World War II in Europe now at HBG

I’m really fuzzy about how naval movement works.  I’m just not getting it.

The side that has initiative on that front gets to move its ships first.

Each ship has a movement of 10 spaces, but each ship must also use that movement range to return to the port it started from.

Once you decide what ships you are moving, and to where, you declare what space you intend to patrol, if any.  (By patrolling a space, you are saying that you intend to do combat with any ships that are found in that space.)

Now the other side moves its ships.  They go about it the same way as you did, but they obviously have seen where your ships are.  If the other side patrols the same space as you, then there will be combat.

If you are patrolling a space the other side passes through (but which the other side is NOT patrolling) then you have to roll to see if you intercept the enemy ships (and vis versa).

When combat is done, survivors then return to port.

@wittman:

Thank you for posting here. Have now bought it and am looking forward to reading the rules.
If I like it(which I do not doubt), you know I will be buying Italy.
I only have a very old Avalon Hill Italian campaign and I have never got along with it.

Thanks for the purchase.  Be sure to resize it map. Shrink it to 28 inches by 44 inches, otherwise it is way too big.

It prints on a single sheet?

I’ll PM Coach.

Did some playtesting yesterday of the Pacific half.

Here are some pics of the opening set-up:

As the game got to spring 1942(it starts in spring 1941), Japan had to pull ground units from China to occupy the Dutch East Indies, Malaya and Philippines.  After 4 turns of trying to bash China, Japan was unable to push them back far enough, and the Nationalists were able to make a push, while the Communists are at a stalemate.

By Summer 1942, the American fleet was decimated - only this time, the carriers were at Pearl, while the battleships were out on manouvers the morning of the attack!

The islands have been mostly occupied with convoys set u to collect for them and keep the troops on them supplied.

The fleet is redeployed to provide cover to the transports as the will now be used to reinforce China and get the situation back under control.

A small foray into India.  A convoy will need to be set-up to supply the stranded infantry.

Setting up to restart the conquest of China.  Lots of Chinese infantry, but nothing some artillery and planes can’t handle.

The carriers are redeployed to Rabaul to pin the Australians and harass their convoys they just set up.

The convoys are drawn on the map using a white board marker (the map is laminated) so they can be erased when not in use, or rerouted to avoid harassment.  Without the transports in the convoy routes, Japan cannot collect for the money, or keep the troops supplied.

We got up to Summer 1942 and stopped.  We’ll start again from the beginning since we have a better idea of how to play Japan and China in that crucial first year.  So far, it feels as though China will hold out until Japan has to pull away to occupy the islands and attack the British and Australians.

The carrier planes should be put to more use against China, but then they will need to be redeployed to the South Pacific along with most of the fleet.  Despite teh huge monetary advantage the US has ($100/turn) because of the long build times for capital ships, it will be 1943 before the US really gets going.

Of course, we need to play that far to see if it happens that way, but it seems like it should.

Coach will print this for you, but I don’t know what he charges.  He can print it on vinyl as well.  I’ll get him to post the cost on his website as well.

As for Pacific - it can be played linked to the Europe half.  The map itself is pretty much set - just going to have ANZAC in a diferent colour.  The set-up may undergo some tweaks.  The rules may need some streamlining as well.  Variable is testing for me as well.  Maybe in the fall we’ll have it done.

Cheers