DEFENSE OF THE MALVINASArgentina vs. Britainversion 2.0 1. UNIT COLORS 1.1. British (Brown) - Royal Marines and attached, non-paratroop units - Red on dark blue
- British Army and attached units - White on green
- Royal Navy - White on blue
- Royal Air Force - Maroon on white
- Special Air Service - Red on black
1.2. Argentina (Light blue) - Marines - Gold on dark blue
- Army - White on green
- Air Force - Black on white
2. OBJECTIVE VALUES - Puerto Argentino (61, 13): 20
- Puerto Argentino AP (61, 12): 20
- Prado del Ganso (44, 18): 10
- Puerto Howard (33, 12): 10
- Puerto San Carlos (45, 10): 10
- San Carlos (44, 12): 10
- Bahía Fox (25, 22): 10
3. SCENARIO NOTES The current scenario is based on extensive research and attempts to model both historical events as well as hypothetical eventualities that could reasonably have occurred. A number of necessary simplifications have been introduced given the limitations imposed by The Operational Art of War game system. Although the human opponent can assume command of either the Argentine or British forces, the scenario is best suited for the Argentine player. Only the Argentine player, for example, can activate the entry into the game of the Argentine Armada's ships and optimize their use in light of the high likelihood of destruction by British submarines (see below). It should be noted that in the actual conflict the airfield runways on the islands were too short to accommodate certain Argentine planes (Mirage IIIs and Vs, A-4 Skyhawks, Canberras) and that these were operated from air bases on the Argentine mainland. Moreover, only the 11 naval Skyhaws (A-4Q's) could be carrier-based while the Aermacchi MB-339s could only operate from the Puerto Argentino airfield. Although the TOAW system does not allow for corresponding restrictions on the air movement of these aircraft, they can be self-imposed by the human player. 4. SIGNIFICANT EVENTS - British forces start out with supplies at -20 on turn 1. British land forces (except SAS units) will go into a Hold order until turn 8, to reflect their waiting to get supplies ashore before attacking. Eight (8) turns after the start of the invasion, the British supply level will increase by +20.
- Upon occupying Bahía Fox, Prado del Ganso , Puerto Argentino and Puerto Howard, respectively, the British side will obtain an additional supply point at each location.
- There is a 50% chance that the units integrating the Prado del Ganso (PG) Argentine garrison will surrender (i.e., be withdrawn from the map) if British units occupy the settlement.
- There is a 75% chance that the units integrating the Puerto Howard (PH) and Bahía Fox (BF) Argentine garrisons will surrender (i.e., be withdrawn from the map), respectively, if British units occupy those settlements.
- The British 5th Infantry Brigade will go into a Hold order from turn 33 until turn 39 to reflect the consolidation phase of the landings around Fitzroy by the Scots and Welsh Guards.
- The FAA (Argentine Air Force) Grupo 8 unit will be activated if the British attack any of the Argentine homeland air bases.
- Given Argentine airborne Exocet attack capabilities, there is a 30% chance during turn 9 that the British ferry Atlantic Conveyor (and all but one of the four heavy-lift helicopters onboard) will be destroyed. There is also a 15% chance during turns 9 and 19 that the British carriers "Hermes" and "Invincible" (and all Harrier aircraft onboard), respectively, will be destroyed.
- Human players commanding the Argentine side can decide at any point in the game to commit the Armada's ships (including the carrier "25 de Mayo" and its 11 naval Skyhaws) to the conflict. This is accomplished through the "decision switch" on the lower left-hand corner of the map. Moving the Admiral Anaya unit to the "Yes" hex will result in the ships appearing on the map 3 to 4 turns (36-48 game hours) later. Some sea transport capability will also become available to the Argentine player at that time. Depending on how early the Armada ships enter the game, the chance of their individual "destruction" (i.e., withdrawal from the map) by (probabilistic) British submarine attacks varies from 1 to 3 per cent during any given turn.
- If British forces reach the western outskirts (hex 60, 12) of Puerto Argentino, a temporary cease-fire will ensue and the Argentine player will be presented with a THEATER OPTION to surrender. If the offer is accepted, the game will end with a conditional Argentine surrender. If no surrender is forthcoming within one turn, the surrender option will be withdrawn and the fighting will resume.
5. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND In 1833, during the heyday of Great Britain's imperialist expansion, the Malvinas Islands (located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 8000 miles from the British Isles) were forcibly taken from the fledgling Argentine nation by a British military contingent. Within the geography of the British Empire, the islands were named the "Falklands." On 2 April 1982, after decades of fruitless diplomatic attempts by Argentina to regain this territory peacefully, Argentine armed forces recover the islands in a surprise attack. The recovery of the islands by a militarily weaker nation greatly upsets the British ego, already afflicted by the realities of the new world order. A task force consisting of air, sea and land units is hastily assembled and dispatched to retake one of the few remaining colonial vestiges of the former empire. The new British invasion of the Malvinas begins on 21 May 1982. Jose Valdes |