A Winter War

Several rules in A Winter War refer to the movement of supply points (Rules 12C3, 20E, and 26A1), yet I see no mention of supply points in either side's order of battle. Is this an oversight?

No, the lack of supply points in each sides' OB is not an oversight. Both sides have a theoretically infinite amount of supply points available. When delivered per the rules you mention above, they are represented by the use of status markers.

Supply points are available as described in the first paragraph of Rule 20E for delivery by air, and 26A1 for delivery from Murmansk to Petsamo via sea.

I have played A Winter War with a friend of mine, and we both got somewhat confused when it came to the use of Headquarters. We found no mention about what they are used for. Rule 14C is the only place they are mentioned, but this rule only told about movement, size and heavy equipment. Could you please enlighten us on this subject?

When the first question about headquarters arrived in my mailbox, I shrugged it off. All pertinent information on headquarters is covered if one reads carefully and ferrets it out. However, I've since received similar questions, such as the one above. Although I suspect that these questions are coming from players new to Europa, a brief discourse on the use of headquarters in A Winter War seems in order.

As mentioned above, Rule 14C lists some specific characteristics of headquarters units. However, this is not the only place in the rules where headquarters are mentioned! And it is their mention in these other rules that define their potential use and value.

Specifically, a headquarters unit is among the limited group of units that may provide support for other units per Rule 11, being akin to artillery in this regard (since it is considered to represent the divisional artillery component, among other assets). This is a valuable capability for the artillery-starved Finns; a headquarters unit may stack with several of the numerous Finnish unsupported non-divisional units to form a supported stack.

Also, the divisional headquarters may be necessary to assemble a divisional unit, per Rule 15A. For example, the 21st Divisional Headquarters unit must be stacked with the other component units of the 21st Rifle Division in order to assemble the 3-4-6* Rifle Division counter. The assembled division exerts a ZOC, potentially of tremendous value as the Finns become ever more hard-pressed.

Counter and OB Erratum: The Soviet 77th Rifle XX of the Strategic Reserve should actually be the 7th Rifle Division. This error crept into the Soviet counter manifest early in development, and was not subsequently caught.

A Winter War has been out for some time now, and given the few rules questions generated, I think it is safe to say that the rules set is relatively error-free and unambiguous. Many thanks to those who have offered advice over the years on writing clearer rules. Your counsel appears to be bearing fruit as the system reaches maturity; nonetheless, we will strive for further excellence.

A Sick Trick

It's Just Not In The Cards

There is a gap in Scorched Earth Rule 39C so large that even the bravest Suomiphile may be forced to retreat for the safety of Rule 32B11. I refer to the ambiguous results of drawing a king or an ace other than the Ace of Spades. Per the rule as written the Finnish theater is "extended to include ... all of the Leningrad MD except for hexes in or adjacent to the city of Leningrad in the Leningrad MD."

The rule goes on to state that "A maximum of 20 REs of German forces may operate in the Finnish theater."

Needless to say, this is really going to put a cramp in Army Group North's offensive toward Leningrad. As the rule is written, once AGN units reach the environs of Pskov and Narva, only a mere task force of 20 REs may continue the drive towards Leningrad, while the rest of Leeb's minions watch anxiously from across the border in the Baltic States.

Does the rule really intend that the capture of Leningrad be almost totally entrusted to Adolf's staunch new allies, the Finns? Probably not, since Finnish units can not even move adjacent to the city. "This rule just doesn't make sense!" complain Axis players, and they are right.

Interpreting this rule correctly requires major rules lawyering. Note the wording of 39C: "The Finnish theater is extended to include all of the Arkhangelsk MD south of the Arctic and all of the Leningrad MD except for hexes in or adjacent to the city of Leningrad.ff To make the rule work as intended, the Finnish theater is "extended" gradually-only upon the capture of hexes adjacent to the standard Finnish theater by Axis forces operating from within the Finnish theater. The maximum expansion possible would be the limit stated above.

When the Germans reach the Leningrad MD from the west, chances are good that the Finns will not have "extended" their theater anywhere near Army Group North, and so the Germans can continue a full-force drive to Leningrad.

Assuming Axis success, things get a little trickier as the Germans push east past Leningrad. To avoid interfering with Army Group North's turf, the Finns will have to make the decision to "stop extending" their theater at some point to allow AGN to continue operations without running into the Finnish theater limitations. This is probably best accomplished by limiting the Finn's advance to just south of the Svir River. One will note that this interpretation actually encourages historical developments.

Note that under any circumstances there will be a "firebreak" in the Finnish rail net consisting of the hexes of Leningrad and all hexes adjacent to any hex of Leningrad. This limits the potential expansion of the Finnish rail net to the rail hexes running from the Svir River south to Tikhvin and beyond, and west to hex 2A:1028. Exercise a little common sense if the Finns happen to capture any isolated stretches of track south and west of Leningrad-do not add such disembodied rail hexes to the Finnish rail net. Allow German railroad engineers to regauge these hexes as part of the German rail net. Since these segments lie in territory that should be part of AG North's jurisdiction, most should never become part of the Finnish theater in any case.

Another Sick Trick

The Infinite Finnish Rail Net

Upon the capture of Leningrad by the Germans, Rule 32B2 states that "the Finnish limited war aims are modified for the rest of the game. In the Finnish theater, German forces ... are no longer bound by the Finnish operational limits, and any number of REs of German forces may operate in this theater."

This allows the Germans to move and attack across the stop lines with any number of units. Harmless enough until we turn to Rule 7A3, paragraph two and see that "The Finnish rail net consists of all rail lines in Finland plus all Axis-owned rail lines in the USSR inside the Finnish and Arctic theaters of war," and then note that these theaters of war have just been extended infinitely. Further rules research reveals that Rule 12B34 allows a player to "...trace the rail element ... along rail lines of the same gauge that he may use for rail movement (see Rule 7A3)."

Now the consequences: once Leningrad becomes completely Axis-owned, the Axis player can declare all of his forces to be operating in the now all-encompassing Finnish theater of war and thus trace supply for his units along unconverted captured broad gauge Soviet rail lines back to supply sources in Finland or to rail hexes which have already been converted. This effectively makes converting of rails superfluous once Leningrad falls into German hands. Even more damaging, it makes it virtually impossible for the Germans to advance out of supply. Right?

No, no, no! That's not how it works. The Finnish theater does not expand when the Axis captures Leningrad. It never expands beyond what is defined in Rule 32131 (unless you use Rule 39C and draw an Ace or King, but that is another story-see above). The statement that the Finnish and Arctic theaters of war "have just been expanded infinitely" upon the capture of Leningrad is not true. (Note that 32B2 doesn't say that the Finnish limited war aims are dropped, just modified, and expanding the Finnish theater of war is not one of the modifications.)

The Finnish rail net is defined in Rule 7A3 as "all Axis-owned rail lines in the USSR inside the Finnish and Arctic theaters of war." This means that the Finnish rail net comes to a screeching halt at the 1939 Soviet-Finnish border facing Leningrad and at the Svir River further east.

True enough, Rule 7A3 states that a player may trace the rail element of a supply line over "rail lines of the same gauge that he may use for rail movement." Suppose the Germans take Leningrad and regauge either rail line through Leningrad north to the 1939 Soviet-Finnish border. Subsequent to this, Axis units could move by rail through Leningrad and on into Finland on the broad gauge Finnish net to an Arctic port in Finland by paying trans-shipment costs and using the Finnish rail capacity in addition to the German rail capacity.

This fulfills the requirements of rule 12B4. All Axis units that could trace a rail element supply line to an Arctic port in Finland (Oulu or Kemi) could draw supply from that source. Note there are no limits to how many units may draw supply from a regular supply source (12C1), so the Axis could theoretically supply their entire army in this fashion.

But remember, the Finnish theater (and thus the Finnish rail net) does not expand beyond the limits of Rule 32B2, despite Axis capture of Leningrad.

So, even if the Germans regauge the tracks north from Leningrad to the 1939 Soviet-Finnish border, neither Finnish nor German units may use rail movement along broad gauge rail hexes outside the Finnish or Arctic theaters! Therefore, the situation isn't ail that bad-Soviet broad gauge rail hexes in the Soviet Union outside the Finnish theater (i.e., south and east of Leningrad) would still have to be regauged before the Axis could use them for either supply or rail movement.

Thanks to reader Matthew Young for suggesting both of these tricks.