This is a house rule designed to make the game more "historic" and difficult to win as the Axis.
When Italy joins the war no additional Axis air or ground units can be deployed to North Africa until either condition 1 or 2 is met:
1) The Allies capture Tobruk, Benghasi, or reach the Mersa Brega position;
2) The Axis conquers Greece.
On Turn 22 (October 25 1940) the Axis player MUST declare war on Greece.
The Axis player CANNOT declare war against the USSR until both Yugoslavia and Greece are conquered.
As a balance for the Axis, I would recommend editing the the maximum partisan size down to 5, and raising the USSR surprise bonus to 40 or 50.
Just a suggestion.
Mussolini Idiocy Rule
Moderators: firepowerjohan, rkr1958, Happycat, Slitherine Core
I've never been a fan of these types of rules. It makes the game too scripted. Plus, there could be such rules for all the major powers.
i.e., best French troops immediately moved into Belgium on German DOW of Belgium.
British must send expeditionary forces to Norway, France (this wasn't idiocy, it was just politically essential), Greece, etc. upon Axis attack
Allies must invade Italy before attacking France (this also wasn't idiocy although in hindsight it may not have been the best strategy. But in any case, Churchill really, really, wanted to do it)!
i.e., best French troops immediately moved into Belgium on German DOW of Belgium.
British must send expeditionary forces to Norway, France (this wasn't idiocy, it was just politically essential), Greece, etc. upon Axis attack
Allies must invade Italy before attacking France (this also wasn't idiocy although in hindsight it may not have been the best strategy. But in any case, Churchill really, really, wanted to do it)!
He wanted to protect the British influence in the Mediterranean. Not really relevant to the game.Churchill really, really, wanted to do it)!
This is easy - the French could suffer morale loss if there is no BEF, i.e. they would fold quicker.British must send expeditionary forces to Norway, France (this wasn't idiocy, it was just politically essential)
I disagree. It wasn't necessary to attack the Balkans and there are already rules in place which make both paths viable. The only thing that could be changed is to make garrisons in Venice and Tirana immovable unless Italy is at war with Yugoslavia/Greece or Italian mainland is invaded, as the Italians wouldn't leave those places undefended if the Balkan nations can potentially be a threat to Italian possessions.On Turn 22 (October 25 1940) the Axis player MUST declare war on Greece.
The Axis player CANNOT declare war against the USSR until both Yugoslavia and Greece are conquered.
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Peter Stauffenberg
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I think we already have enough rules for making the Germans want to DoW these countries voluntarily.
1. Axis DoW upon Yugoslavia.
Hungary will release 1 corps and Romania 2 corps from the defense against Yugoslavia. Those can be used as partisan hunters or on the east front. You also get Romania early so you get the Ploesti oilfield producing precious oil before they join automatically in November 1940.
2. Axis DoW upon Greece
Bulgaria will release 2 corps from the defense against Greece.
3. Axis DoW upon Norway
The Germans can place Kriegsmarine units in Norwegian ports to reduce the risk of Swedish iron ore interdiction. If Norway is neutral then the Allies can place surface ships near the Norwegian coastal cities and interdict the iron ore partly or fully. The value of the iron ore is 6 PP's per turn * war effort. So it's almost 8 German PP's per turn. Ensuring that these PP's get home in non-fair northern weather turns is very important and a good reason to DoW Norway.
The Germans will also get an extra corps unit in northern Finland (unit coming from north Norway to fight in Finland).
4. French morale
The French are already suffering 20 morale loss when Brussels falls. Their defense line collapses fast if there is no BEF present. If you start Case Yellow in March 1940 you should be in Paris in June 1940. If the BEF is present you can delay the fall time 1-2 turns. That means that Sealion is less likely if you can do a Dunkirk evacuation instead of having the BEF units destroyed.
1. Axis DoW upon Yugoslavia.
Hungary will release 1 corps and Romania 2 corps from the defense against Yugoslavia. Those can be used as partisan hunters or on the east front. You also get Romania early so you get the Ploesti oilfield producing precious oil before they join automatically in November 1940.
2. Axis DoW upon Greece
Bulgaria will release 2 corps from the defense against Greece.
3. Axis DoW upon Norway
The Germans can place Kriegsmarine units in Norwegian ports to reduce the risk of Swedish iron ore interdiction. If Norway is neutral then the Allies can place surface ships near the Norwegian coastal cities and interdict the iron ore partly or fully. The value of the iron ore is 6 PP's per turn * war effort. So it's almost 8 German PP's per turn. Ensuring that these PP's get home in non-fair northern weather turns is very important and a good reason to DoW Norway.
The Germans will also get an extra corps unit in northern Finland (unit coming from north Norway to fight in Finland).
4. French morale
The French are already suffering 20 morale loss when Brussels falls. Their defense line collapses fast if there is no BEF present. If you start Case Yellow in March 1940 you should be in Paris in June 1940. If the BEF is present you can delay the fall time 1-2 turns. That means that Sealion is less likely if you can do a Dunkirk evacuation instead of having the BEF units destroyed.
Just to clarify, I wasn't advocating any of the things I mentioned! As I mentioned in response to the original poster, I don't like these kinds of rules as they lead to a game that is too scripted and misses that "what if?" factor.
I just noted a couple more possibilities to show that there is essentially no limit to these types of rules, once you go down that road. You could come up with similar rules for basically all the major powers. Indeed, there could be many "Stalin" and "Hitler" rules too!
I just noted a couple more possibilities to show that there is essentially no limit to these types of rules, once you go down that road. You could come up with similar rules for basically all the major powers. Indeed, there could be many "Stalin" and "Hitler" rules too!
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Peter Stauffenberg
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The GS development team is reluctant to script players to repeat the blunders of the rear war. Therefore we don't want to force players to DoW any country. E. g. Germany would probably not have DoW'ed Greece if Mussolini hadn't been so stupid to engage in a war there. Instead we have an indirect effect because Bulgaria won't be as useful to the Germans if Greece is still neutral.
In the real war there was a coup in Yugoslavia so the Government changes side from pro-Axis to pro-Allied. That meant Germany DoW'ed Yugoslavia to pacify the unrest on Balkans. Again we have an indirect method of dealing with Yugoslavia because Hungary and Romania won't be as useful with a neutral Yugoslavia.
Since CeaW doesn't have diplomacy as a play option it doesn't seem fair to have chances for neutral powers to join certain sides, e. g. like Yugoslavia joining the Allies or Axis. Each game is different and with a diplomatic option then players would have tried to sway certain countries to their side or prevent them from joining the enemy. We don't have that option in GS and that means it's unfair to have a random roll determining everything.
I feel that the neutral powers work pretty well in GS v2.01. Most players seem to DoW the same countries as in the real war and they do it because they want to and not because they have to according to a script. I believe that's better for a strategic game where you play the leader of major powers. Then YOU decide where to attack and when.
In the real war there was a coup in Yugoslavia so the Government changes side from pro-Axis to pro-Allied. That meant Germany DoW'ed Yugoslavia to pacify the unrest on Balkans. Again we have an indirect method of dealing with Yugoslavia because Hungary and Romania won't be as useful with a neutral Yugoslavia.
Since CeaW doesn't have diplomacy as a play option it doesn't seem fair to have chances for neutral powers to join certain sides, e. g. like Yugoslavia joining the Allies or Axis. Each game is different and with a diplomatic option then players would have tried to sway certain countries to their side or prevent them from joining the enemy. We don't have that option in GS and that means it's unfair to have a random roll determining everything.
I feel that the neutral powers work pretty well in GS v2.01. Most players seem to DoW the same countries as in the real war and they do it because they want to and not because they have to according to a script. I believe that's better for a strategic game where you play the leader of major powers. Then YOU decide where to attack and when.
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Peter Stauffenberg
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