Vichy, anyone understands it?

[Joseignacio]

For me, Vichy is a mystery since I begun to play. There are so many questions that I don't know where to start. Let's see:

What I would like more to know is how can the axis take the western northern african countries from France/Vichy, without a fight if possible.

If you conquer the territory or minor BEFORE Vichy, this is obvious:

French territories and minor countries already conquered by the Axis remain conquered by them.

but before France falls (usually about 1940) There is no spare force to send to the Med, no/few/weak MAR, PARA ... Plus, there are not so many HQs to use there, the interdiction of the Royal Navy difficults reinforcements and even supply (at least for GE units), ...

So, let's see if we collapse Vichy, and let's suppose the Allies are not so brute as to make Vichy hostile and risk it to declare war against them:

Vichy may only declare war on major powers it is hostile to. There is no US entry effect for this act. Vichy may not declare war on minor countries.

All Allied controlled hexes in Free French controlled minor countries and territories immediately revert to Free French control. All Allied controlled hexes in Vichy controlled minor countries and territories may now be immediately reverted to Vichy control. Vichy is hostile (see 17.4 & 17.5) to all Allied major powers that do not immediately revert all such hexes to Vichy control.

if an Allied unit enters Vichy France, Vichy becomes hostile to that unit's controlling major power.

...

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Example: Corsica, Algeria, Tunisia and Yugoslavia are aligned to Vichy which has also conquered Egypt. There are German units in Tunisia. Heinz (who installed the Vichy Government) announces he is collapsing Vichy. All hexes in Vichy France become conquered German hexes. Tunisia becomes a German conquered minor country. Egypt becomes an aligned Commonwealth minor country. Corsica, Algeria and Yugoslavia become aligned to Free France. Free Franc chooses Algeria as her new home country and is at war with Germany and Italy.

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So, it seems you need to insert AXIS forces in territories and minors according to Foreign Troop Commitment rules:

While Vichy is active, only units belonging to the major power which installed Vichy may enter Vichy controlled administration groups, and even then must satisfy the foreign troop commitment rules (see 18.2) to enter each administration group.

If Vichy collapses, it ceases to exist. All Vichy controlled hexes in Vichy France become controlled by Occupied France (see 17.1) if it still exists, or French home country hexes if it doesn’t. Each other home country or territory controlled by Vichy becomes conquered by any Axis major power that has a land unit in it.

So, you need to go through Tunis, Argelia and Morocco with an HQ and "sh*tting" units in each of those minors, to be able to deploy them you need an HQ but then you can go on and they don't need an HQ anymore. You can do the same with Syria.

Then you collapse Vichy, then all these are yours.

Is this a reasonable way? are there others?

[composer99]

I can't think of any.

[paulderynck]

And that only works when Vichy is active. The sequence of play does not allow you to move into Vichy colonies the same impulse you collapse Vichy unless Vichy was already active.

The other way is to collapse Vichy and have units ready to rush in to the colonies from ones already controlled prior to Vichyfication.

Another way is not to install Vichy if things are going well in North Africa.

[WarHunter]

Go here if you want to read some discussion about Vichy France.
tm.asp?m=3644891

[Joseignacio]

Thanks all. Will check the link too, tomorrow.

[brian brian]

A surprising # of Allied players make an Axis attack on Algeria too easy, by withdrawing the French garrison and never flying planes from the Bearn. The Axis can apply air in the West Med quite easily and grab a port on a surprise impulse. Any force they land might not stay in supply 100% of the impulses, but the Allies won't usually be able to do a whole lot about that on the ground.

[Joseignacio]

I was one of those allied players, since I never fully understood Vichy rules, and because of this I sent everything that was available to Continental France to gain 1 or 2 impulses.

Now that I know this I wouldn't send so much.