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Last year – possibly before that, maybe late in 2007, I started to design a large scale campaign game based in North Africa. Here is the map. This is a composite map that I hand drew based entirely maps from the History department of US War College at West Point.
I think this map is great – instead of irregular shapes the territories are broken up into squares. I think squares best represent the nothingness of space in the desert. The only important things in the desert are roads, towns and natural choke points. Therefore squares work nicely. Along with the squares you’ll notice six large boxes underneath the overall map above. These boxes are historically accurate maps of important battlefields in North Africa. From right to left they are El Alamein, Tobruk, Mareth Line, Hill 609, Longstop Hill and Kasserine Pass. Each one of these battlefields is represented on the overall map by a white outlined shape. The battlefields exist because they are around towns, roads or natural choke points. Thus these battles will need to be fought in order to complete the objective of the campaign – which for the Allies is to drive Italy and Germany from North Africa and for the Axis it is to capture Alexandria and drive the British out of Egypt.
Ok so how do we do this? I’ve compiled a list of all the units that fought in North Africa from 1940 to the final Axis surrender in 1943. I’ve paired down this list to start the campaign on February 1941. This is when the first German division arrived and it relieves us of having to create the catastrophe that was the Italian Armies collapse to the British in operation Compass.
Looking at the division lists over the period of 2/41 to 4/43 the Axis have 18 divisions to the Allied 19. Remarkably even! However when you apply the calendar of when those divisions were put into the field it becomes much more clear as to who has the strategic upper hand.
So here is my initial working idea. Each player will be assigned a division or a number of divisions. These divisions will be made up of regiments. Each division can contain up to four regiments. Each regiment will be worth a certain amount of points. The division will also have a certain amount of divisional reserve points. On the overall map the division will be represented by a single piece. Once it enters a battlefield the division will “break” into its regiments.
Each division will have its own division card that the commander of that division will be responsible for maintaining the divisions regiment count (remember that a division can have 1-4 regiments), supply and divisional reserve points. When two opposing division meet on the overall map the players decide which regiment they are going to fight with – and then apply extra points. A regiment will be a Flames of War army list with points that can only be spent on HQ, Combat and Weapons platoons. Any support points are made up from the division reserve points or are taken from a different regiment from the division that isn’t participating in the battle.
Confused? Here’s an example: Jerry the German fighting Tom the Tommie British. Jerry’s 21st Panzer division attacks Tom’s 9th Australian Division at a square on the overall map. Jerry’s division is made up of 2 panzer regiments with 1000 points each and he has 500 points in divisional reserve. He attacks with 1000 points from one of his panzer regiments and uses an additional 450 points from the division reserve to purchase support platoons making a 1450 point force.
Tom the Tommie has 4 infantry regiments in his division and 200 points in divisional reserve. But Tom’s regiments are worn down by battle he has 1 at 800 points, 2 at 500 and 1 at 300. He puts up his strongest regiment against Jerry, the one at 800, plus the 200 points from division reserve, bringing his force total to 1000. Then he takes 250 from each of the regiments that have 500, giving him a force total of 1500 and leaving his remaining divisional regiments with, 250, 250, and 300.
Tom and Jerry fight the battle – platoon losses in the battle are deducted from either the regiment points or divisional reserve points. For example: Jerry lost a PzIV platoon worth 450 points – the regiment that used to have 1000 points now has 550.
After all the battles are done for the turn there is a supply phase where new divisions, regiments and points will enter the campaign and depending on the supply situation commanders will allocate points to regiments or divisional reserve.
I’ve still got a ton of work to do on the Calendar – figuring out when regiments and divisions will arrive, creating a good balance, figuring out the amount of movement and supply but using the very well designed and organized new Flames of War Africa book I don’t have to figure out the very time consuming and labor intensive concept of force complexion.
I’m excited about North Africa it’s going to be a very cool campaign. I don’t know when it will be read to play, certainly months away. I’m striving to design a campaign that is fun, relatively quick moving, creates an emotional attachment to your forces and is historical in setting but the outcome is determined by the player.
That’s it for now. You input is welcome.
I think this map is great – instead of irregular shapes the territories are broken up into squares. I think squares best represent the nothingness of space in the desert. The only important things in the desert are roads, towns and natural choke points. Therefore squares work nicely. Along with the squares you’ll notice six large boxes underneath the overall map above. These boxes are historically accurate maps of important battlefields in North Africa. From right to left they are El Alamein, Tobruk, Mareth Line, Hill 609, Longstop Hill and Kasserine Pass. Each one of these battlefields is represented on the overall map by a white outlined shape. The battlefields exist because they are around towns, roads or natural choke points. Thus these battles will need to be fought in order to complete the objective of the campaign – which for the Allies is to drive Italy and Germany from North Africa and for the Axis it is to capture Alexandria and drive the British out of Egypt.
Ok so how do we do this? I’ve compiled a list of all the units that fought in North Africa from 1940 to the final Axis surrender in 1943. I’ve paired down this list to start the campaign on February 1941. This is when the first German division arrived and it relieves us of having to create the catastrophe that was the Italian Armies collapse to the British in operation Compass.
Looking at the division lists over the period of 2/41 to 4/43 the Axis have 18 divisions to the Allied 19. Remarkably even! However when you apply the calendar of when those divisions were put into the field it becomes much more clear as to who has the strategic upper hand.
So here is my initial working idea. Each player will be assigned a division or a number of divisions. These divisions will be made up of regiments. Each division can contain up to four regiments. Each regiment will be worth a certain amount of points. The division will also have a certain amount of divisional reserve points. On the overall map the division will be represented by a single piece. Once it enters a battlefield the division will “break” into its regiments.
Each division will have its own division card that the commander of that division will be responsible for maintaining the divisions regiment count (remember that a division can have 1-4 regiments), supply and divisional reserve points. When two opposing division meet on the overall map the players decide which regiment they are going to fight with – and then apply extra points. A regiment will be a Flames of War army list with points that can only be spent on HQ, Combat and Weapons platoons. Any support points are made up from the division reserve points or are taken from a different regiment from the division that isn’t participating in the battle.
Confused? Here’s an example: Jerry the German fighting Tom the Tommie British. Jerry’s 21st Panzer division attacks Tom’s 9th Australian Division at a square on the overall map. Jerry’s division is made up of 2 panzer regiments with 1000 points each and he has 500 points in divisional reserve. He attacks with 1000 points from one of his panzer regiments and uses an additional 450 points from the division reserve to purchase support platoons making a 1450 point force.
Tom the Tommie has 4 infantry regiments in his division and 200 points in divisional reserve. But Tom’s regiments are worn down by battle he has 1 at 800 points, 2 at 500 and 1 at 300. He puts up his strongest regiment against Jerry, the one at 800, plus the 200 points from division reserve, bringing his force total to 1000. Then he takes 250 from each of the regiments that have 500, giving him a force total of 1500 and leaving his remaining divisional regiments with, 250, 250, and 300.
Tom and Jerry fight the battle – platoon losses in the battle are deducted from either the regiment points or divisional reserve points. For example: Jerry lost a PzIV platoon worth 450 points – the regiment that used to have 1000 points now has 550.
After all the battles are done for the turn there is a supply phase where new divisions, regiments and points will enter the campaign and depending on the supply situation commanders will allocate points to regiments or divisional reserve.
I’ve still got a ton of work to do on the Calendar – figuring out when regiments and divisions will arrive, creating a good balance, figuring out the amount of movement and supply but using the very well designed and organized new Flames of War Africa book I don’t have to figure out the very time consuming and labor intensive concept of force complexion.
I’m excited about North Africa it’s going to be a very cool campaign. I don’t know when it will be read to play, certainly months away. I’m striving to design a campaign that is fun, relatively quick moving, creates an emotional attachment to your forces and is historical in setting but the outcome is determined by the player.
That’s it for now. You input is welcome.
I'd like to use the fallschirmjager.
ReplyDeleteBri
This is excatly what I'm talking about - The Germans would get Gruppe Hecker (Fallschirmjager) in January 1942 as a regiment and then in November 42 they would get another Fallschirmjager regiment along with the Von Broich Division. It would be impossible to play Fallschirmjagers through the entire campaign as there are only two regiments out of a total of 29 German regiments - so when you do get to play the paras it'll mean something, and you'll probably be replacing their losses before Italain losses... it's a delicate balance.
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