Supply Token for Lend-Lease

Here’s an idea for lend-lease: add a new unit type called “Supply Crate.”

Crates cost 5 IPCs each, can be built at any factory, can be loaded onto and unloaded from any transport as if they were an infantry unit (so a transport could carry 2 crates, or a crate and a tank, or a crate and an infantry, or any similar combination), and do not participate in combat. They move 1 territory per turn, but only during the non-combat move.

At the start of your turn, if there is a supply crate in a territory with a factory that you control, then you may convert it into 5 IPCs for your treasury. Each factory can only convert 1 crate per turn per IPC value of the territory. For example, if the British build 4 Supply Crates in London on UK1 and ship them to Archangel on UK2 using 2 transports, then those Supply Crates could be unloaded in Archangel on UK2 and then, on UK3, walk to Leningrad. On R4, Russia would see that it had supply crates in one of its territories with a factory, and convert 2 supply crates into 10 IPCs. Then, on R5, Russia could covert the remaining 2 supply crates into another 10 IPCs, for a total of 20 IPCs of lend-lease.

Also, if after combat there is a supply crate in a territory that you have just conquered, then you must immediately “loot” them by converting them into 3 IPCs each for your treasury. The money will remain in your treasury until your next regular opportunity to purchase units. There is no limit on how many crates you can loot in a single turn.

The Supply Crate would help facilitate the creation of a Canadian power (by giving Canada something to do besides just build fighters and fly them to Moscow, and by giving them a reason to maintain a navy), would help fill the otherwise lackluster 5-IPC slot in the unit roster, and would more realistically simulate the war and sea and the ability of the Russians to field massive armies later in the war using the economic might of the Western Allies. Instead of a stack of 30 Russian infantry with 6 British fighters, you could have a stack of 30 Russian infantry, 10 Russian artillery, and 2 Russian tanks – but only if you can keep the sea lanes reasonably clear.

Supply Crates could also be used as a less disruptive form of bidding in conventional G40: because supply crates don’t unbalance any turn 1 battles, they’re a gentler way of giving the Allies some extra economic oomph.

@aequitas-et-veritas Sure! A roll of 5 or 6 on any bomber can be sacrificed (no damage) to destroy a Supply Crate in the target territory. So go ahead and roll for all your bombers. and then if you rolled some 5s or 6s and want to spend them that way instead of assigning them as damage, you can.

It’s intentionally inefficient because a crate of oil, spareparts, aluminum, etc. is probably less visible, more mobile, and smaller than an average factory or airstrip, but they could still be blown up if you get lucky.

I wouldn’t bother subtracting from its value; that sounds tedious.

If you prefer designating a target in advance, I would say get through the anti-aircraft fire, and then if you make your run against the crate and roll a 4, 5, or 6, then the crate is destroyed. On a roll of 1, 2, or 3 the crate is unharmed.

And, yes, if transport is sunk, your supplies are too! Just like any cargo.

I’m glad people are interested in this idea!

That said, I really don’t have strong opinions about the best way to adjudicate bombing runs on supply crates. That’s just not the part of the house rule that excites me. I would ideally want to keep the bombing rules very simple, so as not to require a lot of accounting or distract attention from other parts of the game, but if you have a set of complicated bombing rules that you and your friends enjoy, then go wild. There’s nothing wrong with that.

If you’re looking for my ideal bombing rules, I will try to explain them one more time:

1. Choose to target the supply crate rather than another facility. Any number of bombers can target the same crate
2. Suffer from AA fire and fighter interceptors as normal. Only surviving bombers can roll dice against crates.
3. If at least one bomber rolls a 4, 5, or 6, then completely destroy the crate that was targeted.
4. Ignore rolls of 1, 2, or 3. Do not partially damage crates.

These rules should generate slightly less economic payoff than ordinary strategic bombing…if your bomber gets through, you do an average of 2.5 damage, instead of 3.5 damage on a successful regular run. If you want more damage, you can allow hits on rolls of 3, as well.

As far as Canada having its own separate economy, yes, that’s certainly part of what I’m envisioning here, although you can use the Supply Crate rules even if you have no interest in switching up the British economies. I would ideally like to have four English-speaking powers:

1. USA
2. British Empire
3. Canada
4. ANZAC

British Empire would be UK + Iceland + Gibraltar + British Africa + India + Malaya + Hong Kong, and anything they conquer or liberate during the game. The Indian major factory is downgraded to two minor factories: one in India, and one in West India.

Canada would get +1 IPC each in British Columbia (allows purchase of a minor factory if desired), Yukon (becomes passible), and Newfoundland, as well as an NO for clearing Axis subs from the Atlantic worth about 3 IPCs/turn. Alberta would start with an extra tac bomber, Hudson Bay would start with an extra DD, and Ontario would start with an air base. If anyone knows of other NOs that would make sense thematically for Canada, I’m open to suggestions. Politically, Canada is treated like ANZAC, i.e., it starts off at war with Germany and Italy, and it will declare war on Japan as soon as Japan is at war with UK and/or ANZAC. It can declare an unprovoked war on Japan if desired, but that keeps the USA out of the war for longer.

The lack of Canadian income would make Britain slightly more vulnerable to Sea Lion…but you can now spend Indian income to protect London if you want, so there is still plenty of flexibility for the Allies in terms of which English-speaking countries will come under early attack. If you build nothing in India, you would wind up having more money to spend in London than in a standard OOB G40 game.

@SS-GEN That’s right, British economy would start at 28 + 17 - 7 = 38 IPCs.

You can spend 20 of that on upgrading the India factory on UK1 plus 18 IPCs on 6 infantry for India on UK1 if you really want to…but now London has zero defense for sea lion, and if London falls then you are not going to be able to use the India factories!

More realistically, if Japan leaves India alone and Germany leaves London alone then maybe by uk3 or so you can upgrade the India factory and hold India for the full game.