Arctic Strike Rules part 2

House Rules

“Off-Table” Artillery

Artillery is divided into two classes. 

Medium artillery consists of guns of 159mm and less and multiple rocket launchers. Medium artillery is limited in its range.  Medium Artillery can target enemy units on the same table only.

Heavy artillery consists of guns of greater than 159mm calibre and heavy rockets.  It may target enemy units on the same or an adjacent table.  The Soviet 130mm gun also counts as Heavy artillery.

Naval Gunfire support counts as Heavy artillery for this purpose and is available to Warsaw Pact forces on the Tromsø-Lyngenfjord table, to neither side on the Bjerkvik table (the Navies are too busy contesting control of the coastal waters) and to both sides on the Bodø and the E6 table (though this may change).

Air Superiority

The tables are to be divided into 9 sectors:

• Kola Peninsula (Warpac rear area)
• Norwegian Sea (Warpac rear area)
• Tromsø (southern half of Tromsø - Lyngen Fjord table)
• Lyngen Fjord (northern half of Tromsø - Lyngen Fjord table)
• Bjerkvik
• Bodø (southern half of Bodø and the E6 table)
• The E6 (northern half of Bodø and the E6 table)
• Lappland (Allied rear area)
• The Road South (Allied rear area)

Each side has a number of squadrons equal to the number of fighter aircraft

models available (to encourage people to produce fun toys) up to a maximum of

15 a side.

Each hour of real time (using a kitchen timer) fighter squadrons are

allocated to a sector by a staff officer of each side. Allocation is done using

playing cards whose values add up to 15 (Jokers count as zero). Playing cards are placed face down and revealed once all of them have been placed.  

Thus the Soviet Staff Officer might place three Aces (one squadron each) to

cover the Kola Peninsula, Norwegian Sea and Tromsø sectors, twos for Bjerkvik and 

the E6 and save eight squadrons to try and establish air superiority over Bodø.

Compare the number of fighter squadrons allocated to a sector (see page 9 of the

rules for the effect):

• Equal - Contested
• Greater but not double - Partial Air Superiority
• Double or greater but not treble - Full Air Superiority
• Treble or greater - Air Supremacy (as full air superiority but the smaller side loses one fighter squadron for the rest of the game).

If one side fails to contest air superiority in a sector (by placing only a Joker in that sector) then the other side has Full Air Superiority.

If neither side contests air superiority in a sector, both sides may use air support in that sector with none of the effects on page 9 applying. 

After determining who has air superiority in a sector place fighter models as follows to remind players:

Status	Models
Contested	One fighter from each side
Partial Air Superiority	One fighter
Full Air Superiority	Two fighters
Air Supremacy	Two fighters

Air Support

The “mud movers” are available to Brigade/Regimental commanders as allocated by their side’s Army/Corps Commander and/or Staff Officer.  Allocated aircraft become available to them as if they had been bought as part of the relevant battlegroup until either they are lost due to enemy action or until the kitchen timer rings to indicate that air superiority needs to be reestablished.

Note that if air superiority is contested over a sector (see page 9 of the CWC rules) neither side can receive air support.

Each hour the Staff Officers (if present, umpires otherwise) each roll 2d6 to determine how many ground attack flights are available to their side.  What these aircraft actually are is then determined by drawing an air support card.  One such card will be made up for each available ground attack aircraft model.

Aircraft unused at the end of the hour are removed and their cards returned to the deck.

Aircraft with roles other than close air support will also be given cards but will be limited to specific functions.  For example deep interdiction aircraft slow down inter-table movement, supply aircraft can be used to supply airborne battlegroups (see below).

Scheduled Air Strikes

Players wishing to schedule air attacks at the start of the game should make their intentions clear to the umpires before the game so suitable arrangements can be made.

Simple Logistics Rules

Each brigade-sized battlegroup has a CO unit. Each CO unit starts with three

line-or-resource-indicators (LORIs) and a supply base.

Using the same kitchen-timer-based approach (as per the aircraft rules - every

real hour I suggest) a CO that has had any units in combat must remove a LORI

and place it at his supply base.

Units reduced to one LORI are at -1 on all command rolls.

Units reduced to no LORIs are at -2 on all command rolls and suffer a command

blunder on a roll of 11 or 12.

LORIs are treated as truck transport units in game terms.

COs may place their supply base anywhere they wish. Supply bases

close to the forward edge of the battle area will be more vulnerable but will be

able to resupply the front line troops more quickly.

Supply depots move like infantry. They have 6 hits but no saves. They may not

be targeted by fire but may be caught in the blast radius of artillery or air

support. They are hit on sixes in all all circumstances and may be suppressed

in which case they cannot move. Supply bases can be overrun by the enemy in

which case they are lost.

Suggestions for LORI Markers

Unit	LORI Marker Suggestions	Movement Rate
Infantry	Truck	20cm
Armoured	Truck, Tracked Supply Vehicle (E.g. M548)	20cm
Artillery	Truck, Tracked Supply Vehicle (E.g. M992)	20cm

Airborne Battlegroups

Airborne battlegroups would realistically be resupplied by air.  The following rules are suggested to reflect this.  

An airborne battlegroup’s supply base should be modelled with canisters, parachutes or maybe palleted helicopter-loads.  The base may not move during the game.  The airborne CO unit is in supply as long as it remains in contact with the supply base.

If the player/side has brought along transport helicopters or fixed wing aircraft, these will be given the cards like ground support aircraft and, if deployed in support of the battlegroup, will allow it to move its CO and/or supply dump when command units are moved. 

Broken Battlegroups

A battlegroup which breaks (assessed according to the usual breakpoint rules on page 41 of the CWC rulebook) will immediately be moved back to the appropriate rear area table to regroup.

A broken battlegroup may not move or fight until rallied.  To rally its CO must make a command roll using half of its modified CV (rounded down).  If a battlegroup has lost its CO (remember, a destroyed CO can only be replaced once) then the battlegroup must be rallied by another friendly CO.

Command Units of a regrouped battlegroup suffer a -1 modifier to their CV for the remainder of the game.

Movement Between Tables

Each Rear Area table has road exit points to a main table.  These connect directly to roads on the baselines of the relevant main tables.  Forces can move between the main tables by moving to the relevant Rear Area table.  It takes a fixed number of turns to move between tables.  Units en route between tables will be marked with a die to show the number of turns before their arrival.

Special air support cards may impact on transit times between tables.

Note that units may not be held in reserve “just off table”.  Commanders who wish to retain an off table reserve must deploy it on a rear area table, accept the transit time from that table, and attempt to deploy the reserves onto the main table as soon as they arrive.   

Reconnaissance

For Arctic Strike it has been agreed that we will use the Recce rules from FWC, they are presented below for players to familiarise themselves.

Recce units only do anything clever in initiative phase choose from  move, communicate or shoot. I have never seen the last done as it is almost always pointless.

move : roll a d6. You can make this number of normal movement 'hops' anytime during the command phase. So you can move first or last, or anything in between. Normally you move either to provoke Opp fire [and hence reveal units] or wait until it has been used and then move safely. Unless you roll crap, you can go almost anywhere. 6 x 30 cm is a long way.

communicate - roll a d6. 1 is auto failure. Otherwise : succeed up to 20, 30, 40, 50 or 60 cm distance to the nearest enemy unit. LOS is NOT required. If you succeed you can choose to bolster the CV of the nearest commander by +1, or allow an FAO to direct fire against that unit, or allow an FAC to direct a strike against that unit, or reveal a concealed unit to the rest of your army - which can then shoot at it if given a successful order and units have LOS.

• recce ignore other recce - you can't use them to target each other. [Don't ask me, thats the rules. It stops a war of the recce units breaking out].
• recce never receive orders, so command distance is irrelevant.
• recce always count one cover class better vs direct fire. No benefit vs indirect fire.
• recce cannot initiate close assault
• recce fight vs close assault like all other troops
• recce can support other troops in close assault and may use response fire like other troops.
• you can never boost any commander's CV by more than +1
• recce obey the movement rules for their normal movement -foot or wheels or tracks or whatever

Repair Units

A repair unit may be attached to any one command (i.e. to any battlegroup led by a CO unit).  The unit is treated as the appropriate type of vehicle for the base model (e.g. if the model is a T-34 ARV, use the hits and save value of a T-34 tank).

At the end of Saturday’s play the command to which the Repair Unit may attempt to recover knocked out vehicles.   1d6x10% of the vehicle units it has lost (rounding up) will be available on Sunday morning.  Recovered vehicles must be placed with 10cm of the repair unit.

Medical Units

A Medical Unit may be attached to any one command (i.e. to any battlegroup led by a CO unit).  Medical Units move like infantry and have 6 hits and no saves. They may not be targeted by fire but may be caught in the blast radius of artillery or air support. They are hit on 6’s in all circumstances

At the end of Saturday’s play the command to which the Medical Unit is attached may attempt to recover knocked out infantry units.   1d6x10% of the infantry units it has lost (rounding up) will be available on Sunday morning.  Replaced infantry units must be placed within 10cm of the Medical Unit.

Electronic Warfare Unit

The electronic warfare unit may be attached to any one command (i.e. to any battlegroup led by a CO unit).  The unit is treated like a specialised Recce unit.  It may act in one of two modes:

• ECCM Mode - using a recce action in the Initiative Phase it may roll 1d6.  On a score of 6 all command units in the battlegroup add +1 to their CV for the remainder of the turn.

• ECM Mode - using a recce action in the Initiative Phase it may roll 1d6.  On a score of 6 all enemy command units within 50cm of the EW unit deduct +1 to their CV for the whole of the following player turn.

The unit is treated as the appropriate type of vehicle for the base model (e.g. if the model is a modified Ural 375 truck, use the hits and save value of a truck unit).

Note that this is a Recce Action.  The Recce rules on page 10 apply. 

The special rules for individual national forces will follow in part 3.