16. Conditional Events
16.1 Axis Permanent Conditional Events
Check the following in the order listed, before performing any Conditional Event on the Axis Current Card.
16.1.1 Allied Minor Country Conquest
If Axis ground units occupy all City and Partisan Base hexes in an active Allied Minor Country, that Country is conquered. It remains an Allied Country aligned with its owning faction, but its status is now a Conquered Country. Exceptions: France and Vichy are special cases; see below.
A Country can be conquered any number of times.
For the Country that is conquered, immediately do the following:
△ Step 1: Remove all of the conquered Minor Country’s support units, fortress units, Partnership (P) units, War Economy markers, and Convoy markers from the game.
Step 2: Remove all of its remaining counters and place them in the Conquered Minor Countries Box of the Allied faction’s Force Pool.
△ Step 3: If the Country has an associated British 1-2-2 colonial unit in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box, place that unit in the Delay Box.
These Countries are France, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden and Turkey. These units represent “free” forces in exile that fight on after the minor’s government surrenders.
Step 4: If there is a Ceded Land marker in the Axis Force Pool corresponding to an area within that Country, place the marker in the Ceded Lands Box.
Example: Germany conquers Poland, a Western Minor Country. The players place the British 1-2-2 Pol colonial infantry unit in the Delay Box, and move all Polish units to the Western Conquered Minors Box. The German Polish Corridor Ceded Land marker is in the Axis Force Pool, so it is placed in the Ceded Lands Box. The Polish Corridor is now part of Germany.
△ France: If Axis ground units occupy all Cities in France, immediately do the following:
Step 1: Remove all French units and markers without a V on their Reinforcement Code from the game except for the Syria French Dependent marker.
Step 2: France – hereafter referred to as Vichy – remains aligned to its current faction. That Allied faction must place three French 0-1-2 colonial infantry units on the map. Each colonial unit must be placed in a City and/or Port hex (not containing an enemy unit, Detachment or Logistics marker) in a French Dependent, no more than one per hex. If there is no place to put a particular unit, place it in the Allied Force Pool.
Corsica is not a French Dependent (it’s part of France), so you can’t place an infantry unit there.
Step 3: Place all remaining French V counters in the Delay Box.
Step 4: Place the British 1-2-2 Fra colonial unit in the Delay Box.
Step 5: Place the German Alsace-Lorraine Ceded Land marker in the Ceded Lands Box.
Basically, France can’t be conquered. When this event is applied, it fights on as a greatly reduced Allied nation. Syria and French North African remain French Dependents.
△ Vichy: Vichy is not subject to this conditional event – it can never be conquered.
16.1.2 Axis Minor Country Occupation
△ If an Axis Minor Country or any of its Dependents contains a German multi-step ground unit or any ground unit belonging to a different Axis Country, it is considered under Occupation. A country can be under Occupation any number of times throughout the game.
Exceptions:
- One-step Exp units, regardless of nationality, do not cause Occupation.
- An Axis multi-national unit does not cause Occupation if the Minor Country unit in that multi-national unit’s Holding Box would be considered to be in its own Country or Dependent.
Example: The Axis Med HQ unit Holding Box contains an Italian infantry unit, so the Med HQ does not cause the occupation of Italy. It would do so for other Axis Minor Countries.
- △ An Axis Minor Country that contains a No Occupation marker is not subject to Occupation.
Effects: If an Axis Minor Country is under Occupation, the Axis faction must do one of the following:
- Perform an Emergency Breakdown of all units in that Country causing Occupation (2.3.4). This option can only be selected if the Minor Country would no longer be considered to be under Occupation after performing all breakdowns.
- Intern all units in that Country causing Occupation (16.7). This option can only be selected if the units can trace an overland supply line at the moment of internment (10.2).
- Remove all units belonging to the Minor Country under Occupation. Place those units with a Delay Stripe in the Delay Box; place all others in the Axis Force Pool.
This simulates the political costs of imposing foreign forces on Germany’s allies. Note that Occupied Minor Countries remain Axis allies – albeit unhappy ones.
16.1.3 Internment
Check to see if any units belonging to any faction are currently in territory that forces their internment. See [16.7]((tk-lur-16.qmd#internment-repatriation).
16.2 Axis Option Card Conditional Events
These events are performed after all Axis Permanent Conditional Events are checked.
△ 16.2.1 Case Yellow
This event can occur only once per game.
The Axis faction selects one Allied Minor Country. If supplied German ground units occupy the Capital or any three City hexes within the selected Country, then that Country is immediately Conquered and the following steps are performed. Exception: France is a special case, see below.
△ Step 1: Remove all of the conquered Minor Country’s support units, fortress units, Partnership (P) units, War Economy markers, and Convoy markers from the game.
Step 2: Remove all of its remaining counters and place them in the Conquered Minor Countries Box of the Allied faction’s Force Pool.
△ Step 3: If the selected Country has an associated British 1-2-2 colonial unit in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box, place that unit in the Delay Box.
Step 4: If there is a Ceded Land marker in the Axis Force Pool corresponding to an area within the selected Country, place the marker in the Ceded Lands Box.
Step 5: If a German ground unit occupies the selected Country’s Capital, the Axis faction may select one Neutral or Friendly Minor Country that shares a border with the Country and apply Influence (15.19) to it.
France: This event cannot be applied to France if it has already been conquered or liberated. If that has not occurred, do the following:
Step 1: Remove all French units and markers without a V on their Reinforcement Code from the game. Set aside all remaining French V counters.
Step 2: Place the British 1-2-2 Fra colonial unit in the Delay Box.
Step 3: Place the German Alsace-Lorraine and Occupied France Ceded Land markers in the Ceded Lands Box. Intern all Allied counters in Occupied France and Alsace-Lorraine.
Step 4: Syria is created as a Neutral Country. Remove the Syria French Dependent marker from the Ceded Lands Box and intern all counters in Syria.
Step 5: Vichy is created as a Neutral Country (13.8.6). Intern all counters in Vichy territory.
Step 6: If a German ground unit occupies Paris (w3516), the Axis faction may select one Neutral or Friendly Minor Country that shares a border with Occupied France or Vichy and apply Influence (15.19) to it.
The Axis faction may select a just-created neutral Vichy.
© Step 7: Place the France Defeated marker in the DS Strategic Warfare Box. Remove all non-F French units in play in DS.
△ 16.2.2 Ostland Accord
This event represents a hypothetical conditional surrender by Russia to temporarily end hostilities with Germany.
This event can occur only once per game.
Immediately do the following:
Step 1: Place the Ostland Accord Policy marker in Russia’s Posture Box.
Step 2: Remove all Russian Ceded Land markers from the Ceded Lands Box; those Regions are returned to their original Countries. If the Baltic States, Finland, Poland, or Rumania is re-created as a result of this, that Country becomes an Axis Minor Country; place its units in the Axis Force Pool.
Step 3: If there is a supplied German ground unit in the Soviet Strategic Hex listed below, the associated Region becomes a German Dependent. Place the appropriate German Region markers in the Ceded Lands Box.
- Baku (e2825) – Caucasus
- Kiev (e3609) – Ukraine
- Minsk (e3906) – Byelorussia
- Rostov (e3315) – Donbass
- Sevastopol (e2912) – Crimea
Example: The Axis faction has German ground units in Minsk, Kiev, and Rostov. That means Byelorussia, Ukraine and Donbass all become German Dependents.
Step 4: Intern all Axis units and markers in Russia.
Do not intern those units inside a German Dependent created in Step 2 above.
Step 5: Perform an Emergency Breakdown (2.3.4) on any Soviet multi-national units on the map.
Step 6: Remove all Russian units and markers from the map. Units and markers with a Delay Stripe go in the Delay Box; those without a Stripe are placed in the Soviet Force Pool.
Step 7: The Soviet faction may select 10 Russian one-step infantry units from the Soviet Force Pool and place them anywhere in Russia.
Step 8: Intern all Allied units and markers that are in a German Dependent created in Step 2 above.
Step 9: Place the Enforced Peace marker (14.11) one year ahead on the Turn Track.
Example: If the Ostland Accord is imposed during the July-Aug 1940 Turn, you place the Enforced Peace marker in the July-Aug 1941 Turn Box.
Step 10: The Axis faction may select one Neutral or Friendly Minor Country that shares a border with any German Dependent created in Step 3 above and apply Influence (15.19) to it.
© Step 11: Place the Russia Defeated marker in the DS Strategic Warfare Box.
16.3 Western Permanent Conditional Events
Check the following in the order listed, before performing any Conditional Event on the Western Current Card.
16.3.1 Conquered Western Minor Country Reactivation
The Western faction may reactivate a Conquered Western Country if that Country’s Capital hex does not contain an enemy unit, Detachment, or Logistics marker.
The Western faction may also reactivate a Conquered Allied Country if that Country contains a Western Partisan Base marker and there is not an enemy unit, Detachment, or Logistics marker in the same hex. If the Conquered Allied Minor Country belongs to the Soviet faction, the Western faction immediately takes control of the Minor Country and temporarily places its units in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box (until it performs the two steps below).
A country can be re-activated any number of times in a game. Also, any number of countries can be re-activated in a single turn.
For the country that is re-activated, immediately do the following.
Step 1: Place its 0-1-2 Res infantry unit on the Country’s unoccupied Capital or Partisan Base marker.
Step 2: Remove all of its remaining units from the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box. Place those units without a Delay Stripe in the Western Force Pool. Place units with a Delay Stripe in the Delay Box.
Reactivation Restriction: A Minor Country cannot be reactivated as a Western Minor if there is a Policy marker in its corresponding Posture Box.
16.3.2 Axis or Soviet Minor Country Liberation
If Western ground units occupy all City and Partisan Base hexes of an Axis or Soviet Minor Country, that country is liberated. A country can be liberated any number of times.
For the country that is liberated, immediately do the following. Exception: Vichy is a special case, see below.
△ Step 1: Remove all of the liberated Minor Country’s support units, fortress units, Partnership (P) units, War Economy markers, and Convoy markers from the game.
Step 2: Remove all of its remaining counters. Place those counters with a Delay Stripe in the Delay Box. Place counters without a Delay Stripe in the Western Force Pool. The Country becomes a Western Minor Country.
△ Step 3: If there is a Ceded Land marker in the Western Force Pool corresponding to an area within that Country or its Dependents, place the marker in the Ceded Lands Box.
△ Step 4: If the Country has an associated British 1-2-2 colonial unit in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box, place that unit in the Delay Box.
△ Vichy: If Western ground units occupy all City hexes in Axis or Soviet Vichy:
Step 1: Remove the French Surface Fleet unit and Convoy marker from the game.
Step 2: Place all French 0-1-2 V infantry units in the Western Force Pool. Vichy is now a Western Minor Country.
Step 3: Place all remaining French V counters in the Delay Box.
△ 16.3.3 Their Finest Hour
This event can occur only once per game.
If Total War is in effect, or an Axis unit is in a hex in Britain, a British Dependent, France, or Belgium-Holland, then the Western faction must take the Their Finest Hour counters in its Conditional Events Box and place them in the Delay Box.
△ 16.3.4 Paris Threatened
This event can occur only once per game.
If Total War is in effect, or an Axis unit is in a hex in France, a French Dependent, Britain, Belgium-Holland, Italy, or Spain, then perform each of these steps in order.
Step 1: The Western faction must take the Paris Threatened units in its Conditional Events Box and place them in the Delay Box.
Step 2: If France has a Posture of War, the Axis faction may select one Neutral or Friendly Minor Country and apply Influence (15.19) to it.
16.3.5 Reduced US Impact
△ If Axis ground units occupy all three of the following hexes, place the Reduced US Impact marker in the Strategic Warfare Box: London (w3916), Oslo (w4624), and Paris (w3516).
If Axis ground units occupy less than three of these hexes and the Reduced US Impact marker is in the Strategic Warfare Box, remove it and set it aside for possible future use.
The three hexes are marked on the map with small white stars to remind you of their importance.
Without bases in Western Europe, American influence would have been seriously diminished.
△ 16.3.6 France Rises
Ignore this event if the Axis Current Card is card 22a Case Yellow. Otherwise, check each condition below separately, in order:
- If Occupied France is a German Dependent and there is a City in that region that does not contain a German unit, Detachment, or Logistics marker: The Western faction may select a Neutral Vichy and activate it as a Western Minor Country.
- If Vichy is an Active Minor Country: The Western faction must remove the Axis Occupied France marker from the Ceded Lands Box.
△ 16.3.7 Lend-Lease to France
The Western faction must perform these steps in order:
Step 1: If the Western Lend-Lease marker is in an Allied Conditional Events box, the Western faction may place it in the Delay Box or remove it from the game.
Step 2: If the Western Lend-Lease marker is in the Western Conditional Events Box and France (not Vichy) is an Active Western Minor Country with a Posture of War, the Western faction may roll on the Lend-Lease Table. Any steps received from the Table must be taken as French steps and placed per Placing Replacements (1.3.4).
16.3.8 Internment
Check to see if any units belonging to any faction are currently in territory that forces their internment. See 16.7.
16.4 Western Option Card Conditional Events
These events are performed after all Western Permanent Conditional Events are checked.
16.4.1 French Liberation
This event can occur only once per game.
If Vichy is an Axis or Soviet Country, do the following:
Step 1: Remove the French Surface Fleet unit and Convoy marker from the game.
Step 2: Place all French 0-1-2 V infantry units in the Western Force Pool. Vichy is now a Western Minor Country.
Step 3: Place all remaining French V counters in the Delay Box.
16.4.2 Operation Avalanche
This event can occur only once per game.
The Western faction selects one Axis or Soviet Minor Country. If a supplied US ground unit occupies a City within the selected Country, the following steps are performed:
△ Step 1: Remove all of the selected Country’s support units, fortress units, Partnership (P) units, War Economy markers and Convoy markers from the game.
Step 2: Remove all of the selected Country’s remaining counters. Place those with a Delay Stripe in the Delay Box. Place those without a Delay Stripe in its faction’s Force Pool. The Minor Country remains aligned to its current faction.
△ Step 3: If the selected Country has an associated British 1-2-2 colonial unit in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box, place that unit in the Delay Box.
Step 4: If the selected Country is an Axis Country, place a No Occupation marker in its Capital (14.24).
16.5 Soviet Permanent Conditional Events
Check the following in the order listed, before performing any Conditional Event on the Soviet Current Card.
16.5.1 Conquered Soviet Minor Country Reactivation
The Soviet faction may reactivate a Conquered Soviet Country if that Country’s Capital hex does not contain an enemy unit, Detachment, or Logistics marker.
The Soviet faction may also reactivate a Conquered Allied Country if that Country contains a Soviet Partisan Base marker and there is not an enemy unit, Detachment, or Logistics marker in the same hex. If the Conquered Allied Minor Country belongs to the Western faction, the Soviet faction immediately takes control of the Minor Country and temporarily places its units in the Soviet Conquered Minor Countries Box (until it performs the two steps below).
A country can be re-activated any number of times in a game. Also, any number of countries can be re-activated in a single turn.
For the country that is re-activated, immediately do the following.
Step 1: Place its 0-1-2 Res infantry unit on the Country’s unoccupied Capital or Partisan Base marker.
Step 2: Remove all of its remaining units from the Soviet Conquered Minor Countries Box. Place those units without a Delay Stripe in the Soviet Force Pool. Place units with a Delay Stripe in the Delay Box.
Reactivation Restriction: A Minor Country cannot be reactivated as a Soviet Minor if there is a Policy marker in its corresponding Posture Box.
16.5.2 Axis or Western Minor Country Liberation
If Soviet ground units occupy all City and Partisan Base hexes in an Axis or Western Minor Country, that country is liberated. A country can be liberated any number of times.
For the country that is liberated, immediately do the following. Exception: France/Vichy is a special case; see below.
△ Step 1: Remove all of the liberated Minor Country’s support units, fortress units, Partnership (P) units, War Economy markers, and Convoy markers from the game.
Step 2: Remove all of its remaining counters. Place those counters with a Delay Stripe in the Delay Box. Place counters without a Delay Stripe in the Soviet Force Pool. The Country becomes a Soviet Minor Country.
Step 3: If there is a Ceded Land marker in the Soviet Force Pool corresponding to an area within that Country, place the marker in the Ceded Lands Box. If the Baltic States Ceded Region marker is placed, remove all Baltic States units from the game, and place the German Memelland Ceded Land marker in the Ceded Lands Box if Eastern Poland is not part of Russia.
△ Step 4: If the Country has an associated British 1-2-2 colonial unit in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box, place that unit in the Delay Box.
△ France/Vichy: If Soviet ground units occupy all Cities in Axis or Western France or Vichy:
Step 1: Remove the French Surface Fleet unit and Convoy marker from the game.
Step 2: Place all French 0-1-2 V infantry units in the Soviet Force Pool. Vichy is now a Soviet Minor Country.
Step 3: Place all remaining French V counters in the Delay Box.
Step 4: If the British 1-2-2 Fra colonial infantry unit is in the Western Conquered Minor Countries Box, place it in the Delay Box.
△ 16.5.3 Russian Emergency Mobilization
This event can occur only once per game.
If Total War is in effect, or an Axis unit is in a hex in Russia or the Baltic States, or card 4d Wartime Mobilization has been played, perform each of these steps in order:
Step 1: The Soviet faction must take the Emergency Mobilization units in its Conditional Events Box and place them in the Delay Box.
Step 2: If Russia has a Posture of War, the Axis faction may select one Neutral or Friendly Minor Country and apply Influence (15.19) to it.
△ 16.5.4 Border Defense Check
If Russia’s Posture is not Entente, Rapallo, or Pact: Ignore this event.
If Russia’s Posture is Entente, Rapallo, or Pact: The Soviet faction must check each Russian Ceded Land marker in the Ceded Lands Box and make sure its Region has a sufficient Border Defense, as defined below.
If a Region’s Ceded Land marker is not in the Ceded Lands Box, or if there is an Axis unit in that Region, no Border Defense is necessary in that Region.
The Soviet faction may check each of its Ceded Land markers in any order it wishes, but each marker’s Region must be checked.
Border Defense Requirements:
- Baltic States or Northern Baltic States: Each hex that shares a Border with Germany in this Region must contain two Russian ground unit steps.
- Eastern Poland: Each hex that shares a Border with Germany or Poland in this Region must contain two Russian ground unit steps.
For Eastern Poland, the Baltic States and Northern Baltics, it doesn’t matter whether the two steps are a pair of one-step units or a single two-step unit.
- Bessarabia, Finnish Frontier, or Turkish Frontier: The Region being checked must contain four Russian ground unit steps. These steps may be in any hex(es) in the Region.
The Finnish Frontier is considered all one Region, even though it is separated into two parts on the map.
Unmet Border Defense Requirements: If these conditions are not met, the Axis faction must immediately redeploy sufficient Russian non-fortress ground unit steps from any hex(es) on the map to satisfy the rule. The Axis faction selects the unit or units and places them as needed to meet the Border Defense Requirements. The Axis faction may force the Soviet faction to break down any units it wishes to fulfill this event. The Axis faction cannot use this event to redeploy more steps than are necessary, nor can it redeploy Russian ground units that are necessary to fulfill a Border Defense check elsewhere.
If the Soviet faction has insufficient Russian steps to fulfill their Border Defense requirements, there is no additional penalty.
Example: The Soviet faction checks its garrison in Bessarabia and discovers it has only three steps there. The Axis faction can select any Russian steps on the map other than those that are absolutely necessary for Border Defense elsewhere. It looks to the Eastern Poland border where the Soviet faction has unwisely left a 3-step HQ alone in a Border hex next to Germany. Two of those steps must stay in the hex, but the Axis faction can force the HQ unit to break down (going to the Delay Box) and relocate one of its three steps to any hex in Bessarabia.
△ 16.5.5 Russia Rises
Ignore this event if the Axis Current Card is card 27b Ostland Accord. Otherwise, check each condition below separately, in order:
- If a City in an Ostland Region that has become a German Dependent does not contain a German unit, Detachment, or Logistics marker: The Soviet faction may remove the Ostland Accord marker from Russia’s Posture Box and change Russia’s Posture to War.
- If Russia’s Posture is War: The Soviet faction must remove all Axis Ostland Region markers from the Ceded Lands Box.
△ 16.5.6 Lend-Lease to Russia
If the Western Lend-Lease marker is in the Soviet Conditional Events Box and Russia has a Posture of War, the Soviet faction may roll on the Lend-Lease Table. Any steps received from the Table must be taken as Russian steps and placed per Placing Replacements (1.3.4).
16.5.7 Internment
Check to see if any units belonging to any faction are currently in territory that forces their internment. See 16.7.
16.6 Soviet Option Card Conditional Events
These events are performed after all Soviet Permanent Conditional Events are checked.
16.7 Internment & Repatriation
Axis counters: An Axis counter is interned under any of the following conditions.
- It is in a hex in a Neutral Country.
- It is in a hex belonging to a Policy Affected Country that is not a Conquered Country. The Axis player may choose to not intern the unit, and instead end the Policy it is violating. A Policy ending this way during Pre-War immediately starts Limited War (12.2).
This is not considered to be “voluntarily” ending a Policy (13.6.1.2).
- △ It is a Minor Country unit or multi-national unit (13.8.3) in a hex in Germany or a German Dependent. Exception: One-step Exp units are not interned.
Example: The Axis faction places the Reich Annex marker in Warsaw. At the end of his turn, he discovers he’s left an Axis Hungarian unit in Krakow (e3501). Since Poland has been incorporated into Germany, the Hungarian unit must be interned.
- It is in a hex in an Axis Minor Country subject to Occupation (16.1.2) and the Axis faction chooses to intern the unit.
Allied counters: An Allied counter is interned under any of the following conditions.
- It is in a hex in a Neutral Country.
- It is a Policy Affected Country counter located in a hex in a Country it could not enter due to that policy.
- △ It is in a hex in a German Dependent created when a Ceded Land marker is removed from the Turn Track during Pre-War (14.7) or when the Case Yellow or Ostland Accord Conditional Event is applied (16.2.1, 16.2.2).
- It is a Partisan Base marker in an enemy country.
Internment: Interned support units, Detachment, Logistics, and Partisan Base markers are placed in the Delay Box.
Interned ground units are placed on the back of their faction’s Pending Card to await Repatriation.
Internment Restrictions:
- An interned ground unit must be a one-step unit. A multi-step unit that is to be interned must first break down (2.3.4) into one- step units. If a multi-step unit cannot finish its breakdown because there are not enough one-steps units available in a Force Pool, the unavailable steps are lost.
Example: A three-step unit breaks down into a one-step unit and a two-step unit. However, the owning player cannot break down the two-step unit because he has no one-step units left in his Force Pool. The two-step unit is eliminated and placed in the Delay Box (because it has a Delay Stripe).
- Fortress units (excluding Port-a-Fort units) cannot be interned; they are eliminated instead. Port-a-Fort units are flipped to their infantry or mech sides and placed on the back of their faction’s Pending Card.
Repatriation: When a Pending Card is revealed, any ground units on its back are placed per Placing Replacements (1.3.4).