Matrix Games Forums

Should subs be able to do port attacks?
That might allow some of the actions of WWII to be recreated.

And what about port attacks by infantry? After all the British did a pretty good job on St Nazaire with commandos but that was against the actual port rather than the submarines in the pens. I suppose the problem is the scale of the game - St Nazaire was few hundred marines and navy sent on ONE occasion mostly on a one way trip (about two thirds casualties I think and that was with alot of luck). Would the UK have ever been so desparate that it in game terms it would sacrifice a corps of infantry and naval vessels over 3 months(I think that is roughly what the units are supposed to be) in suicidal attacks on Axis uboats or pocket battleships in French ports? I think in the early stages of the war this might have been considered - the problem is St Nazaire was one attack, not a whole season's worth!

Perhaps in Perhaps the UK should be allowed a "kamikaze" raid on an Axis occupied port ONCE in the game to represent a massive effort to destroy a group of subs or a pocket battleship. It would require an infantry and light fleet to be kamikazed as per Japanese aircraft and can be used against a sub or HB in an "occupied" port. There would be a single attack with a bonus against 1 ship. Not sure how to handle op fire with this one - maybe the Allies have to have higher sigint in order for the attack to work otherwise it just fails (reflects deception plan which allowed approach to port by the commandos in disguised ship).

Or is this just all too complicated?

I am sure there could be similar rules for German commerce raiding and Italian Human torpedoes but perhaps the scale is just too large to contmeplate such ideas.

One idea that was discussed long ago was to let airborne units attack infrastructure, i.e. attack rail prior to the regular land combat in order to remove the defenders rail bonus. This was conceived to provide a benefit for airborne in adjacent attacks, like W France to the Low Countries (like Arnhem).

Along with this, it was suggested that airborne land attack values should be further reduced or penalized in a drop, so they really can't do much direct damage, they only help indirectly.

I suppose this could be modified to allow them a single attack, prior to land combat, against a unit of their choice. Remove the drop requirement and they become simply "commandos".

But none of this got adopted, and it is fairly tough to integrate something like this into the combat system. I'd say it is not going to happen.