Does anyone have any fun and effective house rules for using my existing US and German aircraft and artillery cards until an edition comes out where they are actual units (like in HoBR or HoS)?

I would like to have them serve some purpose, besides just the old standby of being something no player ever takes because of the low chance they will ever show up as something drawn from their 40 card deck.

Although I guess artillery already has an existing pre-2.0 solution (as long as I can get a hold of the Armored company packs foe each army, of course).

I have stopped using the aircraft/artillery cards and use just the new style artillery in my games.

If I would use the cards, I might play them like this:

1) Buy the aircraft and artillery cards as per the normal rules

2) make a random mini stack ("support stack") of aircraft/artillery cards (as many as you purchased for your army). Mix the cards together without looking.

3) To use the cards, you need to give an order chit to one of your officers. He needs to have a line of sight to the target. He is calling support on the radio.

4) When the Officers order chits turn comes, draw a random card from the "support stack" and use it as per the rules in the card. The Officer calling the support must have a line of sight to the target.

5) You can call support once per turn and for as many times in a game as you bought the aircraft cards/artillery cards.

I don't know if this is balanced, but the "one card per turn" and "Officer calling the support needs line of sight to the target" might balance it out somewhat.

Since this game is based on history but comes from the angle of the movies made about that history, the cards could be used in scenarios that take on board some of the movie magic.

The use of a barrage or strafing run could be a "saved in the nick of time" event or "director's cut" version of the scenario.

Maybe you have to trigger some things in the game before getting or using the card?…

Get a signal through by any means to call upon airforce/artillery, or after saving the pilot or the radio?…

Roll the dice or pick the lucky clover token from a bag of tokens?

Or include the drawing of the cards in the scenario.

How about creating some "Run the Gauntlet" scenarios in which your troops have to cross the beach whilst being pelted by off map artillery. Use all available cards once?

Heroic last stand on top of a hill with the enemy airforce controlling the skies. Some good use for that AA gun… Does relief arrive at all or not?

How much of your reinforcements make it through to turn the tide? Start with a convoy and see what part survives the bombing and strafing. This could be a side scenario with effect on the main story line in a campaign.