attacks per turn vs.
two for the French.
v2 Attack
12 Hexes
MISS
MISS
MISS
HIT
HIT
HIT
Toaddress the problem of "5-1
Abused“ (explained by A.E. Goodwin
in E TO #28) there is an experimental
modification to the CRT that moves
the EX result to the "-1" row and the
EX result to the '0" row. No more
almost guaranteed exchanges at 5-1
[-6]! (And l suppose the reference to
"NE' above is no longer correct, as
John has changed this result to "RA”
('Repulsed Attack“), which works the
same, but sounds more palatable.
There are several movement changes
related to the extensive paved road
net in western Europe. For example,
units may move along roads at the
rate of 1 MP per hex. even in the
worst weather. Admin. movement
has also been liberalized. Units using
admin._are no longer restricted to
roads and clear terrain; due to the
intensive road infrastructure admin. is
Page 28

now allowed in all terrain and across all
hexsides except prohibited terrain
and mountain or major river hexsides.
John says, "In case you're wondering,
the dividing line between the
extensive road net and the sparse
This report covers just a few of the
many highlights and entertaining
features of SF. It must necessarily be
brief and incomplete due to time and
space constraints. Be assured there
willbe more reports to follow as the
playtest progresses. Q

one (SE admin. rule) matches fairly
well the German-Soviet demarcation
line."
In another experimental modification
to the admin. rule, players are now
allowed to move admin, through
hexes made friendly during their
current movement phase, so long as
these hexes are owned at the time
the unit moves and the other
restrictions of admin. movement are
met.
Air combat is modified in the case
where several air units are firing at a
single air unit: the exchange of fire
halts immediately when the player
with the several air units achieves a R,
A, or K result. Thus some interceptors
(or escorts) may not get to fire at all.
The final entry in this partial and
arbitrary list is a change to the
construction mles which varies the
amount of constmction capability
based on the size of the oonstnicting
unit. Thus, for 1/2 RE construction
units MP/turn costs are doubled,
a brigadesized unit is treated as
while
being two construction units for
purposes of quick construction.
Victory
This is kept simple at this stage of the
playtest (we're in Stage One. which is
the 1944 Campaign Scenario,
covering France. Italy. and Western
Germany from the spring of 1944
through the summer of 1945). To win
decisively, the Allies must take all the
major cities on the map. Lesser levels
of Allied victory or German victory are
also determined based on ownership
of major cities.
Getting the kit out and the playtest
started is a victory of sons in itself. I'd
like to commend all oi the people who
worked so hard to make this kit a
reality. Thanks folks!
llnllmn Front
Italy's dream of empire turned to nightmare in the
mountains of Albania. The Italian army,
cautiously advancing into Greece in October 1940,
was sent reeling back into Albania by merciless
Greek counterattacks. During the winter, the
Greek offensive grouind to a halt as both sides
exhausted themselves. Behind the scenes, the
Germans and British iockeyed for influence with
the other Balkan states, striving for the best
position in the coming showdown in the spring. . .
Balkan Front recreates the campaigns in the
Balkans from October 1940 to the summer of
1941. Balkan Front is a complete revision of
Marita-Merkur, bringing the state of the art
Europa rules to this classic game. From the box to
the rules, counters, and maps, everything has
been updated and upgraded for this collectors'
edition.
. One and a half "new style" maps
covering Yugoslavia, Albania, and
Greece
720 counters covering the campaign
.
forces of Italy, Greece, Yugoslavia,
Germany, Britian, Hungary, and - for
the first time - Bulgaria
State of the art rules, based on the
C award-winning Scorched Earth and
forthcoming Second Front Rules.
7+ scenarios, covering the grand
0 campaign and the individual campaigns
in Greece, Yugoslavia, and Crete.
Political rules cover the web of Balkan
O duplicity and intrigue, from unstable
Yugoslavia to territory-hungry Bulgaria.
Balkan Front is under preparation and will be
released this spring by Game Research/Design.
0 Copyright 1990, Game Research/Design. All rights reserved.

Touring the
With
My column this month will
consider only that portion of
Norway south of Mo [58:1620].
Southern Norwegian
Drainage System. The current
depiction of lakes and rivers on
Map 10A has two rather major
errors.
First, the largest of the
Norwegian lakes (Lake Mjosa -
the one next to Hamar
[10A:36051) is misplaced. This lake
is actually entirely within the
valley of the Lagen (the chain of
forest hexes north of Hamar/
Lillehammer) with the city of
Lillehammer on its northern
shore. Thus the northern portion
of the lake should run through
hexsides 10A:3606/ 3605/ 3506/
3505. Second, the river shown
flowing into the Stor Fjord west
of Andalsnes [10A:2507] does not
exist. The upper course of this
river roughly matches the course
@uvnpa
Occasional Excursions Further Afield
of the Otta, but that river is a
tributary of the Lagen system
which flows into the Skaggerrak.
recommend the river to be
deleted from the maps.
Close study of the southern
Norwegian rivers shows that the
main river system is the Glama/
Lagen. The Glama is the river
which enters the Skaggerrak at
Frederikstad [10A:43091, but the
river currently shown on the game
maps is the Glama only up to hex
10A:3906, thereafter the river
shown is the Lagen. Both the
Lagen and Glama are rather good
size rivers far up stream and both
should probably be shown. The
Glama would run south and east
of the chain of hexes 10A:3906,
3905, 3804, 3705, 3604, 3504,
3404, 3304, 3204, 3104, 3003,
2903, 2902, 2901, and 3000 to its
primary source in Lake Femund.
The Lagen would run west of the
chain of hexes 10A:3405, 3305,
r - Page 29
Seashore
by A.E. Goodwin
and 3205. (Actually, the Lagen
should probably extend even
l
farther upstream, to hex
10A:2906, but due to the
mountain spurs shown on the
current maps this would make
hexes 10A:3005, 3106, and 3105
into superstrong defense
positions.)
Additional Norwegian Lakes.
A number of rather large
Nomegian lakes seem to have
been left off the maps. Limingen
(58:2124/ 2224), Tunnsjo (58:2224/
2325), Ulen (58:2525/ 2625),
Snasavatn (58:2227/ 2328/ 2228/
2329), Norsjo (10Az4112/ 4111),
and Nisser (10Az4013/ 4113). Two
other Norwegian lakes are large
enough to warrant inclusion, but
both happen to fall across terrain
features which make it difficult to
show them: both Storsjoen
(10A:3403/ 3402/ 3303) and
Selbusjoen (58:2631/ 2630) fall
along mountain hexsides. (Both

lakes lie within mountain valleys:
thus showing a lake hexside
rather than a mountain hexside
would be distorting.) One other
large Norwegian lake, Rossvatn
(5Bz1821/ 1721/ 1722), is
sometimes advocated for
inclusion, but this last lake was
quite small until several years
after the war when a dam on the
stream below it greatly increased
the lake's size.
Lake Crossings. in sharp
contrast to Finland and Sweden,
crossings of the Norwegian lakes
are almost nonexistent, with only
the single ferry at Gjovik
(10A:3606/ 3605) being evident.
Tverrfjellethjollen Mountain
Range. The two-to—three hex
wide swath of forest hexes to the
south of Andalsnes represents
three major river valleys: the
Romsdale in hexes 10A:2507,
i. . .
, ,
2606, 2706, and 2707; the upper
Lagen valley in 10A:3005, 2906,
2806, and 2706; and the valley of
the Otta in 10As3006, 2907, 2807,
and 2808. Since all three of these
valleys are separated from each
other by mountain ranges (with
numerous peaks rising to the 6500
foot level) it would seem a more
accurate depiction of this area
could be had by adding mountain
hexsides at 10A:2707/ 2807/
2806/ 2907/ 2906/ 3006.
Jostedalsbreen. The chain of
three contiguous glacier hexes
Southern Norway (10A:2709,
2810, and 2811) represents the
Jostedalsbreen and seems to
cover more area than would be
warranted by the size of the
glacier complex. In particular, hex
10A:2709 should probably be
mountain vice glacier since the
glacier chain ends fourteen miles
south of the fjord shown in the
northern portion of the hex.
Hardanger Glacier. Hex
10Az3412 probably represents the
Hardanger Jokulen, a circular
glacier which covers just under 50
square miles (at least it's the only
glacier of any consequence in this
area). However, this glacier is
actually located at the eastern tip
of the Eidfjord (the fjord which
just touches hex 10Az3312) with
the Bergen rail line circling it to
the east and north. The area to
the west of the glacier and south
of the Eidfiord is extremely
rugged with several peaks
exceeding 5500 feet in elevation.
Both 10Az3313 and 3412 should
probably be mountain hexes.
Norwegian Rail Lines. The
current maps show the Oslo/
Lillehammer and Hamar/ Elverum
rail lines meeting in two
junctions, with Hamar on a spur
off the main line. This is incorrect
as both lines met in Hamar. The
depiction of Frederikstad on a
spur is also incorrect as the main
line went through the town. The
line from 10Az3908 to 3807 did
not exist and should be deleted
from the maps. Finally, the main
line west from Oslo is only
partially shown; thus the rail lines
in hexes 10A:4008 and 4009
should be connected.
Osteroya. The large fjord shown
just north of Bergen [10A:3116/
11A:1301] is larger than it should
be. This was in reality a very
narrow fjord which completely
encircled the large island of
Osteroya. As the entrance to the
fjord was less than half a mile
wide, and Osteroya itself was
essentially clear terrain and
connected to Bergen and the
northern shore by several ferries,
the impression given by the fjord
in is erroneous. Even excising the
island of Osteroya, however, does
not yield as large a fjord as
shown. A more accurate depiction
of the fjord would be to show sea
hexsides at 10A:3116/ 3015.
3015/ 3115, and 3015/ 3014.
Akrafjord. The southern of the
two fjords shown in the center of
hex 10Az3416 is the Akrafjord
which in reality reaches to within
four miles of the glacier complex
shown in 10Az3414. Thus there
probably should be sea hexsides
at 10A:3517/ 3416/ 3516/ 3415.
(also 11A:1702/ 1601/ 1701/
1600).

Vindafiord. Hex 10A23617

(11A:1802) is ambiguous, as it has
two pieces of land separated by
impassable terrain. Close study of
maps of this area shows that the
major water barrier here is not
the Vindafjord, but rather the
Sandsfiord just to the east. Thus
redrawing the Vindafjord to fall
entirely within hexes 10A:3517
and 3518 allows the Sandsfjord to
be shown directly at hexsides
10A:3617/ 3517/ 3616 (also
11A:1802/ 1702/ 1801.)

Lysefiord. One rather large fjord

in southern Nomay got left off
the maps entirely. This is the
Lysefjord and should run through
hexsides 10A:3718/ 3817/ 3717
(11A:1903/ 2002/ 1902).

Additional Norwegian
Islands. Add the islands of
Huttaroy (10A:3217/ 11A:1402,
clear terrain) and Otroy
(10Az2308, clear terrain).
—

“
Narrow Strait
10A:3417/3317 Stord ferries
Narrow Strait
10A'3317/3318 one mile wide
Narrow Strait
10A:3317/3316 Tysnes/Stord ferry
Narrow Strait
10Az3317/3217 Huttaroy ferry
Narrow Strait
10A:3117/3217 Huttaroy ferry
Narrow Strait
10A:3116/3117 Store ferry
Narrow Strait
10A'3116/3016 Hosnoy/Askoy

Narrow Strait
Narrow Strait
ferries
10A13117/3016 two miles wide

10A:3016/3015 Alversund ferry

Narrow Strait
10A:3116/3015 Osteroya ferries
Narrow Strait
10A:3313/3213 Hardangerfjord

Narrow Strait
Narrow Strait
ferry
10A:3110/3010 Kaupanger ferry
10A:2911/2912 Balholm ferry
Narrow Strait
10A:2714/2715 two mile strait
Narrow Strait
10A:2411/2410 Gurskoy ferry
Causeway
10A:2410/2409 Ulstein bridge
Causeway
10A:2409/2408 Alesund bridge
Narrow Strait
10A:2202/2103 Froya ferry
Narrow Strait

Narrow Strait
53:2028/1929 Rorvik ferry
Narrow Strait

Narrow Strait
53:1622/1523 Donna ferry
Narrow Strait
53:1622/1522 Nesna ferry
page

53:2429/2430 Beitstadfjord ferry

Narrow Strait
53:2332/2231 Affjord ferry
Narrow Strait
53:2129/2128 Otteroy ferries

53:2026/1926 Oksningen ferry

Narrow Strait
53:1824/1825 Velfjord ferry
Narrow Strait
53:1622/1623 Alsten ferry

Supply Problems. The addition

of the ferry crossings resolves
most of the supply problems in
Norway, but one troubling area
remains. This is the Norwegian
province of Sogn 0g Fjordne (the
two peninsulas west of the three
contiguous glacier hexes on map
10A). The current map depiction
31

effectively turns this area into an

island; changing hex 10A22709 to
mountain and adding the ferry
crossings resolves the access
problem and allows units
operating in the northern of the
Sea Crossings. The following Narrow Strait two peninsulas to be supplied via
sea hexsides should be crossable 10Az2409/2510 Vartdalsfjord ferry Alesund, but units in the southern
by ground units: Narrow Strait peninsula can still operate only
10A:2409/2509 Storfjord ferry out of supply.
Type Narrow Strait
Location Reason 10A:2309/2308 Otroy ferry In most games this will not
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait matter, as the area will rarely, if
10A:4108/4008 Drobak ferry 10A22307/2308 Otroy ferry ever, be the scene of active
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait operations. But think for a
10Az4008/4109 Drammen ferries 10A22507/2405 Langfjord ferry moment what use an Allied
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait player bent on cutting off the
10Az4109/4110 Drammen ferries 10A:2307/2306 Averoy ferry flow of iron ore from Narvik can
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait put this area to. This is the closest
10A:4210/4211 Langesund ferry 10A:2406/2306 Kvernesfjord ferry portion of Mommy to Allied air
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait units operating out of the
10Az3818/3817 Hogsfjord ferry 10A:2406/2405 Bergsoyfjord ferry Shetland islands. The area also
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait has three clear terrain hexes
10Az3717/3616 Josenfiord ferry 10Az2405/2306 Kristiansund ferry suitable for amphibious invasion
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait and building airfields (10Az2715,
10A:3616/3517 Sandsfjord ferry 10A:2405/2404 Halsafjord ferry 2714, and 2613). Couple this with
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait the fact that it is going to take
10A23518/3519 Karmoy ferries 10A:2403/2304 Frtvagoy ferry several turns for the German
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait player to even begin to get troops
10Az3418/3519 Karmoy ferries 10A:2304/2305 Tustna ferry into the area in response to an
Narrow Strait Narrow Strait invasion and you can begin to see
10A:3417/3318 Bomlo ferries 10A:2303/2202 Hitra ferry the problem. Now, if the road
 58:1928 Exaggerates island's size
532232 (also 10A:2200)
Miniscule
10A:2302 Artificial one-hex
bastion
10Az3017 (also 11A:1202)
Exaggerates island‘s size
10Az3618 11A:1803) Artificial
one-hex bastion. Q.

Coming Attractions
Europa #12 will feature an article on German tactical
doctrine in the summer of 1941 by Roy Lane. In addition, John
Gee will launch a discussion on the Armed Forces of the
belligerents in the Spanish Civil War, A.E. Goodwin continues
to hang ten along the coast of Sweden, Tom Johnson takes a
look at the proper usage of engineer units in Europa , John
Astell concludes his study of Soviet Guards, and Mark
Pitcavage starts a series of articles on Europa strategy. We
will finally take a look at SE play balance (delayed again by
lack of space), and of course there will be our regular columns
and features.

BITE SIZE EUROPA NEWS BITS

infrastructure in the area were
such that it actually would take
several turns to move troops
overland, this would be a
perfectly valid tactic for the
Allied player to take; but there
happened to be a very good hard
surfaced highway running right
through this area during WW“. I
recommend adding this highway
to the maps as a road which
would run through hexes
10A:3005, 3006, 2907, 2807,
2808, 2709, 2710, 2711, 2712, and
2713.
Unplayable Coastal Hexes.
The following coastal hexes are
recommended for change to full
sea hex status (and thus
unplayable by ground units):
Location Reason
5321524 Exaggerates island's size
5821624 Exaggerates island's size
58:1725 Exaggerates island's size
by Deen Wood
Wonder Weapons of WI]:
The V-13
Re: (1.5. VI] Corps attack on
Aachen, 12 October 1944.
"Not to be excluded from the
bombardment, the 1106th
Engineer Combat GroupIn
defensive positions astride the
heights south of Aachen rigged an
ingenious device which the men
dubbed the V—13. Towing an
Aachen streetcar to the crest of a
hill, they stacked the car with
captured explosives set with a
time fuse and Sent it careen‘mg
down the trolley tracks into the
city. On the first try, the car
exploded prematurely. A second
ground to a halt at the wreckage
of the first. After patrols had
cleared the tracks. the engineers
tried again. This time the car
reached the city proper before it
exploded. Whether it did any
actual damage to the German
installations was irrelevant in
view of the impish delight the
engineers derived from it."
The Siegfried Line Campaign, by
Charles B. MacDonald. Center of
Military History, United States
Army, Washington, 0.6., 1984, p.
310.
1953), P. 247.243. .

I’M! “'IIIDA“
Design Update by Jeff Millefoglie
Targeted for a 1990 release date,
For Whom the Bell Tall: is
currently in the playtesting stage.
Over thirty draft 'pre-playtest'
kits have been distributed since
the end of last November, with
about half of the recipients
responding in some manner. Their
feedback has already generated a
great deal of much appreciated
errata, with more (I'm sure) on the
way.
FWBT began rather innocently as
a possible article l was writing on
upgrading and revising the rules
set for illlo Pasaran! [They shall
not passl], published in The
Grenadier #27. had been
I
fortunate enough to playtest
mm with John Gee, and assist
him with his design (most of this
"assistance“ being clerical in
nature). John persuaded me that
a more substantial revision would
be desirable, including the
integration of several order of
battle modifications and additions
he had come across since his
earlier research. More
importantly, he was able to
convince Winston Hamilton to
consider and support FWBT as a
full-fledged Europa title. What
follows is a brief overview of the
current components of the draft.
ORDERS OF BATTLE
John Gee will be covering his
work on the OBS in detail in a
future issue of the Europa
magazine. There will be several
changes which should be
apparent to veterans of mm.
including revised units ratings
(primarily manifested in the form
of lower attack and movement
factors) for many of the infantry
and artillery formations on both
sides (over half of all Loyalist
infantry divisions are now rated
as 2-3»5's and the Nationalists,
who could formerly deploy as
many as 41 divisions with 5(+)
AFs in jNPl, now have only 16 of
’I‘IIIE Illiltli ’I“'Illls
the beasties in FWBT.
Yet another political faction, the
Falangists (Spanish fascists), has
been broken out from the
preexisting Nationalist units. A
third paramilitary organization,
the Guardia de Asalto (a creation
of the young Republic,
represented as police), has joined
the Guardia Civil (security) and
Carabineros (border). Several
naval infantry and Interventionist
(Kondor Legion and CW) support
units have also been added as a
result of further research on
John's part. The Insurgent air
force has been broken out into its
constituent parts: the Nationalist
air force proper, the Kondor
Legion, and the Aviazione
Legionaria. Several Anarchist
brigades raised later in the war.
and in "The Republic of Malaga',
have been added to further
augment the already
embarrassingly large collection of
marginally effective Loyalist
units.
Perhaps most significantly, the
order of appearance for many of
the northern Gobernito (Asturian,
Basque, Catalan, and Santandero)
infantry formations has been tied
to Insurgent activity, helping to
address the problem of early
collapse by these 'little
governments' when confronted
with the earlier-than-historical
campaign in the North inevitably
chosen by Nationalist players in
NI”.
MAPS
When the project began, John and
I
assumed that we would have
some flexibility in modifying the
existing maps from Spain and
Portugal (map 23) and Fall of
France (western half of map 17),
and that the result would be, like
the game itself, a stand-alone
item (i.e., not necessarily a
component of Grand Europa).
Page 33
John had come across a rather
detailed railroad map of the
Iberian peninsula which
suggested the need for some
minor revisions to the Spanish rail
net. Additionally, we were
interested in seeing the terrain in
both the Basque country (the
northeastern coastal region of
Spain) and the southern/eastern
(depending on which north you're
using: true, magnetic, or Europa)
end of the Ebro valley
represented as rough rather than
clear hexes. Finally, the addition
of point cities and regional
boundaries was desired, in order
to facilitate the implementation
of various rules mechanics we
planned on including.
While laying out the regional
boundaries was fairly straight
forward, choosing some criteria
for the inclusion of the point cities
was not so obvious. Population
seemed a good place to start, but
after obtaining and studying the
census figures for Spain it
became apparent that even the
existing stratification of Europa's
major, dot, and reference cities
didn't always fit into clean
categories (Teruel, with no
permanent airfield and a
population only half that of any
other Spanish reference city
represented on the maps, was the
most blatant example). A cut off
figure of 25,000 persons was
originally chosen as the level
necessary for inclusion as one of
the 'new' point cities, with any
provincial capitals not already
included being thrown in as well.
Enter Europe's renaissance man,
Arthur Goodwin. Arthur
(unbeknownst to us) had already
been working on maps, not only
for Spain, but for Europe as a
whole. His typically well-
researched and thorough efforts
have yielded maps which are far
superior to anything that John
Page 34

M
—————.—_——_—_—
and could have produced
I

ourselves. Ambiguous coastal

hexsides have been eliminated;
rail lines added, revised and
reclassified as high or low
capacity (with most of the former
"roads" on the Spanish maps
properly elevated to this latter
category); port capacities
differentiated; and the inclusion
of point cities rationalized (with
cities over 20,000 persons in
1940, provincial capitals,
significant ports. and important
rail junctions now incorporated).
Additionally, Arthur has added
five reference cities, promoted
Sevilla and Gijon to partial hex
and dot city status respectively.
and sent Teruel down to the
minor leagues to join the other 81
point cities in Spain, Spanish
Morocco, and the Balearic lslands
(this last geographical entity yet
another new 'feature').
RULES

I
Despite the advantages of an
already existing core system, and
even a published game on the
same subject, working on the
rules set for FWBT has been a
very humbling experience.
Whenever and wherever possible,
have swiped John Astell's (and
John Gee's) prose word for word.
I've also borrowed liberally from
the many fine submissions
SE. with a healthy dose of 'WitD'
thrown in (Bill Stone has already
explored and covered much of
this synthesis in his 'Hitler Turns
South” scenario, and General
Stein articles in E T0). Wherever
applicable, SE enhancements
(such as the 1/7th AEC/ATEC
proportion, partisan attacks, local
drafting, etc.) have been adapted
and included. Among the
subsystems exported from the
desert, the most crucial is the
concept (and mechanic) of attack
supply. This was an idea which
had been considered as far back
as NH and rejected as being an
unnecessary complication.
Besides, limiting the logistics for
both sides would get in the way
of 'settling hash,‘ a phrase used
around these parts to describe
seriously offensive behavior (i.e.,
a lot of combat).
One of the most endearing
qualities of mm was the wild
and crazy, non-stop, thrill-a-
minute action, particularly during
its opening turns. While this may
have had little historical validity.
it sure was fun, and played out
I

the first months again and again

published in both ETO and TEN
by those disciples of the system
who have contributed so much to
its growth and improvement over
the last several years (though the
selection process has been
admittedly arbitrary up until
now). Most important to me has
been the support and assistance
of the local wargaming grognards,
the Bros, particularly David Bolt.
While the Bros' reputation for
irreverence is well earned and
worn with much pride, they are
very experienced with and
knowledgeable of the Europa
system, and their comments and
suggestions have been uniformly
constructive.
The most obvious changes to the
system result from the upgrading
of the basic rules set from one
based on FitE to one based on
(and again), always rolling to see
which way the peacetime, regular
army would go. David Bolt aptly
described this phenomena as "am
roller derby,‘ and after a single
playtest, he became an ardent
(and convincing) advocate for the
necessity of utilizing steps of
attack supply (half as big as those
in Western Desert/Torch, i.e..
each step allowing only 5 REs,
rather than 10, to attack at full
strength) to properly reflect the
lack of ammunition on both sides.
(German and Italian formations,
lavishly supplied relative to the
Spanish units, are considered to
be in attack supply whenever able
to trace a line to an Insurgent
owned port.)
Other 'WitD" concepts include
discrete rail depots located at
major and dot city hexes (which
can attenuate as the war drags on
and the depots themselves
change sides) and the simpler air
replacement system, used with
the lnterventionist air forces (both
the Germans and Italians were
able to maintain their air
strengths at relatively stable
levels, despite losses. throughout
the conflict by drawing upon the
pilots and aircraft of the
Luftwaffe and Regia
Aeronautica).
Fundamental to FWBT are many
of the special rules relating to the
Spanish Civil War originally used
in iNPl. Militia unreliability
(being unable to count on
formations attacking or defending
normally during the opening
months of the campaign) is still
here, although utilizing one die
roll per combat rather than one
per militia unit (another David
Bolt suggestion) facilitates
execution of the mechanic, and
some Insurgent units (Falangist
and Requete) are now afflicted as
well.
Artillery points (whose less
specific precursors in mm,
equipment points, were borrowed
from Their Finest Hour) are yet
another reflection of the
shortages endemic to the conflict.
While perhaps unnecessary when
dealing with the (by comparison)
well equipped armies of WWII,
supporting arms (or lack thereof)
were a serious consideration in
Spain. The advent of the civil war
and the attendant level of
mobilization of the unarmed
populations on both sides brought
with it a demand for armaments,
particularly artillery, that far
exceeded the capabilities of
Spain's domestic industry to
meet. While the Rebels (thanks to
their lnterventionist benefactors,
particularly Italy) had less
difficulty in this regard than the
Loyalists, both sides relied
heavily on foreign shipments right
up through the end of the war.
The Insurgent naval blockade of
Loyalist reinforcements arriving
from overseas (c/m and artillery,
steps of attack supply, artillery
points, and armor RPS, most of
these having been purchased
from the Soviet Union) is still
abstracted with a revised iNPll
'WitD“ naval blockade table.
W
The reinforcements and
replacement rules (given the large
and varied cast of characters on
both sides) are still complex and
detailed, reflecting the diverse
ways in which units appeared.
evolved, and (when necessary)
were replaced. The ability of the
Insurgents to use a limited
number of Colonial, Falangist, and
Requete infantry FlPs when
building (and rebuilding)
Nationalist divisions, for instance,
may seem like just another bit of
confusing chrome (even, at times,
to the designers themselves). but
it reflects an important advantage
which the centralized dictatorship
of Franco held over the
chronically fractious Loyalist
coalition of semi-autonomous,
separatist governments (the
Gobernitos), far-left radical
movements (the Anarchists and
P.0.U.M., these latter anti-
Stalinist Marxists), and the
Republic itself (predominantly
Socialist when the revolt broke
out, by the end of 1937 it had
evolved into a pro-Soviet,
communist dominated
government, a process largely
facilitated by the refusal of any
other European government, save
the USSR, to support it.
Political rules in FWBT (like those
for reinforcements and
replacements) are necessarily
detailed. The reluctance of the
Gobernitos to commit their own
forces in any endeavor not
directly related to their own
defense is handled with
deployment restrictions, now
implemented on a regional basis
(thanks to Arthur's boundaries),
rather than an artificial radius
around their capital/supply
sources.
The constantly changing attitude
of France (Europe's other Popular
Front government) towards
supporting the Republic is still
handled through the mechanic of
a French Border Table, which
from time to time allows overseas
shipments to avoid the Insurgent
naval blockade by off-loading in
French ports and then moving into
Loyalist controlled Spain via a
friendly border hexside/rail line.
Pacification (an euphemism used
to describe the oft-times brutal
suppression and outright murder
of 'enemy' civilian populations by
an occupying military force) is a
crucial element of FWBT, and one
which both sides (particularly the
Insurgents. who were capturing
most of the enemy-held territory)
had to deal with. Captured cities
are pacified by being garrisoned,
with the number of REs and turns
based on the type/size of the city
itself. Once pacified, cities
provide an intrinsic defense
strength for the owning player
(again. based on type).
Various “Bro Rules' (i.e., rules
developed by David Berry and
appearing in his Bro scenarios)
have been borrowed. These
include limited intelligence
(organizing stacks and/or
employing corps markers to limit
the other player's knowledge of
their contents). incremental
ground CRT (rolling for the next
odds level on a ten-sided die if
the ratio is at least half way
there, which partially offsets the
defensive advantage gained with
publication, ultra—optional, semi-
subversive suggestions by the
designers will be appreciated and
welcomed.
Acknowledgements
I
would like to take this
opportunity to again thank the
aforementioned David Bolt (who
has played 181 turns of FWBT
with me over the last year end a
half, and contributed
immeasurably to the evolution of
the game), Arthur Goodwin (who
not only provided the maps, but
ably served as our quality control
in reviewing the various drafts),
Bill Stone (from whom borrowed
feedback), and all the other
I
many rules relating to the supply
and rail systems), Harald Hansen
(a [NPI playtester and the only
person who has played that game
more than John Gee and me, he
has already solitaired a complete
FWBT campaign game and
provided a great deal of valuable
playtesters who have spent time
on this game so far, especially
Greg Bartels, David Berry, Bobby
Bryant, Dennis Dubberley, Victor
Hauser, Fred Helfferich, Roy
Lane, Andrew Pollack, Gary
Stagliano, Shelby Stanton, and
Page 35
Joseph Youst. Q
limited intelligence), battalion
stacking (allowing two battalions
of the same type and affiliation to
stack together as a single non-
divisional unit), and
entrenchments (bestowing upon
stacks containing divisions which
:
Qaeefie Players in Europe).
remain in the same hex for .
several turns a -1 die mod to The Wiesbaden Kriegspielers
reflect the digging of trenches,
:.- are looking for more! I.
-
laying of wire, registration of Warga mars. in the Frankfurt;
j
artillery, etc.). Wiesba'd'en; and Mainzare
'
Call Tom at 06190-1535
Whether or not these (and other)
rules will be included in the final
game will depend largely on
feedback from the playtesters
and, most importantly, John
Astell himself. His upcoming
review/edit of the current rules
set, further contributions to it
(particularly those new Grand
Europa mechanics appearing in
places; 'andj'vve .will put it in'
Second Front), and decisions our magazine; ;' Please “keep it -
as short as possiblea’n’d it will
regarding whether rules are to be appear‘w'ithin, Thank
included as core, special, [Pub]
advanced, optional, or post-
Page 36
Campsites Assisted Emsps
Within this forum it will be my
pleasure to introduce two unique
technologies: countless cardboard
squares, pages of printed
instructions, complex matrices,
and colorful cartography (Europa
in its many forms) AND countless
silicon squares, pages of printed
instructions, complex bus
structures, and colorful cathode
ray tubes (microcomputers in their
many forms).
It is my hope that in the coming
months I can provide insight into
how microcomputer technology
can enhance one's enjoyment of
the Europa game system. The PC
(personal computer) serves as an
excellent assistant to Europa
play, although it is not (at
present) the platform for the
complete automation of the
Europe game system (e.g. there
is noEuropa computer game). To
that end, the discussions herein
will be focused on what I call
Computer Assisted Europa or
CAE (excuse my acronym - in my
line of work they are a matter of
survival). CAE can take many
forms, the following is a short
description of the techniques I
will address in future columns:
-Available TODAY: Play By
Electronic Mail
PBEM is a less expensive, swift
method of playing Europa with
other computer/Europa users
across town, in the next state, or
around the globe.
-Available TODAY: Play By
Electronic Mail Tool Kit
A program designed to speed the
execution of “game turn'
generation for Europa PBEM
games. This product will assist by
sorting units by type, strength,
compass orientation (is. north to
south, east to west), 'rolling the
die”, and even printing the results
of combat.
- Available TODAY: Europa
-by Mark van
Game picture on a disk.
Through the use of optical
character recognition technology,
share a picture of the current
'front' with computer/Europa
users around the world on a
floppy disk. Actually take a video
image from your Camcorder and
digitize it, then send it (via GEnie
Email) to a friend in a computer
file he can read on his PC. Look
for these PICS in the Europa
library on GEnie.
- Available 3rd quarter '90
(partially functioning program
available TODAY): "Computer
Ready' FitEISE Rules Set
A complete listing of the FltE/SE
rules set ready for your word
processing program.
-Available TODAY (albeit a bit
expensive): FltEISE Intelligent
Rules Set Smartext T“
A program designed to search by
key 'word' or 'words" the entire
rules set and provide a list of
rules sections to choose from and
than to take you to the exact
passage asked for. How many
times have you thumbed through
that FitE/SE rules set? Great
learning tool. Available for the
Mac: TODAY (other Europa rules
set supplements to follow
available at Origins ‘90).
...just to name a few.
This month lwould also like to
introduce you to GEnie: General
Electric Network Information
Exchange. GEnie is exactly what
the name implies: an information
exchange. GEnie is a large
computer system that you can call
using your computer and a
modem (a computer's telephone)
by simply dialing a local
telephone number (in most cases).
As mentioned, a computer, a
I
modem, and a GEnie membership
Rokel
are required (see the magazine ad
for membership information) to
take advantage of this system.
GRID, Europa, and wargamers in
general have reserved a special
place on GEnie. To my knowledge
GEnie is the largest gathering of
wargame hobbyists online
anywhere in the world. Over 75
different wargame topics, and
numerous game designers
(anybody remember Jim
Dunnigan7), game companies (i.e.,
GRID, GDW, Microprose, and 3W),
and game players communicate
using GEnie. In an effort to
maximize your time online with
GEnie, here are a series of
shortcuts that take you right to
the “front.'
After you have entered your
password and find yourself at the
'Top" menu (the first screen), type
the following exactly: m 805:1
and then hit the return key. This
command will deliver you to the
Games Round Table and
specifically to the General
Discussion menu. At this point we
are just one command away from
the Europa Category - just type
the following: 3 and then: 26 with
a return after each number. At
this point you are no longer in
Kansas. You are deep within the
recesses of a machine where
uniquely intelligent creatures
communicate by sending
electronic pulses across wire that
crisscrosses their even stranger
world. In order to read and take
part in the fun type: 2. This
command lists all the new (unread
topics) available to read and
respond. Note all the subjects
listed have a corresponding
number. If you find a subject that
sounds interesting type: 7 and
then the corresponding subject
number.
More later; time to shut down for
now! (2

Send all niles questions to: Rick Gayler, Po.
Box 2431, Opelilra, AL 36801. Include a SASE
for retum mailing. If possible, cite the rule
number and frame youquesfions in a 'yes",
'na', or multiple choice fashion. 'Design
questions" will be answered only as lime and
resources permit.
Frrst this from Charles Meyer: 'I hate to be
the one to give you a baptism of fire, butI
disagree with your '12-10 panzer and 2-1-10
assault gun battalion forced to retreat
through zones' example in TEN #9. The
rules state that units retreat, not stacks. To
further substantiate my belief I refer to rule
14.H.t paragraph 3. lacknowledge that this is
a special rule for commandos, but it is the only
example given of how units retreat. This is a
game-maker or game-breaker.‘
As I've said before, there are an awful lot of
folks out there confused about proper play of
Europa games Imyself once thought as
Charles did unfit John Astell straightened me
out. In fact, this question was taken from my
own personal 08A tile specifically because I
suspected there were some who
misunderstood the way retreats work. My
answer was reconfirmed with John before
publication and is the correct Europa
interpretation. Charles is right when he says
that 'units retreat, not stacks.‘ But the key
is that the units all retreat simultaneously.
The exception is the special case covered in
Rule 14.H.1, paragraph 3, which should not to
be applied to regular retreat mechanics.
An important point: All 'Rules Court“ articles
are reviewed by John Astetl. This should
provide a larger degree of confidence than it
the rulings appearing in this column were
solely my own judgments. This is not to say
that all rulings which appear here are 100%
last in stone or will not be reexamined it
necessary. In fact, there are several past
rulings under appeal review even now. And the
'rail upgrade by construction engineer"
judgmert in TEN #5 is a prime example
where after lurther review a ruling was
overturned. But by letting John review
answers prior to publication, such should be
kept to a minimum. And in the above case, 'the
play stands'.
Another item to note: John Astell clarifies
elsewhere in this issue exactly what
constitutes 'otiicial Europa'. This
supersedes anything I might have said or
Rules
Rick
Court
by Gayler
implied in the past. Be sure to read it!
Now on to some judicial p‘riosophy. it my
capacity as Rules Magistrate there is one
important service loan provide to he Europa
player community. This service is to generate
as mudr oonsistencyas pow‘ble when
interpreting the existing nrles. In order to do
this I must establish concrete guidelines for
answering certain groups of questions.
Rather than just answering a specific
question, i strode address the problem Mitch
generated the question from the perspective
of the entire system. if at all possible. Proper
execution in this regard will not create new
rules, but rather will fill in with mortar any
cracks that might exist in the current mles
set. An example or two will demonstrate what
Imean:
A reader might ask the SE question, “Does a
truck unit count in the calculation of AECI
ATEC?‘ Now I could just say 'No' and go on
to the next question. But what prompted this
question in the first place? It must be the
special characteristics of trucks as outlined in
rule 14| that are confusing the player. Trucks
do not count against stacking (implying 0
RES), but are 3 REs in size “for
transportation purposes'. Which
characteristic applies when trying to follow
the covenants of Rule 100‘? A proper answer
should expand on this specific case to include
units other than trucks which are treated
similarly.
A more uselul answer would be, 'No, units
which do not have a stacking value are not
included in AEC/ATEC calculations.‘ This
answer not only responds to the specific
question at hand, but gives players a firm
guideline to apply to similar cases Mich arise,
suchas, 'Do positionMuitscomtinAECI
ATEC calcuations?‘
Havinglaidttisiou'rdation,onemnthenbrrid
onitfurtherbyapplyingthissamelogicto
ottrercombatmlcdatiorrs'rrvotvirrgREs,br
instanoe,winbrizationAgain,'uitsvmichdo
nothaveashdrhgvduearenot'nctudedh
winterization wicdations.‘ Andsoon.
Here's anotherwsezlhe rulesdo notsayso
explicitly, but they strongly imply that
combat occurs with‘n the hex occupied by the
defender. Just I) cite two examples to
support this theory, (1) the battle is
affected by the terrain type contained in the
Page 37
defender's hex (Rule 9H), and (2) 'the
stacking limit of a hex is also the limit on the
number of units that may attack that hex
from an adjacent hex.‘ (Rule 88). Now add to
thisthe second sentence of Rule 9which
states '...no unit may attack into or across
terrain prohibited to that unit.‘ The marriage
of these two concepts leads one to draw the
following conclusion: ‘A unit may only attack a
hex into which it may move.“ This seems
perfectly logical; it combat occurs within the
defenders hex, the attackers would have to
'move into' that hex in order to initiate a
battle in the first place.
However, one does not have to look far to find
exceptions to this 'truism'. Consider. for
instance, a river flotilla (RF) unit Reading
the combat example in Rule 28E, fifth
paragraph, one finds a clear exception to my
nice little theory. Here, a RF and a 445 rifle
division in 4A:2204 attack an Axis unit in
4A:2205. The example says, 'lf the attack
srmeeds, the division, but not the RF could
advance after combat‘ The reason the RF
can not advance is that 4A:2205 is a hex into
which it is not allowed to move. But yet it may
attack this hex. Faced with this inconsistency
in my theory, should I throw it out the door?
NO! I should look at all the exceptions to see if
there is a rationale for the inconsistencies.
And most importantly, l should make rulings so
as to limit these exceptions to those cases
explicitly stated in the rules.
Are there other exceptions? Yes, there is the
case of naval gunfire support, where a ship
fires into inland hexes which it may not enter,
and there is the case of RR artillery units,
Michmaytireintoahexwhidtdoesnot
contain a rail line, and therefore is terrain
prohibited to them. Ttre rules specifically
allow this and so these specific exceptions are
okay. Is there a trend here? Tt-e RFs, ships,
and RR artillery are all mils which deliver
longrange artillery fire (although the RFs
are somewtat gray in this regard). However,
there clearly is logic here, after all. These
units' firepower can be delivered into the
defenders hex without the units themselves
needing to be physically present.
lnothermses, Ishculddiginmyheelsandhold
to the concept outlined above, namely, that a
unit may not attack a hex into which it may not
move. Consistent application of this
interpretation should be applied and
reinforced. Can a Rumanian mil in the C
Page 38
m
weather zone attack an adjacent Soviet unit in
the B weatherzone? Can a partisan unit
attack an adjacent position AA unit which is
outside its operational area? Can a cavalry
unit attack an adjacent enemy unit in the
arctic from zone B? ls it allowed to attack
Finnish units in Friend wh'le Finland is
neutral? The answer to all at these questions
is 'No' because of where Europa combat
oowrs. Again, here is a solid concept players
may use I) resolve many questions which arise
without having to write 'Rules Court.‘
On to this issue's GM!
Europe Basic
- in an HX or EX situation, it the larger sized
force is required to reduce a division to
cadre, must this cadre retreat like those of
the smaller sized force? It so, who retreats
first? (Rule QC)
Careful reading of the HX and EX results
indicates that the instructions for
implementing HX and EX results are split into
two parts: the first part describes what the
side with the lower printed combat strength
(or the defender if both sides are equal)
must do, while the latter part describes what
the player with the larger size force
subsequentlymust do. Notice that only units
in the smaller sized force which are reduced
to cadre must retreat. The attackers cadres
not only don'thave to retreat but they may
advance, if desired.
- l’m still confused about the correct amount
of movement points consumed in overruts ln
TEN #5, this question was asked: 'Does an
overnrnning unit have to pay the MP cost for
leaving the 20C of an enemy mit (in an
adjacent hex) even it the overrunning unit
does not advance into the overnn hex?“ The
answer given was, "Yes, it must pay all the MP
costs, whether it advances or not.‘ Does this
mean an ovemm'ng tn't less to pay movement
point costs to return from the overrun hex if
it decides not to advance? (Rule 13)
No, it would nothave to pay MPs to retum
from the overrun hex if it did not advance into
the hex in the first place. Only those MP costs
required to enter the hex are paid. An
example, to clarify: Suppose in clear weather
a 12-10 Gerrnm Panzer division wishes to
overrun an adjacent Soviet unsupported to
motorcycleregiment in a woods hex, behind an
unbridged minor river, and that to enter the
hex the Panzerdivision wouldhave to move
through the 206 of a Soviet division. The
Panzer XX would spend 6 MP5 to perform
the overrun: 2 MP5 for the woods, 2 MP5 for
moving through 200, 1 MP for the minor river
hexside, and 1 MP for the 12-1 woman. The
unitwouldmendecidewhethertoadvance
intothehexornot. Regardless ofihe decision
toadvanoe,fheunitwor.idonlypay6MPs
total for the overrun and still have 4 MP5 left
with whichtomove from whicheverhexitthen
occupied
Scorched Earth
.Do position AA or truck units affect AEC/
ATEC calculations? (Rule 100)
No,unitswhichdonollaveastadringvalw
are not included in AEC/ATECcalculations.
The same is true for ninten‘zation, enginem
arid other combat calarlations involving REs.
- May position AA and truck units advance
alter combat? (Rule 9F2)
Yes, it specifically included in the attack.
(Note thath might subject them to retreat
or even loss.)
oWhenus‘ngtherandomFmishWarAims
rule, swpose a two is drawn, wl'tich causes
Finland to remain neutral. It the Russians later
invade Finland or violate Finnishair space.
what does the war level escalate to? (Rule
390)
Violation of neer air space or invasion of a
neutral country with ground forces is not
allowed by either side within the framework
ofSE. See Rue SIB.
- Do the restrictions placed on units using
admin. movement apply only to the admin.
movemem part of a unit‘s movement. or to all
movement it does that turn it it does any
admin. movement? For example, suppose a unit
moves through three friendly-owned hexes
using admin. movement; could it then switch to
regular movement and begin moving through
enemyowred hexes using the regular
movement rate in the same tum? (Rule SB)
This is mtallouedperthe SErules as
written. Note that a clm unit can move admin.
irrlhe movementphasearxfthenenterenemy—
owned hexes, perform overruns, etc. during
the exploitation phase. Be advised thata
revision to the admin. rule is being tested in
Second From to allowsomething aim to what
you die above.
- When the engineering niles require a unit to
be 'in supply' to build a tort, a pennanent
airfield, or to regauge a rail line, may the
building unit draw supply from either trucks
or supply points, or must it come from a
regular source of supply? (Rule 14A1)
Either case would suffice; it only regular
supply were required, the rules would have
stated this.
- When the Axis regains control of Bessarabia
do the airbases of the region gain intrinsic AA
as described
answeris yes.
- When
W,
in Ruie 22At?
Rule 32A2 specifies Bessarabia becomes
part of Rumanla
an NKVD political
NKVD unit eliminated? (Rule HG)
Assuming the attacker has the greater
so the
unit is present in a
defending stack, on what CRT results is the
printed strength, the NKVD is eliminated on a
result of HX, EX, DR (which per Rule 14G
becomes an Eta, andDE. Note mat on a DH
result the NKVD unit may be chosen as part
of the defenders losses, but need not be; i.e.,
NK VD political units do not fall under the
'Required Losses" Rule 9t}.
- May the Soviet player position units in such a
way that they may simultaneowa serve in
both the Turkish and Iranian ganisons? (Rule
MH)
A Soviet unit may only be counted as part of
one garrison. Therefore a total of 45 RB is
required to properly garrison/occupy this
border region, until released.
- May the special replacements generated by
isolated Soviet losses which are used to
recruit partisan units be accumulated? (Rule
40C2)
No, they mustbe spent in the following Soviet
initial phase, as implied by the fact that
fractional brigades are rounded down. This is
important for play purposes, as to allow
partisans to be accumulated opens the door
for a numberofabuses and ahistoriml uses of
the partisan units. (Such as the infamous
'Partisan Insurrection/Offensive" - we'll have
to look at this further in a "Sick Tricks'
feature.)
- Exactly how long does it take for German
Eastem troop conditional reinforcements to
arrive, tour turns or tour initial phases? To
be specific, assume Kaunas is captured on Jun
ll 41 ; does the reinforcement arrive on Sep |
41 (4 turns later) or Aug ll 41 (4 initial
phases later)? (Axis OB, page 2)
The reinforcement arrives on Sep I41, four
turns later.
- May the Soviet 3rd Rifle Brigade in the
Baltic MD reserves deploy in either oi the two
small Baltic islands?
No, the OB clearly indicates that it must be
deployed on either Hiiumaa or Saaremaa
Island. The names of the other two islands, by
the way, are as mllows: 13:1015 = Muhu and
18.0715 = Vormsi.
. Our group is having difficulty interpreting

the Unit Identification Chan. What is the
correct AEC/ATEC rating (or German
Panzergrenadier units - 'Full, Full, Full' or
'1/2, HQ, Full'?
The text directly to the right of a given unit
symbol lists the ran‘ous names used to
describe that symbol. For example, the oval
'tread' symbol (first on the list) represents
a Tank, Armored, or Panzer unit. The multiple
names reflect the fact that various nations
used different nomenclature to describe what
was basrbally the same unit type: the Soviets
called them Tank units; the Axis Antes,
armored; and the Germans, Panzers. The
semicolon after the word 'Panzer' indicates
that the next line of text, ”Parachute
Panzer', amlies only to the second symbol on
the list. the ParachutePanzer symbol. Only
the German name for his unit type is listed
s'nceGermanywastheonlymtroninthegame
SE to field such a lonnation.
of text for the mird symbol on
The first line
the chart reads "Light Tank, Light Armored,
and ends wrth a comma. The comma imitates
that the word on the next line,
”Reconnaissance: is merely a third name to
describe that same symbol. Notice the
location of the symbol BETWEEN the two
lines of text to further denote that all three
words apply to the same symbol.
h addition to the symbols and their names,
the
chart also lists the AEC/ATEC ratings for
me various unit types. These ratings are
basedonnalionalityarumsomemses the
true frame of the war, and apply to all unit
types contained within that section of the
chart. For instance, the ratings for German
units in the first section - 'Full, Full, Full' -
Page 39
EXchange
Letters should be addressed to EXchange,
Dean has indeed updated and expanded
P.0. Box 2431, Opelika, AL 36801, and his article 'Scorched Earth Without the
should include the sender's address and North.‘ Anyone who is interested in
telephone number. Not all letters can be obtaining this improved version may
used. Those that are will often be edited receive one by sending a request, along
and excerpted. with a self-addressed stamped envelope,
to: Editor, P.0. Box 2431, Opelika, AL,
If at first you don‘t succeed... fix it in the 36801.
next issue! One victim of TEN 110's
holiday time crunch was the chart which Peter Robbins
was to accompany Charles Sharp's
'EXchange' letter. To make amends, we I know who in TEN #10 is: It's
are reprinting part of Charles' letter and fiur 'ihost'
the AWOL chart at the end of this column.
CIENSIDIEIEII
Forrest Opper
By Official Secrets Act para 12,
A few months or so ago received some
I subpar 591/2 'Disclosure of
back issues of TEN. In one of these there privilegedinformation to the
pressis unlawful." (See #12)
' was an article by Dean Wood on playing
FitElSE without the North (TEN #3). Since
Two additions to Winston Hamilton's
i
am rather cramped for space, it sounded 'Music for Europa ': First, Dimitri
like a good idea and so wrote to him
I
Shostakovitch's 'Leningrad,‘ or 9th
asking for more information. He, like GRID Symphony. Shostakovitch, along with
has also done in the past, replied with a other musicians fromthe Leningrad
great deal of camaraderie and Symphony Orchestra, worked as an air
information. was very impressed. The
I
raid warden and fireman during the siege
point I'm trying to make is that, for the first of Leningrad. He was flown out of
time since began this hobby in '81 or '82, |
I
Leningrad to conduct the Moscow
feel like belong to something alive. was
I I
premiere of that work. The symphony
a 'member' of the National Wargaming takes up two long LP discs, or about the
Association (Kriegsrat), the old American length of the average SE turn.
Wargaming Association, and the National
Monstergaming Society (Chainof- Or, if you prefer something a bit lighter,
Command}, but never 'beionged“ to
I
there is Al Stewan's ‘Roads to Moscow.‘
them, since really couldn't contribute any
I

apply to all German units bearing either the
Panzer or Parachute-Panzer symbol.
The AECA, AECD, and ATEC ratings for a
Panzergrenadierunit are found in the third
section of the chart. Since this is a German
unit, its ratings would be those listed in me
'All Other' row, namely, '1/2, 1/2, Full.‘ Of
the units bearing that particular symbol, only
Soviet Corps (which the USSR referred to
as 'Mechanized') are rated 'Full, Full, Full. '
- Clarification: As stated in A.E. Goodwin's
'Touring the Europa Seashore” article in TEN
#10, when usingFtule 39A, a wusewaymay be
captured, demolished, and repaired in the
same mamerasabridgeacrossamaiorriver.
People who sent this question to GDW
previously may have received an incorrect
answer.
articles to their newsletters (plus, it
seemed that whenever wrote a letter to
I
the editor, the newsletter folded or
changed its name). | now get TEN, of
course. and am a member of the Europa
Association. am absolutely amazed at
I
the amount of information and the good
gibes. There are very few put-downs or
negative ('You're not 0.K.') type
responses. In the vast majority of the print
on this wondrous system, I've seen
nothing but the healthy exchange of ideas
and the gladly accepted building on others'
ideas, modifications, and errors. am very
I
impressed and I want to do what can to I
help it to continue.
Well, Forrest, your string is intact. As you
have no doubt noticed on the cover of this
issue we have changed our name to the
Europe magazine.
A two-LP turn is not the average in these
parts; there must be something to the
theory that music increases productivity,
after all !
Rey Kanorr
What exactly is Europa T
I
have felt for a while that quite a bit of the
controversies that crop up with regard to
our panicular hobby are involved with the
question, misapprehension,
miscommunication, and/or vagueness
regarding what Europa is. Is it a series of
'games' (in the sense of a competitive
pastime, like contract bridge or
backgammon) that happen to share
certain basic constructed equivalencies
(scale, terrain, movement rates, etc),
which enable the 'games' to be combined
into a sort of supergame, though the bases
 Page 40
(like chess)?
Is it
W
(plural of basis) of the games may have
only the remotest connection to reality
a visual monograph, or series of
operational maps for various campaigns of
the Second World War as known in
history, more or less straitjacketed into
historical lines, with an invariable historical
outcome?
visual amusement (like a jigsaw
Is it a
puzzle) or aesthetic pursuit (as mah-jongg,
or more likely. Go, might be)?
an accurate political/economidmilitary
Is it
simulation of the state of Europe at some
time during the 1930's, and progressing
through the mid-1940's, open-ended as to
what might (within reason and capability)
happen or have happened in Europe
during this period of time, and
encompassing all reasonable (which is a
vague judgment that someone will have
to make) alternate possibilities and
outcomes in this geographical area with
and between the nations, territories,
dependencies, and colonies involved (note
that even the use of the term Europe is
stretched to include Northern Africa, the
region known as the Middle East, and in all
ways except territorially, many of the
states of the Americas)?
If it is a 'game,‘ then
anything can be done
without 'violating' any concept of
'historical' parameters, and any 'house
rule' is as good as any other, and all should
be given equal consideration.
lf it is simply a replay of history, then rules
should be promulgated to ensure that a
historical outcome (as far as we know
history, which is not at all an objective
science) is the result every time.
if it is a visual
amusement, then there
should be discussion on the most elegant
means (in terms of precision, neatness,
interest, and simplicity) of accomplishing
any goal in the exercise.
is supposed to be a simulator, then a
If it
great deal of work needs to be done in all
aspects of it, and those areas should be
identified and addressed in a methodical
and exhaustive manner.
Part of what is going on, of course, is that
Europe has elements of all of these things
combined within it. This is not necessarily
a 'bad' thing, but (to my way of thinking) it
does mean that there needs to be some
clear indication given by someone. as to
what part of Europe is a game (are all of
the air factors just rated in relation to each
other, in someone's opinion, and therefore
not necessarily directly related to some
sort of 'reality'?), what part is historical
mandate (if there is no other way in which
something could happen, or in which some
unit could be used, then there should be a
rules prohibition against any alternatives;
if not, then there should not be a
prohibition),what part is visual
amusement (my own thoughts in this
area lean toward units that are 'factored
in', rather than explicitly denoted, but
there are, of course, other possibilities),
and what part of it is political/economic!
military simulator (any number of points
could be indicated here, that being the
nature of something that is open-ended.
The creation of alternative mixes of units,
given different national priorities,
however, seems to be one candidate for
examination, as in: what would the
Germans have had to give up to complete
the naval Z-plan ships?)
Anyhow, this very briefly and superficially
covers what consider to be the stumbling
I
block to coherent thinking about Europe in
general, any specific Europa title, or Grand
Europe. think that it is the 'real' problem
I
behind a question like 'What should
constitute an overrun?'. What is the actual,
historical data behind the concept of the
overrun as it relates to an exercise with
two-week split turns (rather than
simultaneous movement/action), with
sequential action (in terms of hex-to-hex
combat), and a defined phase sequence of
events, given the historical doctrine and
use of various military units with the
division as a basis from which all factors
are derived? The overall question really
seems to be: how do we define and assign
parameters to all of the factors involved in
this enterprise?
Well, those are most of my thoughts on
this issue. Sorry for running on so, but I'm
geared, in both my personal and
professional life toward seeing overall
patterns, rather than singular events. and
these are much more difficult to discuss.
due to the usually sweeping area
encompassed.
Louis Rotunda
)
am pleased to see that my article on
Soviet warplans (TEN #9) and the remarks
that concluded that subject have
generated the thoughtful commentary of
fellow Europa players (TEN #10
'EXchange'). It was not my intent, as Rick
Gayler pointed out, to propose solutions,
but rather to frame the issues that should
be debated. To that end, would like to
several of the readers.
I
respond funher to the comments of
Deen Wood is quite right, believe, when
I
he states that the counters for the Red
Army represent Soviet deficiencies. The
question is, which deficiencies are
reflected? Many prewar Soviet divisions
are 36. Post June 22 divisions are also 3-
6. The former represented a trained cadre
and in some cases partially trained
manpower recalled to service. Equipment
and logistics were lacking in all Soviet
formations; however, the pre-war
formations were lavish in their training
and equipment compared to the post—
invasion formations. Where is the
deficiency rating?
In reading my article, call attention to the
I
actual Soviet expectation that the
German attack would occur along the
planned axis of western Belorussia and
the northern Ukraine. It would be
accompanied by one-half the Wehrmacht
(100 divisions) and the Luftwaffe. The
purpose of the existing Soviet deployment
(yes, a straitjacket for both sides) was to
outnumber that anticipated German
attack by two to one. Hence, 200 Soviet
divisions were drawn up to repulsethe
imagined lesser threat. Now, to question
the requirement to execute the only
Soviet plan known by the Red Army
troops (an idiot rule to some), while
accepting the deployment that is the basis
for that plan, is to exhibit selective denial.
Are some requirements better than others
if they happen to suit my taste?
Victor Hauser correctly states that there is
indeed a difference between history and
historical simulations. My intent in
indicating actual Soviet doctrine is that
many who play this game feel that it quite
accurately delineates history as it was. I
believe, however, that Europe reveals
history as it might have been. This is at
the heart of the issue of which rules are
restrictive or required. The problem is
defining the ingredients that go into the
mix. For example, Soviet doctrine in June
1941 was no great surprise to the German
Army. The deployment pattern alone
indicated the expectation for a stiff fight at
the frontier. Indeed, German planning

called for the destruction of the Red Army
nest of the Dnepr-Dvina river lines. The
campaign issue that arose in late June
early July was not over the level of fight in
the Red Army, but over the strength of the
fled Army beyond the reach of the initial
German attacks. My attempt to suggest
an alternative to the existing two-turn
(surprise and first) hammering of the Red
Army does not stereotype the game any
more than the existing lack of Soviet
response to surprise turn attacks. By doing
away with the surprise turn and allowing
the Soviets to execute their plan much as
the French-British move into Belgium,
much as the British collapse the ltalians in
Africa, or the British dash to Norway, the
game follows the pattern caused by it
being an operational simulation of an
already existing strategic situation.
Victor is concerned that a German player
who knows that the Soviets will attack
can rig the information to benefit himself.
Yes, this is true. However, under the
current conditions, Moscow knows the
strength. advance rates, targets, and
weather which will influence the first
campaign. Moscow further knows on turn
one that its Army can't win at the border. I
can assure you that no Soviet general
was privy to any of that information as
discussed above. Further, where did we
get these victory conditions? Who selected
Germany's allies for this fight and who
decided on their level of participation?
These conditions are all straitjackets for
the German player that were picked from
history - not from simulations.
Victor is right that my suggestions go to
the problem of mobility. During my writing
of Soviet Strategy during the Great
Patriotic War. one issue continued to recur
in Soviet operational conversations during
the summer—fall campaign. The problem
centered around the existing German
capabilityto exceed Soviet mobility in the
tactical battlefield. Couple this to the
German ability to reorganize and redeploy
their operational forces quicker than the
Red Army could respond. and the situation
was created that basically equal strategic
forces were meeting on the operational
battlefield at points of decided German
superiority. Worse, once the Nazi
breakthrough occurred, the superior
German logistics system was allowing
their forces to continue advancing faster
than Soviet forces could seal the breach.
Result: German advances continued to
occur until losses, logistics, and yes,
weather, finally slowed the Nazi tactical
evolutions on the battlefield to a rate
equal to the Soviet capability.
However, just when it seems that Europa
solutions require difficult fixes, along
comes an article like Duane Romfoe's
'Forward... Marchl' in TEN #10. The
simplicity of the suggestions and the detail
with which Romfoe builds his case
encourages me to suggest that this rule be
quickly adopted. Yet, the apparent fix on
one side opens a problem on the other.
Soviet forces were simply not capable of
executing these maneuvers during the
summer-fall. Neither by hasty training nor
by logistics support could Soviet forces
move to this system. As Romfoe indicates,
the rule needs to be tempered by existing
conditions. Deny this ability to Soviet
infantry the first summer-fall. Indeed, the
advance after combat rule could be denied
to regular Soviet rifle divisions. Since
attacks were especially prepared by
Soviet forces, only Guards and other
'elite' units should perhaps possess this
ability.
i believe this fix
goes to the heart of my
argument that Soviet forces have abilities
in game terms that did not exist in the real
world. Battle-trained German infantry
with several campaigns under their belts
should be expected to perform better than
raw Soviet recruits. Romfoe uses historical
documentation to represent this point.
Now I suggest the same. German infantry
dld perform better in the summer-fall. Not
in all cases, but in a great many. That could
be attributed to excellent junior officers,
bettertraining, superior logistics, and
better equipment. The combat rating
covers the obvious, the movement
advantage is also the result of the obvious.
With the Soviet fix, both doctrine and
logistics now have some measure of
involvement with the cardboard units that
pretend to be the Red Army.
Finally. i wish to return again to the
question of the air game. I have read more
comment on the air game than any other
element in recent days. During playtesting
of both mi and SE. l remarked
oominuously that the masses of Soviet air
power never intervened to such effect in
1941. Charles Sharp's historical
deployment and proposed rules that
appeared many years ago in The
Grenadier provoked much comment in
my circle of players. even tried a playtest
I
with the air units deployed for a surprise
Page 41
air strike and using a special abort rule. The
result was that Soviet air power was
overrun on its fields during the first several
turns. This result coincided with history in
some cases.
The problem is that German air power
does not seem to exert the result it did in
real life. Conversely. it seems much too
effective at the same time. Let me explain
whatl mean! Williamson Murray has
examined the German in-service rate for
the Luftwaffe. After the opening of the
campaign it declined rapidly. At most
points in the campaign it was about 50%.
The Soviets were hit even harder by the
lack of spare pans and new production.
Rates as low as 254096 were not
uncommon. Now don‘t wish to propose
I
another logisticalstraitiacket, but air
power doesn't seem as effective as it
ought to be if used in force and
concurrently seems damned too plentiful
for both sides at all times. So here is
another suggestion for the weary. Again I
caution that this needs work. Try a two—
phase air system, first a strategic strike
phase, and then a tactical phase. The
purpose is not to give you twice the bang
for the buck, but rather to make you think
about the uses of the air force. if air power
files a strategic and a tactical mission
(that‘s right. two separate missions in the
same tum), roll for attrition labortsl in the
middle of the turn.
Meanwhile, German repair rates are
much too generous. Likewise, Soviet
repair (roll = 1) never was that good in the
first summer. These should be devalued,
perhaps using a two dice table.
With this approach. air power can do
more, but at a penalty. There will be
plenty of aircraft; they iust won‘t be in-
service.
Charles Sharp
...To add my two cent's worth to
the “Victory Possibility“ debate: l
have to agree with Rotunda, in
that cannot imagine any way the
I
German military could have
conquered the Soviet Union.
Now, a German state that had
started real economic mob-
ilization for war and kept at it in
something other than the semi-
feudel and slipshod fashion the
Nazi state did, and a political
leadership that was willing to
enlist the Soviet subject peoples
in a real “Crusade Against
Communism," might have brought
Stalin's state crashing down. The
fall would have been as much
from internal stress as external,
however, because the German
military alone could not strike
deep enough and hard enough to
crush the Soviet forces.
Just for example, in spite of truly
amazing victories in 1941, the
German Army in Russia was
actually weaker in both firepower
and mobility at the beginning of
the 1942 campaign than it had
been less than a year earlier! The
average German infantry division
rSTRATEGlc AREA
Karelia + 7th Army
by 1942 had lost over 50% of its
motorized equipment, not very
plentiful in the first place, and the
Panzer formations outside of the
units specially rebuilt for the
campaign in the south averaged
less than 70 tanks each. Finally,
(and also from recent VIZ articles)
the 'massive' counteroffensive at
Stalingrad that trapped and
destroyed the spearhead of an
entire German army was
launched by the THIRD largest
grouping of Soviet forces at the
time (see the attached chart).
A glance will show that the
Soviet forces around Stalingrad
Men Artillery
340,000 3,931
had less than half the tanks and
only 2/3 the artillery of the
"static' Western theater around
Moscow, and less artillery and
men than the defenses around
Leningrad and vicinity! Only in air
power was there a significant
massing on the StalingradNolga
front. Of course, the strategic
reserves were shunted south
after the counteroffensive proved
a success: but the initial attacks
on 19 November 1942 that
isolated or destroyed almost 15%
of the Axis divisions on the
eastern front was launched by a
relatively modest Soviet force.
0
Tanks Aircraft‘
220 171

Kalinin, West Fronts, and

Moscow Defense Zone 1,890,000 24,682 3,375 1.170

Stalingrad, Don, and

Southwest Fronts 1,103,000 15,501 1 463 928

These figures do not include lhe PVO, VMF, or ADD (Air Defense, Naval. or Long Range Air Forces).

Europafest ll ' Progress Report #1lam happytoreportthatplansforthesecond

Europafest place, and most details are
are in defined. well
items of information
Key follows: are as
Site - the LeBaron Hotel, Dallas Texas
Dates - August 3-5, 1990
Admission - $16 for preregistered attendance; $18 at the door

Europafest ll will take place simultaneously with Dallascon,the annual regional gaming convention. Dallascon will be at the same hotel,
but the Europafest gaming area will be on a separate floor. A Europafest badge will allow access to all Dallascon activities as well, which
will include dealer's room and an auction. hope to have a separate program book as well as the separate badges and playing
area, in
I

order to underline our own identity.

The gaming area itself will be a large. somewhat irregularly shaped hall. After some experimentation with an automated PC basedlayout
routine, I am confident that we can accommodate some 18 events simultaneously, including 3 Eastern front setups, 2 'War in the Desert'
setups, 2 or 3 Second Front's, and the balance being the smaller games. This includes space for extra tables for the off-map displays as
well asthe tables for the maps themselves. The exact event mix expect will be based on input from participants.
I

In general, anticipate that the scenarios will be defined by and the games will be provided by you, the participants. expect that my role
I
I

will be that of a coordinator who arranges for space needed by players who want to play a particular game, and co—ordinate teams for
the larger events if needed. don't expect to have a dozen different events set up for people walking in to play, because frankly, i don't
I

expect to find the people locally to help me carry that sort of thing off.
The Dallascon convention hours are roughly 1 PM Friday
to 5 PM Sunday. have a commitment from the Dallascon manager to allow
I

preregistered Europafest participants access on Friday morning, and a VERY limited number of preregistered folk access Thursday night
for setup of the exceptionally large events. If you need this for your event, contact
me early on.
lhave held out one section of the hall for a banquet area. The current layout accommodates 66 people, maximum, commit
so early to
guarantee a place. expect the banquet to be Saturday evening. Banquet costs are $18 for a prime rib dinner. [See Chan on
I

reverselPreregistration will be done nationally through the Europa magazine. lwill work with \Mnston in the near future to define the
details. If anyone has specific events in mind to do though, go ahead and contact me now. My mailing address is: 4437 Denver Dr., Plano.
TX75093. Please mark Europafest correspondence as such on the envelope. Regards.

@urohaieét 31110
Site - the LeBaron Hotel, Dallas Texas
Dates - August 3 - 4 - 5, 1990
Admission - $16 for pre-registered attendance;
$18 at the door.
The second Europaiest will be held with John Astell, Rick Gayler, Winston Hamilton.
and many others in attendance. We will have a series of seminars, the famous
Europafeast dinner, Grand Europa Round Table, and other events sandwiched
between some(l) gaming. For more details. read the report in this issue of the
magazine.
Event map on the reverse of this pre-registration lorm. Fill out this form and return it
to the address listed below. We hope to see you at this convention which is the only
convention held for one wargame system. Space is somewhat limited this year and
we want to make sure that you have a chance to attend. Please take this
opportunity to register for our second convention.

IIAIL FEE-REGISTRATION TO:

EUROPAFEST TWO
4437 Denver Dr.
Plano, TX 75093.

address:

zlp code
phone
(opflonan

Pre-reglstratlon D $ 16
Our annual Europateast Annual DlnnerD $ 13
dinner this year will be $18
for a Prlme Rib dinner.
Total enclosed $
Page 44

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SIDE
ENTRY
 Origins '90
Atlanta
June 28, 29, 30, & July 1 at the
downtown Hilton, in Atlanta, Georgia
Convention Information (to get advance
registration, and all the rest) just call:
404- 925- 28 13
24 Hours a day!
Atlanta Hilton & Towers reservations can
be made by calling:
404- 659-2000

eiefisfls-
geg’ea
efi‘fifi
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 [In all frants. ..

Euroga for 1990

Fire III The East
Searched Earth
The llrals
IIaIkan Frant
Far Wham The [Bell ’I‘alls
Secaml Fralnf‘ ‘

' From Gama Dosigners' Workshop, scheduled for later this year.