I guess I am a heretic!!
I changed what I did not like in the campaign I had/have.
The US was not a total basket case. A LOT of nuclear power plants were intact. The Anniston Army Depot (and a tank plant), Red River Depot, and quite a few refineries in OK and Arkansas/Louisiana were intact. F-16 factory in Ft. Worth undamaged along with F-15 plant in St Louis. The Lima tank plant undamaged. York, Pa vehicle factories untouched.
Overall unit strength was down to about 1/4 pre-war. Average NATO vehicle strength was down by 75% on average with a few units having about 1/3 tank strength. Pact units down to between 10% to 30% vehicle/personnel strength.
Yes, you had a lot of devastation. But I just did not buy into the TOTAL devastation you see in HW. Neither side launched all their nukes. What was launched was a strike aimed at power/energy infrastructure - a limited countervalue strike. Unless you had both sides going for an all out countervalue strike aimed at the populations - cities- A LOT of people, and more importantly, a lot of industry will be unharmed.
I also did not buy 100% into the EMP damage being as severe. Not that it could have been done, but I think technical limitations on the existing ICBM/SLBM force would have limited the ability for either side to get nuclear weapons into optimal positions for the EMP effect contemplated by GDW. I think EMP would have been more localized. Also, a lot of stuff would be stored in metal building that I have often thought of as giant Faraday cages.
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