The world, is at war.
– The trailer for every WWII documentary.
In Teams of four, players will participate in three 2v2 games. Each Team Member will have their own Order Dice for their Army. There will be four colors of Order Dice in the bag. One color for each player. Team Members will pair with a different partner each game.
All World at War rules are DRAFT and subject to change. Rules will be finalized not later than Dec. 1, 2026.
Terminology
- Team – The combined armies of all four Team Members.
- Team Member – An individual member of a Team.
- Team Member Army – The 800pt army used by a particular Team Member.
- Team Captain – A single Team Member appointed to represent the Team.
- Force – The combined 800pt armies of two Team Members parried for a game.
Teams
- Teams are made of four Team Members. Each Team Member has one army of up to 800pts.
- During the event each Team Member will be parried with each other Team Member for one game.
- Teams must be either Axis or Allies.
- All four Team Member Armies must be composed of nations that allied during World War II. A Team cannot be Germany / Soviet Union / Great Britain / US. A Team can be South Africa / Poland / Great Britain / US. All Team Members can use the same nation.
Team Member Army Construction
- Each Team Member constructs a legal 800pt army with 10 Order Dice max using a nation from either the Armies of books or a Further Axis & Allied Nations PDFs.
- For Germany, the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, Imperial Japan, Italy, and the British Commonwealth (Australia, Canada, East Africa Command, India, New Zealand, and South Africa) forces must be built using their Third Edition Armies of book.
- For the 11 “Minor Powers”, armies must be built using the Further Axis & Allied Nations PDF.
- Each Team Member Army must contain at least one Rifle Platoon and may include a Heavy Weapons Platoon.
- One Team Member Army may include an Engineer Platoon.
- One Team Member Army may include an Artillery Platoon.
- One Team Member Army may include an Armored Platoon.
- One Team Member Army may include an Recce Infantry Platoon.
- Forward Observers – A maximum of 1 Forward Observer (Air or Artillery) per player.
- The Leadership Standard – The Morale level of the Platoon Commander(s) must be equal to or greater than the Morale level of the majority of the units in the platoon, not counting the Platoon Commander (rounding up). The Morale level of a Company Commander must be equal to or greater than the Moral level of the majority of the units in the entire Team Member Army, not counting the Company Commander.
- Order Dice – Each Team Member will need their own, separate Order Dice.
- The Jan. 30, 2026 FAQ & Errata will be used for the tournament.
Combined Arms
During a game, a Combined Arms Bonus is available to each Force depending on their pairing. For example, if a Force contains both an Artillery Platoon and an Engineer Platoon, the Artillery units may begin the game “dug in” in Hard Cover. If a Force contains an Armored Platoon and a Recce Platoon, any Armored Vehicles may make a 6″ move after Deployment, before the start of the game.
Think of rules that give a bonus to each player. Think of rules that last the whole game, not just start of game.
| Engineer | Artillery | Armored | Recce | |
| Engineer | – | Dug In | Field Repairs | Minefield Deployment |
| Artillery | Dug In | – | Armored OP | Pre-sighted |
| Armored | Field Repairs | Armored OP | – | Mechanized Spearhead |
| Recce | Mechanized Spearhead | Pre-sighted | Mechanized Spearhead | – |
- Dug In – Place up to three 6″ Hard Cover walls/sand bags for any units to deploy behind.
- Field Repairs – Engineers act like Chaplains for friendly vehicles in the Force.
- Pre-sighted – Artillery hits on a 5+ on Turn 1
- Minefield Deployment – Three “Partisan Bomb” style tokens before deployment.
- Armored OP – Artillery can draw LoS from friendly vehicles in the Force.
- Mechanized Spearhead – All vehicles in this Force are give the Fast special rule. If the vehicle has the Slow rule, Slow is removed. If it already has Fast, it gains Recce.
Team Considerations
To keep rules overlap as simple as possible:
- Officers – The Officer in each Team Member Army only affects the units in that specific army (Morale bonus, Snap To). Team Member A’s Platoon Commander grants no Morale Bonus to Team Member B’s units.
- Medics / Chaplains / Commissars / Kempeitai Officer / etc. – All units that provide a bonus to or affect friendly units only apply their bonus to the units of that specific army. Team Member A’s Medic cannot save Team Member B’s units.
- Transports and Tows – Transports and tows can only transport units in that Team Members army. Team Member A’s unit cannot ride in Team Member B’s transport.
- Spotters – Spotters (and Spotting via Forward Observers) in one Team Members Army only affect the units in that army.
Note on laser pointers and pre-measuring
Using laser pointers to determine Line of Sight is not considered pre-measuring. Players are allowed to use laser pointers to check LoS at any time. Any player using a laser pointer is expected to allow their opponent to use it as well.
Event Format
All Team Members will participate in a total of three 2v2games. Team Members will rotate their partner for each game, playing with each other Team Member one time. It is up to each team to decided which Team Members will partner each round, but each Team Member must partner with each other member one time.
Each game will be 3hrs long. Axis vs Allies match-ups will be made when possible.
Schedule
Friday, April 7, 2027:
- 8:15 – 8:55am – Check-in
- 8:55 – 9am – Welcome and Operation Briefing
- 9am – 12pm – Game 1
- 12 – 1pm – Break and Player’s Choice voting
- 1 – 4pm – Game 2
- 4 – 445pm – Break
- 445 – 745pm – Game 3
- 745 – 815pm – Scoring and Awards
Event Awards
AdeptiCon Medals will be awarded for:
- Best Overall – Team with the highest overall (Battle + Sports + Theme/Comp) score.
- Best Appearance – Team selected by the Judges amongst those with the highest Appearance score.
- Player’s Choice – Team with the most Player’s Choice votes.
- Best Allies – Allied Team with the highest overall score, that is not Best Overall.
- Best Axis – Allied Team with the highest overall score, that is not Best Overall
Teams can only win one AdeptiCon Medal. If a Team earns multiple AdeptiCon Medals, the Team will have the option to choose their award.
Overall Score
The overall score for each Team is a combination of:
- Battle – 120 points max
- Sportsmanship – 60 points max
- Theme/Comp – 10 points max
Battle Scoring
For each game, Battle Scores are 20pts for a Win, 10pts for a Draw, 5pts for a Loss, 0pts for a Withdrawal.
Secondary Objectives
Instead of using total Order Dice killed, we will use Secondary Objectives to break any ties in the final standings. There are the same four Secondary Objectives available each game. At the end of the game, add up all the Secondary Objectives scored, and write down your total points. Secondary Objectives have no impact on the outcome of the game. You can win a game without scoring a single Secondary Objective. You can lose a game but score them all.
Sportsmanship Scoring
Be gracious in victory and defeat.
Operating on the assumption that all players are good sports, opponents are automatically granted 10 points for Sportsmanship for each game. If opponents turn out to be less than good sports, players need to report it to the TO’s table, before the start of the next round, using the following categories and examples as a guideline. Keep in mind; everyone gets a little salty now and then, forgets (or misplaces) their tape measure once in a while, temporarily forgets how a rule works, or changes their mind about a decision, etc.
Salty Attitude: Complain a lot. Constantly ask to see your rules—even for basic things. Act put-out if you ask to see their rules. Do not communicate intentions or establish agreement with regard to movement, line of sight, etc. Are impatient, dismissive, curt, etc.; sore losers or ungracious winners.
Unprepared for Play: Show up very late. Haven’t read the tournament rules. Haven’t read the mission description. Don’t have the majority of the things needed to play the game (have to borrow a lot).
Incompetent Play: Unable to execute the core rules of the game without frequent referencing or coaching. Spend inordinate time looking things up (i.e. do not have materials prepared, marked, or printed for quick reference).
Questionable Play: Not quite cheating, but not aboveboard either. ‘Generous’ measurements or movement. Frequently take back movement or other decisions after they are in process. Not clearly distinguishing between similar units. Not keeping track of scoring. Abuse ‘playing by intent’ by failing to establish what their intent is, but taking advantage of what it ‘could have been’.
Sportsmanship Deductions: In all cases, the judge(s) will decide whether the described behaviors are Minor, Major, or Extreme instances.
- Minor instances will be minus 1-4 points each.
- Major instances will be minus 5-9 points each and a visit from the TO.
- Extreme instances will be minus 10 points and a visit from the Head TO.
Theme/Comp Scoring
Theme, also referred to as Comp, is a soft check against hyper-competitive, WAAC (Win At All Costs) army lists. Each army list submitted by the deadline is automatically granted 10 Theme/Comp points. If the army list contains a force construction that is more appropriate for a WAAC competitive event, points will be deducted. Examples of a deduction include:
- Inclusion of an Inexp. Indirect Fire weapon when the rest of the force is Reg. and/or Vet.
- Inclusion of an Inexp. Transport/Tow when the rest of the force is Reg. and/or Vet.
- Unit spam (Flamethrowers, Howitzers, etc.).
To put it another way, World at War is a hobby-first event. Yes, we are all playing to win, but not at the expense of the opponent’s experience.
Best Apperance
Best Appearance scoring is optional. Teams will self-nominate if they would like to be considered for Best Appearance. Teams will only receive an Appearance Score if they notify the TOs during check-in. If you do not notify the TOs to paint judge your Team, you will not receive a score.
Appearance / Paint score will follow a rubric:
Note on Commissioned Armies – If you did not paint your army you must notify the TO. Commissioned armies cannot win Best Painted.
A note on display boards – Maximum display board dimensions are 36″x24″. Armies may be displayed directly onto tables, but no display board points will be awarded. A table is not a display board.
Army List Submission
Players are required to submit Army Lists in advance for review. Failure to submit Lists by the deadline will result in a points deduction. Lists are due by Sunday, March 14, 2027. Submit to Abe, Adam, Andrew and John at ChicagoDiceTeam@gmail.com
Note on EasyArmy, 2nd in Command, and Warlord Games List Builder – No matter what app or website you use to build your list, double-check your points against the Rulebook, Armies of book, and Additional Nation PDFs, and FAQ/Errata. We consider the books/PDFs to be the single “source of truth” for unit entries. If there is a difference between the books and the list builder, we always consider the book to be correct (taking into account FAQ/Errata changes).
Teams must bring four printed copies of their list to the event – three for opponents, and one for themselves.
Questions?
Contact Abe, Adam, Andrew and John at ChicagoDiceTeam@gmail.com with any questions.
