1939 Scenario on A&A Global 1940 Map

I’ve been kicking a round a few ideas for a 1939 scenario on the A&A Global 1940 board. The biggest hurdle seems to be how to prevent the Phoney War from becoming an actual war, with France and Germany going at it on turn one.

My current thinking is to reduce the UK and French starting units. To balance, nearly all of Germany’s starting units are in Germany, poised to attack Poland and enter the Pro-Axis Neutrals of Slovakia/Hungary and Romania. Thus, Germany can’t attack France without shifting its units to the west and France doesn’t have enough units to attack Germany.

Another idea I had was to combine France, Poland, Belgium, and the Netherlands into one power. This allows Poland to have more than just infantry (a tank and a fighter) and Holland/Belgium to have an artillery piece. Best of all, it allows the Dutch East Indies to have units, especially a small naval force, which allows ABDACOM to get a look in. As another bonus, aside from putting more of those wonderful blue pieces on the board, it gives France a high enough income to beef up her army before the Germans unleash their attack.

Which reminds me, my current idea is that no one starts with any IPCs. The starting units have to last all of turns one and two. This prevents both France and Germany from making big purchases on turn one and going at it on turn two. Since powers can’t buy anything until turn two, they should go for the ripe fruit on turn one and reposition on turn two so they can unleash their beefed up forces on turn three (which is akin to turn one in A&AG1940).

This all does necessitate a special rule for a neutral Soviet Union to be allowed to attack Eastern Poland without going to war with the Franco-Belgian-Dutch-Polish forces as a whole. A neutral Soviet Union also has to be given special approval to attack the Minor Neutrals of Vyborg, Baltic States, and Bessarabia (which are a special category because the Soviet Union attacking them does not affect the status of the board’s Strict Neutrals).

I also think oztea’s and ghr2’s (among others) idea of turning the ANZAC power into the Commonwealth power and giving it Canada, South Africa, and Newfoundland/Labrador (all the Dominions combined) should be incorporated. However, the creation of the Commonwealth power plus the Belgian Congo going to the FBDP power, gives the Commonwealth 20, reducing UK Europe to 17, on par with UK Pacific. As a balance, I like FieldMarshallGames’ suggestion I read on BoardGameGeek of having the UK and the Commonwealth share the same turn, to allow for coordinated action.

Other thoughts include incorporating FieldMarshallGames’ Free French infantry recruitment rule. Siam becomes a Pro-Axis neutral. Japan controls two fewer Chinese territories. While neutral, the US is allowed to transfer one and only one fighter to the Chinese by landing the fighter on Chinese territory, provided it does not violate any other neutral movement rules. All A&AG1940 turn dependent rules are pushed back two turns. Denmark and Norway become Pro-Allied Neutrals to allow the much discussed Franco-British preemptive occupation of Norway to become a reality if the Germans don’t get moving. I also think a German cruiser should be loose in the Atlantic since the Deutschland and Graf Spee were at sea when the war began.

I know the UK needs more National Objectives, as does the Commonwealth. I don’t feel the Early Allies (FBDP) need any NOs, as I don’t expect them to last as a coherent fighting force beyond turn three until the liberation of Paris.

Any thoughts?

@oztea:

The farther you roll the clock back, the harder it gets to find the right balance, that will extrapolate into something at least plausible in later turns.

Yes, that’s the rub. And finding a way to do it that adds as few rules and stipulations as possible.

You would also need a mechanic for powers to sign peace treaties, because Japan and Russia were at war in 1939, but agreed to stop fighting.

As far as I can tell, while the Russo-Japanese Border War cease fire went into effect on September 16, 1939, all Japanese forces on the Russian side of the border had been destroyed or driven off by August 31, 1939. I figured I could fudge the timescale a bit and assume they had already signed it before turn one, since no serious fighting occurred in September 1939, when the 1939 scenario would begin.

@Gargantua:

What we need is a sci-fi 1945 setup, where the axis get wonder weapons, and the question is if the allies can keep their foot on them.

Anyone read the Harry Turtledove novels were the Axis and Allied powers must unite to fight off an alien invasion? Anyone got any old Twilight Imperium pieces lying around? Now, who wants to develop the alien tech chart . . .

Alternatively, I did recently pick up a comic called Zombie Nazis, so we’ll need that scenario as well.

Anywho, I finally mocked up the set-up charts. I big shout-out goes to FieldMarshallGames and oztea for their Free French and Commonwealth rules.

The setup charts also include the Political Situation for each power (largely the same thing as the Second Edition Rulebook), with a few revisions for the earlier start date, and the National Objectives for each power. All the Global 1940 Second Edition rules stand unless superseded by something on the setup charts.

Conceptually, the game starts two turns earlier than the Global 1940 game, so any rule from Global 1940 Second Edition that states that a certain event can’t occur before a certain turn should be pushed two turns later. For instance, the USSR may not declare war on a European Axis power before Turn 6, unless attacked.

France does start with an abnormally high IPC value (37) due to the combining of France, Poland, Belgium, and the Netherlands into one power. This shouldn’t last, but it will allow France one turn to buy units before the German onslaught begins (I had to reduce French and German military might in order to try to preserve the Phoney War).

Stealing an idea from the A&A1914 preview, on its first turn, Germany must attack Poland, but Germany may not attack France or the UK.

No power starts with any IPCs in hand, the forces on the map are all players have available for their first and second turns.

ACHTUNG! ACHTUNG! ACHTUNG!

I’m far too close to this scenario. In my mind it’s designed to unfold in a certain way and does when I play it (Germany taking out Poland and snatching Slovakia/Hungary and Romania on turn 1 and then redeploying on Turn 2 to attack France on Turn 3 because France has to be taken out before its high IPC starting value becomes a major problem (their only factories are in Europe!)). But any pair of fresh eyes will I’m sure find all kinds of bugs. Please keep me informed and I’ll try to look at it from a fresh angle as well and report back.

Thanks to anyone who tries this and please let me know if it’s broken.

(Modified to fix spelling)

A&A1939Scenario.xls