Operation

"Mercury" SEOW campaign briefing May 20, 1941.

By 102ndYUDevill

Historicalbackground
AlliedforceshadoccupiedCretewhentheItaliansattackedGreeceon28October1940.Thoughthe Italianswereinitiallyrepulsed,subsequentGermaninterventiondrove57,000Alliedtroopsfromthe mainland. The Royal Navy evacuated many of them; some were taken to Crete to bolster its garrison. Possession of Crete provided the Royal Navy with excellent harbors in the eastern Mediterranean, from which it could threaten the Axis southeastern flank. From the island, the PloiestioilfieldsinRomania,whichwerecriticaltotheAxiswareffort,werewithinrangeofBritish bombers. Given its strategic value, Winston Churchill would later quote a telegram he sent to the ChiefoftheImperialGeneralStaffon4June1940:"ToloseCretebecausewehadnotsufficientbulk offorcestherewouldbeacrime." The German army high command was preoccupied with the planned invasion of the Soviet Union (OperationBarbarossa),andwasagainstinvolvement.However,seniorLuftwaffecommanderswere enthusiasticabouttheideaofseizingCretebyadaringairborneattack.Thedesiretoregainprestige aftertheirdefeatbytheRoyalAirForceoverBritainin1940mayhaveplayedaroleintheirthinking, especiallybeforetheadventofthemuchmoreimportant(andarmycontrolled)invasionofRussia. Hitlerwaswonoverbytheaudaciousproposal,thoughthedirectivestatedthattheoperationwas tobeinMay.Thesecondarypriorityoftheattackwasunderlined:Cretewasundernocircumstances tobeallowedtointerferewiththeupcomingcampaignagainsttheSovietUnion.Inadvanceofthe landbattle,theGermanslaunchedfrequentbombingraidsagainsttheislandinordertoestablishair superiority. This air campaign eventually succeeded in its objective, forcing the Royal Air Force to moveitsplanestoAlexandria.

Attheoutsetofthelandbattle,theAllieshadtheadvantageofnavalsupremacyanddefendingwith relative numerical superiority, while the Germans had air superiority, more highly trained troops, andthemomentumofanunbrokenrunofvictories. The Battle of Crete began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the codename Unternehmen Merkur ("Operation Mercury"). Greek and Alliedforces,alongwithCretancivilians,defendedtheisland.Afteronedayoffighting,theGermans had suffered very heavy casualties, and the Allied troops were confident that they would prevail against the German invasion. The next day, through miscommunication and the failure of Allied commanderstograspthesituation,MalemeairfieldinwesternCretefelltotheGermans,enabling themtoflyinreinforcementsandoverwhelmthedefenders.Thebattlelastedabout10days.

Campaignvs.history
Our campaign SEOW Operation "Mercury" begins just before the invasion. In the interest of gameplay we have to have an allied air force present and ready to put up a fight against the axis attack.Weimaginethatamorefortunatechainofeventshasledthealliedforcestodecidetostay and fight, such as the decision of Greek generals earlier in April during "Marita" to pull back the GreekarmyfromthefabledMetaxaslinetoamoredefendablepositionontheHaliacmonlineand toabandonterritorypreviouslywonfromtheItaliansinAlbania.ThisenablestheBritishtoholdoff axisadvancefurther,thusgivingmoretimefortheRAFandsomeremnantsoftheGreekAirForceto fly to Crete and organize defenses there. While the size of allied ground forces which ultimately occupyCreteisveryclosetohistorical,aswellasthenavalforcesinthetheater;theairforcesare not historical but are in the neighborhood of what could plausibly be present had such events transpiredasproposedinthispassage.

VictoryConditionsandcampaigngoals
The two opposing generals have antisymmetric goals. Both have 3 goals to fulfill, and it will be necessarytofulfillthesegoalsINSEQUENCE.Meaning:ifonefulfillshissecondaryandtertiarygoals, itamountstoabsolutelynothingunlesstheprimarygoalisfulfilled.The3goalsareasfollows:
PyrrhicAllied MinorAllied PyrrhicAxis TotalAllied MinorAxis TotalAxis

Priority

AXIS

ALLIES

Inflict50%andmore casualtiesontheCREFORCE manpower(infantry) Inflictheavycasualtieson theRN ConquerCrete (takeandcontrolatleast 2/3airbasesand2/3 controlpoints

Savemorethan50%of CREFORCEmanpower (infantry) Preventheavycasualties oftheRN HoldCrete (holdandcontrolatleast 2/3airbasesand2/3 controlpoints

So, for example, if the Allies fulfill their primary and secondary goals, they obtain a minor allied victory.Ifhowever,theprimaryalliedgoalisnotobtained,whatevertheoutcomeoftheothertwo goals,anAxistotalvictorywillbeproclaimed.Iftheprimarygoalisnotobtained,buthasbeenalso deniedtotheotherside,thenaPyrrhicVictorywillbeproclaimedasperthetableabove.Now,Iwill explaineachgoalindetailandtheassociatedcampaignrules.

Priority 1 2 3

"CREFORCE"
TheAlliedPrimaryGoal(AxisTertiaryGoal)issavingmorethan50%ofthetotalinfantryonCrete (named "Creforce"), so that it can fight another day. Since the evacuation was only possible by destroyersandcruisers,noheavyequipmentisloadable,soitisnotcountedtowardsthisgoal.Only manpowermustbesavedwhileotherunitscanbesacrificedtodelaytheenemyadvance. Theinfantryiscountedassavedintwocases: 1.IfCreteislosttoAxis,butthereismorethan50%ofallthestartinginfantrysquadsintheEgypt withdrawalpoint,thenthisinfantryiscountedassafelyevacuated.Onlyinfantryinthesupplypoint is counted; infantry still surviving on Crete will be counted as POWs and infantry on ships not in rangeofawithdrawalpointarecountedasstillindangerfromairattacks. 2. If at the end of the campaign, Crete is still Allied, and more than 50% of starting infantry has survivedeitherontheislandorisevacuatedinthewithdrawpoint(infantryonshipsisalsocounted nomatterwheretheyare). The Allied commander can evacuate his infantry troops only by using fighting ships of the RN. For this purpose Cruisers and Destroyers will have a small cargo carrying capacity. The evacuation (loading of troops on ships) can ONLY be performed WITHIN 3km of a Control Point in ALLIED possession. It doesn't matter if the CP is contested, but it needs to be Allied controlled. This simulates the real WW2 evacuation operation locations and evacuation under fire. If the Axis capturesalltheCPsbeforetheendofthecampaign,CREFORCEiscountedascutoffandeventually willbecomePOWs.IfhoweverAlliesmanagetoregaincontrolofaCP,theycanproceedtoevacuate throughit. IMPORTANT:The"Creforce"evacuationisnotallowedtobeginunlesstheAxishascapturedatleast1 airbaseonCrete.IfanairbaseiscaptureditissupposedthattheAlliedHQwilldeemthesituationon CreteuntenableanditispossibletogetclearancefromChurchilltoabandonthedefense.Fromthe moment this is fulfilled, the dynamic of the evacuation it is entirely up to the Allied commander. However,thisdoesnotstoptheAlliedcommandertotryandreversethefortunesofwar,decideto goontheoffensiveandretakeCretebases.However,ifhelosesmorethan50%ofhisforceinthe process,itwillbetonoavail(checkgoals).

Ziel:KRETA!
The Axis Primary Goal (Allied Tertiary Goal) is to take possession of the Island of Crete. This is achievedwhenAxishascontrolof2outof3airbasesAND2outof3ControlPoints.Theairbasesare Maleme, Stavromenos and Heraklion, and the CPsare ports through which the Allies aretrying to evacuate:SudaBay,SphakionandHeraklionPort.Seethemapbelowforlocations. TheAxisplannerhasseveralwaysathisdisposaltofulfillthisobjective:German7.Fallschirmjaeger Divisionispoisedtostrikeinamassiveairdrop;5thPanzerDivisionandItalian"Regina"Divisionare waitingtobeembarkedonasmallflotillaofGreekboatsandtoinvadeCretebysea.Finallythere are 3 more German infantry divisions (5th and 6th Gebirgsjaeger and 22 Air Landing Infantry Division) which can be transported either by air transports or ships. These 3 divisions can only be partlytransportedbyplanes(withouttheirvehicles,whichmustcomebysea),andonlyunloadedby LANDINGtheJu52sonacapturedairfield,sincetheyarenotparatroopers.Untilthefirstshipcomes ashore,theonlyadditionalsupplytoGermanparasonCretecancomefromJu52sdroppingsupply 4

drops. The Axis commander has complete discretion as to WHERE and WHEN he will drop his paratroopers.Hecanchoosetodroponall3majorobjectivessimultaneously,orconcentrateallhis forcesononlyoneobjective.Hecanalsodecideonthemomentofthebeginningoftheparadrop (be aware that the battle begins with no Axis units on Crete). The one thing the Axis commander MUST respect is he must drop the entire 7. Flieger and Luftlande Sturm units (the paratrooper regiments)in2majordrops.So,2CONSECUTIVEmissionsinthecampaignwillbethemajorAxisair drop,involvingmanyhumanpilotedJu52transportplanes.Thesetransportplaneswilltakeupusual bomber plane slots of the Axis expect no additional plane slots during the drops! After this has been done, the Axis can manage their supply or reinforcement transport flights (bringing other airlandingdivisions)accordingtotheirownplansanddynamics.

Second aspect of the invasion, and an even more important one is the sea landing. The capture of Crete will not be likely to succeed without the sea borne element. The fact that it succeededinreallifewasmainlyduetomanyfactorswecanneithersimulatenordisregardfrom hindsight.Therefore,theAxiscommanderwillattempttochangehistorybysuccessfullylandingthe 5thPanzerDivisiononCreteand/ortheItalianReginaDivision.Theseforces,alongwiththeheavy equipmentoftheotherinfantrydivisions,mustbeloadedonshipsandsailedtoCrete.Theycanbe landedatANYTIMEAFTERtheparadropandATANYPOINTontheisland!Theonlyconstrainttothe movement and landing of these boats is their natural speed and the presence of the RN and RAF patrol planes. It is completely up to the Axis commander on how he will manage the dynamic of thesetransports.Thetablebelowgivestheallowedcargoforeachtransportshiptype;forexample, afishingboatcanonlyloadinfantryandartyandnottanks,andthismustberespected.Theaxiswill have10seamovementslotsineachmissionavailable. Class Capacity Cargotypeallowed ArmedPaddleSteamer 200,000 Tanks,Vehicles,Artillery ArmedTrampsteamer 500,000 Tanks,Vehicles,Artillery FishingjunkA 30,000 Infantry,Artillery CoastalTanker 2,000,000 Suppliesonly RudesheimerTroopShip 50,000 Infantry,Artillery

RoyalNavyvs.Luftwaffe
The Secondary Goal for both sides is dealing with RN casualties. In historical Crete the RN commanderintheMedsectorAdmiralAndrewCunningham,decidedthattheshipswillsupportthe armyontheislandinspiteofRAF'swithdrawalandthusthetheywilloperatevirtuallyunprotected fromtheLuftwaffeandRegiaAeronautica.Whenconfrontedbyhiscolleaguesaboutthisdecisionto stayandprotectthearmyontheislandinsuchadversecircumstances,hesaid:"Ittakes3yearsto buildashipbut3centuriestobuildatradition",andsotheRNremainedfaithfultothearmytroops trappedonCrete.AsaresulttheRNsufferedheavycasualties:3cruisersand6destroyersweresunk and further 10 ships, including the HMS Formidable, were heavily damaged and out of action for months.ThishasbeenasignificanthitontheBritishNavyintheMediterraneanTheatreandshould beaccountedforinourcampaignaswell.

TheAxishasnofightingnavytospeakof.TheItalianfleetisstilllickingwoundsfromthebattleof Cape Mattapan few months earlier, and is reluctant to engage in another major sea battle. This provides an opportunity for Luftwaffe to show to Hitler that it can be more effective than a full fledgednavy.Thisitwillhavetodo,sinceontheotherside,theAllieshaveRNsquadronsmarauding aroundCreteandpreparedtopounceonanyinvasionfleetpoorlyescortedandmadeupofflimsy transportboats. Asweestablishedinthepreviouschapter,theAlliedcommanderwillhavetoplayagameofcatand mouse with his axis counterpart; they both have sensitive ships afloat and those can come under attackbytheirrespectiveairforcesandcombatshipsatanytime,yettheyMUSToperate.IftheAxis is to capture Crete it must push its sea invasion and if the Allies want to stop the invasion or evacuatethetroopstheymustmovetheirownshipsaroundandthusexposethemtotheLWand RAtorpedoandbombcarryingairplanes. Comingbacktoourcaseandtakingallofthisintoaccount,thegoalwillbetosaveRNships(forthe Allies)ortodamage/sinkthem(fortheAxis).Inordertoaccountforthedamagedships,whichis justasimportantontheaftermathofthebattle,wewillhaveasystemoftrackingdamagethatgives pointsforsinking(1kill),heavydamage(1/2kill)andmoderatedamage(1/4kill).Thegoalforthe Axisistoobtainatleast15"kills"ofRNships.Thedetailsofhowthetrackingsystemworks,will explainedin"Thenavalwarrules"chapter.

Thenavalwarrules
TheAxishasnorestrictionsontheirshipmovementortaskforceformation.TheAllieshoweverdo; allRNshipswillbeplacedonthemapinprebuilthistoricaltaskforces.Thesewillnotbeallowedto bebrokenup.Theonlyexceptionwillbetoreleaseadamagedship. Herewecometothedamagetrackingsystem,andhowitworks.IfaRNshipisdamaged,theAllied commanderhastwooptions:eitheritcancontinueasapartoftheTF,oritcanbereleasedfromTF dutytotrytogetoffthemapandintothesafetyofAlexandria.Ifthesecondoptionischosen,the damagedshipisrequiredtogotheshortestpossibleroutetowardsthedesignatedwithdrawpoint. It can't take any troops with it on the way and is not allowed to engage on purpose any enemy targets, but is a fair game for the axis. When it comes (if it makes it without being sunk) to the withdrawpoint,thecurrentdamagelevelisnotedandtheshipiswithdrawnonceandforallfrom the map. The damage level is added into the RN casualties pool. Again, it is 1/2 kill for a heavy damagedshipand1/4formoderatedamageatthetimeofwithdrawal.Lightdamagedoesn'tcount. Of course, if the ship has been sunk before making it out of the map, 1 kill is entered into the damage pool. At the end of the campaign the state of all ships on the map is also analyzed and appropriatedamagesaddedtothepool.Theresultthresholdis15kills;thismeanseither15sunkRN shipsortheequivalentnumberindamagedshipsasperabovementionedpointsystem.* * I am considering another option for the 2nd victory goal: victory threshold of 50% of the total numberofshipsputonthemapbytheAlliedplanner.Thiswillenableustoincrease(notbymuch) theRNnumbersiftheAxisairforceprovestobetooeffective.Thisisimportantasabalancingoption totheadmin. SomeloadoutrestrictionswillbeimposedontheAxiswithregardtoshipdamage;noSC1000and heavierbombs.AxishasenoughplanescarryingSC500,TorpedoesandMotobombaweaponswhich shouldbemorethanenoughtotakecareoftheRN.Ontheotherhand,theshipswillhavea0.333 historical rate of fire (FMB value 3.0). This must be set so that they will have some chance of defendingthemselves.Remember,theallieshave28planeslots(22fightersmax)vs.56planeslots fortheAxis;thisshouldmeanthattheAlliescannotputadedicatedCAPabovethetaskforces,orat leastonlywhentheyareveryclosetotheisland.Thisshouldeffectivelyconservethehistoricalstate ofthingsinspiteofourunhistoricalpresenceoftheRAF. ThereisaperkavailablefortheAllies;iftheFormidableCarrierTaskForceispresentonthemap, theAllieswillhave4additionalplaneslots.Moreonthisinthe"Airwar"section. Important:oncetheRNtaskforceentersthemapitcannotbewithdrawn!Sobecarefulwhenyou decidetoputitonthemap!ARNshipcanbewithdrawnONLYifithassuffereddamage.Although light damage isn't counted into the pool a lightly damaged ship can be taken out of a TF and withdrawn.Asmentioneditwillnotcount,however,thisshipwillnotbeabletogobacktothemap UNLESSataskforceisneartheshipsupplypoint.InthiscaseitcancomebackAFTERa1mission delayandbecomeapartoftheTFwith100%strength(simulateslightdamagerepairedbycrews). AsfarastheRNmovementgoes,everythingonthemapisallowedexceptRhodes.RNisforbidden toattemptshorebombardmentofRhodes.OtherAxisbasesarefairgame,butbeaware!Thereare formidable defenses around them consisting of 15in coastal guns. You are risking additional ship damagebyundertakingsuchaction!

Since the allied ships will be in task forces the risk of collision is minimal. Axis has higher risks because it can operate without forming task forces. In either case plan your movements carefully becauseadmininterventiononthisisnotguaranteed. IMPORTANT: The naval recon decay is set to 90% each mission. This effectively means that both sidesneedtorelyalmostentirelyonpilotreportsonshippositions.

Thegroundwarrules
Thegroundwarisabitsimpleinthiscampaign,asthereisnotalotofspaceormovementslots.The alliedunitsareplacedonthemapinroughlyhistoricalplaces.ThealliedplannerhasHQunitsnear everylargerconcentrationoftroopswhichwillenablehimtorearrangehisdefensesasheseesfit. TheOOBisveryclosetoascaledhistoricalOOB.Thismeansthattheforcesfacingaxisarestrongin numbers and considering historical hindsight, the axis is going to have an even tougher job conquering Crete. Both sides have simple movement, but the planners need to respect a rule of moving tracked and wheeled vehicles only near roads as far as the map resolution permits it. Infantry can be moved anywhere. Bridges do not need to be operational for units to cross them. Theyareoversmalldryriverbedssoitisplausiblethatevenheavyequipmentcangoacrosswithout abridge.

The Allies will have 15 movement slots which simulates the confusion and bad communications. They will not need more in the beginning since most of their forces are concentrated around the objectives in a good defense posture. However, if the situation turns bad for them, the Allied commander will need to take a careful look on how to efficiently move his forces to evacuation points. The Axis commander will have25 movement slots available, simulating better training and spirit of the elite paratrooper units. Allies start with lower morale and less supply in their supply centers.Bothsideshavespecialunitsrepresentedbyjeeps(allies)andFallsHQbunkers(axis)which arenamedforallmajorunitcommanders.Theseunitsboostmorale.TheCCCfeatureofSEOWwill bedisabledinthiscampaign.Thereasonsarebecausethemapissmall,andthealliedmovements slots are already quite limited, which accounts for the comms problems. Also in case of Axis paratroopers,theycouldgetcompletelycutoffbyAlliestargetingtheirHQs,andthatisjustnotvery realistic since these guys usually have high initiative and battlefield awareness and are able to conductoperationsevenoutofcommsrangewiththeHQ. ForcapturingobjectivessuchasCPsandairbases,standardSEOWrulesapplyfornumbersofneeded andoverwhelmingforces(checkSEOWwikiandMPsettings).

Ground forces can be moved during the whole mission, and embarkation delays are off. Moving unitsbyembarking/disembarkingisforbidden,exceptrearrangingwithintheradiusofcontrolofa singleHQunit. Theairdropofmenandequipmentisperformedwithasmoketap,onaflightplannedaccordingto SEOWparadropspecs.Thesmokemustbeactivatedbelow1000mASL,tosimulate Germanpara droptechniquesusedhistoricallyonCrete(lowestrecordeddropwasfromabout76mAGL).Units available for para drop are given in the table below, and are placed in the "7 Flieger & LLS" Road Supply point in the MP. Some para droppable units are also found in other divisions (5th Panzer, Gebirgsregiments)buttheymustbelandedbyairorseaandnotdroppedfromtheair.Theseunits areinotheraxisroadsupplypoints. Paratrooperunits: Pz.GrenadiersInf.(Falls) Mg42 Mortar80mm 37mmATG MG42Bunker(HQ) 20mmFlak38 75mmmtn.Gun IMPORTANT:NoAlliedinvasionofanyislandsonthemapisallowed.TheAlliesareonthedefensive, andalltroopsevacuatedfromtheislandmustonlygointotheEgyptsupplypoint.

Theairwarrules

Bothsidesshouldhaveenoughplanestoflyforabout13missionscountingheavyattritionrates.If theymanagetosaveplanesandkeepausuallevelofattritionnoreinforcementsshouldbeneeded. If however one side looses all its planes before the campaign is over, or more precisely if it can't occupymorethan50%oftheairslots,thereisapoolofreservesfromwhichtheycanreceivesome reinforcements.Ifasidedecidestouseitsreservepool,itgivesuponelevelofitsachievementat campaign's end. For example, if the axis uses its reinforcements and finishes the campaign with a TotalAxisVictory,theoutcomeofthebattleisproclaimedasaMinorAxisVictory(onelevelworse). The reserve pools for both sides will not be disclosed publicly but will be shown in each side commander'sannex.Ifthepoolisused,alltheaircraftinthepoolcanbeused,withoutlimits.The useofthereservepoolhastoberequestedbyeachsideandthenbeapprovedbytheadmin. 9

InthissensethepersonaoftheadmincanbeimaginedasaHitler/Churchillsplitpersonality;ifthe axis pool is used it means that Hitler has granted his approval on diverting more squadrons from othertheaterssuchasNorthAfricaorforcesreadyingthemselvesforBarbarossa;iftheAlliedpoolis used, then he is Churchill giving express permission to reduce the defense capacity of Malta and Britainbydivertingthenecessarysquadrons.Inbothcasesyoursideisconsideredtohavereduced fighting capacity elsewhere, and thus your victory in this theatre is reduced in significance by one leveloryourdefeatisevenharderinthegrandschemeofthings.

TheplayabilitysettingsinSEDCSaresetat56planeslotsfortheAxisand28planeslotsfortheAllies. The Axis have to maintain a 50:50 split in each mission between Italian and German planes. One planemoreorlesswillnotbeaproblem,butnolargerdeviationsfromthissplitwillbetolerated.If duetoplanelossestheAxisisunabletomaintaintheequalsplit,thislimitationwillbelifted.Incase thatthereservepoolisused,theselimitsarealsolifted,butthepoolcannotbeusediftherearestill planes(evenonlyofonenation)tobeflownonthemap.

The Axis are not allowed to have more than 28 fighters per mission (this also needs to be split equally between the two nations as long as possible). The Allies are limited to 22 fighters per mission.Astatedbefore,whenanaircraftcarrierispresentonthemap,itincreasesthealliedplane slotsto32.Theseadditional4slotsmaybeusedONLYbyplanestakingofffromtheCV,andthese havenolimitsonthetype(canbeeitherfightersorbombers).IftheCVhasnoplanesleftonit,the4 additionalslotscannotbeused.

10

The correct landing base will be enforced in this campaign (airplanes not landing on planned destinationincurarearmdelay).Ofcourseairplaneloadoutsareenforcedandsoislanding.Aircraft willbeabletotakeofffromacontestedairbase,butwillbedestroyedatbaseoverrun(nocapture). Bothsideshaveplanesinairsupplypointsontheedgeofthemap.Theseplanesarecomprisedin their respective OOBs (disseminated to the commanders in annex). They start from the air supply becausethereisnomoreroomontheairfieldsonthemapforthemtobeparked.Theseplanescan be brought onto the map ONLY when there is enough room on an airfield to receive them (room madebyattrition),andtheyhavetobebroughtinfullflights(4planeflightsforfightersand3plane flights for bombers) and landed on an airbase of your choosing (with free slots). They are not allowedtobewithdrawnbackintothesupplypoint.Theywillhavenorestrictiononpayloadorfuel, buthavetobeplannedasatransferflighttoanairbase. Therearetwoexceptionsofthisrule:airtransportsfortheAxis,andRAFbombersoperatingdirectly fromEgyptfortheAllies.Inthefirstcasethereisnoloadoutlimitation,andtheJu52sSHOULDbe returnedintothesupplypoint,whileinthesecondcasetheBostonswillhaveafuellimitthatwill simulatethemoperatingfromEgypt.Bothofthesetypesshouldbeplannedtowithdrawattheend ofthemission,butmustbelandedonanyfriendlyairfieldifpilotedbyahuman,beforethemission ends. Noplanestakingofffromthemapareallowedtobeplannedtoendupintothewithdrawpoints. ThereareloadoutlimitationsforAxisplanesineffect.Onlybombsuptoandincluding500kgareto beused,andfightertypescarrynoordinanceexceptextrafueltanks.Thiscanbeseenindetailon thecostspageintheMP. Theclassificationtablesforplanesarefoundbelow(includingreservepooltypes). Fighters Bombers BeaufighterMkI BattleMkII BlenheimMkIF/IVF BlenheimMkI/MkIV CR.42 BostonMkII FulmarMkI Do17Z G.50 He111H2 GladiatorMkI/MkII Hs123B HurricaneMkIa/b Ju87B M.S.406 Ju88A4 MC.200 SM.79 Me109E4/E7 Sunderland Me110C7/E1 SwordfishMkI P.11c Z.1007bis SeaGladiator Z.506B SpitfireMkII 11

Varioussettingsandrules
The campaign will last at least 16 missions. If the game is going well and everyone agrees we can increasethelengthto20missionswithappropriaterescalingofairandshipassetsforbothsides. This can be easily done and will not upset the balance (hopefully). Based on how the first few missions will proceed I will propose this extension to the respective sides. For now it suffices to knowthisoptionisonthetable. Themissionswillbeflown2timespercampaignday,atdifferentgametimehours.Betweeneach2 missionsofonedaytherewillbea6htimeskip,andbetweensecondmissionofthefirstdayandthe firstmissionofthenextdaytherewillbea19htimeskip.Thiswillgiveusclosetorealisticdatesof thecampaignandalsodifferentflightconditionsbasedonthetimeofday.Thismeansthatthefirst missionofthecampaignstartsat06hlocaltimeandthe16thmissionat19hlocaltime.Sunriseand sunsetinCreteinMayis06hand20h,andthisissetaccordinglyintheSEDCS.So,therewillnotbe anynightmissions,butthelastmissionwillgointodusk. Duringthetimeskipsnorearmorsupplyusewillberegistered.Alsonorecondecaywillbeineffect throughtimeskips. Durationofeachmissionis2h. Industrial production is disabled, but the infrastructure is still on the map. It is useless to hit factories,butthefueltanksremainavalidtarget. RadarisenabledfortheAllies.ThereisoneShortRangeradarsetonCrete,andradarsonships.No IFFisenabled!Theshorebasedradarwillrepairitselfafter2missionsafterbeingdestroyed. Theunitnamesareveryclosetohistorical.TheAlliedgroundandnavalforceshavebeenrenamed tofitthecorrectdispositionofAlliedtroopsonCrete.TheAxisplannerneedstoputhisunitsonthe map through the reinforcements interface in the MP, so when he does that it would be nice to respectthecorrectunitnaming.Thedetailswillbegivenintheannex.Bothsideswillintroducenew planesthroughairsupplypoints,soitisuptotheplannerstorespecttheunitnameswhicharealso givenintheannex.

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AXISCOMMANDERANNEX
RegiaAeronautica Geschwader Base Squadriglia Type Planes II/JG77 A 361 G.50 9 III/JG77 G 395 G.50 9 I/LG2 P 393 CR.42 12 II/LG2 M 394 CR.42 12 I/ZG26 A 192 Z.1007bis 6 II/ZG26 G 193 Z.1007bis 6 I/StG1 A 354 G.50 12 II/StG1 P 355 G.50 12 III/StG1 P 162 CR.42 9 I/StG2 M 163 CR.42 9 III/StG2 M 374 CR.42 12 10/LG2 G 217 Z.1007bis 6 I/LG1 G 214 Z.1007bis 9 II/LG1 G 215 Z.1007bis 9 III/LG1 G 364 MC.200 9 II/KG26 G 365 MC.200 9 I/KG2 G 201 SM.79 9 III/KG2 G 202 SM.79 9 III/KG3 A 204 SM.79 6 205 SM.79 6 363 MC.200 9 359 MC.200 12 362 MC.200 12 369 MC.200 12 281 SM.79 6 Transportplanes 160 Z.506B 9 I/TG2 Ju52 16 G 208 Ju87B 12 II/TG2 Ju52 16 G 238 Ju87B 12 145 SM.75 10 G 239 Ju87B 12 Totaltransports 42 TotalRA 276 Totalaxis(transportsnotincluded) 499 15 Luftwaffe Type Planes Me109E7 16 Me109E7 16 Me109E4 16 Me109E4 16 Me110C7 12 Me110C7 12 Ju87B 12 Ju87B 12 Ju87B 12 Ju87B 12 Ju87B 12 Hs123B 12 Ju88A 9 Ju88A 9 Ju88A 9 He111 9 Do17Z 9 Do17Z 9 Do17Z 9 TotalLW 223 Base T T T G T T K K K K K RM RM RM RM RM RG RG RG RG RG RC RC RC RC G G G

 Axisairfieldslegend Base Label Assopos A Pounta P Milos M Thira T Catavia RC Gadurra RG Maritza RM Karpathos K GreeceAirsupply G II/JG27 III/JG27 II/ZG26 I/KG51 II/KG51 II/KG4 AxisgroundforcesOOB: Platoons 27 6 6 6 3 6 Platoons 9 9 9 6 6 6 1 7Flieger Type Fallschirmjaeger Mg42 Mortar80mm 37mmATG MG42Bunker(HQ) 20mmFlak38 LuftLandeSturm Type Fallschirmjaeger Mg42 Mortar80mm 37mmATG 75mmmtn.Gun 20mmFlak38 MG42Bunker(HQ) Reservepool Me109E7 Me109E7 Me110E1 Ju88 Ju88 He111H6 16 16 12 9 9 9

Unitstransportablecompletelybyair anddeployedbyaparachutedrop. Theyarelocatedin: "RoadSupply7Flieger&LLS" UnitnamesallowedfromtheMP unitslist: 7.FliegerDivision LuftlandeSturm

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 5thGebirgsjaegerDivision Platoons Type Transport 18 WehrmachtInfantry Air/Sea 6 37mmATG Air/Sea 6 75mmleFH Sea 12 75mmmtn.Gun Air/Sea 2 Pioniere Sea 1 PzGR.Abt.HQCo. Sea 6 TruckCo. Sea 6thGebirgsjaegerDivision Platoons Type Transport 18 WehrmachtInfantry Air/Sea 6 37mmATG Air/Sea 6 75mmleFH Sea 12 75mmmtn.Gun Air/Sea 2 Pioniere Sea 1 PzGR.Abt.HQCo. Sea 6 TruckCo. Sea 22ndInf.Div.(Airlanding) Platoons Type Transport 27 WehrmachtInfantry Air/Sea 6 37mmATG Air/Sea 18 75mmleFH Sea 6 20mmFlak38 Air/Sea 4 Pioniere Sea 2 PzGR.Abt.HQCo. Sea 6 TruckCo. Sea

Unitstransportablepartlybyairor fullybysea.Canbedeployedbyair transportlandingonacapturedfield orbyunloadingfromaship. Theyarelocatedin: "RoadSupplyAirlandingtroops" UnitnamesallowedfromtheMP unitslist: 5.GebirgsjaegerDivision 6.GebirgsjaegerDivision 22.LuftlandeDivision

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 5thPanzerDivision Platoons Type 15 WehrmachtInfantry 6 Mg42 6 Mortar80mm 12 75mmleFH 12 150mmsFH 12 PzIIF 16 PzIIIG 4 PzIVE 6 Opel20mmFlak 6 AufklaererReg.Co. 2 PzGR.Abt.HQCo. 4 NaschubCo. 6 MechCo. 8 TruckCo. InfantryDivision"Regina" Platoons Type 9 ItalianInfantry 12 FiatM13 6 Mortar80mm 6 75mmfieldgun 6 75mmmtn.Gun 6 25mmAAA 2 ITCommandoHQ 6 ITTruckCo.

Unitstransportableonlybysea.Can bedeployedbyunloadingfromaship. Theyarelocatedin: "RoadSupplySeaInvasionForces1& 2" UnitnamesallowedfromtheMP unitslist: XPanzergrenadierBrigade 5.PanzerDivision 50ReggimentoArtiglieriaRegina CCCXIIBattaglioneMistoCarri 10ReggimentoFanteriaRegina 9ReggimentoFanteriaRegina

AxisnavalOOB: Class Number Capacity Cargotypeallowed ArmedPaddleSteamer 2 200,000 Tanks,Vehicles,Arty ArmedTrampsteamer 4 500,000 Tanks,Vehicles,Arty FishingjunkA 5 30,000 Infantry,Artillery CoastalTanker 2 2,000,000 Suppliesonly Rudesheimer 6 50,000 Infantry,Artillery Class Number GabianoCorvette 3 MAS501ClassMTB 8 Minensuchboot 2 SoldatiClassDD 1

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