ANVIL No. of Turns: 23 Battle Posture: Axis = Defense Allies = Attack Per Turn Prestige Boosters:Axis =0 Allies = 80 No.of Units Available for purchase: Axis = 12 Allies = 5 - While there is difficult terrain to traverse the objectives are in a natural invasion route. The lack of good Axis units nullifies any advantage the Axis player has in terrain. No. of Objectives: Axis: hold 2 objectives. - The Axis must hold two objectives in order to the win the game. Once again the horrible terrain cannot be taken advantage of as the Allies push northward. Prestige: Axis = 1060 Allies = 2014 - The Allies win this match up hands down. The Allies begin with 14 aircraft as opposed to the German's four. On the ground, the Germans are outgunned in artillery and armor with only two Panthers. The Axis must decide where to spend the limited prestige amount while the Allies can use their store to repair aircraft and wounded units without to much worry of running out. New Unit Exp: Axis = 2 Stars Allied = 2 Stars Air Superiority - The Allies rule the skies with three American Mustangs and four Thunderbolts. The Axis have limited fighter power nor are their prospects for adding to the air fleet is very limited as the ground war is also outgunned. Numerous American bombers will make it difficult for even the AA guns to make much of a dent in the American air fleet. Ground Superiority - Normally the Germans own the ground with their armor. But in this scenario the Germans begin with an assortment of infantry units and only two Panther tanks. The allies have a variety of artillery and the versatile M4 tank series to handle German armor. American and Free French forces will have a difficult time with the terrain but with the mobile artillery units the allies shouldn't have too much of a problem with dug in infantry and their rugged defense. AXIS: Heavy losses are to be expected as your forces are put to the test, so save prestige for replacements. Rugged terrain and experienced units are your only assets and hope of staying alive against the Franco-American onslaught, and your safest strategic goal is a marginal victory based on holding Grenoble and St.Vallier at the end of the battle. Don't let your units stand and die on the coast--get them into successive defense lines based on the cities and rivers in the hills and mountains. Holding on to airfields early on, however, will help you by forcing the Allied air units to return to their distant bases to refuel. ALLIES: A lot of tough terrain and a few tough Germans await you in southern France. Although the ground is ideal for defense, recon and ground attacks by your air force will help neutralize this defensive advantage. Securing an airfield on the mainland is a high priority to avoid having to fly south to refuel. There are really only two main routes north: one east of the Rhone and another through Sisteron, where a number of routes from the coast converge. The mountainous trails further east can be easily blocked and will support an advance on only a one-unit frontage. Move quickly, because Grenoble and St.Vallier are each tough defensive positions to be cracked. General Information - The terrain and rivers make it seem like a defenders paradise. But the Germans don't have the units to take advantage of the terrain. The weather is generally good but the weather can turn foul and ground the Allied airfleet for a few turns. Final Evaluation - Prestige Experience Axis +2 0 Allied -1 -1 The Germans are out matched in the air and on the ground. The prestige count doesn't give enough ability to buy units except Anti-tanks in much quantity. Unfortunately the Anti-tanks are extremely vulnerable to bombing attacks. Add +2 to German prestige. And if needed subtract from the Allies also.