Background

In Europa games it is too easy for the all-seeing player to have information not available to his historical counterpart. With fixed reinforcements and exact movement rates, a player can calculate exactly when and where the enemy will be able to collect a defense or counterattack force.

Examples of occasions where a gamer would act differently than his historical counterpart are many. Two that come to mind are the British being caught unawares by the rapidity of Rommel's arrival in the desert; and the premature withdrawal of Italian forces at Keren just as the 4th Indian Division was moved from East Africa to the Western Desert.

To add some "fog of war," I propose a Variable Reinforcements option.

Variable Reinforcements

Reinforcements do not automatically enter on the turn they are scheduled, but may enter up to one turn earlier or later.

In each of his initial phases, a player carries out a 4-step activity for all reinforcements, replacements, mobilizations, withdrawals, and conversions.

(a) Put next turn's reinforcements in the Advance Reinforcements Box.
(b) Enter all delayed reinforcements.
(c) Roll for normal reinforcements. On a roll of 1 - 5 the reinforcements enter normally. On a roll of 6 they are delayed and placed in the Delayed Box.
(d) Roll for advance reinforcements. On a roll of 1 they are received this turn. On a roll of 2 - 6 they are placed in the Normal Reinforcements Box.

Notes

Note that some events (such as withdrawals) can't appear on the Reinforcement Boxes, and should be noted on a separate piece of paper.

Apply common sense to the rule. For example, units which are withdrawn and return may not return on or before the turn they leave. Neither may reinforcements arrive before a nation has entered the war.

On those few turns where the early or delayed receipt of reinforcements could totally destabilize play balance (e.g., the Soviet Jul II 41 reinforcements in Scorched Earth), you might wish to split the reinforcements into several groups. Or you might prefer to roll individually for each unit, although this will amount to a goodly sum of die rolls.

Conclusion

By introducing some uncertainty into the Orders of Battle in a simple way, we can make a better reflection of a commander's dilemma: whether to push forward in the hope that the enemy reserves won't materialize, but risk suffering losses if they do; or to advance securely, but possibly miss the opportunity to take an objective.

I hope this new option gives a different perspective to your games, and moves you a fraction of an inch closer to the edge of your seat.