FOW? and other rules.

[dolabra]

I also use Spearhead rules.  I base my 10mm Infantry on 1 1/4" x 1 1/4" bases, My Vehicles on 1 1/4" x  1 1/2" or 2" for Bigger Vehicles. 
My rules for infantry are 4 figures for rifle stands, 5 for engineer stands and 3 for SMG stands. For support weapons its 1 per 1 1/4" x 1 1/4" stand with the crew.

Larry

[grimreaper]

Blitzkrieg Commander and pendraken miniatures, What more could you want 

[Sgt Steiner]

Hi

Not a fan of FOW (for any scale, good enough stats and systems let down by awful sequence of play and the 'special' rules and the 'you need the latest booklet' approach), they do have a great web-site though full of interesting articles etc, Anyhow................

Blitzkrieg Commander & Spearhead both mentioned already are great sets.

I would also reccomend Battle Group Panzer Grenadier 2nd Edition for smaller games (ie roughly 1 Coy per side) which works fine for 10mm using 15mm measurements.

I have recently bought Piquet Field Of Battle WWII which is a much higher level set but which looks interesting and perfectly playable with 10mm.

Command Decision Test Of Battle is another set to consider

Really any set that use unit bases for Infantry is suitable for 10mm, beware for they are legion ! 

I guess you could play skirmish style with 10mm but your eyesight and dexterity would need to be good      

Cheers
Gary

[russianiain]

Our group use Operation Warboard. We started off in 15mm but as the games got bigger we dropped the scale to 10mm. All troops are individually based and we run a 1:1 scale for unit sizes.

[Last Hussar]

Personally I can't stand any of the xxC rules.

I Aint been Shot Mum by the Too Fat Lardies is good.  I use my PBI armies, which are 3-4 figs to a base.  We say a base is either 4 or 5 men, and use 2 bases per section (depending on army a section is 8 or 10 men), with a tiny die for casualty marker.  If you get it, and have unbased figures, put them on pennies individually, and do figure removal for kills.

Usual game size is a company, with the section as the unit size.

Their other game is Troops Weapons and Tactics.  Most people use the larger figures for this- I use 20mm because I was given some some years ago, but they were wriiten for 28mm.  Unlike most game 'written for' a size, it is important in TW&T, as figure and ground scale are the same.  You could do it in 10mm by using cm instead of inches, and therefore have a set you coulc play on a coffee table.  Men are again individual, the game is for a platoon+support per side, with 'fire teams' being the smallest unit, though sections are often moved as a whole until you get to the fire and maneouver phase of a battle.

TW&T is sort of son of IABSM.  They are card driven- each platoon(IABSM)/Section(TW&T) has a card, as do the 'Big Men' who can activate troops on their command.  Plus there is a tea break card, which ends the turn. This is either a god send (when you are under the cosh) or frustrating - seeing all those enemy cards reshuffled into the deck when you still have men not yet moved!

Word of warning - parts of the rules rely on judgement- fine if you have an umpire, but negotiation is sometimes called for without one "I'm trying to spot that unit- What do you think 7, maybe 8." "But I did have yopu underfire last turn" "true, but they are running accross open ground- lets go with 8" "Ok"

Don't worry- there are guidelines.

Look- buy IABSM on PDF download- its only seven quid, and if you play FoW or BK(spit)C you already have armies for it. 

If anyone in the Bucks/Herts area wants a game to try them out contact me, and I'll see what I can arrange.

[nikharwood]

"FoW or BK(spit)C"

I can't believe you'll happily spit at BKC & not FoW   

[Luddite]

"FoW or BK(spit)C"

I can't believe you'll happily spit at BKC & not FoW   

Aye...we're through the looking glass here people...

Personally i think the TFL stable of games are pretty ropey...different strokes i guess.   

[nikharwood]

different strokes i guess

Blimey - now *there's* a programme...

[Last Hussar]

"FoW or BK(spit)C"

I can't believe you'll happily spit at BKC & not FoW   

Never played FoW

[Stefanpanzer]

Last Hussar: what is it about BKC etc that you do not like?
as has also been said I find the TFL sets 'ropey'; I certainly dislike card activated games.

[Martyn]

FOW has to be the worst set of WW2 rules of all time. The problem with FOW is that it does not know what it is suppose to represent so you end up with the stupid situation of an infantry company with corps and divisional assets just so the models can be put on the table. The great thing with 10mm is you can actually field a division without having to compromise. I use my own rules based on the combat system from Crossfire for infantry and Charles Grant's "Battle" for the tanks. Be bold research your subject and then come up with something that works.

[Luddite]

FOW has to be the worst set of WW2 rules of all time.

Couldn't agree more.

It simply doesn't represent WWII 'battle friction' in any way, so doesn't win on the simulationst front.  It also has poor, clunky 'crunch' (game mechanics) and a GW-style income-generator ethic to its rules that make it a poor game so loses ont he 'gamist' front also.

E.g. we used FoW for a campaign on Leros.

Defender - 1 platoon of British infantry entrenched on a rocky height (very difficult ground).
Attacker - 1 coy of germans attacking up hill into this position.

Mostly infantry on both sides.

In 3 turns the Germans vaulted up the mountain (apparently wearing jet packs) and wiped out the British without taking a single loss.



Dummys were thrown and a stunned disbeleif descended on the table. 
Everyone expected the German forces to overrun the Brits but after a hard fight and considerable loss.  Laughable.

We've not played them since and i sold all my FoW books and 15mm figures...

Rules to be avoided like the plague in my opinion.

[slinky]

I have the Troops weapons and tactics rules and like some of the ideas in them but just cant get used to using cards to activate, have been playing storming the reich rules recently and find them pretty good ( a bit like rapid fire but with more detail). All my 10mm are individually based giving me the option for fighting the odd skirmish when time allows.....

[Last Hussar]

I think the cards are one of the strengths of TW&T. It is a low level game, and the turns represent short period of time.  The irregular turn sequence feels like the confused friction of platoon level encounters- a squad rushes forward, then pauses trying to get its bearings, while another is geed into action by its corporal.

[slinky]

Will try my twit rules again as they seem to have what Im looking for, just gotta get over the card issue!