The following rules cover the naval aspects of the campaign in greater detail than presented in the previous rules. For players gaining experience with the game system, or not wishing to use an extensive naval system, these rules can be ignored.

A. Naval Rules Introduction

1. Naval Units

Naval units are shown on the Unit Identification Chart. The Naval Unit Types section shows the two types of naval units: ships and river flotillas.

Naval units may be sunk. Each bombing or naval combat hit on a naval unit does one hit of damage. Naval units may take differing amounts of damage depending upon their naval unit types as shown on the Naval Damage Table. When hits on a naval unit equal or exceed the damage it may take, the naval unit is sunk and removed from play. Use hit markers to denote damage to naval units.

2. Concepts.

a. Sea Zones. There are two sea zones:

The Arctic sea zone consists of three areas: the White Sea in and around hex 35:2001, the Barents Sea in and around hex 35:0101, and the Norwegian Sea in and around hex 35:0133. Note that the White Sea portion of this zone is frozen throughout the game.

The Baltic sea zone consists of three areas: the Gulf of Bothnia (all of the zone on and north of the 4100 hexrow), the Gulf of Finland (all of the zone south of the 4100 hexrow), and the Aland Islands Holding Box. Note that the Gulf of Bothnia portion of this zone is frozen throughout the game.

b. Ports. Any hex containing a port symbol is a port. There are four types of ports: minor, standard, major, and great. Each type of port has a capacity, which is the maximum number of REs of cargo (units and supplies) that may embark/disembark at a port of that type in a player turn.

A port may be damaged due to bombing (Rule 20F). A ground unit may also damage the capacity of a port by spending MPs in the port's hex. The port takes one hit of damage to its capacity for every 3 MPs spent by the unit. Each hit of damage on the port reduces its capacity by 1 RE. Use hit markers to record any damage. A port may take a maximum amount of damage, based on its type.

A minor port has a capacity of 2 REs and may take a maximum of 4 hits of damage.

A standard port has a capacity of 4 REs and may take a maximum of 6 hits of damage.

A major port has a capacity of 8 REs and may take a maximum of 10 hits of damage.

A great port has a capacity of 20 REs and may take a maximum of 22 hits of damage.

A player may use a port during a turn only if he owns it at the start of his initial phase and the port is operative. Whether a port is operative or not is important for purposes of Rules 12C1a, 33, and 35. A port is operative if it has usable capacity, and a path of friendly-owned, unfrozen coastal (partial sea) hexes can be traced from the port to the open sea. 

The open sea, for game purposes, is any unfrozen full sea hex. (Note that this does not include unfrozen restricted waters hexes.) Example: The major port of Turku (35:4230) is inoperative if hex 35:4331 or 4332 is enemy owned, if the port has taken 8 or more hits of damage, or if the sea hexes surrounding Turku are frozen.

c. Beaches. A beach hex is a coastal hex of any terrain type except mountain. A coastal hex is any hex containing both land and sea. An unlimited number of REs may embark/disembark at a beach hex ib a player turn. Some coastal hexes contain both a port and beach, each of which may be used.

d. Ships. Ships in A Winter War are rated for use in the Europa naval system; however, not all the ratings are used in play. The Unit Identification Chart displays the ratings that are used.

A ship may be in port or at sea. A ship may be at sea in a port hex. At the end of each player turn, for each phasing ship in a port hex, the owning player specifies whether it is in port or at sea in the hex.

The presence of a ship in a coastal hex does not prohibit enemy ground units from entering the hex, and ships may freely enter coastal hexes occupied by enemy units.

A player normally moves his ships in his movement phase. Ships assigned to coast defense (see Rule 38B4) have a limited ability to move during the opponent's movement phase. A ship may move an unlimited distance in its sea zone, moving in all-sea or coastal hexes. A ship may not cross land, enter a restricted waters hex, enter a frozen sea hex, or move on rivers. A ship must stop movement when it enters a hex containing enemy ships at sea, or intrinsic coast defenses (Rule 38A2f). Once each player turn, each phasing ship must put into port for replenishing. The ship does not have to start or end its movement in the port; it need only move to the port at some time during its movement. Soviet ships replenish at any Soviet-owned ports in the Soviet Union or Estonia. Finnish ships replenish at any Finnish-owned ports in Finland. A ship may replenish at an appropriate port even if the port is isolated. A ship unable to replenish is unsupplied. An unsupplied ship has its gunnery strengths halved but is otherwise unaffected. If an unsupplied ship is unable to replenish in its next player turn, it must be scuttled at the end of that player turn. When an enemy unit gains ownership of a port hex, ships in port there must try to escape to sea. One die is rolled for each ship in the port. On a roll of 1 through 4, the ship escapes to sea (and is considered to be at sea in the port's hex); on a roll of 5 or 6, the ship fails to escape from the port and is scuttled to prevent its capture by the enemy. A scuttled ship is immediately sunk and removed from play. Note: Ships in port in a frozen coastal hex may not leave port (and must be scuttled if the enemy player gains ownership of the port).

e. River Flotillas. A river flotilla is a naval unit with characteristics of both a ship and a ground unit. In general, a river flotilla is treated as a ship, with the following abilities:

A river flotilla never needs supply or replenishment.

A river flotilla moves in the movement phase. It has a movement allowance of 30 hexes and spends 1 MP per hex entered. It may only move through unfrozen coastal waters (coastal hexes and all-sea hexes adjacent to coastal hexes). A river flotilla may not enter an enemy-occupied hex. A river flotilla leaving or moving through enemy ZOCs must pay ZOC movement costs. A river flotilla participating in an overrun must pay overrun movement costs. A river flotilla may never end its movement in an all-sea hex.

For all combat and overrun purposes (both offensive and defensive), a river flotilla is treated as a 1 RE field artillery unit with a combat strength of 1. This includes counting its combat strength when calculating losses in an exchange. If required to retreat or allowed to advance due to combat, a river flotilla may only enter hexes in which it may move.

f. Intrinsic Coast Defenses. The Finnish player has intrinsic coast defenses, which have the ability to engage Soviet naval units in naval combat. (The Soviet coast defenses are outside the scope of the game.) The Finnish OB specifies which intrinsic coast defenses are active, and the Coast Defenses Chart shows these graphically. Intrinsic coast defenses have the following abilities:

Intrinsic coast defenses come in levels: 1, 2, or 3. The level number refers to both the attack strength used in naval combat and the number of hits the defenses can take before they are eliminated. Each hit as a result of naval combat reduces the level by 1. Example: A level 3 intrinsic coast defense which takes a hit in naval combat is thereafter treated as a level 2 intrinsic coast defense for all game purposes.

Intrinsic coast defenses may engage Soviet naval units in naval combat (see Rule 38C).

Intrinsic coast defenses may attack enemy ground units attempting to make amphibious landings in their hex (see Rule 38B2b). The attack is made at the instant the ground unit attempts to land, and is made using the Naval Combat Results Table. A hit on a ground unit making an amphibious landing eliminates the unit.

For purposes of ground combat and overrun (defensive only), the intrinsic coast defense level of a hex is treated as a 1/2 RE Finnish field artillery unit with a variable intrinsic ground defense strength.,/UL>

If any portion of an enemy force attacking or overrunning the hex does so from an all-sea/lake hex or across a sea/lake hexside, the intrinsic ground defense strength of the hex is equal to 1/2 the intrinsic coast defense level (retain fractions). If all of the enemy force attacking or overrunning into the hex does so across land hexsides, the intrinsic ground defense strength of the hex is equal to 1/4 the intrinsic coast defense level (retain fractions).

Examples: 1) Soviet units in hexes 35:4713 and 35:4714 attack into hex 35:4613 (Lake Ladoga is frozen). The intrinsic coast defenses of hex 35:4613 (level 1) are halved, yielding an intrinsic defense strength of 1/2.2) A Soviet force has island hopped via Lavan (35:4819), Tytar (35:4820), and Suur Islands (35:4721/4621) (across the frozen Gulf of Finland), and is now in position to attack Kotka (35:4521). The intrinsic coast defenses of Kotka (level 2) are halved, yielding an intrinsic defense strength of 1. 3) Soviet forces in hexes 35:4425 and 35:4525 are attacking Helsinki (35:4526). The intrinsic coast defenses of Helsinki (level 3) are quartered, yielding an intrinsic defense strength of 3/4.

The intrinsic coast defenses in a hex are automatically destroyed if the Soviet player gains ownership of the hex.

B. Naval Missions

1. Naval Gunfire Support

Ships may support ground units in combat through the use of their gunnery strengths. A ship may have one or more of three gunnery strengths: primary, intermediate, and secondary. These strengths are rated for use in the Europa naval system and are halved when used in ground combat. Primary gunnery strength may support an attack or defense within 2 hexes of the firing ship. Intermediate and secondary gunnery strengths may support an attack or defense within 1 hex of the firing ship.

For a ship's gunfire to support an attack or defense, its gunnery strength must be within range of the attacked hex. Each ship supporting a combat is treated the same as a 1 RE field artillery unit (see Rules 11 and 14B). There is one exception to this: warships' gunnery strengths are not counted when determining losses due to exchanges.

Ships may not fire independently; they may fire only in support of attacking or defending ground units. Ships are never affected by any ground combat results. A ship may fire each of its gunnery strengths once per combat phase. However, a ship may aid only one attack or defense per combat phase.

At the start of each enemy combat phase, the non-phasing player must state which hex each of his ships will support in defense. Ships allocated to a specific hex may not fire in support of another hex that phase, even if their assigned hex is not attacked. There is no similar requirement for ships supporting attacks during the phasing player's combat phase; he announces which ships are supporting an attack only when he announces the attack.

A ship may use its gunnery strengths each combat phase, even if it moved and transported cargo during the movement phase.

2. Naval Transport.

a. Regular Transport. A player uses his naval units to transport cargo by sea during his friendly movement phase, between friendly-owned ports and/or beaches in the same sea zone. Each ship may carry up to 2 REs of cargo. A river flotilla may carry up to 1 RE of cargo. Two or more naval units may combine their capacities to carry large cargoes (such as a division), as long as all these naval units move together while transporting the unit. A naval unit may move prior to transporting a unit but must end its turn in the hex in which the cargo disembarks. Cargo may not remain at sea; it must land by the end of the movement phase. If a naval unit is sunk, then any cargo it is carrying is eliminated.

A unit is under no special restriction after moving by naval transport For example, a unit may attack during the combat phase following its transport and does not have its attack strength reduced due to the transport. When cargo is both embarked and disembarked at a port, the following rules are used. A unit must spend MPs in order to be transported: 2 MPs for a non-c/m unit and 4 MPs for a c/m unit. The unit may move both before and after its transport

When cargo is embarked and/or disembarked at a beach, the following rules are used. Units with heavy equipment may not embark/disembark at beaches; only supply points and units without heavy equipment may. A unit spends all its available MPs in order to be transported and may not spend MPs for any other purpose.

b. Amphibious Landings. Soviet units may make amphibious landings by disembarking in enemy-owned beach hexes or in the Aland Islands Holding Box. The rules for regular naval transport to beaches are used, with the following exceptions:

A unit making an amphibious landing counts double its RE size for transport purposes.

Any unit except a marine unit (a unit with the marine unit type) making an amphibious landing has its attack strength quartered in the following combat. A marine unit does not have its attack strength quartered.

A supplied unit making an amphibious landing is automatically in supply in the following player turn.

A unit making an amphibious landing may be affected by the poor weather, which prevails on every turn of the game. Roll one die for each unit making an amphibious landing. The unit is affected by the weather on a roll of 3 or less and has its attack strength halved in the combat phase following its landing. Note: This halving is in addition to the quartering specified for a non-marine unit.

A unit may make an amphibious landing in an enemy occupied hex. The following rules apply:

Units which land in enemy-occupied hexes must attack the enemy units in the hex during the combat phase. Adjacent friendly units may join in the attack.

When differing sides occupy the same hex, resolve combat as normal, except that AS (attacker stopped) results are modified. If an AS is rolled, the units which entered the hex by amphibious landing treat the result as an AR (attacker retreat) and must retreat. All other units treat the result as an AS.

Retreating units are subject to the effects of all ZOCs they enter, including the ZOCs of enemy units in the hex from which they retreat. Example: A marine regiment lands in a hex occupied by an enemy division. During the combat phase, the marine regiment must attack, and the combat result requires it to retreat. Any hex it can enter is in the ZOC of the division in the landing hex, so the marine regiment is eliminated.

Amphibious landings must be planned. The Soviet player must determine the hex in which the amphibious landing is to occur and the unit to be landed there one turn in advance of the landing.

During his initial phase of the game turn prior to the amphibious landing, the Soviet player writes down the identity of the unit involved in the landing and the target hex or holding box of the landing. He may plan only one landing at a time per unit. Once planned, he may cancel a landing in his next initial phase and plan a new landing for the unit at that time. He may cancel a landing during the phase in which it is to occur.

During the initial phase, a player may not plan a landing for a unit that is in an enemy ZOC at that time. Once planned, the landing must be canceled if the unit is in an enemy ZOC, attacks, or is attacked at any time from the planning of the landing to its execution. If for any reason the unit is not able to participate in the landing during the phase in which it is to take place, the landing must be canceled. A landing may be planned for a unit on the turn it arrives as a reinforcement.

c. Naval Transport of Supply. Naval units can carry supply points. Supply points can be embarked at a port if a supply line could be traced from the port to a full supply source in the player's initial phase. (Note that restricted supply sources cannot be used for this purpose.)

3. Naval Transport Escort.

Ships may conduct naval transport escort missions during the movement phase. An escort (a ship carrying out this mission) moves to any hex within its sea zone; the hex must be the destination hex of at least one friendly ship carrying out a naval transport mission. The purpose of naval transport escort is to protect the other friendly ships in the hex during naval combat. Escorts may not carry cargo.

4. Coast Defense

Ships may be assigned to coast defense. This assignment is made during any friendly initial phase (or, for Dec 139, prior to play), and remains in effect until revoked during any subsequent friendly initial phase. Ships assigned to coast defense may not be used for naval gunfire support or naval transport. Ships assigned to coast defense may intercept enemy ships during the enemy movement phase.

For interception to occur, the enemy ships must have ended movement in a friendly-owned coast hex, and they must be within interception range. The interception range of a ship assigned to coast defense is the same as its Europa movement rating. Intercepting ships then move to the hex occupied by the enemy naval units. (Note: This will force naval combat.)

C. Naval Combat

Naval combat occurs during the movement phase when either 1) naval units of one side intercept naval units of the other side, or 2) enemy naval units enter a friendly-owned coast hex containing intrinsic coast defenses. In general, naval combat is resolved in the same manner and sequence as air combat (per Rule 21). There are three exceptions, however:

1) combat is resolved using the Naval Combat Results Table,

2) intrinsic coast defenses must be allocated to fire at any escorts, and

3) the combat sequence is repeated in a number of naval combat rounds until one force either is eliminated or disengages.

Naval units may voluntarily disengage at the end of any naval combat round; disengagement is automatically successful. A naval unit that disengages must return to any friendly owned port, ending its turn there (along with any cargo it is transporting).

Naval Combat Example: Four Soviet ships (2 BBs, 1 CA, 1 CL) move from Kronshtadt (35:4916) to Kotka (35:4521). The 2 BBs are escorting the CA and CL, each of which is transporting 1x 1-6 Marine regiment. A Finnish BD at Helsinki (35:4526), previously assigned to coast defense, intercepts the Soviet force in Kotka's hex.

Naval Combat Round # 1:

Step a: The Finnish player allocates Kotka's intrinsic coast defenses to fire on BB #1, while the BD will try to bypass the screen. The Soviet player does not allocate BB #2 against the intrinsic coast defenses, so that he may have it fire on the by-passing BD.

Step b: The Kotka intrinsic coast defenses fire using the 2 column on the Naval Combat Results Table. A 4 is rolled, modified to 5, for a hit on BB #1. BB #1 returns fire using the 3 column; rolls a 5, for a hit; reducing Kotka's intrinsic coast defenses to level 1.

Step c: The Soviet player allocates the unengaged escort (BB #2) against the bypassing interceptor (the BD).

Step d: BB #2 attacks the bypassing BD on the 3 column; a 4 is rolled for a hit. The BD may not attack BB #2.

Step e: The Finnish player allocates the bypassing interceptor (the BD) against the Soviet CL. The Soviet CA is ignored.

Step f The BD fires using the 2 column; a 5 is rolled, for a hit. The CL returns fire on the 1 column; the CL rolls a 1, for no effect.

Naval Combat Round # 2:

Step a: Finnish and Soviet allocations remain the same.

Step b: The Kotka intrinsic coast defenses and BB #1 fire on each other, but miss.

Step c: The Soviet player allocates BB #2 against the BD.

Step d: BB #2 attacks the BD and achieves a hit. The BD may not attack BB #2.

Step e: The Finnish player again allocates the BD against the Soviet CL.

Step f.. The BD fires and achieves a second hit on the CL, thus sinking it and its cargo of 1x 1-6 Marine regiment. The CL returns fire, missing.

The Finnish player now disengages.

Naval Combat Round # 3:

Steps a, b: The Kotka intrinsic coast defenses inflict another bit on BB #1. Both BBs in turn fire on the Kotka defenses, yielding one hit and reducing the intrinsic coast defenses in the hex to zero.

Naval combat ends in the hex. The remaining 1x 1-6 Marine regiment may now land in Kotka's hex, if such a landing was appropriately planned.

[End of Draft Rues.]

A Winter War

A Small Game about a Small War
Designer's Response: Gary Stagliano
Rule 38-Advanced Naval Rules
John Astell's Commentary on the Naval Rules