Fall Grau

[golden delicious]

Here's a scenario which has been in private circulation for a while (about 20 years). Although in theory there is more to do on it I think by the time it would all be done another 20 years will have passed, so here it is: enjoy.

Fall Grau
V2.29
Fictional Axis invasion of North America, 1943
Map Scale: 25km/hex

Original Scenario by Jeremy Mac Donald. V2 and 25km/hex design by Ben Turner

This scenario is not a true hypothetical in that it does not attempt to deal with the immense logistical problem of mounting an invasion across the Atlantic onto a hostile shore. Instead the scenario is more along the lines of those most fanciful what-ifs: would a Roman legion wipe the floor with the contemporary Chinese armies- or vice versa? Here, the immense military power of the Axis is pitted against the equally staggering industrial resources of North America.

Fall Grau is one of the most replayable I’ve encountered. Because almost the entire Axis OOB begins off-map, and the Axis player has a more or less free choice of where to deploy each unit, no two matches will follow the same pattern. Add to this the strategic options presented by the different sealift TOs and the question of when and where to bring in the Japanese and there is a very high degree of unpredictability.

On top of all that, the unit density on this very large map is extremely low. Even with the lower-than-usual unit size for the scale, it will be impractical for the player to build a continuous front across the map. Instead, it will be prudent to concentrate strong forces at key points, whilst leaving other areas only lightly screened. However, due to the excellent road network in the United States, there are few areas of the map that can be ruled out as a possible area for enemy attacks.

The .zip contains the scenario file, a full manual and a quick start guide which is just one page for the impatient among you. The zip will unpack directly in the chosen folder so you should extract it in the folder which contains your scenarios.

Please note that this scenario is NOT for PO play.

[golden delicious]

Some sample screenshots to give you some idea of what to expect

Panzertruppen surge over the St. Lawrence using bridges captured intact by airborne troops

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SS Panzer divisions race to cross the Missouri before the American defence can coalesce

[FaneFlugt]

Any japanese coming from the east in that scenario? Reminds me of the "the man in the high Castle" good book, Mmm ok tv-series.

[governato]

sounds like fun! Are there nukes

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: governato

sounds like fun! Are there nukes

The scenario ends before the atomic bomb would be ready. In practice a small number of low-kiloton nuclear weapons would not be decisive on the battlefield here: the Allies would need to develop bases to hit European or Japanese cities (which are all well out of range of North America), or be reduced to nuking their own cities to wipe out Axis port facilities.

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: FaneFlugt

Any japanese coming from the east in that scenario? Reminds me of the "the man in the high Castle" good book, Mmm ok tv-series.

That's correct. Further details are in the included briefing documents

I'm planning to post an old match between myself (Ben) and Jeremy for this scenario on the AARs forum to give people or more complete flavour of it. I just have to see if I can get a hold of some old save files to get screenshots.

[FaneFlugt]

Sounds fun, and I would appriciate some more info from your AAR. I will have to give it a go, when I have finished my current game. Does it transfer flawlessly to TOAW IV?

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: FaneFlugt

Sounds fun, and I would appriciate some more info from your AAR. I will have to give it a go, when I have finished my current game. Does it transfer flawlessly to TOAW IV?

I did the transfer to TOAW IV quite a few versions ago and there've been a number of playtests since then so it's pretty robust.

Because the map is quite large, the Battlefield Timestamps feature is a major advantage for this scenario. Attacks at the limit of a unit's move can take place without having to wait until other attacks are made by units on their start lines. Whether this improves realism is another matter, as plans do tend to go awry in the real world and attacks that should happen often do not. However the scenario is not terribly realistic to begin with and it certainly plays better this way.

I'll aim to start the AAR tonight.

[FaneFlugt]

Great, thanks.

[golden delicious]

You can find the AAR here

[Jeremy Mac Donald]

My favorite scenario... but then again I am very biased.

[Jeremy Mac Donald]

Those are really good Guides Ben. The only thing I would have maybe stressed was that the coastal artillery will nearly certainly destroy any unit that ends up beside it - just don't end up beside it. The way I read it makes it sound like it might be worth the risk - its not.

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: Jeremy Mac Donald

Those are really good Guides Ben.

Thanks. I used all my MS Word skills here.

The only thing I would have maybe stressed was that the coastal artillery will nearly certainly destroy any unit that ends up beside it - just don't end up beside it. The way I read it makes it sound like it might be worth the risk - its not.

I must admit this one was drawn from memory. If the topic we're discussing elsewhere leads to a revision I'll strengthen the wording in the guidance accordingly.

[Curtis Lemay]

ORIGINAL: Jeremy Mac Donald

Those are really good Guides Ben. The only thing I would have maybe stressed was that the coastal artillery will nearly certainly destroy any unit that ends up beside it - just don't end up beside it. The way I read it makes it sound like it might be worth the risk - its not.

What's the Naval Attrition Divider? If you left it at the default (10), be aware that post launch tests showed that a value of 100 is better for most situations.

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: Curtis Lemay

What's the Naval Attrition Divider? If you left it at the default (10), be aware that post launch tests showed that a value of 100 is better for most situations.

The results Jeremy is describing aren't undesired- actually the point is that the Axis player has to clear coast artillery if he wants to land at a protected harbour. This was mainly done to stop a particular envelopment strategy in the northeast which was overpowered.

Anyway, since you asked, the default is used here. I'll run a couple of tests to see what the impact of changing it should be but it's working as intended at the moment.

[Curtis Lemay]

ORIGINAL: golden delicious

ORIGINAL: Curtis Lemay

What's the Naval Attrition Divider? If you left it at the default (10), be aware that post launch tests showed that a value of 100 is better for most situations.

The results Jeremy is describing aren't undesired- actually the point is that the Axis player has to clear coast artillery if he wants to land at a protected harbour. This was mainly done to stop a particular envelopment strategy in the northeast which was overpowered.

Anyway, since you asked, the default is used here. I'll run a couple of tests to see what the impact of changing it should be but it's working as intended at the moment.

With the NAD at 10, each shore gun gets to fire 10 rounds before the ships can respond. At 100, each will fire 1 round before the ships get to fire back.

[golden delicious]

For this test, one of the starting stacks of German troops (7 divisions plus an HQ) deliberately move into range of one of the coast gun units

NAD = 10: 6 divisions and the HQ are almost completely annihilated. Because of some quirk in the way the combat is triggered, the last division enters the hex unharmed
NAD = 20: The engaged units take about 50% losses
NAD = 33: The engaged units take 20-30% losses

Sort of as one would expect. The real key here is to stop the Germans waltzing into Chesapeake Bay, and to do this you have to pass through at least two hexes screened by coast guns, so you'd have to take two hits accordingly to do this. As such I could see raising the NAD up as high as 33 so that one could land a ruined mess of a force at Baltimore. However it wouldn't change the scenario substantially: it would still probably be a good idea to clear the mouth of the bay first.

[golden delicious]

ORIGINAL: Curtis Lemay


With the NAD at 10, each shore gun gets to fire 10 rounds before the ships can respond. At 100, each will fire 1 round before the ships get to fire back.

They won't fire back at all as in game terms there are no ships, only embarked units.

[Curtis Lemay]

ORIGINAL: golden delicious

ORIGINAL: Curtis Lemay


With the NAD at 10, each shore gun gets to fire 10 rounds before the ships can respond. At 100, each will fire 1 round before the ships get to fire back.

They won't fire back at all as in game terms there are no ships, only embarked units.

!!!?