Rulebooks

'Armies of Germany 2nd Edition' is a supplement for the award winning tabletop wargame Bolt Action, and deals with the German Army of World War II. Within you will find background and details of the German Army’s organisation and equipment from the beginning of the war (the invasion of Poland in 1939) to the very end (the fall of Berlin in 1945).

Central to this book is its Army List. This includes all the information you will need to play games using the German Army. This large list details all the main troop types, vehicles and equipment fielded by the Germany Army during World War II. Alongside this main list are a number of Theatre Selectors, which give the force details for different periods and theatres of the war. These are not definitive, but are designed to give a theatre-specific flavour and character to a force. Over six years of fighting the German Army changed a lot, and many units and vehicles that were common in 1939 were obsolete by 1945 - and there were countless oddities and exceptions on every front. These sub-lists allow players to select forces suitable for the theatre in which they are playing.

What's New? We've taken the opportunity to include additional units and options, we've revised a few points costs here-and-there, and made some more changes to bring the book more in-line with the rest of the range... here's a teaser of what you'll find inside...

Army Special Rules

German forces now have FOUR Army Special Rules - some of which you'll be familiar with, some you won't...

• Blitzkrieg - German officers were expected to act on initiative and take decisions on the field based on their judgement rather than wait for orders or confirmation from HQ. This made them very effective tactical commanders and made the Wehrmacht a formidably reactive force. This offers a bonus for German officers when they use the '‘You men, snap to action’' Special Rule, giving them more influence.
• Initiative Training - Even at squad level, in the German army every man is trained with some of the skills of his superiors, and encouraged to show initiative and decisiveness rather than just sit and wait to receive orders. This Rule provides a little relief if squad leaders are KIA - as other squad members may adopt their roles
• Hitler's Buzzsaw - German-made machine guns, but in particular the lethal MG42, are vastly superior to their enemies’ and rightly feared by Allied infantrymen. Carried over from the First Edition book, this rule combines with the MG boost brought-in with the Second Edition rules - making German MGs even more lethal...!
• Tiger Fear - Such was the lethal reputation of Tiger tanks, that often Allied troops were spooked by the appearance of any German heavy armour, mistakenly thinking that any Panzer IV was a Tiger waiting in ambush! Any vehicle with the 'Tiger Fear' rule conveys a negative modifier to any enemy unit within line of sight's Morale...
• New Units - We've also compiled the German Additional Units and Special Rules which we published elsewhere (in other books, and/or online) into the book - including the likes of Night Fighting Units, and more!

Couple all of this with tactical notes, invaluable historical background text, gorgeous artwork and reference imagery from the masterful Peter Dennis and Osprey Publishing, and Armies of Germany 2nd Edition is the must-have Bolt Action book for all German generals out in the field!

Bolt Action 2nd Edition Hardback Rulebook offers the same fantastic World War II gameplay with its exciting order dice system and mixed armies of infantry, tanks and artillery.

Key New Features

• Officers activate other units! Used cleverly, this creates a huge tactical shift as you can order multiple units to fire or advance in concert.
• Big Explosions! HE fire now uses templates to determine damage - your opponent had better spread out his troops to avoid carnage!
• Armed Transports! Once your squad has piled out of its halftrack, the driver can speed around and unleash a hail of lead at the enemy!
• Player Feedback! We've listened carefully to the community and taken advantage of the thousands of battles you've played to improve the game in dozens of other ways.
• New Army List The main rulebook now includes a fifth army list - adding Imperial Japan to Germany, Great Britain, USA and the Soviet Union - giving you even more choice for your army.
• Special Figure As you would expect we have a fantastic new figure specially made and FREE for those ordering the rule book direct from WarGameStore: General George Smith Patton Jr. General George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a senior officer of the United States Army, who is perhaps best known for his leadership of the United States Third Army in France and Germany following the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944. A perfect commander for your US armies, from the Mediterranean and on into the European Theaters in Bolt Action.

The heat builds up as we go from one theatre with extreme conditions to another, this time desert warfare in the African and Italian campaigns.

Packed with explosive action from the initial clashes between the British and Italian armies in Libya, and Britain’s first unexpected victories, through the ill-fated British expedition to protect Greece from Hitler’s invading troops, and the subsequent desperate battles of British and Commonwealth forces in Crete against determined German paratroopers.

From there we move onto the epic tank duels in the deserts of North Africa as Hitler reinforced Mussolini’s battered forces with the deadly Afrika Korps, and the ultimate showdown between two legendary desert commanders, Rommel and Montgomery, at El Alamein.

We then have the debut of the Americans into the African theatre, their bloody setback at Kasserine Pass, and eventual success in helping to clear North Africa of Axis influence. Finishing with the Allied invasions of Sicily and mainland Italy, and the stubborn German defence that resisted the invaders almost up to the end of the war in Europe.

Operation Sea Lion has proceeded, both sides have lost a lot and as a result the remainder of the German forces have been pushed to Kent where they prepare their defences against the inevitable British attack. The German high command refuse to let their blitzkrieg falter at this stage and concoct a brave, audacious and completely unexpected plan... Operation Gigant is phase two of the theoretical plan to invade Britain that has been brought forward and into action as phase one falters!

Glider borne troops and vehicles are bought in to create a surprise second front in North East England, splitting the British defences still further and driving a steel wedge down through the heart of the British countryside!

Packed with new units to defend (or destroy) Britain's defences, new scenarios on what could of been historical battles, re-construct your whole army with new theatre selectors and more off-the-wall special rules dedicated to the scientific wonders created to invade, and defend, Britain!

This time however, the Panzerbrigades will leave their treads within the mud of the British countryside and over the rubble of humble villages. With the Germans coming into Britain once again but with their complete force, can the British and the remaining Allies hold the Germans off again? Or will the German war machine repeat their success in France and steamroll over Britain?

Hail Caesar is written by the hugely talented Rick Priestley who is something of an expert in Ancients gaming. Partly because of his studying in antiquities but some would say that it's also because he was there for the most part.

A 192 page, full colour, hardback rulebook By the award winning team that produced Black Powder Covers gaming in periods from biblical times to the Crusades

Operation Sea Lion Bolt Action Campaign is packed with reverent nods to our favourite wartime films and TV programmes, this action packed, full colour, 124 page, ‘What If?’ Bolt Action Campaign book brings the war to the shores of England. The Year is 1940, and the German invasion of Britain has begun! With this new Campaign book for Bolt Action, players can fight the battles of World War II’s greatest ‘What If’ scenario. Defend the beaches of Kent against waves of German landing craft, parachute into the Home Counties in a surgical strike to capture Winston Churchill, or rally the Home Guard to hold off the invaders!

With new rules, scenarios, and unit types covering the unique features of this alternative history campaign, you now have the chance to rewrite the history of World War II.

Background to the campaign A successful invasion of a large island with substantial military assets will never be easy; consider the plans for Operation Olympic, the proposed invasion of Japan at the end of World War II – but naval supremacy is undoubtedly a prerequisite. England’s (and later the United Kingdom’s) naval supremacy left the invincible armies of Philip of Spain and Napoleon staring impotently at the storm-tossed, twenty miles of grey sea that separated the island from the continent. Nothing essentially had changed in 1940. But let’s play a game of make believe, a tale of what if. What if somehow, some way, the Germans managed to evade the long reach of the Royal Navy to throw themselves upon the beaches and landing fields of Britain in September 1940?

This book is about what happens next... we hope you'll enjoy. John Lambshead Operation Sea Lion Bolt Action Campaign is a 124 page softback book containing: Inside you'll find a complete time line from 1935 to the invasion of Britain in September 1940 and the days that followed. Top notch new units, vehicles, theatre selectors, 'What If' history, the 'Real' history and scenarios with campaign rules... all that's missing is a cup of tea. Discover the weird and wonderful ways the British boffins worked everyday weapons into destructive oddities to defend the home shores - ranging from the Northover projector (the last ever black powder weapon issued to the British army), to the Spigot Mortar - a weapon that ignited Winston Churchill’s ‘boy’s own’ love of the dramatic. We also find out about Winne & Pooh - two 14" guns - and why the Germans dropped a wooden bomb on Pooh! There are of course many, many more weapons, units (roller skates anyone?) & vehicles listed - with models to come hot on the heals of the book (but more about them later...), we just can't wait for the Great Panjandrum - 35 rockets propelling a 10ft wooden wheel at speeds of 60 mph - packed with explosives... just imagine that screaming toward you as you land on the beach!