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Contents. BlitzkriegCommander game play Players can command units ranging from a up to a. For Blitzkrieg Commander III, this was standardised to one unit = one platoon. A typical game lasts 2 or 3 hours. BlitzkriegCommander is derived from the family of rules and uses activation rolls to simulate command and control.
Commanders can activate a single unit (or group of units) multiple times in a single turn, but each attempt is at an increasing penalty. This compels players to weigh carefully the risk and reward of each decision (e.g., should I move into firing position—which exposes my unit to fire if I fail the next activation roll—or should I wait in cover?). Combat is resolved with one or two dice rolls, but differs from Warmaster and Warmaster Ancients in that combat is most often ranged.
BlitzkriegCommander contains a collection of army lists, allowing players to fight any engagement of the. The Spanish Civil War lists were dropped for 3rd Edition and will be placed into a separate supplement. There are no specified basing or miniature scale requirements, although 50x25mm and 50x50mm bases were recommended in 3rd Edition. Cold War Commander Cold War Commander is an adaption of the BlitzkriegCommander ruleset that is designed to re-create battles from the right up to the present day using miniatures. It was also published by Specialist Military Publishing, before being purchased by Pendraken Miniatures in 2015.
Future War Commander Future War Commander is an adaption of the BlitzkriegCommander ruleset that is designed to create battles from a large selection of different science fiction settings using miniatures. It was also published by Specialist Military Publishing, before being purchased by Pendraken Miniatures in 2015.
I was lucky to get an advanced copy of this rule system, and I was so impressed, I just bought my own finished copy here on Amazon! I have been looking for a system that bridges a gap between the simplicity of Axis & Allies Miniatures, and the complexity of Flames of War. This is just one of very few systems I've found that fit that bill, while also filling the criteria of being unique unto itself. I've played many miniatures systems, and through my own Wargaming forum (.), have had the privaledge to learn from, and play against the best mini-gamers out there. Based on years of experience, I can also see this system playing at gaming conventions, as it is so easy to learn and teach.
To cut to the chase: I strongly recommend you pick this rulebook up and add it to your Arsenal! It plays at Platoon-level, but the scope upon which you play those platoons is only limited to your personal OB of units avaialble.
I like that a lot! For me, I will be playing this in 15mm, using Axis & Allies Minaitures, Flames of War armor, and Old Glory armor. A vehicle model represents 5-units (ex. 1 model = 5 tanks); while a base of infantry figures equal 30-50 men. This is pretty standard stuff.but what I especially like is that it is also flexible on how you base. Where some systems have a following of players that DEMAND you base only in such a way, only with their miniatures, this is an open-minded system where if you own a huge number of say Axis & Allies Minatures (like I do), you can convert your idle a and dust clad gems into a mean, lean fighting machine!
The system is heavily dice driven (ten 6-side dice is the norm), encompassing how you move, fight, rally, defend; and used with the systems alternating player action, you remain engaged throughout a typical 2-4 hour game. You are the overall Commander of your side; your platoons assuming to inherently containing it's leaders. The combination of using these Command dice, with a mechanic of Staff Orders (that also allow additional movement and artillery, for instance), give you a system that demands that you make tough decisions throughout the game to achieve your goals. The rulebook is well laid out, and quite maneuverable by a good contents section.
Though not a general inclusion in most systems, I like the fact the author took the time to add inspirational quote snippets from Warriors of the past to start each section.it really gets you in the mood. This is a hefty rulebook as well, numbering past 200+ pages, so there is a lot of meat to the system. However, to my relief, the 'meat' was an easy chew! Well thought out and designed, the system is easy to learn. I haven't had a chance to play it yet, but that will happen in short order!
I can't wait to play this system. I was lucky to get an advanced copy of this rule system, and I was so impressed, I just bought my own finished copy here on Amazon! I have been looking for a system that bridges a gap between the simplicity of Axis & Allies Miniatures, and the complexity of Flames of War. This is just one of very few systems I've found that fit that bill, while also filling the criteria of being unique unto itself.
I've played many miniatures systems, and through my own Wargaming forum (.), have had the privaledge to learn from, and play against the best mini-gamers out there. Based on years of experience, I can also see this system playing at gaming conventions, as it is so easy to learn and teach. To cut to the chase: I strongly recommend you pick this rulebook up and add it to your Arsenal! It plays at Platoon-level, but the scope upon which you play those platoons is only limited to your personal OB of units avaialble. I like that a lot!
For me, I will be playing this in 15mm, using Axis & Allies Minaitures, Flames of War armor, and Old Glory armor. A vehicle model represents 5-units (ex. 1 model = 5 tanks); while a base of infantry figures equal 30-50 men. This is pretty standard stuff.but what I especially like is that it is also flexible on how you base.
Where some systems have a following of players that DEMAND you base only in such a way, only with their miniatures, this is an open-minded system where if you own a huge number of say Axis & Allies Minatures (like I do), you can convert your idle a and dust clad gems into a mean, lean fighting machine! The system is heavily dice driven (ten 6-side dice is the norm), encompassing how you move, fight, rally, defend; and used with the systems alternating player action, you remain engaged throughout a typical 2-4 hour game. You are the overall Commander of your side; your platoons assuming to inherently containing it's leaders. The combination of using these Command dice, with a mechanic of Staff Orders (that also allow additional movement and artillery, for instance), give you a system that demands that you make tough decisions throughout the game to achieve your goals. The rulebook is well laid out, and quite maneuverable by a good contents section. Though not a general inclusion in most systems, I like the fact the author took the time to add inspirational quote snippets from Warriors of the past to start each section.it really gets you in the mood.
This is a hefty rulebook as well, numbering past 200+ pages, so there is a lot of meat to the system. However, to my relief, the 'meat' was an easy chew!
Well thought out and designed, the system is easy to learn. I haven't had a chance to play it yet, but that will happen in short order! I can't wait to play this system.
I received an evaluation copy of Combat HQ several weeks ago and decided to give it a good going over. Unfortunately, the rules dropped just as my local gaming spot closed its doors and I have only been able to run solo skirmishes to test the features of the rules. As tabletop miniatures gaming goes, certain features of a rules set appeal to some players and not others. I typically do not like the IgoUgo feature found in many war games where each unit will activate and move like clockwork. Happily this is not a feature found in Combat HQ!
This set of rules brings command and control into the fog of war. At the top of a player's turn, they roll an amount of dice in accordance to the force they are commanding. The results are then grouped into numerical sets in a Yahtzee fashion; 6s, 5s, 4s, etc. Discarding 1s. These sets make up the 'dice chain' that the player uses to issue commands to units. For instance, if the results are two 6s, three 5s, and one 4 the player has to decide which unit will receive two commands, which will receive three commands, and which will receive one command. Another fun feature to this is the command failure whereby the player rolls more 1s than 6s with the 1s being turned over to the opposing player as wild dice to add to their dice chain.
Another feature I appreciate is the uncertainty built into the variable movement. In many tabletop war games movement is set and predictable, not so in Combat HQ. Each stand in the unit has base movement that is added to by a dice roll. If the player needs a unit to reach a certain spot, they will have to decide whether or not to assign extra movement commands from their dice chain to that unit. Not every unit gets to move each turn. A general rule amongst my local gaming community is that as long as our forces are based similarly, we play.
This rule set accommodates that attitude. All in all, I am looking forward to giving Combat HQ a full run on the gaming table. If you are looking for a set of WWII rules that are more than Beer & Pretzels simple, but not overly complex then give this a try. I give Combat HQ a 4 Star rating, I really like it but cannot honestly say 5 Star without playing a full game.
Our club has been auditioning several rulesets to use with our extensive collection of WWII 15mm minis. After playing our first game of Combat HQ last week we think we might have a winner. The game was easy to understand with our 4 players picking up on the rules after a few turns. IF you like rolling dice this is the game for you as the game mechanic that is used for everything from calling in Arty to firing your sherman at that panther is the same. You roll your dice to meet a target number your opponent rolls his dice and then you compare. Simple yet elegant. Our group has played games using several ways to control the turn sequence dice in bags, flipping cards and the good ole IGOUGO.
Combat HQs system takes a little from all those and makes a system that really makes the table top General have to weigh his options. Throw in a opportunity fire system and suddenly this simple game is not simple and I can see our group not getting bored with Combat HQ anytime soon. The ruleset is not perfect it is a bit ragged around the edges. I'm sure Mr Bambra is hard at work polishing and clarifying which is really all they need.
I contacted Mr Bambra with a couple of rules questions and he answered with a very detailed rule explanation. Now thats what I call support! We advise anyone looking for a set of WWII rules to give Combat HQ a try. I joined Jim's team of readers he's recruited to help him test out new ideas and as a resource to be an advance reader (which means a free copy of the rules.however, in this case, I'd bought them before I joined.) and provide a review of what I think. Perhaps many rules writer's do this, but this is my first experience I appreciate a creator looking out for ideas and constructive help in creating their products.
To the rules. I downloaded his free set of armor rules (still available as of this writing) and then ended up purchasing the full set, which should say something. As of now, I've only played a small sample solo game of the armor rules.
If you download the armor rules you will get a good idea of the flow of the full set which includes infantry, arty, and a few special rules about motorbikes, machine guns, open-topped vehicles etc. He's talking about future books covering more details like airborne, amphibious, etc. It would be nice to have it all in one book, but there's plenty here to keep most gamers busy.
And his prices are so reasonable, that I don't mind the idea of paying a little for each release. Oh, there are a few army lists, US, German, Soviet, and Commonwealth - all late war. However, if you go to Jim's website he's been adding lists on his website, lardy style. What I like most about these rules is that he covers them very thoroughly and from the perspective of a gamer. From what you need to play as far as markers onto the most simple steps to begin playing. Perhaps this comes from his computer game programming background where you must be detailed and thorough. That said, they're not complicated.
I would say they're more complicated than my favorite set of miniature rules, Blitzkrieg Commander II and less complicated than one of my top five, Command Decision: Test of Battle. I heartily recommend them for gamers looking for miniature rules where the stand = platoon and they want to fight engagements from WWII because of their details and low cost. As an avid WW2 wargamer and modeller i was very excited to get hold of a copy of Combat HQ.
After using Operation Warboard by Gavin Lyall as a kid, and more recently Battlegroup Overlord, i was still missing something in my gaming rules. Jim Bambra has come up with a different system that manages to balance fast moving action with enough detail to keep me happy. I am not a fan of card driven games so Combat HQ gets a head start in that department. Everything is driven by multiple D6 rolls, from rolling for orders, to hits, reactions, results and morale. Jim has come up with a cool system that is both simple but also complex enough to keep things interesting. There is just enough luck and randomness in the rules to reflect the unpredictability of combat, while also giving the player a feeling that he has plenty of control over what he wants his men to do. Its a good balance.
The rules work on a 'you go I go' or alternate moves system, but only from order to order. So each player has plenty of opportunity to react and interrupt each other.
I particular like this part of Jim's rules as some orders (depending on the dice) can end up being three or four different actions, but can still be interrupted with fire from the enemy. It means everyone stays involved in the game. This is a very playable rules system for wargamers who are looking for a change. You can use these rules with any scale you like. Personally i am a 20mm fan, and the only thing i need to do is work out how to cope with my individually based figures, when the rules are aimed at based units.
All i can say is if you are fan of WW2 wargames then get out and grab a copy! I enjoy playing FOW (platoon/company level) but sometimes seek scenarios at the battalion/regimental level - Combat HQ scratches that itch.
The rules use a novel set of game mechanics that balance fast play and WWII 'flavor'. To get a sense of the playability you can download a basic PDF version of the rules on the website and do a test drive. There is also an in depth interview with Jim Barbra on the Meeples and Miniatures Podcast - that interview enticed me to buy the Combat HQ PDF. I I then ordered a set of the hard copy rules - not a Luddite - but found that old fashioned paper version better suits my rules-learning/play style.
Being a wargamer of longstanding of both board and miniature games, I like to keep my eye out for the new twist on an old rules theme, in this case WWII miniatures rules. Jim Bambra has combined the simplicity of dice pools with the elegance of how they are interpreted, gracefully addressing direct unit command and staff assistance of unit command.The back and forth of combat initiative and execution that is an element of the real world which every system, board or miniatures, strives to bring to the table is effortlessly integrated into the easy but real-feeling systems for movement and combat. All based on 6-sided dice and all easy to learn, easy to execute, and every rule strives to leave the tactics to the players, and not the system. The idea that the attacker and defender are always engaged together to resolve combat keeps this game exciting to my mind. I could go on, but in the end, the price provides more than most games and it is easier to digest and play this than many I have seen.
After the first read I was ready to play. Buy this and Enjoy it! I have run three games with these rules at my local club and have found them very enjoyable to play and easy to learn and teach.
By the third game we did not need to look up the rules once. Layout and Content: The rules are well laid out with examples to help show how they work. Thanks to the contents I have been able to find specific rules easily when needed, though this has not been often. A number of generic scenarios are given, as well as rules to use them in a campaign. Starter battle groups and unit stats cover American, British, Germans and Soviets in 1944.
Blitzkrieg Commander Review
A comprehensive rules summary is included at the back which covers pretty much everything you need to play. Command & Control and Movement: The game is driven by a Command & Control system that uses a modified alternate activation system that keeps both players involved in the game while allowing for co-ordinated attacks. During the game you will have to make tough choices about spending Command or Staff orders to push your attack, to keep your units in the fight, to call for artillery support or to prepare for following turns. You may order your units to move though they may not get as far as you desire due to variable move distances. You can give them a double or triple move to help them get where you want but this takes away from the commands available for the rest of your troops. I found this all worked very well on the table top and forced you to make careful decisions and not to just react to the enemy. Combat and other rules: Combat is resolved by a simple opposed dice roll mechanism that is also used for a number of other things.
This makes it easy to remember the mechanism and the modifiers applied to these rolls. Even if you don’t cause any damage you may still suppress your target. Units which have not yet fired may conduct opportunity fire against an enemy moving or firing within line of sight.
Other rules include artillery running out of ammunition, being delayed or even failing to fire all together due to command failure, tanks breaking down due to reliability issues, hidden units, blinds and spotting. Overall a really good set of rules that are simple and easy to learn while providing the challenge and depth that leads to a fun and enjoyable game.
Blitzkrieg Commander II is an exciting wargame that allows you to re-create battles of the Second World War and Spanish Civil War using miniatures on a tabletop. Command anything from a company right up to a division and get a result in 2-3 hours without becoming bogged-down in detail. Suitable for any scale miniatures from 2mm right up to 28mm (including 6mm, 1/285, 10mm, 12mm, N Scale, 15mm and 20mm) and no re-basing required. The rules are available as a 140-page A4-sized book (either a perfect bound hard-copy full-colour book, a print-on-demand monochrome book or a full-colour electronic PDF document) with over 45 pictures that illustrate how to play the game. These feature real miniatures as you see them on the gaming table not diagrams that belong in a physics textbook! You also get a double-sided A4-sized quick reference sheet. This is the of the game (dated 2009), released on 21st December 2009 and brings the game into line with.
The first edition of BlitzkriegCommander is still available. The game can be played at one of two levels: 1 base = 1 Platoon (the scale the game was designed for) or 1 base = 1 Squad or Individual Vehicle. The ground scale is 1cm = 20m or 1cm = 10m respectively. Autocad pdf download.
One turn represents up to 30 minutes of real-life action.
Hello, I have a small FoW investment, a couple large infantry companies and a lot of tanks I don’t dislike playing FoW as I find it a plenty functional and consistent game but it doesn’t really capture historical feel for me in numerous aspects. I’m looking to stay with 15mm and do like the 1 stand = 1 squad approach. Having not played any other WW2 rules at a similar scale (only other WW2 gaming experience I have is Bolt Action for 25/28mm skirmish), I’m looking for ideas as to what to investigate. I’m aware of Advanced Squad Leader – I don’t know much about it, but I.think. I am looking for something lighter more in the middle of the spectrum with greater historical accuracy and reflection than FoW but not highly complicated.
I’ve heard of Crossfire but know nothing of it. Don’t know if you like card driven games, but the most enjoyable WW II game I have played is Operation Overlord. Its designed for individually based figures, but could easily be adapted for multi-based figures. There is (or was) a follow up called Operation World War II (that I haven’t played but seemed similar to the commercial rules) available online free of charge from the author. I think it was on the Alzo Zero games site.
If you want it and can’t find it, let me know and I can mail you the files. I know some people might be a bit snobbish about using a set of rules designed for 20mm plastics, but I really enjoyed it, and the card mechanics make games quite unpredictable. Hello, Blitzkreig Commander II I’ve not played this game though I have played Future War Commander which I think is fine for a Sci-Fi skirmish game.
In different periods I look for different things and value different things. In Sci-Fi, well, I figure once you are firing plasma rifles from 30′ tall walking tanks, I can let go of most all conceptions of realism and historical accuracy. Not sure if I’d like some of the FWC mechanics applied to WW2 but perhaps it is worth a look. IABSM3 I have no experience with this at all but I do think quite well of TFLs so it might be good to check into it.
Fireball Forward Never heard of this one, I’ll see if I can find some info on it. Operation Overlord I figure that all figures are just markers so no matter what someone designs a game with (plastic for instance), it doesn’t cause me to run away. Cards for WW2 not sure if that fits my feeling about the period or not. We play Muskets & Tomahawks for FIW pretty commonly and I like that well enough, we’ve also played a lot of TSATF which I am less nuts about the card mechanics in so I guess I should say my feelings about cards vary and I wouldn’t rule a game out for that. Lastly, I’ve played some Memoir ’44 which is not really a miniatures game but does use cards. It is a good game but not really what I’m searching for. Battlegroup What is Battlegroup like, what is it trying to accomplish and how?
I’m unfamiliar with it. Mjc – same question for you about your project, can you tell me more about your aim and how your mechanics support it? Thanks for the answers so far guys. Hi Bandit – I was exactly where you are now about a year ago, then I found BattleGroup Kursk/Overlord etc as mentioned above. I heartily recommend them – you can use your FOW based gear, as the rules are designed for both 20mm and 15mm.
Although infantry are supposed to be based individually, with no more than one inch seperation between squad/section members, I have found no problem with based figures,s imply marking casualties with a small red die. I would characterise the complexity of the these rules as slightly higher that FOW, but in doing so they deliver what feels like a major breakthrough in authenticity and the ‘right feel’. This is what I wrote in my ‘Action at Authie’ thread in answer to John about my experiences with these: “Thanks John!
Good question – I have actually been through 3 phases in my attitude to these rules. First off the ‘Oh Shiny!
Oh New!’ reaction, and the belief that they offered a credible alternative to RF2 for dusting off my long dormant 20mm kit. Then in actually trying to apply them, on my own, using the large format BattleGroup Kursk book, which has the rules interspersed with information about the theatre and campaign, most of which I knew already (Bighead!), I became very frustrated. Then they introduced the smaller, A5 format rulebook with all the campaign guff taken out and just the core rules. And I was off! The rules make sense now, and I am just at that stage where I am beginning to see the seemingly infinite subtleties and sophistication of these rules. I have some peacetime experience of soldiering, for example attended the British Army’s School of Infanty’s ‘Platoon Commander’s Division’ way back when, so I know enough about infanteering to assess how authentic a ruleset is, at least to my subjective satisfaction, which is about as much as you can ask of toy soldier rules! And to my mind the emphasis laid in these rules on direct area fire, with the sole object of ‘pinning’ an enemy until you can get in close to assault with grenades and smgs, is the essence of infantry work.
I also like the way that you can subdivide your section/squad to drop off the Bren team, and the ‘Reserve Fire’ rule which allows you to leave units in overwatch to interrupt enemy movement or fire. Now in order to achieve this level of sophistication, it has to be said the rules are comprehensive and lengthy – but they are not complicated! So if you take your time and start off small with section attacks and work your way up, I think these rules can’t be beat!”. This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago. I play a mix of IABSM 3, Blitzkrieg Commander (BKC) and Panzer Grenadier,now PanzerGrenadier Deluxe I believe.
IABSM will work with based elements and can provide for some really excellent supported company level games at 1:1 scale. It is supported by a pretty robust group of enthusiasts and many many scenarios are available. It is though a card driven game, but all the better for it. Support is on the TooFatLardies Blog etc BKC is an excellent game especially if you want to go beyond 1:1 company level. I tend to play it at element is Platoon, and that allows for a game up to Brigade level plus supports, and in a reasonable time frame on a moderate table. Because of the way the game plays it is also possible to “Bath Tub” larger operations so that one gets the strategic choices faced by the commander. Again thee is a supporting website with many scenarios and games reports.
Blitzkrieg Commander Scenarios
In many ways though my favourite is PanzerGrenadier. This I have played using the 1st and Second editions. There is now a third. A base is a section, and so a platoon is typically a command element and 3 sections. So easy to convert from FoW. A tank represents 2 or three vehicles,and in the earlier editions 1 infantry platoon fitted into 1 Vehicle.
The emphasis is on Command and COntrol rather than on nuts bolts and armour. The method is very elegant and provides for a fast paced and exciting game, once one has played a couple it is easily memorable. Accounts of games, with pictures can be found on Edinburgh Wargames in the Journal if you want some well presented games reports.
Hope that helps Graham. I’ve always found Blitzkrieg Commander to be great fun with good flavour. The command and control side of things works very well indeed, especially where one side is much better trained than the other. Personally, I play heavily amended Piquet and Piquet FoB house rules. Piquet is not to every ones taste but I find its unpredictability highly entertaining. Hi James, I play FoB too and like it very much.
Would it be too much asking if I could have a look at your house rules? I am starting WWII in 15mm and intend to play BKCII (played a lot with 6mm a while ago) but I would love to try something else. The idea behind the cards in O.O. Is in a way to simulate fog of war and c&c challenges.
You as the 500foot tall general might know that the best option for squad A is to lay down covering fire for squad B to advance, but your squad commanders might not even be aware that the other squad is in a position to provide support. Basically there are cards to represent the most common actions a unit would want to take: off the top of my head the cards are move, fast move, ambush, suppression fire, fire, and assault. If you don’t have an appropriate card to assign an order to a unit, they cannot execute that action: rationalise it how you want (communications breakdown, squad leader missing an opportunity, etc), but it makes sense: soldiers are not robots, they will not always know the information that the commanding officer knows, and they make mistakes. The cards also make the sequence of actions ever-changing: each card has a number determining when that action will be executed, which makes it more difficult to meta-game. Instead of “My infantry move at 6″ per turn. Well, that open field looks to be about 18″ across, so they should be able to cross before the enemy LMG team gets into position”, you end up in a situation of not knowing what priority cards your opponent is holding, and being forced to balance your own objectives against the priority and order cards in your hand. I’ve always found Blitzkrieg Commander to be great fun with good flavour.
The command and control side of things works very well indeed, especially where one side is much better trained than the other. Personally, I play heavily amended Piquet and Piquet FoB house rules. Piquet is not to every ones taste but I find its unpredictability highly entertaining.
Blitzkrieg Commander Rules
Hi James, I play FoB too and like it very much. Would it be too much asking if I could have a look at your house rules? I am starting WWII in 15mm and intend to play BKCII (played a lot with 6mm a while ago) but I would love to try something else.
At the moment we are working off a couple of quick play sheets and a deck of home made cards. The rules are in their infancy and geared only to November 1941 – June 42 Western Desert.
I’ll get round to writing them up at some stage. When I do, I’ll let everyone know through my blog. Whatever happens, they will only ever cover that bit (my bit) of the war. Having said that Rapid Fire is also extremely popular, excellent, and loads of fun! Well its certainly popular and can be fun.In my opinion though its not ‘excellent’ – an excellent set of rules should surely make up its mind what command level the player is commanding. I’ve certainly had great fun with them, but only by completely throwing the notional figure and vehicle scale out of the window and treating a group of 10 infantry figures as a section/squad and 3 or 4 AFV as a platoon.
Then they bear some resembalance to reality, but the ease with which trained infantry in cover can be mown down still makes them the wargaming equivalent of a shoot ’em up video arcade gameGood infantry are actually extremely hard to kill with direct fire unless you get very,very close! Hence for me the BattleGroup series of rules, with their emphasis on suppressive fire until you get close enough to close for an assault, seem so much more authentic. I have had a look at most of the games mentioned in previous post, as with all rules some are better fun to play than others, I tend to play Rapid Fire (true it does lack advanced command and control but I have found that a good pre game brief and objective solves most problems). I have Bolt Action and like some of the ideas (understood the rules more when I worked out they were a skirmish game) Doo. Lately I have revisited Don Featherstone’s WW2 rules, there are some very good tried and tested ideas. Sadly like most war-gamers I tend to cherry pick the best bit I like in various rules, or if I am playing for example Rapid fire I tend to add in agreed house rules.
This can be problematic if you play outside your normal group. As I don’t do competition gaming and only play for enjoyment it has not been a problem for me. If you can’t find a set of rules you like, try writing some for yourself. At the very least that can be a bit time consuming and may push you towards simpler rules.
Play for enjoyment is the best set of war-game rules. Hi, I would strongly recommend that you take a look at the Battlegroup rules.
I too am an ex FOW player, Battlegroup Kursk for me gives a real period flavour, it actually feels right for the Eastern front, and not only is it more detailed and “realistic”. but its a great book too.Obviously no game is truly realistic but it at least makes alot of sense, Im a soldier myself and alot of what goes on in the game I can relate to. In a nutshell, top game and great support over on the Guild forums. I second the suggestion of using Cross Fire rules. Having played them since 1997 I can tell you that they put the player directly into the role of tactical commander. They also use no turns and no measurement!! My blog has many Crossfire games that my club has played (there is a lot of other stuff – just search for Cross Fire or Crossfire).
Another blog discusses among othr things, usinf Cross Fire for the Korean War. Hi, I would strongly recommend that you take a look at the Battlegroup rules. I too am an ex FOW player, Battlegroup Kursk for me gives a real period flavour, it actually feels right for the Eastern front, and not only is it more detailed and “realistic”.
but its a great book too.Obviously no game is truly realistic but it at least makes alot of sense, Im a soldier myself and alot of what goes on in the game I can relate to. In a nutshell, top game and great support over on the Guild forums.
Steve Seconded. Ex TA soldier myself, including attendance at the School of Infantry’s Platoon Commander’s Division course, before I saw the light and joined the Royal Navy, where I had much involvement in Naval Gunfire Support, or Naval Fires as its now called. And for my money the BattleGroup series of rules models this very well – it may seem cumbersome the way its written in the rules, but it translates very well onto the table once you’ve got the drill off pat.
Let me wade into this discussion with a brief description of some of the games that might be in contention. Nothing will replace actually trying out the game yourself but I’ll try to give you an idea of some games I’ve tried.
IABSM I’d say there is something of a duel emphasis going on here: The role of leaders and their influence on the battlefield plays a large part in this game. Various level of troops can potentially have more actions and basically the better the leader the better chance of getting things done.
Activations are random, based on various units cards been dealt. These aspects of the game I very much enjoyedespecially the use leader and random events.
Although in time the card activation got a little annoying for some players (not me). There is potential for reactive fire in the game I really didn’t like the fire chart: Shooting requires a certain amount of die rolled added up and applied to a chart (you decided the row to use by the conditions of the shot: poor shot, an ok shot or perhaps an excellent one. The amount of actions a unit would have in a turn would depend on the size of the squad (individual casualties remember). I began to find I was thinking more about the battle conditions than what tactical decisions I would make. I should mention these are things that others have no problems withbut for me in time it was a deal breaker. Crossfire Probably the most unique system and is quite abstract by nature.
There are no real fixed turns in the normal sense. Here we have a player who holds the initiative (actively moving and firing and choosing various actions0 and he keeps the initiative as long as he is relatively successful in certain cardinal actions (like firing at enemy for instance).
The other player waits and reacts to any movement within Line of sight of his troops and if he is successful with his reactive fire he can actually steal the initiative. Movement is not measured at all. And the player with the initiative can potentially move as much as he likes as long as his movement is not interfered with by reactive fire. The shooting mechanism is simplicity itself. Say a rifle team rolls 3 dice and they hit on 5’s and 6’s.
1 hit is a pin. 2 is a suppression. 3 would mean the entire squad are killed. 2 suppressions would also mean a kill. Crossfire for me is a work of pure genius. It feels like a game without the interference of rules and I believe it promotes authentic tactics. If you think you can deal with a system that is more abstract than all others then this is just an amazing game.
A web friend of mine mentioned that everyone should try it once. The amour rules IMHO are almost unplayable ? but there are great house rules available written by veteran players. I really love this system. Fireball Forward Is compared with Crossfire a lot and this surprises me a little. At least you shouldn’t expect two very similar games. Omnikey cardman 4321 driver download. You can certainly see evident influences but this is a very different game that uses a card type activation with a very intuitive flowing movement system. Shooting is done very well without the need of chart referencing.
A simple gaming model that achieves very very enjoyable games. I can’t really imagine anyone not enjoying this game to be honest and may very well have the most universal appeal. Highly recommend this for its simplicity and pure playability. Battle Group Series: Overlord/Kursk etc Best supported set of rules of the group I’d venture to say. I would judge this is more structured than some of the others I mentioned and I’d guess this could make the easiest transition from FoW in my opinion.
I mean that because it follows a series of fixed phases with command rules that mean that not necessarily all your troops will activate all the time which imo means the need for some tough decision making. In fact the game constantly puts you in the role of decision maker from what troops to activate to what kind of fire to put down on the enemy. The firing mechanism is exciting and fastas it should be ? As I’ve mentioned I’m not a big fan of lots and lots of charts but everything required here is available on a double sided QRS. My biggest complaint was the original Kursk Book I bought. Okay and lets be clear about this: I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed and it has to be said that I found the book quite confusing but once you get the hang of the rules they’re worth the effort. Anyway obviously these are just my opinions All the best in your search. This reply was modified 3 years, 5 months ago.
This reply was modified 3 years, 5 months ago.
Contents. BlitzkriegCommander game play Players can command units ranging from a up to a. For Blitzkrieg Commander III, this was standardised to one unit = one platoon. A typical game lasts 2 or 3 hours.
BlitzkriegCommander is derived from the family of rules and uses activation rolls to simulate command and control. Commanders can activate a single unit (or group of units) multiple times in a single turn, but each attempt is at an increasing penalty. This compels players to weigh carefully the risk and reward of each decision (e.g., should I move into firing position—which exposes my unit to fire if I fail the next activation roll—or should I wait in cover?). Combat is resolved with one or two dice rolls, but differs from Warmaster and Warmaster Ancients in that combat is most often ranged. BlitzkriegCommander contains a collection of army lists, allowing players to fight any engagement of the. The Spanish Civil War lists were dropped for 3rd Edition and will be placed into a separate supplement.
There are no specified basing or miniature scale requirements, although 50x25mm and 50x50mm bases were recommended in 3rd Edition. Cold War Commander Cold War Commander is an adaption of the BlitzkriegCommander ruleset that is designed to re-create battles from the right up to the present day using miniatures. It was also published by Specialist Military Publishing, before being purchased by Pendraken Miniatures in 2015. Future War Commander Future War Commander is an adaption of the BlitzkriegCommander ruleset that is designed to create battles from a large selection of different science fiction settings using miniatures. It was also published by Specialist Military Publishing, before being purchased by Pendraken Miniatures in 2015.
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