The winter of discontent

 The Axis drew the iniative roll and the Allies chose not to reroll so as the Allies went first last time the initiative switches to the Axis. The weather is Fine everywhere.

Japan chooses a no-cost combined impulse and moves a weak Japanese infantry corps to China. On the Vietnamese border Yamashita tries a risky attack on a lone Chinese Army in the moutains supported by bombers. Fortune favours the brave and Japanese forces advance into China from this angle. Italy with a naval impulse sends subs and naval aircraft into the Med and Red Sea but fail to find any convoys. They send light cruisers out into the West Med to protect their convoys. Hiter with a no-cost combined sends out the u-boats. They sink the Soviet convoy in the Norwegian Sea but this is their only success. On land the newly arrived Manstein HQ arrives in Ukraine by rail and the Rommel HQ reorganises him at cost of being disorganised himself.

The big news is in Poland where after Hitler's goading Guderian launches a massive attack against Zhukov. In the air battle the Focke Wulf and Lagg-1 shoot each other down and the Su2 bombers get abroted back to base. Soviet Flak sends back one German bomber unit. Stukas disorganise the Guards Banner army. Guderian rolls high and achieves a Breakthrough result sending the entire Soviet stack to return Next Turn in the Production circle. Here is the big hole left in the Soviet lines.The Germans lose an infantry corps. Stalin throws his pipe across the Stavka briefing room in disgust. Guderian refuses to advance with powerful Soviet forces in the flanks. His Iron Cross is guaranteed though.

The Chinese Nationalists surrouding the lone Japanese infantry corps in Kweiyang attack - they half their combat values in attack due to their incompetence and even with the Stillwell HQ support the result is no losses to anyone but 7 Chinese units flip over! What a flop!

Things get worse for the Allies. The Merchant Navy moves convoys to convey S African resources and US build points. They get intercepted in the Faroes Gap resulting in 3 convoys being sent back to Liverpool and a light cruiser being damaged by a u-boat who has to fleee back to Germany. Even worse was to come when the Beaufort naval aircraft gets shot down by the German flying boat which gets aborted in its turn back to base.  In the Western Med both sides' convoys are sunk and a light cruiser each is damaged. This means the Italians in Libya are out of supply (again). The Royal Navy concerned about Japanese build up in the Pacific sends 2 battleships and 2 carriers to the East via Africa. The Free French send escort light cruisers to the Carribbean and South America and convoys and tankers towards the east coast of Africa. The Soviets move militia armies towards Vilna and to the east of Kerch straits. They avoid counter attacking as they move ski units towards the front line in Poland. The Merchant Navy  transports a Maryland medium bomber from Iceland to Portsmouth to Lend Lease it to the RAF - doubling the RAF's tactical bombing at a stroke! US Naval vessels and aircraft are sent to protect the US East coast. 

Italy uses a naval impulse to move a convoy back into the West Med covered by heavy cruisers and an ntique battleship and naval aircraft. The Royal Navy fails to intercept them. Japan takes advantage of the flipped Chinese Nationalist units to destroy a Nationalist army northwest of Namming surrounding it with Japanese forces. Hitler gathers Bulgarian, Italian and German forces to launch a concentric attack in the Snow against the suothern edge of the Soviet Polish line. A Soviet bomber is shot down and a Soviet infantry army is disorganised by a Ju88. The attack only kills the NKVD division and all the defenders and attackers are disorganised afterwards. Hitler spedns 5 Offensive points to reorganise Von Leeb HQ which then reorganises three infantry corps and becomes disorganised itself again.

The Free French move their convoys and tankers into the areas that the Italian East African subs are likely to operate and unless Italy declares war on Free France they won't be able to attack them. The US moves battleships towards Pearl Harbour - a total of 4 are there now including 2 older battleships. The 8th Army launches it's long awaited offensive uisng offensive points on the fortress of Benghazi. In the air battle both bombers get shot down - without the recently loaned Maryland the RAF would have no tactical bombers left! In a bloody assault with lots of battleship support Benghazi is taken at the cost of the artillery division and mechanised corps and the defenders are destroyed. The Italians are satisifed with the exchange. A mass bomber raid on Liege gets through the Luftwaffe with the aid of a Spitfire but causes 1 build point damage but the factory survives. Two Lancasters get reorganised by Gort. Montgomery HQ moves by rail to the Harwich port to share the location with Gort. The Chinese try an artilley bombardment on the ring surrounding Namming and luckily disorganise a Japanese infantry corps.

The Soviets attack the Bulgarians with mechanised, motorised and infantry armies with the support of ski trrops and Spetzsnaz and destroy the two Bulgarian corps at the cost of the Spetsnaz and half remaining troops being disorganised. Siberians are railed to Minsk to help guard the Soviet rear areas in Poland. Soviet artillery bombards Manstein's HQ and luckily disorganises him. This should hopefully slow the Nazis down going round the south of the Dnepr line. Stalin realises his mistake in not rebuilding cavalry units. He still has railroads going through the Pripet marshes and he could have galloped cavalry units through the gap betwen the Polish and Ukranian fronts and kep them in supply. Stalin being Stalin blames one of his generals instead and has him shot.

Terrible weather next impulse with blizzards in Europe and snow in the Med(!) and rain in the N Monsoon zone may help the Chinese defenders of Namming. Japanese infantry corps in Japan move to Canton and Saigon. The ring of steel closes in Namming - in the dogfight above the Chinese P36 is shot down. The Japanese succesfully storm Namming with the loss of the engineering division. Italy chooses a no-cost combined impulse and moves some forces in Libya back to Tripoli. It can't move all the units it wants to as they have to protect the rebased short range fighter. In the Med Mussoline sends more naval aircraft and a battleship is sent back to port in the East Med and the only Royal Navy light cruisers in the West Med 0 box are sent to Gibraltar. The Germans attempt an envelopment of the Soviets in Poland during the blizzard.

ox are sent to Gibraltar. The Germans attempt an envelopment of the Soviets during the blizzard.

The Commonwealth chooses a no-cost combined impulse and advances some lagging land units towards Benghazi. Convoys move into the Faroes Gap ready to carry US resources and build points. The naval task force sails further around Africa towards Aden. A low level daylight bombing raid of Paris causes 1 build point damage. China passes.The Soviets choose a no cost combined and send a convoy into the Norwegian sea to replace the sunk convoy. The stack including the engineer and two infantry armies retreat to cover the railway threatened by the German infantry with the engineer joining the stack with the flipped ski division. The US moves two carriers towards Pearl Harbour.  The Turn ends. 

Partisans arrive in France and ocuppy an unguarded resource hex. I don't count aircraft units towards garrison values unlike the main rules as I think it's stupid. Only the land units outside of ZOCs count. No partisans arrrive in Ukraine depsite this. The US passes legislation to lend build points to the USSR. With 2 build points and the US helping out with resources and helping to repair some ships the Commonwealth goes on a spending spree of ships as well as the usual planes and infantry. No intelligence gains are made by anyone. The second year of war ends with Hitler feeling hopeful on the Eastern Front and Mussolini complaining that he helps the Germans but little support comes their way - apart from the Vichy oil and occasionally other Vichy resources. Hitler says nothing but starts building some naval aircraft to help out in the Med. And of course next Turn the Italian "Nazgul" super plane is coming to dominte the Med.