The Rest of the Story...

Every once in a great while I miss the boat when answering a rules question, but I sank to new depths on this Scorched Earth ruling from TEM # 14:

"Oops, I have just discovered that I have allowed all my German Kriegsmarine transports to get frozen into an ice-bound port! Can I remedy this by: (a) scuttling my own transports?, or (b) bombing my own transports? Killing them off will allow me to rebuild them with the pile of naval repair points I've built up all game! (Rule 29D3)"

My answer was: "No, to both."

However, let's examine just which ports freeze in SE, as defined by Rule 29D3: "Coastal hexes which may freeze are: all coastal hexes in the Baltic Sea on or north of hexrow 2200, except for Hango, and all coastal hexes on map 6A east of hex column 0015 and/or south of hexrow 1700."

A study of the map reveals that almost all the ports which freeze lie in Finland or the Soviet Union--the only exception is the Greater German port of Memel, which barely falls within the freezing area.

This situation sets the stage for the major loophole in my answer. Let's now turn our attention to Rule 28B3: "Once each player turn, each phasing ship must put in to port for replenishing. German ships replenish at any Axis-owned ports in Greater Germany, Rumania, or Bulgaria. A ship unable to replenish is unsupplied. If an unsupplied ship is unable to replenish in its next player turn, it must be scuttled at the end of that player turn."

Therefore, unless the transports became iced in at Memel, they must be scuttled after two turns, whether the German player likes it or not! German transports trapped at frozen ports in Finland or the Soviet Union will not be able to replenish, and so will automatically perish in short order per 28B3.

Many thanks to Harold Andrews, who sorted this situation out and set me straight.

Fire in the East/Scorched Earth

Can German gliders be kept in the available box and then placed on an airfield just before flying a transport or airdrop mission? (As the Soviet player, I might like to bomb them on the ground at their airbasel) (24D; 27F2)

Well, the gliders can't be placed just before flying a mission, but they can be activated there in the initial phase of the turn they fly their mission (and this is probably what you meant). In fact, this is a fairly common German practice.

Can the Soviet winterization replacement capacity be accumulated? (34B2)

No.

Is tracing a special supply line (per the Supply Line Summary) to a truck the only case where a special supply line is used in FITE/SE? (12E1)

Yes.

Can partisan units be deployed stacked with other friendly partisan units on their turn of placement on the map? (40C)

Yes.

Are conversions, upgrades, and reorganization required or at discretion? (34D)

At discretion. When the Collector Series game of FITE/SE is done, conversions will likely be required (this is the way we are planing to handle them in Second Front). However, the current rules do not mandate this, and so for now conversions can be delayed as long as desired. Upgrades and reorganization will likely remain, discretionary.

Leningrad 1941

In his opening set up, should the Soviet player be allowed to deploy Baltic MID non-divisional units in Wilno?

No. Wilno lies in the Western MD, not the Baltic MD. Baltic MID non-divisional units may not deploy in Wilno in a regular game of FITE/SE, and so (per the scenario's deployment instructions) may not deploy there in Leningrad-1941 either.

Suppose the 1st Panzer XX is isolated in the Sep II 41 German initial phase. Per SE Rule 34C, an isolated unit may not be withdrawn. There being no substitute 9-10 Pz XX, would the 1st Pz XX stay in play until the end of the scenario?

Rule 34C says, "If no unit in play can be withdrawn, then an eliminated unit is removed from the replacement pool..." Since there is no such unit in the replacement pool, follow the instructions in the SE May 1 89 errata sheet for Rule 34F8: "Special Replacement Pool Activities. When an OB requires a unit to be removed from... the replacement pool and no appropriate unit is in the pool, the activity is delayed until an appropriate unit enters the pool. If it never enters the pool, it is never removed or withdrawn, and there is no penalty for this to the German player."