Major Battles and Campaigns of General George S. Patton
Major Battles and Campaigns of General George S. Patton Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
General Rules
Equipment
- Folding board.
- 16 American (or Allied) Armored Units (blue).
- 40 American (or Allied) Infantry Units (blue).
- 16 German (or Axis) Armored Units (red).
- 40 German (or Axis) Infantry Units (red).
- 24 Movement Cards.
- 5 White Dice. 5 Red Dice.
Positioning of Units
Units are placed in the towns (circles at the road intersections) and up to a maximum of 10 Units can be stacked in one town. The Units can be either Armored or Infantry or a mixture of the two, but must all belong to the same side. (If it is discovered that after a player's turn is completed he has more than 10 Units in a town, he must remove enough to reduce the Units to 10. These are out of the game, the same as if they had been lost in battle.)
The Movement Deck
The cards are divided between the two players (in accordance with the rules of the specific campaign). Each player shuffles his cards and places them face down before him. The American (or Allied) player turns the top card of his pack face up next to the pack. The number showing is the number of Movement Points he can use for his first turn. After the American (or Allied) player has completed his turn, the German (or Axis) player faces his top card. He totals this number and the number in front of the American (or Allied) player and can use that many Movement Points for his first turn. The American (or Allied) player now faces a new card on top of his previous one. The total of this card and the one in front of the German (or Axis) player gives him the Movement Points for his second turn. And so on.
(For example, the American player turns over a 6 as his first card. He has that many Movement Points for his first turn. The German player turns over a 9. He has 15 Movement Points for his first turn. The American player now turns over a 2 and has 11 Movement Points for his second turn. And so on.)
When a player turns up all of the cards in his pack before the game is over, he turns over the face up cards, without shuffling, and uses them again.
Using Movement Points
To move 1 Unit, either Armored or Infantry, from a town to the next town takes a set number of Movement Points, depending on the type of road used:
- Solid Road: 1 Movement Point.
- Dashed Road: 2 Movement Points.
- Dotted Road: 3 Movement Points.
A player can use his Movement Points for moving a few Units long distances, or many Units short distances, or any combination he wishes. He is not compelled to use all of his Movement Points if he doesn't wish to.
A maximum of 5 Units can use any one road segment during a turn.
*(As an example of using Movement Points, in Illustration 1* a player has 2 Armored Units and 1 Infantry Unit in the town marked A. He has 1 Armored Unit and 3 Infantry Units in town B. He desires to move all of these Units to town C. He can move the 4 Units from B to C for a total of 4 Movement Points. He can move 1 of the Units from A, through B, and to C for a total of 2 Movement Points. He has now moved 5 Units along the road segment from B to C and cannot use it for further Units. To move the remaining 2 Units through town D would take 10 Movement Points- 5 each. To move them through B and E would take only 8 points- 4 each. To move all of the Units into town C would take a minimum of 14 Movement Points- 4 + 2 + 8.)
Battles
When a player moves 1 or more Units towards a town that is occupied by the opponent, he must stop outside of the town (but uses Movement Points as if he had reached the town) and fight for it. The result of the battle is determined by each player throwing a number of dice, depending on the Units they have entered in the battle. If the attacking player has Units on two or more roads approaching the town they are considered as a single attack force in figuring the number of dice he throws.
For each Armored Unit, a player throws 1 die. For each 2 Infantry Units, a player throws 1 die. A single Infantry Unit does not add to a player's dice total. The maximum number of dice that a player can throw is 5 and additional Units do not increase his battle capacity. (One player holds the 5 white dice throughout the game, the other the 5 red dice.)
If the defending player has only 1 Infantry Unit in the attacked town, he does not throw any dice. The attacker, however, still throws to try and destroy the Unit. (See "Casualties.")
If the player whose turn it is attacks two or more towns, he chooses the order in which the battles are to be resolved. He must, however, complete all of his moves before the first battle is started.
Casualties
A player throwing 1 die inflicts 1 Casualty on the opponent if he throws a 6. A player throwing 2 or more dice inflicts 1 Casualty on the opponent for each double (2 of the same number) he throws. For 3 of the same number he inflicts 2 Casualties, for 4 of the same number- 3 Casualties, and for 5 of the same number- 4 Casualties.
For each Casualty suffered, a player must remove 1 Infantry Unit that was involved in the battle. If a player does not have enough Infantry Units he instead removes 1 Armored Unit for each 2 Casualties. If a player suffers a single Casualty and does not have an Infantry Unit available, he must give up an Armored Unit (and does not receive "change").
Retreating
After all of the Casualties- if any- have been removed, the dice totals thrown by the two players are compared. The player with the lower total is forced to retreat (even if he inflicted more Casualties than the player with the higher total). In case of a tie, either player may choose to retreat voluntarily; if neither player will retreat the battle is refought, each player first adjusting his number of dice to reflect casualties- if any- that he suffered.
If one player's Units in a battle are completely eliminated, the opponent does not have to retreat even if his dice total is smaller. (For example, a player attacks a town in which the opponent has 1 Armored Unit with 2 Armored Units of his own. The attacker throws 2-2 for a total of 4, while the defender throws 6. Each player suffers only 1 Casualty, but each must give up an Armored Unit. Since the defender has no remaining Units, the attacker enters the town even though his dice total was lower. If, instead, the attacker had thrown 2-3, he would have been forced to retreat.)
If the attacking player is forced to retreat (or chooses to after a tie) he moves his stack of Units- or each stack if he attacks along two or more roads- back along the road to the adjacent town.
If the defending player is forced to retreat (or chooses to after a tie) he picks a road (regardless of type) that is completely clear of enemy Units and moves his Units, up to a maximum of 5, to an adjacent town. If more than one road is clear of enemy Units, he can if he wishes split his Units and retreat to different towns.
If the retreating defender moves his Units into a town that is still under attack (in the situation where more than one town was originally attacked) the Units join those already in the town, but are not considered in determining how many dice the defender throws. They also cannot be used for covering Casualties.
If a defender is forced to retreat and all roads are blocked, either by enemy Units on the road or by enemy Units in the adjacent town along the road, the Units must all surrender and are removed from the game.
(As an example, in Illustration 2* a player has moved two stacks of Units, X and Y, to attack town A. The attacking player throws 5 dice; the defending player throws 3 dice. After all of the Casualties- if any- have been removed, the dice totals are compared. If the defender's total is higher, he remains in town A, stack X retreats to town B, and stack Y retreats to town C. If, however, the attacker's total is higher, the defender must retreat to town D, using the only road that is completely clear of enemy Units, and the attacker moves stacks X and Y into town A. If the defender had had more than 5 Units in town A he could only retreat with 5, the remainder having to surrender. And if the attacker had had Units in town D, all of the defender's Units would be forced to surrender.)
Optional Retreating Rule for Advanced Players
A defending player who is forced to retreat may- if he is surrounded (or if he wishes to for strategic reasons)- retreat along a road towards a town that is occupied by enemy Units. He fights a battle for this town in the usual manner- except that the enemy adds 2 dice to the number determined by his Units in the town, and if the player throws a lower total his Units (having no place to retreat) are eliminated.
The retreating player may not try to fight passed enemy Units on a road.
(In the example of Illustration 2, if town D were occupied by the attacker the retreating defender could move towards town D, E, or F. He could not move towards stack X or stack Y. If he chose town F, the enemy would throw 2 dice- since the single Infantry Unit doesn't give him additional dice- in the battle for the town. If the retreating defender throws a lower total, his Units are trapped and eliminated. If the enemy throws a lower total, his Units retreat to an adjacent town.)
Special Rules for Breakout at Normandy
Starting Forces: The American player (blue) starts with 12 Armored Units and 12 Infantry Units. These are placed in the three towns behind the Front Line (upper left corner of board) in any distribution the player wishes (except, of course, that no more than 10 Units can be placed in any one town).
The German player (red) starts with 4 Armored Units and 9 Infantry Units. After the American has completed his placement, the German places his Units as follows: 3 Armored and 1 Infantry in Le Mans (upper right corner of board) and the remainder in any towns the player wishes- except, of course, behind the Front Line.
Reserves: The American player has 3 Infantry Units as Reserves. At the end of each turn he throws 3 dice. When he throws a double (2 dice the same number, regardless of the 3rd die) he enters the 3 Infantry Units to join the Units in any town- all 3 in the same town- that he occupies at that time. The player may, if he wishes, wait several turns before throwing the dice to try for Reserves, and once the Reserves have been entered he no longer throws.
The German player has 10 Armored Units as Reserves. These are entered, 2 at the end of each turn, for the player's first five turns. (Note: in this case the player does not have to throw dice for his Reserves.) The 2 Units are entered together in any one- except one occupied by the Americans- of the five towns marked (*) (towards the top of the board).
Duration of Game: The "Game Ends" card is separated from the rest of the Movement Deck and then the cards are dealt out- 12 to the American and 11 to the German. The American player places the "Game Ends" card at the bottom of his face down pack and when it is turned the game is over- giving each player 12 turns. (Note: the German player will have to turn over his cards. See "The Movement Deck.")
Objective: There are nine towns colored red (St. Sever, Sourdeval, Domfront, Mayenne, Le Mans, Sable, Chateau Gontier, Rennes, and Dol de Bretagne). The American player wins if, at the end of any turn by the German player, the American has Units in any five- or more- of these towns. The German wins if he stops the American from accomplishing this for 12 turns.
Special Rules for The Bulge
Starting Forces: The American player (blue) starts with 10 Armored Units and 26 Infantry Units. These are placed as follows: 1 Armored Unit and 8 Infantry Units in Bastogne (upper left corner of board) and the remainder distributed as desired in the seven towns marked (*) (at the bottom of the board).
The German player (red) starts with 5 Armored Units and 24 Infantry Units. After the American has completed his placement, the German places his Units as follows: At least 1 Unit each in the five towns adjacent to Bastogne, and the remainder in any towns the player wishes- except any of those marked (*) and, of course, Bastogne.
Reserves: The American player has 10 Infantry Units as Reserves. At the end of each turn he throws 3 dice. When he throws a double (2 dice the same number, regardless of the 3rd die) he enters 2 Infantry Units to join the Units in any town- both in the same town- that he occupies at that time.
The German player has 5 Armored Units as reserves. At the end of each turn he also throws 3 dice. When he throws a double he enters 1 Armored Unit in Longuilly (top center of board) unless it is occupied by the Americans, in which case he cannot enter reserves.
Duration of Game: The same as in "Breakout at Normandy."
Objective: One objective of the American player is to relieve the Units trapped in Bastogne. As soon as a path completely free of German Units- no matter how indirect- can be followed from Bastogne to any town marked (*), the siege is broken. Even if the German player is able to block the path in his turn immediately following its opening, the American Units are still relieved. Until the trapped Units are relieved they cannot take part in any battles. After being relieved they can be used in the same way as any other units.
The other objective of the American player is to occupy Wiltz (top of the board, towards the right). If, however, the German player is able to oust the American Units in his turn immediately following an occupation, the objective is not achieved (contrary to the relieving of the Units in Bastogne).
The American player wins if he is able to achieve both objectives. The German player wins if he stops the American player from achieving either- or both- objectives for 12 turns.
Special Rules for The Sicily Campaign
Starting Forces: The Allied player (blue) starts with 13 Armored Units and 20 Infantry Units. None of these are on the island of Sicily at the start of the game.
The Axis player (red) starts with 9 Armored Units and 24 Infantry Units. These are placed in any towns the player wishes.
Reserves: The Allied player has no Reserves.
The Axis player has unlimited Reserves. At the end of each turn he throws 3 dice. If he throws 2 - 1s, 2 - 2s, 2 - 3s, or 2 - 4s he enters 2 Infantry Units in Messina (upper right corner of board). If he throws 2 - 5s or 2 - 6s he enters 1 Armored Unit in Messina.
Duration of Game: The "Game Ends" card is not used. The remainder of the cards are dealt out- 12 to the Allied player and 11 to the Axis player. The game continues until one player has achieved his objective.
Allied Landings: The Allied player brings Units onto shore by first placing them in one of the 11 triangular landing areas (with an arrow pointing to a coastal town). The number in the landing area is the maximum number of Units it can handle in one turn. It takes one Movement Point for each Unit, Armored or Infantry, placed in a landing area.
If the connected town is not occupied by the Axis, the Units move into the town- without further expenditure of Movement Points. If the connected town is occupied by the Axis, the Units must fight a battle for the town- but also do not use further Movement Points. The battle is fought in the usual manner- except that if the Allied player throws the lower total, all of his Units attempting to land are eliminated.
Units cannot move along roads on the same turn on which they are landed. However, Units previously landed can be moved on a turn when new landings are being attempted, and can be used to assist in a battle being fought by the landing Units.
Italian Defection: Eleven of the towns are marked with yellow circles containing numbers. If the Allied player occupies one of these towns, the Axis player can try to oust him in the immediately following turn. If not successful- or if he doesn't try- the Axis player must, at the end of this turn, remove as many Infantry Units as the number in the yellow circle (representing Italian troops defecting from the Germans). The Infantry Units can be removed from any town the Axis player wishes, except Messina. If enough Infantry Units are not available, the Axis player must remove Armored Units- 1 Armored Unit instead of 2 Infantry Units.
Any one town can only be used once to cause defections. To keep track of the towns that have been used, the Units removed are placed in the proper town on the chart at the left end of the board.
Objective: The Allied player wins by occupying Messina and holding it during the immediately following Axis turn.
The Axis player wins by reducing the Allied forces to such an extent that it becomes impossible to take Messina (remembering that the longer the game continues, the more Reserves the Axis is likely to get).
Historical Commentary
Patton and the Invasion of Sicily
The Allied invasion of Sicily in July, 1943 was an important forerunner of the invasion of Italy and eventually of France itself. Patton had originally proposed a two-pronged invasion, the Americans landing near Palermo and the British near Siracusa, but this was overruled by higher headquarters as too hazardous.
The invasion, as it was carried out, called for the British 8th Army, under General Montgomery, to advance up the east coast of Sicily, while Patton's American 7th Army would advance inland, west of the British. Soon after the landings on 10 July, however, the British were stalled by German resistance. To get around this, the British encroached on the American sector, filling the roads with British truck convoys. Patton was infuriated at seeing his troops stalled and relegated to guarding the British flank. Instead, Patton aggressively attacked westwards and took Palermo, receiving permission to do so after he had captured the town! Patton now led the 7th Army along the coast towards Messina. The German troops, tied down fighting the British to the east, could not stop Patton's advance. Mass defections by Italian troops added to the German problems. On 17 August 1943, Patton's spearhead units captured Messina, the last German strongpoint in Sicily, entering the city just hours ahead of the British.
Sicily had been cleared of the enemy in just thirty-eight days. Patton had emerged as an excellent tactician and an agressive commander. But Patton's newly won reputation would soon be clouded by the "slapping incident," in which he struck two wounded men he thought to be malingering. The repercussions from this cast a shadow over Patton's future.
The Breakout at Normandy
In early July, 1944, Patton arrived in Normandy to assume command of the newly formed Third Army. The Third Army was held in reserve while American and British forces slowly wore down the German defenses in Normandy and forced the Germans back all along the front. Soon, the Allies had gained enough room and accumulated enough supplies to attempt a breakout from Normandy.
On 25 July 1944, a massive air attack blasted a gap in German lines. Into this gap charged the 1,200 tanks of the Third Army's 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th Armored Divisions. The breakout was under way.
Patton wanted to keep his troops advancing at all costs. He secured Avranches, and sent the 4th and 6th Armored Divisions to liberate Brittany and its vital ports. This left the rest of the Third Army free to sweep around the German positions. Patton hoped to pin the German forces in Normandy between the Third Army and the British and American troops to the north. If Patton could succeed, the Germans would be trapped. But to do this, the Third Army needed the supplies that came by way of Avranches and Mortain. These supply routes were guarded by only one division, the 30th. The Germans knew this and attacked the 30th Division with their last reserves, hoping to stop the Third Army's advance by cutting off its supplies. This attack did not deter Patton. Always aggressive, he kept on advancing against the German rear, counting on the 30th Division to hold his supply lines. After a bitter battle, the 30th Division repulsed its attackers. The German forces in Normandy were now in a pocket. Less than half of them were able to escape through the Falaise Gap.
Patton's fast-moving Third Army had broken the static Normandy fighting wide open. The breakout accomplished, Patton was now to lead his men on a drive across France, which was to prove one of the most spectacular advances in history.
The Bulge
In December, 1944, Adolf Hitler, himself, decided that the only way for Germany to win the war was by a lightning offensive against the Americans. This offensive opened on 16 December 1944, in the Ardennes Forest area of Belgium, Luxembourg, and France. It soon became known as the Battle of The Bulge. In the first few days of the battle, the Germans advanced considerable distances, but not as much as they had hoped, due to determined American resistance. Powerful German columns attacked towards Bastogne, a key crossroads town of strategic importance. The town was held by the "Screaming Eagles" of the 101st Airborne Division, who repulsed several German attacks. An ultimatum to surrender Bastogne received a reply of "Nuts!"
Patton's Third Army was to the south of the Ardennes, preparing for an attack on the Saar Basin. When called upon to aid in repelling the German offensive, however, Patton wheeled the Third Army northwards and within a few days, he was in a position to strike at the southern flank of The Bulge. Such a rapid movement of large numbers of troops over long distances in bad weather was an unprecedented feat. The Germans did not believe Patton could have reacted so quickly.
The first objective of the Third Army was to relieve Bastogne. On 22 December the IIIrd Corps of the 4th Armored, 26th Infantry and 80th Infantry Divisions began to advance towards Bastogne. The absence of Allied air support at first slowed down IIIrd Corps' attack, but on 23 December, after Patton had a chaplain write a prayer for good weather, the skies cleared and Allied aircraft assisted the attack. While the Germans redoubled their efforts to take Bastogne, they moved units to block Patton's advance. These included not only crack units such as the 5th Parachute Division, Fuhrer Grenadier Brigade, and the 901st Regiment of the elite Panzer Lehr Division, but also the war-weary and under-aged troops of the 26th and 79th Volksgrenadier Divisions. Fighting tenaciously, the Germans were able to slow the American advance and Patton, always impatient, sent the 30th Infantry Division to aid the IIIrd Corps. This helped to turn the tide and on 26 December, General Creighton Abrams led the vanguard of the 4th Armored into Bastogne. The town had been relieved.
Another objective was the capture of the town of Wiltz, a key crossroads in the German supply and communication net. Although the initial advance on Wiltz met stiff opposition (the typical outcome of direct-approach tactics), the town eventually did fall as a by-product of the relief of Bastogne.
The rapid and aggressive movements of Patton's troops had totally disrupted the German timetable. Instead of the confused muddling they expected to find, they were surprised when Patton acted with speed, decision, and impetuosity. But then again, such was always Patton's style.
Illustrations
Illustration 1 (referenced in the Using Movement Points example) and Illustration 2 (referenced in the Retreating example) are board diagrams showing towns A through E (Illustration 1) and A through F (Illustration 2), with stacks of Units and roads (solid, dashed, and dotted) drawn between them. They are not reproduced here; the worked examples in the text above describe the situations they show.