Cards for Axis and Allies 1940

Hey guys, I just got laid off in the middle of my trip.  Naturally, as I have no developed the powers of photosynthesis yet (on my to do list), I’ll probably have to devote some time looking for a job. Never the less I will discuss some of the ideas mentioned here.

CWO Marc- Glad you liked the Sorge suggestion. I don’t know how to really work the road of life in as Axis and allies doesn’t have encirclements. Certainly it was a major effort by the USSR and would be worthy of a card. Maybe it would work as something you could play if German forces threatened Leningrad by land.

Hobbes- While I agree with you on Goring’s General incompetence, he was still in charge of the Luftwaffe. At most I’d probably just give him a bonus for the purchasing of Tactical bombers (the type of project that he directed resources to as opposed to strategic bombers or interceptors). I don’t think Keitel was an idiot, just a sycophant. There is a difference. ;)

Your idea about having a single commander card have multiple roles, using Guderian as an example, is a pretty good one.

Re your other ideas:

Industrial Redeployment (IC from Ukraine to Urals)- is covered as an ability of one of the Soviet cabinet Ministers

Shock Armies (or your Guards Divisions)- Good idea! I could have some special token to put under Soviet Guard units. With a limit on how many you can have.

Deep Battle- Any interesting concept, but how would you depict it as a card? Also, wouldn’t you say the Doctrine more or less died with Tukachevsky a few years
before the game starts?

Maskirovka- I would consider this kind of tactics, but I’m wondering how to represent them in a card. Maybe something like a limited version of the lucy spy ring’s effects but that can be done every turn. Or maybe allow the Soviets to take their noncombat turn before their combat turn?

Siberian Divisions- is Covered by the Richard Sorge card. He was Stalin’s spy in Tokyo who was able to confirm that the Japanese were not going to help Hitler out, allowing for the release of those Siberian reinforcements.

Ghost One- The Winter war already happened before the game started. Russia actually controls some of Finland that they took in the war at the start of the game.

CWO Marc- Disadvantage cards is an interesting idea.

otahere34- Yes, some of the ideas you posted are already planned for card. :-D

@Hobbes:

@dannyboy2016:

Deep Battle- Any interesting concept, but how would you depict it as a card? Also, wouldn’t you say the Doctrine more or less died with Tukachevsky a few years
before the game starts?

Deep operations theory was behind Soviet strategy during the entire WW2 and up until 1991. Since it consists of conducting attacks on a wide front with the propose of hiding the actual objective (which is attacked by a 2nd and 3rd echelons of armies) you can replicate it with something like this: if the Soviet Union attacks 2 or more contiguous territories and wins it can choose to freely move the surviving units between those 2 territories during non-combat, but always leaving 1 unit behind.

Maskirovka- I would consider this kind of tactics, but I’m wondering how to represent them in a card. Maybe something like a limited version of the lucy spy ring’s effects but that can be done every turn. Or maybe allow the Soviets to take their noncombat turn before their combat turn?

It can be something like the UK’s Enigma National Advantage.

Your idea about deep operations is interesting, though you have to admit that as a result of the pruges the doctrine took a major setback and the country had to basically relearn it during the war. Though Operation uranus is certainly a good example of that theory being put into practice. I could see it making for a good card though.

Re Maskirovka- yes, it could be something like that. Maybe it or Lucy could be a one time effect while the other can be used more permanently.

Both are good ideas.

Your mention of Deep operations and Maskirovka has given me another idea. What if I had “Doctrine” cards for each country. You could only have one doctrine at a time.

@CWO:

@dannyboy2016:

Your mention of Deep operations and Maskirovka has given me another idea. What if I had “Doctrine” cards for each country. You could only have one doctrine at a time.

I don’t know if this would qualify as a doctrine, but the Americans and the British had a lot of disagreements from 1942 to 1944 over their strategic and operational philosophies.  The British favoured things like indirect blows around the fringes of occupied Europe (for example Churchill’s depiction of Italy as the “soft underbelly of the crocodile” – which, considering how mountainous Italy is, turned out to be naive when the Allies invaded there) and long, thin, rapier-like strikes like Operation Market-Garden (which failed).  The Americans preferred head-on attacks like the Operation Overlord landings in Normandy, and advances along a broad front like the drive towards the Rhine in 1944-1945 – a method of warfare I’ve heard called the “Ulysses S. Grant approach”.

“indirect approach” would work as a British Doctrine
“Superior Firepower” would work for the Americans
Blitzkreige and Volksstrum would work for Gemany

However, it is probably better not to have a Doctrine card type and just have these type of things as"national advantage" cards

CWO Marc- If I did doctrines as a separate type of card, countries would only be allowed to have one doctrine in play at a time.

Ghost One- While I see your point there is the issue that it’d be very difficult to come up with multiple doctrines for each country. However we might make that work if we include things like air or naval doctrines and if some doctrines could be used by multiple countries (like Fleet in Being as a naval doctrine available for several countries, for instance).

Okay here are some basic doctrine ideas based on the US
Combined Arms- Basically McNair’s baby. I’d say give some sort of combined arms bonus, for having, artillery, infantry, mechanized infantry, and Armor, and aircraft taking part in a battle. Also allow infantry and artillery to blitz when paired with a tank.

Superior Firepower - Use the overwhelming abundance in material and munitions to bomb the hell out of the enemy. Perhaps preventing units killed by artillery or bombers during the first cycle of combat from retaliating?

Carrier Group- Obviously this one would probably be shared with Japan and give bonuses of some kind to Carriers.

Amphibious Operations- Basically the marine national advantage from the 2004 game.

Air Superiority- Don’t know exactly how to represent this but consider events like the battle of the bulge. Once the weather cleared the American air force made it impossible for German vehicles to operate during the day. Maybe if you have more air units involved in a land combat enemy armor, artillery, and mechanized units couldn’t attack/defend during the first cycle of combat?

Aerial Convoy Defense- Would represent the use of airbases to protect convoys against subs. Basically give planes the ability to attack subs without a destroyer present.

Daytime Strategic Bombing - Something to give additional damage to American bombardments.

The British, by contrast may have a Nighttime bombing doctrine that would reduce the damage done but render the bombers immune from enemy interception.
Germany may have something like a night fighters doctrine that could undermine that advantage, but if they are using that then they aren’t getting the benefits of, say, Blitzkrieg.

These are just a few examples. Since only one Doctrine card would be allowed at a time, each country (besides China) would at least need 1 land, air, and naval doctrine to choose from. the Majors would need more, of course. That way doctrines would be a major choice. Will Germany really try to contest control of the seas and skies or will she focus on Russia. Will America focus on its air force (okay, that was technically part of the army then), its navy, or its army?

Obviously if I go this route and add doctrines as a unique card, I should probably take the suggestion of allowing people to draw one of each card type. Or maybe just let them draw five cards of any type at the start. America, for instance, wouldn’t have as many puppet cards as the Axis.

I’m still not certain if its worth trying to come up with a handful of doctrines for each country or just keep these as national advantages.

That may be a good way of doing it. Will have to consider it.

Taking a break from the Soviets for a moment, I’m going to make some suggestions to flesh out the concept of doctrine cards. I’ll probably go with the suggestion of being able to start with one at the beginning of the game. Only one Doctrine card may be played at a time. However it should cost a significant amount of money to change doctrines (ie 20 ipc range). When you change a doctrine the older one will be moved back into your hand.

While doctrines will be broken up into land, Air, and Naval doctrines, you still only get 1 doctrine card in play at any time.

Proposed German Military Land Doctrines

Elastic Defense Doctrine - In an elastic defense, the front line would be held by a minimal number of troops (to minimize the number of men exposed to artillery fire). During an attack, these troops would retreat. Reserves, who would be stationed nearby but beyond artillery range, would then counterattack and retake the front line.

Effect: Enemy artillery and supported infantry may not attack during the first cycle of a ground combat.

Schwerpunkt- Schwerpunkt refers to a center of gravity or point of maximum effort, where a decisive action could be achieved. The principle of Schwerpunkt enabled the attacker to win numerical superiority at the point of the main effort, which in turn gave the attacker tactical and operational superiority even though the attacker may be numerically and strategically inferior along the entire front.

Effect: If a German army is superior in size to any army it is attacking, then all enemy land forces may not retaliate during the first cycle of combat.

Kesselschlacht- Kesselschlacht (or Cauldron battles) were a concentric attack on encircled forces earlier bypassed by the Schwerpunkt attack(s). It was here that most losses were inflicted upon the enemy, primarily through the capture of prisoners and weapons

Effect: If any enemy land units are encircled (meaning that all surrounding territories are either sea zones or are controlled by enemy or Neutral powers) then they defend at -1 for the duration of combat. This includes units just encircled because of combat operations Germany made previously during its turn.

Blitzkreig- Blitzkrieg, meaning “lightning war”, in its strategic means is associated with a series of quick and decisive short battles to deliver a knockout blow to an enemy state before it could fully mobilize. The tactical meaning of blitzkrieg involves a coordinated military effort by tanks, mobilized infantry, artillery and aircraft, to create an overwhelming local superiority in combat power, to overwhelm an enemy and break through its lines.

Effect: German tanks, Mechanized infantry, and Tactical Bombers attack twice during the first cycle of combat.

Kampfgruppe- The Kampfgruppe was an ad-hoc combined arms formation, usually employing combination of tanks, infantry, and artillery (including anti-tank) elements, generally organised for a particular task or operation. A Kampfgruppe could range in size from a corps to a company , but the most common was an Abteilung (battalion)-sized formation.

Effect: If German tanks, Mechanized infantry, infantry, and artillery are present in a territory then they all attack at +1 for the first cycle of combat.

Volksstrum- Volkssturm (literally people’s storm) drew inspiration from the old Prussian Landsturm of 1813-15, that fought in the liberation wars against Napoleon, mainly as guerrilla forces. Plans to form a Landsturm national militia in Eastern Germany as a last resort to boost fighting strength initially came from General Heinz Guderian in 1944. Because the Wehrmacht was lacking manpower to stop the Soviet advance, men in jobs not deemed necessary or previously deemed unfit for military service were now called under arms.

Effect: German infantry cost 1 ipc less.