Axis & Allies Europe
Alternate Victory Conditions and Optional Rules
Version 2.0 dated 3/4/05
The following are a set of optional rules meant to be used with Hasbro’s / Avalon Hill’s splendid Axis & Allies Europe wargame. This is an unofficial supplement to Axis & Allies Europe.
1. Alternate Victory Conditions:
The following alternative victory conditions may be used in lieu of those included in the basic game rules.
1.1 German Victory Conditions:
The German player wins by defeating both England and Russia. England is defeated by Germany capturing the Great Britain area and holding it for one turn while retaining control of the Germany area. Russia is defeated by Germany capturing and holding all three major Russian cities (Leningrad, Stalingrad, and Moscow), holding the last of the three captured for one turn while retaining control of the Germany area. Should Germany achieve the defeat of England and Russia, the US sues for peace and Germany secures it rule over Europe!
1.2 Allied Victory Conditions:
Allied victory conditions remain essentially unchanged from the basic game. The Allies must first avoid the Germans achieving their victory conditions! Other than that, as in the basic game, one of the Allied players must occupy Germany and hold it for one turn while maintaining control of their own capital. This will result in an Allied team victory.
1.3 Notes on Victory Conditions:
1.3.1 Once Russia is defeated (as described above), it cannot be liberated and therefore cannot reenter the game. Once Russia is defeated, the capture of German held former Russian territories by the remaining Allies simply adds that territory to that Allies’ holdings and denies the territory to the German player. Once Russia is defeated, the Germans do not have to defeat it a second time even if the remaining Allies retake Moscow.
1.3.2 In contrast to the Russian situation, England may be liberated. Should one of the remaining Allies retake Great Britain, the British are considered liberated. At that moment, all former British territories currently controlled by any other Allied nation revert to British control. Control markers on the map board are adjusted as necessary. The IPC markers on the National Production Chart are adjusted accordingly. The British reclaim their place in the turn sequence and on their next turn begin to collect IPC’s once again. If Germany defeats England but has not yet defeated Russia and the remaining Allies then liberate England, Germany will have to defeat England a second time to meet that part of its victory conditions.
1.3.3 Russia continues to receive IPC’s until the last of its three major cities is captured. The loss of Moscow does not stop Russian income unless Moscow is the last of the three cities to be captured. Russia also does not surrender the IPC’s in its possession to Germany until the last of the three cities falls to Germany. The loss of Moscow does not trigger the surrender of IPC’s to Germany unless Moscow is the last of the three cities to fall.
2. Optional Rules:
The following optional rules are provided to both allow the players to play-balance the game as well as to add some spice to the game. These rules can be used in any combination so long as all players agree to the rules prior to the start of the game.
2.1 Pro – Allies:
2.1.1 Lend Lease:
The British and US may attempt to provide Russia with funds from their own income. At the beginning of their own turn, the British or US player sets aside the number of IPC’s that he wishes to transfer to the Russian player. This amount can be up to the entire amount of the player’s IPC’s. These funds represent resources and materials provided by the Western Allies to Russia via convoy. It is not guaranteed that the entire amount of IPC’s being transferred to Russia will make it. To represent the risk of convoy attack and the intrinsic inefficiency of such transfers, the Russian player must roll a die at the beginning of their next turn to determine the percentage of funds that make it into his treasury.
Die Roll: Percentage of Transferred US and British IPC’s that make it to Russia:
1 90%
2 80%
3 50%
4 50%
5 40%
6 30%
• Add one to the die roll if Russia does not control the Archangel territory.
Multiply the IPC’s set aside by the percentage indicated by the die roll and round up. This figure represents the surviving IPC’s. The surviving IPC’s are immediately added to the Russian treasury and may be spent normally.
2.1.2 Siberian Reinforcements:
Historically, the Russian position in the fall of 1941 was critical. German forces were approaching Moscow, encircling Leningrad, and generally overrunning and destroying all remaining European Soviet military power. The Russians however had an ace up their sleeve in the form of their Asian armies. These tough Siberian units had been held in Asia to guard against any aggressive moves by the Japanese. However, Russian intelligence confirmed that the Japanese had made the decision to attack the US and avoid conflict with Russia. This allowed Russia to transfer these formidable forces west. These units arrived in the Moscow area just as the German forces were appearing on the outskirts of Moscow. These forces, along with the Russian winter, finally stopped the Nazi advance.
At the beginning of the third Russian turn, the Russian player rolls a die. The result determines the size and composition of the Siberian reinforcements.
Die Roll: Siberian Reinforcements:
1 8 x inf, 4 x tank, 4 x arty, 1 x fighter
2 8 x inf, 3 x tank, 4 x arty
3 7 x inf, 3 x tank, 3 x arty
4 7 x inf, 3 x arty
5 6 x inf, 2 x arty
6 6 x inf
The resulting reinforcements are immediately placed in Moscow. If Moscow has been captured, the reinforcements are placed in any original Russian territory still under Russian control.
2.1.3 Russian Winter:
One of the most important allies that the Russians had in 1941 was “General Winterâ€. The Germans, confident of a swift victory over the Soviets, did not plan on the campaign going beyond the end of the year. As a result, they saw no need to equip their forces for winter operations. Even has they done so, it is unlikely that they could have foreseen the severity of the Russian winter. As it was, they were brutally introduced to the typical Russian winter as their offensive ground to a halt at the gates of Moscow. One of the most devastating effects of the Russian winter was the interruption of ground and air movement. This of course affected both armies, but as the Germans were on the offensive, the debilitating effects on air and ground operations were more damaging to them than to the Russians.
This rule requires the tracking of turns during the game to determine when winter and spring occur. Attachment “A†of these rules is a time chart for the game. Each complete game turn represents a three-month season. At the beginning of the winter and spring turns, the German player rolls a die to determine the weather:
Die Roll: Winter Weather: Spring Weather:
1 Snow Snow
2 Snow Mud
3 Snow Mud
4 Mud Clear
5 Mud Clear
6 Clear Clear
The effects of these various weather conditions are as follows:
Weather: Effect:
Snow All ground units move 1 space only. All air movement halved (fighters a total of 2 spaces, bombers 3 spaces).
Mud All ground units move 1 space only. All other movement per standard rules.
Clear None – all movement per standard rules.
These effects occur in all original Russian territories only. Any units that start their turn in one of these territories are subject to these weather effects.
2.2 Pro – German:
2.2.1 US Neutrality:
It was not a given that the US and Germany would go to war. Although tensions had been high through the summer and fall of 1941 in the Atlantic (to the point of a US destroyer being torpedoed by a German U-Boat) and Roosevelt’s desire to help the British fight Hitler, the US population was still deeply isolationist. December 7th and Pearl Harbor definitely broke the US out of its isolationist slumber, but its anger was directed at Japan. Most in the US would have been quite happy to fight “their†war in the Pacific while the British and Russians fought their war in Europe. However, Hitler prevented that from happening on December 10th by declaring war on the US. The Tripartite Pact did not require Hitler to do so, since it was the Japanese who were the aggressors, but in a fit a madness, Hitler made it a truly world war.
What if Hitler had not lost his head and instead kept his focus on Europe? This rule simulates that. When using this rule, the US is considered a neutral country. It cannot be attacked or occupied by either side, nor can either side overfly its territory. The US is considered to be totally focused on the Pacific. Good luck England and Russia!
2.2.2 US Sues for Peace After One Ally is Defeated:
Given that the US was at war with Japan and that the Pacific was seen by the general populous (if not the war planners in the government) as the primary US theater of operations, it would have been possible that had either England or Russia fallen, the US would have sought terms with Germany in order to pursue its war with Japan.
Should Russia fall, US player immediately rolls two dice:
Roll of US
2 Sues for peace
3 Sues for peace
4 Sues for peace
5 Fights on
6 Fights on
7 Fights on
8 Fights on
9 Fights on
10 Fights on
11 Fights on
12 Fights on
Should England fall, US player immediately rolls two dice:
Roll of US
2 Sues for peace
3 Sues for peace
4 Sues for peace
5 Sues for peace
6 Fights on
7 Fights on
8 Fights on
9 Fights on
10 Fights on
11 Fights on
12 Sues for peace
2.2.3 Relaxed Requirement for Defeat of Russia:
Rather than having to capture and hold all three major Russian cities, the German play has only to hold Moscow, per the original rules, in order to defeat Russia.
2.3 General Optional Rules:
2.3.1 Atomic Weapons:
Historically, both the US and Germany worked to develop an atomic bomb. As we now know, the US effort was far ahead of the German, with obvious consequences. However, it did not have to be this way. This rule allows for either side to develop the bomb and deploy it.
Development:
Beginning on the fall of 1944 turn for every turn thereafter, both Germany and the US may roll two dice at the beginning of their turn. Based on their present economic (IPC) level, they will have a certain chance to develop the bomb.
Roll of IPC level 0-30 IPC level 31-45 IPC level >45
2 Bomb Bomb Bomb
3 No Bomb Bomb
4 No No Bomb
5 No No No
6 No No No
7 No No No
8 No No No
9 No No No
10 No No No
11 No No No
12 No No Bomb
Deployment:
Once a nation has the bomb, it can be used as follows:
The bomb is used during strategic bombing raids. The raids are conducted per the normal rules with the following exceptions:
- Only one bomber may be designated as an atomic bomber per turn.
- This bomber will roll THREE (3) dice instead of one for purposed of IPC destruction.
The bomb has no direct military effects in the area in which it is used, and there are no lingering effects of the bomb in that area.
2.3.2 Bombing of Captured Factories:
This rule corrects a loophole in the existing game rules. Since captured factories can only be used to place no more than one unit per the area’s IPC value per turn for the capturing player, they should not be able to be strategically bombed at full effect either. Therefore when strategically bombing a captured factory, the maximum number of IPC’s that can be removed from the owning player’s treasury is equal to the IPC value of the area. Die rolls exceeding this amount are ignored and the bombing player continues to reroll until a valid number is rolled. Antiaircraft guns can still shoot at bombers.
2.3.3 Seizure of IPC’s upon Capture of Capital:
This rule is more of a ‘game’ rule than a ‘wargame’ rule. It is difficult to envision the meaning of this rule in a realistic setting. It is hard to imagine a victorious German Panzer army rolling into Moscow, opening a big vault in the Kremlin, and discovering the entire treasure of the Soviet nation stored there like the riches in an Egyptian tomb, ready to be carted away to Berlin. This optional rule simply eliminates the provision for seizing the IPC’s from the player whose nation’s capital is captured. The IPC’s are retuned to the bank instead.