War At Sea (Victory at Sea) BASICS

These rules are meant to provide a crossover between Victory at Sea and Axis and Allies Naval Miniatures to combine the best of both into one game that creates a fun and engaging game for everyone. In some instances, major changes were needed to better combine the two game systems to better meet the needs of the game. I have tried to take into account both the realism and balance needed for naval combat simulations while maintaining game play that is not hampered by tables and charts and paper crunching. Use the stat cards from the A&A set along with some minor modifications to range and speed to develop your strike force. You'll need:

• Set of Axis & Allies Naval Miniatures and Stat Cards

• Poker chips ("markers")
• RED: Mines (1 counter = 10 mines)
• BLUE: Submarines (see Units Page)
• WHITE: Fog/Squalls/Fleet Markers (see Optional Rules Page)
  

• Large playing surface- I suggest 2-3 blue cardboard tri-fold presentation boards adding land cards as needed. Each board is 3x4' (representing an area 20.5x27.25 miles).
  

• 6-sided dice

Unless noted, this modified game uses the Advanced Rules from the Axis and Allies Naval Miniatures game. Use the stat cards and miniatures, build rules, deployment rules, sequence of play, and win conditions (150 points- points for sunk/destroyed units & 50 points for objectives).

Since this version uses a large playing surface and not the Battle Map, consider a sector = to 5". This becomes important when claiming Objectives (a ship within 5" of the Objective token and no enemy ships with 5" of that ship)

Sequence of Play: Determine winning point totals or win conditions before beginning a game.

A. Initiative Phase:

• Roll for Bad Weather visibility range (Optional using VAS Rules)

• Roll 2d and add sum to your best Flagship bonus to determine initiative. NOTE: Crippled flagships do not add a flagship bonus.

B. Sea Movement Phase The lower initiative roll moves first giving the winner the advantage of placing his/her units in response. A ship can break her movements into as many turn segments (up to 45 degrees) as her speed # allows. EXAMPLE: a Cruiser has Speed 2- it can move a portion of its move, turn, finish its move and turn at the end of its movement.

First Player's Sea Movement Step
Use any Special Actions (Lay Smoke Screen, Repair, High Speed Run)

Second Player's Sea Movement Step
Use any Special Actions (Lay Smoke Screen, Repair, High Speed Run)

You can move ships a number of inches = to that unit's speed. Ships may not occupy the same space and must stop short of another unit it its movement would carry it into contact with it.

C. Air Mission Phase Players alternate moving their Fight/Bomber Units. Air Units that come within 5" (1 sector) of opposing fighter units must stop their movement if that unit is assigned to intercept it and/or escorting other units.

Before moving your Air Units, assign your fighters their missions- escort / strafing / CAP (See Air Units for a description) and your bomber units (patrol, torpedo, or dive) their attack type and targets.

STEPS D-G: ATTACK PHASE

ATTACK TYPES:

Gunnery/ASW/Bomb/Antiair Attack Rolls- Use the stats on your A&A cards to determine how many attack dice to roll for an attack. A 4-5 counts as one success while a natural 6 counts as 2. If you meet or beat a unit's Armor rating, you hit and inflict 1 point of damage. If you meet or beat a unit's Vital Armor, you sink the unit at the end of turn.

Luck Dice- (Optional) Each unit replaces one of its Attack Dice for a different color "Luck Dice" that is rolled along with the other attack dice. On a roll of 1- remove the highest attack dice and do not count it towards your attack. On a 6, count it as 2 successes and roll it again re-rolling additional 6s. A 1 rolled after a lucky 6 doesn't affect your roll

Torpedo Attacks- Roll attack dice/Luck Dice. Torpedo Attacks ignore armor and vital armor when determining damage. Each Attack Dice that comes up with a 5 counts as a hit for 1 point of hull damage while a 6 counts as 2.

DAMAGE: occurs at the same time at the END of the current phase. Use damage markers to keep track, flipping them to apply the damage to the unit at the end of the phase.

• Damaged- suffer 1 point of hull damage
• Crippled- (Ships/Subs) 1 Hull point left. SUFFERS: -1 penalty to armor, vital armor, -1" of speed, -1 on each attack dice and -1 dice for torpedo attacks (minimum of 1). Crippled flagships loose their flagship bonus.
  
• Destroyed- damage equals/exceeds Vital Armor. Remove unit from play at the end of that turn phase. Add the unit's point total to your victory points.
• Aborted- (PT Boats/Air Units) can't attack when their Armor rating is breached. Aborted units can still use antiair attacks in the Air Defense phase as the damage happens at the end of the phase.
  

D. Air Defense Phase: Use your units' Anti-air Attack to attack enemy aircraft within 5" (1 sector) of target. Abort Air Units that suffer a successful hit to their armor and destroy units whose Vital Armor was reached or exceeded.

E. Air Attack Phase: Attack ships/submarines with your aircraft- ASW, Bomb, Gunnery (Strafing), or Torpedo Attacks. Aircraft that were aborted or destroyed in the Air Defense Phase cannot attack unless they have an ability that allows them to do so (E.G. Press the Attack). You can only use one attack per aircraft in this phase. Range of all attacks, unless noted on your Unit Stat Card are 5" (1 sector).

Place damage counters/remove destroyed units at the end of this phase.

F. Surface Attack Phase: Use your Surface Units to attack enemy ships using ASW, Gunnery, or Torpedo Attacks. Each unit can fire on an enemy unit in range with either BOTH a Gunnery AND Torpedo attack OR an ASW attack, never both. Ships with Secondary and Tertiary Gunnery Attacks may attack with each of their Gunnery attacks in the same turn.

Before attacking determine:

Detection: Enemy ships within Bad Weather or Night visibility range. Only these ships can be attacked. (See Optional Rules)

Line of Sight (LOS) Measured from the center of the attacker to any point on the target. Even if a small portion of the target visible, LOS is blocked if...

• LOS passes through any ship model except surfaced subs and PT Boats at ranges up to 5"

• LOS passes through any ship EXCEPT destroyers, surfaced subs, and PTs at any range beyond 5"

• LOS passes through an island, fog, squall, or smoke screen

Range: Measured from the center of the attacker to any point on the target. Use the Conversion Table below to determine a target's range in inches". Compare the attacker's Stat Card type and range to the chart to determine how far away a target is in inches.

RANGE CONVERSION CHART
1" = 1,000 Yards / 5" = 1 Sector

Main (M) Battery on Cruisers / Battleships
Range: 0=5" / 1=10" / 2=20" / 3=30" / 4=35" / 5=40" (Extended Range ONLY)

Main (M) Battery on Carriers / Destroyers & Secondary (2 & 3) Batteries on Cruisers / Battleships
Range: 0=5" / 1=10" / 2=15" / 3=20"

Torpedoes
Range: 0=3" / 1=6" / 2=9" / 3=12" (Long Lance ONLY)

ASW (Depth Charges)
Range: 0=3" (AFT ONLY)

ASW (Hedge Hog)
Range: 0=4" (FORE ONLY and only on Units made after 1943 OR the Sub Hunter special ability)

Anti Aircraft (Ship based)
Range: 0=5" / 1=10"


Attack Targets: Place damage counters / remove destroyed units at the end of this phase

G. Submarine Attack Phase Submarines can now make their attack runs against valid targets in range. 5 = 1 point of Hull Damage / 6 = 2 points of Hull Damage. Reroll "Luck Dice" on a 6 and count additional points of damage as they come up. Place damage counters / remove destroyed units at the end of this phase

H. Air Return Phase Because Air Units have a movement phase and not a placement phase as they do in the original A&A rule, there is no Air Return Phase. Place/remove arming counters on Air Units that return to a carrier/air field at the start of the Air Mission Phase. NOTE: The rearming rules have been modified to add an additional level of realism and give Air Units more turn around time so that it is possible for players to target carriers and land bases when an enemy's planes are grounded for refueling/rearming. this requires more forethought on both player's parts forcing them to rethink careless placements of Air Units and better time their attacks. See Air Units on the following post for more information.

I. End of Turn

• Claim Objective markers if there are no enemy ships within 10"

• Check your score adding any claimed Objectives (50) AND the values of destroyed units. You WIN if you reach/exceed 150 points OR meet the other win conditions established at the start of the game.

• In a stalemate, one player has a fighter and the other only has a submarine then the player with more remaining points wins.

Bibliography:
1. Armchair General (Axis & Allies: War at Sea/Task Force/Flank Speed)
2. Joisey's House Rules (Making A&A Destroyers better in War at Sea)
3. Victory at Sea (Improving rules for Victory at Sea)
4. Axis & Allies (Naval Units- to help convert stats)

Historic Sites:
1. WWII Ships
2. U-Boats
3. Air Groups
4. WWII Axis & Allies (Units/3D-models)

Official Sites:
1. Axis & Allies (Naval Miniatures)
2. Victory at Sea (Mongoose Publishing)

War At Sea (Victory at Sea) UNITS & TERRAIN

These rules are meant to provide a crossover between Victory at Sea and Axis and Allies Naval Miniatures to combine the best of both into one game that creates a fun and engaging game for everyone. In some instances, major changes were needed to better combine the two game systems to better meet the needs of the game. I have tried to take into account both the realism and balance needed for naval combat simulations while maintaining game play that is not hampered by tables and charts and paper crunching. Use the stat cards from the A&A set along with some minor modifications to range and speed to develop your strike force.

NOTE: The following pages detail changes made to each type of unit under the new rules. For specifics on each unit, see the following post on the Navies of both the Axis and Allied countries. Rules presented here are optional. Add those you feel will add for a better game.

Fleet Build Points:

• 100: Small engagement between 2 capital ships, few aircraft, and some submarines. Land Airbases can hold 5 aircraft. 150 Victory Points WINS! (Objectives worth: 50)
  
• 200: Medium engagement (up to 20 units in fleet) Land Airbases can hold 7 aircraft. 300 points WINS! (Objectives worth: 100)
  
• 300 Major engagement (up to 25 units) Land Airbases hold 9 aircraft. 450 points WINS! (Objectives worth: 150)
  
• 500 Epic engagement (up to 40 units) Land Airbases hold 13 aircraft. 750 points WINS! (Objectives worth: 200)
  

~ Naval Units ~

SCALE: 1 to 1,800 / Each ship or submarine represents 1 ship / Each PT Boat/Torpedo Boat represents 3 boats in one unit.

NOTE: Movement information is given after the unit type and includes: how many segments a unit's move can be broken into, how many turn actions it can perform- 45 degrees per turn action, and the average number of inches a unit of that type can move in a given turn. See: Units Converting posting for information on making each unit's move historically accurate.

PT Boats / Torpedo Boats (3 movements- 3 separate turn actions / 8" per turn) Rounds out PT Boats, giving them a punch they lack in the original game.

• 1 unit represents 3 ships (a “stand” of boats)- place 2 white counters under base of unit

NOTE: Because of their small size, PT boats can make a limited number of torpedo and depth charge attacks in a game. They start the game with 12 torpedoes (blue markers) and 15 depth charges (white markers) for the unit (4 torpedoes and 5 depth charges per ship in the unit). Use a counter (d20 dice or poker chips) to represent this. After each attack, remove a number of counters equal to the dice rolled in an attack. If you loose a unit during an attack, remove the corresponding number of markers. You do not have to use all of the allowed attack dice if you want to conserve torpedoes / depth charges.

• When a PT Boat is hit (Attack meets/exceeds its Armor value) roll d6- Destroy all units if its Vital Armor is breached.
  

1-3: stand aborted and must move off next turn
4-5: stand aborted / -1 unit
6: -1 unit / stand can still attack

Remove counters from the base of the unit at the end of the Surface Attack Phase. Remember to also subtract torpedoes / depth charges from the unit at the end of the turn.

PT Boats Defenses/Abilities

• Immune to Battleship and Cruisers Main Battery attacks at any range
• Immune to Bombing attacks from Patrol Bombers
• Fighters, Patrol and Dive Bombers only score hits on a 5-6 (-1 to attack)
• Battleship/Cruiser Secondary Batteries take a -2 attack roll penalty
• Immune to torpedo attacks from ALL units
• Shallow Draft- can enter island and shoal zones
• Does not block Line of Sight
• CAN be targeted by a ship's Anti-air Guns at no penalty.
  

SPECIAL ATTACK: Explode depth charges within 1” of target as an aft torpedo attack for 1-2 damage (Torpedo Belt does not reduce damage)

• Roll ASW attack as normal: 5 = 1 damage / 6 = 2 damage

Destroyers (2 movements / 2 separate turn actions / 7" per turn)

NOTE: As they stand, destroyers are incredibly weak, too weak to survive beyond turn 2. The following rule changes should help shore up the Destroyer and allow her to last well into the game to keep those subs from running amok. The following changes are the result of suggestions made on the Axis and Allies website forum page, VAS, and War at Sea Clarifications. (See Bibliography for web links)

Defenses / Abilities

• Immune to Battleship and Cruisers Main Battery attacks at Extended Range 4 or greater
• Battleship Main Batteries take a -2 attack roll penalty at ranges 0-3 against DDs
• Patrol and Dive Bombers only score hits on a 5-6 against DDs (-1 to attack)
  
• Can enter island zones and shoals
  
• Does not block Line of Sight past 5”
• Can use AA Attack Dice to make a separate attack against PT Boats within 5”. Cannot defend against aircraft on the same turn.
  

ASW DETECTION- In order to target an enemy sub, a destroyer must find it first. At the start of the Sea Movement Phase a destroyer can attempt to locate an enemy submarine. Because of the sensitive nature of the equipment, destroyers must slow to below 18 knots (3") to “hear” submerged subs.

• Reduce speed to 3” for the Sea Movement Phase
• Detection Range: 20”(only can detect suspected subs within range)
  
• Sub Hunters (special card ability) get a +1 to detection rolls
  

Roll an ASW attack to locate suspected subs (See submarines below for a list of modifiers) On a successful detection roll, the destroyer can make an attack against the target by making a run at it by moving an additional 2” (attack run increasing speed) towards the sub and attacking if it is in range.

ASW ATTACKS interferes with a submarine’s attack ability

• -1 torpedo dice for each ASW aircraft / ship in the same sector (5”) that makes an ASW attack that round
• Cannot reduce attack below 1 dice
  

MINE LAYER Some destroyers have a new special ability- Mine Layer (See Terrain for more information on a mine field.)

• Reduce speed to 2” and place a number of mines counters (RED poker chips) astern, equal to her ASW value or less, in her previous sector. (1 counter = 10 mines) Most destroyers add Mines 4 (4 mine tokens for a total of 40 mines) as a special ability.
  
• Cannot place mines in a space occupied by a friendly surface ship.
• Cannot use ASW attack while laying mines
  

Cruisers (2 movements / 2 separate turn actions / 6" per turn)

• Immune to critical hits (Optional Rule) from PT Boats Main Batteries
• Can only use full Attack Dice value of its Main Guns when it is broadside to a target. Must use 1/2 attack (round down) value when target is NOT broadside of it but can attack a target to both aft and ahead as a separate attack. (Ex: The Graf Spee is range 2 away from a target (21"-30") and can make a full Main Gunnery Attack when it is broadside a target (11 attack dice). If the Graf Spee only had a her front Main Batteries trained on a target she could only roll 5 attack dice (11/2 rounded down) to the fore and an additional attack at 5 attack dice to the aft)
  
• Can divide Main Battery attack dice for an extra attack (Port / Starboard / Fore / Aft) within the Battery’s firing arc (round down).
• Can only use the Luck Dice on one of the rolls
• Can use AA Attack Dice to make a separate attack against PT Boats within 5”. Cannot defend against aircraft on the same turn.
  

Battleships (2 movements / 1 separate turn action / 5" per turn)

• Immune to critical hits (Optional Rule) from Destroyers and PT Boats Main Batteries
• Can only use full Attack Dice value of its Main Guns when it is broadside to a target (See Cruiser above).
• Can divide Main Battery attack dice for an extra attack (Port / Starboard / Fore / Aft) within the Battery’s firing arc (See Cruiser above).
• Can only use the Luck Dice on one of the rolls
• Can use AA Attack Dice to make a separate attack against PT Boats within 5”. Cannot defend against aircraft on the same turn.
  

Aircraft Carriers (2 movements / 1 separate turn action / 5" per turn)

Carriers can base Fighters, Dive Bombers, and Torpedo Bombers equal to its basing capacity. Place stat cards under the Carrier to which it is assigned. If an air unit lands on another carrier, move the corresponding card to that carrier.

SPECIAL LAUNCH CONDITIONS

Fire (Aircraft Carrier suffers 2 points of damaged OR crippled): Cannot launch / recover squads (Roll d6)

• 1-2: 1 squad stationed on the carrier is destroyed

Bad Weather: roll d6 for each squad launched/recovered:

• 1- 1 squad stationed on the carrier is destroyed

Destroyed carriers roll d6 for each squad stationed there

• 1-2: the unit is destroyed

Special Defense: Can use AA Attack Dice to make a separate attack against PT Boats within 5”. Cannot defend against aircraft on the same turn.

Submarines
Surfaced: 2 movements / 2 separate turn actions / 3" per turn
Submerged: 1 movement / 1 turn action / 1.5" per turn

The problem with a Naval Miniatures battle is that all of the units are placed on the board in plain sight. While this is the idea with surface ships, with submerged units it takes away from their greatest advantage: stealth. The optional rule below should allow for subs to maintain a level of stealth and still appear on the play area.

OPTIONAL RULE: Place a series of blue markers on the board to represent possible positions of sub activity. Each counter represents 1 sub. Number each counter 1-6+ and create another counter with the same number to mark which sub is actually at that location. Simply place the second counter face down on top of the sub’s Stat Card. Determine ahead of time which are decoys (represent suspected sub activity in the area) and which are subs. Move each counter as you would a sub. Player 2 can use counters marked A-E+ and do the same so that their counters can be kept separated from yours (Use uppercase and lowercase Roman Numerals for games with more than 2 players). Subs cannot be attacked until a unit makes a successful detection roll using their ASW attack values modified for a variety of conditions. Only after a sub is detected can it be targeted. Detection Rolls are made at the beginning of the Air Mission Phase and Sea Movement Phase depending on the attacking unit. If the detection roll fails, the attacking unit moves off in a random direction determined by rolling 2d6 (Imagine the unit is on a clock pointed at 12 o’clock and turn the unit to face the corresponding “hour” rolled on the dice). Next, move the unit ½ it’s movement in that direction. It can attempt a new detection roll the following turn. Additional rolls need to be made each round even if the sub was detected last round to see if contact has been maintained.

DETECTION MODIFIERS

• +1 to detection roll if submarine fired torpedoes last round
• +1 to detection roll if the sub was detected last round
• -2 to detection roll if any surface ships are between the destroyer and the sub
• -1 for each counter under a sub that has Gone Deep (see below).
• -1 to detection roll if sub was stationary that turn.
  

TORPEDOES: Because of their size, submarines can make a limited number of torpedo attacks in a game. Subs start the game with a number of torpedoes equal to what they carried in the war (Average number: 25 torpedoes) minus 1d6 torpedoes to account for attacks made against convoys along the way to their current battle. Use a counter (d20 dice or white/red poker chips- white=1/red=5) to represent this. After each attack, remove a number of counters equal to the dice rolled in an attack. You do not have to use all of the allowed attack dice if you want to conserve torpedoes. With this optional rule, players need to rethink firing indiscriminately at every target that moves in range. Because of this change, torpedoes now hit on a 5 for 1 point of damage and a 6 for 2 points of damage.

Special Abilities:

CRASH DIVE! roll d6 when a sub is targeted by an ASW Attack before the attack roll is made. A sub that has crash dived cannot make an attack that turn but can move as normal. Place an aborted counter next to it to remember that it cannot attack this turn.

• 1-4 No effect
• 5 +1 to Armor Value
• 6 +2 to Armor Value
  

GO DEEP Place 1 blue counter under sub for each 200’ below the surface. Subs that have "Gone Deep" CANNOT attack until they come up. This tactic allows them to evade destroyer pickets.

• -1 to surface or air ASW attacks and detection rolls for each counter
• It takes 1 full turn to come up from depth to make an attack
• Most subs have a test depth of 700' for larger subs (U-Boats) and 200' for smaller subs (Ambra- Italian coastal sub)
  

SONAR- Submarines in the war could often detect surface ships well before they came over the horizon. An individual ship is harder to spot but most often ships traveled in larger units or groups making enough noise for them to be detected well in advance. Roll for detection at start of the movement phase / A sub rolls 4d6 for detection + additional dice per additional unit over 2. The roll must meet or beat its Armor value to be successful.

• -1 to rolls vs. 1 ship in a 5" sector / add 1 dice per ship in a unit/group to the detection roll
  
• SUBS- (Range 20") +1 to subsequent detection rolls if a sub was previously detected. Subs that fire torpedoes are automatically detected that round
• DESTROYERS/PTS- (Range 20")
• CONVOYS/BATTLESHIPS/CARRIERS- (Range 100" / 8'- anywhere on most battlemaps)
  

~ Air Units: Fighter Planes / Bombers Types ~

Fighters (55" per turn average move)
(1 reload counter when they return to an airbase OR carrier)

Ammo: 2 rounds worth (use 2 white counters- remove after anti-air / strafing attack regardless of outcome) A fight without ammo cannot intercept other aircraft or strafe targets.

Declare mission (escort / strafing / CAP) during placement stage

Escort: provides a -1 penalty to anti-air attacks from enemy fighters

• Must be within 5” of Bomber Group
• Can move to intercept aircraft that come within 5” on a successful anti-air attack
• Intercepted (Aborted) aircraft stop all remaining movement and must use remaining movement to move away.
  

Strafing: -2 penalty to armor / vital armor; cannot escort / 5” range to the attack

Combat Air Patrol: Fighter Unit does not move as normal during the Placement Phase.

• Must be within 5” (1 sector) of a Carrier to be declared as part of a CAP for their mission and the Unit MUST have the special ability on its stat card
  
• Can move to intercept aircraft that come within 5” of its current location on a successful anti-air attack
• Intercepted (Aborted) aircraft stop all remaining movement and must use remaining movement to move away
  

Bombers (Torpedo/Dive/Patrol)
Torpedo Bombers: 35" per turn average move
Dive Bombers: 45" per turn average move
(2 reload counters when they return to an airbase OR carrier)

Patrol Bombers: 30-40" per turn average move
(2 reload counters when they return to a land airbase)

Bombers with ASW make an ASW detection roll when investigating possible sub activity. On a successful “hit” they can verify the presence of 1 sub and attack (See Destroyer)

• 20” ASW DETECTION RANGE
• +1 to detection roll if submarine fired torpedoes last round
• +1 to detection roll if the sub was detected last round
• -2 to detection roll if any surface ships are between it and the sub
• -1 for each counter under a sub that has Gone Deep (see above).
• -1 to detection roll if sub was stationary that turn.
  

Observation Planes (OPTIONAL)

• Total the number of spotter aircraft possessed by each side. The side with the largest number of spotter aircraft receives a +2 to all initiative rolls until the other side successfully wins initiative. Count visible planes on a ship's model OR use the historic information of a unit to determine number of observation planes a given ship carried in the war.
  

~ Ground Units ~

Land Airbase: can support all aircraft types. In a standard scenario, an airbase can support 5 aircraft units. A Land Airbase can be targeted if it appears on a battlemap. If it is off the board, units returning there add an additional turn BEFORE they land to rearm and when they return to the battle area.

ARMOR: 10 / VITAL ARMOR: 20 / HULL POINTS: 8 (Bases that suffer more than 1/2 their Hull Points in damage halve their basing capacity)

Fire (1/2 of hull points and/or crippled): Cannot launch / recover squads (Roll d6)

• 1-2: 1 squad stationed on the carrier is destroyed

Bad Weather: roll d6 for each squad launched/recovered:

• 1- 1 squad stationed on the carrier is destroyed

Destroyed Airbases roll d6 for each squad stationed there

• 1-2: the unit is destroyed

Anti-Air Battery: rolls an anti-air attack against 1 target in the same sector (5”) or targets passing over.

ARMOR: 3 / VITAL ARMOR: 5 / HULL POINTS: 1 / COST = AA Rank

• Provides 1 dice of anti-air suppression per point expended during construction
• Use a d6 to show how many ranks of antiair craft dice the unit provides (MAX 6 ranks)
  

Shore Battery: A fortified position from a beachhead that can target naval units

Shielded Shore Battery: 5 points
ARMOR: 4 / VITAL ARMOR: 8 / HULL POINTS: 2 Main Battery: 8 (0) / 5 (1) / 5 (2) / 5 (3)

Hardened Shore Battery: 10 points (Atlantic Sea Wall)
ARMOR: 8 / VITAL ARMOR: 14 / HULL POINTS: 4 • Main Battery: 10 (0) / 8 (1) / 8 (2) / 5 (3) / 5 (4) • Extended Range-4

~ Terrain ~

Smoke Screens / Fog:

• Blocks Line of Sight
• Units in smoke or fog can fire out without penalty
• Enemy units firing into fog / smoke attack without penalty
• Target gets a concealment roll- on a 5-6 the attack misses regardless of the number of successes the attacker rolls.
  

Shallow Water:

• Carriers and Battleships cannot enter shallow water
• Subs cannot Go Deep or Crash Dive
• ASW attacks / detection get a +1 to rolls
  

Shoals / Shoreline:

• No ship without a shallow draft can come within 1” of a shoreline or shoal without running aground

BEACHED SHIPS

• May not fire any weapons except AA guns
• Carriers may not launch / recover aircraft
• Cannot move
• +1 to all attack rolls vs. beached ships
  

Islands:

• Can’t attack or be attacked by units outside the island sector
• Like ships in the island sector can attack normally
  

Mine Fields: Attack as torpedoes for any ship entering that sector / within 5.” Torpedo Belts do not reduce mine damage.

Roll d6 when within range of the mine counter.

• 5: 1 point of hull damage
• 6: 2 points of hull damage (Roll Critical Hit)

Bibliography:
1. Armchair General (Axis & Allies: War at Sea/Task Force/Flank Speed)
2. Joisey's House Rules (Making A&A Destroyers better in War at Sea)
3. Victory at Sea (Improving rules for Victory at Sea)
4. Axis & Allies (Naval Units- to help convert stats)

Historic Sites:
1. WWII Ships
2. U-Boats
3. Air Groups
4. WWII Axis & Allies (Units/3D-models)

Official Sites:
1. Axis & Allies (Naval Miniatures)
2. Victory at Sea (Mongoose Publishing)

War At Sea (Victory at Sea) UNITS- Converting

These rules are meant to provide a crossover between Victory at Sea and Axis and Allies Naval Miniatures to combine the best of both into one game that creates a fun and engaging game for everyone. In some instances, major changes were needed to better combine the two game systems to better meet the needs of the game. I have tried to take into account both the realism and balance needed for naval combat simulations while maintaining game play that is not hampered by tables and charts and paper crunching. Use the stat cards from the A&A set along with some minor modifications to range and speed to develop your strike force.

NOTE: The following pages detail changes made to each type of unit under the new rules. For specifics on each unit, see the following post on the Navies of both the Axis and Allied countries. Rules presented here are optional. Add those you feel will add for a better game.

MEASUREMENTS

• Range: 1” = 1,000 yards
• 1.15 Knots = 1mph (35 knots = 40 mph)
• Knots divided by 5 = inches of movement allowed per turn
• 2” = 1 Nautical Mile
  

NOTE: These units reflect those found in the core set of War at Sea. To convert new editions of ships to these rules, find the stats of the ship online (I used the entries under Wikipedia) and follow these steps:

1. Divide knots (top speed) by 5 to get inches of movement per turn. Find a subs submerged and surfaced speed this way too.
   
2. Add the ability "Mine Layer" to ships/subs that had it
3. Subs: find the max depth of the sub and divide by 200'. This will give you the number of "Go Deep" counters you can use. Round down./ Will also give you the number of torpedoes a sub or PT Boat has to determine payload.
   
4. For historic minded gamers, the site will also let you know how many ships of that class could be in play at a time.
   

EXAMPLES:

~ Australia ~

- HMAS Sydney (Lender-class Light Cruiser; Uncommon)
Limit (3) Perth / Hobart / Sydney

Length: 562 ft
Speed: 32.5 knots (6.5”)
Crew: 645

Aircraft carried: (1) Supermarine Walrus / 1 catapult (ADD +1 initiative per spotter plane in fleet- OPTIONAL RULE)

* * *

~ France ~

-Le Terrible (Destroyer; Common)
Limit (6) Le Fantasque / Le Malin / Le Terrible / L'Indomptable / L'Audacieux / L’ Triomphant

Length: 132.40 m
Speed: 45 knots (40 nominal) (8”)
Range: 1,200 km at 34 knots
Crew: 10 officers / 210 sailors

Armament:
• 9 x 550 mm torpedo tubes in three triple mounts (HAS)
• 40 mines (ADD)

* * *

Richelieu (Battleship; Rare)
Limit (2) Richelieu / Jean Bart
Unfinished (2) Clemenceau / Gascogne

Length: 247.90 m
Speed: 30 knots (6”)
Range: 8,500 nautical miles
Crew: 70 officers / 1,550 men

Aircraft carried: (3) Loire 130 Flying Boats / two catapults

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~ United States ~

USS Samuel B. Roberts (Butler-class Escort Destroyer; Common)

Length: 306 ft
Speed: 24 knots (5”)
Crew: 222
Additional Armament: 1 x hedgehog depth charge projector

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USS Barb (Submarine; Common)
Limit (73)

Length: 311.75 ft
Speed: Surfaced: 20max - 17 knots standard (4” / 3”)
Submerged: 8.75 knots (1.5”)

Test depth: 300 ft (1 depth counter)
Crew: 60
Endurance: 48 hours at 2 knots (4 km/h) submerged 75 days on patrol
Armament (24): (10) tubes (6 bow / 4 stern) 14 reloads

* * *

SBD Dauntless (Dive Bomber; Common)
Crew: Two
Max speed: 255 mph (3’10” / 46”) CONVERT MPH to Knots then divide by 5 to get "
Range: 773 mi
Service ceiling 25,530

War At Sea (Victory at Sea) Optional Combat Rules

~ OPTIONAL COMBAT RULES ~

Target Size and Facing: War at Sea never considered a target's size or facing when determining attack values. A ship was just as easy to hit on its broadside as it was the aft. The following table should address this by allowing for the addition or subtraction of attack dice (AD) to Attack Rolls against different targets and facing.* A torpedo Attack against a ship's broadside deals damage on a 4-5 and 2 damage on a 6. A "natural" 6 is still needed to inflict 2 points of damage.

* * *

Critical Hits: Roll for a Critical Hit if an attack exceeds a ship’s vital armor rating / Torpedoes always roll a critical hit when they successfully hit a ship.

• 1-5 +1 damage to attack
• 6 +1 damage to attack AND Critical Hit-
  

2d6 Critical Location
2 Vital Systems
3-5 Superstructure/Hull
6-8 Engines
9-11 Weapons
12 Vital Systems

Superstructure/Hull d6 Result Reduce VA Effect

• 1-2 Fire -0 Fire starts (Roll d6: 1-2 continues / 3 spreads / 4-5 out / 6: roll 2nd Crit
• 3-4 Multiple Fires -1 2 fires start
• 5 Hull Breach -2 Fire starts
• 6 Multiple Explosions -3 3 fires start
  

Engines d6 Result Reduce VA Effect

• 1-2 Turbine Damaged -0 -1 Speed
• 3-4 Props Damaged -0 -1 Speed
• 5 Fuel Systems Ruptured -1 -2 Speed, fire starts
• 6 Engines Disabled -1 Speed = 0, +1 to attack rolls on this ship
  

Weapons d6 Result Reduce VA Effect

• 1-2 AA Mount Destroyed -0 AA weapons loose 1 AD
• 3-4 Secondary Wpn Destroyed -0 Main Battery looses 1 AD
• 5 Turret Destroyed -1 Random turret destroyed (-5 AD), fire starts
• 6 Magazine Explosion -2 Random turret destroyed (-5 AD), 2 fires start
  

Vital Systems d6 Result Reduce VA Effect

• 1 Bridge Hit -1 Loose Flag Ship Bonus / Can’t use special abilities
• 2 Rudder -1 (Roll d6- 1-2 Ship may only turn left 3-4 Ship may only turn right 5-6 Ship may not turn)
• 3 Engineering -2 2 fires, No Damage Control permitted
• 4 Fire Control -2 No weapons can fire for 1d3 turns
• 5 Severe List -3 Ship begins listing, takes –1 to hit on all gunnery attack dice, and may not fire torpedoes. If this result is rolled again the ship capsizes and sinks.
• 6 Catastrophic Explosion ----- Ship explodes and sinks
  

Crippled:

• Crippled flagships don’t get their flagship bonus
• -1 attack dice on torpedo attacks (Submarines)
• Surface ships cannot make torpedo attacks-1penalty to all other rolls
• -1 movement
  

~ OPTIONAL COMBAT RULES ~

Splash Counters: Gun directors observe shell splashes to determine where shots landed and use that information to adjust fire. When multiple ships fire on a single enemy ship, it becomes more difficult to adjust fire accurately due to several different sets of shell splashes.

• Each subsequent ship that fires primary weapons at the same target takes a cumulative –d6 attack dice for each splash marker the target already has

ADVANCED RULES

Bad Weather: Bad weather has the effect of reducing visibility and effective range for ships in the storm/fog. When the bad weather rule is in play, at the start of each Initiative Phase roll 2d6 + 10. That is the maximum distance in inches in which ships are able to see one another.

Ships beyond that distance are considered to be hidden and may not be attacked except by ships with Radar. (see the rules for Radar below.) (British ships have superior experience fighting in bad weather. See the Nationality Bonuses below.)

Night Battles: During night battle every ship is in one of three states, hidden, detected, or illuminated. All ships begin a night battle in a hidden state, and revert to a hidden status at the end of each turn.

• Hidden- Hidden ships may not be attacked except by ships with radar (see the rules for Radar below.) All ships are hidden by default unless they meet the criteria of one of the other states below.

• Detected- Every ship has a detection radius of 10” (the Japanese due to superior night fighting skills have a detection radius of 20”). Enemy ships are automatically detected inside this radius. At the beginning of each ships’ shooting phase pre-measure to see which enemy ships are detected. Just because an enemy ship is detected for the current shooter, does not mean it is detected for other allied ships. Each individual ship must pre-measure to determine which enemy ships are detected. Enemy ships which are in a detected status may be attacked with a –1 penalty to all attack dice.
  

Essentially this rule means that ships may only fire at enemy ships within 10” unless the enemy ship is illuminated or the shooter is using radar. (see below).

Fog of War: If there is more than one enemy ship inside a ship’s detection radius and there is at least one allied ship also inside the ship’s detection radius. The shooter must roll a d6 at the start of its shooting phase. On a 1 there has been a friendly fire mistake. The opposing player may force the shooter to attack an allied ship within the shooter’s detection radius instead of another target. The opposing player may NOT force the ship to launch torpedoes against an allied ship. (The Japanese are exempt from Fog of War, while the Americans must roll 2 dice instead of one.)

Illuminated- Whenever a ship becomes illuminated, place an illumination counter next to it to mark its status. All illumination counters are removed at the end of the turn. Ships that have an illumination counter may be attacked normally as if the night battles rules were not in effect.

Ships become illuminated whenever they fire turreted weapons.

Star Shells: Any ship with secondary weapons may use star shells to illuminate an enemy ship at the start of its shooting phase. The firing ship looses 1 secondary AD for the turn, but may place an illumination counter next to any enemy ship within range of its secondary weapons.

In battles that are fought during bad weather at night, the bad weather visibility rule still applies even to ships that are illuminated.

* * *

NATIONALITY BONUSES

Some nations gain the benefit of special rules.

AMERICA: America has a tremendous industrial capacity that allows it to build and deploy ships faster than all the other nations put together. During any battle where forces are selected by spending Fleet Allocation Points, American fleets gain 15 additional points to spend.

Unfortunately, Americans sailors regularly suffered friendly fire incidents during night battles in the Pacific. Whenever American ships make Fog of War checks, they must roll 2 dice and take the lowest result.

Germany: Germany’s warships were equipped with excellent optical range finders. Whenever a German warship uses standard targeting methods (i.e. not Radar) it gains +1 to hit when firing at targets at long or extreme range.

German warships also gain the benefit of excellent engineering and damage control teams. When making damage control checks, German ships gain +1 to their die rolls. This bonus does not apply to checks made to extinguish fires.

Unfortunately, German radar was significantly inferior to allied radar. German ships must roll a 5+ to pass a radar targeting check.

Great Britain: Great Britain has a proud naval history of combat in the stormy North Atlantic that stretches back centuries. Whenever the bad weather rules are being used, Great Britain may roll a separate check for visibility range and may use the better of the two results.

RADAR: Ships equipped with radar may make a radar targeting check at the start of their shooting phase. To make a radar targeting check, roll 1d6. On a 3+ the radar is effective for the turn. (German ships have inferior radar and must roll a 5+ on their radar targeting checks to pass.)

Ships that have passed a radar targeting check may ignore all modifiers to hit except for the –1 to long range, and –3 to extreme range penalties. This includes but is not limited to targets moving fast, target is broadside, target is at close range, target has splash markers, night fighting rules, etc.

Ships equipped with radar may make a radar targeting check to successfully attack ships that are hidden due to bad weather or night battles rules. Radar may not be used to fire at ships where line of sight is blocked due to an interposing ship.

Ships do not have to use their radar and may at their option use normal targeting instead. However, the decision to use radar or not applies to all attacks made during the turn. Radar must be used for all attacks made by a ship or none at all.

Radar has no effect on torpedo attacks. Use the rules for torpedo attacks instead.