Sep I 41 Allied Turn

End of Turn Dispositions

Malta [end of turn]:

• Malta Status: 9, end of turn [at turn’s start 11, – 2 repairs this turn = 9]
• Malta Repair Rate: beginning on the Jul I 41 turn, 2 repair points each I turn and 1 repair point each II turn, per the WitD Allied OB booklet.
• At the start of the Allied turn there were no gsp’s present in the Valletta hex. On the previous Aug II 41 Allied turn the Allied player was unable to successfully sea transport any gsp’s to Malta, as the usual W Med NTP carrying the 4 gsp’s generated at Gibraltar had been sunk on the Aug I 41 Allied turn by Axis anti-shipping forces when it entered the Cent Med sea zone on map 18A.  Nor could this W Med NTP be replaced on the Aug II 41 Allied I. Phase.  This lack of gsp’s at Valletta at step 11 of the I. Phase is important for the two Br hv AA IIs’ flack factors, which are currently halved due to being U-2. Valletta’s intrinsic flack is not affected by supply, as in the EA game reports for the WW 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario we are not using WW Optional Rule 12E4-Intrinsic AA and General Supply Effects.
• The Br Hurri 2 5F5 1/9 air unit is in the Eliminated Air Units Box of the Malta Command Replacement Pool.

Valletta (18A:0407) [rough terrain point city major port hex, w/ a strong natural harbor]:
3-cap permanent airfield; one hit of damage
Valletta hex flack factor: 5 (3 intrinsic, + a total of 2 for the two Br 0-1-8 hv AA II units, AA = 2 each, but halved for being U-2)
3-6* Inf X 1 M [definitely Red U-2]
2-6* Inf X 2 M [definitely Red U-2]
3-6* Inf X 3 M [definitely Red U-2]
0-1-8 Hv AA II AA=2 10 [definitely Red U-2; flack factor halved]
0-1-8 Hv AA II AA=2 4 [definitely Red U-2; flack factor halved]
0-4 Cons X MC [definitely Red U-2]
two ARPs [one ARP was sea transported to Valletta from Gibraltar on a turn reinf NTP and the other ARP was flown in from the RN CG-2 naval unit in the naval movement step of the M. Phase; the RN CG-2 naval unit entered map 18A from the west edge of the map, from Gibraltar]
4 gsp’s [sea transported from Gibraltar in the naval movement step of the M. Phase in a W Med NTP]

In Libya [{beginning of the turn}/end of turn]:

Tobruch (18A:4817) [clear terrain fortress point city standard port road junction hex, w/ a strong natural harbor]:
Improved fortress; construction of the improved fortress was completed in the May II 41 Allied I. Phase.

• Per the WW Airbase Summary, improved fortresses have a permanent airfield capacity of 1.

3-cap temporary airfield
{two hits of airfield damage}
0-1-4 Cons X 66 RPC (Col) [began turn here; never moved; technically Red U-4; spent 4 MPs in the hex repairing the two airfield hits of damage]
2-8* Inf X 26 (Aus) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 9; never moved; technically Red U-4]
7-8 Inf XX 50 Nth [began turn here; never moved; technically Red U-4]
0-1-8 Hv AA II AA=2 51 [began turn here; never moved; technically Red U-4]
3-8 Inf X 22 G [began turn here; never moved; technically Black U-1; sea transported into Tobruch on the Aug II 41 Allied turn]
2-8 Inf X 14 [began turn at Matruh (19A:1218); in the M. Phase it was sea transported to here this turn in an E Med NTP]
3-8 Art X 13 [began turn here; never moved; technically Red U-4]
Hurri 1  5F5  1/8 SAAF [operative; began turn here; never moved; technically Black U-4]
Hurri 1  5F5  1/8 [operative; began turn here; never moved; technically Black U-1; 2 ARP Eliminated rebuild on the Aug II 41 Allied turn]
12 gsp’s [generated at step 16 of the Aug II 41 Axis I. Phase from a step of attack supply present in the Tobruch hex; these provide special general supply this turn and in the following Sep I 41 Axis turn; they will be removed from the map at step 24 of the Sep I 41 Axis I. Phase, after the step 11 supply determination step]
one step of attack supply [turn reinforcement; in the naval movement step of the current M. Phase it was successfully sea transported to here in 3 turn reinf NTPs]
{4 gsp’s [generated on the Aug II 41 Allied turn at step 16 of the I. Phase at Suez; successfully sea transported to the Tobruch beach hex in an E Med ANTP and amphibiously disembarked there in the naval movement step of the Aug II 41 Allied M. Phase]}

In Egypt [{beginning of the turn}/end of turn]:

19A:0818 [clear terrain coast road hex]:
6-4-6 Arm X 32 T [turn reinf conversion unit, as is also the 1-6 Recon II 1 DG unit, which is linked to the same conversion activity; the conversion is done at step 14 of the I. Phase at 19A:0919 from the component conversion units; regular moved to here in the M. Phase; remained in the hex]

• {3-2-10 Arm X 3 [began turn at 19A:0919; converted to the 6-4-6 Arm X 32T at step 14 of the I. Phase]}
• {2-1-6 Tnk II 4 RT [began turn at 19A:0919; converted to the 6-4-6 Arm X 32T at step 14 of the I. Phase]}
• {2-1-6 Tnk II 7 RT [began turn at 19A:0919; converted to the 6-4-6 Arm X 32T at step 14 of the I. Phase]}

1-10 Recon II 1 DG [turn reinf conversion unit, in conjunction w/ the 6-4-6 Arm X 32 T unit conversion; the conversion is done at at step 14 of the I. Phase at hex 19A:0919 from the component conversion units; regular moved to here in the M. Phase; remained in the hex]
1-10 Recon II 6 (SA) [began turn at 19A:0919; moved to here]
3-8 Art X 10 [began turn at 19A:0920; moved to here]
5 pos flk unit AA=1 [British; began turn 19A:0920; regular moved to here]
5 pos flk unit AA=1 [British; began turn at Port Said (19A:3413), in Egypt; in the M. Phase sea transported to Matruh in an E Med NTP; disembarked at Matruh and then admin moved to here]

19A:0920 [clear terrain hex]:
0-8 Marine Cmdo II ME [began turn at 19A:1020; moved one hex to here]

19A:0819 [clear terrain coast road hex]:
6-4-6 Arm X 1 T [began turn at 19A:0920; moved to here]
3-2-10 Arm X 7 [began turn at 19A:0920; moved to here]
2-1-10* Lt Arm X 9 [began turn at 19A:0919; moved to here]
1-10* Mot Inf X 3 (Ind) [began turn at 19A:0919; moved to here, but only after capturing for the Allies the two Siwa road hexes 19A:0823&0923 that the Axis captured in their Aug II 41 turn]
1-10* Mot SG X AA=1 2 [began turn at 19A:0920; moved to here, but only after capturing for the Allies all the Egyptian coast road hexes previously owned by the Axis, up to and including Halfaya Pass (19A:0419) and Sidi Barrani (19A:0718)]
1-2-10* Mot SG X AA=1 7 [began turn at 19A:0919; moved to here; remained in the hex]

19A:0918 [clear terrain coast road hex]
2-8* Inf X 24 (Aus) [began turn 19A:1019; supported breakdown component of the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 9; regular moved to here]
2-8 Eng X 1 (Aus) [began turn 13A:1319; regular moved to here]
1-8 AT II 65 [began turn at 19A:1019; regular moved to here]

19A:0919 [clear terrain hex; on the next not completed Tobruch-Matruh railway line]:
2-8* Inf X 161 [supported breakdown of the Br 7-8* Inf XX 6; the 7-8* Inf XX 6 began the turn at 19A:1119 and broke down into its supported components early in the M. Phase; this supported component regular moved to here]
0-1-4 Cons X 43 RPC (Col) [ began turn at 19A:1019; after expending all its MPs completing the railway construction here it voluntarily automatically advanced one hex to here]
1-8 Art II 1 (Aus) [began turn at 19A:1118; regular moved to here]

19A:1019 [clear terrain major rail line (Matruh to Tobruch railway) hex]:
railhead marker

• The Matruh-Tobruch railhead marker was advanced into this hex in the M. Phase, from its Matruh hex starting point, after the 1 RE cons unit beginning the turn in hex 19A:1019 declared all its MPs expended in building the railway line there. Doing this also gives the 0-1-4 cons X the ability to voluntarily automatically advance into the adjacent not yet completed Tobruch-Matruh railway hex, per WW Rule 14A1. Per the WitD Allied OB booklet the Tobruch-Matruh railway construction may begin on the Aug II 41 Allied turn.

19A:1018 [clear terrain coast road hex]:
7-8 Inf XX 2 (SA) [assembled here at the end of the M. Phase from its unsupported component parts]

• 8 Inf XX HQ 2 (SA) [began turn at Matruh (19A:1218); regular moved to here and assembled into the SA 7-8 Inf XX 2 at the end of the M. Phase]
• 2-8 Inf X 4 (SA) [began turn at 19A:1219; regular moved to here and assembled into the SA 7-8 Inf XX 2 at the end of the M. Phase]
• 2-8 Inf X 5 (SA) [began turn at 19A:1118; regular moved to here and assembled into the SA 7-8 Inf XX 2 at the end of the M. Phase]
• 2-8 Inf X 2 (SA) [began turn at 19A:1019; regular moved to here and assembled into the SA 7-8 Inf XX 2 at the end of the M. Phase]

one step of attack supply [turn reinf; sea transported to Ismailia (19A:3516) in the M. Phase, where it disembarked; then it railed to Matruh and spent 3 SMPs moving to here in the M. Phase]

8 gsp’s [all generated in the current I. Phase, 4 at Alexandria and 4 at Suez; in the M. Phase each batch of four was railed to Matruh, where the combined batch of eight spent 3 SMPs moving to here in the M.Phase]

19A:1119 [clear terrain major rail line (Matruh to Tobruch railway) hex, SW of Matruh]:
{7-8* Inf XX 6 [British; began turn here; at the beginning of the M. Phase it broke down into its supported components]}
7-8 Inf XX 6 (Aus) [assembled here at the end of the M. Phase from its unsupported component parts]

• 8 Inf XX HQ 6 (Aus) [began turn at 19A:1219; regular moved to here and assembled into the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 6 at the end of the M. Phase]
• 2-8 Inf X 19 (Aus) [began turn at 19A:1219; regular moved to here and assembled into the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 6 at the end of the M. Phase]
• 2-8 Inf X 17 (Aus) [began turn at 19A:1118, moved one hex to here and assembled into the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 6 at the end of the M. Phase]
• 2-8 Inf X 16 (Aus) [turn RP rebuild; placed at Alexandria at step 14 of the I. Phase; admin moved to here and assembled into the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 6 at the end of the M. Phase]

Matruh (19A:1218) [clear terrain point city/minor port road-major rail line junction coast hex]:
3-cap permanent airfield
fort marker
3-8* Mtn X Karp (Pol) [began turn at 19A:1418; moved to here]
0-1-8 Hv AA II AA=2 68 [began turn here; never moved]
1-8 MG II 1 RNF [began turn at Matruh (19A:1218); never moved]
P-40C  5F5  1/13 SAAF [operative; began turn here; never moved]
Hurri 1  5F5  1/8 (RAAF) [inop.; began turn at Alexandria; in the Aug II 41 Axis E. Phase it flew a non-phasing air transfer air mission to here from Basra (22A:4313), in Iraq; late in the E. Phase of the Sep I 41 turn it air transferred to here]
Hurri 1  5F5  1/8 [inop.; began turn here; flew the CAP air mission to all-sea hex 19A:0717 in the naval movement step of the M. Phase; rebased at the very beginning of the ground movement step of the M. Phase]
one step of attack supply [turn reinf; sea transported to Ismailia (19A:3526) in the M. Phase, where it disembarked; railed to Matruh]

19A:1219 [clear terrain road to Siwa hex, S of Matruh]:
8 Inf XX HQ 2 (NZ) [began turn at 19A:1320; regular moved one hex to here]
2-8 Inf X 6 (NZ) [began turn at 19A:1320; regular moved one hex to here]
2-8 Inf X 4 (NZ) [began turn at 19A:1320; regular moved one hex to here]

19A:1319 [major rail line coast hex, SE of Matruh]:
3-cap temporary airfield
0-1-6 Cons X 61 RPC (Col) [turn reinf; began turn at step 14 of the I. Phase at Matruh (19A:1218); in the M. Phase it moved one hex to here and expended 2 MPs to complete the final cap increase, to 3, of the temporary airfield began in the previous Aug II 41 turn, when the 2-8 Eng X 1 (Aus) spent the first 2 MPs of its construction; early in the current turn’s M. Phase the Aus eng X expended 4 MPs in hex 1319 completing the 1-cap temporary airfield and increasing its cap to 2, after which it moved away]

P-40C  5F5  1/13 [inop.; turn reinf; began at Alexandria at step 14 of the I. Phase; late in the E. Phase it air transferred to here]

19A:1418 [clear terrain major rail coast hex]:
3-cap permanent airfield

0-8 Lt AA II AA=1 57 [began turn here; never moved]
Well 1C  3NB4  1-6/28 [inop.; began turn here; late in the E. Phase it flew a night Port strat Bombing air mission to the Derna hex, in Libya, Miss; rebased here]
Well 1C  3NB4  1-6/28 [inop.; began turn here; late in the E. Phase it flew a night Port strat Bombing air mission to the Derna hex, in Libya, Miss; rebased here]
Blen 4  3B3  1-2/23 [operative; began turn here; never moved]

19A:1320 [clear terrain hex]:
2-8* Inf X 150 [supported breakdown of the 7-8* Inf XX 6; the 7-8* Inf XX 6 began the turn at 19A:1119 and broke down into its supported components early in the M. Phase; this supported component regular moved to here]
2-8* Inf X 151 [supported breakdown of the 7-8* Inf XX 6; the 7-8* Inf XX 6 began the turn at 19A:1119 and broke down into its supported components early in the M. Phase; this supported component regular moved to here]

19A:1420 [clear terrain hex]:
2-8* Inf X 7 (Ind) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of 7-8 Inf XX 4 (Ind); never moved]
2-8* Inf X 6 (SA) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of 7-8 Inf XX 1 (SA); never moved]

19A:1521 [clear terrain hex]:
2-8* Inf X 5 (Ind) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of 7-8 Inf XX 4 (Ind); never moved]
2-8* Inf X 3 (SA) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of 7-8 Inf XX 1 (SA); never moved]

19A:1621 [clear terrain hex, adjacent to Qattara Depression]:
2-8* Inf X 11 (Ind) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of 7-8 Inf XX 4 (Ind); never moved]
2-8* Inf X 1 (SA) [began turn here; supported breakdown component of 7-8 Inf XX 1 (SA); never moved]

El Alamein (19A:2119/20A:5033) [clear terrain point city major rail coast road hex]:
3-cap temporary airfield
fort marker [completed in the Jul II 41 Allied I. Phase]
0-8 Hv AA II AA=1 2 (Aus) [began turn here; never moved]
A-22  3A3  2-1/19 [inop.; began turn here; flew the Harassment air mission on the Aug II 41 Axis turn]
A-22  3A3  2-1/19 SAAF [inop.; began turn here; flew the Harassment air mission on the Aug II 41 Axis turn]
Blen 4  3B3  1-2/23 [operative; began turn here; never moved]

Alexandria (20A:4930/19A:2416) [full city hex/major port major rail line coast hex]:
Supply Terminal marker
3-cap permanent airfield
{0-2-8 Hv AA X AA=4 1 NMBDO (RM) [began turn here; per the WitD Allied OB Withdraws this turn, at step 14 of the I. Phase]}
2-8* Inf X 20 (Aus) [began turn at Tobruch (18A:4817); supported breakdown component of the Aus 7-8 Inf XX 9; sea transported to here in an E Med NTP in the M. Phase; technically Red U-4 this turn, but in special general supply via gsp’s at Tobruch; disembarked and remained in the Alexandria hex]
0-8 Lt AA II AA=1 27 [British; turn reinf; sea transported to here in the M. Phase in a turn reinf NTP; disembarked and remained in the Alexandria hex]
Hurri 1  5NF5  1/8 [inop.; began turn at Matruh (19A:1218); late in the E. Phase it air transferred to here]
Bombay  1T2  1-2/15 [operative; began turn here; never moved]
one step of attack supply [began turn at H-3 Pump Station (21A:5125), in Iraq; in the M. Phase it spent 20 SMPs moving along the transportation lines to secondary rail line hex 20A:4809 (Nazareth), in Palestine; railed from Nazareth to here]

Cairo (19A:3219) [full city hex transportation line junction hex, NW of the Cairo partial city hex]:

0-1-6 RR Eng X MEF (Emp) [began turn here; Egypt Garrison eng/cons unit; never moved]

• This unit can’t move from here w/out violating the Egypt Garrison eng/cons unit provision, unless another 1 RE eng/cons unit takes its place.

Cairo (19A:3320) [clear terrain partial city hex, SE of the Cairo full city hex]:
3-cap permanent airfield

Port Said (20A:5121/19A:3413) [swamp dot city/standard port/Suez Canal major rail line terminal coast hex]:
vacant by the end of the M. Phase

Ismailia (20A:3516) [sand reference city/standard port/Suez Canal transportation line junction hex]:
1-8 Cav X 5 [began turn at Haifa (20A:4710), in Palestine; admin moved to here]
Glad 3F3 0/8 [inop.; began turn at Alexandria, in Egypt; air transferred to here late in the E. Phase]

Suez (19A:3718) [clear terrain reference city/major port transportation line nexus coast hex]:
Supply Terminal marker
1-8 MG II 2 Ch [began turn at Haifa (20A:4710), in Palestine; railed to here]
two steps of attack supply [began the turn at Basra (22A:4313), in Iraq; in the naval movement step of the M. Phase they embarked on 6 E Med NTPs, exited the S edge of map 22A, and spent 110 naval movement points to enter the Aden off-map holding box (see WW Allied Game Chart 1–Holding Boxes), but they did not disembark there; in the naval movement step of the E. Phase they resumed anew their naval movement, expending 75 naval movement points to enter the Red Sea at the SW edge of map 19A, and continuing their voyage until entering the port of Suez, where the two steps of attack supply finally disembarked]

In Palestine [end of turn]:

• Per WW Game Play Chart 5–Allied Garrisons, the Palestine garrison requirement is 3 REs of Garrison-category units. The Allied garrisons are determined at step 17 of the Allied I. Phase. However, per WW Rule 37E4, Forming units in the ME Replacement Pool count at their regular RE size for the Palestine Garrison requirement, as do also ME Replacement Pool units, but they count at 1/3 their regular RE size. In addition to the 1.5 Garrison-capable REs present on-map in Palestine, the Allied player is counting some of the 3.5 Garrison-capable REs in the Forming Box of the Middle East Command Replacement Pool. See below, in the Middle East Replacement Pool section, for further details.

Haifa (20A:4710) [clear terrain dot city/major port transportation line junction coast hex]:

• Railhead marker [per WW Rule 41B1a-Western Desert Campaign Starting Conditions, “the transportation line from Haifa to Tripoli (20A:4005) is a road, not a railroad.” This stipulation is used in the 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario.

1-8 Cav X 6 [began turn at Lattique (20A:3405), in Syria; admin moved southwards along the Levant coastline to here]

Tel Aviv (19A:4308 [clear terrain dot city/minor port major rail line junction coast hex]:
2-8 Inf X 29 (Ind) [began turn here; never moved]

Allied Units in Armistice Lebanon & Syria [end of turn]:

• Per the WW Game Play Chart 5–Allied Garrisons (Rule 37E), it appears the Allied player is fulfilling the garrison requirements for the Vichy French Levant, and has been since the beginning of the Allied invasion of the the Levant on the Jun I 41 Allied turn.

Beyrouth (20A:4207) [rough terrain dot city/standard port transportation line junction coast hex]:
3-8* Inf X 1 FL (FF) [began turn at Damas (20A:4505); admin moved to here]

Tripoli (20A:4005) [rough terrain reference city/minor port transportation line coast hex]:

• Railhead marker [per WW Rule 41B1a-Western Desert Campaign Starting Conditions, “the transportation line from Haifa to Tripoli (20A:4005) is a road, not a railroad.” This stipulation is used in the 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario.

2-8* Inf X 18 (Aus) [began turn at Beyrouth (20A:4207); supported component of the 7-8 Inf XX 7 (Aus); regular moved to here]

Damas (20A:4505) [clear terrain dot city transportation line junction hex]:
vacant by the end of the M. Phase

Lattique (20A:3405) [clear terrain reference city/minor port road terminus coast hex]
2-8* Inf X 21 (Aus) [began turn at Tripoli (20A:4005); supported component of the 7-8 Inf XX 7 (Aus); regular moved to here]

Homs (20A:3902) [clear terrain reference city transportation line junction hex]:
hit marker on reference city airbase

Hama (20A:3702) [clear terrain reference city major rail line hex]:
hit marker on reference city airbase

Alep (21A:3231) [clear terrain partial city transportation line junction hex]:
2-8* Inf X 25 (Aus) [began turn here; supported component of the 7-8 Inf XX 7 (Aus); never moved]

On Cyprus [end of turn]:

Limassol (20A:3615) [clear terrain point city/standard port coast road hex]:
1-cap permanent airstrip

Famagusta (20A:3411) [clear terrain point city/standard port coast road hex]:
1-cap permanent airstrip

Non Phasing Axis Air Activity in the Allied Exploitation Phase:

At the very end of the naval movement step of the M. Phase the three Ger LW Ju 88A4  4B5  3-7/26 air units based at Bengasi (18A:3121) air transfer to Sirte (18A:1727), in Libya.

At the very end of the naval movement step of the M. Phase the Ger LW He 111H4  4B4  2-7/22 air unit based at Bengasi air transfers to Tripoli (18A:0121), in Libya.

Middle East (ME) Command Replacement Pool [{beginning of the turn}/end of turn]:

3-8 Inf X 5 (NZ) [moved from Balkan Command Replacement Pool]
{2-8 Inf X 16 (Aus) [moved from Balkan Command Replacement Pool; rebuilt at step 14 of the I. Phase and placed at Alexandria]}
3-2-10 Arm X 4 [in the WW 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario this unit is at-start in the ME Replacement Pool, per F. Watson’s ER-II Europa battle scenario, published in TEM#71]
3-2-10 Arm X 1 [moved from Balkan Command Replacement Pool; this is the original pre-conversion unit of the one sent to Greece]

Eliminated Air Units Box:
Blen 4  3B3  1-2/23 [in the Jun I 41 Allied C. Phase it participated in the first Allied attack in the Vichy French Levant, flying the GS air mission at 20A:4607; it was Killed in air combat there by the bypassing Vichy Fr D 520 F type air unit, flying the Interception air mission to the target hex]

Forming Box:
3-8* Mtn X 1 (Gk) [counted as part of the Palestine Garrison]
0-1-8 Inf II Gd (Yugo) [counted as part of the Palestine Garrison]
2-8* Inf X 2 FL (FF) [placed here at step 14 of the Aug I 41 Allied I. Phase after the Allied conquest of the Levant, per the WitD Allied French Conditional Reinforcements: Forces from the Levant, in the WitD Allied OB booklet, p. 6; this unit will be Full on the Apr II 42 Allied turn]
1-2-6 Inf X 3FL (FF) [placed here at step 14 of the Aug I 41 Allied I. Phase after the Allied conquest of the Levant, per the WitD Allied French Conditional Reinforcements: Forces from the Levant, in the WitD Allied OB booklet, p. 6; this unit will be Full on the May II 42 Allied turn]

The Allied Near East (NE) Command on the Sep I 41 Allied turn:

• Iraqi coup collapse occurred in the May II 41 Axis I. Phase, per the dice roll done then using the Variable Iraqi Coup Collapse Table. At that time all Iraqi forces/production were removed from the map and the Iraq Replacement Pool. By the end of the I. Phase all Iraqi territory was Allied owned; except in our case the Mosul hex, which at the time contained the Axis Conditional Reinforcement Ger LW Mxd A type air unit. Seeing that the Iraqi coup had indeed collapsed, the Axis Conditional Reinforcement promptly air transferred out of the Mosul hex later in the May II 41 Axis turn, and Mosul was captured by the Allies in the following Jun I 41 Allied turn.
• The current Allied Iraqi railnet-cap is 3 1/2.
• At step 14 of the Aug I 41 Allied I. Phase the Allied player transferred 10 Middle East Command SMPs to the Near East Command, per WW Rule 12H2b. They cannot be used there until the following Aug II 41 Allied turn, eg., this turn.
• At step 4 the Aug II 41 Axis I. Phase Iran surrendered to the Allies, per the Iranian Surrender Table.  All Iranian forces surrendered to the Allies and were removed from the map.

In pro-Allied Iraq [{beginning of turn}/end of turn]:

• Per the WW Game Play Chart 5–Allied Garrisons (Rule 37E), it appears the Allied player is fulfilling the garrison requirements this turn, for Iraq. This would be per the horizontal line reading: “EJIS [Jul II 41] – Sep I 41”. For a more detailed discussion of the Iraq garrison, see the Jul I 41 Allied game report.

21A:4721 [ravines hex]:
1-10 Mot Cav III AL (T-J) [Arab Legion; began turn at 21A:4821; regular moved to here; remained in the hex]

• This is a provisional new unit introduced in the 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario on the May I 41 Allied turn. For more details, see that posted EA game report.

21A:4719 [stony desert pump station road hex]:
2-8 Inf X 9 (Ind) [began turn at H-3 Pump Station (21A:5125), in Iraq; regular moved to here]

21A:4921  [stony desert pump station road hex]:
2-8 Inf X 10 (Ind) [began turn at Rutbah (21A:5023); regular moved to here]

Rutbah (21A:5023) [stony desert point city road junction hex]:
1-cap permanent airstrip
1-8 Inf II 11 (CS) [began turn at Ramadi (22A:2830); admin moved along the road to here]
Audax  1A1  1/8 [operative; began turn at Rutbah; in the Aug II 41 Axis E. Phase it flew a non-phasing air transfer air mission to here from Basra (22A:4313), in Iraq; never moved]

Ramadi (22A:2830) [clear terrain reference city road hex]:
1-8 Inf X 20 (Ind) [began turn at 21A:4208, in Iraq; admin moved along the transportation lines to here]

Habbaniya (22A:2828) [clear terrain point city road hex]:
3-cap permanent airfield
0-1-4 Static II 1 As (Col) [began turn here; never moved]

Baghdad 22A:2825 [clear terrain partial city transportation line junction hex]:
one hit marker on airbase
8* Inf XX HQ 10 (Ind) [began turn at Shahabad (32:2229), in Iran; admin moved along the transportation lines to here]
2-8 Inf X 25 (Ind) [began turn at 32:2131, in Iran; admin moved along the transportation lines to here]

22A:4021 [clear terrain secondary rail line hex, to Basra]:
8 Inf XX HQ 5 (Ind) [began turn at Habbaniya (22A:2828); admin moved along the transportation lines to here, crossing the demolished bridge hexside]

Shaibah (22A:4314) [clear terrain secondary rail line hex]:
3-cap permanent airfield
0-1-4 Static II 2 As (Col) [began turn at Basra; moved one hex to here]

Basra (22A:4313) [clear terrain dot city/major port, w/ a major river hexside]:
Allied Supply Terminal marker
2-8 Inf X 19 (Ind) [began turn at Ahwaz (22A:3810), in Iran, assembled w/ the 6-8* Inf XX 8 (Ind); at the beginning of the M. Phase this inf XX broke down into its unsupported component parts; this component regular moved to Basra]
1-pt river flotilla AA=1 PAIC (RN) [turn reinforcement; sea moved to here; remained in the hex]
2 steps of attack supply [began turn here; never moved]
{two steps of attack supply [began turn here; in the naval movement step of the M. Phase they embarked on 6 E Med NTPs and at the end of the step entered the Aden off-map holding box, but did not disembark; in the naval movement step of the E. Phase they continued their voyage from there and eventually entered the Suez port (19A:3718), in Egypt, where they disembarked and ended their move]}

In Iran [end of turn]:

Kangavar 32:2023 [clear terrain point city road hex]:
2-8 Inf X 24 (Ind) [began turn at Shahabad (32:2229), in Iran; regular moved along the road to here]
2-8 Inf X 21 (Ind) [began turn at Karind (32:2130), in Iran; admin moved along the road to here]

22A:2217 [clear terrain major rail line hex]:
2-1-10* Lt Arm X 252 (Ind) [began turn at 22A:3709; in the M. Phase it regular moved northwards to 22A:3111, capturing reference city Dizful (22A:3311) and point city Andimeshk (22A:3211) along the way; in the E. Phase it exploited northwards along the major rail line to here, capturing reference city Iraq (22A:2318) along the way]

Ahwaz (22A:3810) [clear terrain reference city major rail line-road junction hex]:
{6-8* Inf XX 8 (Ind) [began turn here; at the beginning of the M. Phase it broke down into its component parts]}
8* Inf XX HQ 8 (Ind) [began turn at Ahwaz (22A:3810), in Iran, assembled w/ the 6-8* Inf XX 8 (Ind); at the beginning of the M. Phase this inf XX broke down into its unsupported component parts; the inf XX HQ component remained here]

22A:4205 [rough terrain hex]:
1-8 Inf X 17 (Ind) [began turn at Ahwaz (22A:3810), in Iran, assembled w/ the 6-8* Inf XX 8 (Ind); at the beginning of the M. Phase this inf XX broke down into its unsupported component parts; this component regular moved to here]

Bandar Shahpur (22A:4407) [clear terrain point city/standard port major rail line terminus island hex, w/ a causeway to the mainland]:
2-8 Inf X 18 (Ind) [began turn at Ahwaz (22A:3810), in Iran, assembled w/ the 6-8* Inf XX 8 (Ind); at the beginning of the M. Phase this inf XX broke down into its unsupported component parts; this component regular moved to here]

Turn Activity

The weather is clear this turn in the E, D, and C weather zones.  Technically speaking, part of the C weather zone is visible in northern Iran on map 32, as is also part of D weather zone,  but on map 32 both these weather zones are in the Soviet occupation zone and therefore are not a factor in the new Scenario.  On the WD map group of 18A and 19A, (and 20A) the rough terrain notch of the Cyrenaica is in weather zone E, as is part of the coastal littoral of Palestine, and all of the coastline of Lebanon and NW Syria.  In addition to these North African and West Asian mainland areas that are indicated on the WD map group, a number of Mediterranean islands are also in weather zone E, namely: Cyprus, Crete, the Dodecanese, Sicily, and Malta.  The weather is automatically clear in weather zones E and F (eg., the F weather zone prevailing in the Western Desert and Mesopotamian regions) on the Sep I & Sep II 41 game turns.  But beginning on the Oct I 41 game turn there is a 1 in 6 chance of Mud in weather zone E, if a 6 is rolled on the Weather die roll; and on the Oct II 41 game turn the odds go up to a 1 in 3 chance of Mud there, if a 5 or 6 is rolled.

At step 11 of the I. Phase the Allied ground and air units at the isolated Tobruch hex that began the turn at technically Red or Black U-4 essentially remain at this U-4 status, as per WW Optional Rule 12E, U-4 is in effect the most severe supply status for a unit. All ground units and the two air units beginning the turn at Tobruch are in special general supply at step 11 of the I. Phase due to the 16 gsp’s in the hex. Twelve of these gsp’s were generated from a step of attack supply present in the hex on the Aug II 41 Axis I. Phase. They will be removed from the maps at step 24 of the Sep I 41 Axis I. Phase, after the supply determination step for that turn.  The other 4 gsp’s at Tobruch were generated at Suez on the Aug II 41 Allied turn and will be removed from the maps at step 24 of the current Allied I. Phase.  At Malta, all of the 5 REs of Allied ground units beginning the turn there are definitely Red U-2, as no gsp’s were sea transported to there on the previous Aug I 41 Allied turn.

At step 14 of the I. Phase the Allied player rebuilds with stored Aus inf RPs the 2-8 Inf X 16 (Aus), removing it from the ME Replacement Pool and placing it on-map at Alexandria.  He would very much like to rebuild one of the two Br 3-2-10 arm Xs in the ME Replacement Pool, but has only 2.5 Br arm RPs, even after this turn’s 1 Br arm RP arrival, and so he must wait until the Oct II 41 turn to do this expensive arm replacement build.  In the meantime, due to the required big arm conversion done this turn, he has only one 3-2-10 arm X on the maps, and therefore cannot assemble for four turns the valuable Br 7-10* Arm XX 7, requiring two, and will have to do the best he can with what he’s got, which are two 6-4-6 Arm Xs, a single 3-2-10 arm X, the 2-1-10* Lt Arm X 9, and the two 1-10 Recon IIs.  It looks like he can get by this turn at the Egyptian desert shield front line, but things will get tricky there on the upcoming Sep II 41 turn, if he plans to continue to push forward the desert shield front line ahead of the Matruh-Tobruch railway construction stack containing the construction unit.  He would also like to build the Blen 4 B type air unit languishing in the Eliminated Air Units Box of the ME Replacement Pool, but feels he must wait, as the new air cycle’s ARPs just arrived this turn and he might ought to wait and see how many additional air unit losses he might suffer in the long interval until the next cycle, coming on the Nov I 41 Allied turn.

At step 14 the Allied player also activates the CG-2 (RN) naval unit, which is placed “at Gibraltar.”  Gibraltar admittedly does not have an off-map holding box in either of the standard WW ME or WD Scenarios, but there should be one, I think, because of the stipulations for Allied Middle East Command reinforcement Arrivals (both reinforcements and production) having the option to enter at the west edge of map 18A, in addition to the Red Sea SE edge of map 19A, per WW Rule 40A3.  If they are Returned by the Shipping Results Table after rolling a contact on the Naval Table upon entering the Cent Med sea zone on the west edge of map 18A, then they need a place to go in order to remain in the game, and that place would and should be Gibraltar.  Conversely, if Allied Middle East Command turn reinforcements are Returned by the Shipping Results Table upon entering the Central Med or Aegean Sea zones, they should “return” to either Alexandria or Suez (eg., an Allied standard supply terminal/major port), I think, instead of the obscure Egyptian Red Sea minor port of Port Safaga at hex 19A:4731.

Although I confess to currently being interested in having a Gibraltar off-map holding box, in order to more realistically reenact Allied sea transport from Gibraltar to Malta in WW ME & WD-based Scenarios, I will admit that some careful consideration ought to be given before the implementation of this wish.  For example, in a WW WitD Scenario, which is essentially what I’m talking about in effect reproducing with the off-map Gibraltar holding box, all sea transport from Gibraltar to Malta (eg., in either W Med or turn reinf NTPs, or atop a RN CG naval unit) routinely calls for Axis anti-shipping effects dice rolls upon entering the West Med sea zone from the Gibraltar hex, which normally would be done of the 0 column of the Naval Table, per WW Rule 31D3.  This is in addition to the routine Cent Med sea zone dice roll on the Naval Table for Axis anti-shipping effects there.  In the WW 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario game reports I have utilized as a basis for all the Allied naval movement onto the west edge of map 18A the Gibraltar Convoys stipulation of WW Rule 41B1-Western Desert Campaign, which is found at p. 4 of the WW Scenarios & Appendices booklet; and the Gibraltar Convoys proviso apparently turns a blind eye to the Axis anti-shipping effects in the West Med sea zone.  To refresh memories, in the new Scenario I have jacked up the Allied gsp availability at Gibraltar to 4, from the rules as written provision for 2, because it appears to me that would be the number of Gibraltar supply terminal gsp’s readily available to the Allied player for many turns in a WW WitD Campaign game.  For the EA hard core who may want to know additional related detail, I currently think that in standard WW ME & WD Scenarios utilizing the proposed off-map Gibraltar holding box, the Allied player might ought to be prohibited from access to W Med NTPs beginning on the Nov I 42 turn, and from then on to the Jan II 43 end turn of either of those two Scenarios, due to the Torch campaign then occurring in the off-map Atlantic and W Med sea zones, which sucks up many of the W Med NTPs.  Of course comments are quite welcome from those players who might have something to say about any of the aspects of the issue.

At step 16 of the I. Phase the Allied player generates 4 new gsp’s at both the Suez and Alexandria Allied Standard Supply terminals.

At step 22 of the I. Phase the Axis player flies the Ger LW Ju 87B  2D3  4-1/9 air unit based at 18A:4718, SW of Tobruch, on the Harassment air mission to hex 18A:5020.  From the same 3-cap temporary airfield adjacent to Tobruch the Axis player assigns to the Naval Patrol air mission the other Ger LW Ju87B D type air unit and the It SM 79-2  2B3  3-2/V/20 air units.  The fact that the Axis has to fly Harassment this turn for the first time is an indication of both the growing strength and closer proximity of the Allied 8th Army in west-central Egypt to the Tobruch war zone.

At step 24 of the I. Phase the Allied player removes from the maps the 4 gsp’s at Egyptian Western Desert hex 19A:0919 that were generated at Alexandria on the Aug II 41 Allied turn.  He also removes the 4 gsp’s at Tobruch that were generated at Suez on the Aug II 41 Allied turn.

In the naval movement step of the M. Phase the Allied player does a series of naval transport activities in the East and Central Mediterranean sea zones.  This turn he will very likely be compelled to attempt to sea transport to Tobruch one of his turn reinforcement steps of attack supply.  Some of the subsequent naval actions done this turn are listed below in sequential order. Those numbered that are indicated by a # are indicated as such in the naval movement step action activities picture included below in the game report. This turn the Allied player has his full complement of 10 E Med NTPs available for his sea transport demands, and also his one available W Med NTP and the activated RN CG-2 naval unit, both beginning at Gibraltar.

The first naval transport of the Allied naval movement step are 4 fresh gsp’s generated this turn at off-map Gibraltar and embarked on the Allied player’s single available W Med NTP.  The naval group enters the west edge of map 18A at all-sea hex 0107.  This turn, after two unsuccessful previous turns, the Allied player finally gets it down right and rolls a No Contact on the Naval Table, using the 9 column, and so the 4 gsp’s from Gibraltar arrive safely at the Valletta hex.  In this same Allied naval group are also one of the turn ARPs embarked in a turn reinf NTP and the RN CG-2, carrying another turn ARP.  When both these naval transports enter map 18A at all-sea hex 0107 in the daylight, they too roll for Allied anti-shipping effects on the Naval Table and come up with No Contact results.  Immediately after this the CG-2 naval unit flies the reinf ARP from its flight decks to the Valletta airfield/limited supply terminal hex, where it is stored; and then the RN CG-2 naval unit turns around and exits the west edge of the map.  The turn reinf NTP with the other reinforcement ARP continues it voyage to the Valletta port, along with the W Med NTP carrying the 4 gsp’s from Gibraltar, and both cargoes are finally disembarked there.

#1.  On the WD map group (eg., specifically maps 18A & 19A, but in our case including map 20A), the first naval movement the Allied player does is embark the 2-8* Inf X 20 (Aus) unit, beginning the turn at Tobruch (18A:4817), on an E Med NTP, which exits the harbor at night to all-sea hex 18A:4917.  At this time the Allied player rolls on the 9 column of the Naval Table for Axis anti-shipping effects, but is lucky and rolls a no contact.  After doing this, the cargo naval group continues moving eastwards at night in all-sea hexes just north of the North African coastline until it enters all-sea hex 19A:0917, which must be its first daylight hex of the voyage.  At this point the Axis player declines to attempt a die roll on the Success Table for Naval Patrol contact.  Any Axis air units flying the Naval Patrol air mission to the all-sea target hex would do so without fighter escort, and there are three good Allied fighter units in interception range based at Matruh, 4 hexes away.  And so the Allied naval group continues its voyage eastwards, and the E Med NTP carrying the Aus 2-8* inf X finally enters the Alexandria port hex, where it disembarks its cargo.  Although the ground unit is technically Red U-4 this turn, it is in special general supply via the gsp’s present in the Tobruch hex in the I. Phase.

Right after this the Allied player ups the ante in the Mediterranean aero-naval warfare by flying the Br Hurri 1 F type air unit based at Matruh on the CAP air mission over the all-sea hex at 19A:0717, N of Sidi Barrani, likely preparing for one of the turn’s big naval transport operations.

#2.  The Allied player then embarks the Br 2-8 Inf X 14 unit, beginning the turn at Matruh (19A:1218), on an E Med NTP and voyages westwards in daylight, first along the Allied-controlled coastline for three hexes, but then it dog-legs NW to all-sea hex 19A:0817, in order to avoid entering the Axis-controlled Sidi Barrani coast hex at 19A:0718.  It then enters all-sea hex 19A:0717, just north of Sidi Barrani, still in daylight, where the Br Hurri 1 air unit is flying the CAP air mission.  Both players know that the next all-sea hex to the west, which would be 19A:0617, will the the first nighttime hex in the final night leg of the voyage to Tobruch, but once again the Axis player declines to attempt a Sea Patrol contact die roll on the Success Table, thinking there are better ways to fight the war than instigating a bloody aero-naval battle in the said target hex at this time.  Upon entering the Cent Med sea zone at map 18A the Allied player must roll for Axis anti-shipping effects on the Naval Table, and this time he rolls a Contact, but is relieved when afterwards he rolls a NE (No Effect) on the Shipping Results Table.  And so the E Med carrying the 2-8 Inf X 14 enters the Tobruch port and disembarks its cargo.

#3.  Then the Allied player sends one of the turn reinforcement steps of attack supply towards Tobruch in 3 turn reinforcement NTPs.  The cargo naval group begins its voyage on the SE edge of map 19A in the Red Sea, at hex 5125, where it was placed at step 14 of the I. Phase.  After passing through the Suez Canal it makes its way westwards along the Egyptian coastline, plus a few all-sea hexes just north of the coastline, until it too, dog-legs NW to all-sea hex 19A:0717, just north of Sidi Barrani and still in daylight.  And when it enters all-sea hex 19A:0717, just north of Side Barrani, the Axis player again declines to attempt any Sea Patrol contact die rolls, saving his air units to fight another day in another air battle.  When the cargo naval group carrying the step of attack supply reaches the Cent Med sea zone the Allied player must again roll on the Naval Table for Axis anti-shipping effects, but is lucky this time with a no contact result; and so the naval group successfully arrives at Tobruch.  Note that in most circumstances any contact dice roll for the naval transport of supply cargo (i.e., gsp’s or steps of attack supply) on the Naval Table normally means that it is sunk per the subsequent Shipping Results Table die roll.

#4.  After this, the Allied player sea transports the turn reinf Br 0-8 Lt AA II AA=1 27 unit to Alexandria, in a turn reinf NTP.  This is normally a safe voyage route, as it is basically too far for any practical Axis Sea Patrol contact at extended range, and there are two operative fighter units based at Alexandria, including the recently arrived long range P-40C  5F5  1/13 air unit.

#5.  Next, the Allied player sea transports to Alexandria in a large bulk convoy the rest of his turn reinforcement production items, all embarked in turn reinf NTPs, which would be the turn reinforcement armor and infantry Replacement Points, and 3 of the Arriving turn reinforcement ARPs.  The other two turn reinforcement Arrival ARPs opted to enter the maps at the west edge of map 18A, on their voyage to Malta.

#6.  Then the Allied player sea transports the 5 pos flk unit (AA=1), beginning the turn at Port Said (19A:3413), in Egypt, to Matruh, in an E Med NTP.  The cargo naval group approaches Matruh from the NE, using night movement for the last 8 all-sea and single coast hex (eg., the Matruh port hex) of the voyage, and disembarks its cargo at the Egyptian port.  The Axis makes no attempt of a Naval Patrol contact.

#7  Finally, the Allied player sea transports his two remaining reinforcement steps of attack supply, embarked in 6 turn reinforcement NTPs, to the Egyptian standard port of Ismailia (19A:3516), in Egypt.  Normally he would sea transport them to Alexandria, or to Suez as an alternate.  But Alexandria is a major port with a capacity of 12 REs, and has already handled 6.5 REs of cargo capacity.  If he voyages to there with the two steps of attack supply he will be a half RE over its RE capacity.  Of course there are a variety of ways he could shuffle his naval transport itinerary to make things fit, but he opts to do the sea transporting this way, as in any event the steps of attack supply need to be railed to other destinations as soon as possible, upon their disembarkation in Egypt.

Meanwhile, back at Basra, in Iraq, two steps of attack supply are embarked on 6 E Med NTPs and begin a long voyage to Suez.  At the end of the naval movement step of the M. Phase the cargo naval group from Basra enters the Aden off-map holding box, but does not disembark its cargo there.  Instead, the cargo naval group waits until the naval movement step of the E. Phase, at which point it continues its voyage from Aden to the Mid East and eventually enters the Suez port (19A:3718), in Egypt, where the the two steps of attack supply finally disembark, ending their move.

It needs to be pointed out that these two steps of attack supply from Basra are in effect, new and additional steps of attack supply introduced into the WW ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario via F. Watson’s “Iraq: Rashid Ali and the Golden Square” Europa battle scenario, published in TEM#81, in 2001.  By “new and additional” I mean that they are not found anywhere in the WitD Allied OB booklet, which is the OB basis for the standard WW Western Desert and Middle East Campaign Scenarios.  These two new and additional NE/ME Command steps of attack supply in effect come in specifically at F. Watson’s Jun II 41 Allied [Regular] Reinforcements and Replacements Allied OB listing for his “Iraq” Europa battle scenario, found at p. 24 of TEM#81.  The two steps of attack supply indicated at the May I 41 Allied Reinforcements and Replacements listing of Watson’s “Iraq” Europa battle scenario are certainly the same as the Coup Turn 3/[the historical May I 41 turn] Allied Conditional Reinforcements: Iraqi Coup Reaction Forces, found at p. 5 of the WitD Allied OB booklet, and so concur with the standard WW Allied OB, I believe.

And so here I serve notice of perhaps the biggest OB change found in the 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario than what is used in standard WW desert scenarios, excepting only the provisional addition of the new 1-10 Mot Cav III AL [Arab Legion] (Trans-Jordan) unit.  In bringing in these two new and additional steps of attack supply I am certainly implying that I think they are needed in any vibrant and well-played Europa wargame where there may be extended and protracted Iraq and Vichy French Levant campaigns, along with the usual heavy demands of the siege of Tobruch and the Allied Western Desert desert shield.  Comments from any Europa players who may have something to say about this are certainly welcome, and needed for the proper completion of either the WW 1941 ME/ER-II/Crete Scenario, or any future good revision of the standard WW or WitD games, I think.  One test might be to compare the number of steps of attack supply in the Western Desert region of the current wargame on the Nov I 41 game turn with what is indicated in the Nov I 41 at-start Allied OB of either of the Operation Crusader Europa battle Scenarios found in TEM #36 or #55.  What do you think about all the above?

Allied E Med NTP naval transport activity on their Sep I 41 turn:

• 2-8 Inf X 14; from Matruh to Tobruch, in 1 E Med NTP
• 2-8* Inf X 20 (Aus), from Tobruch to Alexandria, in 1 E Med NTP
• 5 pos flk AA=1 unit; from Port Said to Matruh, in 1 E Med NTP
• 2 steps of attack supply, from Basra to Alexandria, in 6 E Med NTPs.

This turn the Allied player has an E Med NTP lift capability of 10 REs.

Allied rail movement in the Middle East rail net on their Sep I 41 turn:

• one step of attack supply, which entrained at Nazareth secondary rail line hex 20A:4809, in Palestine, for a total of 6 REs of railcap.
• 4 gsp’s, began rail movement from Alexandria, for a total of 1 RE of railcap.
• two steps of attack supply, beginning the rail movement from the Ismailia major rail line hex (19A:3516), in Egypt, for a total of 6 REs of railcap.
• 1-8 MG II 2 Ch, beginning the rail movement at Haifa (20AS:4710), in Palestine, for a total of 1 RE of railcap.

The Allies’ per turn Middle East railnet railcap is 16 REs.

In the M. Phase the Allied player moves forward the Matruh-Tobruch railhead marker from 19A:1119, SW of Matruh, to adjacent hex 19A:1019, and the 0-1-4 Cons X 43 RPC (Col) that extended it voluntarily automatically advances into the next hex intended for the railway construction, which would be hex 19A:0919.

The Aus 2-8 Eng X 1 spends 4 MPs at major rail line coast hex 19A:1319, SE of Matruh, finishing the 1-cap temporary airfield that it had begun on the previous Aug II 41 turn and adding an additional capacity, before moving 4 road hexes west along the coast road.  Then the turn reinf 0-1-4 Cons X  61 RPC (Col), beginning the turn at step 14 of the I. Phase at adjacent Matruh, moves one hex to 1319 and expends 2 MPs in hex 1319 to add the 3rd and final capacity level to the temporary airfield there.

In the E. Phase the Allied player sends the two Well 12C  3NB4  1-6/28 air units based at 19A:1418 on a night Port strat Bombing air mission to the Derna hex (18A:4116), in Libya. Both NB type air units make it past Derna’s 2 factor flack shot, but miss when rolling on the 5 column of the Bombing Table, with a -1 for bombing at night.  He also does a series of air unit transfers in Egypt late in the E. Phase, in preparation of the upcoming Axis turn and also as a consequence of the gradual westward advance of the Allied front line position the past several turns in west-central Egypt, requiring a repositioning of the air units in the zone.

At the start of their turn the Allies had the following inventory of accumulated Replacement Points (RPs) in the ME Command: 9.5 Br inf, 1.5 Br arm, 2.5 Aus inf, 2 NZ inf, 2 Ind inf, and 1 Allied ARP.  At step 14 of the I. Phase of this turn 2 Aus inf RPs were spent to rebuild the 2-8 Inf X 16 (Aus), which was placed at Alexandria.  In the naval movement step of the M. Phase additional turn reinforcement RPs were disembarked and stored at the Alexandria standard supply terminal.  At the end of the Allied turn the Allies had the following RP inventory in his ME Command: 11.5 Br inf, 2.5 Br arm, 1.5 Aus inf, 2.5 NZ inf, 3 Inf inf, and 6 Allied ARPs, all of which were stored in Alexandria.  The Allied player was able to add 1 ARP to his new tally, carried over from the old air cycle.  Two of his reinf ARPs were successfully delivered to Malta, in the Malta Command, where they are stored at the Valletta limited supply terminal.  Beginning this turn, the Allied player may spend up to 3 ARPs in the ME Command per turn, per WW Advanced Rule 25C6.

Commentary

Overall, the Allied player is happy with how things are progressing at this stage of the wargame.  However, he feels that it’s not entirely due to his handling of the 8th Army, but rather that the hand of Fate has intervened three times in the game, and made absolutely sure that for now at least the Axis will not take Tobruch, when it could have been otherwise.  Putting it another way, assuming all things being “normal,” (eg., a given series of wargames played along the lines of this game) then half of those Western Desert wargames played should, by typical chance odds, result in the Allies still possessing Tobruch beginning on this Sep I 41 turn, and in the other half of the “given” wargames the Axis would have captured it by now, after a big battle die roll.  Standing next to the gameboard table, that is my current estimate of the habit of chance interfacing in a given “series” of Western Desert wargame plays.  But of course in real life the WWII campaign happened only once, with a kind of series repeats perhaps occurring only in retirement, or in prison, or perhaps fleetingly atop the gallows scaffold.  And so in wargame design we might ought to watch what we wish for, and be thankful when the mysterious die/dice rolls roll like how we think they ought, and not curse them when they spite us, as we conveniently forget the fact that although we labor hard to design the authenticity, accuracy, and realness in our cardboard campaigns, we nevertheless always fall back on the wayward dice to confirm the work.