Second Front

Allied OB

Allied Apr I 44 Initial Forces: How is the Polish 13-10 armor upgrade accomplished with no Polish ETO inf RPs available?

Hmm . . . interesting point, looks like the Poles should have a .5 inf RP rate for Jul-Dec 43 in the ETO; with 1 Polish inf RP accumulated in the ETO for the Apr 144 initial conditions.

Questions and Answers

(Rule 15E) Can a detached Panther battalion be attached to a plain old Panzergrenadier XX, thus making it a Panzer XX?

Rule 15E allows a detached panzer battalion only to be attached to a panzer division, and not to a panzergrenadier division.

This covers all the historical cases I can think of off-hand although I would not be surprised to hear about exceptions of this. I note that a panzer division had a panzer regiment headquarters, capable of controlling several panzer battalions. A panzergrenadier division, having only one panzer battalion, did not have a panzer regiment headquarters and thus on paper was less able to handle multiple panzer battalions. In reality, however, the German's practice of cross-attaching units and forming battle groups (Kampfgruppen) probably meant that a panzergrenadier division could competently manage a second panzer battalion. So, if you want to add this to the game as a house rule (and your opponent agrees), go ahead.

(Rule 17D) Suppose there is a 6-capacity permanent airfield in a major city, for a total airbase capacity of 12. This airbase takes 6 hits of damage. May the owning player assign all six hits to the permanent airfield, and then abandon it?

Yes.

(Rules 20G2g and 20G2h) Losses to Naval Units: Are these allocated after each air attack, or after all air attacks in a player turn?

Rule 20G2g defines how this happens for both 20G2g & h: "For each air operation, resolve all bombing attacks of air units flying this mission before applying any hits achieved. (Keep track of the total number of hits achieved.) Apply the hits after all air units on this mission [naval units in port bombing] have finished bombing." This means you do it on a per-air- operation basis, applying all hits (losses) to the naval units once all bombing attacks in the operation are over.

(Rule 26) When a strategic wing flies a mission in poor weather, is the bombing strength halved before or after AA fire?

Halve it at the moment of bombing, which comes after AA fire.

(Rule 26C2) Is there any limit to the number of bombing points a strategic wing can allocate to GS or DAS?

For 26C2b, note that the wing flies any tactical mission that heavy bombers may fly; and per 23E2 heavy bombers may not fly GS or DAS.

For 26C2c, every 3 bombing strength points (or fraction thereof; calculated before any halving due to weather or terrain) delivered by a strategic wing counts as 1 air unit for the GS/DAS limit.

(Rules 28 and 28A) These rules state a naval group may split at any point during movement/reaction. Does this just mean that two TFs may move independently, or does it allow you to split a single TF into two TF units?

Rule 27B2 governs the general concept of naval groups, and the seventh paragraph of Rule 28 specifically governs how you split up a naval group. Note that both rules define naval groups in terms of naval Units: you can break one group up into several groups, each of which can have one or more naval units. A TF, however, is a single naval unit: it can be part of a naval group (or even the only unit in a naval group) but it cannot be split into two units.

(Rule 29B2) This rule states that combat between naval units and CDs is resolved in a single round. Exactly what does this mean?

Naval combat between naval units and an enemy CD is initiated as per Rule 28C. Once initiated, the combat is resolved (per Rule 29B2) in a single firing round (unlike combat between naval units and enemy naval units, which can last for several rounds). When the round is over, naval combat between the naval units and the CD is over, and the naval units can resume movement or whatever else they were doing.

If the naval units still have MPs remaining, can they conduct other naval activities in the hex, such as sweeping mines?

Yes.

If the naval units still have MPs remaining, can they leave the hex in which they engaged the CD? For example, can they move further down the coast and engage another enemy CD?

Yes.

If the naval units still have MPs remaining, can they engage the same CD in another round of naval combat?

Yes-but only if the naval units do something that meets the requirements for initiating naval combat again with the CD per Rule 28C, such as entering another hex in the combat zone of the enemy CD.

(Rule 31) Does the non-phasing player get to know what cargo is in a convoy before he launches an air attack on it?

Yes. This is the same as asking if the phasing player gets to know what ground units are in a stack before he attacks it. In Europa, players may freely inspect enemy stacks at any time. As a house rule, however, you can prohibit the enemy player from examining the cargo of any naval unit or air unit that is transporting cargo. This adds more excitement to play without upsetting any game system. If you want to do this, simply stack the cargo underneath the transporting naval or air unit and do not allow the enemy player to peek underneath. (If you have a stack of several air or naval units in a hex, the other side can demand that you show all the air or naval units in the hex.) Use status markers as usual to denote supply points being carried as cargo.

This system still lets the enemy player distinguish between empty and cargo-laden air or naval units. Of course, in most cases you can fill up an otherwise empty air or naval unit with supply points. I also see no problem with adding another house rule allowing such units to carry dummy cargo; use a hit marker or the like for the dummy cargo.

(Rule 34A4 and 34F) A naval unit starts several consecutive naval movement steps (not moving) in a danger zone. May the contact die roll be modified in each step by having the unit start the step at night?

Yes.

(Rule 34E) Does a TF sweeping for mines have to roll for mine damage twice (once when it enters the hex, and again when it starts thefollowing step at sea in the hex)?

Twice.

(Rule 38B3) May the Allied player gain production from Italian provinces liberated after the Italian surrender, and if yes, does it work the same asfor French MRs, per Rule 38D?

Yes; yes.

(Rule 40AI) When a conversion or upgrade is calledfor and the unit is in another theater, can it be converted or upgraded, even before coming back to the theater specified in the OB?

Yes. Remember (per Rule 3F), the theater rule does not bind you for theaters you control.

When the OB lists a "replaced" unit, can the replacement be deferred and used later if the unit is not present at this time in the replacement pool?

Yes.

(Rule 43F1) Are Reserve, Replacement and Training units functionally identical?

Yes. (In reality, reserve, replacement, and training units could have different functions, depending upon nation, time period, and circumstances, but these are not significant enough to worry about at the level we show things in the game.)

Special Request

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