Europe 44

Unit Organizations: Armies and Corps for US, UK and Axis. Army Groups for the Red Army . Different shades of the main color mark different Armies, SS Corps and Red Army Fronts. Fronts and Axis Satellites have very limited cooperation, with better cooperation between US or UK Armies and even better between German Forces. Air Forces have usually fair or good cooperation levels.

June 44 marked a turning point for the War in the European Theater. The opening of the long awaited second front and the start of the Operation Bagration on June 22nd (3rd anniversary of the Axis attack to the Soviet Union) spelled the beginning of the end for the short lived Thousand Years Reich.

The many operational choices available to the players makes this historical campaign an almost ideal scenario for The Operational Art of War. What if the Western Allies had focused on the Italy campaign rather than invading southern France? What if they had landed in Greece, or the Balkans? What if Hitler had ordered an earlier retreat from Norway, Italy and the Balkans, freeing almost half a million fresh and experienced troops? What if the Ardennes Offensive had been only a limited (and far less costly) operation aimed at regaining the line of the Siegfried Wall? What if the Luftwaffe had tried a decisive operation to cripple Allied air forces based in Europe? As a last and very hypothetical scenario possibility what if Germany had started mass production of the revolutionary tanks, jet fighters and electric U-boats in time to stall the Allies before the conquest of Berlin and the Industrial Rhine/Ruhr region?

Here it is the right place to give full acknowledgments To Trey Marshall (for some of the OOB) and Ulver Nielsen for the Map of Europe. I eventually modified both of them based on additional historical sources and my understanding of some regions (mostly Northern Italy and Normandy). They provided an extremely valuable starting point for this scenario. A few places of historical importance have been included across the map. They have no impact on the game itself, but they are there to remind us of some of the reasons why a war that cost almost 20 millions human lives was fought.

winter is harsh in North and Eastern Europe, and the weather is often bad over England. Several cold fronts will occur starting in October, (after turn 20) severely affecting air operations, recon and supply level for the Allies. These effects will gradually wane by February.

The Allied Player will receive additional static supply units or supply points when major ports on the western theater are captured, namely:

• Brest (19,29)
• Antwerp (40,36)
• Le Havre (29,34)
• Cherbourg (26,32)
• Pola (44,65)
• Sibenek (46,71)
• Marseille (23,57)

Some supply points are subject to delays and a probability check to activate. Many deliver less than the full supply rate (as possible in TOAWIII). Antwerp, Cherbourg and Calais will take some turns to get to their full supply potential, but only Antwerp will deliver 100% of the supply rate (Cherbourg only 25%, Calais %40). It is then vital for the Allies to capture Antwerp as soon as possible and repair the railroad network around it. The supply point on the Normandy beaches exe is NOT connected to the railroad system so it will deliver supplies only up to a few exes away. As historically happened, and until the port of Antwerp is liberated and repaired, the US and UK armies will draw minimal (a few per cent) amount of supplies once close to Germany. The increase of supplies from the liberated ports is described with a series of events that replace each existing supply point with a new one with a higher supply rate (a nifty TOAWIII feature).

The Red army will receive additional supply units timed with historical offensives to simulate the increasing efficiency of their supply distribution network. Both sides receive a few Railroad Repair units. Extensive usage of Support Units has been made. This will affect individual armies resupply rates. Axis HQs have low replacement rates for support Squads so keep them away from the front lines. Axis Armies in Normandy have low resupply rates to simulate the breakdown of supply lines due to Air interdiction. Axis supply, replacements and rail capabilities will improve during Winter, with the slowing down of the Allies Strategic bombing campaign. Axis Supply and replacements will decrease with the capture of the following objectives:

• Ruhr (47,39) Repl. -30%
• Breslau (63,52) Repl. -20%
• Munich (46,53) Repl. -20%
• Milan (36,57) Repl. -5%
• Budapest (60,63) Repl . -5%
• Ploesti (73,77) Supply -4%
• Hungarian Oil Fields (56,66) Supply -2%
• Oslo (72,21) Supply -2%

Allies supply will improve with the capture of Danzig and Antwerp:
Danzig: Allies +2% supply (German sub base)
Antwerp & Calais Allies supply point when captured.

German Fortresses (Festungs) and supply: The Axis player has many supply points across the map. Many deliver MUCH less supply than the global supply rate (down to 1%). This is a TOAW III feature which I used to model the possibility to leave units behind in fortified areas as historically happened in Latvia, Prussia and the coast of France. These units will only be able to defend, but they can survive indefinitely behind the frontline without withering away as if they were out of supply. The Allies will have to actively attack to get rid of them! This is a great way to use Volskgrenadier units (that have AT+ squads) for delaying actions. To allow an element of surprise, rather than post a list of these supply points I encourage the Axis player to find them directly on the map

Axis Rail capabilities will slowly decrease during '44, will resume during the winter and finally plunge in 1945. The Allies player has airlift capability for one airborne division/turn (higher while the Market Garden TO is activated).

The Allied player has his strategic bombers available for carpet bombing during the first few turns. Use them to break out of Normandy. The effect of the strategic bombing of Germany is reflected by decreasing supply and replacement rates and by guerrilla and refugees events that will slow down movement and destroy railway exes. At the beginning of the game many bridges in France start as destroyed, making impossible to reach the Normandy front by rail.

All theater option reflect choices that both historically faced the allies and the Axis forces. Some of them come with drawbacks, usually in terms of reduced supplies to individual Armies. The Axis player should carefully decide how to employ his TOs. While the Axis has the capability to start a major offensive during winter 44, it might be a costly idea.

Airborne Operation (Market Garden) : gives airlift for three airborne divisions for one turn. It also significantly decreases supplies for US Third Army for about a month. This option will disappear in late Summer 1944 (turn 20). The Allied player as about 1 division/turn airlift capability during most other turns. The Red Army did not carry any airborne operation after 1943, but it certainly could have.

Anvil (or Dragoon) : gives a large, one turn sealift boost. However, 5US Army and UK 8th
army supplies will be permanently cut by about 25%. This option appears disappears in August 1944. The Allied as a small sealift capability during the other turns.

Carpet Bombing: This TO appears in late Summer an has no downside. It gives 8th Bomber Command (about 1500 bombers) to the allied player the turn after activating it. The units appear north of London. Historically they were used for a (fairly unsuccessful) carpet bombing in the Aachen area. These units are withdrawn the following turn.

Red Army Winter Offensive : This TO appears in early Winter. It provides additional Infantry Squads for the Red Army (drafted men from liberated areas), so make sure you activate it. It has no downside. Also, When the Winter Offensive is activated (the Vistula-Oder Campaign started on January 15th 1945) a replacement unit is disbanded, allowing new rocket tubes to be issued to four powerful STAVKA heavy artillery units (marked by the Hvy Art. Symbol, an heavy squared dot at the center). They are very useful against infantry units, so use them in the first round of a turn. These units are slow, so move them by rail if you can.

"Ardennes Offensive" This TO has no downside. It appears in late Fall and disappears in early January. The Axis player receives an extra supply unit (it has RR capabilities), additional replacements and small supply and shock bonuses for a few turns, starting three turns after the TO has been activated (example: if the Axis player activates the TO at turn X, he gets the supply units at Turn X+1 and the shock bonus at Turns X+4 and X+5). The supply unit will eventually be withdrawn (at Turn X+7). Given the assigned priorities, it is likely that replacements will bring SS Panzer divisions up to full strength . This TO represents the winter Offensive in the Ardennes. (code named Watch am Rhein), it will disappear around turn 32. It is activated automatically by the Axis PO.

"Eastern Front Offensive" This TO appears in late January and has no downsides for the Axis player. The Axis player receives a supply unit (at Turn X+1) The 3SS Totenkopf and SS Viking divisions are withdrawn (Turn X+1) and reappear shortly after (Turn X+3) at full strength as IVSS PZ Corps. The supply unit will eventually be withdrawn (Turn X+6). This TO represents the late winter Offensive in Hungary (Operation Konrad) and will disappear as Spring comes. It is activated automatically by the Axis PO.

" Operation Baseplate " This TO appears in January. The Axis player receives a 150% Air Shock bonus for one turn (at Turn X+1). Historically, the Luftwaffe attacked Allied airfields in France destroying almost 150 planes, but at a (too) great cost in trained pilots. The Allied quickly recovered from their losses. This TO is activated automatically by the Axis PO.

The End Game and very hypothetical (and fun) what ifs. The more realistic "What ifs" have been included in the Theater Options. However, a common "what if" involves German secret weapons that, if introduced in massive quantities, might have changed the outcome of the war. Many studies have repeatedly shown this possibility as wishful thinking, but it is interesting (and fun) to speculate what might have happened if Berlin had not fallen by the beginning of May and if Nazis secret weapons had become available by that time in large quantities. I added this option also to encourage the Axis player to play to the end. The scenario will end automatically with an Allied Player Victory when Berlin is captured. Alternatively, the scenario will end on May 1st with a normal victory count.

However, if the Allied player has been un able to capture Berlin and the Ruhr (exe 40,40) the scenario will continue an additional 20 turns. The Axis player, who obviously played a great defensive game, gets a few fun turns to play on the offensive. Hitler finally receives massive quantities of his long waited super weapons: electric U-boats, new tanks and jet fighters. In game terms this is described by a drastic cut in Allies supplies and replacements, shock penalties for the Allies and shock bonuses for the Axis, with additional supplies and replacements, mostly of Maus super heavy tanks and jet fighters He262. The scenario ends with a normal Victory tally in August.

Disbanding Units: It is often beneficial for the Axis player to disband units rather than moving them back all the way to Germany (for example if the front in Rumania collapses! Which it will...). However, the Axis player should not disband any unit in Finland and Norway unless on an anchor exe (sorry you have to ferry them to Germany!). Also, players should not disband any unit that cannot trace an interrupted line of free exes to a supplied exe. At times, TOAWIII consider isolated units way behind enemy lines as supplied. At a scale of 32Km/exe chances that these troops would be able to reach their friendly lines without actively fighting would be pretty slim, at least in game terms. Historically Germany produced a large number of small units and formations late in the war, often of indifferent qualities (low proficiency and supply rates in game terms) at the expense of veteran units. The player can change this by choosing to disband a number of units and small formations that will not reconstruct. The equipment (and especially those precious supply units attached to HQs that regulates the formation supply rates) will go to other formations. This will also keep the game more manageable. The German player will have to balance the need to plug holes in the front lines with new units with that of sending reinforcements and supplies to veteran units with higher proficiency.

List of German units & formations that do not reconstitute:

• All Infantry divisions (not Korps!)
• All Luftwaffe units (light blue background)
• All Panzer Brigades
• 3 SS Panzer Korps
• 11 SS Korps
• GD Panzer Korps
• 5 Panzer Army
• 8th Army
• Army Area Denmark
• AG Vistula, B and G
• Army Group
• Cossaks & Croatian Units

All units belonging to the above formations will not reconstitute.

Most Axis brigades, divisions and supply units do not reconstitute. They can be disbanded and their equipment will be dumped into the replacements pool. This is a good option if the Axis player wants to keep the number of units in play relatively low.