An Argentine A-4 Skyhawk bombing a British Frigate in 1982
Rulebook, Section V
Combat
The entire reason that units are built and moved is to engage in combat. This is a game of world conquest. Construction, maneuver, and diplomacy all lead to combat, which leads to conquest, which leads to victory. In most combat, each unit's combat rating for that type of combat is multiplied by the quality score of the nation it belongs to. The total resulting number of combat points is added together with all other units in the battle. The winner of the battle, and the number of casualties, is determined by the ratio between the attacker and the defender. The higher the ratio, the more units the of losing side are destroyed, and the fewer units of the winner are destroyed.
V. A. Land Warfare
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In land warfare, the defender normally gets a x2 bonus to all of their units, since ground combat favors the defense. In many cases, each side may gain or lose reserves due to wounded soldiers from destroyed units recovering, or replacements being called up to revive units that were not destroyed. No additional cost is imposed for these replacements.
V. A. 1. Simple Invasion
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In a simple invasion, with only ground units involved, there is only one phase of battle. The total combat points of the attacker is compared to 2x the total combat points of the defender. If the ratio favors the attacker by 1.5-to-1 or better, the invasion is successful and the attacker advances into the territory of the defender. The depth of the penetration is determined by the moderators, and is based on terrain, units involved, and the ratio of the victory. If the ratio is greater than 4-to-1 in favor of the attacker, and the defender did not leave specific orders to withdraw from a superior force, all defending units on that border are destroyed. If the ratio is greater than 6-to-1, no attacking units are destroyed, although some reserves may be consumed as replacements. If the ratio is greater than less than 1.5-to-1 in favor of the attacker, but not more than 1.5-to-1 in favor of the defender, the invasion is a bloody stalemate, with little or no ground gained by the attacker, and heavy losses on both sides. If the ratio is more than 3-to-1 in favor of the defender, all or most of the attacking units are destroyed, with only light losses for the defender. If the ratio is more than 5-to-1 in favor of the defender, the defender actually advances into the territory of the attacker and all attacking units are destroyed.
V. A. 2. Air/Land Battles
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If one or both sides of a land invasion is supported by aircraft tasked to ground support, there is a new phase added. If the attacker wins air superiority (see Air Warfare below), then the Strike Package attacks the defending ground units. The attacking aircraft's ASuW scores fight the defending ground units' AAW scores, but the aircraft's total is multiplied by either 10% or 20% depending on the level of air superiority. This is because aircraft units come in squadrons of 10 planes, while ground units are divisions of 10,000 to 20,000 soldiers. If the defender's aircraft win air superiority, then all bomber and attack aircraft among the defending planes are automatically formed into a Strike Package to bomb the attacking ground units in the same manner. If neither side wins air superiority, then both sides' aircraft can attack the ground forces at an additional 50% penalty. After this air-to-ground battle is resolved, and casualties are removed, the ground war is decided as if it was a simple invasion.
V. A. 3. Airborne Invasions
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Paratroop and Airmobile Cavalry divisions can launch airborne invasions of enemy territory without the need for a direct land border. Paratroop divisions need 5 squadrons of Transport Aircraft to make the drop, but Airmobile Cavalry divisions have their own helicopters and do not need additional units. Paratroop divisions can drop anywhere within 500 miles of a friendly base, while Airmobile Cavalry divisions can only drop within 50 miles of a friendly base. Both units get a +1 bonus when used in this manner. In cases where airborne assaults are done behind enemy lines in support of a general ground invasion, the presence of airborne units behind enemy lines prevents retreat and ensures a higher number of enemy casualties in a successful attack. But, if the attack is not successful, all airborne units behind enemy lines are automatically lost as they are cut off and destroyed. At least Partial Air Superiority is required to permit an airborne attack.
V. A. 4. Tactical Nuclear Weapons on Land
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Use of nuclear weapons on land is an event that has happened before in the game, and will probably happen again. Nuclear-capable nations frequently use their nuclear arsenals to deter invasions, and when that deterrence fails, nuclear weapons are sometimes all that stands in the way of an invading army. In most circumstances, one nuclear warhead will completely destroy one invading division. Special circumstances of terrain or tactics may raise or lower this ratio, and higher-yield thermonuclear devices may destroy more than one division. Advancing on a broad front will reduce casualties from nuclear attacks on land, while bunching up in defined armored spearheads for blitzkrieg tactics will increase losses. Terrain can bunch up invading forces in mountain passes or narrow peninsulas like Panama, and even in cities, and thus increase losses. Using tactical nukes against defending forces as a preparation to invasion is subject to similar rules. If troops spread out along a border, one nuke will kill one division, although concentrations of forces defending strategic passes or cities will have higher losses.
V. A. 5. Special Cases
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A variety of special tactics can be used on land. Blitzkrieg tactics of armored spearheads against weak points in the enemy line will maximize penetration of enemy territory, and works well against enemy forces consisting mainly of infantry units. Heavy Infantry divisions get a +1 bonus in defensive combat if they have been on that border at least 1 full turn cycle and have been given orders to dig in behind defensive fortifications such as minefields or forts. Flanking maneuvers to hit a defensive line from behind or the side will increase your effectiveness and increase enemy casualties. A variety of traps and surprises are possible, and there are too many variations to list here. Contact the moderators for advice, hints, or rulings in advance on the effectiveness of planned maneuvers and tactics.
V. B. Naval Warfare
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Any combat involving ships or submarines is naval combat. Naval combat is very different from ground combat. There is no defensive bonus in naval combat, in fact, there is a x2 bonus to offensive combat in certain situations. If a player has advanced knowledge that an enemy fleet will be in a certain location, and attacks them there, the attacker gets a x2 bonus. There is an additional bonus to surprise attacks or traps laid by FAC such as PTM. If both fleets have orders to attack, there is no bonus.
V. B. 1. Fleet Battles
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In a battle between two fleets of purely surface ships, the battle is played out normally with the ASuW scores of the two fleets compared. The surprise bonus applies only in constricted waters such as straits, or when very good intelligence is available as to the planned route of enemy ships, since the absence of aircraft makes scouting difficult in open waters.
V. B. 2. Submarine Battles
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The addition of submarines adds up to two more phases to naval combat. If both sides have submarines, the two sub fleets battle using their ASW scores to break through and attack the other side's surface ships. Since this phase takes place after any initial air-to-air phase (see below), the side that wins air superiority allocates aircraft such as SH or NS to the sub battle, these can attack enemy subs as well, although ASW planes may not be shot down by submarines. If one side wins the sub battle by a ratio of 2-to-1 or better, their surviving subs may go on to attack enemy surface ships. There is no need to divide your subs into escort and strike packages like with aircraft. SSGN and other cruise-missile subs can always attack surface ships and do not need to win the sub battle. Surface ships fight each other only after the sub clash and sub-vs.-sub phases are finished, unless players give tactical orders otherwise.
V. B. 3. Air/Sea Battles
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If aircraft are involved, up to two new phases are added to the naval battle. If only one side has aircraft, then that side automatically gains the surprise bonus. Land-based aircraft can take part in any naval battle within range of land bases. As in all combined-arms battles involving aircraft, the air-to-air battle is decided first, as both sides battle for air superiority, and the winner's strike package goes on to attack the enemy fleet. ASW planes not sent into the sub battle, such as NS and M aircraft, get a +1 bonus in attacking ships. Fleets that are unable to withdraw because they are trapped against a coast by a superior fleet can be annihilated, but ships facing a losing battle that are able to withdraw, will withdraw, reducing their losses. After the air-to-ship battle is over, the sub phases are decided, and only then do surface fleets battle each other. However, players may give orders to change this order of combat if they wish, for example, to have the ships battle first to minimize losses among a small sub force that they use to mop up survivors of the ship-to-ship combat.
V. B. 4. Amphibious Invasions
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The goal of most naval battles is to land troops on an enemy coast, or to prevent a landing on friendly shores. If aircraft, ships, or subs oppose an amphibious landing, a naval battle takes place before the troops may land, and if the invading side loses the battle, the troops never reach the beach. If the attacking player wants to have ships perform a shore bombardment, those ships may not take part in offensive naval battles, and their scores may not contribute to such actions. If the troops are allowed to land, Marines attack with a +1 bonus as long as there are no naval minefields along that coast. Enemy resistance is limited to one ground unit per attacking marine division, due to the small area of beach each marine takes up, but any enemy aircraft in that area also can defend.
V. B. 5. Shore Bombardments
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Ships can only perform shore bombardments as part of an amphibious assault, because otherwise units could just move away from the shore to avoid being shelled. Ships with a bombardment score fire as part of the land-to-land battle. Bombardment scores are NOT affected by unit quality. Ships may not be lost as casualties when performing a bombardment unless there are Shore Defenses or coastal minefields along that coast, or the defending aircraft win air superiority.
V. B. 6. Tactical Nuclear Weapons at Sea
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The most common use of tactical nuclear weapons is at sea against fleets. A small navy with tactical nukes can be a threat even to the largest CVN-led battle fleet. Small fission nukes normally destroy the heart of an enemy formation, taking out the major ships but leaving the surrounding ring of frigates and destroyers intact. Larger thermonuclear fusion weapons leave only the outermost escort vessels of large fleets undamaged. Very small ASW nukes like depth charges and torpedoes normally destroy single subs or ships. AEGIS ships like CGA or DDGA automatically shoot down 2 each of incoming nuclear missiles, including ICBM, IRBM, SLBM, and even ALCM warheads. Planes carrying air-dropped nuclear bombs only break through the missile defenses of large fleets if sufficient other aircraft are present to at least win a marginal victory in the air-to-sea battle phase. Special circumstances may change this, consult the moderators if you are planning to use nukes or expect to see them used on your fleets.
V. B. 7. Special Cases
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Special cases of ambush or other maneuvers may lead to bonuses or handicaps to the normal battle equations. Consult the moderators for advice.
V. C. Air Warfare
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Any combat involving aircraft is air warfare. Pure air warfare is rare, but it does happen on occasion. Normally, aircraft operate in support of land or sea combat. Any speck of land a player controls that is large enough for a runway is assumed to have adequate airfields for any number of aircraft. Range of aircraft is not rigidly defined, although you can use the following rough rules of thumb in planning battles. Obsolete fighter and attack planes have a radius of action of about 500 miles, while modern fighter and attack planes can fly and fight within 750 miles of a friendly base. Use of Transport planes as refueling tankers can extend this range greatly, but consult the moderators before attempting this. Heavy Bombers and such can attack anywhere in the world with midair refueling, and Maritime Patrol aircraft can patrol over 1000 miles from base. Naval planes are assumed to have a radius of action of around 500 miles for VSTOL planes or 750 for NF and NA aircraft, although since the carriers they normally operate from are mobile, any coastal area is within their range.
V. C. 1. Air Strikes
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Players wishing to weaken an enemy prior to a later attack may use air strikes. Any military target can be hit by air strikes. In pure air-to-air battles, the AAW scores of each side are simply compared to determine a victor. In air battles leading to an aerial attack on surface targets, such as ships or ground troops, attacking aircraft must be divided into a strike package and an escort package. The escort package is normally composed of planes like OF, MF, NF, and such that are primarily fighters. These escorting planes battle ALL defending aircraft for Air Superiority. If the attacking Escort Package wins that air-to-air battle by a margin of 2-to-1 or better, they are said to have achieved "Partial Air Superiority", and if the margin is better than 3-to-1, they have achieved "Total Air Superiority". If Partial air superiority is achieved, the Strike Package can attack the enemy surface units. If the target surface units are ships, the Strike Package's total ASuW scores are multiplied by 50%, or 10% if the target is ground troops. If TOTAL air superiority is achieved, the multiplication factor is 100% against ships or 20% against ground troops. If either partial air superiority or total air superiority is achieved by one side, the strike package of the other side cannot attack surface forces of the other side at all. If neither side achieves air superiority, both sides' strike packages can attack enemy surface units at a 50% penalty to that of Partial Air Superiority.
V. C. 2. Strategic Bombing
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It is not recommended that these missions be attempted, but if a player so wishes, they can carry out strategic bombing missions against enemy industrial and transportation infrastructure. The battle is done as for an air strike on ground troops, but the only opposition to the Strike Package (once it gets through defending aircraft) are Air Defense Assets tasked to protecting cities and ground troops in those cities. For each 200 total ASuW combat points the attacker achieves, 1 cash point or 1 resource point is permanently lost by the player being bombed. These cash and resource points can be rebuilt at half the cost of increasing new cash and resource points.
V. C. 3. Tactical Nuclear Weapons in the Air
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Both the Americans and Soviets deployed nuclear anti-aircraft missiles during the cold war, and supplied such weapons to their allies. Against packed bomber formations, they can be quite useful, but against small groups of planes they are wasteful. Dispersing attacking planes in small groups will greatly reduce damage from such weapons, but against a player who does not take such precautions, these weapons can cause a lot of damage. Consult the moderator before using such weapons, since the exact circumstance of their use has a great impact on their effectiveness.
V. C. 4. Strategic Nuclear Weapons
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The primary purpose of strategic nuclear weapons is deterrence, but deterrence does not always work, and sometimes they must be used. Nuclear attacks on enemy cities are strategic attacks, and they can lay a nation waste. When making such attacks, you can either designate exact targets or simply name a target nation, specify the number of weapons to use, and let the moderators chose the targets that will do the most damage (or the least, should you so decide). The effect of such weapons is greatly dependent on which nation is being targeted, the number and type of weapons used, and the exact targeting of the warheads. Consult the moderators before using them.
V. C. 5. Special Cases
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There are a variety of special tactics that can be employed with aircraft. ASW barrier patrols in choke points, fighter sweeps, harassment raids, and complex interdiction strikes with ground forces attacking to force defending units to move, where they can be destroyed on the roads by marauding bombers. Consult the moderators for advice on such operations.
V. D. Special Warfare
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Just like in real life, there are other ways to attack an enemy than simply set-piece battles with standard military units. Players can support rebels in other nations, sabotage industrial and transportation infrastructure, and even assassinate leaders and throw nations into turmoil.
V. D. 1. Terrorism
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Any nation can support terrorists and saboteurs, but some do it better than other nations. Democratic nations may face a political penalty if they are caught in such operations, but Dictatorships can usually get away with it. Terrorist and covert-action groups such as Navy SEALS can blow up bridges, factories, hydroelectric dams, and even military installations. Blowing up industrial and transportation infrastructure can reduce an enemy's income, or force them to spend cash points on rebuilding facilities such as shipyards. These groups always run a risk of detection, especially if the enemy spends cash on active counter-intelligence. Attacks on military installations such as communications centers or SDI sites can reduce an enemy's effectiveness in combat, but runs an even greater risk of detection by the enemy leadership.
V. D. 2. Rebellions and Counterinsurgency Operations
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Your covert agents can also support or start rebellions in neighboring nations. This works better, of course, if the people in that area already are unhappy with their government or there is a large community of residents who like your leaders better than their own. These rebellions can tie down enemy units in anti-rebel patrols, and even lead to secessions and civil wars. Of course, if you can do this, so can your rival players, so you need to know how to combat these rebellions yourself. Cash spent on counterintelligence and propaganda can prevent outside supply of rebels and erode their popular support. Moving troops into those areas can reduce rebel activity. Investment in the local infrastructure can reduce poverty and thus eliminate a major incentive to revolt. And, of course, a direct military confrontation can persuade a neighbor to stop supplying the rebels.
V. D. 3. Special Cases
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If you want to destroy a specific target within a neighboring nation, or want advice on target selection, please consult your moderators.
