Smithereens: The End of World War II in Europe Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• 1.0 Introduction
• 2.0 Game Components
• 3.0 Historical Scenario Set Up & Hex Control
• 4.0 How To Win
• 5.0 The Turn Sequence
• 6.0 Supply
• 7.0 German Economic Deterioration & Collapse
• 8.0 Stacking
• 9.0 Reinforcements & Replacements
• 10.0 Movement
• 11.0 Combat - Prepared Assaults
• 12.0 Combat — Mobile Assaults
• 13.0 Special Units & Rules
• 14.0 World War III Scenarios
• 15.0 Designer's Notes
• 16.0 Charts & Tables
• 16.3 Player Aids

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Smithereens: The End of World War II in Europe is a simulation of the last five months of World War II on that continent. A "what-if" alternative history scenario is also included that allows players to examine the possibility of World War III breaking out at the conclusion of World War II.

This is a two- or multi-player strategic level game of low-intermediate complexity. In two player matches, the "Grand Alliance player" controls all the forces arrayed against Nazi Germany: those of the United States, the British Commonwealth of Nations, the Soviet Union, and their minor-power allies. The German controls the armed forces of the Third Reich and its few remaining allies (Hungarians and Italian Fascists).

1.2 Three-Player Games. In three-player matches, one player again controls the Germans, but command of the Grand Alliance forces is split between a "Western Allies player" (who controls the US and Commonwealth forces on the western and Italian fronts), and a "Soviet player" (who controls the Red Army and its Communist allies, the Yugoslavs, the Romanians, the Polish Communists, and the Bulgarians).

It's important to note that three-player matches are still two-sided games. That is, the Grand Alliance and Soviet players cannot win or lose separately; their combined performance is compared against that of the German player to determine one winning side: the Grand Alliance or the Third Reich (see section 4.0).

Design Note. During playtesting we tried a WWIII scenario wherein the Westerners and Communists were considered separate sides. The trouble was, the strategic geography is such that the German, even when he lost, could always pick the winner between the two other players.

1.3 In general, in the historical scenario the Grand Alliance forces are on the offensive, and are attempting to crush Nazi Germany by destroying its armed forces, collapsing its economy, and seizing its cities at least as swiftly and completely as was done historically. The German player, though generally on the defensive, must be prepared to switch his ever diminishing reserve of mechanized forces from front to front and sector to sector to conduct savage counterattacks aimed at staving off the inevitable for as long as possible.

1.4 Game Scale. Each hex on the two maps represents approximately 20 miles from side to opposite side. Grand Alliance units are corps and armies, while the German units are mostly divisions. Each game turn represents a half-month.

Design Note. The international boundaries shown on the map may appear unusual to some of you. They are the ones Hitler drew for his dark realm during the latter half of the war.

Old Hands Note. No ZOCs.

2.0 Game Components

2.1 The components to a complete game of Smithereens include these rules, two 34x22" game maps, and 512 die-cut counters (also referred to as "units," or "unit counters"). Players must provide one standard (six-sided) die to resolve combat.

Beginners Note. The die has nothing to do with moving units; it's used to resolve the uncertainties inherent in even the best-planned battles. See section 11.0.

2.2 The game maps represent the militarily significant terrain found in and around what was left of the Third Reich in 1944-45. A hexagonal ("hex") grid is printed over the map to regulate the placement and movement of units. A unit is considered to be in only one hex at any one time. Each hex contains natural and/or manmade terrain features that can affect the movement of units and combat between units.

The natural terrain and manmade structures on the map have had their boundaries altered slightly to fit within the hex-grid, but the relationships between the terrain from hex to hex are accurate to the degree necessary for presenting players with the same space/time dilemmas faced by their historic counterparts in the actual campaign.

2.3 East & West Maps. Every hex on each of the maps has a unique, four-digit identification number. These are provided to help you find places more quickly and to allow you to record unit positions if a match has to be interrupted and taken down before it can be completed. Whenever a hex-number is referred to on the eastern map, an "E" will be appended to it. For example, the city of Warsaw is in hex 1819E. The French city of Metz, on the western map, is in 1511.

2.4 Assembling the Maps. Before playing your first game of Smithereens, you should prepare the maps for joining by trimming off the marked portion of the eastern map's westernmost hex row (row 10xxE). Notice that the terrain on the western map's easternmost hex row (42xx) has been repeated in the eastern map's 10xxE row. This allows you to join the two sheets for play by overlapping the 10xxE row atop the 42xx row.

After aligning the two maps' edge rows as described above, fasten them together temporarily, either with small pieces of masking tape at the edges, or with larger strips of clear, removable plastic tape across the overlapping boundary. (Removable plastic tape is available through art supply stores.)

2.5 Seating. In three player matches, the Western Allies player should sit at the west map's west edge; the Soviet player should sit at the east map's east edge, and the German should sit at the north edge of the combined map area. After play begins, the action will eventually sweep across both maps. It's therefore best if the combined map sheets are positioned in a room in such a way as to allow all three players the ability to move around them as needed in order to attend to the various and changing far-flung fronts.

2.6 Counters. There are 512 unit counters in the game, most of which represent combat units; a few others are provided as informational markers and memory aids. After reading through these rules at least one time, carefully punch out the counters. Trimming off the "dog ears" on their corners with a fingernail clipper will facilitate handling and stacking during play (and also enhances their appearance).

Each combat unit counter displays several pieces of information: nationality, historical identification, unit type, combat strengths, movement allowance, set up location or method of entry, and special status.

2.7 Sample Combat Units.

German & Soviet Units: Start Hex/Entry Code; Unit ID; Unit Type; Attack, Defense & Movement Factor.

Western Allied & Swiss Units: Start Hex/Entry Code; Unit ID; Unit Type; Attack, Defense & Movement Factor.

2.8 Nationality. A unit's nationality (and therefore the "side" it's on) is indicated by its color scheme.

The German Side

• Mechanized German Units: white on black.
• Non-Mechanized German Units: black on field gray.
• Hungarian units: black on violet.
• Italian Fascist units: black on green.

The Grand Alliance Side

The Western Allies

• The US (and attached minor power allies): black on olive.
• The British Commonwealth (and attached minor power allies): black on brown.

The Soviets

• Mechanized Red Army units: red on gold.
• Non-mechanized Red Army units: black on red.
• Yugoslavian units: black on blue.
• Romanian units: white on green.
• Bulgarian units: white on burgundy.
• Polish Communist units: white on red.

Design Note. All Romanian, Bulgarian, Polish Communist, Yugoslavian, Italian Fascist and Hungarian units are non-mechanized.

Neutrals

• Swiss units: red on white.

Design Note. The Swiss units (and the territory of Switzerland) play no active part in the historical scenario. When playing that scenario, simply set the Swiss aside.

2.9 Historical Identification. All units are identified by numbers, or letter abbreviations of their historical name. The abbreviations are:

German Side Units

• A - Armee (Army)
• B - Panzergrenadier Division "Brandenburg"
• BL - Infantry Division "Berlin"
• BW - Reserve Division "Barwalde"
• CL - Panzer Division "Clausewitz"
• CO - Cossack
• FE - Führer Escort
• FG - Führer Grenadier
• FK - Flak Korps
• GD - Gross Deutschland
• H - Hungarian
• HG - Hermann Göring
• HO - Panzer Division "Holstein"
• IT - Italian Fascist
• J - Jäger (light infantry)
• KK - Kavalry Korps (Cavalry Corps)
• KM - Panzergrenadier Division "Kurmark"
• LE - Lehr (elite "demonstration" unit)
• LF - Luftwaffe Field (Air Force ground troops)
• MB - Panzer Division "Münchberg"
• OGS - Operational Group "Steiner"
• PS - Police Division "Silesia"
• RP - Reserve Division "Pomerania"
• S - Security
• SS - Schutzstaffel (Nazi Party troops)
• WE - Warsaw Fortress

Design Note. When the letter "A" appears as part of a unit I.D., it stands for "Armee," as given above. When it appears in the upper-left corner of a German unit, it serves as a set up code (see 2.17). The "*B" on the OGS unit is another entry code (see 9.6).

Grand Alliance Side Units

Soviets

• A - Army
• B - Bulgarian
• BA - Cavalry/Mechanized Group "Baranoy"
• GO - Cavalry/Mechanized Group "Gorshkov"
• OS - Cavalry/Mechanized Group "Oslikovskiy"
• P - Polish Communist
• PL - Cavalry/Mechanized Group "Pliyev"
• R - Romanian
• SO - Cavalry/Mechanized Group "Sokolov"
• Y - Yugoslavian

Western Allies

• 1AAA - 1st Allied Airborne Army
• C - Canadian
• F - Free French
• P - Free Polish
• VA - Vlassov Army

2.10 Unit Size. All German units are divisions or division equivalents, unless their I.D. number is printed in Roman numerals, in which case they're corps. (The KK is, of course, also a corps.) The 12A (12th Armee) and Hungarians are army-size units (though pretty much in name only by this point). All Soviet units are armies, except for their artillery, which are corps. The Yugoslav immobile partisan units are multi-brigade "bands." All Western Allied and Swiss units are corps or corps equivalents (in the case of Vlassov).

Design Note. The few German corps chosen to be represented as such were picked because they had devolved into what were really large divisional-sized groupings of independent battalions, regiments and brigades. (The same holds for their 12th Army unit, the Hungarians, and OGS.)

2.11 Unit Types. All ground combat units belong to one of two basic categories: Mechanized ("Mech"), or Non-mechanized ("Non-mech"). Mechanized units are those whose primary means of locomotion is provided by wheeled and tracked vehicles. Non-mechanized units are those whose primary means of locomotion is provided by legs, human and animal. This distinction is important for both movement and combat (see sections 10.0, 11.0 and 12.0).

Mechanized Units: Armor (or "Tank"); Armored Cavalry; Motorized Artillery; Motorized Infantry; Paratroops; Western Allied All-Arms Corps, or German "Panzergrenadier" (Mechanized Infantry) Divisions or Soviet Guards (Mechanized) Infantry Armies.

Non-Mechanized Units: Infantry; Light Infantry; Mountain Infantry; Naval Infantry; Paratroopers; Horse Cavalry; Flak; Partisan Bands; Shock Troops.

Design Note. Whenever the paratrooper symbol appears on a German unit, it does so only as an honorific, whether the unit is mech or non-mech. German paratroop units never share in the airdrop capabilities given to the Western Allied units (see 13.1-13.3).

2.12 Attack & Defense Factors are the measures of a unit's ability to conduct offensive and defensive combat operations. Their specific uses are explained in section 11.0. Note the Western Allied units have a single number performing both functions.

2.13 Movement Factor. This number is a measure of a unit's ability to move across the hex grid printed on the map. Units pay varied movement costs to enter different hexes, based on the terrain in them and along the hexsides around them, and their unit type (see section 10.0).

2.14 Step Strength. All ground units in the game contain between one and four "steps" (or "strength steps"). That's an arbitrary term used to express the ability of a unit to absorb a certain amount of combat losses before being eliminated. Most units in the game contain only one or two strength steps. Those with combat and movement factors printed only on one side of their counter are "one-step units;" those with combat and movement factors printed on both sides are "two-step units."

Western Allied and Swiss corps contain four strength steps and are each represented by two counters. Only one of each of those units' counters may be in play at any one time. (The lower-valued ones are substituted for the higher-valued as the corps take losses, see section 11.0.)

2.15 Western Allied & Swiss Units' Factors are configured differently than their German and Soviet counterparts. That is, they have only one large number beneath their unit-type symbol. That one number is their attack, defense and movement factor at that particular step strength. For example, a US corps at full (four-step) strength is a 10-10-10; at three steps it's a 9-9-9, at two steps an 8-8-8, and at one step a 7-7-7. The Swiss corps are again different in that their strengths are: 4-4-4, 3-3-3, 2-2-2, and 1-1-1.

Design Note. The Western Allies Game Turn 11 reinforcement, the VA unit, is the one exception to all this. It is configured like a Soviet unit, even though it is on the Western Allied side. See 14.10 for details.

2.16 Steps and Combat. The step strength contained in a unit is the direct measure of its ability to absorb combat losses before being eliminated. When units of these sizes are "eliminated" in game play, it doesn't mean every individual within them has been killed. It means enough casualties and equipment losses have been suffered by the units to render them useless for further operations.

If a two-step unit "takes a step loss," it is flipped over so its reduced side (the one with the lower combat and movement values) shows. If a one-step unit (or a two-stepper that had already been "reduced") takes a step loss, it is removed from the map (eliminated) and placed in the "deadpile." The same step-by-step process holds for the four-step Western and Swiss units; substitute the lower-valued counter on the map when such units take their third step loss.

2.17 Set Up/Entry Codes. The numbers, letters, and symbols in the upper-left corners of the units are keys to where they start play, or how they enter play after the game has begun. See 3.2 and 9.6.

2.18 Other Counters. The use of these other counters is explained at appropriate points throughout the rest of the rules text. The other counters include: Game Turn Indicator (see 5.0); Western Allies Strategic Airpower (see 13.7); 1AAA Supply Head/Airdrop Supply (see 6.10, 13.1-13.3); German Tactical Airpower (see 13.5-13.6); Soviet Tactical Airpower (see 13.5); Upper Silesian Industrial Region Marker (see 9.15); Führer-Mandated Offensive Marker (see 13.12); A-Bomb Blast Marker (see 14.13-14.14); OOS/Fortress Marker (see 6.4, 11.19-11.20); Western Allies Riverine/Amphibious Assault Marker (see 13.9); Operation Thunderclap (see 13.8).

Beginners Note. Set aside all the units shown above, except for the Game Turn Indicator; you will not use any of the others in your play.

3.0 Historical Scenario Set Up & Hex Control

3.1 Choose Sides & Set Up. Players should first decide between or among themselves the side each will command. After that, they should take their units (see 1.1 and 1.2) and sort and place them on and around the map according to the following instructions and sequence. No matter if two or more are playing, set up will progress most quickly if all involved co-operate to set up each others' at-start, on-board forces.

3.2 Set Up Coordinates. All units that start play on the map sheets have a four-digit number printed in their upper-left corners. Those units starting in hexes on the east map have an "E" printed after their hex-placement number. (Units starting on the western map don't have a "W" printed there, just a hex number.) Also place the six factory counters of the Upper Silesian Industrial Region (their set up hexes are printed on their reverse sides).

Design Note. Don't confuse the idea of the Eastern and Western Fronts with the idea of eastern and western maps. For example, around Budapest (hex 3730 on the western map), the forces deployed there are, in the historical sense, on the eastern front. For game set up purposes, though, they are on the western map, and those units' set up hex numbers are therefore printed accordingly.

Historical Note. When first setting up the Eastern Front, some of you will probably wonder why there are no German fortifications on the Vistula River front south of Warsaw. In reality the Germans had done as much digging there as elsewhere along the rest of the front. In that sector, however, Hitler had, for some reason known only to him, interceded to demand those defensive works be dug as far forward as possible. Ever obedient, the German troops dug in so far forward that when the first bombardments of the new Soviet offensive began, those defenders were almost instantly inundated and wiped out. In effect, then, there were no fortifications in that sector.

3.3 Fortresses. The German units in Budapest (3730) and Memel (2410E) should have Fortress markers placed atop them.

3.4 Reinforcements. After all units with a set up hex number on them have been placed on the maps, take all reinforcement units (those with a one- or two-digit turn-of-entry number printed in their upper-left corners) of all sides and set them in the corresponding boxes of the Turn Record Track that's printed on the eastern map sheet. For example, the German 2nd Mountain Infantry Division is placed in the Turn 5 (16 February) box. Place the Game Turn Indicator in the Turn 1 box of the Turn Record Track.

3.5 Variable Reinforcements. Some German and Western Allied reinforcement units have an asterisk (*), or an asterisk and letter (*B), rather than a turn of entry number, printed in their upper-left corners. Place those units aside temporarily in separate piles. The entry of these units is explained in section 9.0.

3.6 German "A" & "AS" Units. Next, the German must place those of his units marked "A" or "AS" in their upper-left corners (standing for "Anywhere," and "Anywhere in Slovakia").

He places the "AS" units in any Slovakia hex(es) not adjacent to any Soviet-side units or border hexsides. He then places the "A" units in any already-German-occupied hexes and/or Wehrkreis Cities anywhere on the map sheets, with the following exceptions.

1. No "A" unit may be placed in Slovakia.
2. No "A" unit may be placed in the Courland Pocket (the German-held area on the eastern map clustered within four hexes of 3005E).
3. No "A" unit may be placed anywhere in "Yugoslavia" (which encompasses the territory of Croatia, Serbia, and the Banat).
4. No "A" unit may be placed in the Colmar "Pocket" (1515).
5. No more than two "A" units (and they may only be non-mech) may be placed in Italy.

The German may not withhold any of his "A" or "AS" units; all must be placed according to the strictures above. Normal stacking limits (see section 8.0) must be observed when placing all "A" and "AS" units.

Historical/Design Note. The deployment restrictions given above are not arbitrary; they model the realities and limitations the German command actually faced at the time. That is, the "A" and "AS" units represent the absolute last reserves of the Wehrmacht. This force had been scraped together during the previous autumn with the idea of doing something decisive that winter. Rather than force the German player into the gaming straitjacket of having to use their exact historical deployments, we've allowed as much freedom in their deployment and use as the real German command had at the time.

For example, though the German navy undoubtedly could've transported some units to Courland, they could not have done so and still maintained adequate supply to that already overmanned outpost. In Italy the Allied air forces so dominated the theater it's unlikely any large new German force could've been gotten through the Alpine passes, and certainly they never could've done so undetected. The Slovakian and Yugoslavian transport and communications infrastructures were taxed to the breaking point to support the forces already there. (The "AS" units were actually raised and deployed by the local German command in that area.)

3.7 Soviet "M" Units. After the German has finished placing his "A" and "AS" units, the Soviet player places all those Red Army units with an "M" in their upper-left corners. These units may be placed in any hexes already containing Soviet-side units. The only restrictions are that they may not be placed anywhere in Yugoslavia, and normal stacking restrictions must be observed in those hexes outside Yugoslavia where they are placed.

Design/Historical Note. The "M" stands for the Russian word Maskirovka, which in military usage means "camouflage." This was the codeword given to the last significant operation of the Soviet RVGK system (a Russian acronym for "Central Reserve of the Supreme High Command") during WWII in the European theater. During the late autumn of 1944, the Kremlin high command was able to pull back large combat elements without the Germans detecting anything. This rule allowing the "M" units' placement after that of the German "A" and "AS" units is a simple and direct way of modeling the surprise of the German high command when the Red Army erupted into a new offensive in early January (the kidders got kidded).

3.8 Full Step Strength. All units begin play of the historical scenario (or enter play later as reinforcements) at their full step-strength.

3.9 Hex Control. In this game the idea of "hex control" (or which side "owns" which hexes at any given instant) is only important for city hexes. That is, victory is based on city hex control at the end of Game Turn 10. At the start of play the German controls all cities in and within his various front lines; the Grand Alliance forces control all those outside the German front. For example, the German controls Warsaw (1819E), and the Grand Alliance controls Brest-Litovsk (2322E).

The control of a hex switches from one side to the other whenever a ground unit from the other side first enters it. Control switching is immediate, and may occur and reoccur in the same hex(es) any number of times during play.

Design/Historical Note. As many of you no doubt know, there was actually a small German force bottled up along the Channel coast in hex 1201. At this scale, however, that entire siege operation takes place entirely within that hex, and in game terms the place is therefore under Grand Alliance control from the start of play.

3.10 First Turn Restrictions. As you'll find when you read section 5.0, the normal game turn sequence runs: Soviet Player Turn, Western Allied Player Turn (or Grand Alliance Player turn, in that order, in two-player matches), German player turn. During Game Turn 1 (II December 1944), however, play begins with the two Grand Alliance portions of the turn considered to have already been completed. Thus there is only a German player turn, upon the completion of which Game Turn 1 is over; and play proceeds to I January 1945, with a new and full game turn starting normally with the Soviet player turn. Further, on Game Turn 1, the German player turn begins with that side's regular combat phase; FMO counters may still be distributed, but no German movement phase takes place.

3.11 Soviet 8th Army, which starts the historical scenario in 3702E, may never move until such time as a German unit crosses any hex of the Dvina River.

3.12 The Italian Front. Due to historical strategic and political constraints, the Grand Alliance player must maintain at least six Western Allied corps (of any step strengths) in Italy until such time as the German economy collapses or there are otherwise no supplied German-side units in Italy. Failure to meet this requirement results in forfeiture of the game to the German player. (This rule never applies to the WWIII scenarios.)

4.0 How To Win

4.1 In general, the Grand Alliance is on the offensive, and the main burden of attack is squarely on the Western and Soviet armies as they strive to break into and destroy the Third Reich as quickly as possible. More specifically, to win the game, the Grand Alliance player(s) must conquer Germany at least as efficiently as was done historically. Naturally, then, the German player wins the game if he prevents that. The exact measure used to determine the winning and losing side is the control of city hexes on the map; and that necessary degree of control is expressed as a variable number of "victory points" (or "VP"). Only the German player earns VP; the Grand Alliance player tries to take them away from him.

4.2 City VPs. Every city hex on the two maps (excluding Switzerland in the historical scenario) is worth 1 VP, except for Berlin, which is worth 5 VP, and the following, which are each worth 2 VP: Vienna, Prague, Budapest, Warsaw, and Kiev. (Note: Of the 2 VP cities, Kiev has already been lost to German control at the start of the game.)

Design Note. The four "Ruhr Cities" (2207, 2306, 2406 and 2407) each yield 1 VP.

4.3 Nazi Fanaticism VPs. Any time the German player recaptures any city on the map (that is, it either started the game already under Alliance control, or began German controlled, was taken by the Alliance player then retaken by the German), he adds that place's VPs to his final VP count.

For example, say during Game Turn 9 the German attacked and captured Hannover (which in this example had earlier been captured by the Alliance player). The German immediately and permanently adds 1 VP to what will be his end-game total. Further, if he managed to hang on to Hannover until the final VP reckoning at the end of the game, he'd also receive 1 VP for controlling Hannover at that instant, in effect counting that city's VP twice.

The same holds true for any cities Alliance controlled at the game's start. For example, say the German captured Strasbourg during Game Turn 1, but then lost it later on. At the end of Game Turn 10 he still gets that 1 VP for having successfully, albeit temporarily, captured Strasbourg, thus exhibiting "Nazi Fanaticism." If he somehow managed to hold on to Strasbourg until the end of the game, he'd also get the normal 1 VP for it.

Design Note. Some of you might be saying, "Why, with this rule, all the German has to do to guarantee himself a win is recapture a few cities!" That's right, that's all he has to do.

4.4 Victory. At the end of Game Turn 10, as soon as that last German player turn is completed, count up the number of city hexes (in terms of their VP value as given above) then under German control, and add that to any VPs he has already accumulated. If the German has more than 6 VPs, he is declared the winner; if he has 6 or fewer VPs, the Grand Alliance player is declared the winner. There are no drawn games.

Design/Historical Note. We are comparing play performance with historical performance as of the morning of 7 May 1945, when the first overall German surrender was made. (They were made to go through a few more such ceremonies in the following days.) At that time, of the cities on the maps, the German armed forces still controlled (more or less): Kiel, Dresden, Prague, Graz and Zagreb, for a total of 6 VP.

Design Note. Though the last game turn only represents about half the time of a normal game turn, all units' movement factors remain unaltered (as far, that is, as this chronologic consideration goes). That's because if the fighting is actually drawing to a close in your game play at that time, as happened historically, the Alliance forces achieve an energized morale state at the prospect of being in on the end of all this, and their performance increases accordingly. (In such cases the Germans will already be moving so slowly that to put any further penalties on them would send them into reverse.) Alternately, if the Germans are "winning" in your game play on Turn 10 (that is, if they're doing better than they did historically), then that game turn actually does represent a full half-month, since the Grand Alliance player has failed to collapse the Reich on schedule.

5.0 The Turn Sequence

5.1 In general, every match of the historical scenario of Smithereens is divided into ten "Game Turns." Each complete Game Turn is divided into three "Player Turns." First the Soviet Player Turn, then the Western Allied Player Turn, then the German Player Turn (see 3.10 for an important exception). The three player turns are all further divided into a series of sequenced steps (or "phases").

Every action taken by a player must be carried out in the appropriate phase of his own player turn. Exception: the Grand Alliance player(s) may be called on to retreat-after-combat with some units during the German player turn, see section 11.0.

Once a player finishes a given phase and has gone on to another, he may not go back to perform a forgotten action or redo a poorly executed one unless his opponent graciously permits it.

Beginners Note. This is war, don't feel compelled to be gracious. Also, in the turn sequence given below, and throughout the rest of these rules, ignore all references to "Mobile Assaults." You will not use those rules in your play.

5.2 The Turn Sequence is given below in outline and is then further expanded in a step-by-step listing below that. Note that the sequence of player turns (Soviet/Western/German) is the same throughout all game turns after the first.

I. The Soviet Player Turn A. Soviet Movement & Mobile Assault Phase B. Soviet Prepared Assault Phase

II. The Western Allies Player Turn A. Western Movement & Mobile Assault Phase B. Western Prepared Assault Phase

III. The German Player Turn A. German Movement & Mobile Assault Phase B. German Prepared Assault Phase

5.3 Step-by-Step Turn Sequence List. The parentheticals refer to the outline form above. Note that in this exact-sequence list, the German and Western Allied forms of special movement "wrap around" their Prepared Assault Phases.

Soviet Player Turn

1. Take Replacements (I.A.)
2. Enter Reinforcements (I.A.)
3. Move and Mobile Assault (I.A.)
4. Prepared Assaults (I.B.)

Western Allied Player Turn

1. Take Replacements (II.A.)
2. Enter Reinforcements (II.A.)
3. Begin Inter-Front Transfer Movement (II.A.)
4. 1AAA Drop or Air Supply Declaration (II.A.)
5. Move and Mobile Assault (II.A.)
6. Prepared Assaults (II.B.)
7. Complete Inter-Front Transfer Movement (II.A.)

German Player Turn

1. Take Replacements (III.A.)
2. Enter Reinforcements (III.A.)
3. Begin Strategic Movement (III.A.)
4. Begin Baltic Sea Movement (III.A.)
5. Move and Mobile Assault (III.A.)
6. Prepared Assaults (III.B.)
7. End Strategic Movement (III.A.)
8. End Baltic Sea Movement (III.A.)

5.4 Three Players. When three are playing, the Grand Alliance portions of the game turn must still be run through as two distinct and discrete player turns. That is, don't try to save time by running the Soviet and Western player turns simultaneously. All you'll succeed in doing is angering the German player, when he immediately discovers he can't keep track of mobile assaults being run against him at the same time on two or three different fronts, etc.

5.5 Multi-Players. It's possible to play Smithereens with up to eight people. Do that by having a commander for each side on each of the main fronts: Western, Italian, Yugoslavian, Eastern. As in three-player play, each of the sub-commanders' fronts must be run as distinct and discrete sub-player-turns within the framework of the Grand Alliance and German portions of each game turn (and for the same reasons).

In such matches, make sure to designate one player on each team as that side's Maximum Leader. That fellow gets to allocate all reinforcements, replacements, etc., and designate the order of sub-turns within each of the two sides' turns each game turn. (This approach to Smithereens is rewarding for club play, etc., but be warned: it increases playing time.)

6.0 Supply

Beginners Note. Skip this rules section entirely. Ignore all references to supply anywhere in the rules.

6.1 In general, the units of both sides require "supply" to operate at their full (printed) potential for movement and combat. There are no counters representing the supplies consumed; instead, that process is represented through supply line "tracing."

There are two supply states, and every ground unit in the game always exists in one or the other of them. A unit is "supplied" (or "in supply") if it can trace a supply path of hexes to a supply source, or is directly located in a source hex. If a unit cannot do so, it is "out of supply" (or "unsupplied," or "OOS").

6.2 Supply Lines. A supply line (or "path") consists of an uninterrupted chain of hexes traced (in the mind's eye of the player) from the unit back to a valid supply source. Such paths may or may not be restricted in length (see 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.15 and 6.17 for details), and can enter and cross all kinds of playable terrain.

Supply lines may not enter or cross hexes occupied by enemy units, nor may Western Allied and Soviet Supply lines enter or cross hexes occupied by each other's units. Supply lines may not be traced across lake or all-sea hexsides (exception: 13.9), nor may they run into or through the territory of nations not involved in a given scenario.

6.3 Effects of OOS. No unit is ever reduced or eliminated by being OOS; units may exist indefinitely in the OOS state. OOS units have their movement and combat factors halved. When rounding, round up remainders. For example, "half" of 5 is 3. When halving more than one unit in a given battle, add up all the factors of all the units to be halved, then make just one division.

Design Note. It's typical for games of these time and unit-scales to contain a proviso mandating the automatic elimination or attrition of OOS units after some set amount of time. My study of such WWII episodes, however, has led me to believe that kind of approach is largely artificial.

That is, one must ask why, really, did pocketed units of this size in WWII "die"? The answer is, almost universally, they died because they were immediately, constantly and vigorously attacked by the forces surrounding them. The commanders of the surrounding forces launched those attacks because they knew it was when isolated units were forced into high-intensity defensive combat that they quickly and steadily burned up their last stocks of on-hand supply and troop morale.

Cutting off sizeable enemy forces is one of the highest expressions of success in the offensive. If, however, you want to finish the job properly by destroying those newly-trapped enemies, you must see to it by actively arranging that destruction (or risk that time and happenstance will provide them with some last-minute escape).

6.4 When to Check Supply. Check the supply status of each of your units (or stacks) at the start of its movement and again at the start of each individual battle in which it is involved (exception: for supply and Mobile Assaults, see 12.7). Units found to be OOS at the start of their movement have their movement factor halved for that movement phase. Units found to be OOS at the start of a battle in which they are participating have their appropriate combat factor halved. Important: when making battle supply checks, check the status of the participating units of both sides, not just the attacker's units.

Design Note. With this kind of supply system, wherein everything is checked on an as-you-go basis, it's not really necessary to have OOS markers. We have, however, included a few in the countermix simply as memory aids. That is, in a game of this size, as your turn begins and you scan your various fronts to gain a sense of the overall situation before actually beginning your move, you may find it handy to put down an OOS marker or two, just as a visual cue to where some logistical crisis is taking place.

6.5 Willful OOS. It is permissible for both players to willfully move their units into hexes wherein they will become OOS.

6.6 Soviet Supply Source hexes are any and all non-enemy-occupied hexes along the eastern map's east edge (row 42xxE).

No Soviet supply line may be extended into or west of the Allied/Soviet WWII demarcation line printed on the western map.

6.7 Map Edge Western Allied Supply Source hexes are any and all non-enemy-occupied hexes in France (only!) along the western map's west edge (row 10xx), and all non-enemy-occupied hexes in Italy (only!) along the western map's south edge (1131, 1232, etc.). No Western Allied supply line traced from either of those supply source areas may be extended east of (into is O.K.) the Allied/Soviet WWII demarcation line printed on the western map.

6.8 Western Allied Antwerp Supply. At this point, Antwerp (1703) is the largest functioning port on the continent. As such, any and all Western Allied units anywhere on the maps outside of Italy may trace their supply to that hex. (Units in Italy may only trace to that country's south map edge.)

6.9 Enemy Capture of Antwerp. If Antwerp comes under even just temporary enemy control (this includes the WWIII scenarios), the logistical and morale effects on the forces of the Western Allies are considerable.

Upon capture, the enemy player should roll one die. If that die roll result is a "1" or "2," all Western Allied units on the map become OOS immediately and remain that way all through the remainder of that game turn and the next game turn. If the roll is a "3" or "4," the OOS status lasts throughout the next two game turns. If the roll is a "5" or "6," the OOS status lasts throughout the next three game turns.

Once Antwerp is captured by an enemy player, it may never come back online as a supply source for the Western Allied player, no matter how quickly it's retaken.

6.10 Western Allied Airdrop Supply. On any game turns that the 1AAA is not deployed (see 13.1, 13.2, 13.3), the Western Allied player can provide supply to the units in any one hex occupied by his own units (only!) anywhere on the maps via airdrop. The decision is announced at the start of any Western Allied player turn, and remains in effect until the start of the next Allied player turn (when it may conceivably be declared again, in the same or a different hex).

Mark the units in the hex chosen by placing the airdrop supply marker atop the units there. Such units can move and attack normally (including MAs, see section 12.0), but must stay together as a stack if all are to retain supply. (If the stack splits, the Western player chooses which unit keeps the marker.)

6.11 Western Allied Coastal Supply. All Western Allied units are fully supplied when in non-Baltic coastal hexes.

6.12 Minor Nationality Supply. All Yugoslavian units (both partisan bands and armies) are always in supply inside Yugoslavia. Romanian, Bulgarian & Polish Communist units trace supply just as if they were Red Army units. Free French, Canadian, Vlassov and Free Polish units trace supply just as if they were US or British units. Italian Fascist and Hungarian units trace supply as if they were German units.

6.13 Board Edge Supply. If a given board edge supply source hex of either side is occupied by enemy units, thus losing its supply capacity, units may begin tracing to that hex again the instant it becomes empty of enemy ground units (the process may occur any number of times).

6.14 German Supply. German units can trace supply to any German controlled Ruhr and/or Upper Silesian Industrial Region hex(es).

The first time any Upper Silesian Industrial hex comes under Alliance control, all hexes of the entire industrial area immediately and permanently cease to be full supply source hexes. From that point on, only German units occupying remaining Silesian Industrial Area hexes are in supply in those hexes.

Likewise, once a Ruhr City hex (2207, 2306, 2406, 2407) becomes Alliance controlled, it ceases to be a German supply source. However, unlike the situation in Upper Silesia, taking one (or some) Ruhr hex(es) does not knock out the entire tracing capacity of the rest of the Ruhr Cities. To do that, all Ruhr Cities must be brought under Alliance control, or the German economy must be collapsed (see 7.3).

6.15 German Supply Line Limitation. No German supply line may be traced east of (into O.K.) the 34xxE hexrow.

6.16 German in-City Supply. German units occupying city hexes that began the game under German control are in supply in those city hexes. Cities that began the game already under Alliance control and cities that come under Alliance control, but are then retaken by the German, cannot provide this kind of supply.

6.17 German Baltic Sea Supply. German units occupying Baltic Sea coastal hexes from 3600 to 3403E, inclusive, are always in supply while in those hexes. However, mechanized units tracing such supply still have their movement factors halved, just as if they were OOS.

6.18 German Courland Supply. When the Courland Pocket formed, the German armed forces quickly revamped and expanded the two small ports within it, Liepaja (2607E) and Ventspils (2905E). Those military ports are shown on the map with anchor symbols. Any German unit able to trace a supply line no longer than four hexes to either of those ports is in supply. Either/both of those ports permanently lose supply tracing ability once occupied by an Alliance unit (but they're still both coastal hexes, so any German units actually in them would still be able to draw Baltic coastal supply as in 6.16).

6.19 Non-Interchangeability of Supply. The various supply sources in the game only work for units of the proper side or army as described in the rules above. If, for example, the Germans captured Antwerp, that place does not become a supply source for them.

7.0 German Economic Deterioration & Collapse

Beginners Note. Skip this rules section entirely.

7.1 In general, as the game begins, the Grand Alliance's earlier ground offensives and continuing strategic air war have already brought the Third Reich to the verge of complete economic and logistic collapse. Completing that process of deterioration and collapse as swiftly as possible is one of the main ways the Alliance player(s) can bring about their victory in the game.

7.2 Oil. Nagykanizsa, in hex 3130, represents the last significant source of natural petroleum within the boundaries of the Third Reich. Though various German "synfuel" projects were fairly well along by this point, Nagy's loss still causes a degrading of German mechanized capabilities. Accordingly, as soon as 3130 comes under Alliance control, all printed movement factors on German mechanized units of all kinds are permanently reduced by one movement factor ("8s" become "7s;" "7s" become "6s"). This effect is permanent, even if the German recaptures the oil field hex.

7.3 Economic Collapse. German economic collapse is considered to take place irrevocably the instant any of the following first occur (either alone or in combination).

1. When all four Ruhr City hexes have been lost from German control one or more times (either at different times, or all at the same time).
2. When Berlin (3611) comes under Alliance control.
3. When a path of hexes, empty of all Alliance ground units and not longer than 20 hexes, cannot be traced between any German controlled Ruhr City hex and Berlin.

7.4 Logistic Effect of Economic Collapse. The instant collapse occurs, all German units — except those drawing in-city supply (6.16) or Courland supply (6.17 [sic]) — become OOS.

Transcription note: the source cross-reference reads "Courland supply (6.17)"; the Courland rule is printed as 6.18 and the Baltic rule as 6.17. The reference is kept as printed here.

Design Note. Of course, if the German player is able to move his newly out-of-supply units into eligible cities or (less likely) into the Courland Pocket, they can regain supplied status in those places.

7.5 Other Effects of Economic Collapse. The following also occur as soon as collapse takes place.

1. All German strategic movement capability ends (10.28, 10.29).
2. All German Baltic Sea movement capability ends (10.30ff).
3. Permanently remove all Luftwaffe aircraft units (13.5, 13.6).
4. Immediately place the five Luftwaffe Flak Korps (9.6).
5. All unused FMO markers are forfeit (13.12).
6. German mech units lose the ability to make MAs (section 12.0).
7. All German replacement-step generation (if any is still going on, see 9.15) stops (reinforcements continue).
8. German naval gun support is no longer available (13.10).

Historical/Design Note. Yes, by broad definition, German movement in the Baltic continued to take place after the economic collapse (which occurred, reckoned by these rules' measure, on 2 April, when the Western Allies closed the Ruhr Pocket). That movement, however, ceased to be about shifting cohesive fighting units from coastal sector to coastal sector, and became a mercy mission, aimed at evacuating civilians and wounded from the Soviet onslaught. In effect, then, in game terms, German Baltic Sea movement "ended" with their economic collapse.

8.0 Stacking

8.1 Stacking is the piling of more than one unit into a single hex. The general rule is, the Western Allies may stack up to three units per hex, the Soviets three or four, and the Germans up to eight, subject to the specifics given below.

8.2 Stacking and Movement. Stacking rules are in effect at the end of every movement phase, the end of every Alliance retreat after combat (see 11.25ff), and at the start of every Mobile Assault (section 12.0). If any hex is found to be overstacked at any of those times, the opposing player is immediately allowed to remove the minimum number of involved enemy units of his choice necessary to bring the violating stack back into limits.

There are no limits to the number of units that may pass into and through any given hex over the course of a player turn and game turn.

8.3 Free-Stacking Units. Informational and other markers (all those shown in 2.18) have no stacking value and may be added freely to any stack, as called for by the rules governing their uses.

8.4 Soviet Stacking. The general rule for Soviet units is that they may be stacked up to three high. The Soviet player may add a fourth unit to a stack only if that fourth unit is artillery. There may not be more than one artillery corps stacked in any one hex.

The minor nationality units within the overall Soviet grouping may stack normally with other units of their own nationality and with Red Army units, but they may not stack with other minor Soviet allies. That is, Polish Communist units may not stack with Romanians, and Bulgarians may not stack with Yugoslavs, etc.

8.5 Western Allied Stacking. Units with a background color designating them as part of the Commonwealth forces may not stack with units whose color scheme designates them as part of the US force. So, for example, the two French corps could stack with each other and US corps (including Vlassov, in the WWIII scenarios), but they could not stack with any British or Canadian or Free Polish units. Within those limits, Western Allied stacking is limited to three units per hex.

Design Note. Western Allied and Soviet units may never stack together.

8.6 Swiss Stacking. For the WWIII scenarios, Swiss stacking is the same as Western Allied Stacking, three units per hex.

Swiss units, however, may never stack with the units of any other nationality (see 14.16).

Design Note. Step strength and nominal organizational size have nothing to do with stacking limits in this game. For stacking purposes here, within the strictures given above, a unit is a unit is a unit.

9.0 Reinforcements & Replacements

9.1 Reinforcements are new units that enter play for the first time after the game has already begun. Reinforcement units are identified by the one- or two-digit number printed in their upper-left corners. That number corresponds to the number of the earliest possible game turn during which that reinforcement unit may enter play.

The Alliance player(s) has the option of delaying reinforcement arrival until later game turns than called for on the counter; the German player does not have that option. Any German reinforcement (including variable reinforcements, see below, 9.6) that is not entered into play when called for is eliminated instead.

9.2 Reinforcement Entry. Within the above restrictions, all reinforcements enter play at any time(s) during the movement phase of the owning player. Units entering via a board edge must pay all normal movement costs from their very first hex of entry. Units entering play via city hexes (see 9.3, 9.4 and 9.6 below) pay no movement costs to be placed there, but then begin to pay regular movement costs as soon as they start moving.

Reinforcement units may enter play in supplied or unsupplied states, depending on the specific circumstances surrounding that entry. Reinforcements immediately have available all capabilities normally available to units of their type and side.

9.3 Soviet Reinforcements. There are only two Soviet reinforcements, the 9th Guards (Mechanized) Army, which enters play on Game Turn 4 (I Feb) or thereafter, and the 19th Army, which enters play on Game Turn 5 (II Feb) or thereafter. They enter via any Soviet controlled and supplied city hex(es) east of the WWIII Allied/Soviet demarcation line.

9.4 Western Allied Reinforcements. In this historical scenario, the only Western Allied reinforcement ground unit is the US 22nd Corps. It enters play during Game Turn 2 or thereafter, either via Antwerp or any French or Italian western or southern map edge hex empty of enemy units.

The Game Turn 7 reinforcement is only an informational marker (see 13.9), and the Turn 11 and 16 reinforcements appear only in the WWIII scenarios.

9.5 German Ground Reinforcements must enter (or be forfeit) during the German movement phase of the game turn indicated on their counters. They enter via any German-controlled Wehrkreis cities (see the terrain key on western mapsheet). Stacking limits must be observed at the time of entry. Exception: the two Game Turn 4 aircraft units don't need to enter the map as if they were ground units. They simply become available for German use at the very start of that game turn. Likewise, German variable reinforcements enter the instant their triggering event occurs (see below).

9.6 German Variable Reinforcements. The German has two sets of variable reinforcements (that is, units whose entries are not dependent on time, but on some triggering event).

Flak Korps. All five of the FK units enter play the instant the German economy collapses (see 7.3). The German player immediately places them, observing normal stacking limits and no more than one per hex, in any German controlled Wehrkreis cities, and/or in any German occupied fortification and heavy fortification hexes. (If there aren't enough cities/fortifications left at the moment of placement, the surplus FK are forfeit.) For details on the combat properties of Flak, see 13.13.

SS Operational Group Steiner enters play via any non-enemy occupied hex adjacent to Berlin, at the first instant any Grand Alliance unit moves adjacent to Berlin or enters Berlin directly via airdrop. (When the triggering move occurs, the Alliance player should temporarily stop his move to allow for OGS placement.)

9.7 Replacements represent levies of new troops and equipment (not themselves represented by counters) used to replenish ground units weakened by combat losses or to reclaim eliminated units from the deadpile. Each replacement increment (or "step") is able to recreate or replenish one step of combat unit strength.

9.8 Once used, a replacement step is permanently committed to its receiving unit; it cannot be recalled or transferred to any other unit.

9.9 Replenishing. A reduced unit still on the map can be replenished to full (or nearer to full) strength if a replacement step(s) is available for use and the unit in question is in supply to a board edge or Antwerp (for the Western Allies) or Ruhr City (for the German) supply source.

Replenished units suffer no movement or combat penalties for having been replenished. Weakened units may potentially receive up to three replacement steps per player turn, but no unit may ever be made stronger than it was when it entered play in the historical scenario.

Eligible units to be replenished must undergo the process at the very start of their side's (or sub-side's) movement phase, before any reinforcements are entered or any movement has taken place. Simply announce which units will receive how much replenishment, flip or put in substitute counters to indicate their new step strength, and go on with the rest of the movement phase. Note: Hungarian, Fascist Italian, Romanian, Polish Communist, and Bulgarian units never receive replacements.

9.10 Deadpile Replacements. Eliminated Grand Alliance units may be reclaimed from the deadpile in either one-, two-, three- or four-step strengths. It requires one step to bring the unit back at one-step strength, two steps to do it at two-step strength, etc. As with replenishment, no unit may be brought back at a strength beyond which it began play in the historical scenario. Units reclaimed from the deadpile re-enter play as if they were reinforcements, with the same entry location choices.

Important Notes: German-side units may never be brought out of the deadpile once there. Soviet artillery and Cav/Mech Groups may never be reclaimed from the deadpile (though the latter type may receive replenishment on the map).

Old Hands Note. The circumstances surrounding a Grand Alliance unit's elimination (such as being OOS) have no effect on that player's ability to reclaim them from the deadpile.

9.11 Replacement steps may not be accumulated from turn to turn. Those not committed during the turn they become available are forfeit.

9.12 Red Army Replacement Rate. The Soviet (or Grand Alliance) player receives four steps of Red Army replacements every game turn. No more than two of them may be committed to mechanized units on any one turn (any number may be committed to non-mech units).

9.13 Yugoslavian Replacements. The Soviet player receives one step of Yugoslav replacements every turn. This step may only be used to replenish Yugoslav army (mobile) units, not partisans. Yugoslav units reclaimed from the deadpile re-enter via any Alliance controlled city in Yugoslavia; if no such hex is available, Yugoslav deadpile reclamations cease until one is.

9.14 Western Allied Replacements. The Western Allied player receives four steps of replacements every game turn. No more than one step of those replacements (total) may be absorbed by Commonwealth forces during any one game turn; and no more than one step of those replacements (total) may be absorbed by French forces during any one game turn.

9.15 German Replacements are tied to the status of their overall economy and the situation surrounding the Upper Silesian Industrial Region (USIR). Starting with Game Turn 2, the German receives one replacement step as long as his economy is not collapsed and he controls all six hexes of the USIR.

As each hex of the USIR falls under Alliance control, remove that factory counter permanently from the map. Once there are fewer than six USIR counters left in play, as a first step in his movement phase each game turn, the German player rolls one die to see if he gets his replacement. If there are five factories in the USIR, he gets his step on a roll of 1-5; if there are four factories the roll needed is 1-4; three factories needs a 1-3 roll, etc. Each replacement step may be used to replenish any eligible German unit, mech or non-mech.

Once the German economy collapses, all German replacements stop permanently (though don't remove any factory counters still on the map; they retain their defensive value until Alliance controlled, see 11.17).

Design/Historical Note. The USIR represents the last "slack" left in the German economy. Reportedly, when the Soviets were first planning the targets for their January offensive, Stalin approached the large map they were using, circled the USIR with his finger and said, "Gold!" One replacement step per turn might not seem like much, but consider, if the USIR were left untaken over the course of a game its production would represent a force of almost five full mechanized divisions — a fair sized panzer army by 1945 standards. We repeat: "Gold!"

10.0 Movement

10.1 In general, every ground unit in the game has a "Movement Factor" printed in its bottom-right corner (exception: see 2.15). That factor is the number of "movement points" (also called "movement factors," or "MFs," or "MPs") available to the unit to use to move across the hex grid of the map during its side's (or sub-side's) movement phase.

Units move from hex to adjacent hex (no "skipping" of hexes is allowed), paying varied costs to do so, depending on the terrain in and along the hex being entered.

The movement of each player's units takes place only during his own player turn; no enemy movement takes place during your own player turn (exception: see 11.25ff).

10.2 Limits. MPs may not be accumulated from turn to turn, nor may they be loaned from one unit to another. A player may move all, some, or none of his units, as he chooses, in each of his movement phases throughout the game, out to the limits of their available MPs. Units that move are not, however, required to expend all their MPs before stopping.

The movement of each individual unit or stack must be completed before that of another is begun. A player may only readjust the position of an already moved unit or stack if his opponent permits it.

10.3 Enemy Units. Your units may never enter hexes containing enemy units.

Old Hands Note. For an important exception to 10.3, see section 12.0.

10.4 Minimum Movement Ability. All units are guaranteed the ability to move at least one hex during their side's movement phase by expending all their available MPs. This guarantee does not, however, allow units to enter hexes or cross hexsides that are otherwise impassable or prohibited to them. Also, units with printed movement factors of "0" (zero) may never leave their placement or entry hexes.

Old Hands Note. The 10.4 guarantee does not enable mech units to launch MAs (see section 12.0).

10.5 Stack Movement. To move together as a stack, units must begin their side's movement phase already stacked together. Units are not required to move together simply because they started their movement phase in the same hex. In such situations, those units might be moved together, or in small sub-stacks, or individually.

10.6 Splitting Stacks. When moving a stack, you may halt it temporarily to allow a unit or sub-stack to split off and move away on a separate course. The units left behind in the original (or "parent") stack may then resume their own movement, even splitting off other units and sub-stacks again, if desired. But once you begin moving an entirely different parent stack (or individual unit that began the movement phase in a different hex than the original location of the moving parent stack), you may no longer resume the movement of the earlier stack without your opponent's permission.

10.7 If units with different movement factors are traveling together in a stack, the stack must use the movement factor of the slowest unit within it. Of course, as the slower units exhaust their MFs, you may leave them behind and continue on with the faster units.

10.8 Terrain & Movement. All terrain features on the map are classified into one of two broad categories: natural and manmade. Both of those categories are divided into several different types (see below). There is never more than one type of natural terrain in any one hex, but more than one type of manmade terrain may exist in one hex (along with the natural stuff).

10.9 Natural Terrain exists in eight types: Clear, Forest, Rough, Mountains, Marsh, Lakes, Rivers, and Sea. The effects these terrain types have on the movement of units are described below, and are summarized on the Terrain Effects Chart (16.1) for quick reference.

10.10 Clear terrain is the "base" terrain of the game. It is just that: clear. Hexes with only clear terrain in them represent areas devoid of any natural features that would enhance defense or slow movement. Each clear hex costs all units 1 MP to enter.

10.11 Forest exists only on the eastern map and represents areas wooded and wet enough to slow the movement of mechanized units, but not so obstructive as to do the same for non-mechanized units. Each forest hex entered costs non-mechanized units 1 MP to enter. Mechanized units pay 2 MPs per forest hex. Exception: Soviet Cavalry/Mechanized Groups, though mech units, pay only 1 MP per forest hex entered.

10.12 Rough terrain represents areas of hills and forest high and dense enough to provide defensive combat advantages, while also serving to channel and slow movement through them. Both mech and non-mech units pay 2 MP per rough hex entered. Exception: Light Infantry, Mountain Infantry and (Horse) Cavalry pay only 1 MP per rough hex entered.

10.13 Mountain hexes represent a considerable impediment to the movement of all units. All units pay 3 MP per mountain hex entered. Exception: Mountain Infantry pay only 2 MP per mountain hex entered.

Design Note. To give the map a more natural look, in areas where rough and mountain terrain meet, the rough has been made to tuck into the mountain hexes. In all such cases, a hex shared by mountain and rough terrain is considered a mountain hex. For example, 2625 is a mountain hex.

10.14 Marsh hexes represent wetlands and are particularly slowing to mechanized units. Non-mech units pay 2 MP per marsh hex entered; mech units pay 4 MP. Exception: Soviet Cavalry/Mechanized Groups, though mech units, pay only 2 MP per marsh hex.

10.15 Lakes run between hexes, along the hexsides, rather than lying in-hex like the natural terrain described above. Combat and movement is impossible across lake hexsides.

Old Hands Note. For an important exception to 10.15, see 13.9.

10.16 Rivers, like lakes, also lie between hexes along hexsides. Rivers are, however, crossable. Normally, units must expend an extra (+1) MP to cross a river hexside. That is, they must pay an MP in addition to the cost of the terrain in the hex crossed into. During Thaw game turns (see 10.21), units must expend two extra (+2) MP to cross river hexsides.

Old Hands Note. Again, for an important exception to the above, see 13.9.

10.17 Sea. Normally, no units may ever enter all-sea hexes or move across all-sea hexsides. For example, a unit in 3604 could not move directly from there to hex 3606, since such a move would involve crossing an all-sea hexside.

Old Hands Note. Concerning 10.17, be sure to read 10.30ff and 13.9.

10.18 The Hook of Holland, in the northwest corner of the western map, represents an area of lowlands that was kept from flooding only by an extensive system of dikes. The area was thus rendered practically unusable for military purposes, since whichever side was defending it could simply pull the plugs on the dikes and turn the entire Hook into a portion of the North Sea. No units may ever enter the Hook of Holland.

Historical Note. The German units that ended the war defending the Hook have been deducted from that side's OB.

10.19 Manmade Terrain exists in five types: Fortifications, Heavy Fortifications, the USIR, Cities, and the Alpine Transport Corridor (ATC). Of these manmade terrain types only the ATC has effects on the movement of units into such hexes. Excepting the ATC, all movement costs are based on the natural terrain types described above, and all cities are considered to exist in clear terrain.

Design Note. German Wehrkreis cities are distinguished from "regular" cities only by the functions they perform within that side's unit entry systems. Everything in these rules said to apply to "cities" also applies to "Wehrkreis cities" (though the reverse is not true).

10.20 The Alpine Transport Corridor (ATC) is the highway-like symbol running through the Alps from 2422 to 1626/1726. It represents an area where enough road and rail lines run together to alleviate the otherwise high movement costs involved in crossing such a mountain range. All units can move from corridor hex to corridor hex — but only across hexsides traversed by the corridor — for a cost of only 1 MP per hex.

10.21 The Spring Thaw in Central Europe in 1945 occurred during the time encompassed by Game Turns 5 and 6 (II Feb & I Mar). Accordingly, on those two game turns all mechanized units have their printed movement factors reduced by 1 MP. Further, as given in 10.16 above, all river-crossing costs are increased from +1 to +2 for mechanized units during the Thaw game turns. (Non-mech movement is unaffected by the Thaw.)

10.22 Cumulative Effects. When not using ATC movement, the total movement cost for entering any hex is always the total cost for entering/crossing all the natural terrain types involved. For example, if an armor unit crossed a river hexside (on a non-thaw turn) into a mountain hex, that move would cost a total of 4 MP (3 to enter a mountain hex, and +1 to cross a river hexside).

Beginners Note. Stop reading section 10.0 at this point; you won't use any of its remaining rules in your play. Skip to section 11.0.

10.23 Yugoslavia Movement Restrictions. Until such time as a German unit moves next to Belgrade, no Grand Alliance units other than the Bulgarians (and the Yugoslavs themselves) may enter any parts of those countries that make up "Yugoslavia" (Croatia, Serbia, The Banat). Until the above occurs (if ever), the Bulgarians are restricted to only entering and attacking into exterior border hexes of Yugoslavia. ("Exterior" here meaning the Bulgarians can't, say, move into Yugoslavia along the Serbia/Croatia border line.) For example, Bulgarian units could enter/attack into 2931, but not 2832. (Bulgarians may cooperate with Yugoslav units in such attacks.) All these restrictions are permanently lifted as soon as any German-side unit moves next to Belgrade.

No Yugoslavian units may leave those countries until a Grand Alliance player turn begins wherein both Zagreb and Belgrade are Alliance controlled. Even then, Yugoslavian units may never move more than four hexes from the nearest Yugoslavia hex. (They are still always in supply when within four hexes of their country.)

10.24 Hungarian units may never move out of Hungary.

10.25 Italian Fascist units may never move out of Italy.

10.26 German Movement Deterioration. Near the end of January, Hitler issued an order requiring all unit movement down to division level be cleared personally by him. This had the effect of further slowing German operations that were already creaking under the load of accumulated casualties, supply shortages, etc. At the same time, Allied air strikes against the Reich's transportation infrastructure began to have telling results by the end of that month. Accordingly, beginning on Game Turn 4 (Feb I) and lasting for the rest of the game, all printed German-side movement factors are reduced by 1 MP. (In relation to this, see also 7.2 and 10.4.)

Design Note. We could've printed the MFs of German units entering play after turn 4 at one factor lower. We didn't take that approach, though, because we felt it was more confusing to have to look at a unit's turn of entry every time you started moving it to see if you could or could not believe its printed MF. Thus all German-side units, no matter when they enter play, suffer under the provisions of 10.26.

10.27 Italian Theater Movement Restrictions. The following apply to all German-side units in Italy throughout the game.

1. A total of no more than two non-mech units may use strategic movement into/out of Italy each turn.
2. All German-side units with printed MFs greater than 4 starting their movement in Italy are considered to have printed MFs of 4.
3. No further German strategic movement is allowed into or out of Italy once any Alliance unit has once entered any hex of the ATC.

10.28 German Strategic Movement. During Game Turns 2 and 3 the German player may move up to six of his units by strategic movement. During Game Turns 4 and 5 he may move up to three of his units by strategic movement. After Game Turn 5 all German strategic movement capability is lost. (German strategic movement capability may also be terminated before turn 5 if the German economy collapses before then, see section 7.3.)

10.29 Procedure. To be eligible to move via strategic movement, a German unit must start its side's movement phase in direct overland supply to a German-controlled Ruhr City hex. (Such units may start next to enemy units.) The German begins his selected units' strategic movement at the start of his movement phase by picking them up from the map and placing them in the strategic movement holding box printed in the northeast corner of the western map.

The selected units remain in the holding box until the end of that same German Player Turn's Prepared Assault Phase. At that point the German player must place them back onto the map. They re-enter play via any German controlled city hexes that are in direct overland supply to a German-controlled Ruhr City hex. Alternatively, they may re-enter play through non-city hexes, but only if there are already one or more German units in those hexes and they are also in direct overland supply to a German-controlled Ruhr Cities hex. (Stacking limits must be observed in both cases.)

Strategically-moved units may not use regular movement, nor may they attack in any way, during the player turn of their strategic move.

10.30 German Baltic Sea Movement. Starting on Game Turn 2, and lasting until the German economy collapses, that player may move up to six units through the Baltic Sea every German player turn. To be eligible to use Baltic Sea Movement during a given player turn, a German unit must start its side's movement phase already in a Baltic Sea coastal hex between 3600 and 3403, inclusive.

10.31 Procedure. Immediately after all German units to be strategically moved during that player turn have been placed in that holding box, the German player should select from among those eligible the units he wants to move by sea that player turn. Important: every step of mechanized units counts as "one unit" for sea movement purposes. (That's not the case for strategic movement.)

While making a sea move, German units should be kept in a pile in an empty Baltic Sea hex near where they embarked. Sea movement units are landed again immediately after the German has replaced his strategically-moving units back on the map.

10.32 Sea Movement Limitations. German units that embark and disembark from port hexes may continue their movement on land, using their available movement factor that same player turn. Such units may not make Mobile Assaults, and since they land after the Prepared Assault Phase, they will not be able to attack that turn.

It never costs any MPs for German units to leave and land in port hexes. This post-port-debarkation movement is a special-circumstance kind of movement that takes place after the regular movement phase has ended.

German units that embark and/or disembark from non-port hexes may not move any farther by any method that player turn. Additionally, if a two-step mechanized unit embarks or disembarks via any non-port hex, it is immediately reduced to one-step strength upon landing.

10.33 East to West. A further restriction on German Baltic Sea movement is that all units using it may only move from east to west. That is, they must land in hexes farther to the west than the one from which they embarked. For example, a unit starting its sea move from, say, 2410E could not land in 2509E, 2508E, 2507E, etc.

Historical Note. The ship traffic going the other way is filled carrying supplies.

10.34 Available Ports. At the start of play, the German's Baltic Sea ports are: Kiel (3403), Rostock (3705), Stettin (4010), Danzig (1711E), Königsberg (2111E), Memel (2410E), and 2607E and 2905E. Once a port hex is occupied by an Alliance ground unit, it ceases to be a port and cannot any longer be used as such if retaken by the German (though such hexes would, of course, still be considered Baltic Sea coastal hexes and could be part of German sea movement as such).

Within the above restrictions, it's not necessary for all German sea movement during a given turn to start and/or end from the same departure and landing hexes; any number of eligible hexes may be used every turn.

Design Note. If you're confused as to the exact sequence of actions during the German Player Turn, see the step-by-step listing given in 5.3 and again in 16.3.

10.35 Western Allied Inter-Theater Transfer. In his player turn on Game Turn 2 and thereafter, the Western Allied player may use a special kind of movement to transfer a total of up to two units per turn between the Italian and Western Fronts (either or both directions are permissible on any turn).

To be eligible for such movement the selected unit(s) must be in direct overland supply to a board edge source hex or Antwerp (they may start next to enemy units). That condition being met, remove the unit(s) from the map. After the completion of the Western Allied Prepared Assault Phase, the transferring units are immediately placed back on a board edge supply source hex or Antwerp. They may not move farther or attack in any way that player turn. Note: Antwerp may only be used for this kind of movement if it has not come under enemy control during the game.

Design Note. The partial hexes along Italy's south map edge may be used as full hexes for all purposes.

10.36 Soviet/Western Meeting. It is not permitted for there to be any kind of combat between Western Allied and Soviet-side units during the WWII scenario. If, however, circumstances bring units of the two camps together before the defeat of the Germans has been completed, the following restrictions apply. (When playing the WWII/WWIII combined scenario, these restrictions apply until the instant WWIII is declared, see 14.19.)

1. A Western Allied or Soviet-side unit must stop its movement for that player turn the instant it moves next to any unit from the other Alliance camp.
2. A Western Allied or Soviet-side unit that begins its movement phase already next to any unit from the other Alliance camp may only move if the first hex it enters is one not adjacent to any unit from the other camp. (Of course, after that, the moving unit would again have to stop when it met the next unit from the other camp.)

11.0 Combat - Prepared Assaults

11.1 In general, combat ("Prepared Assault") takes place between opposing adjacent units during the Prepared Assault Phase in all player turns. Attacking is always voluntary; the mere fact of opposing units' adjacency does not necessitate combat.

During any given Combat Phase, the player whose Player Turn it is, is considered "the Attacker," and the other is "the defender," no matter what the overall situation on the map.

11.2 Multiple Defenders. If there is more than one enemy unit in a hex being attacked by your units, you may only attack that stack as if it were one large, combined, defending unit.

11.3 Multi-Hex Attacks. An enemy occupied hex may be attacked in one battle by as many of your units as you can bring to bear from one, some, or all of the surrounding hexes. No more than one hex, however, may ever be the object of a single attack. For example, an attacking unit or stack in 2119 may not attack defenders in 2219 and 2220 as one battle during a single Combat Phase.

11.4 Indivisibility of Units. No single attacking unit may have its attack factor divided and applied to more than one battle during a single combat phase. Likewise, no defending unit may have part of its combat factor attacked by one or a few attackers, while another part is attacked by others. No attacking unit may attack more than once per combat phase, and no defending unit may be attacked more than once per combat phase.

Old Hands Note. For an exception to that last sentence, see section 12.0.

11.5 Attack Sequencing. There is no artificial limit on the number of attacks each player may set up during his combat phase. The attacker need not declare all his attacks beforehand, and he may resolve them in any order he wishes, as long as the resolution of one is completed before that of another is begun.

11.6 Stacks on the Attack. It is not necessary for all the units stacked in a given hex to participate in the same attack. Some of the units might attack into one defender hex, while others attack into some other(s), or simply didn't attack at all. No defending unit, however, may refuse combat.

11.7 Fog of War. Normally, no player may look beneath the top unit of an enemy stack until the time comes in the combat resolution process for odds computation. Once an examination has been made, the attacking player may no longer call off that attack. The exception to this general rule lies in the ability of the Western Allied (or Grand Alliance) player to always examine German-side stacks in Italy.

Beginners Note. Ignore the above; in your play both players are always free to examine the composition of enemy stacks at any time.

Historical Note. The combination of ULTRA intercepts (which were comparatively unavailable on German units operating inside Germany) and intelligence provided by the Mafia and the Italian partisan movement had rendered German operations in Italy a relatively open book by this point in the war.

11.8 Combat Procedure. Normally the attacking player should strive to have more attack factors involved in a battle than the defender has defense factors. Such battles are called "high odds" attacks. To resolve such fights, the attacking player must begin by calculating his "odds." Do that by adding up the attack factors of all the attacking units involved in the battle; then add up the defense factors of the enemy units defending in that battle. Divide that defender-total into the attacker-total, and round off (down) any remainder.

High Odds Example: 26 attack factors vs. 7 defense factors yields an odds ratio of 3:1. That is, 26 ÷ 7 = 3.71, which rounds down to 3. To turn that "3" into a ratio, you must set a "1" next to it on the right. Thus, "3" becomes "3:1" (which is read "3-to-1"), which corresponds with a column heading on the Combat Results Table (CRT) printed near the end of these rules (see 16.2).

Old Hands Note. Supply Effects: don't forget, units found to be unsupplied at the beginning of their battle's resolution process have their appropriate combat factor halved when totalling strengths (see section 6.0).

11.9 Poor Odds Attacks. Battles in which the attacking force has fewer combat factors than the defender are called "poor odds attacks." Procedures are modified in that now you divide the defender's total by the attacker's; round any remainders up, and set the "1" on the left side.

Poor Odds Example: A force with 5 attack factors is attacking a force with 11 defense factors. Divide 11 by 5 (11 ÷ 5 = 2.2), and round up (2.2 becomes 3), then set the "1" on the left of that "3," yielding odds of 1:3.

Beginners Note. In general, the higher your combat odds, the better the chances for success in any attack. That is, you want to be attacking on the right side of the CRT. And, of course, in situations where the two sides have the same amount of combat factors, no mathematics are necessary; odds will be 1:1.

11.10 Concentric Assault. If a defending hex is attacked by units in opposite hexes, or by units from three hexes with one hex between each and the next, or by units from more than three hexes, that attack has its computed odds shifted one CRT column to the right (in the attacker's favor) before the resolution die roll is made. For example, a 2:1 attack would become a 3:1 if it were concentric. In the diagrams below, the defending unit is being concentrically assaulted.

11.11 Clear, Forest & Marsh terrain have no combat effects on units defending in such hexes in prepared assaults.

Old Hands Note. See 12.3 and 12.8.

11.12 Rough. If the defending units in a battle are located in a rough hex, that defense has its combat odds shifted one CRT column leftward (in the defender's favor). For example, a 4:1 would become a 3:1 if the defenders were in a rough hex.

11.13 Mountains. If the defending units in a battle are located in a Mountain hex, that defense has its combat odds shifted two CRT columns leftward. For example, a 6:1 would become a 5:1 if the defenders were in a mountain hex.

11.14 Lakes & Sea. Combat across lake and all-sea hexsides is prohibited.

Old Hands Note. See 13.9 for an important exception to 11.14.

11.15 Rivers. If all the units in an attack are attacking across river hexsides during a non-Thaw (see 10.21) game turn, then the defenders in that battle receive a one column odds shift in their favor (leftward). If even just one attacking unit in a battle is attacking through a non-river hexside, this defensive shift is lost. During Thaw turns (5 & 6) the river shift is increased to two columns leftward.

11.16 The Rhine River, because it has been so thoroughly dredged, channelized and deepened along its entire course, represents a greater combat obstacle than the other rivers on the map. Accordingly, the defensive shift for the Rhine on non-Thaw turns is two columns leftward, and three on Thaw turns. (This is only a combat penalty; there is no increased Rhine movement penalty.)

Design Note. The Rhine River starts where it flows out of the Bodensee at 1718/1818. It passes Frankfurt at 2111/2211, and flows into the Hook of Holland at 2104/2204.

11.17 Fortifications, Heavy Fortifications & The USIR. German-side units defending in hexes containing fortifications or the USIR receive a one column leftward CRT odds shift. Units defending in heavy fortifications receive a two column leftward CRT odds shift.

Historical/Design Note. The Wotan Line was not actually constructed until the Soviets approached Berlin in late January and February. We printed it on the map, though (rather than provide fortress counters and allow for varied building schemes, etc.), because we found in playtesting that location was so key it was invariably the area where the German player "built" his line anyway.

11.18 Cities. Units defending in cities receive a two column leftward CRT odds shift.

11.19 Fortress Cities. At the start of any player's player turn, the German may declare any of the cities his units occupy to be fortresses. Such cities must have been ones, though, that were already under his control at the start of the game. Indicate the fortress status by placing a fortress marker atop the German units in the designated cities.

Any number of fortresses may be declared in any player turns, but there may never be more than six fortresses on the map at any one time. (All fortress markers are recyclable any number of times.)

Once declared a fortress, the German units within it may not leave that hex for the rest of the game. Further, any German-side units that enter a fortress must stop and remain there for the rest of the game.

Units defending in fortress cities receive a three column leftward CRT odds shift when defending against Soviet-side units. When defending against Western Allied units the shift remains two columns.

At the start of the game, Memel (2410E) and Budapest (3730) have already been declared fortresses and should have markers placed atop the units inside them. Once declared, no fortress city may be "undeclared."

11.20 Fortress/Fortification/USIR Destruction. Once an Alliance ground unit has entered a German fortification, heavy fortification, or USIR hex, those manmade structures are considered destroyed, and the hex retains only the combat properties of the natural terrain within it. In the case of fortress cities, once Alliance captured they remain normal cities, but may never regain fortress city characteristics, even if retaken by the German.

11.21 Cumulative Combat Effects. Just as when paying movement costs, all terrain and other combat effects that apply in any given battle do so cumulatively.

11.22 Final Combat Resolution. After the combat odds have been calculated (and possibly shifted) for a given battle, find that column heading on the CRT and have the attacker roll one six-sided die.

Note there are two lines of odds ratios running across the top of the CRT, one labelled "German," and the other labelled "Alliance & FMO." The top line is the one used for all German-side attacks except FMOs; the bottom is used for all Grand Alliance attacks and German FMOs.

Cross-index the die-roll result on the CRT to get the battle's combat result. For example, a die roll of "3" at odds of 3:1/4:1 yields a result of "1/2."

Beginners Note. Ignore the reference to "FMOs" in 11.22.

11.23 Odds Limits. Note that the column headings on the CRT range only from 1:3/1:4 to 6:1/7:1. Battles at odds higher than 6:1/7:1 are resolved as if they were 6:1/7:1. Battles with odds lower than 1:3/1:4 are resolved as if they were 1:3/1:4. When determining the final odds of any battle, apply all applicable odds shifters to get a "final" ratio before looking at the chart.

11.24 Combat Results. The number to the left of the slash applies to the attacking force; the number to the right applies to the defenders. Those result numbers are called "Loss Points" (or "LPs"), and they may be absorbed in two ways: 1) Step Loss; and 2) Defender Retreat.

11.25 Defender Retreat. Only the Grand Alliance player(s) have this option when their units are defending. That is, he may choose to retreat all his defending units involved in a battle one hex (no more) in order to satisfy one increment of his combat result. The retreating unit or stack may retreat into any adjacent hex empty of enemy units (Alliance player's choice; retreating stacks may be split).

These retreats-after-combat don't cost any MPs and have nothing to do with other kinds of movement, but retreating units must still observe regular movement and stacking prohibitions. For example, they can't retreat across an all-sea hexside.

Note also that retreating is an all-or-nothing proposition for the units involved. That is, you may not retreat just one or two units from a defending stack, while leaving one or two behind. All go, or all stay, and the move of the entire retreated force (no matter how many units it contains) only satisfies one increment of the combat result.

Design/Historical Note. The no-German-retreats rule is in here to simulate two things. First, most German senior officers were by this time almost universally indoctrinated (whether they liked it or not) into the Hitlerian not-one-millimeter-back school of tactics. Second, the skilled junior officers and NCOs needed to oversee retreats-before-the-enemy (that is, if they're to be successful retreats), were already mostly dead or otherwise out of action.

11.26 Retreating into Battle. If a defending Alliance force from one battle retreats into a hex containing other friendly units, and that new hex comes under attack that same phase, the units that retreated into the new hex in no way contribute to their new location's defense. Further, if the defenders in that new hex receive any LPs, the retreated-in units from the earlier battle are all automatically eliminated (and their elimination in no way contributes to the absorption of the new combat result).

Old Hands Note. There is no retreat-after-combat from MAs, see section 12.0.

11.27 Overstacked Retreats. If Alliance units become overstacked (see section 8.0) as a result of retreating one hex after combat, the surplus unit(s) may retreat additional hexes to reach legal-stacking hexes. These additional retreats must always be kept to an absolute minimum, however, both in terms of the units that go and the number of hexes entered. Units may not be deliberately retreated into hexes where they will be overstacked in order to gain extra movement.

11.28 Limits. The Grand Alliance player(s) never has the retreat option when attacking, and the German player never has the retreat option at all. Western Allied units may never retreat into or through hexes occupied by Soviet units and vice versa.

11.29 Step Loss. For both sides involved in a given battle, every step of unit strength given up satisfies one increment of the combat result. For example, flipping a two-step unit to its reverse side satisfies one increment of combat result; eliminating it entirely would satisfy two increments of the result, etc.

11.30 Step Loss Apportionment. In general, step losses may be apportioned by each player among his involved units in each battle as he sees fit; however, no involved unit may be entirely eliminated before all involved units have been reduced to a single strength step.

For example, say the Western Allied player had three units involved in a battle, one with a step-strength of 3, and the other two with step-strengths of 1. If he were attacking and got a numeric combat result of "3," he would have to sacrifice two steps from the unit that began the battle with three steps before he could finish absorbing his combat result by eliminating any one of the remaining (now all) one-step units.

11.31 Zero Combat Results. A combat result of "0" (zero) means "No Effect," or "Nothing Happens." No step losses are taken, nobody retreats.

11.32 Zero-Attack-Factor Units. Note that some German units have printed attack factors of "0" (zero). Those units may never attack, nor may they "ride along" with attacking units to serve as cannon fodder for step losses. (Such zero units may be voluntarily moved adjacent to enemy units, but they may never attack.)

11.33 Advance After Combat. Whenever the defender's hex in a battle is left vacant of defenders after that side's combat result has been satisfied, the surviving attacking units (if any) may be immediately moved into that hex. Normal stacking limits apply, but just like retreats-after-combat, these advances don't require the expenditure of any MPs. This is a free option given to victorious attackers of all sides. (Victorious defenders are never allowed to advance after combat; they merely hold their positions.)

Advances are not mandatory, but the decision to do so must be made immediately after a battle is resolved, and before that of another is begun. Further, it is not necessary for an advancing attacker to try to stack-full the newly won hex; he may send just one or some units, if he wishes, rather than a full stack.

Old Hands Note. There is no free advance-after-combat in MAs, see section 12.0.

11.34 Commonwealth/US Limits. Commonwealth and US units may never attack into the same hex in any way during the same player turn. The minor nationality units of both those major army groupings function in this respect as if they were units of their own army grouping's main nationality, British or US. For example, Free French units can cooperate in attacks with US units, etc. Exception: see the 1AAA rules, 13.1ff.

11.35 Soviet/Western Non-Cooperation. Soviet and Western Allied units may never attack into the same hex in any way during the same game turn.

Beginners Note. Stop reading at this point; you will not use any of the rules that follow in your play.

12.0 Combat — Mobile Assaults

12.1 In general, supplied mechanized units (see section 6.0) can perform a kind of attack-while-moving called "Mobile Assault." All non-mechanized units are excluded from this ability. Likewise, Soviet artillery units and Western Allied paratrooper units, though mechanized, can only conduct MAs under special circumstances (see 12.16 and 12.17).

12.2 Procedure. Mobile Assaults (MA) are a form of combat that can take place during the movement phase. To conduct an MA, a moving and supplied mechanized unit or stack enters an enemy-occupied hex, paying double the normal movement costs to do so. A mechanized unit can make more than one MA per movement phase if it has sufficient MPs available to pay for them.

12.3 MA Restrictions. MAs may never be launched into Mountain or Marsh hexes. (The ATC does not allow for MAs in mountain hexes.) The guaranteed ability of units to move one hex (see 10.4) does not similarly guarantee mechanized units the ability to launch an MA. The assaulting unit/stack must have sufficient MPs available to pay for an MA or it cannot be made.

12.4 Attacker Stacking Limits. Stacking limits must be met in the hex from which the MA is being launched (the hex left by the attackers just before entering the defender's hex) at the instant the move is made. The stacking limits for the units of the two opposing sides in the MA hex itself are mutually exclusive and do not affect each other in any way.

12.5 Stacks. To be able to conduct an MA together during a given movement phase, eligible mechanized units must begin that movement phase already stacked together. (This rule does not require all mechanized units starting a movement phase stacked together to move and MA together; some could be left behind or go off on separate courses, etc.)

12.6 Operational Limitations. Since MAs are only conducted by one moving unit or stack at a time, multi-hex MAs never occur, and the concentric column shift is likewise unattainable. Soviet and German tactical airpower may be used to support MAs (see 13.5 and 13.6), but Western Allied Strategic airpower may not.

12.7 MA Supply State. The supply state of the defenders in an MA is determined at the instant of the battle. Supply for the assaulting units is determined at the start of their movement.

12.8 Resolution of MAs. Within the limits given above, MAs are resolved in the same way as regular combat. Players should take normal terrain considerations into account, plus any other applicable column shifts. Also note that defenders in a forest hex receive a column shift benefit when defending against MAs, while such terrain generates no such benefit for defenders in PAs.

12.9 Further Movement/MAs. If all the defenders in a hex are eliminated, the units conducting the MA may continue their movement as long as they have sufficient MPs available to do so, and may even launch further MAs into other hexes if they can pay for them.

12.10 Multi-Round MAs. If an MA doesn't succeed in clearing the assaulted hex of all defender steps, the moving player may either: 1) run another round of MA with the same attacking unit/stack (after recalculating the combat odds); or 2) place the assaulting unit/stack back in the hex it left just before entering the defender's hex and end its movement there. In cases where assaulting stacks consist of units with different movement factors, it is allowed to use option 2 with the slower units as their MPs run out, while continuing to assault with the faster ones.

12.11 Sequential Defense. Unlike the regular ("Prepared Assault") combat resolved during the combat phase, defenders in MAs may be assaulted more than once per movement phase (no limits beyond the availability of eligible attackers), by the same and/or different attacking mechanized units.

12.12 MA and Regular Combat. Mechanized units that participate in one or more MAs during their side's movement phase can also fight in a PA during their side's immediately following combat phase.

12.13 No Defender Retreat. Defending Grand Alliance units lose their normal retreat option when defending against German MAs. In MAs, both sides must absorb all their combat result as step losses. (Step loss precedence, as given in 11.30, also applies to MAs.)

12.14 No Automatic Advance. Unlike PA combat, there is never an automatic advance-after-combat available to victorious MA forces. Their movement is entirely dependent on their ability to pay appropriate movement costs. Of course, since an MA is considered to take place within the defender's hex, victorious MA units will already be where an advance-after-combat would take them in PA combat.

12.15 MAs & Rivers. Defenders do get the river hexside bonus when receiving an MA from a mechanized force that entered their hex by crossing a river hexside. If a cross-river MA turns into a multi-round affair, MPs to cross the river need only be paid on the first round, and the cross-river column shifting is also only used for the first round.

12.16 Soviet Artillery may participate in MAs, but only when stacked with at least one other (non-artillery, of course) mechanized unit, and theirs must always be the last step given up to satisfy MA combat losses on the attack.

12.17 Western Allied Paratroopers may conduct MAs normally on turns they are not deployed as 1AAA. For details of 1AAA deployment, see 13.1ff.

12.18 Tactical Air Support and MAs. When eligible aircraft are supporting MAs, they are in effect accompanying the movement of a selected stack of mech units. That is, they remain with that stack/unit and support all its MAs, in however many rounds there may be, until the end of that movement phase, see 13.5 and 13.6.

13.0 Special Units & Rules

13.1 1AAA. The decision to deploy 1AAA may be made by the Western Allied (or Grand Alliance) player at the start of any of his player turns. To be eligible for this kind of deployment, one or both of the Western Allies' airborne corps (the US 18th and the British 1st) must start the player turn in a city hex not adjacent to any enemy units and in overland supply to a board edge hex or Antwerp. Further, each of the two corps may only make one airborne deployment per game (and one more during WWIII, when playing those scenarios).

13.2 Procedure. To "deploy the 1AAA" means one or both of the airborne corps will be used in an air drop somewhere on the map that turn. Air drops may be made into any clear or city hexes on the maps; there are no range limitations. Exception: 1AAA units may only drop into city hexes after the German economy has collapsed, and even then they may never drop into any hex containing a Flak Korps.

When deploying the 1AAA it's not mandatory to send both corps, but if both corps are sent, they must be sent to the same drop hex. Important: Both airborne corps may be considered to belong to either of the major Western Allied army groupings at that player's convenience.

The drop is made at the start of the Western Allied movement phase. Simply pick up the units to be dropped, put them in the selected drop hex, and place the 1AAA supply head marker atop them.

If there are no enemy units in the drop hex, the deployment is automatically successful. If there are any enemy units there, the air dropped units immediately run what is procedurally an MA (except here it's called "drop zone combat"). The only change from normal MA procedures is that if at the end of the first round there are any remaining enemy units in the drop hex, the dropped airborne units are eliminated and the deployment has failed.

13.3 1AAA In Deployment. Once the 1AAA has been deployed, the supply counter must be kept atop those units and they must remain passively in their drop hex until such time as a non-1AAA Western Allied unit, itself in direct overland supply to a board edge or Antwerp, moves adjacent to the paratroopers. At that point remove the 1AAA marker; the paratroopers instantly revert to their mobile (mechanized-class) movement status.

While the 1AAA is deployed there may be no Western Allied supply by air to any other hex than the drop hex.

It is permissible to make a 1AAA deployment with just one corps, then follow that up with another one corps drop into the same hex on the next or subsequent turns.

Design Note. The rules governing the 1AAA don't have as much to do with logistical and technological limitations as they do with Western Allied airborne doctrine as it had evolved by this time.

13.4 Soviet Artillery units may not attack in any way when unsupplied. When supplied and participating in a PA (no shift for MAs) they generate a one column rightward odds shift for that Soviet attack (never on the defense), in addition to contributing their attack factor.

13.5 German/Soviet Tactical Airpower. At the start of the game both the Germans and Soviets have one tactical airpower unit. The German Stuka unit may only be used to aid in that side's defense against one Soviet-side PA every game turn. The Soviet unit may be used to aid in one Soviet attack or defense, MA or PA, each game turn.

There are no range limits on the aircraft; to commit them to an eligible battle either player (Soviet first) simply declares their use at the start of the odds computation process. Their effect, whether used on attack or defense, is a one-column odds shift in their side's favor in that battle. (Thus they can cancel each other out if used at the same place.)

Design Note. Allied tactical air supremacy is modeled into their combat and movement factors. That's why the German aircraft may never be committed against the Western Allies.

13.6 German Luftwaffe "Surge" Reinforcements. During February, as the Red Army broke into the Reich's heartlands, Hitler authorized the transferral of most of his air force's last operating top-of-the-line fighter reserves to ground support duties on the eastern front.

These two units (the Fw190s) operate just like the Soviet air unit. That is, unlike the Stuka, they may be used once per game turn on the attack or defense. No more than one, however, may be committed to the same battle, and only against Soviet units.

Design Note. Don't forget, all German aircraft units are permanently withdrawn from play the instant the German economy collapses, see 7.3.

13.7 Western Allied Strategic Airpower. Twice during the game, during any two Grand Alliance player turns after turn 3, that player may use the aircraft of his strategic bomber forces to assist any one of his Western Allied PAs. (Only one bomber attack per turn.) To do so, he simply announces his decision, deploys the bomber marker atop the selected hex of enemy defenders (again, no range limitations), and when the time comes to begin that fight's resolution, he rolls a die. On a roll of 1 or 2, the German loses one step (Allies' choice) from the target hex; on a roll of 3 or 4 he loses two steps; on a roll of 5 or 6 he loses three steps. Then remove the bomber marker and resolve the battle using normal PA procedures. If all the defenders were annihilated by the bombers, the designated attacking units get a free, one-hex advance-after-combat.

13.8 Operation Thunderclap. At the start of any of his player turns after game turn 4, the Soviet (or Grand Alliance) player may announce the launching of "Operation Thunderclap." That means the Western Allied strategic air forces will concentrate on any 1 VP German-controlled city of his choice east of the WWIII demarcation line (historically the choice was Dresden). To mark the raid, take the Thunderclap marker and place it atop the chosen city. Any German units in the hex at the time remain unaffected, but the city itself ceases to be a city for all purposes and is considered to be only a rough terrain hex for the rest of the game.

Thunderclap may be run during the same game turn as either of the Western Allied bomber attacks on German units; the operations are considered separate and non-competing. The Western Allied player may not refuse the Soviet call for Thunderclap, and Soviet units may not attack or move into the Thunderclapped hex in any way during the game turn of the strike.

13.9 Western Allied Amphibious & Riverine Unit. This Game Turn 7 Western Allied reinforcement marker represents a large agglomeration of boats, amphibious landing craft, etc., made available by those nations' navies to assist their armies' cross-water ground operations. This unit may be deployed on any one of the following missions once per game turn. (It may be used by either Commonwealth or US grouping units, though not, of course, at the same time.)

1. Placed atop a stack of Western Allied units about to PA across a river hex, it completely negates that river hexside's defensive benefit (the Rhine included).
2. In a similar fashion, it can allow any one stack of Western Allied units to move and/or PA across any lake or all-sea hexside as if it were a non-Rhine river hexside.
3. Placed astride a lake or all-sea hexside at the start of a Western Allied movement phase, it allows those units' supply lines to be traced across that hexside as if it were a land hexside.

13.10 German Baltic Sea Naval Gun Support. The last serviceable surface ships of the German navy remained active in the Baltic Sea up to the end of the war. Once per game turn, the German may announce he's using those ships' guns to support any one of his attacks or defenses against Soviet units. The effect is to shift those combat odds one column in the German's favor. To be used in a German attack, the Soviet defenders must be located in a Baltic coastal hex. To be used in a German defense, the German defenders must be in a Baltic coastal hex.

13.11 German National Redoubt. The instant the German economy collapses, the German player should take a city fortress marker and deploy it to any German-controlled mountain hex within four hexes of Munich (2320). The marker is just that — a marker — it in no way changes the movement or combat characteristics of its location hex. Once placed, it remains on the map until the instant it's entered by a Grand Alliance unit. If the marker is still on the map at the end of the game, the German receives 2 VP.

Design/Historical Note. A central theme of the Third Reich during its closing days was the threat of establishing an Alpine "national redoubt," which was to serve as a core of last resistance. Historically, an entire Allied army group was diverted to abort this sham threat.

13.12 Führer-Mandated Offensives (FMOs). The German has nine FMO markers he may use to enhance his PAs during any of his combat phases throughout the game. He does so by placing all FMO markers he wishes to use during a given combat phase atop the units they will support. Such units must be in direct overland supply to a functioning Ruhr City hex.

The effect is to allow the supported PA(s) to be run on the Alliance odds ratio line on the CRT, rather than the normal German one. In cases of multi-hex German PAs, all stacks in the PA must get their own FMO counter; otherwise the FMO effect cannot be used in that attack.

In addition to the CRT change, all mech units that participate in an advance-after-combat in an FMO-PA may advance two hexes rather than just one. Further, those bonus-advancing mech units are also freed from the requirement of having to advance their first hex into the defender's vacated hex — they may instead simply advance into any two non-enemy-occupied hexes. (Just as in regular PAs, however, if the defender isn't first eliminated or retreated out of his hex, there is no advance at all.)

An FMO counter once committed is removed from play for the rest of the game (no replacement of any kind). All unused FMO counters are forfeit the instant the German economy collapses.

Design/Historical Note. The FMO markers represent the last hoarded logistics stocks, skilled junior officer and NCO cadres, pilots and aircraft, etc., available to the German armed forces.

13.13 German Flak Korps. (See 9.6 for their rules of game entry.) Flak units must always be the top unit of any stack of which they are a part. No more than one Flak unit may ever be located in a single hex. An involved Flak unit must always be the first step given up to satisfy any German defensive combat result. Any defending German stack containing a Flak unit receives a one column leftward CRT odds shift. (A lone Flak unit would not generate such a shift for itself; they must be stacked with at least one other non-Flak unit to receive it.) The 1AAA may never air drop into a hex containing a Flak Korps.

13.14 Hungarian & Italian Fascist units trace supply, and may cooperate in attacks with other German-side units just as if they were themselves German units. Remove any surviving Hungarian units the instant Budapest becomes Alliance controlled. Italian Fascist units may never leave Italy; Hungarian units may never leave Hungary.

14.0 World War III Scenarios

14.1 There are two WWIII scenarios. The first is played from Game Turn 11 (II May) through Game Turn 20 (I October). In that one the action only picks up after WWII is over, and carries on from there. It's also possible to begin playing the WWII scenario, then, providing the Grand Alliance team wins that one, divide into two new sides and go right into WWIII (see 14.19). In both cases, all the WWII rules for Smithereens also apply to the WWIII scenarios, except where herein added to, amended, or deleted.

14.2 The WWIII Straight-Up Scenario. This scenario starts after the Germans have been defeated. The Allied player takes all the forces he would normally have available by the end of Game Turn 10 of a WWII scenario and deploys them, all at full strength, in any hexes of the WWIII demarcation line on the map. Exception: The two airborne corps may be set up in or west of the line.

The Allied player may not stack any units in his initial set up: no more than one unit per hex.

The Allied player should also set up the four Swiss corps in the hexes indicated on those counters. Swiss units may not move unless that country's neutrality is violated by the Soviet player.

The Soviet player likewise takes all the forces he would normally have available at the end of Game Turn 10 and deploys them in any hexes west of the WWII demarcation line. Soviet-side units may be stacked in their initial setup. (The 8th Army may be included anywhere in the Red Army set up and is free to move normally in the WWII scenarios.)

Don't deploy the Yugoslav partisan units, only their mobile armies. In this scenario the Yugoslavs are considered neutral unless the Western Allied player elects to invade their territory. Until that happens, the Soviet may maneuver the Yugoslav units within their country as he sees fit, but they may not attack while still unviolated. There are no Yugoslavian replacements.

The Soviet player must reduce his Red Army units (not Yugoslavs) by a total of 13 steps, at least five of which must be mechanized. The Romanian, Bulgarian and Polish Communist units are deleted from the Soviet OB. (They defect, disperse homeward or into the underground as soon as the new war begins.) Also remove the Soviet aircraft unit.

14.3 Thunderclap. When playing the Straight Up WWIII Scenario, place the Operation Thunderclap marker in Dresden (3315). When playing the WWII-WWIII scenario, just leave the marker in whatever city it happened to be placed in during the WWII portion of the game. In either case, though the Thunderclapped city is treated as rough terrain, its VP value is still counted for victory determination.

14.4 Additional US Corps. The asterisked US 23rd and 36th Corps reached Europe historically too late to participate in WWII. Those units may, however, be added to the initial Allied placement for the Straight Up scenario (bring them in as Game Turn 11 reinforcements in the segue scenario).

14.5 Turn Order. The Soviet player turn is the first player turn every game turn. There is, of course, no German player turn. Play begins with the start of the Soviet Prepared Assault Phase of Game Turn (II May).

14.6 Winning. As reckoned in the WWII scenario, but now also adding Zurich and Bern 1 VP each, there are 72 VPs worth of cities on the maps. The Western Allied player is declared the winner if, at the end of Game Turn 20, he controls 65 or more of those VPs. The Soviet player is declared the winner if the Allies control 64 or fewer VPs at that point. The Soviet may also be declared the winner at any instant one of his units enters Antwerp or Zurich.

Design Note. If the Allied player decides not to violate Yugoslavia he gains for himself the non-participation of those units in the war against him, but he also allows Zagreb and Belgrade to remain outside his point count. The opposite is true for the two Swiss cities. That is, though Switzerland is a non-participant unless violated by the Soviet player, Zurich and Bern are already considered to be in the Allied point column.

The idea behind the Soviet "sudden death victory" for Antwerp or Zurich is that if the Soviets get to Zurich, they've so screwed up capitalist Europe's financial records, banking system, etc., that its post-WWIII reconstruction would be considerably delayed. If they get to Antwerp, the effect is of roughly the same magnitude, but this time it's the logistical support of the Allied armies that suffers. Hence, in game terms, by accomplishing either of those things, the Reds have played well enough to be declared the victor in this campaign.

14.7 Turn 15 Soviet Victory Check. Both players should survey the board at the very end of Game Turn 15 (July). If at that time the Soviet player's forces don't control at least 5 VPs worth of cities in and/or west of the WWIII demarcation line, the Allied player is declared the winner. Note that supply status is of no concern in this determination, and neither is the control status of any cities east of the line.

14.8 Replacements. Western Allied replacements remain exactly as they were in the WWII scenario. Soviet replacements are dropped to only two steps per turn in these scenarios, no more than one of which may be mechanized. There are no Soviet reinforcements in the WWIII scenarios.

14.9 Soviet Supply. Up through the end of Game Turn 15, Soviet supply lines are freed from the length limit given in 6.6. After that, the length limit is permanently re-imposed.

14.10 Vlassov Army Unit. This unit enters as a Western Allied reinforcement during that player's first turn (turn 11). It enters through the Allied-controlled city nearest to Prague at that point. The unit is mechanized, but it may not make MAs. It may not receive replacements.

14.11 Ukrainian Separatists. In this scenario all the marsh hexes east of the 21xxE hexrow and south of the Dvina River are controlled by guerrillas of the various nationalist Ukrainian separatist movements. In practice that means all those hexes have an intrinsic defense strength of "1," which resists Soviet (but not Western Allied) entry. If destroyed by Soviet PA attacks, the factor returns to every such hex the instant it's again empty of Soviet units. The guerrilla factors need no supply, and they can't retreat-after-combat.

14.12 Kiev. The first time (only!) the Allies launch a PA (not MA) into the Ukrainian capital city of Kiev, the partisans come in from the swamps and up from the sewers to join in the fight on the side of the Allies. The Allied player rolls one die after calculating his combat odds; that result is the number of rightward CRT odds shifts his attack receives due to the support of the rebels.

14.13 US A-Bombs. The Allied player receives two A-bombs as reinforcements on Game Turn 16. He may use one or both at the start of any of his player turns that game turn or thereafter. To do so, he simply places them atop any non-city hex on the map and eliminates any Soviet units underneath the marker at that instant. (No, for no perverse reason whatsoever can the Allied A-Bomb a hex containing his own units.)

After detonation, leave the blast marker on the map. The blasted hex has the properties of a rough terrain hex from then on, no matter what it was previously.

14.14 More A-Bombs. The two asterisked A-Bomb blast markers represent two additional weapons the Manhattan Project laboratories might produce within the time frame of this war's first campaigns. (There was only so much fissionable material on hand in 1945.) To try to obtain them, the Allied player rolls one die at the start of every one of his player turns after Game Turn 16. If he rolls a 1, he receives another bomb. No matter how many ones he rolls, though, there can never be more than four A-bombs entered into play per game, two automatically, and two by luck of the roll.

14.15 German Reinforcements. Before starting play, the Western Allied player should go through the German countermix and select nine non-SS 0-1-4 infantry units. Place one as a reinforcement in every box of the Turn Record Track from turn 12 through 20, inclusive. These units enter via Frankfurt (provided that city is Allied controlled and in supply to a west board edge hex or Antwerp), and are considered part of the US army grouping. (There are no German replacements.)

These German-Allied reinforcements may never enter any hex in or adjacent to The Protectorate. Further, they may not move east of the Oder River or west of the Rhine. Likewise, they may not enter Italy or any hexes adjacent to Yugoslavia or any hexes adjacent to those countries. Further, they may not enter Trieste or any hex adjacent to it, nor may they enter Switzerland.

14.16 Swiss Army Characteristics. Swiss units never leave Switzerland (even after a Soviet invasion of their country). They are always in supply in Switzerland, never stack with or co-operate in attacks with any other Allied units, and pay only 1 MP per hex no matter what its actual terrain type (plus any river-crossing costs). Their own stacking is like that of the Western Allies, up to three units per hex. There are no Swiss reinforcements or replacements.

14.17 Soviet Deterioration. The Soviets were close to the end of their resources by mid-1945, while the US war-making machine still had slack in it. As this campaign wears on, then, Soviet casualties and equipment losses become less and less replaceable in both the quantitative and qualitative senses. Accordingly, starting with Game Turn 16 (I August), the Soviet player must begin using the "German" odds ratio line on the CRT in all his attacks.

14.18 Allied Heavy Bombers. The Allied player has the WWII heavy bomber unit available for one combat assist during every one of his player turns.

14.19 WWII into WWIII. Players may choose to segue straight from WWII into WWIII. At the end of any WWII scenarios wherein the Grand Alliance team was declared the winner at the end of Game Turn 10, immediately remove any surviving German-side units, along with the Yugoslav partisans, the Bulgarians, the Romanians and the Polish Communists. Pick up any Yugoslav mobile units that may be outside their own country and place them back inside their territory (Soviet player). Put away the Soviet aircraft unit. Advance the turn marker to II May and go at it with all the rules above (but don't make the strength step adjustments given in 14.2, just start playing from where you are at that moment).

Design Note. Section 14.0 constructs a hypothetical World War III. Since there is no real "history" to follow, players should feel free to alter this section to suit their interests.

15.0 Designer's Notes

The roots of this game reach all the way back to the SPI seminar I attended at Origins '80. At the time, among all the other things going on in the hobby, there was the first sense the great era of Monster Game publishing had come to its end. When the panel of SPI staffers got a question from the floor on this, one of them answered that they had come to believe the future path for Monster Game publishing success lay along the route of "Mini-Monsters."

As an example of what he meant, he cited their (then) recent marketing success with Danny Parker's Ardennes Quad. That was a package of four half-map games that could be assembled together to make a large campaign game, with a map surface and counter-count equal to two regular-size games. Such titles were large when measured against magazine games, but were still small enough to be played on most dining room tables over the course of (at most) a weekend of gaming sessions.

"Ah ha," I thought, and tucked that knowledge away until I was able to make use of it — and here you have the result.

For purposes of measuring the game's historicity (which I'm satisfied is excellent), I'll offer you my list of main sources:

• Dominick, Graham and Selford Bidwell. Tug of War: The Battle for Italy, 1943-45. New York: St. Martins, 1986.
• Duffy, Christopher. Red Storm on the Reich. New York: Atheneum, 1991.
• Erickson, John. The Road to Berlin. Boulder, Colo.: Westview, 1983.
• Madeja, W. Victor. The Russo-German War: Autumn 1944 - January 1945, Book 34. Allentown, Pennsylvania: Valor, 1987.
• Madeja, W. Victor. The Russo-German War: 25 January - 8 May 1945, Book 35. Allentown, Penna.: Valor, 1987.
• Mitcham, Jr., Samuel W. Hitler's Legions: The German Army Order of Battle, World War II. New York: Stein & Day, 1985.
• Poirer, Robert G. and Conner, Albert Z. The Red Army Order of Battle in the Great Patriotic War. Novato, California: Presidio, 1985.
• Rosignoli, Guido. The Allied Forces in Italy, 1943-45. Devon, England: David & Charles, 1989.
• Schramm, Percy Ernst, et al. Kriegstagebuch des Oberkommandos der Wehrmacht, 1940-45. Munich: Bernard & Graef, 1982.

The game originally began with corps as the German units of maneuver, but that made them so thin on the ground I had to put in zone of control rules. It also necessitated a lot of abstraction and fudge with their replacements and reinforcements, while also lowering the overall counter-count to a less-than-monstrous level. Once I made the move to divisions for the Germans, everything came clear. Now you actually get to see the German army go to pieces. (But where's the Volkssturm, you might ask? Just where it was in real life, its myriad small units for the most part directly absorbed into the structure and operations of the nearest regular divisions.)

As an aside, I'll point out a lot of the German units that immediately get eliminated from play would've still been carried on the OKH/OKW books as active "divisions." But that's not my fault, nor is it a fault in the game; it's just der Führer wanting to see a lot of "divisions" marked on his situation maps. In reality (and in "real" game terms), those "ghost divisions" were as dead as the ones in your deadpiles.

Obviously, the factoring of so many German divisions, in all their various types and permutations, and with all their varied combat powers, required a lot of rounding and averaging. The system is not intended to display in detail the (relatively) small differences in the Kampfkraft of the multitude of German divisions. It is made to show what the German army had become in broad measure by late 1944: a large mob of more-or-less indistinguishable rifle outfits, buttressed and backstopped by an ever dwindling force of mechanized and paratrooper elites.

We've managed to bring all this together to land Smithereens well on the sunny side of the Monster Game playability range. True, German stacks can get a bit unwieldy, but their no-retreat and no-deadpile-replacement rules keep you from having to do much delicate picking among those stacks. The large 5/8" counters also help stabilize things.

It can take an hour for one person to set up Smithereens; but there's really no help for Monster Gamers determined to do it solitaire; if players work together as laid out in section 3.0, that time can be halved.

One thing that may pleasantly surprise many of you who've played my earlier designs on these campaigns is the simplicity of the supply rules. I was able to do that without sacrificing historicity simply because by 16 December 1944 the logistical evolutions and struggles of the war in Europe were pretty much already over. The Western Allies were fully up and running after getting Antwerp on line; the Soviets had their own more primitive systems operating to their maximum potentials; and the Germans (though certainly and rapidly declining) were back on their home turf, no longer having to worry about how to transport ever-insufficient quantities of supply over daunting distances.

The odds chart, with its characteristic of constant attacker attrition, is another way I worked to "build in" the overall supply situation. On the German side it shows just how tactically brittle they'd become. There's no attack they can launch that won't cost them some irreplaceable strength. For the Alliance armies, it works more as a logistical break. That is, they simply can't push too far, too quickly, with any given force, or it'll just melt down to impotence (and thereby expose itself to easy counterattack).

Within the genre of Monster Games itself, then, I'm satisfied we've published a more than satisfactory product. Of course, we're also hoping many of those who've until now stayed away from Monster Games will finally take the plunge with Smithereens, and thus find out how much fun playing a well-thought-out big game can be.

The only thing I see about the game that might still keep some hanging back is the main scenario models a "desperate defense" situation in which one side, no matter how the victory conditions actually make things turn out, always appears to get clobbered. And I have to admit, I've never understood the reluctance some have in playing such games — I've always found them exhilarating.

To me, there's little in our hobby more satisfying than finishing a "desperate defense" game as the commander of the "clobbered" side. As you toss your last unit or stack into the deadpile, and your opponent starts to puff up to begin his victory song, you calmly flip to the appropriate section of the rulebook and say, "Hmmm. Let's see. That leaves me with — it looks like — yes — I win. When I took back that city it gave me just enough VPs."

"Duh," he says, as he deflates and reaches to check the rulebook for himself.

No other kind of gaming victory is quite so sweet.

Managing the play of the side that is getting clobbered during the game itself is liberating. You've nothing to lose; you're as good as dead anyway, so go for the gusto. A 17th century Japanese writer, Yamamoto Tsunetomo, probably best summed up the spirit needed for this type of play when he wrote the following (which I've here paraphrased into Smithereens terms):

Above all, the Way of the German player should be in being aware that you do not know what is going to happen next, and in parrying every Grand Alliance thrust day and night. Victory and defeat are but matters of the temporary force of circumstance. The Way of avoiding shame is different. It is simply in death. Even if it seems certain you will lose, counterattack. Neither wisdom nor technique has a place in this. A real German player does not think of victory or defeat. He plunges recklessly toward Antwerp and an irrational death. By doing this, you will awaken from your dreams.

16.0 Charts & Tables

16.1 Terrain Effects Chart (TEC) — on map.

16.2 Combat Results Table (CRT)

The CRT is printed with a "Die Roll" column and nine odds columns. Each column has two odds headings: the upper one is the "German" line (used for German attacks other than FMOs) and the lower one is the "Allies / FMO" line (used for Grand Alliance attacks and German FMOs).

Die Roll	1:3 (German) / 1:4 (Allies/FMO)	1:2 / 1:3	1:1 / 1:2	2:1 / 1:1	3:1 / 2:1	4:1 / 3:1	5:1 / 4:1	6:1 / 5:1	7:1 / 6:1
1	4/0	4/0	3/0	2/0	2/1	1/1	1/1	1/2	1/3
2	4/0	3/0	2/0	2/1	1/1	1/1	1/2	1/3	1/3
3

Odds worse than 1:3/1:4 are treated as 1:3/1:4. Odds greater than 7:1/6:1 are treated as 7:1/6:1.

Transcription note: the printed example in 11.22 reads "3:1/4:1" with a die roll of "3"; the German 4:1 column at roll 3 gives 1/2, consistent with the printed result.

16.3 Player Aids

Players are encouraged to photocopy charts.

Step-By-Step Turn Sequence

Soviet Player Turn

1. Take Replacements (9.12)
2. Enter Reinforcements (9.3)
3. Move and Mobile Assault (10.0, 12.0)
4. Prepared Assaults (11.0)

Western Allied Player Turn

1. Take Replacements (9.14)
2. Enter Reinforcements (9.4)
3. Start Inter-Front Transfer Movement (10.35)
4. 1AAA Drop or Air Supply Declaration (13.1)
5. Move and Mobile Assault (10.0, 12.0)
6. Prepared Assaults (11.0)
7. End Inter-Front Transfer Movement (10.35)

German Player Turn

1. Take Replacements (9.15)
2. Enter Reinforcements (9.5)
3. Begin Strategic Movement (10.29)
4. Begin Baltic Sea Movement (10.30ff)
5. Move and Mobile Assault (10.0, 12.0)
6. Prepared Assaults (11.0)
7. End Strategic Movement (10.29)
8. End Baltic Sea Movement (10.30ff)

City Victory Point Values (4.2)

• Berlin - 5
• Budapest - 2
• Kiev - 2
• Prague - 2
• Vienna - 2
• Warsaw - 2
• All Others - 1

Non-Terrain Odds Shifters

• Ground Support Aircraft: 1L/1R (13.5, 13.6)
• German Flak Defense: 1L (13.13)
• Soviet Artillery in Soviet PA: 1R (13.4)
• Concentric PA: 1R (11.10)

Italian Theater Peculiarities

1. Allies may always examine German stacks (11.7).
2. No more than two non-mech units may use strategic movement into/out of Italy each turn (10.27).
3. Italian Fascist units never leave (10.25).
4. All German-side units with printed MFs >4 starting their movement in Italy are considered to have printed MPs of 4 (10.27).
5. Western Allies must maintain at least 6 corps until German economic collapse or there are no supplied Axis units in Italy (3.12).
6. No German strategic movement into/out of Italy once any Alliance unit has entered any hex of the ATC (10.27).

Soviet Artillery Characteristics

1. Non-replaceable (9.10).
2. May be the 4th unit in Soviet stacks, but never more than one arty per hex (8.4).
3. May MA, but only when stacked with at least one non-arty mech unit (12.16).
4. May not attack in any way when OOS (13.4).
5. Must be the last step given up in any MA (12.16).
6. Generate a one-column right shift for Soviet PAs (13.4).

German Economic Collapse

The instant collapse occurs, all German units except those drawing in-city supply (6.16) or Courland supply (6.17) become OOS. Plus:

1. All German strategic movement capability ends (10.28).
2. All German Baltic Sea movement capability ends (10.30ff).
3. Permanently remove all Luftwaffe aircraft units (13.5).
4. Immediately place the five Luftwaffe Flak Korps (9.6).
5. All unused FMO markers are forfeit (13.12).
6. German mech units lose the ability to make MAs (section 12.0).
7. All German replacement-step generation (if any is still going on, see 9.15) stops (reinforcements continue).
8. German naval gun support is no longer available (13.10).

Transcription note: the printed player aids cross-reference Courland supply as 6.17 in the German Economic Collapse box; this is kept as printed (the Courland rule is 6.18).

Transcription note: the Western Allied and German unit legend graphic on the final page of the source, and the product blurb, designer and publisher credits, and price block on the same page, are not transcribed.