From: MKVSpit@aol.com Subject: Dark December From F&M 20 edited by Bob Ryan - MKVSpit@aol.com THE MAP The Allied and German Motorized Replacement Tracks are mislabelled. The Allied should be the German and vice versa. La Roche (hex 2516) is a town hex backed up by clear terrain. (Clarification) Units always pay the highest movement point cost of any terrain feature in the hex they enter (unless at road rate) and they likewise receive the greatest Terrain Defense Level when determining combat results. Terrain Defense Levels may never be accumulated beyond seven. THE COUNTERS All three units of the American 66th Infantry Division are brought into play only when using Variant XVIII. These units enter the game on the December 24 AM game Turn as shown in the Study Folder, not the January 24 AM turn as shown on the counter. The sole French unit (FR LT) is a restricted unit and should be treated as such. All Leader units are Optional units used only at the agreement of both Players (their use is recommended though). The U.S. 354 Engineer Unit (0-1-3) should enter the game on the 20 AM turn. THE STANDARD RULES 2.0 Restrictions on Replacements. Units may not be replaced after destroyed unless at least one other unit of the eliminated unit's parent division is still on the map. The units replaced in such a manner are placed in the nearest friendly controlled town to that of one of the units of the parent division. The selected town must be at least three hexes away from the nearest enemy unit 3.2 Road Space Requirements for Units in Strategic Movement. Units in strategic movement may not end their turn adjacent to another friendly unit also in strategic movement. 3.2 Limitations Imposed on Units in Strategic Movement. Units in strategic movement may move through non-road hexes or combinations of road hexes and non-road hexes. They do so at the normal terrain cost. Example: An Allied Infantry unit, a 3-4-5, would have a strategic movement capability of 25 (5x5). Moving through a dense forest hex first would cost 4 MPs. It could then move into a light woods hex containing a road for another 3MPs, then 15 hexes along a road and into a Light Woods hex off the road. For the purpose of German infantry, strategic movement over non-road terrain, clear and rough hexes only cost 1 MP to enter and woods and dense forest hexes only cost 2 MPs to enter. It is important to note that units may now enter strategic movement even when they do not begin their turn on a road hex. (This rule is not recommended to be used, stick with the original Strategic Movement restrictions in the rulebook). 3.2 Strategic Movement and Enemy Zones of Control. Units in Strategic Movenent may enter enemy zones of control and attack at the owning player's discretion. It is important to note that their attack strength is halved (rounded up). (This rule is recommended). 3.3 Road March. The Road March rate for motorized units is changed to 1 MP per hex; that is, all units pay one MP per road hex when moving in road march regardless of type. (This rule is not recomended to be used). 3.7 Stacking and Strategic Movement. Units in Strategic Movement may be stacked with or move over other friendly units that are not also in strategic movement, but must expend movement points equal to the cost of moving through the non-road terrain in such hexes. 4.4 Retreat After Combat. Infantry type or armored infantry type units may retreat across unbridged river hexsides. They are never forced to retreat any further than the immediate hex after being retreated across the river. Armored, panzer or armored cavalry units may not retreat across unbridged river hesides. They must take step losses instead. 4.7 Armor Superiority. An attacker's armor superiority is also negated if any of the defending units in a battle are adjacent to or contain friendly armored or engineer units. 8.0 Sequence of Play (also 4.1). The mandatory step loss for All Out Assault is not assessed from each attacking hex but only from one attacking unit regardless of the number of hexes from which the attack originates. THE SPECIAL RULES 1.2 Restricted Allied Movement. Allied units activated by German attacks in the first two turns may move a maximum of one hex for each turn they are activated. Their movement capability becomes normal beginning with the 17 AM turn. Allied armored and armored cavalry units may move normally on the 16 PM turn regardless of activation. 3.4 Allied Tactical Air Power. On clear weather turns the Allied Player may "air attack" any one hex of German units on the map or attempt to interdict a road hex or perform both, if the target unit is on a road. A die roll of "1" or "2" causes one of the units to take a step loss within the following limitations. 1) The unit from which the loss is taken is chosen by the German player, but must be motorized if possible. 2) A unit that is already at reduced combat strength cannot be forced due to air attack to take a step loss that would cause its elimination. If a stack of German units is air attacked, reduced units in the stack may not be chosen. 3) The Allied player subtracts one from his air attack die roll if the attacked unit is in strategic movement. He adds one to his die roll if the attacked unit is an infantry type unit, or is not in strategic movement or is located in a town, fortification, woods or dense forest hex or westwall hex for the German player. A die roll of 1, 2, or 3 causes the interdiction of a selected road hex. The effect of interdiction lasts one complete turn, during which time both players treat that hex as a non-road hex. It is possible for a German unit to be attacked on a road and have the German unit take a step loss and the road also be interdicted at the Allied player's disgression. The German Player has one air attack available for use on the December 30 PM turn. Also, the Allied player has one additional air attack available on the December 17 AM turn. OPTIONAL RULES 2.0 150 Panzer Brigade. The 150th Panzer Brigade may attempt infiltration a maximum of three times in the game a1l of which must be attempted by the end of the December 18 PM turn. 3.0 Optional Forces. Change sentence five to read... "For every '1' or '2' rolled that player may commit three units of his choice from his optional forces." 4.0 Disengagement. All units except armor, panzer, or armored cavalry must expend one movement point above and beyond that of moving into the first hex from an enemy zone of control. Armored Infantry and Panzer Grenadier units must pay this disengagement cost. 5.0 Uncertain Weather. Once Clear Weather occurs, the weather remains clear until the December 29 AM Game Turn. 7.0 Fog of War. Neither player may examine units under informational markers before he actually commits a certain number of units to attack them. 8.3 Defensive Movement of Reserves. Defensive Reserves may move their normal movement allowance in the reaction phase with the restriction that they may not move in Strategic Movement. 8.5 Reserve Shock Combat. Reserve units that move in the exploitation phase may participate in a special "Shock Combat" phase at the end of their exploitation movement. The shock combat phase occurs after the end of all exploitation movement and is executed and resolved identically to standard combat with the following exceptions: 1) Units performing shock combat cannot have moved in strategic movement in their exploitation phase. 2) Units performing shock combat always have combat resolved on the Tactical Advantage column of the CRT. Units performing shock combat are doubled in attack strength. 3) No more than one unit may perform shock combat in a single battle. 4) It is possible for both standard combat, then second combat (All Out Assault), and finally shock combat to be performed on a single defending unit in a turn. 5) It is possible for an armored unit performing shock combat to be doubled in attack strength and possess armor superiority. 6) Any unit(s) of a division may receive divisional integrity in a standard attack, if and only if, the other unit(s) of that division are in reserve and within three hexes of the defending unit(s). 8.6 Historical Reserve Status. If the German Player chooses the Historical Assault Positions with which to begin the game, reserve markers should be placed on the following German units before play: 316/212, 987/276, 914/352, 13/5FJ, 130/Lehr, 16/116Pz, 3/2Pz, 164/62, Peiper/1SS, 89/12, 12/12SS. Even though units may not move before the 16 AM combat from the historical assault positions the above units in reserve may move in the 16 AM exploitation phase if desired. (This rule should be considered optional, and could be implemented with some or all of these units). 9.4 Commander Units. Commander units defend with their defense capability option only if stacked with at least one other friendly unit. If attacked alone, commander units have a defense of zero (are attacked at maximum odds). Only the Patton and Manteuffel commander units may use their attack option capability to attack adjacent enemy units and even then must be stacked with another friendly unit involved in the attack to lend their attack strength to the battle. 9.8 Dietrich Tactical Incompetency. To simulate the 6th Panzer Army commander's historical incompetence to the initial battle situation, incorporate the following rule if both players agree to its use (it will aid the Allied player slightly): All SS units and the 150th Panzer Brigade may not move or attack in the standard movement and combat phases of the 16 AM and 16 PM turns and may not perform shock combat at the end of exploitation movement until after the 16 PM exploitation phase. 10.0 Corps Artillery. Players who own both Dark December and SPl's Battles for the Ardennes may want to incorporate the artillery units from the latter game into the OSG version. The only change that is necessary is to reduce the Barrage Strength Values for all German artillery units by "one" and for all Allied artillery units by "two." THE GAME VARIANTS It is suggested that at the start of the Campaign Game the German Player be allowed to secretly choose which set of victory conditions he would like to use within the following three options: 1) The historical set of victory conditions from "Turning Point" 2) The "Small Solution" from Variant Vlll 3) "Operation Luxembourg" from Variant IX Vlll. If the Small Solution is chosen, all Allied reinforcements arriving on the north edge of the map after Turn 8 arrive two turns earlier than that listed on the counters. (Example: An allied unit scheduled to arrive on Turn 9 from the north edge of the map would in fact arrive on Turn 7.) If the German Player has secretly chosen this plan, he would have to inform the Allied Player of his earlier arriving reinforcements on Turn 7. IX. If Operation Luxembourg is chosen, all Allied reinforcements arriving after the December 21 PM turn from the south edge of the map arrive three turns earlier than that listed on the counters (Example: Allied units scheduled to arrive on the 22 AM turn from the south edge of the map would actually arrive on the 20 PM turn. Additionally, the German Player receives no further reinforcements after the end of the December 20th PM turn. If the German Player relocates the SS Divisions, then the Allied Player will know from the start of the German plan. If not then the German Player must inform the Allied Player of his early arriving reinforcements on the December 20 PM turn. XX German Reserve Committment. The German timetable to commit their reserves was dependent on territorial objectives for their release. This was predicated on the fact that, given the limited road space in the Ardennes, newly arriving formations would need maneuver room to keep from further complicating the traffic situation. In the table below, the German reserves are available when the "release objective" is captured, or if not, at their normal time of arrival. When the German Player captures the required objectives in a turn for the release of a unit, the commensurate reinforcement is brought on the map on the immediately following turn: Unit Objectives Otherwise Release at Fuh Bglt Brigade St.Vith 19 AM 9SS Pz Div Malmedy,Spa 19/9SS - 19 pm 9/9SS, 20/9SS - 20PM 2SS Pz Div Vielsam, Hex 3013 20 PM 9 Pz Div Bastogne, La Roche, Celles 23 PM 3 Pz Gr Div Rocherath, Elsenborn 19 PM 15 Pz Gr Div Bastogne, Rochefort, Marche 23 PM Fuh Gr Brigade Bastogne, Houffalize, Hotton 22 Pm 10SS & 11 PzDivs (see 3.0 Optional Rules)