Even if you know nothing about Word War II, you are likely aware of D-Day. The Allied invasion of France remains one of the largest military operations ever undertaken. The scale of D-Day is so immense, Warlord is publishing three separate Campaign books! Let’s crack open the second book, Campaign: D-Day: British & Canadian Sectors with another Chicago Dice Hot Take!

Hot

• The Mortar Platoons – What do we have here? There are several highly specialized Theater Selectors and none are more specialized than the Late-War British Army Mortar Reinforced Platoon. In this Selector, the required units are one First or Second Lt. and three Medium Mortar Teams. Yep. The compulsory units are Med. Mortar Teams and you can take up to three more of them! There is also a Selector Special Rule – Platoon Spotters – that limits the number of spotters to one for every two mortars but all mortars can draw LOS from any of the spotters. Unreal. Just insane. Can you imagine dropping six 2″ HE templates on your opponent? And if you are running Regulars that’s only 330pts for six Med. Mortars and three spotters! I mean sure, you’ll have a hard time capturing objectives with only two Infantry Squad slots but who cares? There won’t be any enemy units left to contest. Combine this with the Machine Gun Platoon and you’ve got yourself some real dirt.
  
• Canadian Army List – Players have been asking for a specific Canadian Army List for a long time. Yes, you could use the Armies of Great Britain book to run a Canadian force, but it would still feel and play like a British force. No longer! Campaign: D-Day: British & Canadian Sectors provides 20 pages of new units, National Rules and Theater Selectors (Infantry and Armored) covering both Early and Late War options. Although the Army List is not as robust as the Late War French in Battle of the Bulge or the Australians in New Guinea, it offers up some fun and new options. If you are a fan of vehicle flamethrowers, this is the army for you.
  
• British and Inter-Allied Commandos Army List – Sometimes the new units in Campaign books can feel a bit stale, a bit meh. Other times it feels like a new Armies of…book contained within the Campaign book. This is one of those times. The British and Inter-Allied Commandos Army List section is packed with so many units, Theater Selectors and army rules that truly feels like a new army. Previously, you could run a Commando force, but it was just a British Force with units of Commandos. Now, it would have its own look, feel and style. You’ve got options for Early and Late, Army or Marines, and every single unit has Behind Enemy Lines and Tough Fighter. There is a host of Theater Selectors to fit Commando forces from Northwest Europe to Burma. It really is a cool list just filled with options.

Honorable Mentions

• British and Commonwealth Armored Divisions – A whole page of special rules for running four different Armored Platoons including new Army Special Rules that replace the British National Rules. Perfect for anyone looking to get specific with their British/Commonwealth Armor.
  
• Luftwaffe Flak Platoon – This is the Theater Selector for folks that really hate airplanes. Not only can you take up to four AA Guns, you also get to re-roll any misses when firing at aircraft. Is it good? Probably not. But the hobby potential is through the roof.

Not

• Armored Car Support/Assault Section – What could have a been a unique Infantry unit to fill the QRF/Fast Attack role winds up being a unit that I can’t imagine taking. The unit is required to purchase a Transport but lacks the options to fill the assault role. Only the NCO and one other man can take SMGs. What good is an assault unit with no assault weapons?
  
• RAF Regiment Armored Car Squadron – This one was a heartbreaker. I adore armored cars, both the rules and the models. I was thrilled to see an option to run a crazy all Armored Car force, but then realized it’s limited to just two picks: the Humber Light Recon Car and the Humber Scout Car. And both of those options are garbo. Where is my Staghound Platoon? What about an AEC Platoon? Give me options!
  
• The Layout – Sigh. I feel like we hit this point every time we talk about Campaign books. The book starts out well, all the background and scenarios are the first section, that’s good. But once we get into the new units section it falls apart. There is a “New British and Commonwealth Units” section but that does not include the new Armored OP vehicles, Intelligence Officers, Support Officers or Chaplains. Those rules are all in different sections. There are also rules for the Luftwaffe Field Division and the 12th SS but these rules are after the Canadian rules, why not put them with the other German rules? Maybe I’m nitpicking but a uniform look and feel across the Campaign books is something that I am dying to see. This is by no means the worst offender, but it’s not great either.

The Takeaway

Like the best of the Campaign books, Campaign: D-Day: British & Canadian Sectors works to fill a gap in the game. In this case, it’s the actions performed by British and Commonwealth soldiers in the months following D-Day. A Canadian Army List is something that players have been asking for since First Edition. Similar to how Campaign: New Guinea brought options for Australia, this book brings us Canada and Commandos. I’m a big fan of the books that provide players with not just new units, but new ways to build their force. It always gives me some serious Hobby Hype.

Of course there are things here and there that I would like to see changed or done a different way, but on the whole, Campaign: D-Day: British & Canadian Sectors is another solid Warlord release.