2. Kamikaze Attacks (revised)
A terrifying development was the Japanese suicide tactics as a desperate means of slowing the Allied advance. The Japanese used pilots who only knew how to take off and dive into their target with an aircraft full of explosives.
You may make six Kamikaze attacks during the game. These attacks may be launched if an Allied player move ships within 2 sea zones from Japan, after all combat movement has been completed. Kamikaze may target specific enemy ships, except for submarines. They attack on a roll of 2 or less during the opening fire step of the first cycle of combat. A Kamikaze may not be taken as a casualty. Before you rolls dice to launch a Kamikaze attack, you must announce the target(s) and how many Kamikazes that are participating. Use a die to keep track on how many Kamikaze remain to be used. If a Kamikaze is used during an allied combat phase this counts as a naval battle and will prevent all ships in that sea zone from conducting shore bombardment.
Under these rules I can’t see why Japan would choose a battleship as a casualty. The only advantage to Kamikazes is that you get to choose your hits, but since your opponent will always choose a battleship as their 1st casualty anyway, you haven’t gained anything. You should only hit a battleship if the kamikaze hit is the 2nd hit on that battleship. Actual kamikazes commonly hit either carriers or battleships but under these rules I’m afraid that kamikazes would almost exclusively only go after carriers.
4. British Commonwealth Troops (replace Mideast Oil)
The British Commonwealth Troops served in all theatres in World War II - from Europe to North Africa to South-East Asia.
During your mobilize new units phase, you may place one of your infantry for free in one of the following territories if you control it: India, Western Canada, Eastern Canada, Australia, South Africa, Anglo-Egypt, or New Zealand. If the teritory contains an industrial complex, you can mobilize nomore units than the income value of that territory.
This is very similar to my ‘Colonial Garrision’ rule where UK may place no more than 1 of their purchased infantry in any non-industiralized tan territory worth more than 1 IPC. I’m just curious why you defined where you may place this infantry as you did. Why New Zealand and not in the middleast?
3. Enigma Decoded
Working in a secret facility in Bletchley Park, Alan Turing’s cryptographers broke the codes of the Nazi Enigma machines. They could then send false messages back.
Once per game, when Germany finishes its combat move phase, but before its conduct combat phase, you may make one special move. You may move any number of your units from any one adjacent space into one friendly space being attacked by Germany (Germany moving sea units to an empty sea zone does not count). Alternatively, you may move any number of your units from a space being attacked by Germany into an adjacent friendly space, but you must leave at least one of your units behind. This special move otherwise follows the rules for a noncombat move. If your units survive, they remain in the space to which they were moved.
I think this rule can easily be exploited such that it’s too powerful. For example, if UK gets to the point where they may unload 6 infantry every turn into Norway or Karelia, then they would probably have such a build-up of infantry that they would effectively be able to strongly defend every territory neighboring the teritory they are in. If UK could instantly move 10-15 infantry like that, then they could slaughter the Germans if they ever attacked a territory adjacent to these units. I think there is a good chance this rule can be exploited too much towards latter in the game.
2. Joint Strike
The most powerful strike in the war was the joint Allied assault on Normandy. The planning required to launch this simultaneous invasion has never been equaled.
Once during the game at the start of a round (before the Russian turn), you may declare a joint strike. That round, you complete your turn as normal, except you must skip combat move, conduct combat, and noncombat move phases. On those phases of the U.S. turn, the U.S. player uses your units in his or her combat move, conduct combat, and noncombat move phases together with his own units. You and the U.S. player must agree on attacking casualties, or the opposing player gets to choose them. Antiaircraft fire is rolled separately against each nationality of air units; all anti-U.K. dice are rolled before any anti-U.S. die is rolled. Weapons developments or national advantages still only apply to the units of the power that gained the development or has the advantage. A joint strike may not be called off once it is declared.
It was hard enough organizing D-day. Under these Joint-Strike rules the UK and US player can combine their attacks on every battle, even those in the Pacific and mainland Asia. This isn’t very realistic IMO as well as too strong. I would be scared if I was playing Japan knowing that on any given turn my fleet may be attacked by all of the US fleet and all of UK remaining fleet and Royal navy. I’m pretty sure many Japanese players don’t ‘over-build’ their navy well enough to defend against this.
4. Tiger Tank Battalions (replace Wolf Packs)
The massively powerful Tiger tanks were assigned to heavy tank battalions to support other units for special operations, to be deployed en masse for decisive shock action.
You may build three tank units as Tiger tanks, but only one per turn. A Tiger tank attack and defends on a 4 or less. Each Tiger tank costs 6 IPC’s and may be rebuilt if destroyed. Tigers have a movement capability of 2, but cannot blitz as regular tanks.
Introducing new units opens up a whole new can of worms. How do you distinguish between the two types of German tanks? Also, I find that the European territories are crowded enough as it is. Now you need to have 2 separate stacks of tanks for many territories. Is it worth it?
3. Panzergrenadiers (replace Panzerblitz)
During World War II, the Germans had troops that were designed for fighting alongside tanks. These were fully motorized units, so that they could at all times keep up with the tanks.
Each of your tanks give one matching infantry one additional movement allowance. The tank and the infantry unit must leave from the same territory.
Once again, I have almost the same rule in my house rules. Amazing. In my rule I have mechanized infanrty as a tech though, so any nation can possibly utilize mech infantry. Also, in my rule I have it so the infantry can move 2 as long as it ends up in the same territory as the tank. This is so the mech inf can move to the battlefront without the armor that’s already on the front needing to come back for the infantry.
1. Russian Winter
Russia’s greatest ally was its winter cold. Germany’s invasion stopped dead as the snows came down.
Once during the game in your collect income phase, you can declare a severe winter. Until the start of your next turn, your infantry defend on a 3.
Should you restrict this to red territories? Russians in India or the middleast defending at 3 because of cold weather doesn’t make much sense does it? Another point in terms of realism is that the Russians couldn’t choose when to have Russian winter. In my house rules I have the winter randomized to possibly occur every 3 turns (I have 1 year = 3 turns).
