general - View From The Trenches

24
able if the Russians attack Turkey with as many as
ten 3-3 units available by Winter 1939 (building six
in Fall), backed by ten 2-3 units plus armor and air.
Turkish defenses might fall a turn earlier and the
Attrition Option would have more affect, if used.
Hopefully, the Russians could then redeploy their
units earlier to meet the expected Axis attack. The
corollary to this is worth noting, namely that removing
those cheap 1-3s makes Axis attrition against
the Red Army much more expensive for the Soviet
player.
J. Spain can become a minor French or British
ally in Variant #4 (bringing Portugal also, for the
British) if France survives until the 1941 YSS or
ifthe Allies control Africa and Rome. Loyalist Spain
might also join the Russians, requiring some
diplomacy for the Western Allies to reap the benefits
in an alliance game. The strategic position Spain
offers is worth the maximum effort required to sustain
France through 1940, but even stripping the
colonies to commit all of the British armor and air
units will rarely stop a determined Axis attack. (A
follow-up attack might give them Spain as well before
they turn east.) Saving the counter until the
Allies achieve victory in North Africa and attack
Italy can give them the best advantage of the two
possibilities. This usually requires a strong and early
offensive in Italy after the invasion, tying down
many quality air, armor and airborne units to take
Rome as rapidly as possible. But once taken the
Allies are relieved of the necessity to mass their
fleets for an invasion of France. Hopefully, the
Allies can activate Spain at a point where they are
getting two turns in a row, to afford a maximum
build-up and the start ofan advance before the Axis
reacts.
K. Variant #3, passing control of all French
colonies to the British, now requires French survival
until Winter 1940 or later to become usuable.
This change restricts the old tactic of stockpiling
the better French units in the colonies before Paris
falls, even before the Germans attack. A strong
defense calls for massive British aid (as above) and
the Allies might consider an advance into the Low
Countries to improve their position and hide their
secret intent. Southern France must be protected as
the escape route when, or if, the opportunity
presents itself. The fleet should avoid engagements
to remain ready for transferring units to Africa, and
it goes over to the British automatically (if the variant
applies). Executing attacks against Libya or Iraq
might conceal the reason for locating units in the
colonies, but spending BRPs for these attacks
absorbs the rebuilding capabilities and draws off the
units which will be needed for France to survive
into Winter.
L. The Russians gain a slightly better advantage
with Variant #19, presupposing that no Winter War
took place and essentially neutralizing Finland.
Relieved of this threat to their right flank, the Russians
will have some extra units available to resist
the Axis advance from Eastern Europe, though not
many more. By drawing this variant, the Russians
should adequately eliminate the chance of Leningrad
and Vologda being surrounded or controlled,
cutting off the Murmansk Convoy route. The Axis
player loses the quality Finnish units from their attack
and the convience of up to ten combat factors
when taking the Attrition Option; one or two Finnish
units can also be lost to attrition without bringing
a disaster, when they are available. Combining
this variant with massive Foreign Aid to another
Axis Minor Ally (e.g. Rumania) to delay its
activation could put the Russians in a much better
position than merely improving the quality of their
infantry units.
M. Variant #14, lifting the restrictions on
Anglo/French Cooperation, adjusts a major hindrance
to Allied planning and operations during the
early years. British and French units can combine
in attacks and exploitations, lend Ground Support
to each other and British units can take a more
definite role in defending France. Attacking Brussels
and achieving an armored breakthrough would
allow the Allies to exploit into the Netherlands, enabling
them to capture all three Low Countries in
one turn, or into Germany itself if the border is not
properly guarded. A similar combined exploitation
attack could be used againt Italy, landing on coast
hex W24 or AA23 and threatening Rome, or taking
hex EE21 in Sicily and exploiting onto the "toe"
of the Italian "boot". In either strategy, the drawback
remains a lack of quality units in sufficient
number to adequately exploit the early gains-or
even hold onto them. France should survive for a
little longer on the average, but this variant seems
unlikely to ensure its survivial indefinitely.
N. The enlarged U.S. Navy in Variant #6 adds
two fleets to the U.S. force pool, but more importantly
it allows three fleets to be shifted from
allowable builds to available at start. Because those
three fleets need not be built initially, this variant
adds the equivalent of 81 BRPs to the U.S. total.
The BRPs "saved" this way can help defer the cost
of sending BRP grants to the other Allies, for which
two extra fleets are available to escort. Building the
two extra fleets does cost 54 of the "saved" BRPs,
but they need not be built immediately, allowing
the American player to transfer BRPs early without
inhibiting the rapid growth of the navy-it's already
built when they enter the war. The larger U. S. fleet
is very important when the Allies choose to divide
the American and British theater responsibilities,
Western and Mediterranean, respectively. The extra
fleets are available for stronger invasion forces, intercepting
Axis naval forays or effecting better SR
of rebuilt units back to the area.
O. The addition of 40 French BRPs in Variant
#2 can be used conservatively for Intelligence, Foreign
Aid, making counterattacks and rebuilding units
(during the inevitable Battle of France). Alternatively,
the French could take the initiative and use
their extra BRPs to capture Belgium and Luxembourg
in Fall 1939. Both countries could then be
turned over to the British in Winter, giving them
the BRP additions in 1940 and the option to also
invade the Netherlands. Iraq presents another possibility
for a French attack, offering no BRPs but
containing an objective hex which could be turned
over to the British after the one or two turns needed
to capture it. Either operation will absorb the extra
French BRPs, leaving them with a normal amount
in Spring 1940, but occupying Iraq offers the extra
objective hex and the Low Countries improve the
defenses against Germany. The major drawback
here is that there is no improvement of the units
themselves and the Allies must attack in order to
make any substantial gain.
P. Variant #11 is similar to #2 with its emphasis
on moving the main defense line forward to the
Rhine. In this instance, the forward movement can
be made without force, as Belgium and Luxembourg
are cooperating with the Allies for mutual defense.
Once again, the British should supply the forces to
occupy those countries since they have the stonger
units, and a Fall conquest of Holland followed by
the Allies gaining the initiative in Winter (for two
consecutive turns) might catch part of the German
border unprotected. The early Allied gains become
a buffer zone between Paris and the Germans,
though it won't last for long. Britain must still make
a sizeable commitment in air and armor units if
France is to survive until late 1940, by which time
they are normally overwhelmed. The potential delays
to the German attack through Allied-occupied
Low Countries might leave the Axis without enough
time to seriously threaten an isolated Britain,
whether in the Home Islands, Malta, Egypt or elsewhere,
before turning against Russia.
Q. In Variant #20, the American entry into the
war can come as early as Winter 1940, although
the die-roll requirement makes the exact turn of ac-
tivation uncertain. The advantages of this preemptory
deployment include the addition of BRPs
to the Allied pool when determining initiative, more
fleets available to escort BRP when determining initiative,
more fleets available to escort BRP grants
to Russia or moving troops to the Mediterranean,
plus the earlier threat to invade France. Fewer units
are available at start, but the time needed to deploy
units into Britain helps dilute this drawback. If a
determined Allied defense can prevent a French collapse
through 1940, the Americans might enter soon
enough to join the battle at its critical point-shades
of the Great War-but French survival is unlikely.
The Americans gain a 50% chance of entering the
war in Summer 1941 and by building and redeploying
in a schedule similar to the one outlined in item
D above they can be ready to attack in Summer 1942
(with seven fleets, five air, five armor, an airborne,
and six infantry units, plus about 100 BRPs). Assigning
all British forces to the Mediterranean allows
the U.S. to invade France sooner, possibly by
late 1942 allowing for time spent helping the other
Allies, when the Axis forces are heavily involved
in Russia.
R. The French have a choice in Variant #16,
where they can add three armor units or one armor
and one air unit to their allowable builds, offering
a sizable boost to their rather dismal army.
However, the Maginot Line hexes do not function
as fortress defenses, partially negating this variant's
advantages because they must now expect an attack
at any point along the frontier. A frontline defense
of infantry, possibly moved forward to the Rhine,
, can be backed by stacks of armor to inhibit exploitation
and make counterattacks. Alternatively, with
a maximum commitment of air units the Allies can
gain a 7-6 advantage over the Germans, though this
would mean stripping the British colonies (which
may be an open invitation to the italians), and forfeits
two additional armor units. A very aggressive
Allied player might coincide the loss ofthe Maginot
Line as an incentive to attack Germany first: the
British capture Belgium and Luxembourg in Fall
1939 while the French build their armor units; in
Winter, either or both countries could attack
Germany while the British also conquer Holland (or
simply attack and move through to exploit across
the Rhine). If the British continue moving north,
they could capture a port city for landing reinforcements
to carryon the battle, and also providing the
eventual escape route.
S. The most obvious advantage in Variant #17
is defensive, extending the Maginot fortress hexes
along the Franco-Belgian border to the sea.
Germany will face quadrupled defensive factors all
along the front, usually two infantry units in each
stack with air and armor behind. Because British
units cannot garrison the Maginot Line, they can
either protect southern France against the Italians,
provide a second line ofdefense behind the Maginot,
or invade the Low Countries to add the buffer zone
as previously mentioned. By leaving France to the
French entirely, the British become free to deal Italy
a crippling blow; air factors from Malta could cover
an invasion of Sicily with an armored exploitation
crossing to the "toe". The two Allied fleets can
more than equal the Italian navy and both Allied
countries can attack Libya by land, possibly knocking
Italy out of North Africa. French air units can
cover an in\iasion of Sardinia, the Italian coast or
an overland advance toward Milan and Genoa, with
all three armor units making a breakthrough and exploitation.
If both Allies attack Italy in strength the
forces holding the extended Maginot Line will be
reduced, but any early success against the Italians
may force Germany to lend assistance, delaying
their invasion of France until they bailout the
Italians. The "free" entry being given to Italy is
balanced by the potential losses that can be inflicted
on the Axis position, particularly the Italian fleet
and their North African base, and the possible