January 16th, 2011

www.mikugames.com

Newsletter №17

© 2011 Mikugames

IKUGA ESM

THE

FINNISHTRILOGY1939-1945®

Dear Gamers!Here are the latest news from Mikugames.Abbreviations: WW = Winter War, CW = Continuation War, LW = Lapland War.Art.= Artillery, How.= Howitzer. For other abbreviations, see earlier Newsletters.

What’s happening right now?(1) Basically all OOBs are finished. Starting next week, I will continue with the initial set-up for all campaigns and scenarios, to find out if I have missed anything in the OOBs (which I most certainly have). The Finnish OOB for CW has been ridiculously difficult to make, due to all organisational changes the Finnish army made during the position (trench) war period '42-'44. I found a very accurate Russian source on the internet, that forced me to make a lot of adjustments (call it improvements) for the Soviet CW OOB. This have put me behind the scedule with several weeks, but all for the best. I have felt that before I can properly do any playtesting, I want the OOBs and units to be as accurate as possible. All OOBs are really starting to become the way I want them to. The minor (introductory) scenarios are very sensitive for errors in the OOBs (e.g. if an important unit is missing for one side). This Newsletter will focus a lot on the OOBs for a very good reason, they are the essence in a historical simulation. The playtest starts from here, the initial set-up...(3) ...I'm halfway through the set-up for both the WW & CW. In the next Newsletter (#18), I will show you various initial set-ups and start to play a scenario. I have decided to playtest on my computer at first, before moving on to the boardgame. I need to redo some of the units that have been improved (glue and cut that is).(2) As usual, I have created some new units and markers, while others have been improved. Some examples are included in this Newsletter.

UNITSRemoving Units (CW/LW)Some units have been removed from the CW and LW games. After closer study, these units did either not take part vs. Finns, or were not otherwise needed in the trilogy. In this way, their space on the countersheets have been used for other units, or contributed to reduce the number of countersheets in LW.

Added Divisional Artillery Units (CW)The Red Army went through many organisational changes during World War II, especially divisional artillery. As explained in Newsletter #16, when the Continuation War began, each Soviet Rfl.Div. had one Field Art.Rgt (24 Art.pcs.) and one How.Art.Rgt (36 Art.pcs.). By '42, most of the How.Art.Rgt's had been removed and each Rfl.Div. now included only one Art.Rgt (36 Art.pcs.). The removal of certain units mentioned earlier, gave me the possibility to include an additional Art.Rgt for each Division that has a How.Art.Rgt at start. When the How.Art.Rgt is to be removed according to the OOB, the Field (Lt) Art.Rgt is converted for a slightly stronger Art.Rgt. This feature will add even more accuracy in the CW game. Rfl.Div's that enter the game in '42 or later, will already feature the stronger Art.Rgt. The example here is the two Art.Rgt's of the 122nd Rfl.Div:

369 гап 285 лап 285 ап The 369th How.Art.Rgt is removed from play, while the 285th Lt Field Art.Rgt is converted for the stronger Rgt (placed in the same hex).

369

122

7•-5-6 2

REMOVE!

285

122

7•-2-3 2

CONVERT!

285

122

7•-3-4 2

Same hex

Many changes were made within the Finnish artillery units as well. Some artillery battalions received heavier or even lighter artillery as the war went on. Some were motorized at first and horsedrawn at a later stage (and vice versa). Finland had lack of trucks and other motorized vehicles, which resulted in that also heavier haubits artillery were horsedrawn. For example, a single howitzer gun needed eight horses to draw, which made movement very awkward. The following examples are from the January '42 play turn, when many of the divisional organic artillery regiment may switch one of their artillery battalions for a heavier one. This is because historically Finland received a number of 155mm howitzer guns from Germany during late '41.

III/KTR 11 III/KTR 11 III/KTR 12 III/KTR 12

III

TR11

7•-2-2 1

CONVERT!

III

TR11

5•-3-3 1

Same hex

III

TR12

7•-1-1 1

CONVERT!

III

TR12

5•-3-3 1

Same hex

Construction Units as Replacements (ALL)

5-N

11

(R) Soviet Construction Engineer Regiments (and the German RAD units) have a small replacement capability, therefore the letter R in paranthesis in the upper right corner. They may be broken down, or even be removed from play, in order to flip a

Replacement or Regular INF CAL-category unit to its frontside. To flip such a unit to its frontside requires various amounts of steps from one or several Construction Engineer Regiments.

Battlegroup HQs (CW/LW)

Puro.

(JR

12) (I I I)

6

1 +1

Hanste

(JR

12) (I I I)

6

1 +1 Another example of the level of detail in the trilogy. The same Finnish or German Regimental/Brigade HQ might have a different commanding officer on the Battlegroup side in LW compared to CW.

6-3-2

56(1

32) R Designer's note: In the Continuation War, the replacement

Rfl.Rgt's could have the same unit ID as a regular Rfl.Rgt. This caused certain confusion in my research at first, until I finally got some answers in a Russian source on the internet.

Likewise, some replacement Rfl.Rgt's changed their unit ID one, or two times, which also created some frustration - is it the same unit or another one? In general, when a unit only change its unit ID (not organisation, or other changes), the unit will have two ID's (one of them in paranthesis). This is to reduce the amount of "identical" units in play (see example here). HQs have usually another ID on their other side.

Soviet Tank Brigade Breakdown (WW)Designer's note: Some Soviet tank brigades had to be broken down, attaching one or two (sometimes even three) of their tank battalions into a rifle division each, as a supporting unit. This order from the top was not welcome among the ranks of the tank brigade commanders This resulted in that the tank brigade became weak and the detached tank battalion was often send far away, loosing its ability to use the tank brigades repair facilities and thus becoming more vulnerable.

9▫-1-2

Brd

1

[ ]

9▫-1-2

Brd

2

[ ] A fully supplied Soviet tank brigade out of EZOC, that is on its frontside, may be broken down to become two smaller tank units during a friendly Initial Phase. The tank brigade is flipped to its

reduced side and a special Brd Tank Unit is placed in the same hex. A tank brigade may be rebuild back to its full (frontside) strength during any future Initial Phase, either by RPs or by removing the Brd Tank Unit from the game when it is the same hex as the tank brigade. A tank brigade may be broken down and rebuild unlimited of times according to the breakdown rules and is not counted in the Attached/Detached rules. The WW game (only) will include two of these special Brd Tank Units.

Soviet Rifle Regiment Breakdown (ALL)Designer's note: The Soviet side has only regiment and brigade-sized units in the trilogy. But, to add even more dynamics in the game, two Rfl.Rgt's may be broken down into smaller units. Historically, some Soviet Rfl.Rgt's were broken down, especially up in the north, where it was necessary to control large areas with limited amount of units.

6-1-1

Brd

1

[ ]

6-1-1

Brd

4

[ ] C A fully supplied Soviet Rfl.Rgt (Inf. symbol) out of EZOC and on its frontside, may be broken down to become two smaller infantry units. The Rfl.Rgt is flipped to its reduced side and a special Brd Rfl.

Unit is placed in the same hex. Use the correct type in terms of Cadre ("C") and winterization status. A Rfl.Rgt may be rebuild back to its full (frontside) strength during any future Initial Phase, either by RPs or by removing the Brd Rfl.Unit from the game when it is the same hex as the Rfl.Rgt. A Rfl.

January 16th, 2011

www.mikugames.com

Newsletter №17

© 2011 Mikugames

IKUGA ESM

THE

FINNISHTRILOGY1939-1945®

Rgt may be broken down and rebuild unlimited of times according to the breakdown rules. This is not counted in the Attached/Detached rules. Each game in the trilogy will include two of these special Brd Rfl.Units.

German Tank Battalion Breakdown (CW/LW)Designer's note: Historically, both the 40th Tank Battalion (Pz.Abt. z.b.V. 40) and the 211th Tank Battalion (Pz.Abt. 211) detached their Coys to various front-sections during the war. The reason was mainly because the number of Finnish and German tank units were very sparse in Finland, which made them even more valuable.

9▪-1-2

40 9▪-H-1

40

9▪-0-H

#./4

0

A fully supplied tank battalion out of enemy ZOC and with its frontside faced up, may on any friendly Initial Phase be broken down to

become two tank units by flipping the tank battalion to its reduced side and adding a special tank company unit in the same hex. Note! All Finnish and German assault gun and tank units can be broken down in this fashion.

Units with several namesDesigner’s note: Some units changed names or had many names during the war. In the these examples, the German player may choose which one to use (which side on the unit counter). They are only included for a historical purpose and have therefore no effect in the game.

Kp. Tromsdorff

15.le Kp./Brandenburger

Pz.Bttr.-Sicher z.b.v Pz.Kp. 40

Trom

s.

8-H-H

2« »

In the OOB

15.

8-H-H

2« »

Use instead

9▫-0-H

Sic

her (=)

In the OOB

9▫-0-H

40.

(=)

Use instead

Form Coastal Artillery RemnantsDesigner's note: Many static super heavy coastal artillery units were reformed into regular fighting infantry units. One reason was that they had to be destroyed and disbanded to avoid to become conquerred by the enemy. Historically, the threat from a Soviet naval attack became very small after the initial escapades in December ‘39. This gave the Finns the possibilty to form units that were desperately needed in the Karelian Isthmus in February-March '40.

During any friendly Initial Phase, the Finnish player may form naval infantry units from various coastal artillery sectors (e.g. the K/VLo below) by replacing the artillery for naval infantry units...

K/VLo P Häyrinen, Os.Laaksonen, Os.Jokela, Os.Tuuli

0-3-2

K/V

Lo

Sector

1

0^

CONVERT!

Häy

ri.

6-1-H

Os.

L

6-1-H Joke

la

6-0-0

Tuul

i

6-0-0Same hex

New & Improved Markers (ALL)

!Under

Construction

Airfield!

UnderConstruction

Def.Obj.!

UnderConstruction

Port The Under Construction Markers have now an accurate specification on what is actually under construction, to avoid any missunderstandings in the play.

6Airfield

3Airstrip Airfields and airstrips will take slightly longer time

to construct, but they may also host more air units than before. The value equals both the number of turns to construct, as well as the number of air unit

SEs (Squadron Equivalents) that may be hosted. A new feature is that airstrips have half capacity during Mud turns (1½ SEs).

capability

Lt. AT The two Finnish Light Anti-Tank Markers are a new feature in the CW game. They simulate the "Ribbentrop aid" - the delivery of numerous Panzerschrecks and Panzerfausts to Finland during the most critical time in Karelian Isthmus '44.

The need of AT-weapons was desperate, in order to stop the Soviet tanks.

OOBsThink in Game TermsMany of the problems I have encountered in the OOBs, have been how to make a smooth, yet realistic transition from the historical point of view, to function in a game. How much should the OOBs follow the history and tell the players waht to do? What and how much should the players be allowed to decide? It's important that games like these are as dynamic as possible, but at the same time, without loosing the historical simulation feel.

Concistency is the wordWhen I was to do the OOBs for the CW and LW games, I realised that it would be very tough to keep the same level of detail, as in the WW game. I had one out of two choices, (1) to make CW/LW as detailed as WW, or (2) to go back and simplify WW. It's always much easier to take away stuff than to add new one. My desicion was somewhere in between. I removed some things in WW, while put some energy to increase the detail in CW/LW. Below is one good example, another example is the LW furter ahead.

Air unitsWhen I started to make the OOBs (especially for WW), I aimed very high. All air units would have their historical set-up location, as well as their parent organisation written (for historical purpose only). I was pretty much done with the WW and were to continue in the same manner for the CW and LW. Yeah right! Not only for the Soviet OOB, but also for the Finnish and German OOBs, this task would have been a "tear-off-all-of-your-hair-from-your-head" project. Air units changed organisation and location all the time. I decided to go for the easier approach, rather than to kill myself. In this way, all initial air units have been given a (more or less) accurate location and parent organisation, while air units arriving as reinforcements, are placed freely in any friendly airbases (see examples below). In CW, Finnish air units operate south of the weather line, while German air units operate in the north. This line acts, in other words, also as the historical demarkation line between these two co-belligerent nations. The starting locations for the air units are optional, since it adds even more time to the set-up and reduce the dynamics at start of the game. Sometimes it's nice to start a game as it was historically, and sometimes it's not. The examples below are from both WW and CW. Note! Back of each OOB will include an extensive list of all the abbreviations used in the games.

Le.Lv. 30/Le.R 3 71 нап/10 сабр

HC, 2x FRw И-153/63, Як-1

181HC

F64 4

181FRw

F43 3

181FRw

F43 3

7622 7210 7910

И-153/63121

F43 4

161Як-1

F76 6

8820

May III ‘44 Mar. I ‘40MT (G-2) И-16/т10, И-16/т29, 2x И-153/63

181MTG-2

F86 6

Friendly airbase

И-16/т10161

F54 4И-16/т29

101

F54 4И-153/63

121

F43 4И-153/63

121

F43 4

Friendly airbase

Airfields in the games are equivalent of long runways on an even and solid surface, while airstrips have shorter and usually softer runways. Therefore, Bombers (B), Transports (T), and air units marked with a small airfield symbol on their right side, are only allowed to take-off/land from an airfield (not an airstrip), e.g. the Finnish MT (Bf 109 G-2) air unit above.

Designer's note: The Messerschmitt Bf 109 needed a longer runway than most other Fighters (F). Their landing gear were also more sensitive and needed a more even and hard surface during take off/landing.

СБ-2/100

322

B42 2СБ-2/103

364

B42 2 I have chosen to include not only the most important models, but also the most important submodels of the air units in the trilogy. Since many sources only reveal the main model used in

January 16th, 2011

www.mikugames.com

Newsletter №17

© 2011 Mikugames

IKUGA ESM

THE

FINNISHTRILOGY1939-1945®

e.g. in a squadron (and not as accurate as the submodel), the level of accuracy in the OOBs are affected too. I'm very careful though, that air unit models and submodels do not enter play too early (before their historical time of arrival). The example here is the well known Soviet fast bomber, SB-2 (the left with the M-100-A engine and the right with the newer M-103-A engine). A source would normally only mention SB-2. The rest is up to me to guess or use some sort of common sense based on other facts.

Additional Scenario (CW)I will add one final introductory scenario for the CW. It will be called: #7 Reboly-Rugozero '41. It's a small one and will not take more than a couple of weeks to make and playtest. I have really become fond of these small scenarios with a map area not larger than an A4 paper size. With this scenario, I have now covered all the major fighting areas during '41. The scenarios are a little bit tricky to make, and need quite a lot of research, in terms of what units will come and go in the course of the play. The scenarios tend to be slightly more historical due to this. This can be seen both as a positive, but also as a negative thing. Neverteless, I think they are a nice contrast to the large main campaigns.

Vol. 3 LW Expansion (Cont. from #16)How many of you like "What If"-campaigns? They can be quite neat, or they can be a total disaster. The "April '41 What If"-campaign" (S.Z.-20, as the real name of the operation was called) was to be included in the LW expansion at first. I'm not interested in doing that anymore, I'm afraid. There are too few sources around (I have actually only one!) and too many questions: what, when and how? This decision was easy to make and a great relief for me, because I definitely need to cut down the amount of work right now. I don't have the time or energy to do more than absolutely necessary to bring The Finnish Trilogy 1939-1945® to life in 2011. I think it's totally enough with the three historical simulations: WW, CW & LW. The "What If"-campaign would actually have been a fourth (!) monster game needed to be tested (phew!). The original "S.Z.-20" plan as a game, was that the Soviets would have attacked Finland by total surprise. The Finns would have still been on their peace-time brigade organisation. So what about the Germans? Well, Stalin would never have launched an attack against Finland unless Hitler would have been busy elsewhere, such as a bloody campaign against the Brittish in Operation Sealion. It's difficult to know what way the Germans would have interferred anyways. They had after all a number of Divisions in Norway at the time of a possible Soviet attack (that would have very likely been sometimes between March and May '41).

Summary:The Vol. 3 LW expansion will due to this, only include 1½ countersheets (378 unit counters) and slightly thinner OOBs for both sides. In terms of the price, I'm not sure yet, but the LW will very likely be even cheaper than previous announcements. I'll get back to that when I attach the PayPal function and release the final prices on all games. I'm now even considering to have the LW expansion in a zip-lock bag.

Rules Manual (ALL)The Rules Manual will undergo a dramatic change. Instead of having a separate unique Rules Manual for each volume, there will be one Master Rules Manual in the WW & CW games that fits all volumes. In addition, each volume will include a separate Rules Booklet that covers the unique features for that volume. I should have done this in the first place, but as with many of the other components in the trilogy, it's a learning experience. Slowly, all components are receiving the shape and functionality they should have.

Mapboards (ALL)

55

6-1-H

! Coastal hexes have a thicker outline to distinguish better. They are of a great importance in the game. Certain coastal units may only use their CAL in these hexes. This is to minimize players to move coastal units inland. They were trained in

fighting at the coasts and receive their CAL bonus therefore only in these hexes. Most of the coastal units have an exclamation mark (!) on the upper right corner as a reminder (see example). Other improvements in maps are that some airfields have been changed for airstrips instead, which is more correct, when making a closer study.

Other NewsI cannot reveal too much of the future plans, because it depends greatly on the playtesting and the amount of time I can put into this project. I'm currently unemployed and can therefore work ca 8-10 hours a day, but the situation can change fast (after all, bills have to be payed). A couple of things are for sure. I will VAT-register my company sometimes in January (any day now), attach a PayPal account in March and print a flyer in April. For each newsletter, I will give you a more accurate schedule and status report. As a guideline, I have also announced on my website the following dates in 2011: June - Vol. 1 Winter War finished, September - Vol. 2 Continuation War finished, and December - Vol. 3 Lapland War finished.

Final WordsI think it's important that you are informed on how this game project progress. At the same time, each newsletter takes a lot of time for me to write and fix, which may cause delayes on the project itself. This can result in that Newsletters will not come as frequent as I would like to. I hope you can live with that ;-)

By the way, Happy New Year to everyone! 2011 is the year...

That’s all for now. Until next time. /Miku

PS. If you have any comments or questions on this newsletter, please mail me at;info@mikugames.com