Inside Europa: Second Front Designer's Notes, Part 1

More Playtest Questions & Answers

During the playtest, the testers asked numerous rules questions on almost every conceivable interpretation of the rules. For the most part, the questions either asked for confirmation that the rules did indeed work the way they were described or debated various historical considerations. The following is a selection of the more interesting Q&A.

Rule 7A4. Rail Nets: What is the maximum possible rail capacity that can be built on each net?

As the rule states, there is a per turn maximum of 12 resource points you can spend per net (which buys a permanent railcap increase of 4). However, there is no overall maximum: you can spend the per turn maximum for as many turns as you wish. Sure, in reality, you'd hit a point of diminishing returns in increasing the rail capacity, but it hardly seems likely to occur in play. After all, you'll find that your best use of resource points is not to endlessly increase your rai lcap.

Rule 10I. Infantry Antitank Weapons: It is postulated that the Sep I 44 date for Allied integral antitank weapons is problematic. It is claimed that although the Allies might not be as proficient as some German first-line formations, they are certainly better trained, equipped, and motivated than German Kriegsmarine, Luftwaffe, emergency, and fortress units that get the ATweapons bonus on Jul I 44. It is suggested that the Allies get AT weapons abilities earlier and that some German types either never get AT weapons at all or get them later.

I agree that Sep I 1944 is problematic, but so is any other date. The Allies are equipped with infantry antitank weapons (bazookas or PIATs) from the start of the game. Combat accounts indicate, however, that the Allies were not proficient in their use for quite some time, including during the Normandy campaign. Training aside, it took a lot of time for Allied troops to gain the confidence and experience to use these weapons.

Your point that German KM, LW, emergency, and fortress units should not get the ability is not convincing. German units of all quality had the motivation and got numerous opportunities to get the confidence and experience in using these weapons, through being constantly thrown into desperate defensive battles. Even the lowest quality troops, the Volkssturm, used infantry antitank weapons (panzerfaust or panzerschreck) in abundance. These considerations argue that we do not need to a "who gets what when" rule for the Germans.

Rule 1283. Railroad Element of Supply Lines: Do the low-volume rail hexes of a supply line have to be traced consecutively?

No, these 7 low-volume rail hexes need not be consecutive. For example, a player may trace along 4 low-volume rail hexes, then any number of high-volume rail hexes, then 3 more lowvolume rail hexes, and then any number of high-volume rail hexes.

Rule 12B & 7A4. Procedural: Is a rail-element supply line traced before or after rail-capacity building (by spending RPs) in the initial phase?

Before.

Rule 36. Weather.. If a c/m unit is in a non-road mountain hex when winter or snow weather occurs, what happens to the unit?

Exactly what the rules and chart say. Let's say, for illustration purposes, a panzer battalion is somewhere in the Austrian Alps: it is in a mountain hex; all six adjacent hexes are mountain; there are no roads in any of these hexes; and the weather becomes snow. The hex the unit is in and all adjacent hexes become prohibited terrain to the unit. Since it can't enter or retreat into prohibited terrain, it's stuck in its hex for as long as the snow lasts (or until Allied forces come along and do something nasty to it).

Rule 36. Weather: Should Mulberries be susceptible to destruction in storm weather?

While being emplaced, they were indeed susceptible to poor weather conditions. Thereafter, the historical evidence strongly indicates otherwise: one was destroyed while being emplaced during a storm bad enough to create "rough seas" in the game, the other was emplaced successfully and rode out many storms thereafter.

Rule 40B. Production: It is suggested that the replacement rate for Allied air-droppable units is too low. The Allies were historically able to rebuild their airborne units after D-Day (for Market-Garden) and Market-Garden (in time for the Ardennes) about 3-4 times more rapidly than the rules allow.

Too LOW? The Red Devils effectively were not rebuilt after Arnhem, and I expected players to suggest the replacement rate was too high! Your argument assumes that most or all of the airborne forces in D-Day were eliminated and had to replaced. Not so. At Europa level, probably 1 RE of British airborne and perhaps 1 RE of American airborne units were eliminated on Jun I 44, all of which would be replaceable by Market-Garden's Sep II 44 date.

Rule 40B. Replacements: It is suggested that some mechanic (maybe some form of "limited" fragility) be devised to prevent the abuse whereby all Axis 1-2-x, 1-3-x, and 2-4-x units are rebuilt many times over (to the exclusion of most other units) since they provide a 2-3 defensive multiplier per replacement point spent.

This is not an abuse, and no fix is needed. The replacement system is part of the overall system that shows how the offensive punch of an army goes to hell under the pressure of war. Replacing 1-2-x, etc., units makes sense only when you are on the defensive, under pressure, and have very limited resources. Otherwise, you'd replace assets with a greater offensive punch. Well, this is the historical situation the Germans faced, which is why they end up with an army of 4-6-6 divisions and 1-2-6 regiments, rather than 8-6s and 3-6s.

Rule 40D1. Disbanding: Is it really intended that non-divisional rocket and artillery brigades be allowed to disband and replace multiple divisions (e.g. disbanding two 6-2-8 rocket brigades yields three 4-6-6 divisions)?!

That's the way the rule works, yes. A typical German 6-2-8 rocket brigade contains a brigade HQ, two regimental HQs, 6 rocket artillery battalions, 1-3 self-propelled rocket artillery batteries, plus service troops and the like. This is not an inconsequential source of manpower and equipment, so it isn't a major distortion of things to disband them and impress them into the infantry.

If this still bothers you, then I have no basic problem with you using the following as a house rule: You cannot voluntarily disband artillery units.

Other: Are there any political effects of fighting for Rome and Paris? Will there be "free city" rules as happened historically?

In both cases, the Germans abandoned the cities because the front had collapsed dramatically, and the cities were thus lost anyway. Had either city ended up on a defensible front line, I believe the Germans would have defended them street by street. Hence, no special rule seems needed.

Other: Shouldn't there be a requirement for French forces to take part in the liberation of France?

Any rule here is going to be far more complicated that it's worth. This is best left to Grand Europa , where each major nation will have its player (and where the French player can threaten to pull his forces out of the front unless they can go to France).

Other: Is the British RMAS assault gun brigade (3-2-10) amphibious? It is Royal Marine and it landed with the assault waves on D-Day.

It's not intrinsically amphibious (like DD tanks were) and was carried ashore by landing craft. (Its actual operations, by the way, aren't very impressive.) I prefer not to add a special rule to cover the operations of a single, insignificant unit. If you really want one, here goes: This unit can make an amphibious landing using a landing craft (just one is required) but has its combat strength halved when doing so.

Air Mission Summary Notes

On the inside back cover is a play aid summarizing the core information about air missions. The following is displayed:

Mission: Name of the mission (rules number follows in parentheses).
Which: Which air units may fly the mission.
When: When the mission may be flown.
Range: Range of an air unit flying this mission to its target hex.
Target Hex: Allowable target hex for the mission.
Note: Notes about the mission.

General Abbreviations:
air op: air operation
en: enemy
ex: exploitation
fr: friendly
grp: group
in: initial
mv: movement
nvl: naval ph: phase
PMR: Printed Movement Rating
SBS: Strategic Bombing Strength
Strat: Strategic
t-hex: target hex
Tac: Tactical
TBS: Tactical Bombing Strength
w/: with
1+: Has strength of 1 or more