Forward Command - Company Level WWII Rules (Playtesters Sought!)

[Ithoriel]

We tried a small 3-player game this afternoon.

AAR

Nominally set in 1940 somewhere just outside Dunkirk.

1800mm x 1200mm table, playing up and down the length of it.

One short edge was lined with houses, gardens and assorted bits & bobs to represent a village on the outskirts of Dunkirk.

In the middle of the table was a large farmhouse with a walled garden, attached orchards, outhouses and the like.

The rest of the table had a liberal scatter of hillocks, copses, hedges, walls, a stream and other items to break up line of sight and to provide cover.

The Germans had a Wehrmacht company and two MG34s set up in the middle of the table.

The Brits had a Territorial company and two Vickers guns in the village and a Regular platoon set up on the other edge.

The Territorials set up first, then the Germans, then the Regulars.

The Germans scored a point for every Regular unit destroyed, the Brits one point for every Regular unit that reached the village.

The Germans could not win the scenario if they lost control of the farm.

Relying on their superior troops the Germans set up with one platoon and the MGs facing the Territorials and two facing the Regulars.

In a wonderful display of fire and movement (and considerably better die rolling!!) the Territorials poured fire into the Germans facing them with such accuracy and ferocity that the Germans spent almost all of their command rolls rallying troops until it became obvious to them that they were unable to keep up with the losses incurred. Two further rounds of firing but not rallying saw both MGs and the platoon of infantry wiped out.

The second German platoon and CHQ, which had switched direction as the deteriorating situation became apparent, arrived just in time to suffer the same fate as the first, facing a British force snugly ensconced in the farmhouse and walled garden.

The German third platoon, which had engaged the Regulars in a repeated sequence of Brits shoot, Germans shoot, Brits rally, Germans rally wisely decided that a strategic "advance on Berlin" was in order and the game ended in a resounding British victory.

THOUGHTS

All three of us enjoyed the game ... even the bloke controlling the Germans - a good sign for any set of rules.

We found it easy to grasp the rules and rarely needed to check anything.

The game was not only enjoyable but seemed reasonably realistic.

We thought it might work well as a participation game at a show.

Much as we had fun, it's probably not going to replace Chain of Command as our rules of choice for that size of action.

This is not the game for you if the "Dice Gods" hate you  

[bigjackmac]

Gareth - Sounds great, I can't read to see it.  I perused your blog a bit, you've got some great looking 10mm kit!

Ithoriel - Awesome!  I sure wish there some pics though   And:

"This is not the game for you if the "Dice Gods" hate you."
Isn't that true of every game, though?  Anything in particular about this set?  I'm guessing maybe the rolls for Command Points?

V/R,
Jack

[Gazza]

Thank you very much for reporting back with your experiences, Ithoriel. Sounds like a real bloodbath for poor old Herman! As I said previously the rules as written are pretty rough and I shall try and whip them into a more concise and intelligible state over the coming week. Even so, it most gratifying to hear that you found it 'easy to grasp' and that you 'rarely needed to check anything' - the latter particularly is something I intended from the start.

One thing I haven't added to the army lists yet is what sort of Command Tiers should apply to certain Unit HQ types. I would say that BEF Territorials would have a CHQ at either Tier B or C and the PHQs at Tier C. I'd be most interested to know what you chaps plumped for in this scenario and also as regards the Germans and did you think it worked? Do you find the way in which CPs are generated and Orders issued straightforward and plausible? Also, you mentioned this not being a 'game for you if the "Dice Gods" hate you'. Is this just because of the German commander's poor rolling or do you feel that sometimes the dice can give too broad a range of outcomes?

I'm pleased you chaps enjoyed the experience and thanks again for your feedback!

Regards

Gareth

[Ithoriel]

For convenience (and because I have a couple of dice marked 1,1,2,2,3,3) all CHQs and PHQs were Tier B, we felt Tier C might generate too few points and slow the game. Actually for the Germans it would have made little difference because they rolled mainly 1s!

All infantry platoons were PHQ and 3 sections. MGs were two MGs and a PHQ. There was one German CHQ and two British CHQs, one per force.

The Germans had relied on their central position to shift forces to meet the British moves but with few orders available they wound up using most of them to keep troops alive.

Further thoughts:

The table was too big. 1200mm square would have been more than enough with the 15mm scale troops were were using.

We came up with an ad hoc target priority rule to allow for the fact that the Germans had no rear area to hide the CHQ in.

1. Closest enemy unit
2. Enemy unit that fired on the unit in the previous turn
3. Unit in lowest rated cover

If two or more units meet condition 1 then choose the one that meets condition 2 and so on. If tied on all 3 owning player chooses who to shoot at.

Gareth/ Jack no dice based game rules could survive Norm's luck yesterday!!

[Gazza]

The table was too big. 1200mm square would have been more than enough with the 15mm scale troops were were using.

For an infantry-only game that makes sense. If you use AFVs a larger table is a must!

We came up with an ad hoc target priority rule to allow for the fact that the Germans had no rear area to hide the CHQ in.

1. Closest enemy unit
2. Enemy unit that fired on the unit in the previous turn
3. Unit in lowest rated cover

If two or more units meet condition 1 then choose the one that meets condition 2 and so on. If tied on all 3 owning player chooses who to shoot at.

That's interesting. I might well incorporate it wholly or partly. Thanks for the insights!

[Gazza]

Battle report is now up on my blog:

https://we-stand-and-fight.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/forward-command-battle-report.html

[bigjackmac]

Stupendous!!!  I gave it a scan: looks great!  Great action, terrain, and minis!  I'll give it a deeper look this evening.

Thanks Gareth!

V/R,
Jack

[paulr]

A good report and a good looking game

I was a little surprised to see the German infantry assaulting an armoured car in the open

[Gazza]

I was a little surprised to see the German infantry assaulting an armoured car in the open :-

Well, let's say they crept close enough to throw grenades and snipe at driving slits! In ForC armoured cars get +1 to Assaults and tanks get +2, so it is rather risky for infantry, but this is May 1940 so the Germans were pretty keyed up! Given the dearth of anti-tank weapons available to infantry at this time getting up-close-and-personal was often the only way of dealing with AFVs. Also, the main armament of the Morris CS9 was the Bren, so they were hardly bristling with automatic firepower. In retrospect they probably should have shot at it (most armoured cars can be shot at by small arms fire, with a -1 modifier) - far less risky! Actually, I've just seen an organisation chart which suggests that, like their BEF counterparts, the Germans had one anti-tank rifle per-platoon (either the Panzerbüchse 39 or Panzerbüchse 35 (polnisch)). Will have to updates the army list to reflect that.

[paulr]

Sounds like the rules give the player a sensible set of options, you took the most aggressive
I like rules that allow players to take the risky choice

I have heard several stories of Boys getting 'lost' fairly early on a long march, the same probably happened to the Pzb 

[bigjackmac]

Gareth,

First, sorry for the delay, but I'm on vacation with the family. But we're at the hotel, all showered up, and the kids are down, so finally got a chance to give it a good read.

Second, you're killing me! As much as I love posting my batreps, I like reading other folks' at least as much, so I'm not shy about requesting guys post batreps!

Lastly, I loved it, and it looked like a roaring success with regards to play testing for realism AND fun.  The team I thought was going to win ended up winning, but not a sure thing and certainly not a walkover.  I wasn't bothered at all by the infantry close assault of the Lancers, I just figured they were focused on the German armored cars. And like Paul, I enjoy the full array of options being available to the player. And I'm with you: I think troops in 1940 didn't have much choice against armor of any sort.  Run or go get them.

At first I wasn't keen on armor receiving 'cumulative' damage (like infantry) when facing anti-armor weapons, but I think I'm there. I believe there will be folks that won't be able to get past that (which is fine, to each his own, we all draw our line on what expect/can put up with where we want), but I can see it as a combination of near misses and non-penetrating hits that are having morale effects (ergo the 'regroup' option to remove 'hits') and otherwise taking the crews' minds somewhere other than where the platoon/company commander wants them. The 4th 'hit' isn't conceptually the fourth time the vehicle was struck and then knocked out, it's just the vehicle suffering the effects of enemy fire, and the fourth is the round that actually puts the vehicle out of action.

Anyway, thanks for posting buddy, I enjoyed it and am looking forward to more.

V/R,
Jack

[pierre the shy]

I have heard several stories of Boys getting 'lost' fairly early on a long march, the same probably happened to the Pzb 

I could tell you a story about gettiing "lost" in the Tararuas some years ago while doing the Southern Crossing but I wasn't carrying a AT rifle (though my pack felt like I had the weight of a AT rifle in it after 2 days  )

Anyway to get back on the track so to speak...

Very interesting set of rules Gazza.

Having read several books featuring company level actions in France by BEF units I'm rather tempted to add them to my (already far too long) to do list at some point in the near future, especially after reading your very well written 1940 batrep. 

[paulr]

Oh good, now I can blame Pierre the Shy for introducing another ruleset to our group

I wasn't thinking about trying them, no, not at all

[Gazza]

Thanks for all the comments guys. As I keep saying, if you try 'em out let me know what you think!

At first I wasn't keen on armor receiving 'cumulative' damage (like infantry) when facing anti-armor weapons, but I think I'm there. I believe there will be folks that won't be able to get past that (which is fine, to each his own, we all draw our line on what expect/can put up with where we want), but I can see it as a combination of near misses and non-penetrating hits that are having morale effects (ergo the 'regroup' option to remove 'hits') and otherwise taking the crews' minds somewhere other than where the platoon/company commander wants them. The 4th 'hit' isn't conceptually the fourth time the vehicle was struck and then knocked out, it's just the vehicle suffering the effects of enemy fire, and the fourth is the round that actually puts the vehicle out of action.

Bear in mind too that the 25mm Hotchkiss was a pop-gun. Ordnance QF 2-pounders or 47 mm APX anti-tank guns will make mincemeat of most early way German armour (providing the controlling player rolls moderately well!). I have thought about adding an additional damage table for AFVs, but pooh-poohed it as deviating from the spirit of the game (ie. simplicity). Still, I am as ever open to suggestions. Enjoy the rest of your holiday.

[Ithoriel]

The armour rules seem fine to me.

Crews can be stunned, shaken or lightly wounded and then recover. Vehicles can stall and be restarted, guns jam nad be cleared, vision blocks may need replaced and so on.