A Winter War is a historical game covering the Soviet invasion of Finland on November 30th, 1939. The three and an one-half month operation proved to be an arduous fight under adverse environmental conditions. A Winter War will be a one-map game, perfect for two players. One player will control the forces of 3 million Finns, while the other has the resources of 150 million Soviets to draw upon. But the Soviet player does not have the walkover -it may seem.

The Finnish forces, although under-equipped, are tough and resourceful. The Mannerheim Line of fortifications, while crudely made, is formidable if well defended. Winter fighting requires special conditioning and equipment that the Finns have in abundance. Soviet tactical and training weaknesses can be exploited and are beyond the ability of the Soviet player to control. Above all, time is of the essence to the Soviet player. The Finns must be swiftly crushed by Soviet might. The whole world is watching the actions of the USSR!

A Winter War gives you control of all land and air units involved. Naval combat is abstracted as in other Europa games, but retains limited capability for fleet action until the Gulf of Finland freezes.

Maps

The game includes a single very colorful 'Collector Series' map, two sheets of unit counters, and a supplemental marker sheet. The map covers the top rows of Europa maps 1 and 2 and the right and left halves of Maps 5- and 6. This map overlays the current FitE maps without difficulty. The game map shows the situation as it existed in December 1939.

To this end, the maps have been given a complete overhaul. Every hex has been evaluated for consistent game effect by Arthur Goodwin and by me. For example, hexes 1408, 1508, and 1509 (near Allakurtti) are not forested in FitE -- its mapmaker used postwar maps indicating clear terrain in those hexes. The rule of thumb was that if a forest did not exist in 1960, it did not exist in 1940. In this case, however, the area was subject to a large forest fire in the 50's; therefore, the hexes should be forested. There are dozens of other such terrain modifications.

The introduction to Europa of high and low capacity rail lines (Balkan Front) has helped show the rail net of the region in a more rational manner. Bridges, causeways, and ferry points are marked on the map and the significance of wooded vs. non-wooded swamp comes into play. Roads and rails that are upgradable in this game or at Europa level are shown with a special symbol.

The counters include all the Finnish Army based on its 1939 regimental organization. Finnish divisions are rated at 4- 6-6. The 4 rating of offense reflects the amateur nature of the Finnish Army at this time and the lack of artillery and munitions for the guns.

There are three dummy divisions in the counter mix. These represent the redesignation of three existing divisions to confuse Soviet intelligence.

Also of interest is the ski-cavalry brigade. In the winter the unit is ski-equipped, but in warm months it is horse cavalry.

The nine training regiments rated 0-1-5 and nine replacement battalions rated 0-5 represent the Finnish training and replacement establishment. The replacement battalions were initially assigned one to each division, but later deployed separately and were used to replace or reinforce depleted regiments and brigades.

The four jager and bicycle battalions (rated 1-8) are fully ski-capable. These battalions, like the four independent ski battalions, consist of four companies verses the normal three found in a line battalion.

One of the more interesting units is the 1-2-5 naval infantry 'battalion' formed from sailors of the icebound coast defense battleships.

The Finns raised several special units in the Winter War primarily from areas evacuated ahead of the advancing Soviets. These battalion-sized units were designated "Sissi" by the Finns and were ski and submachine gun equipped. "Sissi" is not directly translatable into English, but is interpreted as "ski-guerrilla" for Europa. These units fought in a variety of ways, from normal line battalions to secret commando missions. They live off the land and are supported and in supply as long as they are not isolated. The Soviets considered these units such a threat that they designated several NKVD and parachute units to chase them down.

The Finnish Air force includes possible allied reinforcements. Also, all attacks made by the Finns on Soviet air units receive a bonus.

The Soviet invasion forces include more than 60 divisional-sized units. The most powerful is a 9-6 artillery division. This secret weapon was first used in the Winter War with great success. Most Soviet rifle divisions have ratings of 4-6 while there is a substantial number of 3-6 divisions. Only one-fifth of the Soviet divisions are winterized. About 20 artillery and a dozen tank brigades support the Red Army.

The Soviets have a special unit in the guise of the Finnish National Liberation Army. This "army" was originally to consist of Finnish communists and socialists defecting to the Red Army. Fortunately for the Finns, their communists and socialists, while not liking the imperial commander of the Finnish Army (Mannerheim), hated Stalin even more!

So what is the unit's history? It was formed by American communists of Finnish extraction who were deported for communist labor activities in the 20's and 30's and settled near Petrozavodsk in Soviet Karelia.

If there is room in the counter mix, the armed forces of the Baltic nations may also be included.

The Soviet forces suffer from several handicaps. During the beginning of the game units that move have their attack strengths halved. Armor units cannot move in the exploitation phase. Soviet units with ZOCs have reduced ZOCs.

The rules to A Winter War generally follow Europa standards with a few adaptations to reflect the distinct conditions present in Finland in 1939 and to present a simplified rules set for beginning players. The weather remains the same during the game, winter! Armor effects can be safely ignored because the Finns did not have any tanks, and the Soviet armor was poorly handled. (Actually, the Finns did raise one armored unit during the war composed of obsolete tanks mounting some rare 37mm guns. This unit was not employed properly as an antitank force, but used as a counterattack force. It's first encounter was disastrous. Finnish front-line troops, hearing tanks behind them and knowing that the Finns hadn't any tanks, assumed they were Russian and attacked, putting many out of action!)

Rules Changes and Evolutions

There are some rules changes and evolutions, however. Rail-break movement point costs depend on the size of the unit with smaller units requiring more MPs to destroy a rail hex. Stacking allows for divisional HQ to stack like artillery units, since the major mission of HQs is to provide support (i.e., artillery). Unsupplied units have immediate reduction of capabilities and, if isolated, may be eliminated. Helsinki, Tampere, and Turku are sources of supply because they are the main centers of ammunition production in Finland. Turku and Hango were kept ice-free and as such were Finland's only source of supply for outside shipping. (Vaasa is an interesting case. This port freezes solid each winter. It freezes so well that an ice bridge forms from Vaasa to the Swedish port of Umea across the Baltic! The Swedes used this ice bridge to truck vast quantities of supplies to the Finns.)

Except for zero-strength units, units may not be overrun. The Finnish army was still an immature outfit and the Soviet army was too disorganized to conduct successful overruns of all but the weakest units. There are cases where a single Finnish battalion held up an entire Soviet division for a week. The prohibition against the 9- 6 artillery division advancing after combat reflects its historical usage. Motorized breakdowns are treated a little differently in A Winter War than in the rest of Europa.

The breakdown counters have different unit types on their two sides! The top side is completely normal but the reverse side removes the motorized symbol from the regiments. We assume that most of the trucks remain in the headquarters which is still motorized. The unsupported regiments are now represented as semi-motorized infantry that can use the "Other" movement costs instead of "Mot/Art". This allows an astute Soviet player some extra movement capability at the cost of some combat power. It also allows attacking infantry to attack into forest hexes without the halving penalty.

Hits on a marshalling yard do not destroy the rail line but rather add 1 MP per hit to rail movement. This rule is a simple but effective way of dealing with the harassment effect of bombing these easy targets. It is difficult to destroy a yard but you can use your strategic bombing assets to interdict these choke points.

The historical game starts on Dec I 1939 and ends on Mar I 1940. Allied intervention forces are ignored except for the SVC1 unit. To keep things fresh after multiple playings, the game also offers several optional rules and conditions, which may be used upon agreement of both players.

The game need not end at the time of the historical occurrence; the war could have lasted until the April I 1940 turn. If Sweden is not involved in combat operations against allied interventionist forces, on and after Feb II 1940 the Western Volunteer Force arrives. Italian and Hungarian assistance can also make its way to Finland.

Various miscellaneous forces volunteered for Finnish duty: on Apr I 1940 the SISU brigade may be placed in any city. The possibility of Allied Intervention is also explored. The Allies could decide to send help to Finland through northern Norway and Sweden or they could send help through the Arctic ports. This decision is independent of any help sent through Sweden.

If Sweden and Norway are involved in combat operations, the allied forces can land in any Norwegian Arctic port and Petsamo. If not, the units may land on or adjacent to Petsamo. Opposed landings cannot be made and the allies may only arrive in Finnish territory. Allied intervention doesn't always just help the Finns. For example, as a result of it, the Soviets may commit more resources to the war in Finland and release the strategic reserve for operations.

All air units may operate in Estonia. All reinforcements are received two turns earlier. Soviet railcap is increased and the level of victory for game purposes is raised by one level (i.e., a tactical victory becomes a marginal).

Of course, the Soviets may have their worst nightmare come true: Relations between the Soviets and the Germans may break down. (Get ready to play the 1940 Scenario of Fire in the East I) If this happens, the Soviet player receives only winterized replacements and naval air. Allied intervention can be triggered more easily, and units that have been received as reinforcements must be withdrawn, one turn at a time.

There are "sunnier" alternatives for the Soviets, parachutists may jump (sometimes with and sometimes without chutes). The Soviets may receive increased logistics and replacements. The Soviets can master winter armored operations and receive partial AEC.

I hope this little preview of Winter War will whet your appetite for the real thing. Note that the game is still in playtest, so some details may change. We are constantly looking for more information on the Winter War especially from the Soviet perspective, so if you have any, please let us know at once.