Historical Background:
As soon as the Armistice between the Allies and Italy was known, on the 8th of September 1943, the German Command in Italy activated operation Achse to disarm the Italian army. General Kurt Student planned an airborne operation called "Centre Marte" to neutralize the Italian headquarter in the Palazzo Orsini situated in the city of Monterotondo, north of Rome. In the morning of the 9th of September, German paratroopers of the Kampfgruppe Gericke jumped on Monterotondo and captured Palazzo Orsini after a fierce fighting, but the Italian staff had fled before. Italian units in the area counter-attacked and were reinforced by a battalion arrived by train in Monterotondo station. German paratroopers were quickly surrounded in the Palazzo Orsini under the fire of the Italian artillery. The next day, Germans and Italians made a ceasefire agreement : German paratroopers liberated their prisoners and could retired from Monterotondo. But the operation "Centre Marte" was a setback.
The stage is set, the battle lines are drawn, and you are in command. The rest is history.

Briefing:
Axis player[Germany] : 6 command cards,you move first.
Allied player [Italy] : 6 command cards.

Conditions of Victory:
6 medals.
Palazzo Orsini is a temporary medal objective for the Axis player.

Special Rules:
- Use "Royal Italian Army" rules (Nations 6).
- Use "Specialized Units" rules (Troops 2) to all Axis units.
- Use " Supply Train/Reinforcement" rules (Troops 5 & 6 - Actions 13).
- Use "Paradrop" rules (Actions 20). During the first turn, the Axis player dropped three times three figures anywhere on the board (total : nine paratroopers units).

Scenario Bibliography:
- Magazine 2e Guerre mondiale n°18 - Opération Flohzirkus.

Warning:
Please note that this scenario was not approved by Richard Borg or Days of Wonder, so you have to check yourself about playability, potential gaming issues, etc.