Most units have two step strengths, with their CS (especially) and RAS somewhat reduced on their reduced strength side. Reduced infantry units may attempt to recover to full strength by using the Recovery mechanic (covered later in this tutorial). The following illustration shows the same Soviet units on their full and reduced strength sides: Introduction to Combat and Ranged Attacks By Mark Mokszycki. Playtest game art by Michael Evans. The following tutorial is intended as a primer to give you an idea how Red Winter works. It does not cover all aspects of game play, nor does it cover the wide variety of strategies that might be employed by the Soviet and Finnish players. Additional tutorials will follow. Please note that all artwork in this tutorial is playtest art- not the final version. In fact, the counter artwork has already changed since the VASSAL module used for this tutorial was created (see preview towards the end of this document). Introduction Conflict in Red Winter comes in three flavors: Combats, Assaults, and Ranged Attacks. Combat may be performed only against adjacent units, and is never mandatory. Assaults (combat performed as part of movement) are the least common; they will not be covered in this tutorial. Suffice to say for now, Assaults are handled identically to normal combats except for a few small exceptions. This tutorial will focus mainly on Ranged Attacks, as these are potentially the most challenging for new players. Whereas Combat represents two-way firefights between (mostly) rifles and other small arms, Ranged Attacks are made at a distance of two or more hexes and include fire from mortars, artillery, tanks, and machine guns (MGs). Most infantry companies are capable of making Ranged Attacks at a range of 2 hexes due to the light machine guns (LMGs) inherent in each company (and, as a side note, the Soviet infantry has a real advantage in this department). Red Winter is a moderately complex game which simulates the fighting near Tolvajärvi, Finland, during the Russo-Finnish Winter War of 1939. The game is fast paced and interactive, with each player able to take his turn in about 5 minutes. The first in a proposed series of Winter War games, Red Winter is characterized by highly fluid frontlines, wild flanking maneuvers by night, Finnish night raids, and a low unit density across a wide and shifting front. The scale is grand tactical - mostly company sized units, 425 yards per map hex, 90 minutes per game turn. Anatomy of a Combat Unit Unit statistics denote (from left to right): Combat Strength (CS), Ranged Attack Strength (RAS), maximum Range in hexes, and Movement Allowance (MA). Historical ID is shown at upper left. Pictured below is Finnish Bicycle Battalion PPP7. represents a company of infantry (about 100 men). Each counter The units in the next column comprise a Soviet infantry battalion. The heavy machine gun unit represents 4 sections of guns (8 total guns). It s CS in black denotes that its strength is doubled when defending. It can project its RAS of 5 across a range of 3 hexes. Artillery can strike any hex on the map; their range is considered infinite within the parameters of our game scale. Artillery counters are kept off map. Their RAS in yellow denotes that they use indirect fire; they can fire over terrain and other units so long as a friendly unit acts as a spotter. This is unlike direct fire from weapons such as MGs and tanks, which require Line of Sight (LOS) to their target.
The LOS rules are simple; LOS is blocked by all terrain types other than frozen lake. It is also blocked by friendly units (for purposes of direct fire, but not for spotting). The time of day also affects LOS. Visibility is limited to 5 hexes during daylight turns, 1 hex at night, 2 hexes at dawn and dusk, and 3-4 hexes during the morning turns as the fog slowly burns off. This is shown for each game turn on the Turn Track for ease of reference. Gameplay Tutorial Now that you know the basics, let s get started. For this tutorial, we will use only a handful of units from each side, and only a small portion of the map. The game situation is shown at right. The Soviets (brown) are attempting to cross the ice of Lake Tolvajärvi and force their way into Tolvajärvi village, at left. It is December 10th (day three of the five day battle) and neither side holds a morale advantage. In addition to the units shown on the map, the Soviet player has two off map artillery units- the same ones shown on the previous page of this tutorial. Each game turn proceeds according to the following Play Sequence: I. II. III. IV. Soviet Reset Phase Soviet Action Phase Soviet Combat Phase Finnish Turn (repeat phases I-III for Finns) Note that while the Soviet player always goes first in our tutorial, the player order can (and will) change over the course of a campaign. During the Soviet Reset Phase, all Soviet mortars and artillery are flipped from their Fired side to their Ready side. We will assume this is done. During the Soviet Action Phase, each Soviet unit can choose one of the following actions: move, attempt recovery, or dig in. Reinforcements also enter the map during this phase. Movement, Stacking and Zone of Control Let s move some units. We ll start with the three Soviet infantry units in hexes K21 and K22. Moving each unit individually, the Soviets cross the ice and form a stack in hex I21. (Incidentally, the stacking limit is five units, no more than three of which can be infantry. In practice, stacking is usually much lower than five since counter density is so low and there is a lot of map to cover.) The infantry units pay 1.5 Movement Points (MPs) per frozen lake hex, per the Terrain Key above, so the move costs each unit a total
of 3 MPs. Soviet infantry has a Movement Allowance (MA) of 5, so this isn t a problem. A unit must halt its movement upon entering an enemy Zone of Control(eZOC). The six hexes adjacent to a combat unit constitute its Zone of Control (ZOC). The MG unit will sit tight. He could start improving his position by placing a Digging In marker, but in our case he d be better used to support the impending combat. He cannot do both- the Digging In marker would go away if he were to perform an attack. Combat and Support During the Soviet Combat Phase, our Soviet stack on the ice will attack the adjacent Finnish infantry unit. We have 15 points attacking 5, so the base combat odds would normally be 3:1. However, units attacking from the ice have their total Combat Strength halved, so our base odds are in fact only 1:1. We ll see if we can increase the Soviets odds by committing some offensive support to the combat. The Soviet player commits his two off map 76mm artillery units, as well as his mortars and heavy machine guns on Kotisaari Island. The MG unit qualifies for ranged support because it is within range (its max range is 3 hexes), it has Line of Sight (there are no intervening units or blocking terrain) and it is not adjacent to any enemies. The mortars are well within their maximum range of 12 hexes. The defender may also commit units to support the combat at this time. This is called defensive support. The Finns commit the MG in hex H20. The Finnish infantry in I23 are also within range with their light machine guns (range 2 hexes), but the infantry in I18 are just out of range. Note that range is always traced to an actual enemy unit or stack, regardless of whether the ranged support is being used offensively or defensively. Calculating the outcome of a Ranged Attack is a simple affair; roll two 6-sided dice, add the firing unit s RAS, and add +1 per infantry company in the target hex. A handful of other Die Roll Modifiers (DRMs) occasionally apply, but these are the main ones. The +1 per target infantry unit is a simple rule which conveniently discourages wanton stacking of units. Pile too many in the same hex and your opponent s artillery will pound you to dust! It doesn t matter which player s support is resolved first, as all results are considered simultaneous. We ll roll for the Soviet artillery first. Each unit rolls individually on the Ranged Attack Table (RAT); ranged fire is never combined. The Soviet player rolls a 7 and a 9. The firing units RAS of 5 is added to each result. A +1 DRM also applies for having one infantry company in the target hex. The modified die rolls are 13 and 15. Below: Terrain at Tolvajärvi. Consulting the RAT, we see that one roll has no effect, while the other causes Suppression in the target hex (but no step reductions). We place a Soviet Suppressed marker as a reminder. This will shift the impending combat 1 odds column in the Soviets favor. The Soviet player subtracts two points of ammo from his stock, and flips both artillery units to their Fired sides.
Now the Soviet MG unit rolls. It rolls a 9, adding to this its RAS of 5. It receives a -1 DRM for being 3 hexes distant from the target, but the +1 DRM for one infantry unit in the target hex effectively cancels this out. The modified roll of 14 is just what is needed to place another Suppressed marker. The MG unit does not get flipped after firing; it is eligible to fire again during its own Combat Phase. Strategic note: Positioning of your units which utilize direct fire is important for this reason. The Soviet mortars roll an 8. They receive the usual +1 DRM for one infantry unit in the target hex, and also a +2 DRM for being within 6 hexes of the target hex. Design note: The Soviet mortar units are an amalgam of 82mm and 120mm mortar sections. Only at a range of 6 or fewer hexes is 82mm component usable, thus these units are more lethal when used accordingly. The modified roll is a 14, and a third Suppressed marker is placed on the target. The mortars are flipped to their Fired side. Now we ll resolve the Combat. We have 13 points (halved for the frozen lake) attacking 5, for base odds of 1:1. This is shifted two columns in the Soviets favor for the two Soviet support markers, producing final odds of 3:1. No other modifiers apply. The complete list of modifiers is shown on the final page of this tutorial (it won t fit comfortably into the two column format used here). Note that most combat modifiers are in the form of column shifts, meaning that the combat odds are shifted one or more columns to the left (defender s favor) or right (attacker s favor). The Soviet player rolls two 6-sided dice (there are no DRMs for combats; only column shifts) and rolls a 7. Now we ll resolve the Finnish defensive support. The MG in hex H20 has a RAS of 3. It gets a DRM of +3 for 3 infantry units in the target hex and another +2 DRM because the target hex is frozen lake. The Finnish player rolls a 9, modified to 17, resulting in successful Suppression plus a step reduction to the target hex! The Soviet player flips one of his infantry units to its reduced side. Rather than placing a Finnish Suppressed marker, the Finnish player simply removes one of the Soviet markers (the net column shift is all that s important). Below: The Finn at left is armed with a submachine gun, the Finn at right a captured Soviet 7.62mm Emmy light machine gun. The result is 0/1. This means the attacker takes no losses, and the defender takes 1 loss. Each loss can be taken either as a retreat hex or a step reduction, at the choice of the owning player. There are three important exceptions: No unit can retreat more hexes than its MA minus 2 (thus, Finns with a MA of 6 can retreat up to 4 hexes), the attacker must always take his first loss as a step reduction, and a defender suffering 3 or more losses must take the first as a step reduction. Don t worry about trying to remember these exceptions- they are displayed in red on the CRT as a friendly reminder. The Finnish infantry company in I23 fires its LMGs, rolling a 6, modified by a total of +7. The resulting 13 is a near miss. The Finnish player must now decide how to satisfy his one loss. This is a tough call. He could opt to keep his infantry unit intact by retreating to hex G20, G21 or H20 (retreats must be away from all attacking units, if possible) but then the Soviets could advance after combat into the vacated village hex. If he took the loss as a step reduction, his infantry unit would be weaker (CS reduced by 2), but he would strand the Soviet infantry on the ice, where it
might be very vulnerable to a Finnish counterattack during the Finns' turn. After careful consideration, he opts for the latter and flips his unit to its reduced side. rolling a 6 or higher on a single 6-sided die. Units gain a bonus to the die roll for maintaining their distance from enemy units (see Recovery Table, below). This provides a simple yet realistic incentive for players to withdraw their reduced units to the rear and move forward fresh troops. During the fourth and fifth (final) days of the battle, the Soviets receive a penalty to their recovery rolls, simulating a lack of replacement troops as well as sinking morale. The result, in game terms, is a gradual but noticeable shift in the number of full strength Soviet units on the map. In the case of our Finns, only one unit, the reduced infantry company in I23, is eligible to attempt Recovery. The reduced infantry company in Tolvajärvi village is adjacent to enemy units, so it cannot recover. Reduced MG units can t recover. Checking the Recovery Table, we see there are no net modifiers, yielding a mere 1 in 6 chance of success. Therefore, the infantry unit s action would probably be better spent retreating to the rear (in order to gain a +1 DRM next turn) or joining the other Finns in an attack. The Finnish player considers his options- whether to move, dig in, or attempt Recovery with each unit- and he decides to move some units in order to set up a Combat against the Soviets on the ice. That Soviet mortar unit on Kotisaari Island also makes a very inviting target, but the only Finnish unit that could reach it is the infantry in I23, and those men will be vital to achieving a concentric attack on the Soviets on the ice. If positioned correctly, they might also force the Soviets to retreat through an ezoc, which mandates an additional step reduction. At the conclusion of the combat, all Suppressed markers are removed. Design note: That s right- the markers don t stay. Ranged attacks provide a use it or lose it benefit to combats against the targeted hex. Thus the attacker will need to follow up his support with a good old fashioned combat during the very same Combat Phase in order to exploit the benefit, or the suppressed hex will return to normal. No markers or resets of any kind are necessary for tracking suppression. Players will quickly become accustomed to counting Suppressed markers in their heads, although the provided markers are handy for new players or for pbem VASSAL play. Note also that ranged attacks need not be used to support combats. They can be used against any non-adjacent enemy in an attempt to inflict a step reduction, but they are most effective when used as support since the Suppressed result is the easiest result to achieve. Below: A portion of Tolvajärvi village, circa 1940. Finnish Turn Now it s the Finns turn. The Finnish player can skip the Finnish Reset Phase (there are no mortars or artillery to reset) and go straight to the Finnish Action Phase. Reduced infantry units may attempt to recover to full strength during their Action Phase in lieu of other actions. The Recovery mechanic requires
The Finns in H21 decide to pull back in order to recover next turn. They pay +1 MP to exit ezoc, moving down the road to hex E25, paying only ½ MP per road hex. This move costs them a total of 4 MPs. They could move further (their MA of 6 would allow them 4 more road hexes) but they don t want to get too far from the action- only far enough away to ensure the +1 recovery DRM next turn. The infantry at I18 moves to H21, pay ½ MP per connected road hex for a total of 1.5 MPs. The infantry at I23 moves to J21. Finns are equipped with skis and pay only 1 MP per frozen lake hex, so this move costs only 2 MPs. The MG at I17 scoots up to I18 in order to support the impending combat; he could have moved closer in order to avoid the -1 DRM, but he doesn t want to give the Soviets an opening into the northern end of the village (we are only looking at an isolated slice of the front, after all). The MG in H20 stays put in order to support the combat. That s all for the Finnish Action Phase. Finns are already reduced, meaning that the MG fire eliminates them! Grumbling that his plans are now unhinged, the Finnish player places the unit in the Dead Pool box. He may be able to return it play later in the game via the expenditure of Replacement Points (not covered in this tutorial). Now we resolve the combat. We have 5 points attacking 13, for base odds of 1:3, but this is shifted 2 columns for the Finnish support. It also receives a whopping 4R column shift for Soviet Defender in Frozen Lake. Thus our combat is shifted a total of 6 columns, to final odds column of 5:1. Design note: The CRT is calibrated to woods as the norm, so units on the featureless lakes are comparatively easy to hit. You will also note that the column shift for Finns on frozen lake is 3R, not 4R. The Soviets wore brown uniforms and stuck out like sore thumbs against the snowy white backdrop of the lakes. The Finnish player rolls a 9; the combat result is 0/3 with a mandatory step reduction. The Soviet player reduces one of the full strength infantry units and retreats his units two hexes (back on to the island) to satisfy the remaining two losses. He need not retreat them to the same hex, so he places the two reduced units in K22 and the full strength unit in K21. This gives him better coverage should the Finns try to recapture the island. The Finns can advance after combat as many hexes as the defender retreated (in this case, 2 hexes) and there are pros and cons to such an advance. This would leave the Finns on the ice where they might suffer losses, but it would also mean that the reduced Soviets would not be eligible for recovery during their turn (since they would be in ezoc). The Finnish player opts not to advance. The combat is complete, and all Suppressed markers are removed (see illustration). Turn Analysis and What Comes Next The Soviets failed to gain a foothold in the village, but through their failed attempt has come a favorable turn of events- an eliminated company of Finns. The Turn Marker is now advanced on the Turn Track and we continue the game with the Soviet Reset Phase. The Soviet mortars and artillery are flipped and again eligible to fire. The Soviet player needs to quickly recover his units (slim chance of that happening in one turn) or else start digging in, lest the Finns seize the opportunity to gather forces and retake Kotisaari Island. The better option for the Soviets is probably to start digging in first, and attempt Recovery later. Now we move on to the Finnish Combat Phase. The Finns will conduct one combat, against hex I21. They will support it with their MGs at I18 and H20. The Soviets declare defensive support from the MGs at K20. Their mortars and artillery cannot provide support because they already fired during the Soviet Combat Phase (and they won t get flipped unit the next Soviet Reset Phase). Digging In The Finns MG units fire. Each unit has a RAS of 3, enjoys a +3 DRM for 3 infantry units in the target hex, and +2 DRM for Soviets on frozen lake. The Finnish player rolls an 8 and a 5, modified to a 16 and 14, and gets to place one Finnish Suppression marker. Note that the 16 was just a point shy of a step reduction. Units which are not in ezoc may place a Digging In marker in lieu of other actions. The following turn, the marker may be flipped to its Dug In side if these conditions are still met. Hexes with a Dug In marker receive a defensive bonus in Combat and vs. Ranged Fire. The Soviet MGs fire at the reduced Finnish unit on the ice at J22. They have a RAS of 5 and receive a +1 DRM for one infantry unit in target hex and +1 DRM for Finns on frozen lake. The Soviet player rolls a 10, modified to a 17, for a Suppressed + step reduction result. The target
This ends our little tutorial. We've covered the basic mechanics, and you now have an understanding of about 90% of the most common mechanics required to play the game. Mechanics which are used less frequently, such as Assaults, Finnish Night Raids, Anti-Tank Fire, and Replacements, will be covered in a future tutorial. I also hope to do a tutorial devoted to strategies and tactics in Red Winter. Below: A column of Soviet BA-10 armored cars advances. Above and below: Finns with Maxim machine guns. Questions or comments? Contact designer Mark Mokszycki at duckweedseattle@yahoo.com, or visit the Red Winter forums at consimworld.com and boardgamegeek.com. Please join us at the latter to view play by play game sessions, Winter War era photographs and maps, new artwork and game developments, and general discussion pertaining to Red Winter. Thanks for looking! Cheers, Mark Above: Destroyed Soviet T-26 tanks near Tolvajärvi. These are 1931 models with twin turrets.
Below: Sample of newest recent Red Winter counter art by Michael Evans from September 2009, current as of October 10, 2009. Counter art is not final at this time.