Baltic Gap (2.3A) ©2019
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The Gamers, Inc. Operational Combat Series: Baltic Gap (2.3a) ©2019. Multi-Man Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Game Design: John Kisner and Hans Those interested in seeing the collected Mielants. errata for the printed game, or wanting 1.0 General Rules Series Design: Dean Essig. to download other support materials, should visit: 1.1 Map & Terrain Research Assistance: John Bowen, There are two maps, East (E) and West Jim Broshot, Thomas Burke, Kevin http://www.gamersarchive.net (W). A hex is identified by a map letter Caldwell, Roland LeBlanc, Ernesto and number. For instance, on the East Sassot, Charles Sharp, and Ludwig Map the city of Polotsk is hex E9.07. van Schoor. 1.1a The Terrain Key and numerous Playtesters: Johan Arve, Larry Barrett, Introduction game specific charts, tables and play aids Allen Beach, Andrea Brusati, John Buse, Baltic Gap depicts the Soviet drive into are printed on the map or in the back Dominique Chupin, John Collis, Dick Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania in the of this rules book. Eichenlaub, Jeff Emde, Christophe summer and fall of 1944. As the game 1.1b Some cities and villages have a Foley, Kurt Gillies, Montesaurus Gray, begins, the defense of Vitebsk, a Byelo- Population (POP) value printed on the Carl Gruber, Morris Hadley, Mathias russian fortified city located just a few map. The last side to move a combat Hardel, Michael Junkin, Roland hexes beyond the southeast corner of unit through a POP location “controls” LeBlanc, Peter Lindahl, Andreas the playing surface, has just collapsed. it for victory determination (4.0). Note Lundin, Chuck McKenzie, Dave First Baltic Front is advancing westward that when control of Riga is split, the Mignerey, Linden Moore, Alan Murphy, through the shredded German line, and player with two of the three hexes gets Steve Olson, Steve Poitinger, Jay Potter, will soon threaten all of Army Group credit for all 4 POP. Jim Reasoner, Mike Riley, Dick Sauer, North with encirclement. Finally, after Matt Severns, Russell Stewart, Angela four months of fierce battle, the Red Design Note: This is a bit of a misnomer, Sutton, Mark Veerman, Tom West, and Army will win the great prize of this Max Workman. in that POP values are based on a town’s campaign, Riga, and pocket the enemy industry, airfields, and ports, as well as its in the Courland region of Latvia. population. Note that Estonian values have The game allows players to explore this been increased to reflect Hitler’s demand interesting campaign from a variety that this area not be abandoned. v2.3a Rules of historical and hypothetical vantage points. Long campaign games can be 1.1c Entry Hexes are marked by letters The original rules have been corrected on the map edges. These are mostly used and clarified. Some of the highlights… enjoyed by up to five players. Several short scenarios are also provided, and to mark where reinforcements will enter • A process was added to the Victory these work best with a single player the map (1.9b) and which hexes are Conditions to make skill differences per side. Expect each turn of play to potential sources of trace supply (2.1 somewhat self-balancing. take an hour or two, depending on the and 3.1). • There are new “house rule” options complexity of the moves and combats. 1.1d All-lake & all-sea hexsides prohibit on page 50. land movement except at the yellow crossing arrows near Rapina (E51.19). • Significant tweaking was done in Dedicated to the memory of The yellow arrows reduce the terrain some scenarios (such as Courland our good friend Linden Moore. effects to that of a major river hexside. Pocket). Multi-Man Publishing, Inc. 403 Headquarters Drive, Suite 7, Millersville MD 21108 © 2021 All Rights Reserved. Page 1 Baltic Gap, OCS #11 Terrain Note: There are some potentially Design Note: This shows the limited value Leningrad and Königsberg have nominal confusing hexsides where rivers run into of narrow-gauge tracks without getting HQs for unit rebuilds, and have ports lakes: E48.13/E48.14, E51.18/E52.18, into the complexities of tying them into the with unlimited capacity for shipping to and E56.20/E56.21 are all-lake. overall broad/standard network. and from Baltic Sea ports. Ships move to and from these boxes per 1.5b. 1.1e Hexes containing multiple terrain 1.2b Rail moves cannot make “off-map” 1.3c features (such as woods and hills) are connections (such as from Entry C to Kaunas, Narva, and Saaremaa are usually handled per series rule 6.2d. The Entry D). essentially just holding boxes for rein- forcements (see 1.4). exception is “wooded bog” which is a 1.2c Reference locations & Entry hexes nasty terrain type with its own effects are detrainable (these are in addition to Player Note: Unlike some OCS games, (per the Terrain Effects Chart). the terrain types listed in OCS 13.3c). the off-map boxes are not sources of “free” 1.1f The Panther Line of hedgehogs is supply to be shipped onto the map. printed on the East Map. These only benefit German units, and are consid- 1.3 Off-Map Boxes ered erased after a Soviet combat unit There are several types of off-map boxes. 1.4 Kaunas, Narva, & Saaremaa enters the hex. No combat or barrage is ever allowed in The struggle for the Baltics was directly 1.1g Special Hedgehog Reduction. A these boxes. influenced by events happening outside hedgehog is reduced by one level when 1.3a Air Box. Both players have off-map the map frame. Of critical importance captured. Exception: Rule 1.1f applies boxes containing air bases. In an Air are the battles at Kaunas and Narva, when reducing the Panther Line. Box, there is no SP cost to refit planes. the end of which would lead to massive reinforcement arrivals. Almost as impor- The Germans control the Luftflotte I tant are Soviet landings on the island of 1.2 Railroads Box; the others are Soviet boxes. The Saaremaa. bases in each box are a certain number There are three types of rail lines printed of hexes from a listed Entry Hex, as South of the map, elements of Army on the map: normal, multi-track, and noted in the box. Missions must take Group Center are defending Kaunas. narrow gauge. Rail transport exclusively this distance into account. Following the struggle near this city, made on the multi-track lines uses half the Germans will shift two panzer corps the normal shipping capacity. If any Cargo for an air transport or air drop to northern Lithuania, with Soviet 5th portion of a rail transport is made on mission being flown from an Air Box Guards Tank Army hot on their heels. narrow gauge lines, it uses double the is loaded/unloaded at the Entry Hex To the north, above Lake Peipus, Armee- normal capacity. noted in the Box. For example, cargo abteilung Narwa is under constant attack for a mission from the 3rd Air Army by Leningrad Front and will eventu- Normal and multi-track lines are always Box is loaded at any of the three Entry in one of two gauges: broad or standard. ally be forced to retreat from northern A hexes. Ground units are never placed Estonia, falling back toward Riga. This Players change the gauge of these lines in an Air Box. using rail repair units, per OCS 13.3f. in turn makes it possible for the Soviets For railing cargo and trace supply, the 1.3b Königsberg and Leningrad. The to invade Saaremaa, which as a result German player can only use standard Axis player’s Königsberg Box is linked will effectively bar German shipping and narrow-gauge rail lines; the Soviet to Entry G. The Soviet player’s Lenin- from the Gulf of Riga. player can use only broad and narrow- grad Box is linked to Entry A. These Each of these off-map battles will be gauge lines. The scenarios define the are holding boxes for ground units and concluded randomly. In August, the starting gauge of each rail line. Show ships. German player makes a roll during every the limits of broad gauge using rail head In any friendly phase ground units are Weather Phase until release from Kaunas markers. able to transfer between the Königs- occurs. The same procedure is used in Narrow-gauge lines cannot be re-gauged. berg Box or Leningrad Box and a linked September to check for the Narva event, Entry hex (in either direction). This isn’t and in October for Saaremaa. These To be used for trace supply or trans- considered movement, so even supply rolls use the same chart, which has an port, a railroad must be connected to a points can do this. increasing event chance as the month friendly supply source (see 2.1 and 3.1) progresses. A given event can only occur by tracks of the proper gauge. Example: In his Reinforcement Phase the once, and can only occur in the month 1.2a Narrow-gauge lines cannot be a Soviet player shifts an arriving Eq from indicated. Entry A back to the Leningrad Box and part of the rail portion of a trace supply 1.4a Kaunas Event (August). Units immediately uses that Eq to rebuild a tank connection back to a supply source. But from Kaunas arrive during the Rein- battalion (there is a nominal HQ in the narrow-gauge rails can be used as part forcement Phase after the period of delay box). During his Movement Phase, the of a connection to a supply source to (1.4d).