I recently found out that I'm partly Finnish (6% give or take), and although I'm slightly averse to playing Axis forces in wargames, The Finnish forces give me an opportunity to play the bad guys kit without all the bad guy baggage that goes along with it. (mostly)
Finland in the second world war was in a very odd position. Threatened by their border with the Soviet Union, and plagued by territorial disputes for years, when the war started the Finns found themselves facing off against a newly aggressive Soviet Union, who had already taken parts of Poland, and were controlling the territories of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Finland had been agreed as part of the pact with the Germans to be considered part of the Soviet Sphere of Influence, i.e neutral but providing a military buffer zone between Germany and the Soviet Union.
After initiating a causus belli themselves, the Soviets invaded Finland on the 30th November 1939, expecting a quick victory in what became known as the Winter War. However, the Soviets were not prepared for the ferocity and morale of the Finnish defenders, and the harsh winter of 1939 and the crippling of the officer classes from Stalins 'Great Purge' a few months earlier caused them to suffer substantial losses in the early exchanges.
However with renewed effort the Soviets force of manpower and mechanisation overcame the Finns, and they ceded land in the Karelian peninsula with the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty in 1940. The Soviets also demanded land in the north of the country, but Finland remained a sovereign country.
Some say that the poor performance of the Soviets gave Hitler cause to think an offensive against the Soviets would be succesful, and with the German invasion of Russia in 1941, Finland became a place of strategic importance to the Soviets Northern flanks.
Finland never signed the Axis pact, and only wanted assistance from Nazi Germany to return the borders to their ante-bellum states, and so the Continuation war against the Soviets began.
Bolt Action
In Bolt Action the Finns are ferocious fighters, good at ambushes and fighting in snow, and although I've got some Germans knocking about I didn't want to start a new army when I've still got some stashed in boxes around, however at the club a couple of people play Konflikt 47, and with this in mind I've bought the rule book and the 'Resurgence' edition, and I've put together a little 1000 point force to see how it plays.
Alternate Historyof Konflikt 47
In Konflikt 47, the course of the war has changed slightly with the test explosion of an atomic bomb at Los Alamos, and another atomic bomb dropped on Dresden creating 'Rifts' in space time, through which emerge strange radio signals and information regarding futuristic technology. Strange, exotic particles also escape from the Rifts, although these cannot currently be harnessed.
Although the US shares this Rift technology with its allies Britain and Canada, the reluctance to share with the Soviets causes a further breakdown in trust between the allies, and Stalin denounces the US as an enemy and begins fighting for their own territorial and ideological aims in Europe.
D-Day still happens, and although the Germans are quicker to realise the technology advantages provided by the Rift, Allied forces push the Germans back to the Rhine by 1946. Counter attacks and behind enemy lines missions by the germans, their 'Spinne' mechs, Zeus and Thor walkers and legion of zombie soldiers, werewolves and vampires bog down the Allied forces on the Rhine.
Between March and June 1947, the Germans push back into Holland and go on the offensive in Italy. The allies hold the line, their own Rift tech battling the forces of the Axis.
Up in Finland however, there exists an uneasy peace between the two forces. Soviet forces tied up on the Eastern Front allow many Finns to escape north to form a new force in the German Army, the SS Friewilligen Battallion Nordost, adn this force gains recruits and strengthens to Division size, becoming the equivalent of a Finnish army in exile. With the encouragement of the Germans, the Finns re-enter the fight against the Soviets, albeit with better equipment and the addition of a certain amount of Rift-tech equipment. There is an internal schism in the Finnish force between the fanatical pro-german Finns and the nationalistic anti-Soviet Finns, which I feel is best served by the addition (or omission thereof) of the Nazi forces such as the Totenkorps (zombies), Shrekwulfen (werewolves) and Nachtjager (vampires).
I like to think that the close forested terrain gives the Finns plenty of scope for lightly armoured fast attacks, so as far as Rift Tech goes, it's Spinnemechs and Falcon Fallschirmjagers that fit the bill.
The Finns also get bonuses for firing rifles from Ambush, so plenty of Soviet and German rifles, but they have also got plenty of firepower in the form of MG42s.
Their equipment is equivalent to the late war Grenadier stuff, so it's winter (white, blue and green) coloured Zeltbahn over plain white tunics, grey trousers and plenty of fieldcapsin white or grey.
Where Stalhelms are worn, most Finns will adorn them with the Skull symbol. Frontline forces were often quite dishevelled, living off the land, so plenty of light stubble and rough, worn clothing.
I've not played K47 yet, so I'm not sure of the subtle differences between it and Bolt Action but I'm hoping to get a game in soon!
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