1. INTRODUCTION
This is a quick-playing strategic level game covering World
War Two from 1940 to 1945 for 2-5 players. Players command
Nations, divided into Allied and Axis sides. Each turn represents
a year, during which every Nation will conduct Actions and
Responses based on the options on the various Nation Sheets
– including those of the enemy. At the end of each turn, either
side may lose Political Will (PW) based on the difference in
controlled Victory Spaces between the two sides. Either side
may win by forcing the enemy to reach 0 PW, or by having the
highest PW total at the end of the game. Alternatively, either
side may win by taking two enemy Capitals.
2. WHAT’S IN THE BOX
IMAGE (Board)
2.1 THE MAP
The map consists of spaces, divided into land and sea spaces.
Land spaces are either neutral (white) or have a colour
matching one of the 5 Nations – these colours show the
Nation’s Home Territory. Sea spaces have a light blue colour
and are treated like neutral spaces for scoring purposes.
Spaces connected by lines are deemed adjacent. There are 3
types of lines:
» Brown lines show land connections. Only Armies move
across these.
» Light blue lines show water connections. Generally, only
Fleets use these.
» Restricted lines have colours matching a specific Nation.
These are land connections, but only the listed Nation
treats the spaces as adjacent. For example, only Soviet
Armies may move from Moscow to Siberia.
The map “wraps around” such that the East Pacific space is
adjacent to the USA, connected by a blue line.
Each Nation has a Capital space – denoted by their flag (e.g.
Moscow is the Capital space for the Soviet Union). These are
important for supply, and losing control of your Nation’s Capital
restricts your available Actions.
A Victory Space is a space with a flag or a star. These spaces
are relevant for scoring. Note that Minor Nations have spaces
with their flag – but these are not to be treated as Capitals for
the purposes of the rules. They are Victory Spaces but do not
provide any of the other bonuses of Capitals.
Some land spaces have the anchor symbol:. These spaces
are called Straits and Fleets are allowed to move through them
during Offensives or Strategic Movement if they are controlled
by friendly forces.
The map also includes tracks for PW, turn order and the current
turn.
IMAGE (Board Detail)
2.2 COMPONENTS
IMAGES
The Allied and Axis PW (Political Will) markers record each
side’s score on the score track, numbered 1-12. The Turn marker
records which turn (year) it is, starting in 1940 and ending in
1945.
IMAGES
Action markers belong to each Nation. They are placed on
the Nation Sheets to show the various Actions and Responses
chosen by the players. Some only become available on a
certain turn, e.g. the USA gains new Action markers in the years
1941-1944.
IMAGES
The Turn Order markers with each Nation’s flag show the
current turn order, using the boxes marked 1st through 5th on
the map. Turn order can change throughout the game.
IMAGES
There are two types of units in the game – Armies and Fleets.
Armies operate mainly on land spaces, Fleets only on sea
spaces. These units also come in either Level 1 or Level 2
versions – the number in the corner indicates the Level. Level
is relevant to build cost and strength in battle. The colours
identify which Nation each unit belongs to – grey for Germany,
orange for Japan, tan for UK, red for Soviets and green for USA.
Flags also denote ownership by certain Nations, including
Minor Nations like China.
IMAGES
Each Nation has 3 small wooden cubes to show Upgrades on
their Nation Sheets.
2.3 NATION SHEETS
There are 5 Nation Sheets, one for each Nation. They show
the available Actions, Responses and Upgrade tracks for
each Nation and they have slots for placing units that are in
“Reserve” and “Spent”. The Responses on each Nation Sheet
have a flag showing which Nation can choose them.
IMAGES (Nation Sheet)
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3. GAME SET UP track.

3.1 NATIONS AND PLAYER COUNT 3.4 NATION SET UP

Axis Allies Place the 5 Nation Sheets in front of players, but so that
everyone can easily see all of them – players will be frequently
Germany Japan UK Soviet Union USA
placing their own Action markers on other player’s Nation
IMAGE (Flags) Sheets.

There are two sides, each consisting of a number of Nations. Then, place the pieces for each Nation as follows. Reserves and
The Axis side includes Germany and Japan, while the Allied side Spent refers to the slots on the corresponding Nation Sheet,
includes the UK, USA and Soviet Union. Each player will control not the map itself.
1 or more Nations. Germany
Location Units
» 2 player game:1 player is the two Axis Nations, the other
player is the three Allied Nations. Germany One Level 2 Army, two Level 1
Armies
» 3 player game:1 player is the two Axis Nations, 1 is the
Soviet Union and 1 is the USA and UK. Poland One Level 2 Army
» 4 player game:1 player is Germany, 1 is Japan, 1 is the Italy One Level 1 Italian Army
Soviet Union and 1 is the USA and UK. Mediterranean One Level 1 Italian Fleet
» 5 player game:Each player has 1 Nation. Reserves Four Level 1 Armies, two Level 1
Fleets
3.2 MINOR NATIONS Spent One Level 1 Army
In addition to the 5 playable Nations, there are also Minor
Nations attached to some of them: Other Markers (Germany):Place all three German Action
markers near the German Nation Sheet, ready to be used. Place
IMAGES (Flag) France:There is a single French Army piece that cubes on the three upgrade tracks on the German Nation Sheet
begins the game in the France space and is under the control - space 2 on the Build track, 1 on the Air Force track and 0 on
of the UK player. The French Army operates as a UK Army for all the Naval Aviation track.
purposes, except that it does not benefit from the UK Air Force
bonus. Japan
Location Units
IMAGES (Flag) China:There are two Chinese Armies, under the
control of the USA player. One of them begins in the China space, Japan One Level 1 Army
the other in the USA Reserve. Chinese Armies can only ever be China One Level 1 Army
placed in China and cannot move to any other spaces. They are North Pacific One Level 2 Fleet, one Level 1 Fleet
always considered in supply. Chinese Armies are only placed by
the USA Response “Chinese Nationalists” which is on the Japanese Reserves Three Level 1 Armies, three Level 1
Nation Sheet. This allows placement of 1 Chinese Army from the Fleets
USA Reserve or Spent boxes, regardless of which side controls Spent -
China (Note that the China space is Japanese Home Territory).
Normal USA Build Actions may never place Chinese Armies on Other Markers (Japan):Place the two Japanese Action
the map or shift them from Spent to Reserve. Chinese Armies markers near the Japanese Nation Sheet, ready to be used.
also never benefit from USA upgrades or USA Armies in the USA Place cubes on the three upgrade tracks on the Japanese
Reserve, only Chinese Armies in the USA Reserve. Nation Sheet - space 2 on the Build track, 0 on the Air Force
track and 1 on the Naval Aviation track.
IMAGES (Flag) Italy:There is one Italian Army and one Italian UK
Fleet, under the control of the German player. These are treated
as German units for all purposes, except that they do not Location Units
benefit from German Air Force or Naval Aviation bonuses. As UK One Level 1 Army
soon as the Italy space comes under Allied control for the first France One Level 1 French Army
time, both Italian units are permanently destroyed.
North Sea One Level 1 Fleet
Atlantic One Level 1 Fleet
3.3 OVERALL SET UP
Reserves One Level 1 Army, one Level 2 Fleet,
Place the turn marker on 1940. Place the 5 Turn Order markers
one Level 1 Fleet
(flags) in the following order on the boxes marked 1st through
5th – Germany, UK, Japan, Soviet Union, USA. Spent One Level 2 Army, two Level 1
Armies
Place the Allied and Axis PW markers on space 10 of the score
Other Markers (UK):Place the two normal UK Action markers

2 | 1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES

near the UK Nation Sheet, ready to be used. Place the UK
Action marker labelled “1942” on the 1942 space on the turn
track – the UK will receive this new Action marker at the start of
the 1942 turn. Place cubes on the three upgrade tracks on the
UK Nation Sheet - space 2 on the Build track, 0 on the Air Force
track and 0 on the Naval Aviation track.
Soviet Union
Location Units
Moscow One Level 2 Army
Leningrad One Level 1 Army
Ukraine One Level 1 Army
Siberia One Level 1 Army
Reserves - 5th boxes on the map. Following this order, each Nation selects
Spent One Level 2 Army, five Level 1
Armies, one Level 1 Fleet
Other Markers (Soviet Union):Place the one normal Soviet
Action marker near the Soviet Nation Sheet, ready to be used.
Place the Soviet Action markers labelled “1941” and “1942” on
the 1941 and 1942 spaces on the turn track respectively – the
Soviet Union will receive these new Action markers at the start
of these turns. Finally, place cubes on the three upgrade tracks
on the Soviet Nation Sheet - space 2 on the Build track, 0 on the
Air Force track and 0 on the Naval Aviation track.
USA
Location Units
USA One Level 1 Army
China One Level 1 Chinese Army
East Pacific One Level 1 Fleet
Reserves Two Level 1 Armies, two Level 1
Fleets, one Level 1 Chinese Army
Spent One Level 2 Army, two Level 1
Armies, two Level 2 Fleets, one
Level 1 Fleet
Other Markers (USA):Place the one normal USA Action
marker near the USA Nation Sheet, ready to be used. Place the
USA Action markers labelled “1941” through to “1944” on the
corresponding spaces on the turn track – the USA will receive
these new Action markers at the start of each turn, from 1941 to
1944. Place the USA Action marker labelled “Axis attack” off to
the side of the map – it will be gained by the USA player under
certain conditions (see below). Finally, place cubes on the three
upgrade tracks on the USA Nation Sheet - space 2 on the Build
track, 0 on the Air Force track and 0 on the Naval Aviation track.
3.5 AXIS ATTACK ACTION MARKER
IMAGES (action marker) The USA has an Action marker labelled
“Axis attack”. This special action marker is given to the USA
player immediately after an Axis Offensive that involves USA
units or Home Territory, e.g. a Japanese Offensive into the East
Pacific against USA Fleets, or a Japanese Offensive into the
Philippines. However, if the USA conducts an Offensive Action,
a Strategic Bombing Response or a Submarine Warfare
Response before an Axis Offensive against the USA, this
Action marker is permanently removed from the game. Note
that German Submarine Warfare against USA pieces does not
count as an Axis Offensive for these purposes.
4. HOW TO PLAY
4.1 TURN SEQUENCE
A turn represents a full year of World War Two, during which
all Nations will spend their Action markers doing Actions (from
their own Nation Sheet) or Responses (from their own or other
player’s Nation Sheets). Each turn, Actions and Responses are
played until all five Nations have passed in a row.
Turn order is indicated by the flag markers, on the 1st through
one Action from their own Nation Sheet by placing one of their
available Action markers on it and carrying out the chosen
Action.
Following each Action, any Nations may select a Response
showing their flag from the same row on the Nation Sheet,
by placing one of their available Action markers on it and
carrying out the listed Response. Note that a Nation may play
a Response following its own Action. Responses from any
Nations must be chosen in the order listed, top to bottom. If a
Nation declines to choose a particular Response, it cannot go
back and choose it after seeing which Responses other Nations
choose. Each Response may only be chosen once following a
single Action – a Nation may not perform multiple Responses
of the same type in a row. For example, the USA could not
perform two or more Strategic Bombing Responses following a
single German Build Action.
Once all Responses have been resolved, the next Nation listed
in the turn order may choose one Action, and other Nations
may choose Responses. This will continue in turn order, going
back to the first Nation when every other Nation has chosen
their Action. A Nation does not need to choose an Action
when it is their time to do so, they may simply pass – doing
nothing. This could be because they are out of Action markers
or because they wish to save them.
Example: The turn is 1940. Following turn order, Germany chooses
an Action first (no Nations choose a Response). Then the UK chooses
an Action (Germany chooses a Response), then Japan chooses an
Action (no Nations Respond), then the Soviet Union chooses an
Action (Germany chooses a Response) and finally the USA passes,
choosing to hold onto its Action marker and see how things play
out. Every Nation has had a chance to choose an Action, so we go
back to the start of the turn order. Germany has spent all of its Action
markers on one Action and two Responses, so it passes. Then the
UK chooses an Action, then Japan, and so on. This cycle of Nations
choosing one Action at a time in turn order will continue until all
Nations have passed.
4.2 SCORING
When all 5 Nations have passed in succession, there will be no
more Actions and Responses this turn (even if some Nations
still have available Action markers) as it is time for scoring.
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Add up the total number of enemy or neutral Victory Spaces
controlled by each side. The side with fewer controlled enemy
or neutral Victory Spaces loses Political Will (PW) equal to the
difference.
Nations do not score based on control of Victory Spaces that
were already their own Home Territory – they must control
spaces that were originally neutral or enemy Home Territory to
count for scoring. Note that scoring occurs every turn, so it is
possible for a single Victory Space to count for scoring 6 times
over the course of a game if one side manages to take and keep
control of it for multiple turns. After scoring, if one side has 0
PW and the other side still has all of their Capital spaces, the
side with 0 PW loses the game and the other side wins.
Note that some sea spaces have stars and are therefore
neutral Victory Spaces. Remember that control of sea spaces is
different from land spaces and requires exclusive occupation
by your own side’s Fleets.
Example: It is the end of the first turn – 1940. Germany controls
all of its Home Territory, plus France. Japan controls all of its Home
Territory, North Pacific and India. The Allies have East Pacific, but no
other neutral or Axis Victory Spaces. Because the Axis have taken 3
Victory Spaces and the Allies have 1, the Allied PW marker drops by 2.
4.3 END OF TURN
Once scoring is done, the turn marker is shifted to the right,
onto the next turn (year). All Nations get their Action markers
back from any Nation Sheets they were placed on, plus any
new Action markers as indicated on the turn track.
4.4 TURN SEQUENCE EXAMPLE
The current turn order is as shown below – Germany, UK, Japan,
Soviet Union, USA.
IMAGES (FLAGS)
Germany is listed first, so the German player may choose one
Action from their Nation Sheet. They choose “Offensive” and
place a German Action marker on this slot on their Nation
Sheet. The German player carries out an Offensive, in which a
German Army moves from Poland into Ukraine. This results in a
battle, which is fully resolved before any Responses. Looking to
the right of the Offensive slot on the German Nation Sheet, we
see three possible Responses.
IMAGES (Example of nation sheet)
The first two are Soviet Responses and the Soviet player
decides to use both of them. First, they place an Action marker
on the “Counter-Offensive” Response. This lets them carry
out an Offensive, exactly like the Germans just did, and in the
same space. The Soviets have an Army in Moscow, which they
use to launch their Counter-Offensive into Ukraine. Then, the
Soviets place another Action marker on the German Nation
Sheet to indicate they are choosing the “Not One Step Back”
Response. This lets them place an Army from their own “Spent”
box onto the map, in the battle space – in this case, Ukraine.
Finally, the Germans choose the final Response listed – Blitz.
4 | 1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES
They place an Action marker in the Response column. Blitz
allows an Offensive into any space, but the Germans decide
to use it in Ukraine, to counter all the Soviet Responses that
were just used to regain the space. Now that all Responses
have been chosen, play moves on to the next Nation listed in
the turn order – the UK. The UK could choose an Action in the
same way as Germany just did, and other Nations could choose
Responses as well. This would continue through the turn order
and eventually go back to Germany.
4.5 ACTIONS
Every Nation chooses from the same 4 Actions:Build,
Offensive, Strategic Move and Upgrade.
1. Build:When this Action is chosen, the player may shift
a number of units on their Nation Sheet from Spent to
Reserve, and/or from Reserve to any space on the map
that is within supply. Armies must be placed in land or sea
spaces that are controlled by that Nation’s side as well as
in supply for that Nation, or in the Nation’s Capital. Fleets
may only be placed in sea spaces that are in supply and
do not contain enemy Fleets, or in sea spaces adjacent to
the Nation’s Capital (even if they contain enemy Fleets).
All spaces selected for placing units must be controlled/
in supply at the start of the Action. Nations whose Capital
is uncontrolled or controlled by the enemy may still Build,
but may only place Armies in their Capital and may not
place Fleets.
The number of units shifted from Spent to Reserve or
from Reserve to the map depends on the position of
the cube on the upgrade track on the Build Action slot.
For all Nations, this cube starts in the position of 2, but
it can be shifted up by Upgrade Actions and down by
Strategic Bombing Responses. A Build Action may allow
any combination of units to go from Spent to Reserve or
from Reserve to the map, including the same unit shifting
twice (Spent to Reserve, then Reserve to the map). Note
that Level 2 units count as 2 units each for the purposes of
Building. You also cannot “half” Build a Level 2 unit. This
means shifting a Level 2 unit from Spent to Reserve, or
from Reserve to the map, requires a Build track of at least 2.
Example: The Japanese player is doing a Build Action and
their Build track is on 2. Their first Build is to shift the Level 1
Army from Spent over to Reserve on their Nation Sheet. Their
second Build is to place the Level 1 Fleet from Reserve onto the
map.
The Japanese player cannot place the Fleet in the Indian
Ocean, as it is not in supply – the Allies control China which
blocks any potential supply line from Japan to the Indian
Ocean. They decide to place the Fleet in the South Pacific,
which is in supply due to the presence of the Japanese
Fleet in the North Pacific. On a subsequent Build Action,
they could place an Army into South-east Asia, as it is
controlled (Home Territory) and in supply via the Fleets.
IMAGES (play example)
2. Offensive:An Offensive means moving units into an
enemy or neutral space and then fighting a battle if there
are enemy units there. To carry out an Offensive, units
must be in supply at the beginning and the end of it. So, a
unit may not move itself out of supply while carrying out
the Offensive. Units in spaces not controlled by their side
may not leave that space during an Offensive. There are 4
types of Offensives:
» Simple Offensive:This means moving any or all units
from one space into a single adjacent space.
» Offensive in Place:This means no movement, just
fighting a battle in a single space where you and the
enemy both have units.
» Amphibious Assault:This is an Offensive with Armies
but involves crossing a single intervening sea space
instead of moving into an adjacent space. The single
intervening sea space must be controlled by friendly
units and occupied by at least one Fleet belonging to
the Nation launching the Offensive. A single enemy
Fleet in a sea space prevents an Amphibious Assault
through that space. For example, the UK could launch
an Amphibious Assault from Scandinavia into Germany,
provided that the Baltic sea space contains at least 1 UK
Fleet and no Axis Fleets.
» Offensive through Strait:This involves Fleets from
a sea space moving through a single intervening land
space with a Strait (anchor symbol). The Strait space
must be controlled by the same side as the Fleet.
For example, a UK Fleet in the Atlantic could do an
Offensive into the Mediterranean if the Allies control
North Africa.
Once movement is complete for the Offensive, a battle
is resolved. This happens before any Responses are
selected.
Note that a Nation whose Capital is uncontrolled or
controlled by the enemy may only do an Offensive in
Place in their own Capital, not in any other spaces.
» NB:When conducting an Amphibious Assault type of
Offensive, Armies may only move through 1 intervening
sea space. This means an Army in the USA could not
move directly to France in an Offensive even if the
Atlantic and the North Sea were controlled by the Allies
and contained USA Fleets. Remember that Armies may
be placed in or move into sea spaces as long as the sea
space is controlled by their side and contains at least 1
of that Nation’s Fleets. This allows, for example, the USA
to place Armies in the East Pacific space and then use
them to invade Japan, provided that USA Fleets control
both East Pacific and North Pacific.
3. Strategic Move:This Action allows the player to move
any or all of their units that are currently in supply. This
includes units in spaces which are not controlled by their
side. Fleets doing Strategic Movement may only move
through sea spaces and friendly-controlled Strait spaces
which are in supply for their Nation. Armies may only
move through spaces which are friendly-controlled and
in supply for their Nation. In both cases, units may move
any distance as long as they follow these conditions. Units
doing Strategic Movement may also be moved back into
Reserves on their own Nation Sheet. In a Strategic Move,
each unit must be moved one at a time, which may change
the supply situation for subsequent units.
Note that Nations whose Capital is uncontrolled or
controlled by the enemy may not do Strategic Movement
at all.
IMAGES (play example)
Example: The USA player is doing a Strategic Move. They
have two Level 1 Fleets in East Pacific and a Level 1 Army in the
USA space. All these units can participate in the Strategic Move
as they are all in supply. First, one Fleet is moved to the Atlantic,
which is in supply as it is adjacent to the USA Capital. This opens
up a supply line to the UK and to the Mediterranean (North
Africa is UK-controlled and can be used as part of a land and
sea supply line). The USA player then moves the other Fleet to
the Mediterranean, and the Army from the USA to the UK.
4. Upgrade:This Action lets the player shift one cube one
space to the right on any of the three Upgrade tracks on
their Nation Sheet – Build, Air Force or Naval Aviation. Note
that Nations whose Capital is uncontrolled or controlled by
the enemy may not Upgrade.
4.6 RESPONSES
There are a wide variety of Responses that Nations can choose
from, denoted by their flag.
The combined USA/UK flag symbol - - means that either or
both of these Nations may choose the listed Response. Like
Actions, they are selected by placing an Action marker on them
and carrying out the instructions. Note that you cannot choose
a Response to a Response, even if the first Response allows an
Action like Offensive.
All Responses in the game are explained in further detail here:
» Strategic Bombing:This involves shifting a number of
units, chosen by the player doing the Response, from
Reserve to Spent on another Nation’s sheet. Note that
Level 2 units count as 2 units for these purposes, so a
Strategic Bombing Response that shifts 2 units could shift
either two Level 1 units or a single Level 2 unit. Sometimes
it will also result in a downgrade of that Nation’s Build track
– this means shifting the cube on the Build track one space
to the left, though it can never go below 1. Some Strategic
Bombing Responses have requirements – for example,
the USA needs a Fleet in the North Pacific to do Strategic
Bombing against Japan.
» Submarine Warfare:This is similar to Strategic Bombing
and always has a requirement. Germany must have a Fleet
(which cannot be the Italian Fleet) on the map to carry
out Submarine Warfare against the USA and UK, while the
USA must have a Fleet in the South Pacific to carry it out
1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES | 5
 against Japan. German Submarine Warfare shifts a total of
2 USA and/or UK units to Spent, or shifts a Level 1 Allied
Fleet from the Atlantic or North Sea to Spent. These units
are chosen by the German player. USA Submarine Warfare
shifts a Level 1 Japanese Fleet from the map to Spent or 2
Japanese units from Reserve to Spent – in both cases these
units are chosen by the USA player. In all cases, a Level
2 unit counts as 2 units for these purposes, just as with
Strategic Bombing.
» Carrier Strike:This is simply an Offensive in any sea space
using Fleets (not Armies), with a +1 bonus to the attacker’s
initial strength. The USA must use this against Japanese
Fleets only. Because this is a Response and not a normal
Offensive Action, no Responses may be chosen following
it.
» Counter-Offensive:This is an Offensive, which must be
carried out in the same space selected for the preceding
Offensive Action. The Soviets can only carry out a Counter-
Offensive if the preceding battle involved Soviet units
or was on Soviet Home Territory. If such an Offensive is
not possible, this Response may not be chosen. Because
this is a Response and not a normal Offensive Action, no
Responses may be chosen following it.
» Not One Step Back:This allows the Soviets to place a
single Level 1 Army from their Spent box directly in the
space where the preceding battle was fought, as long as
the space was Soviet Home Territory. This does not require
a supply line or control of the space.
» Lend Lease:This allows the Soviet player to shift 2 Level
1 units, or a single Level 2 unit, from Spent to Reserve.
Note that units may not be placed onto the map using this
Response.
» Blitz:This is simply an Offensive in any land space. Because
this is a Response and not a normal Offensive Action, no
Responses may be chosen following it.
» Kampfgruppe:This allows Germany to place a single Level
1 Army from their Spent box directly in the space where
the preceding battle was fought, as long as the battle was
in a land space and involved German and/or Italian Armies.
This does not require a supply line or control of the space.
» Iron Ore Trade:This allows Germany to shift 2 units
from Spent to Reserve, provided the Allies do not control
Scandinavia. Level 2 units count as 2 units each for these
purposes, so this Response could shift a single Level 2 unit
or two Level 1 units.
» Commonwealth:This lets the UK place two Level 1 units
from Reserve, or one Level 1 unit from Spent, directly onto
the map in India, Australia and/or Canada. Level 2 units
cannot be placed with this Response. Note that these
spaces do not need to be in supply or controlled by the
Allies for this Response to take place.
» Island Defence:This lets Japan place a single Level 1 unit
from Spent directly to the space where the preceding
battle was fought – Fleets for sea spaces and Armies for
land spaces – if the battle involved Japanese units. This
does not require a supply line to the space or control.
6 | 1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES
» Chinese Nationalists:This allows the USA and/or UK
player to move a Japanese Army from China to the Spent
box on the Japanese Nation Sheet, or to place a Chinese
Army in China. The Chinese Army could be in the Reserve
or Spent box on the USA Nation Sheet and may be placed
regardless of which side controls China.
» Chinese Communists:This allows the Soviet player to
move a Japanese Army from China to the Spent box on the
Japanese Nation Sheet.
» Marine Corps:This prevents the Japanese player from
selecting the Island Defence Response for the current Action.
» Joint Offensive:This allows the USA to carry out an
Offensive in the same space as the UK has just selected
for its own Offensive. This can be done in two ways. First,
the UK could resolve their own Offensive completely, and
then USA units could conduct a separate Offensive in the
same space. Alternatively, the UK and USA could conduct
an Offensive in the same space simultaneously, combining
their total strengths. This would include the number of
units they each send into the battle space, plus any Air
Support or Naval Aviation bonuses from both Nations,
plus Reserves committed from both Nations. If this
second option is chosen, it must be announced before the
Offensive is actually carried out. It is an exception to the
rule that Actions must be fully resolved before resolving
Responses.
» Seize Initiative:This Response is simply a Strategic Move
or Offensive Action. The procedure is the same as an
Action, but it is technically a Response so no Responses
may be chosen following it.
» Code Breaking:This involves selecting any Nation (not
just the one doing the Response) to become 1st in turn
order. The selected Nation’s flag marker is picked up and
placed in the 1st slot, with all other flag markers shifting
1 space to the right if necessary to make room. In the
example below, the UK has carried out a Code Breaking
Response and shifted the Soviet marker to 1st in turn order.
All other markers except the USA have shifted to the right
to fill the gap left by the Soviet marker, and the new turn
order is shown on the right. Note that the change in turn
order from this Response happens immediately, and play
continues in the new order shown.
IMAGES (order example)
5. BATTLES
Battles result from Offensive Actions or related Responses like
Counter-Offensive, Carrier Strike and Blitz. In all cases, they
are resolved in the same way. The Nation carrying out the
Offensive is the attacker, the other side is the defender. The
space where the battle is taking place is called the battle space.
1. Move in units:Depending on the type of Offensive, units
may have been moved into the battle space. This happens
before any of the following calculations.
2. Attacker initial strength:Add up the total strength of all
units on the attacker’s side which are in the battle space – this
includes units which have just moved in and units which were
already there. If the battle space is a sea space, only Fleets are
counted. If it is a land space, only Armies are counted. Level
1 units provide a strength of 1, Level 2 units have a strength
of 2. Then, add any bonuses from upgrades. The Air Force
bonus only applies to battles in land spaces and only applies
once, regardless of the number of Armies. Likewise, the Naval
Aviation bonus only applies to battles in sea spaces. If the
battle is the result of a Carrier Strike, the attacker adds 1 to their
initial strength as well. If there are units from multiple Nations
in the space, every Nation adds its own bonuses. This total
number is the attacker’s initial strength.
3. Defender initial strength:The defender then does exactly
the same as the attacker and adds up the total strength of
units they have in the space and any Air Force or Naval Aviation
bonuses. The total number is the defender’s initial strength.
If the battle space is France and the Axis is defending against
an Allied Offensive launched through the North Sea, the Axis
defender adds +2 to their initial strength. This reflects the
“Atlantic Wall”, the defences built by the Germans along the
French coast. This bonus applies even if there are already Allied
units in France.
4. Tactics Roll:First the attacker and then the defender roll
a single die. On a result of 4 or 5 they add 1 to their initial
strength, on a 6 they add 2 to their initial strength. A result of
1-3 has no effect.
5. Attacker Reserves:The attacker may now commit any
number of units from their Reserve to boost their score. Only
Armies may be committed in a land battle, only Fleets may
be committed in a sea battle. Units committed in this way
are shifted from the Reserve box to the Spent box on their
Nation Sheet. Each Level 1 unit committed raises the strength
of the attacker by 1, while each Level 2 unit committed raises
the strength of the attacker by 2. A Nation may only commit
Reserves if the battle space is in supply for that Nation.
6. Defender Reserves:The defender may now commit
Reserves in exactly the same way, raising their strength for each
unit committed.
7. Losses:The side with the highest total strength, including
units in the battle space, Air Force or Naval Aviation, Tactics
Roll and Reserves committed, is the winner. The other side
is the loser. If the winner’s total strength was at least 3 times
higher than the losers, then one unit in the battle space from
the losing side is permanently removed from the game. If the
winner’s strength is higher, but less than 3:1, then one unit from
the losing side in the battle space is moved to the Spent box of
its own Nation Sheet. The loser chooses which particular unit is
removed in either case. If multiple Nations share the space and
they cannot agree on losses, the winner chooses which unit is
taken as a loss. A loss could be a Level 1 or a Level 2 unit (Level
2 units are not harder to destroy, they are removed as a loss in
the same way as Level 1 units). The winner does not suffer any
losses, and only a single unit is removed as a loss in each battle.
If the total strength of both sides is equal, the battle is a tie and
no units are removed as losses. There are also no “retreats” in
the game regardless of the result – pieces stay in place after a
battle.
NB:Minor Nations never benefit from Air Force or Naval
Aviation bonuses when fighting alone. For example, an Italian
Army fighting a battle would not gain the German Air Force
bonus, unless a German Army was also in the battle space. The
same applies for French and Chinese units.
IMAGES (play example)
Example: It is 1944 and the Soviets are launching an Offensive into
Poland from Ukraine. They move two Level 1 Armies in Ukraine into
Poland, which is occupied by one Level 1 German Army. On previous
turns, the Soviets have used the Upgrade Action to boost their Air
Force up to 2. So, the Soviet initial strength is 4:2 for the Armies in
the battle space plus the Air Force bonus of 2. The Germans have not
improved their Air Force, but start the game with an Air Force bonus
of 1. They have one Level 1 Army in the battle space, which makes an
initial strength of 2.
Next, both sides roll a die for their Tactics Roll. The Soviets roll a 4 –
giving them a +1 bonus to their initial strength and raising it to 5.
The Germans roll a 2 and get no bonus. Then, the Soviets also decide
to commit Reserves. They shift one Level 1 Army from Reserve to
Spent, boosting their strength from 5 to 6. The Germans decline to
commit Reserves, having none left on their Nation Sheet. The Soviets
have thus won the battle with a strength of 6 to 2. Because this is
a 3:1 ratio, the single German Army is permanently removed from
the game, instead of being sent to Spent. The Soviets now control
Poland.
6. STACKING, CONTROL AND SUPPLY
6.1 ARMY AND FLEET STACKING
There is a stacking limit of 3. A maximum of 3 Armies per
Nation can be in each land space. A maximum of 3 Fleets PLUS
3 Armies per Nation can be in each sea space. If at any time
these limits are exceeded, excess units chosen by the owning
player are moved to the Spent box on their own Nation Sheet.
Army units may be placed in or move into sea spaces as long
as the sea space contains a Fleet belonging to their Nation. If
there are no Fleets belonging to a Nation in a sea space, any
Armies belonging to that Nation in the sea space immediately
go to the Spent box on their Nation Sheet. This could happen
because the Fleets in the sea space are removed by an enemy
Action/Response or because they moved away.
6.2 CONTROL
Control of spaces is a very important concept in the rules and is
relevant for supply, movement and victory. Some key terms to
understand are the following:
» If you are playing as the Axis, your side means Germany
(including Italy) and Japan.
» If you are playing as the Allies your side means the UK
(including France), USA (including China) and Soviet Union.
» Friendly means belonging to your own Nation or another
1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES | 7
 Nation on your side. Enemy means belonging to any
Nations on the opposing side. When the rules say your
Nation, this means your specific Nation, not your entire
side. Home Territory means land spaces in your Nation’s
colour. Neutral land spaces have no colour.
» To control a land space, it must be either friendly Home
Territory or contain more friendly Armies than enemy
Armies. This could be:
» Friendly Home Territory containing no Armies, or only
friendly Armies.
» Your own Home Territory, or Home Territory of another
Nation on your side, containing more friendly Armies
than enemy Armies.
» An enemy or neutral space containing only friendly
Armies.
» An enemy or neutral space containing more friendly
Armies than enemy Armies.
Example:If a space has one German Army, one USA Army and one
UK Army it would count as being controlled by the Allies (two Allied
Armies and only one Axis Army). If one of the USA Armies moved out
of the space, it would no longer be controlled by the Allies. Note that
unit Level is irrelevant here – a Level 2 Army is the same as a Level 1
Army for the purposes of control.
To control a sea space, it must contain only Fleets from one
side. A single Fleet from the opposing side blocks control
of a sea space. For example, if the UK has two Fleets in
the Mediterranean but there is a single Italian Fleet in the
Mediterranean, neither side controls that sea space.
If a space is not controlled by either side, it is uncontrolled. This
includes:
» Neutral land spaces containing no Armies.
» Land spaces containing an equal number of Armies from
both sides.
» Sea spaces containing no Fleets.
» Sea spaces containing Fleets from both sides.
Uncontrolled spaces cannot form part of a supply line and do
not count for either side during scoring.
6.3 SUPPLY LINES
Nations require supply lines to perform any Actions in spaces
around the map and to commit Reserves in battle. A supply
line is a line of any number of connected and controlled spaces
leading from a Nation’s Capital to other spaces. Nations trace
their own supply lines from their own Capitals.
There are 3 ways to trace a supply line:
Land only:This means tracing a line of connected and friendly
controlled land spaces back to the Capital. The land spaces
used in such a supply line could belong to another Nation on
the same side.
Sea only:This means tracing a line of connected sea spaces
8 | 1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES
which are controlled by your side and include at least one of
your Nation’s Fleets. Remember that to control a sea space
there must be no enemy Fleets in it.
Land and Sea:This is a combination of the above two. A land
and sea supply line consists of a line of connected land spaces
controlled by your side along with sea spaces controlled by
your side and occupied by Fleets belonging to your Nation.
A space is “in supply” for a particular Nation if that Nation can
trace a supply line from its Capital to the space. The space itself
might be controlled by the enemy, but as long as it is adjacent
to a series of controlled, connected spaces leading back to the
Capital following the above rules, it is in supply.
IMAGES (play example)
Supply Line Example 1:In this example, India is in supply for the
UK. It can trace a continuous line of controlled spaces back to the UK
Capital space. The only sea space in the supply line – the Atlantic – is
occupied by a UK Fleet. Note that if the Atlantic was occupied by a
USA Fleet instead of a UK Fleet, this would not be a valid supply line
for the UK. In contrast to India, the Italy space is not in supply for the
UK. Despite there being a UK Fleet in the Mediterranean, the single
Axis Fleet in the Mediterranean blocks control there, thus blocking
supply. This means the UK could not do an Offensive into Italy, nor
could it Build or Strategically Move into Italy.
IMAGES (play example)
Supply Line Example 2:In this example, the German Army in
Moscow is NOT in supply, as Ukraine is Soviet Home Territory and
not currently controlled by the Axis. This German Army in Moscow
cannot perform Actions and cannot benefit from German Reserves.
If the Germans were to move the Army from Poland into Ukraine
using an Offensive Action, thus taking control, it would open a
supply line to Moscow.
6.4 OCCUPIED CAPITALS
If a Nation’s Capital space is currently controlled by the enemy
or uncontrolled, it is under severe restrictions. It may not
perform any Responses, and the only Actions it may choose
are Build and Offensive. When Building, it may shift units from
Spent to Reserve but may only place Armies in its own Capital
if placing them on the map. It cannot place Fleets. When doing
Offensives, it may only do an Offensive in Place in the Capital
space itself. A Nation with its Capital controlled by the enemy
or uncontrolled also counts as being out of supply in all spaces
except the Capital itself. As soon as control of the Capital space
is regained, the Nation reverts back to normal rules.
7. VICTORY
If either side controls two enemy Capitals at the same time,
they immediately win. If one side has 0 PW after scoring, the
other immediately wins if they still control all of their Capital
spaces. If neither of these conditions occur, the game ends at
the end of the 6th turn – 1945 – and the side with the highest
PW wins. If there is a tie in PW scores, the Axis win.
8. OPTIONAL RULES
Players may choose to add any or all of these optional rules to
change the game, as long as all players agree.
8.1 DICE-FREE BATTLES
To reduce the effects of luck, players may use this rule. Ignore
the Tactics Roll step when resolving battles, so no dice are
used. All other battle rules still apply.
8.2 FRENCH FLEET
The game includes a single French Fleet counter which is not
used in the usual set up. If using this rule, the French Fleet is
placed in the Mediterranean during set up. If the France space
is taken control of by the Axis, the French Fleet is permanently
destroyed – it is assumed that the fleet will be attacked by the
British and scuttled as it was historically.
8.3 HIGHER PW
For players who find their games ending too quickly due to
PW of either side dropping to 0, they may choose to begin the
game with both sides at 12 PW. Note that this will benefit the
Allies, who are much stronger in the late game.
8.4 VARIABLE SET UP
Instead of the historical set up provided in the rules, players
may choose to do a variable set up. This allows a much wider
variety of strategies to be tried.
The stacking limit of 3 units per Nation still applies during set
up. These rules use the terms “Army points” and “Fleet points”.
A Level 1 Army/Fleet counts as 1 Army/Fleet point, and a Level
2 Army/Fleet counts as 2 Army/Fleet points. For example,
Germany gets 6 Army points in this set up – this could be six
Level 1 Armies, two Level 2 Armies and two Level 1 Armies,
or one Level 2 Army and four Level 1 Armies. These rules also
refer to “Upgrade points” – each Upgrade point spent allows a
Nation to shift a cube to the right on one of the three Upgrade
tracks. A Nation could spend multiple Upgrade points on a
single track.
If doing a variable set up, follow this procedure:
» The units for Italy, China and France are placed as per the
normal set up.
» Set all cubes to the leftmost position on all Upgrade
tracks on all Nation Sheets – Build 1, Air Force 0 and Naval
Aviation 0.
» In turn order (Germany, UK, Japan, Soviet Union, USA),
Nations may choose their starting positions in this way:
» Germany:Germany gets six Army points to place in any
one of their Home Territory spaces and/or Reserves (no
more than four Army points in any one space). All other
units go in Reserve. Germany also gets two Upgrade points
to spend on any of their Upgrade tracks.
» UK:The UK gets two Army points to place in any of their
Home Territory spaces and/or Reserves. All remaining
Armies go into Spent. The UK gets two Fleet points to place
in the North Sea, Atlantic, Indian Ocean and/or Reserves.
All remaining Fleets go into Reserves. The UK also gets one
Upgrade point to spend on any of their Upgrade tracks.
» Japan:Japan gets three Army points to place in any of
their Home Territory spaces and/or Reserves. All remaining
Armies go into Reserve. Japan gets three Fleet points to
place in the North and/or South Pacific, with any remaining
Fleets going into Reserves. Japan also gets two Upgrade
points to spend on any of their Upgrade tracks.
» Soviet Union:The Soviet Union gets five Army points
to place in any of their Home Territory spaces, with a
maximum of three Army points per space. All remaining
units go into Spent. The Soviet Union also gets one
Upgrade point to spend on any of their Upgrade tracks.
» USA:The USA gets three Army points to place in any of
their Home Territory spaces and/or Reserves. All remaining
Armies go into Spent. The USA gets three Fleet points
to place in the East Pacific, Atlantic and/or Reserves. All
remaining Fleets go into Spent. The USA also gets one
Upgrade point to spend on any of their Upgrade tracks.
8.5 SPECIAL ACTIONS AND RESPONSES
IMAGES (action marker) The game includes 18 double-sided
Special Action/Response markers – 5 for Germany, 4 for Japan
and 3 for each Allied Nation. If using this optional rule, players
may choose to let Nations have a certain amount of these
markers each:
» Low:Allied Nations have 1 each chosen randomly,
Germany has 2 chosen randomly, Japan has 1 chosen
randomly.
» Medium:Allied Nations have 2 each chosen randomly,
Axis Nations have 3 each chosen randomly.
» High:Allied Nations have 3 each chosen randomly,
Germany has 5 chosen randomly, Japan has 4 chosen
randomly.
The markers have a name on one side and specify an Action
or a Response on the other. The side with the name might
also have a year, showing when in the game the marker may
be played. For example, the German “V2 Rocket” marker has
“1944+” – this means it can only be played during the 1944 or
1945 turns of the game.
Special Actions work just like normal Actions and are played
in accordance with the usual turn sequence. If a Special Action
allows the conducting of a standard Action like an Offensive,
it is carried out as normal and the usual Responses may be
chosen following it. For example, the “Zhukov” marker allows
the Soviets to conduct an Offensive, with a bonus to their initial
strength in the resulting battle. After this Offensive is resolved,
the Responses following a Soviet Offensive could still be
chosen, such as a German Counter-Offensive.
Special Responses may be played following any Action from
their own Nation and count as being listed first in the order
of Responses. For example, if the USA carried out a standard
Offensive Action, they could then play the “Patton” Special
1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES | 9
Response and resolve it before any other Responses like the
German Kampfgruppe. There are two exceptions to this –
Manstein and Kamikaze (see below for specifics).
Playing a Special Action or Special Response still requires using
an Action marker to play it – place the Action marker on top of
the Special Action/Response marker to show that it has been
used.
Each Special Action/Response can only be used once. At the
end of each turn, all Special Action/Response markers that
have been used are removed from the game as a reminder. The
Action markers spent to play them are not removed from the
game and are returned to the players.
Special Actions/Responses may only be played by a Nation
which still controls their own Capital.
The specific rules for each Special Action and Response are
shown below:
GERMANY
V2 Rockets:This Action lowers Allied Political Will by 1 and can
only be played in 1944 or 1945.
SS Panzer Korps:This Action allows Germany to place a
Level 2 Army from Spent in any land space on the map that is
controlled and in supply (just like during a Build Action).
Manstein:This Response allows Germany to conduct a Blitz
following its own Offensive OR to conduct a Counter-Offensive
in a space where a Soviet Offensive has just taken place. In
either case, Germany will get a +3 bonus to initial strength in
the resulting battle. This Response takes place before any other
Responses, including enemy Special Responses.
Jets:This Action upgrades German Air Force track by 1 and
downgrades the UK and USA Air Force tracks by 1. It can only
be played in 1943 onwards.
Hungary:This Action allows Germany to place a Level 1 Army
from Spent or Reserve directly into the Balkans, regardless of
control or supply.
JAPAN
Kamikaze:This Response may only be chosen following a USA
Offensive in the North Pacific, South Pacific or East Pacific in
1944 or 1945. It downgrades Japanese and USA Naval Aviation
by 1, and permanently removes 1 USA Fleet (Level 1 or Level 2)
from the space, chosen by the Japanese player. This Response
takes place before any other Responses, including enemy
Special Responses.
Yamamoto:This Action is a Japanese Offensive using only
Fleets. In the resulting battle, the Japanese get +3 to their initial
strength.
Co-Prosperity Sphere:This Action increases Axis P.W. by 1
but can only be played if there are no Allied Fleets in the East
Pacific, North Pacific, South Pacific or Indian Ocean.
10 | 1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES
Indian Uprising:This Action allows Japan to place a Japanese
Army from Reserves or Spent directly in India, regardless of
control or supply.
UK
French Resistance:This Action allows the UK to place the
French Army unit in France, whether it was in Reserve, Spent
or somewhere else on the map. It can be placed regardless of
supply or control.
Monty:This Action allows the UK to conduct an Offensive in
France or North Africa. The UK will get a +2 bonus to their initial
strength in the resulting battle. Aside from the bonus strength
this is treated as a normal UK Offensive, so the USA could
conduct a Joint Offensive Response along with it, and Germany
can use the Kampfgruppe Response.
Radar:This Action downgrades the German Air Force track by
1 and increases the UK Air Force track by 1.
SOVIET UNION
Russian Winter:This Action allows the Soviets to permanently
destroy a single Level 1 German or Japanese Army in a Soviet
Home Territory space.
Zhukov:This Action is simply a Soviet Offensive on land, with
the Soviets gaining a +2 bonus to their strength in the resulting
battle.
People’s Republics:This Action lets the Soviet player place
a Level 1 Army from Reserves or Spent directly into Poland,
Balkans or China on the map. This does not require control or a
supply line to the space.
USA
Manhattan Project:This Action can only be played in 1945. It
requires the USA to spend an additional two Actions – meaning
that a total of three USA Action markers need to be placed on
the Manhattan Project marker to play it. It immediately reduces
Axis P.W. by 2.
Patton:This Response allows the USA to carry out an Offensive
in France or Germany. This still counts as a Response
War Bonds:This Response allows the USA to shift a total of
four units from Spent to Reserve. Level 2 units count as two
units each for this purpose.
9. DESIGNER’S NOTES
Where to start?
The genesis of this idea came from a random post I saw on
Twitter (now “X”). A Californian design studio called Hissy Cat
was running a postcard game design jam. Simply put, a few
months to design a game that could fit on a postcard. I took
up this challenge immediately as I thought it was a fantastic
idea. The game I made was not One Hour WW2. It was a game
focused only on the Western Front from 1944 to 45. That
game was called ETO (which stands for European Theatre of
Operations) and uses many of the same mechanics as the game
you now see. Small unit density, largely luck-free combat and
a tight decision space in a small point-to-point map. Later
on, I did an interview with Major Ed Farren from the British
Army, who had played ETO and enjoyed it. He suggested
expanding the game into a series covering each major theatre:
the Mediterranean, the Pacific and the Eastern Front. I liked
this idea, and it was possible that One Hour WW2 would have
been released as 4 different postcard games joined together!
Instead, I decided to make a single game covering the whole
war. But just like ETO, which played in about 15 minutes, I
wanted it to pack a punch in a small package. Fast to play and
simple rules but with absolutely savage player interaction
where you are sweating on every decision. I got to work on this
idea in early 2023 and quickly got a serviceable prototype up
and running. I sent it out and many publishers were interested,
but Worthington Games proved by far the best fit. Mark Wylie,
my developer at Worthington, gave me a huge amount of help
in the design process. The finished product is the result of both
of our intense efforts over a feverish few months in late 2023. A
testament to teamwork, despite the challenge of different time
zones - East Coast of Australia for me and East Coast of the USA
for Mark.
So that is where the idea came from. But what was I trying to
achieve with One Hour WW2? Well, one way to explain it is
that the game is a “hate letter” to Axis and Allies. Now, I love
Axis and Allies. It got me into wargaming as a teenager. I have
played it for endless hours and love the plastic pieces, the dice
rolling, the grand strategy, the teamwork and the trash talk.
It is a classic and I will always love getting together with a big
group of gamers and spending a whole day chucking dice and
conquering the world. BUT Axis and Allies has its problems. It is
heavily reliant on luck. It takes a ridiculously long time to play.
The victory conditions (especially in the Global 1940 edition)
are almost unattainable within a timeframe of less than 10
hours. Even when you win, you knew you were going to win
several hours before. Plus, there is a near total lack of realistic
logistics rules. No supply lines. No strategic movement. A turn
is nominally 6 months, so it takes Soviet infantry in Siberia 3
years to march to Moscow. The Axis are severely overpowered,
while the Soviets and USA are severely underpowered. Now all
of this is making me sound like a deranged, dorky troll on an
internet forum. But all of these things are common complaints
– not just about Axis and Allies but other games too.
I decided that my game would deliberately appeal to all
wargamers, especially those “casual” gamers who like Axis
and Allies. But I also didn’t want it to be totally ahistorical or
unrealistic. I wanted the Grognards to actually give it a go.
They might still grumble about scale, victory conditions and
historical accuracy, but if the game only takes an hour, they
would still try it out once! And maybe realise that the outcomes
they’re getting aren’t too far off the real history.
ACTION AND RESPONSE
The core mechanic of the game is Actions and Responses. This
is very simple. When it is my turn, I choose one of the 4 Actions
on my Nation Sheet by placing one of my Action markers on
it. Once the Action is resolved, other Nations may spend their
own Action markers to carry out Responses listed to the right
of the chosen Action. This could be allied or enemy Nations,
or even your own Nation, depending on the Response. So, an
individual Action could be followed by up to three Responses
from different Nations.
This system actually has a lot going on. Every decision has to
be weighed against the enemy reaction. If I launch an Offensive
on the Eastern Front as Germany, there is a good chance the
Soviets will Respond. They might throw in hastily recruited
conscripts, represented by the “Not One Step Back” Response
(the language of which refers to Stalin’s 1942 order to hold
Stalingrad at all costs). To continue the Stalingrad example,
the Soviets might then also use a Counter-Offensive Response,
hitting my forces in the same space. If I have already committed
Reserves in my own Offensive and the Soviets have saved
theirs, their Counter-Offensive might shatter my line and take
control of a key space.
In terms of the effect on players, the Action > Response
mechanic means there is no downtime. Every single move,
there is a chance for you to jump in on the enemy’s plans or
for them to jump in on yours. You can’t just zone out and
check your phone for 2 minutes, because there is always an
opportunity somewhere on the board. It also means that
players are always engaging with each other, looking over at
the Nation Sheets of their allies and enemies alike. Despite
the euro feel of discrete actions and shifting wooden cubes
around, this is the exact opposite of “multiplayer solitaire”.
Conversation is essential!
Responses also allow Nations to help each other at a distance
and work together to accomplish a goal. The Soviets and
Americans can both fund their respective groups in China
(Communists and Nationalists) to tie down the Japanese in
a quagmire on the mainland. The British and Americans can
Strategic Bomb Germany at the same time, whittling down
their production capacity and interrupting the flow of units to
the front. If the USA is hitting Japan hard, Germany could use
Submarine Warfare to target American shipping and ease the
pressure. Many Responses get overlooked by new players until
they see a specific situation where it helps. I can assure players
that every single Response in the game has been used by me
in at least a few situations, even the ones that seem to be not
worth spending an Action marker on at first glance.
So what was the inspiration for this Action-Response system?
It actually comes from several different games. First of all is
Twilight Imperium and its superb strategic action system.
Basically, it allows all other players to jump in and do a
secondary action when one player does the primary action
on their chosen strategy card. This was in turn borrowed
from the famous euro game Puerto Rico. There is also the
COIN series, where each faction has a list of operations and
associated special activities. At a further remove from the
1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES | 11
specific mechanic here, I have long admired Martin Wallace as a
designer. Both his wargames and euro games generally follow
the same structure – two actions in a turn. The idea of a turn
consisting of a simple one-two punch has therefore been in the
back of my mind for sometime. Hopefully you will find that it
keeps you on your toes for the whole hour!
HISTORICAL ACCURACY AND VICTORY
CONDITIONS
This is a huge issue in historical wargaming. How do you ensure
your game is historically plausible without railroading players
into historical outcomes? Well, at the very start of the design
process I decided that the game would follow a very rough
pattern. The Axis should have the advantage from 1940 to 1941.
The Allies should have the advantage in 1944 and 1945. 1942
and 1943 should be the hinge of the game narrative, where
the really decisive moments and dramatic swings occur. The
Allies should be feeling the pressure as they mount desperate
defences of North Africa, Moscow, India and the Pacific. They
should come very close to losing the game in 1942 or 1943 –
in fact it should be very possible for the Axis to actually win
during this time. But then, if the Allies survive the crucial middle
years, they should begin sweeping counter-attacks on every
front as the industrial might of the USA and superior numbers
of the Soviet Union are brought to bear. From 1944, the Axis
should be scraping together new defensive lines and trying
to hold on until the end of the war. Within this very broad
historical narrative, there could be significant variation. But you
will find most games follow the pattern. If the Axis win, they
will win in the middle game by forcing the Allies to collapse, or
eke out a “victory” by lasting longer than they did historically. If
the Allies win, it will almost certainly be in 1945. It may be due
to taking Berlin and Tokyo, or it may be just wearing down the
Axis. But the Allies are not going to win quick. By the way, your
first few games will probably go for more than one hour!
This relates directly to another important aspect of the game
– victory conditions. These went through many iterations, but
the focus was always on taking ground and holding it as long
possible. The key metric is Political Will – an abstract measure
of the population’s willingness to keep fighting the war. It starts
high for both sides, but will be lowered as the enemy gains
ground. If it reaches 0, your side is done and will surrender. The
only way to lower enemy Political Will is to take control of their
Victory Spaces, and if you can take and hold a Victory Space it
will continue to benefit you and hurt the enemy during scoring
every turn. This is quite different to a system where you play
to a time limit and then count up “points” or a system where
you automatically win as soon as you have a certain number of
spaces. It is attritional, but also encourages both sides to get
off their butts and go take ground as quickly as they can. If the
Germans have been occupying France since 1940 and it is 1944,
you better get in there and take it back – it has already earned
the Axis a lead of 4 or 5 points. Likewise, you can’t just “turtle”
as the Axis. You need Victory Spaces and you need them soon.
Now, within this system of Political Will there are actually three
distinct ways to win. Either side, typically the Axis, can win
instantly by reducing the enemy Political Will to 0. Pursuing
this is a quick and risky strategy, where you go all out on all
12 | 1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES
fronts and hope the enemy collapses before they can muster
an effective strategy. The Allies have the option of winning
by taking control of both Germany and Japan – they might
be able to pull this off quickly if the Axis are caught napping,
but usually it is a slow and deliberate campaign of marching
directly towards the enemy Capitals. Both of these victory
types are rather rare though. Usually it will come down to
whoever has the highest Political Will at the end of the game. In
the vast majority of play test games, the difference in scores is
2 or less. Typically the game will be very close and hard fought
down to the very last turn.
One thing about the victory conditions might irk people - the
fact that the Axis can be reduced to perhaps a few spaces on
the map but still “win”. Well, there are reasons for this. As the
Allied player, you are aiming to at least achieve what the Allies
did historically – Germany occupied and totally defeated,
all of Europe and the Pacific under control, with just Japan
holding on. Let’s say you have mostly defeated the Axis, but
the Japanese still rule Australia, India and the Philippines. Or
you have occupied Japan, but Germany still controls a third of
Europe. You need total victory, by the end of 1945. This is not
just a gameplay reason either. The war absolutely exhausted
and bankrupted the Allied powers. Britain effectively sacrificed
its empire, the Soviets lost tens of millions of men – only the
USA was getting off relatively lightly. It is debatable how
hard all of these countries would have fought if the war had
lasted into 1946, 1947 or beyond. Would American and British
taxpayers keep paying? Would Russia keep pouring out its
blood? Probably yes, but at a cost that may be considered
unacceptable to the various Allied regimes. If you are the Axis
player, you are doing what the Axis did historically - keep
fighting tooth and nail for every inch of ground until the
hammer and sickle is raised over the Reichstag and the B-52’s
are bearing down on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
As a side note, nuclear weapons are not in the game as a
distinct rule unless you are using the optional “Special Actions
and Responses” rules. But you may notice that American
Strategic Bombing against Japan is absolutely devastating.
It requires having units in the North Pacific sea space, which
thematically includes islands like Iwo Jima and Okinawa
that the Americans needed as airbases. By the time you are
Strategic Bombing Japan you have already swept their fleets
from the Pacific and the game turn is probably 1945. It should
also be remembered that the Soviets launched an absolutely
massive offensive into Japanese-occupied Manchuria in 1945
to help force Japanese surrender. In game terms, this would be
a Soviet Offensive from Siberia to China on the final turn. I have
found that this will often be necessary to finally tip the Axis
over the edge in terms of Political Will.
SCALE
Another sticking point for historical gamers will be grasping
the unit scale of the game. This is highly abstract, but to cram
all of World War Two into an hour some accommodations need
to be made! Basically, a single unit is something like an Army
or Army Group, plus the logistical tail required to support it.
The 21st Army Group in Northwest Europe would be a good
example. Fleets are similar, representing something like the
entire US Navy 5th Fleet in the Pacific Theatre.
However, this only refers to the frontline units on the map.
The pieces in the game go through a sort of pipeline, cycling
between Spent, Reserves and the map itself. Committing
Reserves to a battle (shifting units from the Reserve space
to the Spent space on your Nation Sheet) represents not just
throwing more large formations into a fight, but expending
additional artillery shells, ammunition, replacement troops
and the other necessities of war. This is also why things like
Strategic Bombing move enemy units from Reserves to Spent.
It is not that the bombing is wiping out entire Army Groups,
but rather that several months of intense bombing is wrecking
the factory and rail infrastructure of the country and thus
preventing the flow of material to the front.
The relative strengths of the Nations are also not to be taken
as exact 1:1 comparisons. Sorry France, I only gave you a single
Level 1 Army. This is not because the French Army is small or
weak, it is just that modelling the collapse of 1940 while still
keeping the game balanced would require too many additional
rules. Also, the French Army can be saved by the British player
and eventually brought back into the field – that single piece
becomes the Free French!
Players will notice that the Level 2 pieces have a different
picture – tanks for Armies and aircraft carriers for fleets. This
is not necessarily because they represent units with more of
these types of equipment (although they do). It is simply to
differentiate them visually. The Level 2 units in each Nation’s
order of battle are their heavy hitters – reinforced mechanised
Army Groups or Fleets containing several Carrier Task Forces.
To take a concrete example, Operation Barbarossa in 1941
should be imagined in game terms as an Offensive/Blitz
launched by Germany from Poland with three units – two
Level 2’s (Army Groups North and Centre) and a Level 1 (Army
Group South). Similarly, the battles of Pearl Harbour and
Midway should be understood as being fought primarily by the
single Level 2 Japanese Fleet, against one of the Level 2 USA
Fleets. In both cases the frontline units are not the only pieces
involved, there are many in Reserve. But this gives you a hint
of the zoomed out and abstracted scale of the game, and the
kinds of decisions involved. As the Allies, do you go into the
Mediterranean and aim to invade Italy by 1943/44? As Japan
do you go listen to the IJA and focus on China and India, or
listen to the IJN and focus on sinking the US Navy in the Pacific?
As Germany, do you actually launch Barbarossa or focus on
economic warfare against Britain?
DICE OR NO DICE?
I don’t mind chucking dice. But you will notice that the game:
Uses dice very sparingly and with limited scope to change
results.
Includes a dice-free optional rule.
I actually prefer to play the dice-free option. There are a lot of
reasons for this. First of all, I have a general design philosophy
that if your game works without luck, it will work with luck, but
the reverse is not true. Testing your game with an assumption
of average dice rolls will let you see how balanced it really is.
Also, the “buckets of dice” factor is a paradox. Many games will
make players roll multiple dice to resolve a single action. This
is because more dice smooths out the probability distribution
and reduces the chance of wild swings in fortune. So, lots of
dice means less luck and therefore more emphasis on player
decisions. But keep adding dice and averaging the results -
infinite dice will end up the same as no dice. Buckets of dice
taken to its logical conclusion ends up being totally dice-less.
There are also no cards, hidden chits, or any other RNG’s
(random number generators) in the game.
So, no luck means more emphasis on player decisions. Like
Chess or Go. If you lose, there is no excuse to hide behind! You
have been outsmarted and cannot blame luck. I like this kind
of playing – every move is on a razor’s edge and you need to
seriously outwit your opponent. There is still scope for traps,
uncertainty and unexpected outcomes – but they all stem from
the decisions of the other player and not a separate factor that
is beyond either of your control.
Having said this, the default way to play the game is with dice
and it is certainly very enjoyable! It gives both sides more of a
reason to just go for it – you might get that lucky roll and take
the enemy Capital, or sink their Fleet before they can recover.
An even more exciting way to play is with the variable set up
rules, where you choose where to deploy your units before the
game begins. This adds big replay value to the game. So here is
how I would break down the ways to play, using a combination
of these two optional rules:
Casual Play:Standard set up, normal rules (dice). Best
introduction to the game for most wargamers.
Chess-like:Standard set up, dice-free. My preferred way to
play.
Advanced:Variable set up, dice-free. This will push you to the
limit among experienced players.
Crazy:Variable set up and standard rules (dice). This can result
in widely diverging outcomes, so be prepared! Good news is
the game goes for about an hour so you can reset if the enemy
outsmarts you and wins by 1942.
1 HOUR WORLD WAR II RULES | 13