NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists IV - Imperial Rome

 The fourth period that Neil Thomas covers for his Ancient Warfare rules in Wargaming: An Introduction is focused on the Imperial Roman period, or as it is titled in the book, "Imperium Romanum: 25 BC to AD 130".  This covers the Roman army, following the Marian reforms (which took place during the Republic Period), and beginning in 25 BC with the rise of Augustus as the first Caesar of the Imperium.

This period is focused on the wars between the Romans and their more northern Barbarians, the Germans and the Gauls.  The period starts, as stated, with Augustus, so after Julius Caesar\"s famous campaign in Gaul, however the army list looks very much like it could be used to represent Julius\" famous exploits.

The book presents two army lists for this period, one representing the Romans, and one representing a norther Gallo-German Barbarian army.  

The author presents the fact that at the scale of the rules, the differences between the two armies (Gauls, and Germans) are negligible.  Other rule sets, such as the classic WRG army lists, present differences in troop types, morale, training, weapons, and even fighting density (the Germans generally being in denser formations for most of the represented tribes).  Those rules (the WRG rules), however, have a much more tactical focus, than these, in terms of classifying the troops.  Here, Thomas has taken the approach similar to Phil Sabin in his works (such as Lost Battles) whereby ancient infantry is simply divided up into heavy infantry and light infantry (based on the fact that heavy infantry is expected to stand in the battle line).  One further distinction made, at least here, is with Warband, which are somewhat lesser heavy infantry, but also with the ability to fight well in rough terrain.

 The Roman army here is represented by the following units:

• Legionaries (heavy infantry, heavy armor, Elite) 3-6 units
• Auxiliary Infantry (warband, medium armor) 1-3 units 
• Auxiliary Archers (light infantry, bow, light armor) 0-1 unit
• Artillery 0-1 unit 
• Auxiliary Cavalry (heavy cavalry, medium armor, Elite) 1-2 units

The Roman player is then presented with fielding a battle line of Legion units, with a few support choices.  The Elite cavalry is nice, possibly representing mercenary or foederati tribal cavalry, but with better equipment (hence the medium armor).  But, it is not present in sufficient numbers to deliver a winning battle, only a supporting role.  This leaves the Roman player in the enviable position of playing an archetypical Roman battle plan - a steady onslaught of well equipped, well trained infantry. 

The Barbarian army is composed of the following units and availability:

• Warriors (warband, light armor ) 3-6 units

• Skirmishes (light infantry, javelin, light armor, levy) 1-2 units

• Archers (light infantry, bow, light armor, levy) 0-1 unit

• Chief’s Bodyguard (warband, light armor, Elite) 0-1 unit

• Cavalry (heavy cavalry, light armor, Elite) 1-3 units

The Barbarian player is faced with the fact that his army is outclassed, as in real life. He must rely on a ruse de guerre or clever use of rough terrain, in order to balance the odds.

Several options exist for a more balanced game. First, the Barbarian player may be given either a few additional units, or additional rough terrain.  Second, the Barbarian warband units can be made larger (6 stands), this is what the Tactica rules do.  Third, battles could be fought as part of a campaign, or series of games, with the Romans having a more difficult time of recovering losses between battles.  I had an article in Yaah! magazine featuring such a campaign for Commands and Colors, it would work with these rules, as well.

There are many other possible army lists available for this time period, some of which are in Thomas’ longer book on Ancient and Medieval Wargaming, but here these are the only two.  Satisfying games could be fought with Roman v. Roman, as a civil war or rebellious province scenario. Equally, a war between two Barbarian tribes might be fun.

For fun, and to recreate a British Barbarian army, replace the Cavalry and Chief’s Bodyguard units with Light Chariots (make one of them Elite). That should give a satisfying Boudicca’s revolt feel.

Spanish Armada paper ships

I got some nice Christmas loot from very fine people who were nice enough to gift me.  I used part of it to order some books, and one of them is the Spanish Armada book by Peter Dennis.  This is a period I am interested in, but will probably never build models for, so using paper ships works fine for me. The book also has a nice bit of introductory history, some paper modeling tips, and a set of wargaming rules.

The ships can be put together with simple rectangular backgrounds, if you want to build them fast, or you can trim the white away, and have nicer looking models (the picture below was pasted to the Facebook Paperboys group, by Peter Dennis himself, showing the models trimmed nicely).

If I get to these in 2021, and do a game, I will post pictures. Also a review of the rules is coming.  There are a bunch of books in the Paper Soldiers Series, including many on land campaigns, and at least one more naval book - on Trafalgar.  It might be on my list, after all I still have some Christmas loot.

 

Update (2022) - WOFUN now manufactures these ships available as lovely plastic standee models, that look very durable and you don't have to cut them out.  These are on my to-be-purchased list.

Here is a link to the appropriate catalog section of Raven Banner games, describing these Spanish Armada products from WOFUN.

NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists III - Punic Wars

The third period of armies covered for the Ancient Warfare rules in the Wargaming: An Introduction book is the Punic Wars.  This is a great period of history to study, and also a great topic for wargaming, and these armies are interesting.  Neil Thomas handles it well, by presenting two versions of the armies, one for the main part of the campaigning when Hannibal was in Italy.  Then he gives a second set reflecting the battle of Zama where we start to see some brilliance on the Roman side.

Hannibal was able to use his mixed army with great success for what I think are two reasons. First, he has a good mixture of forces at his control, and second he was a military genius.  Years ago, I read Tony Bath's Hannibal's Campaigns, which is perfectly written for a wargamer, taking care to detail the armies and battles very nicely. Another great source is Warfare in the Classical World by John Warry. Warry has an informative chapter on the Punic Wars, but really there are a ton of references and resources out there on this rich period.  Both books, and a library of others, can be found at Amazon.

Thomas gives a good army list for Carthage, showing the variety of troops.  There are enough Infantry units to have a battle line, supported by elephants, and a variety of cavalry and skirmish infantry.

1-3 units African Infantry (heavy infantry, light armor)     
1-3 units Gauls/Spaniards (Warband, light armor)               
1-2 units Skirmishers (light infantry, javelin, light armor, Levy)       
0-2 units Elephants                         
1-3 units Numidian Cavalry (light cavalry, javelin, light armor)    
1-2 units Gallic/Spanish Cavalry (heavy cavalry, light armor, Elite)

The Infantry units are respectable, and the elephants present a choice. They are a tough foe for the Romans, but since they are one stand units, they will crumble fast.  The skirmishers and Numidians are extremely useful, but won't win a battle on their own.  And the same goes for the Gallic horse.  This is a tough army to run since we aren't all Hannibal Barca, but it does present some problems for the Roman player. 

The Roman army, however, makes up for a lack of diversity, by  having some heavier units.

4-7 units Hastati and Principes (heavy infantry, medium armor)
0-1 units Triarii (heavy infantry, heavy armor, Elite)      
1-2 units Velites (light infantry, javelin, light armor)    
0-1 units Roman Cavalry (heavy cavalry, medium armor)         

The Velites will win man-to-man and unit-to-unit vs the Carthaginian skirmishers, if he can close. The Roman Cavalry will probably fare poorly vs the Gallic Cavalry.  That leaves the impressive battle line Infantry. Can they withstand both the elephants and the warband?  The triarii are a luxury item, but taking them leaves little room for support troops.  It comes down to a matchup pairing the discipline of Roman Infantry, vs Carthaginian finesse.

As mentioned, there is a second version of each army(Carthage and Rome) representing the period of fighting where Rome grew much more aggressive, strategically.  This was under the command of Scipio, when he pushed the war out of Italy and back to North Africa.

At this time, the Gauls were beginning to lose some faith in their Carthage allies, so the list represents a situation where the Gallic (or Spanish/Iberian) soldiery was still willing to fight for Carthage (promises of pay or booty), the Gallic/Spanish Cavalry is no longer available. Perhaps the Nobles sensed a futile effort? They were willing to fight in Europe (Italy), but reluctant to go to Africa?

The second big change is that the majority of the Numidian now saw the situation as being allied to Rome, a better deal than Carthage.

Finally, to reflect the hardening of some of the African Infantry, there are now some proper veterans n the army, fighting as an elite cadre.

To reflect these changes, change the two cavalry lines on the Carthaginian army list, to the following three lines:

0-1 units Numidian Cavalry (light Cavalry, javelin, light armor)
0-1 units Carthaginian Citizen Cavalry (Heavy Cavalry, Medium Armor, Elite)
0-1 units Hannibal's veterans (heavy infantry, heavy armor, Elite)

The Romans, after years of fighting Hannibal now have a different mix of troops, which includes their new comrades the Numidian, these changes occur.

Reduce the number of Hastati and Prncipes units, to 3-6 units.
Numidian Cavalry are now available (light cavalry, javelin, light armor) 1-3 units

With these changes, the later battles of the war can be fought.

NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists II - Alexander the Great

The second period of armies for the Ancient Warfare rules in Wargaming: An Introduction, covers the army of Alexander the Great, and his chief foe - Persia under Darius III.

The army list in the book is listed as covering the period from 340-323BC.  Several of the major battles of the period are against the Persians - and indeed, the two army lists presented are for Macedonia (under Alexander), and the Achaemenid Empire (Persia, under Darius III).  There were other battles, other than against the Persians. 

In the beginning of the period, while Alexander is still just prince, under Phillip, he fights one of his most famous battles, Chaeronea (338BC). His foe at this engagement is a Greek style polis army, with Thebans and Athenians present.  In fact, the book suggests that for such an army, the Greek Army list from the previous period be used, with the modification that the hoplites be modified to having Medium Armor, instead of the Heavy Armor.

The other adversaries that Alexander faces, that are not represented here in this article, include the Scythians (light horse archers, from the Black Sea area) at the battle of Jaxartes 329BC.  Also, the Indian army of the Pauravas at the battle of the Hydaspes 326BC.  Both of these armies would be fascinating to see, and they are represented in Neil Thomas' later, more detailed treatment of ancient warfare, in Ancient and Medieval Wargaming.

Other than the battles listed above, the other non-Persian foes that Alexander faced, were always during sieges (and the campaign in the Swat valley region around the Khyber Pass - the battles fought against the locals were very one-sided).  And so armed with army lists for Alexander, and Darius, we can refight the famous battles of Granicus (334BC), Issus (333BC), and Gaugamala (331BC) and finally the battle of the Persian Gate (330BC).

Alexander's refinement of the Macedonian war machine is a great evolution over the earlier Greek Polis Hoplite army.  Several equipment and technique improvements occurred, and rather than just having a static battle line, the army in the hands of the Macedonians (Phillip and Alexander, and Alexander's successors) becomes a very dynamic and aggressive tool.  This comes about with great numbers of cavalry (heavy such as the Companions, and light such as the Thessalians), and more reliance on light infantry.  With these adaptations, the army can use the phalanx (the battle line of pike, or sarissa, wielding heavy infantry) as a strong central anvil, and the cavalry and light infantry can harass the flanks of the enemy until they crumble under the push of the phalanx. 

Phalangites (Heavy Infantry with medium armor)                                3-5 units
Hypaspists (elite Heavy Infantry with medium armor)                         0-1 units
Agrianians (Light infantry with javelin and light armor)                      1-2 units
Cretans (Light infantry with bow and light armor)                                0-1 units
Companions (elite Heavy Cavalry with light armor)                             1-2 units
Thessalians (elite Light Cavalry, with light armor and javelin)             0-1 units

The Hypaspists are the select, elite heavy infantry of the army.  They might be employed on one end of the Phalanx, and used for the "killing blow" against the enemy battle line.

Two options allow the players to represent some non-standard historical theories.  The first allows the Hypaspists to be fielded as Warband rather than Heavy Infantry.   I'm not sure I agree, but it is there.  Second the Thessalians could be reclassed as Heavy Cavalry. 

Against the army of Alexander, the army of Darius would face them multiple times (and many sieges).  This new Persian army differs from the model of Xerxes, 150 years earlier, now being based on a battle line that could be split between heavy archers, and heavy cavalry (which can make up more than half the army).  In an effort to face the Macedonian Phalanx, there are several examples of the Persians hiring Greek Mercenary heavy infantry.  These are good units, but not quite the level of the Phalanx.  In several of the battles under Darius III he would try to adopt a certain stratagem or element of surprise against the army of Alexander.  One of those is present in the army list - the Scythed Chariots.

Persian Cavalry (Heavy Cavalry with light armor)                                         3-5 units
Paphlagonian Cavalry (levy Light Cavalry with javelin and light armor)      1-2 units
Scythed Chariots                                                                                              0-1 unit
Kardakes (levy Heavy Archers with bow and light armor)                             2-4 units
Greek Mercenary Hoplites (Heavy Infantry with medium armor)                  0-2 units

With a minimum of four mounted units, (up to a maximum of six units), this army will lead the player commanding it to trying some interesting maneuvers against the army of Alexander.  Standing in the battle line, even with Mercenary Hoplites making up the core, winged on both sides by Kardakes, would be a risky toss of the dice vs the Macedonian phalanx.

Upon Alexander's death, the empire would of course be divided up into five successor states, and they would wage the wars of the Successor States on each other.  Each successor, or Diadochi, was a general or presumed family heirs of Alexander's.  These included Ptolemy, Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus and Epirus.   I would suggest, without resorting to the army lists and rules from Ancient and Medieval Warfare, that a generic Successor Army might look like this:

Phalangites (Heavy Infantry with medium armor)                                3-4 units
Hypaspists (elite Heavy Infantry with medium armor)                         0-1 units
Agrianians (Light infantry with javelin and light armor)                      1-2 units
Cretans (Light infantry with bow and light armor)                                0-1 units
Companions (elite Heavy Cavalry with light armor)                             1-2 units
Thessalians (elite Light Cavalry, with light armor and javelin)             0-1 units
Elephants                                                                                                0-2 units

NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists I - Persian Invasion

The Neil Thomas Ancient (and Medieval) rules that are found in his book Wargaming: An Introduction, were covered in a previous article on this blog.  This is an overview of the different army lists that are presented to go along with those rules.

First, let me preface another one of Neil's publications, the great book on Ancient and Medieval Wargaming.  That book presents a more in-depth treatment and greater coverage (both in terms of years/periods served, as well as some more nuance in the rules).  It also divides up the whole period, as does the current ruleset in discussion here, into different time periods.  In the later book, however, each time period has more army lists than presented here.  So, when I speak of additional army lists here, or the idea for more troop types to be covered, presented - that is done in the latter version of the rules, to a certain extent.

Supporting the current ruleset there are several tie periods, and two or three armies presented for each one of them, as examples.  Presumably, some clever gamers would take their knowledge of the period, plus the list of troop types in the rules, and could craft additional army lists for additional armies not covered in this introductory set of rules and lists.

This is further reinforced by the fact that there are troop types in the rules, that don't exist in any of the army lists (for instance, as mentioned in the article on the rules themselves, Heavy Chariots don't appear in any of the sample army lists).

Period 1

The first time period covered in the chapter on Ancient Army Lists in this current book, is the period from 490-480BC, the Persian invasions of Greece.  For an excellent overview of the history of this incredible decade, see the article at the Ancient History Enclopedia.  These are the wars detailed by Herodotus in his volume, 'The Histories'.  This period offers up two armies, the Ancient Greek army, and the Persian army of Xerxes.  The only other information given for this time period is a suggestion that the tabletop have no more than 0-3 pieces of terrain, and that should be either woods, hills or rivers.

The Ancient Greek Army here is a representation, for these rules, of what the army would look like on the Greek side at the battles of Marathon (490BC), Thermopylae (480BC), Mycale (479BC) or Plataea (479BC).  Marathon represented (according to Western history) the end of the first invasion by Persia.  The other battles were fought making up the land campaign of the second invasion by Persia.

For those interested in this history of this extremely interesting war, please take a look at the major Naval engagements that made it up as well - the battles of Salamis and Artemisium in 479BC.

The Greek army is of course built around a core battle line of Hoplites, supported by some other units.  Here is the breakdown:

City Hoplites (4-7 units)
Spartan Hoplites (0-2 units)
Javalinmen (1-2 units)
Cavalry (0-1 unit)

The City Hoplites are heavy infantry, with heavy armor, and average morale.  The Spartans are the same, but with elite morale.

The Javelinmen (Peltasts) are light infantry, with light army, and levy morale.  They are of course armed with javelins. 

The Cavalry are light cavalry, with light armor, and javelins.  They are average morale.

Between the javelinmen and the cavalry, these are the only missile troops in the army.  However, this army will win (or die) based on it's strong battle line of heavy infantry.

This list well represents the Athens' heavy army at Marathon (the Spartans did not make it, because they had a religious ceremony to venerate before crossing Greece to the battle site).  It also represents the pan-Hellenic alliance at Platea.  If you wanted to do Thermopylae, I would suggest an army something like this:

7 units of Spartan Hoplites (heavy infantry, heavy armor, elite morale)
1 unit of Allied Hoplites (heavy infantry, heavy armor, average morale)

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The Ancient Persian army of Xerxes is also a good representation of the Persian Army, for these rules.  The army list grants the following troops:

Heavy Archers (3-5 units)
Levy Infantry (1-3 units)
Immortals (0-1 unit)
Persian Cavalry (1-2 units)
Scythian Cavalry (0-1 unit)

The Heavy Archers are the Persian core battleline units, however this army has a lot of different options.  The Archers are themselves Heavy Archer units, with bow and light armor and Average morale.

The Levy Infantry are light infantry, with bow, light armor, and Levy morale.

The Immortals are Heavy Archers, with bow and light armor, and Elite morale.

The Persian Cavalry are Heavy Cavalry, armed with bow, light armor, and Average morale.

The Scythian Cavalry are Light Cavalry, with bow, light armor, and Average morale.

This whole army is armed with bows!!  The Greeks will definitely appreciate their Heavy Armor before this period is all over!  As Herodotus informs us, the Persians informed the Spartans, prior to the engagement at Thermopylae, that they have so many archers in their army, that the arrows would darken the skies.  To this, the Spartan reply was, Then we shall fight in the shade!!

These armies will tend to show the warfare as (we think) it must have been during these engagements.  The Greek tendency to adopt the heavy infantry and heavy armor, from the many battles among the different Polis factions. Against this, the Persian reliance on archery is the nature of the contest.  It is a tough one.

To play the Spartans against the army of Xerxes, the attitude of the Spartans is certainly helpful to adopt.  It is best summed up in the monument to the Spartan dead at Thermopylae:

Go tell the Spartans, thou who passest by,
That here, obedient to their laws, we lie.

NT Rules: Ancient Wargames

The first set of rules in the book Wargaming: An Introduction is called Ancient wargaming, but in fact it covers Armies and sub-periods ranging from the fifth century BC up through the Middle Ages.  As with the other rulesets in this book, this one is presented over three different chapters. The first chapter introduces the period, and discusses some of the peculiarities of warfare in this period. This discussion includes mention of the troop types, and also any peculiar formations or weapons.  The second chapter will present the rules for the period.  And the third chapter will present army lists.

For the Ancient Wargaming set, the various troop types are these:

• Heavy Infantry - examples include Greek hoplites and Roman legionnaires
• Heavy Archers - examples include Persian Immortals, and English longbowmen
• Warband- examples given include Gallic warriors, and Roman Auxiliaries
• Light Infantry - no specific examples given, except to say that many armies rely on light, skirmishing missile troops
• Heavy Cavalry - examples given are Macedonian Companions and Crusader Knights
• Light Cavalry - examples include Numidian Cavalry Andrew Mongol horse archers
• Heavy Chariots - examples here include Assyrian four-horse Chariots, and Hittite two-horse and three-horse Chariots
• Light Chariots - examples include Egyptian and British two-horse Chariots
• Scythed Chariots - the example given is the Persian use
• Elephants - here the examples are the Indian and Carthaginian armies
• Artillery - the example given of battlefield (i.e. Not in a siege) use is the Romans

Each of these units are portrayed with four stands per unit, except for the last three types. Scythed Chariots, Elephants, and Artillery each have only one stand in a unit.

Hannibal crossing the Rhone - Henri Paul Motte

Some interesting things are already apparent. Although the first sub period covers warfare in the early part of the fifth century BC (490-480 BC) with the wars between the Greeks and Persians, and moving forward - there are no chariot armies.  This is already beyond the period of Assyria and the Hittites, and even the period of chariot use in Egypt, yet they are mentioned in the textile on unit types. Also, a quick look over the army lists provided shows no army in the book with heavy Chariots. Although not stated, what the author has done here is to present a ruleset with broad applicability beyond the Armies and sub periods he discusses.

Another thing of note is that it states in the second chapter, on rules, that units take four hits per stand, regardless of the troop type. With some units having only one stand, that make sure those units are very fragile and vulnerable. Since we are talking about Scythed Chariots, Elephants, and Artillery, this makes sense.

One thing mentioned near the end of chapter one, and unfortunately not mentioned again clearly in chapter two (but stated in the introduction to chapter three on army lists for these rules), is that the standard game is played between armies of eight units each.

An additional thing mentioned in chapter one, is the concept of armor, which applies to infantry and cavalry. Armor types are Extra Heavy, Heavy, Medium and Light.  These confer saving throws to avoid casualties in both shooting and hand-to-hand combat.  Crossbows reduce the effect of armor, and artillery hits ignore it entirely.

 

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The second chapter contains the rules, in a well organized outline format. 

Set up rules are not given, but victory conditions are. If an army is reduced to two units (25%) then it has lost.  In addition, if any of your units exits the map/board on the enemy's baseline, other than Light Infantry, the enemy player must remove two of his own units.  Presumably this represents panic due to having the baggage looted, or a withdrawal route cut off.

The rules start off with giving the turn sequence.  This is a typical, old school version of I go/You go. The sequence given is:

1. Charge Sequence
2. Movement
3. Shooting
4. Hand-to-hand combat
5. Morale tests

Once one player completes all five phases, then it is the other player's turn, until the game ends.  Nothing exotic here, and it gives a fairly good flow.

Charging is done in three steps.  First, prior to measuring, the player whose turn it is announces charges. Then they are measured. If the enemy is reached, move the unit. If the unit cannot reach it stays put with no other penalty. If the target unit is equipped with javelins, it may then fire at the charging unit, as long as the charging unit moved at least 8cm.  The third step mentions that combat will occur, but not until the hand-to-hand phase.

All other (non-charging) movement is next.  Artillery is immobile, all other units have a movement rate from 8cm for heavy infantry, up to 24cm for light cavalry.

Wheeling and turning are not defined, but if any unit other than Light Cavalry or Light Infantry wish to move in any direction other than a straight line ahead, they only move at half speed.  Presumably this also includes Light Chariots, as they are not listed with the other group.

About movement: when I use the rules to run games on a club night, or at a convention, it is the movement rules that causes the most difficulties for veteran players.  There are no rules for different formations, and no rules for various maneuvers found in many rulesets.  So, if you want to oblique, move at the wheel, turn a unit about, etc. then you are able to, as long as no part of the unit moves more than the allowed amount (full movement value for Light Cavalry or Light Infantry; half movement value for everyone else).  As there are no rules that (for instance) allow a unit to about face in place (rather than wheeling through 180 degrees; or spinning the unit with a forward wheel on one flank, and a rearward wheel on the opposite flank), it presumably cannot be done - except by following the general "half move for any movement other than straight ahead".  Note, in the army lists, there are some exceptions, for instance some heavy horse archers are allowed to make free about face maneuvers..  However we have found, as with most things, that reasonable house rules (or referee interpretations) can allow for certain things not expressly forbidden

The rules give instances for three classes of terrain.  Rivers take a unit a complete turn to cross (they start on one bank, and just move to the other bank is the implication).  Hills block line of sight, but otherwise don't affect movement.  Woods are immobile to some units (Cavalry, Chariots, Elephants), slow down other units to half speed (Heavy Infantry, and Heavy Archers),  but don't slow down light Infantry or Warbands.

Rules are given that allow Light troops (Infantry, Cavalry, Chariots) to fire on the move. Other units cannot do so.

Shooting rules are next. Weapons are defined by their maximum range, from 8cm for javelins, up to 48cm for artillery.  

Rolls to hit are based on rolling one dice per stand in the firing unit, and the target number is based on the weapon.  There are no modifiers to the hit number. Bows and Javelins need 4,5,6.  Crossbows need 5,6.  Units in the woods suffer only half the hits rolled. The rules don't state, but we round this up for the shooter's favor. (House Rule)

Next, the target unit gets to make saving rolls for each hit scored.  As mentioned, this chance is reduced versus crossbows.

Artillery fire is somewhat different. Rather than rolling one dice to hit for the artillery, the firing player first roll said one dice, to see how many to-hit dice he gets.  Then roll to hit, again halve hits vs targets in the woods.  There are no saving rolls vs artillery, every hit results in a kill.

Recall it takes four kills to eliminate a stand from a unit. Kills have to be marked, as they are persistent, until a stand is removed. We use plastic upholstery rings, hung on the miniature that is killed. But any method works.  I have seen online battle reports, where players use a dice behind the unit, indicating how many hits have been scored. When 4 are reached, a stand is removed.

When an elephant receives four hits, since its only a one stand unit, it would normally be eliminated. Instead it rolls to go berserk.  It moves a full move in a direction based on a random chart, and if it strikes a unit, it immediately fights a round of combat.  Then the poor beast dies.

Next we get to hand to hand combat.  The rules give a set of priority considerations, to determine who strikes first..  Units then roll a number of d6 per stand in the unit, based on an striker/target matrix.  Hits are on a 4,5,6. Saving throws are allowed, and kills marked.  Both sides get to fight, but if a stand is lost to a foe who fights first in priority, it does not get to roll.

Saving rolls are not allowed against Elephants or Scythed Chariots.

Special striker/target considerations apply to combat in the woods, making Warband twice as effective there.

Artillery units contacted for Hand-to-hand combat don't fight, they are immediately destroyed.

Finally, the morale phase occurs. If the unit lost any bases in the turn, it makes a d6 test for each lost base. The scores required are based on morale grade of the unit. If a dice test is failed, the unit loses an additional stand for each failure.

 

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Those are the rules as presented. In the next few articles, I will discuss the Armies and sub periods.  Links to the successive article for each period of army lists are below.

• NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists I - Persian Invasion
• NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists II - Alexander the Great 
• NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists III - The Punic Wars
• NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists IV - Imperial Rome
• NT Rules: Ancient Army Lists V - Crusades 
  

Examining the rules of Neil Thomas

Since the publication of his first wargaming book (Wargaming:an Introduction) the various rule sets of Neil Thomas have provided wargamers with a number of very playable, simple rulesets for a variety of different time periods. I have played many of them, and I find them to be excellent in teaching wargaming to newcomers.  They lack many of the finer details and options found in longer rulesets, but they provide an enjoyable game, with good results, and have provided a great basis for tinkerers to adapt the format to a wide list of variants and options.

There are a number of good reviews of the rules, addressing their features and limits, found through the wargaming press (blogs, magazines, etc.). I thought it might be worth while to go through the different rulesets, and point out specific features and mechanics, and discuss what I have found to be useful and enjoyable, and what might be done differently.

His first book has no fewer than six different rulesets, all of which have slightly different mechanisms for their appropriate periods. These cover: Ancients (and medieval), Pike and Shot, Napoleonic, American Civil War, Skirmish Wargaming (multi period), and WWII.  Two of these have gotten much greater in depth treatment in later publications (Ancient and Medieval Wargaming, and Napoleonic Wargaming).  The American Civil War rules are very interesting, and might be thought of as a special case in his later book Wargaming Nineteenth Century Europe but remain distinct enough, both in rules and in theater of action, that I consider the later book a stand alone, and not a refinement.

I'll follow this post up with a series of articles on each of the six rulesets in his first book, looking at the rules, the army lists, and give my thoughts.

Getting familiar with Baroque (part II)

This is a continuation of the conversation started in Part I.

I would like to talk about the turn sequence for Baroque, which is one of the things that makes the game attractive for me.  I was never much of an Impetus player, (I played the free Starter version a few times, using typical Roman/Barbarian army pairs, but not too much).  So, the Baroque structure is one that I am exploring with a fresh perspective.

A few things have to be defined before getting into the turn structure.

First, the army will have a Command Structure.  This is defined by the army list, or a series of options are given.  An army can have Good, Average or Poor.  These cost an increasing number of points, and there is a range given for Leader figures, where they can use their leadership bonus to keep troops under control.  For instance, an Average Command Structure costs the army a total of 12 points, and it means that leaders in that army have a leadership range of 6BU (Baroque Units, or in the case of 15mm armies, 6x 60mm baroque units).  Other Command Structure levels, with cost and range, is found in the rulebook.

The turn sequence works like this

1. Decide the Initiative
2. The active player (one by one) activates all the units in the Command he has activated.  The inactive player responds with reactions and/or evasions.
3. Initiative is re-decided, and repeat until all of the Commands on the table have been activated.

Deciding the initiative works like this - Each player selects one of their commands (each army is divided up into a number of 'commands' that each contain several units).  Both players roll 2d6 for their selected command, and apply dice modifiers based on the leadership bonus of the Leader of their command.  High roller wins the initiative.  If there is a tie, then the highest rated Command Structure will break the time.  Otherwise, re-roll to see who has initiative.

 Once a command has been identified as having initiative. the player controlling that command now activates each of his units, one at a time, and then plays out all that the unit is doing that turn.

The actions that a unit can do include these:

• Rally
• Withdraw (from the battlefield)
• Move
• Disengage (from a melee)
• Shoot
• Charge
• Fight a Melee

A move action can be repeated multiple times, but each time after the first, once the move is completed, the unit must pass a discipline test, or the unit is Disordered.  If the unit is trying to contact the enemy, the last move action is considered a Charge, and certain rules affect it (the rolling of an additional charge bonus distance; the possible reactions of the target of the charge).

The rulebook describes how to handle these actions, but many of them will allow for the opposing player to engage in a Reaction.  In this way, the turn is integrated, and both players are involved throughout.

The reactions allowed are these:

Action	Reaction
Withdraw	Opp Fire or Opp Charge
Move	Opp Fire or Opp Charge
Charge	Opp Fire, Def Fire, or Countercharge
Shoot	Opp Fire or Opp Charge

The reaction can only be against the unit that enabled the reaction.  So that if I move my Pike & Musket unit, and it comes close enough to an enemy unit that it can Opportunity Fire, it can only do so vs. the unit (my Pike & Musket unit) that triggered it.

In addition to the Reactions listed, many units may also Evade.

If more than one unit can React to an acting unit, only one may be selected to React.

If a reacting unit decides to Opportunity Charge, it may hit a different target unit, if such is in the way of the movement of the Opportunity Charging unit.

So, the turn is quite interesting, as the player who has initiative has to decide if his actions are worth doing, if they may trigger some reaction by the enemy.

Movement
All movement and movement bonus amounts are given in multiples of the BU (Baroque Unit).  USUALLY but not always, foot are 1BU and mounted are 2BU, but there are exceptions.  For instance, on the 30YW German Catholic army included in the rulebook, there are infantry musket units called Schutzen.  They have a move of 2BU.

Units may be classed as either Fast or Slow (but not all units are - most are average).  A Fast Unit has a benefit to the discipline test after second or subsequent movement orders (meaning it is easier for Fast units to do more than one move order).  A Slow Unit is the opposite - there is a penalty to the discipline test after performing additional move orders.

The movement rules cover interpenetration, maneuver and wheeling, obstacles and terrain, and how to handle the charge bonus (which is given in BUs of course).

Shooting
Shooting is handled by rolling a number of dice equal to the shooting unit's VBU (Basic Unit Value, recall that the acronym VBU is from the Italian, not English version of the rules).  That number gives a basic number of dice for shooting, which is modified by a Range chart.  The range bands are Point Blank (1BU), Short (2BU), Long (4BU), and Extreme (8BU).  Most hand weapons (bow, musket, pistol, etc) have a maximum range of either short or long.  The firing table in the book gives you a number of extra dice that you gain, or lose, at different range bands, based on your weapon type.

The dice are rolled, and modified by situations (first volley, shooting while moving, shot modifier for mixed infantry units, etc).  Each 6 causes a DAMAGE (a hit), and every pair of 5s causes a hit.  Count up all the hits (total Damage), and then the target unit makes a Cohesion test, to see if the Damage tranlates into Losses.

Damage is not permanent, but is only a modifier to the Cohesion Test.  For every point that a unit misses it's Critical Number (which is the VBU of the unit, minus the Damage it took), it takes a reduction to it's VBU.  So if the Critical Number is (as an example) 2, and the Cohesion Dice Test comes up a 4, the unit would take a permanent Loss of -2 to it's VBU. If a unit has it's VBU reduced to 0, it routs immediately and is removed from the table.

If a unit passes the Cohesion test, it takes no Losses, but does suffer Disorder.  A disordered unit that AGAIN is disordered, will instead take a VBU loss.

The book gives rules for commanders being hit, arc of fire, reduced effect firing (like into terrain, or blocked) and discusses particulars for artillery, pistols, and defensive & opportunity fire.

Melee
Fighting the melee is similar to shooting.  Once two units are engaged and fighting (there are rules determining charge effects, flank charges, melee modifiers for certain unit types and situations, etc.), each will roll it's allowed number of dice (VBU plus or minus modifiers). A gain, 6s and 5s are the dice that cause damage.

Once again, there is a roll to see if the damage translates into permanent Losses (i.e. a Cohesion test).

Following the melee, and determining results, there are rules determining retreats and pursuits, and how they are evaluated.

Rules are given for commander casualties, and also for mixed (i.e. multi unit) melees.

Skirmishers that are hit in the open by formed units do not fight, but are immediately dispersed (remove from the table).  Again, there are rules covering melee and Artillery, and Baggage trains.

The rest of the rulebook covers special rules, setting up battles, and a number of army lists.  These will be covered in Part III.

Getting familiar with Baroque (part I)

The term Renaissance as a period is one which has been responsible for a lot of ink - in both history circles, as well as by wargamers.  Going with the various articles published here at Gaming with Chuck over the years, I am going to (vaguely) take it to represent warfare (typically, but not exclusively) dealing with Western Europe (and the border regions of Western Europe - say with the growing powers in the south and the east).  As far as time periods go, I am going to limit myself with the 16th and 17th centuries (so, roughly, from 1500-1700AD).

There is a lot going on in other parts of the world, and the study of conflicts there is equally worthy of wargaming (in fact, I have even published a set of rules for the Samurai battles in Japan (From the Sky we Came) which covered the Sengoku period, up until the battle of Sekigahara in 1600 AD.  But, that is a different sort of warfare from what I am discussing here.

Here, I am focusing on warfare in Western Europe.  These are the conflicts of the Italian Wars, the wars of religion that grew out of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation.  The possible conflict between England and Spain.  The battles of the Spanish Netherlands.  The many conflicts making up both the Thirty Years War and the English Civil Wars (both in the 17th century), and so on.  These battles and wars are marked by several broad features - the presence of gunpowder, the reliance of infantry (in many cases) on pike, the presence of armor (especially, but not only, for mounted units) and the existence of interesting mixed-arms formations (starting with the tercio formations coming out of the Italian Wars, and then moving to the more streamlined pike and musket formations of the 17th century, which eventually gave way to pure musket formations by the end of this period).

I've reviewed, and reported various battles, using several sets of rules for this period.  I have read many, many more.  Lately I have looked into Baroque, from the Italian wargaming company of Dadi & Piombo.

These are an evolution of the Impetus rules for ancient and medieval warfare, published earlier by Dadi & Piombo.  As the cover states, these cover 1550 to 1700.  The earlier Impetus rules overlapped with this period, and the very nice wargame lists they produce on the website have armies up to and including 16th century (including some of the Central American armies - another focus of warfare in this period, but not what I am discussing here).

My recent (the past 2-3 years) renaissance wargaming was with a modified version of the Neil Thomas Renaissance rules, from his "Wargaming: An Introduction" (several convention games, and an Italian Wars scenario).  While they produce a small, and satisfying game, they are a bit limited in troop types, and also in allowable player actions.  While they are excellent for introductory games, and for small convention games (to introduce a period), they don't have the complexity or depth to keep more experienced wargames engaged for long.  On the other hand, these days, I am not a big fan of very complex rules.  While I admire the Field of Glory rules, and their Renaissance version, they are not the rules for me.  Also, while I am a huge fan of the George Gush rules (mentioned here on Gaming with Chuck with some of my other Renaissance rules reviews), they don't play well with a modern audience.  However, I think that Baroque might fill the sweet spot (at least until we try By Fire and Sword).

Unit Types
As mentioned, Baroque covers 1550-1700.  The unit types it features are perfect for representing battlefields in that period.  There are, roughly, two different types of units, plus artillery.

The first type are Mounted Troops, and include several classes of unit -

• Gallopers - Shock cavalry trained to charge at a gallop, may use a pistol, but more likely to rely on the sword or lance.  
• Trotters - Cavalry that charge at a trot.  These almost always will be pistol armed, and will discharge those during the slower charge, to follow up with contact by sword.
• Reiters - These are pistol armed (and perhaps heavily armored) cavalry, the prefer to not close to contact - but instead will keep their distance, and employ pistol tactics, like the Caracole maneuver.
• Sipahis - Eastern cavalry, usually armed with missile weapons.  Sometimes present in large units (treated as a 'Massed Unit').
• Light Cavalry - These are fast, skirmish cavalry, often armed with missile weapons.  
• Horse & Musket - In the later part of this period, some trotter units will have integrated foot musketeers, for greater strength on engaging the enemy in fire combat.  This is a mixed unit with mounted and foot soldiers in the same unit.

The second type are Foot Troops, which also include several classes of unit -

• Pike & Musket - This is the mixed unit of pikemen and musketeers made popular with the advent of more, and more reliable, hand weapons that use gunpowder.  Because a portion of the unit is armed with pikes, this reduces firepower, but also provides a strong deterrent to cavalry, and the ability to hit other infantry in contact. 
• Early Tercio - This is very, very deep unit, coming out of the 16th century, with some integrated shot troops.  Because of its extreme depth, and training in deployment, it is almost impossible to gain a flank advantage against this unit, but it is extremely vulnerable to artillery.
• Later Tercio - Not as deep as the earlier tercio, and sometimes employing a higher ratio of shot troops, the Later Tercio is almost as flexible as the Pike & Musket unit, but still a bit more unwieldy.  It is not as well protected on the flanks and rear as the Early Tercio, but it has enough shot troops posted there that it can give fire out of those aspects of the formation.
• Pikemen - Deep formations of only pikemen, without integrated shot troops.  These are popular in the earlier part of the period by those nations fielding pikemen, but not employing the Tercio.
• Irregular Infantry - These are (sometimes) fierce hand to hand fighters.  Sometimes they are equipped with missile weapons.  Sometimes they appear in large units (treated as a 'Massed Unit').  But they are not the disciplined mixed units listed above.
• Shooters - As with Pikemen units, these are from the earlier part of the period before the mixed units took over - these are units of purely missile armed soldiers.
• Skirmishers - Light troops, sometimes armed with good quality firearms, designed to skirmish with the enemy.
• Dragoons - These are mounted infantry, armed with missile weapons.  They combine the faster maneuverability of mounted troops, with the ability of infantry to provide good missile fire.

Other classes of tabletop units -

• Artillery is available.  In this  period, as the science of artillery is being developed, there is a bewildering constellation of different types of guns, calibers, firing mechanisms, etc.  These are all simplified in the rules to light, medium or heavy batteries.  And further, they are classed as either Cannons (firing a relative flat trajectory), and Howitzers (firing a high arcing shot).
• Commanders - The army will be divided up into a handful (usually 3 or 4) of commands (or brigades).  Each of these has a commander.  One of these commanders will be the General (or commander in chief).  A commander can be attached (if he wishes) to any non-artillery unit in his command.  the commander-in-chief can be attached (if he wishes) to any non-artillery unit in the entire army.
• Baggage - All armies have immobile baggage.  The baggage may be Fortified or Not.

Measurements in the Game
Battlefield measurements in the game are measured (and listed on the charts) in terms of BU, or  'Baroque Units' - so named to distinguish them from the basic unit of measure from Impetus, which was the Unit, or U.  In Baroque, the BU is equal to half the frontage of a standard unit (which is always 12cm).  So, a BU is 6cm.  Speaking of unit frontage...

Unit basing
For 15mm, the standard unit frontage is 12cm.  Which is perfect for me, as my units are based on standard 4cm wide bases.  So three bases wide, makes a unit.  For Pike & Musket units that is perfect - a stand of pikes in the middle, flanked by two stands of muskets - looks great.

Using larger one piece bases would be nice, but I don't want to rebase my renaissance wargaming armies.

The depth of the units varies, with the deepest being the Early Tercio - it is 12cm deep.  Since I mount my pikes in two ranks on a 3cm deep (or sometimes 4cm deep) stand, it is easy for me to model an Early Tercio - 3 stands wide, and 3 or 4 stands deep(!) - but it is the biggest unit in the game (and was quite large in history too).  A more standard Pike and Musket unit is listed as 4-6cm deep - which means, for me, one or two stands deep for Pikemen in the middle, and two stands deep of Musketeers on the flanks.  Easy, and it looks good.  Cavalry is easier - one rank deep.  Massed Mounted units are two ranks deep.

I'll follow this article up in Part II with a discussion of the turn sequence, and basic game structure.

Saga - and the Dark Ages

Just a quick note - we (myself and the members of ODMS local to Hampton Roads, Virginia) have been playing a lot of SAGA lately (2nd edition).  One of our members has even started a very nice SAGA campaign.

In that campaign, I am playing an Anglo Saxon contingent, with Wulfric of Kent as the faction leader.

But, one of the things that is exciting, is the rekindling of interest in Dark Ages history, within the club.

It got me to thinking about some of the early dark ages articles I wrote last year.  I am thinking of creating SAGA boards for some of them - based on some that do exist (some in Aetius & Arthur), such as the Franks, Goths, Carolingians and others.

-Chuck
posting from GwC HQ, hidden in the Lake Maury Forest, with a view of the verge

The taxonomy of WW2 rules

In the field of information modeling and knowledge modeling, a taxonomy is a way to sort out a complex body of knowledge, by providing a structure of definitions and categories, to help you find your way quickly, and see which pieces of information belong together.

An easy example is the taxonomy of Carl Linnaeus, which was used to organize all the animals of the animal kingdom into like groups.  This gives us the concept of animal families, etc - mammals, canines, and so forth.

Carl Linnaeus' Taxonomy (example)

One of the things I would like to do, based on a series of games played in ODMS recently, is to come up with a taxonomy for WW2 micro armor rules.  So the first thing is to come up with some of the categories of concepts that apply to different rules.

Off hand, I can think of these:

• Scale (i.e. how many vehicles does a tabletop model represent)
• Turn Sequence
• Friction/Fog of War
• Command & Control/Morale
• Hit mechanism
• Kill mechanism
• Acquisition/Spotting rules 

I will have to come up with ways to divide and recognize the features in each of these areas, and then come up with a reasonable (but finite) categorization system for the WW2 rules we have played recently.

Cold War Commander - How To

This is a "how to" article I wrote for ODMS, giving the basics on how to play Cold War Commander.

Cold War Commander – How is it played?

1. Introduction

Cold War Commander, by Peter Andrew Jones, is a set of rules for modern conflict (1946 until today). It follows (and is very much similar to) Blitzkrieg Commander, which covers WW2. Both rulesets have a lot in common with Warmaster (by Rick Priestley), and Mr. Jones had Mr. Priestley’s blessing to write a set of tank and infantry rules. Other rules that are very similar, are the Warlord rules (Hail Caesar, Pike & Shotte, and Black Powder). All of these rules are currently very popular, in general, and here in ODMS.

For those not familiar with Warmaster, what that means is that the basic tempo of the game is this: players will take turns, and on their turn they will try to activate units.  Different command elements (HQ and CO) can make a dice roll vs. a target number (their command value) - if you pass the dice roll, you get to issue an order to some of your units (move, shoot, etc).  The strength of the system is that command structure and command level is a key part of the game, and you are never 100% sure of a plan (as in real life, friction and fog limit military operations).  The weakness of the system is that there are times when a player, or a side, will miss most or all of their command rolls - getting to do very little on their turn.  Very Frustrating!  Details are described below.

2. Types of Units

Cold War Commander (CWC) has several types of units. The biggest distinction is between combat units (infantry, vehicles, support weapons), artillery (which may be on or off board), aircraft, and command units. Let’s look at these in reverse order:

Command units consist of four types –

• CO (Commanding Officer) - overall commander of a side in a game – 1 per side
• HQ (Headquarters) - in charge of some part of a unit’s combat units – multiple per side
• FAO (Forward Artillery Observer) – sights targets and requests unplanned artillery missions – 0 or more per side
• FAC (Forward Aircraft Controller) – sights targets and requests close air support missions – 0 or more per side

Aircraft units are of two types –

• Ground attack aircraft, which are requested by an FAC (or used in planned aircraft strike missions)
• Transport helicopters, which are treated as regular units, to carry infantry and support weapons

Artillery units can be off board (in which case it can be used for planned missions, or in response to the FAO), or can be on board. In either case, they are used for indirect fire, and can fire Barrage missions, or Concentrated missions (see artillery rules in the rulebook).

Combat units are everything else (infantry, support weapons, transport vehicles, tanks, etc). All are rated with several pieces of information. These include:

1. Move
2. Attack (or number of dice to attack with)
3. Hits (to be killed)
4. Armor save (in some cases - usually armored vehicles)

 

 3. Turn Sequence

CWC is played in alternate turns. On a turn, you have four phases:

Scheduled Phase – Scheduled artillery and aircraft missions for this turn take place

Initiative Phase – Recon units attempt to communicate with a command unit; then any units within the Initiative Distance of the enemy get a free action.

Command Phase – Now, command units may, one at a time, attempt to issue orders. Pick a command unit, and then pick a unit to receive an order (or group of units), and declare what the order is (“That unit of tanks will move to the ridgeline.”). Then roll the dice (2d6) vs. the command unit’s command rating. If less than the target number, the unit performs the commanded action, and that command unit may roll again. Note that the subsequent order can be to the same unit. Subsequent rolls are/may be reduced depending on who is being ordered again.

If the roll is a failure, that command unit may issue no more orders this turn. Once the CO fails his roll, the side is finished with Command Phase for the turn (hint: use your CO last).

End Turn Phase – Check for victory conditions, and then remove all hits from any units on the table that were not destroyed. Additionally, remove suppression markers from the active player (only).

 

4. Recon Units

During the initiative phase, a Recon unit tries to communicate with the nearest command unit on that side. This is based on a dice roll (based on how close the nearest enemy unit is), and if successful, then the Recon unit can choose an action. Depending on what that command unit is (CO, HQ, FAO, FAC) then the Recon Unit can choose from the following:

• Add 1 to the command value of the command unit (CO, HQ, FAO, FAC)
• Issue orders to on-table mortars to fire at that closest enemy unit to the Recce unit (CO or HQ)
• Request artillery support against the closest enemy unit to the Recce unit (FAO)
• Request an air strike against the closest enemy unit to the Recce unit (FAC)

Note, that the second, third, and fourth item take place during the Command Phase, by the command unit the Recce unit communicated with – this just lets that command unit target the enemy unit that the Recce unit can see. (remember, that the Recce unit doesn’t have to be in line of sight to the command unit it communicates with, so this is a way of “extending the eyeballs” of that command unit).

 

5. Assets (planned Artillery and Aircraft strikes)

Not every side, or every scenario will have Assets available. These are the pre-planned aircraft and artillery missions. The player who has them available must write down where the target of the strike is (based on the map of the game), and on what turn they strike. Different armies have different types of missions available (HE, Smoke, etc).

 

 6. Orders to Combat Units

The orders that a command unit may issue to a combat unit are pretty simple. They are: move, deploy and fire. Note, these are the same orders (or actions) that a unit may do during the initiative phase.

• Move is just that – a unit may move up to its movement value. See the rules about limits from terrain. If a tank unit has a Stabilized weapon, it may also fire, if it only moves half.
• Deploy is used to set up certain support weapons (such as Mortars or towed guns), also it is the order used to load infantry onto transport units (they must be in contact). Deploy is also used to dismount from transport units. The infantry units (and/or support units) are placed in contact with the transport asset they just dismounted from. Finally, Deploy is used to pivot a set up towed weapon.
• Fire is used so that the unit (or units) may shoot against an enemy within range, line of sight, and line of fire (all defined in the book).

When a unit moves in contact with the enemy, then that is a Close Assault.

 

7. Command Blunders

When a command unit is issuing a command and rolls double 6’s – then a blunder has occurred. Not only does the order not succeed but based on what type of order it is (Artillery strike, Aircraft strike, or Command order) there is a roll to see what the blunder causes. Usually bad (like friendly fire).

 

8. Attacks

When a unit executes a Fire order – and attacks another unit – that unit rolls the number of attack dice that they have available. The to-hit number is 4+ if the target is in the open; it is 5+ if the target is in soft cover; it is 6 if the target is in hard cover.

There are several types of weapons, based on the army listing – those followed by an asterisk * do not cause hits vs. any units with an armor save (i.e. tanks, APCs, IFVs, etc). Those followed by a hash mark # do not cause any hits vs. unit that do not have an armor save (i.e. soft transport, infantry, support weapons).

Line of sight is 180 degrees, forward of the unit. Line of fire, in a restricted visibility unit (marked in the army lists) is only 90 degrees, forward of the unit. Armored units can fire at other vehicles, over infantry and guns. Line of sight can pass over infantry and guns, but not over vehicles (friendly or enemy).

Command units do not block line of sight.

 

9. Hits

Any unit that takes hits, must make armor saves (if it can). If there are enough un-saved hits to exceed the HITS rating of the unit, it is destroyed. Keep track of the number of hits a unit has taken, even if they aren’t enough to kill it. Other units may attack the same target this turn (although all hits are removed from all targets at the end of each player’s turn).

 

 10. Suppression

For each hit that was not saved, the attacker rolls the dice again, with the same “to hit” number. If any of the dice score, then the target is suppressed (mark it with a suppression marker).

NOTE: You can purposefully try to suppress a unit that you cannot cause hits against (like using a weapon marked * against a tank) – in that case the to-hit number is automatically a 6+. Saves are allowed. Unsaved hits are then rolled for suppression (again, 6+).
Suppression markers are removed from a player’s units only at the end of his turn.

 

11. Fall Back 

A unit that is ALREADY suppressed (because it was attacked by another unit, which resulted in suppression), and which receives more hits, may fall back. Instead of rolling for suppression by additional unsaved hits (assuming that the additional hits are not enough to kill the target), the target unit rolls 1d6 for each extra unsaved hit, and falls back that many cm. If the unit has to fall back more than 10cm in a turn, it is destroyed (the crew/infantry abandon the field, hide, run away, etc).

 

 12. Close Assault

The rulebook has a series of restrictions on close assault, but in general when a unit contacts an enemy, there is a close assault. AFVs can only close assault in the open, unless they are carrying infantry or support riders. Transports that close assault automatically dismount their infantry, in contact with the enemy, when the assault starts (except IFVs which may keep them on board)

Friendly units within 10cm can support the close assault, if they can draw a line of sight to one of the assaulting units in contact with the enemy.

Responding units can also have 10cm of supporters to fire back.

Once hits are rolled for (all close assaults hit on 4+, to determine the number of dice rolled, consult the chart on p. 35), determine which unit (on each side) takes the hits. Roll for saves if possible. Then compare outcomes and follow the results (also on page 35).

Close assaults are deadly. And can be unpredictable.

 

 13. Infantry Support Weapons

Machine Guns and Infantry Anti-tank Weapons (RPG-7, Bazooka, etc) do not need a deploy order before they can be fired.

Mortars and Recoilless Rifles must have a Deploy between moving and firing (to set up), and also between firing and moving (to break down).

Infantry units that have Anti-tank Weapons added on to them, may use their regular attack values, and their IATW attack values. IATW can only be used once per turn by a unit. Armored units do not get a saving throw vs. IATW (unless noted in the army list).

 

14. Anti-Tank Guided Weapons

ATGW (i.e. Anti-Tank Missiles, such as Sagger, MAPATS, TOW) are extremely deadly, and long ranged.

There are firing restrictions (see the rulebook, p. 24), and they can only be fired once per turn. If a unit is targeted by an ATGW, there is a dice roll to see if it can evade. This is one dice, vs. the same to hit number required for the ATGW to hit the target. If this evade dice hits, then the target may not evade.

Roll the attack as normal. However, if the evade dice misses, then the target saw the missile coming in, and may evade. It can move up to 10cm in any direction, and the to hit number against it gets worse by one category (i.e. – if in the open, it is treated as in soft cover, etc). If the unit was already in full cover, or if the 10cm move can get it out of LOS, then it cannot be struck.

 

 15. Artillery, Aircraft, Engineering, Tactical Doctrine, Opportunity Fire, etc

There is a lot more to this ruleset, but the above presents the basic ideas required to play. Some things are often forgotten (like Initiative Moves, Recon communication, and how to do Close Assaults).

These are a reminder for those items. In all cases, consult the rules. These aren’t hard rules, and players will get the hang of things in a turn or two.