For Bloody Honor: The Russian Civil War
For Bloody Honor: The Russian Civil War Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 The Map
The map shows all of Russia. It is divided into 23 Zones which are used to control movement and political influence. Portions of the Trans-Siberian Railway are shown on the map and are used to help move a players' pieces.
Each zone is identified by a city named in red (eg. Kazan Zone). The Zone also contains the Political Point value based on the population of the territory and its potential resources. Controlling zones is explained in the Control section of the rules.
1.2 Game Scale
The game is composed of 10 game turns, each representing 4 months of real time from the end of 1918 to the end of 1921. The time is noted on the Game Turn Track located on the map.
Each military unit has a combat value of 1 (exception: Tanks; see 11.4.1). These units represent the military component of each faction and each unit is a force of between 5,000 to 15,000 men.
1.3 Sides
There are two opposing sides in For Bloody Honor. The two sides are the Reds (Bolsheviks) and the Whites (a loose association of anti-Bolshevik factions). The Reds are represented by one player. The Whites are represented by up to 6 players, each taking the role of one of the main factions fighting the Reds. They are the: Denekin Faction (and later Wrangel), Kolchak Faction, Yudenich Faction, Czech Legion, Foreign Faction, and Mahkno/Poles.
If fewer than 6, the White factions are divided as evenly as possible among however many players can be found. It is possible to play the game as a 2 player contest, one player taking the Reds and one player taking all the White factions.
In the game, the Whites may not work together (exception - See Combat). They may move into and out of each others territory, and may attack together, but with limitations. When calculating political points for reinforcement, recruitment and defection (see below) and victory purposes, they calculate as individual factions.
Although the ultimate goal is the defeat of the Reds, historically there was a lot of infighting and bickering among the various White factions and little joint cooperation.
2. Political Influence & Control
2.1 Political Influence
Political influence represents the will of the people in that region to "support" your faction. Each zone in the game has a highlighted number in it. This number represents the Political Influence your faction will gain by controlling that zone. Political Influence also is important in determining who wins the game. The faction with the highest amount of Political Influence at the end of game turn 10 wins. (If the combined total of all the White factions is greater than the Red total, the Whites have won.)
Rebuilding previously lost pieces is also regulated by Political Influence (except for the Foreign Faction and the Czech Legion - see below). The more Political Influence a faction has, the more units will reappear that turn. (See the Reinforcement Chart on the Charts and Reminders page.)
Political Influence points are noted separately by each faction on the Political Influence Track on the game map. As Political Influence points are gained or lost, players will move their Political Influence Point marker along the track accordingly.
2.2 Control
Control refers to which faction, if any, "owns" a zone. To gain control of a zone, a player must move some of their units into the zone. If, at the end of their player phase they are the sole occupant of that zone, they get control of that zone. Place a control marker of the appropriate faction in the zone. As an exception to this rule, when the Japanese Foreign Faction unit is placed in Vladivostok (as a reinforcement or replacement), it does NOT gain control of the Vladivostok Zone. Control would remain with the White faction which controlled the zone prior to the placement of the Japanese unit. It is just placed there until it is time to move.
A zone remains under the control of the last player who occupied it. That means that once a faction controls a zone, it will remain theirs until a unit from another faction is the sole occupant of that zone. Remove the former factions' control marker and replace it with the current factions' control marker. This is mandatory, so if a faction has no units in a zone and another faction has at least one unit in the zone, the new faction places one of their control markers in the zone and removes the old one. (See the Retreat rules in the Combat section.)
When a faction controls a zone, they get all the Political Influence Points for that zone.
After a combat, it is possible for the White player to have units from several factions occupying the same zone. In this case, the White faction which moved into the zone first gets the Political Influence from that zone.
Example: The Kolchak Faction, Czech Legion, and the Foreign Faction end a combat with the Reds in the Kazan Zone (the Reds retreated). All three White factions have four units left in the Zone. Control of the zone would go to the faction which moved into the zone first.
2.3 Contested Zones
When a Zone contains units from one or more White factions and Red units, that Zone is said to be contested. The control of the zone will be determined either through movement (one or more of the factions moves out of the zone), or through combat (one or more factions are eliminated/retreat out of the zone). The zone will no longer be contested when it is occupied by one faction only. That faction then gains control - place an appropriate faction control marker in the zone.
2.4 Control Markers
There is a set limit to the number of control markers each faction has throughout the game. Once all of a faction's control markers are in play, that faction can no longer gain control of any new zones, even if they are the sole occupant.
The only way to "release" a zone from a faction's control is if another faction occupies the zone with a unit. Players may not make "trades" for zones (you are in it for yourselves).
2.5 Elimination of the Reds
Should the Reds be eliminated before the end of the game, all zones not directly controlled by a faction are considered "enemy" zones. They can be occupied or attacked at the owning player's discretion.
3. How to Win
The way to win the game is to have the most Political Influence. Whichever faction has the most political influence at the end of the game is declared the winner. If the Reds have the most Political Influence points, they win. If the combined total of all the White factions is greater, than the Reds lose then the White Russian faction with the highest Political Influence score wins. Zones controlled by the Poles do not count for either the Whites or the Reds.
If at any time all the Red pieces have been eliminated, the game continues for up to two full turns (but the game will not extend beyond Game Turn 10). The Whites fight amongst themselves to gain as many Political Influence Points as they can (See the Special Rules section).
Should all the pieces of one of the White factions be eliminated, then only that faction is out of the game. The remaining White factions play on. When the last Denekin unit is removed, the Denekin player now uses the Wrangel units (he becomes the Wrangel faction). Wrangel's units set up in either the Rostov or Baku Zone (see 11.3).
The main object of the game for the Whites, is to defeat the Reds. The Reds want to control Russia. If they do not achieve their objective, the Whites have won.
The foreign factions (Poles, Czechs, and Foreign Factions), contribute to the total of political influence points, they may not be declared the winners. The Russian faction with the highest total is declared the winner (This is a Russian Civil war after all. The foreigners had their own agendas.)
*Optional: The core area of Russia is the European portion (the area containing: the Moscow, Petrograd, Minsk, Kiev and Odessa Zones). To add some challenge to the game, the side that has the highest Political Influence total and controls the Moscow Zone and one other Zone listed above is declared the winner. If only one of these criteria are met, then they are not the winner.
4. Sequence of Play
Civil War: Russkaya is composed of ten game turns, each being organized into three player phases, the Baltic Treaty Phase, Activation phase, and the Political Control phase. Each Activation phase has a number of sub-phases which must be performed based on the order of the chits pulled. They include: movement, combat, and/or replacement/recruitment.
Upon completion of all three phases the game turn is complete and the game turn marker can be advanced into the next space. The whole sequence is followed again until the end of the 1921 game turn (turn 10).
Each player performs these phases in the order given. A complete game turn consists of:
A. Baltic Treaty
Starting Game Turn 7 the White Player rolls a die to determine if a treaty has been negotiated between the Reds and the Baltic States (see 11.5.2).
B. Activation Phase
- Faction Chit Placement: All factions currently in the game place their activation markers in an opaque container. A chit is drawn randomly by a player and whichever faction is drawn gets to move his units. Besides Movement chits, there are two Combat Chits (one for the Red and one for the White factions), and two Recruit Chits (one for the Red and one for the White factions). Note that at least two (2) movement chits must be drawn before either Combat chit can be played.
- This process is repeated until all the chits have been pulled.
C. Political Control Phase
- All players calculate their Political Influence based on controlled zones.
- Remove German Army control markers (game turn 1 only).
The phases mentioned above will be explained in order in the subsequent rules sections.
5. Mahkno Faction
5.1 Mahkno
Nestor Mahkno was an anarchist who started the Civil War working with the Reds, then established a semi-autonomous state in the southern Ukraine (the Odessa Zone) against the Reds. For the first part of the game (turns 1 through 7), there is no Mahkno faction, just Red units.
5.1.1 Appearance
On game turn 8, Mahkno appears (actually sets up his own country). Any Red units in the Odessa Zone are displaced to any adjacent, Red controlled zone. Two Mahkno units appear and the Mahkno movement chit is placed in the opaque container. He now functions as a White faction.
Should the Odessa Zone be controlled by another White faction, place the two Mahkno units and immediately change the control marker to a Mahkno marker. The former owner does not lose any units, just control of the zone.
If the Poles control the Odessa Zone, the two Mahkno units appear and must fight the Poles when the next White combat chit is drawn.
5.1.2 Limited Movement
The Mahkno faction's units may only enter (either by movement or retreat after combat) the Odessa, Minsk, Kiev, and Rostov Zones. They may use rail, but may not leave the four zones mentioned above.
5.1.3 Combat
Mahkno functions as any other White faction. The units of the faction follow the normal rules for combat when attacking/defending a zone with other White units.
5.1.4 Recruits/Replacements
The Mahkno faction can only place recruits and/or replacements in the Odessa Zone. If Mahkno loses control of that Zone, the faction cannot place any units until it is recaptured.
6. Activation Phase
The heart of the game is the Activation Phase. Each faction places its Movement Chit along with each side's Combat Chit and Recruit Chit into an opaque container (like a coffee cup or bowl).
6.1 Possible Actions
There are three types of chits - Movement (one for each faction), Combat (one for the Reds and one for all the Whites), and Recruitment (one for the Reds and one for all the Whites).
If a movement chit is pulled, the faction whose chit was pulled moves any or all of their units according to the movement rules. If the combat chit is pulled, then the Reds or all of the Whites can engage in combat. White combat is just that, if the White Combat chit is pulled every White faction can engage in combat following the rules of combat. If the recruit chit is pulled, either the Reds or all the White factions attempt to gain or replace new units as per the Recruitment rules.
6.2 Picking Chits
At the beginning of each Activation Phase, players randomly draw chits out of the opaque container. The faction whose chit was pulled then can undergo movement, or combat, or recruitment. There is a specific order in which factions perform various actions. The Faction Priority is as follows:
- Poles (after they enter the war)
- Denekin Faction / Wrangel Faction
- Kolchak Faction
- Yudenich Faction
- Mahkno Faction
- Czech Legion Faction
- Foreign Faction
- Reds
A player draws a chit and the appropriate faction undertakes an action. This process is followed until all the chits have been drawn. When the last chit is drawn and the appropriate faction has completed its last action, play moves to the Political Control Phase.
Important Note: The Faction Priority will be used to determine the sequence the factions will determine certain game events. Anytime more than one White faction is in a zone, the order above is used to determine who retreats first in a battle, who controls the combined White factions for defense, and who gets control of zones where all factions present have forces of equal size.
7. Movement Actions
7.1 General
Movement occurs when each factions' respective movement chit has been pulled.
During the Red player movement action, the Red player attempts to move his units. Each White faction may attempt to move when that faction's movement chit is pulled.
For a player to move his pieces, the following sequence is followed:
- The player identifies the unit(s) he wishes to move.
- The player identifies which zone these units wish to move into.
- The player must then successfully make a Movement Die Roll. For any White player faction, movement success occurs on any die roll but a 5 or 6. For the Red player movement success occurs on any die roll except 6. This attempt is made for each force the faction attempts to move, regardless of the type of movement (see Regular and Rail Movement below). If the die roll is successful, move the chosen units into the zone selected. If the die roll fails, the units chosen cannot be chosen for movement for the remainder of the player's current Faction Chit.
A Force is a single unit or group of units which will be attempting to move into a zone. The composition of the force must be stated by the player before he attempts to move his force into a zone. It is up to the faction player to decide how many units are in each force. However, note restrictions detailed in rule 7.6.
Force composition, zone destination, and success roll is performed one force at a time. Should a force fail its movement die roll, flip the force over as a reminder it cannot move at all for the rest of that Faction's movement action.
A player is allowed to make multiple attempts to move into a zone as long as he does not use units which have failed a previous attempt.
In those situations where zone boundaries meet in an "X" pattern (there are two on the map) it is not possible to move diagonally across the "X". As an example, movement directly from the Moscow Zone to the Orsk Zone is not permitted.
Example: The Yudenich faction has 5 units in the Kazan Zone. He wants to move 3 units (one force) into the Moscow Zone, and one unit (a second force) into the Archangel Zone. He rolls a "4" for the first force (success) and a "6" for the second force (failure). The first force may move into the Kazan Zone and the second force cannot move at all.
7.2 How to Move - Regular
Regular movement is the normal ground movement. Infantry and tank units can move into any adjacent Zone. Air units can also move into adjacent zones, but see the Air Unit rules.
When a player successfully achieves his movement die roll, he may move the appropriate force into an adjacent zone. If that zone is not currently occupied, that player may gains control of the zone and may gain the Political Points if they still control the zone during the Political Control Phase at the end of the game turn.
7.3 How to Move - Railways
Superimposed on the map are the main sections of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The railway can help move pieces faster than in regular movement. Unlike regular movement, units using railway movement can move up to three zones. The player must still successfully make the movement attempt die roll. If successful, the player may choose to use railway movement instead of regular movement.
When using railway movement, the player may only move into zones connected by the railway symbol. The player may not move through zones controlled by the enemy player.
A player could move into an enemy controlled zone, but would then have to stop. He may choose to have combat when his faction's combat chit is pulled.
White factions can move through zones controlled by other White factions. They may also end their move in a zone controlled by another White faction.
If a player chooses to use rail movement, the units that use rail movement cannot move regularly. A player may decide to move some units by rail and other units regularly.
A player may use rail movement to gain control of a territory. Only the territory the players' unit ended their move in becomes controlled by the moving player. This is subject to the territory being occupied by another faction.
7.4 Moving Out of a Contested Zone
A faction may move out of a contested zone only if it moves into a friendly controlled zone (contested or not). If there are no such zones available, the units wishing to move cannot - they are locked in place, until the units locking them there are eliminated or forced to retreat.
It is possible, however, that the unit wishing to move does so into an unoccupied enemy zone. The move is made and a new control marker is placed in the zone.
7.5 Moving Out of Russia
With certain exceptions, units must remain within Russia (see below). If a unit is in a territory which undergoes combat and that unit wishes to retreat, it may not move out of Russia. If that is the only option, the unit is eliminated instead, giving the attacker a chance at a Defection die roll. (but see also Polish faction exceptions.)
Russia is defined as all the zones with Political Influence Points, except for the Warsaw Zone. Poland consists of the Warsaw Zone only. All other named territories without Political Influence Points are considered Foreign Territory.
The only units that can move into Poland are the Polish Faction units and any Red units attempting to control the Warsaw Zone. Under no circumstance can units ever enter Foreign Territory.
7.6 Movement Action Limits
As a limit to player actions, each faction can only attempt to move up to three (3) forces from each zone, either by regular movement or by railway.
8. Combat Phase
8.1 General
When a Combat chit is drawn (White or Red), each player of the appropriate faction may choose to have combat at his discretion (combat is voluntary). He may opt to attack in some zones and not in others, even though he has units in several zones where attacks are possible.
The purpose of combat is to eliminate the opposing players' units to gain control of a zone. Combat occurs when the appropriate (Red or White) Combat chit is drawn. When the Red Combat chit is drawn, any and all Red units which occupy zones containing White units may engage in combat. When the White Combat chit is drawn, ALL White factions which occupy zones with Red units may engage in combat. White units must follow the rules below.
Combat is considered simultaneous for purposes of rounds (see below).
Important Note: At least two movement chits need to have been drawn before a Combat chit can be drawn and played. If a combat chit is drawn before two movement chits have drawn, then return the combat chit to the opaque container and draw another chit.
8.2 Rounds of Combat
Combat is fought in rounds. Each round is composed of the attacker rolling a die for each piece in the disputed zone, then the defender rolling a die for each piece in the contested zone. To eliminate an enemy unit, the die roller must roll a 6. For every 6 rolled, one enemy unit from that zone will be eliminated. (However, see Special Units rules.)
A player gets to roll a die for each unit they have in the zone. As they roll, each player should keep track of the number of 6's they rolled. When both players have finished rolling once for each of their units in that zone, they eliminate any units necessary due to the combat (one unit for each 6 rolled). This is the end of one round of combat.
At this point, the attacker must decide if there will be another round. If the answer is no, then any of the attackers surviving units are immediately retreated into an adjacent zone and the combat is over. If the answer is yes, then the defender must decide if they wish to stay for a further round of combat. If the defender says yes, then follow the normal procedures for combat outlined above. If the defender says no, then they must retreat into an adjacent friendly zone.
Friendly Red zones are those controlled by the Red player. Friendly White zones are those controlled by any White faction.
It is possible for both players in a combat to lose all of their units. If this occurs, the control of the zone remains with the original controlling player.
Once all the rounds of combat have been completed in one zone, the players then follow the same procedures for any other zone in which Red and White pieces are together, at the attacking players discretion. When all the combats have been completed, play moves on to the next chit pull or Political Control Phase.
All losses are placed in the Loss Pool (exception: Tanks; see 11.4.1). These units can be used as replacements immediately.
8.3 White Faction Combat
When the White Combat chit is pulled, all the White factions may engage in combat. They follow the Faction Priority when determining if a Faction chooses to attack. If one faction chooses to attack but others choose not to support the first faction, then the other (non-supporting) faction(s) must immediately retreat to an adjacent White controlled zone.
8.3.1 White Faction Attack
If two or more White factions attack a Red occupied zone, then the faction with the largest force controls the attack.
In the case of two forces of equal size, use the Faction Priority to determine which faction controls the attack. For each faction over one, subtract one die from the total number of dice to be used in the attack.
Example: The Yudenich, Kolchak, and Czech Legion have two units each for a total of 6 dice. Since there are three factions in the attack, the attacking player subtracts two dice giving a total of 4 dice on the attack.
8.3.2 White Faction Defense
If pieces from more than one White faction are in a zone attacked by the Reds, they all get to defend the zone as a combined force. When rolling, tally up the number of military units for each White faction in the zone. Roll a number of dice equal to the number of defending units in the zone minus one die for each faction in the zone over one.
Example: The Denekin, Yudenich, and Foreign faction each have 3 units in the Orsk Zone. Normally that would give the defenders 9 dice to roll. However, since there are two factions more than one in the zone, two dice would be subtracted from the total. The White player then gets to roll 7 dice.
8.3.3 White Faction Loss Allocation
In each round of combat, losses sustained by the White player would be absorbed equally starting with the controlling faction, then the next largest faction (based on number of units involved) and continuing by decreasing faction size. Once all factions have taken at least one loss, start again with the the controlling faction and repeat until all losses have been allocated.
If the original owner of the zone no longer has any units in the zone, control would go to the White faction with the most units still in the zone. This, of course, assumes that they have defeated the Reds in that attack.
8.4 Red Combat
When the Red Combat Chit is pulled, the Red player follows the normal combat rules.
8.5 Retreat
First the attacker and then the defender may elect to retreat from the battle after the first round of combat. When retreating, players may not retreat into zones with exclusively enemy pieces in them. If a player decides to retreat and they cannot because all the adjacent zones have only enemy pieces in them, they may not retreat and must continue combat.
If a zone contains both friendly and enemy pieces, the retreating player may move into the zone. These new units may not participate in any unresolved combat in that zone for the first three rounds of combat. Should the combat enter a 4th round, the units which retreated into the zone may be added to the friendly force involved in the combat, at the discretion of the owning player.
If the zone has no units in it, then the retreating player may move into the zone and gain immediate control of the zone. In this case, during the Political Control Phase, the zone now belongs to the player whose piece controls the zone. (Should more than one White faction retreat into a zone which started the turn empty, control - and the the political influence points - would go to the player who retreated into it first.)
A zone that had been previously occupied by an enemy force and is now empty may be retreated into by the losing side in a battle. To prevent enemy units from retreating, the zone must contain at least 1 friendly unit, otherwise the retreating units can move there.
Units may never retreat out of Russia (with the exception that Polish units can retreat into the Warsaw Zone). If this is the only option left to them, they must stay and fight until the combat is resoloved.
In combats where there is more than one White faction, after each round of combat each faction decides independently whether they will stay in the combat or not. The faction which controls the combat decides first, then following the Faction Priority sequence.
8.6 Defection
8.6.1 Procedures
When one side has been eliminated from a territory, by either retreating or having their last unit eliminated, the winning player rolls a die to see whether any of the defeated soldiers join their faction.
After the losing side has left the territory, the victor calculates his new Modifier total (see 10.1) and then rolls a die and consults the Defection Table. If the result is "D" (for defection), then one retreated unit of the losing side is removed (and placed in the Faction's Loss Pool), and one unit of the appropriate winning faction is placed in the territory with the winner (this unit comes from the winning faction's Loss Pool or if none are available there, take one from the Recruitment Pool).
Only infantry units can be lost or gained as a result of defection. Armoured trains, Tanks, and Aircraft are not subject to defection (these units are composed of the elite and as such would be less likely to defect).
8.6.2 Unusual Cases
In situations where more than one White faction occupy a territory, the Defection roll is made by the faction that caused the enemy to lose the territory.
The number of units that can defect is limited by the number of pieces in the game. If a faction successfully rolls for a defection, but all of their pieces are already in play, they do not gain any new units - however the losing side still has to remove a unit from play.
8.6.3 The "Last Unit"
A faction cannot lose its last piece to defection. If the sole remaining unit of a faction would defect and this would leave the faction without any units (and out of the game), then the result is ignored. This applies only to the absolute last piece that faction currently has on the board, not the last piece it might have in a territory.
Units removed through defection are placed in the Faction's Loss Pool.
8.6.4 Non-Defecting Factions
Certain factions are not subject to defection (either by gaining or losing units). They are: the Foreign Faction, the Czech Legion, and the Poles. All remaining factions are subject to defection as outlined above.
8.6.4.1 Denekin Volunteer Units
The two Denikin Volunteer Units are not subject to defection. These units were more motivated than the regular Russian units and therefore not susceptible to defection.
9. Replacement & Recruitment
When the Recruit Chit is drawn, either the Reds or ALL the White factions will replace and recruit units. The Reds and all the White factions may get replacements based on the number of political influence points they have. The Reds and the Whites may recruit new units into the game based on a die roll on the Recruitment table (see the Charts & Tables page).
9.1 Replacements
Once the game begins, it is important for each faction to keep up the number of units they have in play. The more units you have, the better your chances of winning.
Each player starts with a set number of units. They may never have more than their starting number (See Recruitment below). During combat, units will be "lost". To rebuild those units, players consult the Replacement Chart (see Charts and Tables page). Cross index the number of Political Points your faction currently controls with the Number of Troops Returned column. This will tell you how many of your pieces (if any) may return to play. You may only return pieces that were previously lost in combat. Take them from the Loss Pool.
If, according to the chart, you are entitled to bring on 3 units, but you only have two, then you can only bring on the two units. They cannot be saved for another turn.
Returned units may be placed in any friendly controlled zone and will be allowed to move and participate in combat during the current game turn.
Unlike the other factions, the Foreign and Czech Factions do not receive replacements based on Political Points. Instead, they get a set number of units returned from the Loss Pool each turn. In 1918 and all the 1919 turns (Game Turns 1 through 4), both the Foreign Faction and the Czechs receive two replacements each. Beginning in 1920 (Game Turn 5) and continuing until the end of the game, both of these factions only receive one replacement per turn each.
Should the unit that is taken from the Loss Pool be the unit with the Japanese flag, that unit can only be placed in the Vladivostok Zone. Should that zone be under Red control, the Foreign Faction permanently loses that unit.
9.2 Recruitment
Each player consults the Recruitment Table and rolls the die. If the die rolled has a number beside it, that represents the number of new units that faction receives immediately. Take the appropriate number of units, based on the die roll, from the Recruitment Pool. The type of unit selected is up to the owning player, subject to the turn of availability of some units (see the Special Units section).
The die roll can be modified. For each 10 Political Points a player has on the Political Point Track, add one (+1) to the die roll. If the player has modifiers due to combat (eliminating enemy units and/or forcing them to retreat), these may be added to the recruitment die roll. All die roll modifiers are cumulative.
The number of units a player has is limited by the counter mix. Once all the units of a particular faction are in play, they cannot add any new units - even if they were to successfully roll on the Recruitment or Defection Table.
All new units recruited during this phase are immediately placed on the map in any location(s) currently controlled by that faction. They participate in all game turn activities from that point on.
10. Political Point Determination Phase
During the Political Control Phase, players count up the number of political points which is based on the Political Influence number in each zone they currently control. Each player adds these Political Influence values to get a total. This is marked on the Political Influence Track on the appropriate chart. The influence point totals may vary during the course of the game based on: where the units for each faction end up, the winning and losing of various battles, and where retreated units end up. All points are tallied during this phase only, not during the course of an Activation phase. This happens during the Political Point Determination Phase of each game turn, which will cause the Political Point markers for each faction to move up and down the track as the game progresses.
At the end of game turn 10 all players will make their calculations which will help determine final victory!
10.1 Modifiers
There are a number of modifiers which can affect the Recruitment and Defection die rolls for each faction during the game. To make it easier to remember the die roll modifier each faction can use (if any) during each of their recruitment and defection die rolls, a chart has been included on the map.
As each player gains a modifier, place the appropriate Die Roll Modifier marker on the Modifier Track. Throughout the Game Turn, whenever a faction gains a modifier, its faction marker moves up the track. A faction can have a modifier of up to +4 on their Recruitment and Defection die rolls.
10.1.1 Getting Modifiers
All factions are capable of getting modifiers. To gain a modifier, a faction must accomplish one or more of the following:
- force an enemy to retreat from a zone (+1 modifier)
- eliminate at least two enemy unit(s) in a single combat (+1 modifier)
- cause an enemy unit to defect (+1 modifier)
These are cumulative. The modifiers are gained for each separate combat a faction engages in during either side's Combat phase. Modifiers for eliminating units and forcing an enemy retreat are calculated before any Defection die roll is made. Adjust the appropriate faction marker on the modifier track.
Example: The Denekin faction fights the Reds in the Rostov Zone and the Kiev Zone. He succeeds in eliminating three units in the Rostov battle and forcing the remaining units to retreat. He has earned 2 modifiers. His marker is placed in the +2 box of the Modifier Track. His Defection roll for the Reds retreating from Rostov would be modified by +2, but he rolls a "1", so no Red units defect. In the second combat, he forces the Reds to retreat from the Kiev Zone (for another +1 modifier) and now has a +3 DRM total. He then rolls to determine if any of the retreating units defects; rolls a 3 which is modified to a 6 and successfully causes a defection (generating an additional +1 modifier). Denekin now has a +4 modifier which he can use during any subsequent combats this turn, or in his Recruit Phase (if it has not already been pulled this turn).
10.1.2 Resetting Modifiers
At the end of a Game Turn, place all the Modifier markers back to the 0 box. The awarding of DRMs starts over at the beginning of the next turn.
11.0 Special Rules
11.1 New Units
The countermix limits the total number of units a faction may have during the course of the game. After the initial set-up, new units are introduced into the game through Recruitment or Defection.
Recruited units may only be taken from the Recruit Pool. Units that Defect are normally taken from the Loss Pool, or if none are available, from the Recruit Pool.
Whenever all the counters are in "play", no new units can be added - regardless of the success of Recruitment or Defection. If units become available through combat losses, then any subsequent Recruitment and Defection die rolls which are successful can use those units.
11.2 The Poles
The Poles enter the game as a White faction on Game Turn 5 (the first game turn of 1920). The Warsaw Zone is out of play until the Poles enter the game. Once in the game, the Poles move, recruit and gain Political Points like other White Factions. All Polish recruits enter the game in the Warsaw Zone only.
11.2.1 Polish Movement
The Poles may not end a move in the same zone as other White Factions. If, due to combat, they must retreat into a zone with other White factions, they may not contribute to the defense of that zone if it should come under subsequent attack.
Should the Poles start their activation in the same zone as other White Factions, they may either stay in the zone or move, at their discretion. If they stay, the other White Factions must move out of the zone at the earliest opportunity. Control of the zone would then fall to the Poles.
The Poles are the only White Faction allowed to move, or retreat, into Poland.
11.2.2 Poles in Combat
Each Polish unit rolls two (2) dice when in combat, for both attack and defence. In addition, any Polish units defending the Warsaw Zone take two (2) hits each before they are eliminated. (This simulates the tenacity of the Poles when defending their homeland.)
11.2.3 Neutralizing or Eliminating the Poles
The Poles remain in the game until the Warsaw Zone is "neutralized" by the Red player. To neutralize Warsaw, during a Red Combat Phase, the Reds must have two more combat units attacking the Warsaw Zone as the Poles have defending it. Once this is achieved, the Poles will immediately sue for peace and leave the game, regardless of the outcome of the combat.
If the Poles sue for Peace, place the Polish Peace marker in the Warsaw Zone to show that it is now off limits to the Reds and the Whites. (Historically the Poles were out of the war by October, 1920.)
If the Reds capture the Warsaw Zone (Poland), the Polish faction ceases to exist. To capture Poland, the Reds must eliminate, or force to retreat, all Polish units in the Warsaw Zone. Should a Red unit occupy the Warsaw Zone during his movement (ie. the Poles left the zone empty), the Poles would be eliminated immediately.
Note for the Polish player: always leave a unit in Warsaw. You might be able to reinforce the zone before the Russian combat chit is drawn!
11.2.4 Placing the Peace Marker
Once the Poles have sued for peace, place the Polish Peace marker in the Warsaw Zone. Any Red units that were in the Warsaw Zone are now moved to an adjacent Red controlled zone. If none is available, the Red units would be moved to the Petrograd Zone if it is under Red control. If Petrograd is not Red controlled then the Red units would be placed in the loss pool.
11.3 Wrangel
On any turn where the Denekin faction has been eliminated, place the Wrangel faction on the map in either the Rostov or Baku Zones (owning player's choice). The Wrangel units appear in either Zone even if they are occupied by Red units. This is an exception to the usual placement rules. This means that the Wrangel units may have to fight to gain control of the zone they are placed in. They can also choose to retreat from a combat into a friendly controlled zone.
The Wrangel faction now takes the position of the Denekin faction in the Faction Priority order. It operates like any other White faction.
11.4 Special Units
11.4.1 Tank Units
A number of factions in the game have Tank units (representing a variety of tanks and armored cars) which have special combat abilities. The Denekin, Foreign, and Red Factions can place their Tank units in their Recruitment Pool beginning with the first turn of 1919 (Game Turn 2).
These units function like other units in the game with the following exceptions:
- a) they roll two dice in combat;
- b) they take two hits to eliminate;
- c) in any Combat Phase, they can only roll dice in one round of combat (typically the first).
When a Tank unit takes a hit, flip it over. If it takes a second hit during the same combat, it is eliminated. Remove it from the map and place it on the game turn track two turns ahead (a unit eliminated on turn 5 would be placed on the turn 7 turn space). At the start of the turn where the Tank units are placed, they are removed from the Game Turn Track and placed in the Recruitment Pool (not the Loss Pool). As an exception to the above replacement sequence, any Foreign Faction Tank units which are eliminated (including those by Reliability Rule 11.4.3) are immediately placed in the Foreign Faction's Loss Pool.
Tank units can only participate in one round of combat. After that, they may not contribute any dice to the attack or defence of their zone but they may absorb hits, at the discretion of the owning player. Should a Tank unit fail its reliability die roll during the first round of combat, it may participate in one subsequent round of combat, provided it successfully passes another reliability roll in that round of combat.
11.4.2 Aircraft
11.4.2.1 Placement
All factions which have aircraft units can place them in their Recruitment Pool beginning with Game Turn 2. Aircraft units function like other units with the following exception: they may participate in an attack or defence in a zone adjacent to the zone occupied by the aircraft unit - at the owning players discretion.
11.4.2.2 Movement
Aircraft move like any other units; they are assigned to a force (or are declared a force by themselves) and move via regular or railway movement (see Rule 7).
They also have the special ability to "fly" into adjacent zones for combat. This is done at the start a combat phase and does not count as movement. See Combat rules below.
11.4.2.3 Combat
At the start of a Combat Phase, aircraft can "fly" into any adjacent contested zone which contains non-air units of the same faction. If they choose to "fly" to an adjacent zone, they are just moved to the zone; no die roll is needed. The player whose chit was pulled moves his aircraft first, then the other player moves his aircraft.
An aircraft unit makes a reliability check at the start of each round of any combat they participate in. Should the unit pass it's reliability roll, continue with the combat (aircraft score a hit on a die roll of 6). If it fails the roll, then flip it over, it cannot be used for combat until the next Combat Phase. Each aircraft unit makes its own roll. In the case of a flipped unit, should the faction retreat out of the zone, any flipped units would be lost.
Players Note: There is no way of knowing for certain that the zone the aircraft fly to will actually have combat. Maybe the addition of the air units causes the other player to cancel his attack plans. Each aircraft can only participate in ONE combat (not round of combat, one full combat).
11.4.2.4 Planes and Zones
Aircraft units cannot "capture" a zone by themselves. They must be accompanied by a ground combat unit to gain control of a zone. They may be the sole occupant of a zone, but they cannot gain control of new zones by themselves.
11.4.3 Reliability
Both aircraft and tank units must roll for breakdown each time they participate in a combat round (either as the attacker or defender). A die is rolled for each such unit individually. If a "1" is rolled for tanks, the unit in question breaks down and cannot contribute to the combat this round.
If a "1" is rolled for each aircraft, it breaks down for the remainder of the combat. The unit may still be used by the owning player to satisfy a combat result.
Should the force in question have to retreat, any broken down tanks or aircraft would be lost immediately. The tanks are placed two turns ahead on the turn record track while aircraft are placed in the faction's Loss Pool.
11.4.4 German Army in the Ukraine
The German Occupation counters start in the Kiev, Odessa, Riga, and Minsk Zones. For the first turn of the game (1918), no units - White, Red, or Foreign Faction - can move into or through the zones due to German occupation.
At the end of Game Turn 1 these occupation markers are removed. Starting with Game Turn 2 (the first turn of 1919), all units may move into these Zones.
11.4.5 Foreign Factions
The Foreign Faction is composed of military units from Great Britain, Canada, France, Japan, and the United States. Initially, the Foreign Faction starts in the Archangel Zone. Throughout the game, the Foreign Faction can only place any recruits and replacement units in the Archangel or Vladivostok Zones and only if the zone in which they are being placed is controlled by a White faction. The Japanese unit may only be placed in the Vladivostok Zone.
11.4.6 Armoured Trains
Several factions have Armoured Trains. These units were very important during the war, operating like mobile artillery platforms. These units appear Game Turn 2 and can be placed like any other replacement or recruit.
Armoured Train units can only move via railway movement along the rail lines marked on the map. They score a hit on die roll of 6. Unlike other units, they can absorb more punishment. It takes two "hits" on an armoured train unit to eliminate it. The first time a hit is scored against the unit, flip it over. The second time a hit is scored against it, remove it from play. These units may be rebuilt. Armoured Train units with a hit still attack at full strength.
If the owning player wishes to retreat from a combat then the armoured train unit may retreat with the rest of the force. However, the zone the armoured train retreats into must be connected to the zone the armoured train is retreating from by a connected rail line. If it does not, then the armoured train cannot retreat and is eliminated.
11.4.7 Armoured Cars
The Reds have armoured cars as well as a tank unit. These function much like tanks, however, there are some differences. Armoured cars do not have to roll for Reliability (rule 11.4.3). They get one die when making their combat die roll.
Armoured cars take two hits. After the first hit, flip the unit over. If it takes a second hit in that combat, it is eliminated.
Armoured cars can be brought back into play as a replacement as per the usual replacement rules (Rule section 9.0).
11.4.8 Denikin Volunteer Units
These units function much like the Poles do in combat. Each unit rolls two dice when engaged in combat, either attack or defence. They take the same number of hits as regular units and may be brought back as replacements once eliminated.
11.5 Continuing the War after Defeating the Reds
Should the White Factions succeed in eliminating all the Red units, they carry on for two more turns (or until Game Turn 10 - whichever comes first). Once the Reds are gone, the White Factions must position themselves to have the most Political Influence points as possible before the end of the game. The Faction with the highest Political Influence Point total is declared the winner.
This means that the White Factions can fight among themselves, go back on any agreements they may have made with each other - basically do what is necessary to win!
Remove the Red Combat, Red Movement, and Red Recruit chits from the opaque container. All other faction chits that have survived the game to this point are placed back into the cup and the usual sequence of play is followed, except that all the factions are White.
11.5.1 White Cooperation During the Game
It is possible for any number of verbal arrangements to be made among the various White Factions. A unit from one faction may enter an unoccupied zone controlled by another faction and NOT claim the zone as theirs.
At any time, the players may break any agreements they may have, they just cannot fight against each other (until the Reds are gone). Of course, if the Reds win - well, it won't much matter, comrade!
11.5.2 The Baltic States
The three Baltic states declared their independence from Russia after the abdication of the Tsar in February of 1917. After fighting the Reds, various pro-German armies, and the Poles, all three gained their independence by 1921. To reflect this, the following rules apply.
The Riga Zone is in play from the start of the game. Beginning on turn 7 (1921), the Whites roll a die. On a modified roll of 6, the Baltic States gain their independence immediately. Any other roll and the Riga Zone remains in play. For each game turn past turn 7 there is a +1 DRM to this die roll. (The die roll range required is printed on the Turn Record Track).
Once the Baltic States gain their independence, place the Baltic States Marker in the Riga Zone. No unit, from any faction may enter the Riga Zone for the rest of the game. (Treat the Zone as being outside of Russia.) Any units in the Riga Zone retreat into an adjacent, friendly controlled zone.
Minor Counter Errata
Ignore the Tsar Nicholas II counter in the counter mix. This was for an earlier rule that is no longer in effect.