[Rules] 4th edition

[waynebaumber]

Played my first game with 4th edition yesterday against Hugmenot and thought I would give my first impressions of it.

1.In this small game there was little change to the way I played the game so that indicates that the feel and flow of game has remain unchanged.
2. Notwithstanding the above, Assaults are different because of the chart change and the 2 X D6 change there are more morale results specially with 18/24 attacks. This tends to make assaults last for longer.
3. The terrain chart is poor, hard to read. In trying to incorporate every possible terrain in the PG world on one chart AP have made in an unwieldy mess.
4. We only used the 1 optional rule (FOW) but the optional rules are not a bad thing as long as you agree on them beforehand. It will be a cold day in hell before I use the Mire rules.
5.Friendly fire can really hurt with large artillery attacks, this seems to me more logical.

So all in all I was happy enough with the new edition rules. As I still play both editions it will be interesting to see if I start to prefer the newer edition over the course of 2015.

[joe_oppenheimer]

I had a similar impression of assaults. They seem to last longer unless you roll at the far ends of the spectrum (2, 3, 11, or 12).

Other than that the game play felt much like what I've done before. I did not play a scenario where hills mattered, but I would think the relative spotting should be a nice change from the previous rules where all hills offered a shift despite the relative height of the firing unit.

I did use the Mire rules in a scenario from Sword of Israel, but it had salt marshes on the edge of the desert and seemed necessary.

[richvalle]

I like the mire rules for tanks moving though trees. I always thought it was weird they can move though with no problems and since it's limiting terrain remain unspotted. To each their own of course and playing without them wouldn't stop me from playing a game.

[tlangston28]

3. The terrain chart is poor, hard to read. In trying to incorporate every possible terrain in the PG world on one chart AP have made in an unwieldy mess.

Actually - I thought the same thing so I created my own version which contains everything on one letter sized page (US - A4 in the UK?). I have the relevant notes there plus I keep it in a protector with the original chart folded behind it so that i can pull out and reference if needed.

It is an excel spreadsheet and once I get home I can send post it here for you. I can also convert it to a PDF as well.

As for the Mire rules, we are playing a PBEM game now and I am not really enthralled by it (probably because I have most of the Armor in this one! ).

[richvalle]

How about that, I'm playing a PBEM game and I LOVE the mire rules. Probably because tlangstons's tanks can't run all willy nilly thought the trees.

[waynebaumber]

3. The terrain chart is poor, hard to read. In trying to incorporate every possible terrain in the PG world on one chart AP have made in an unwieldy mess.

Actually - I thought the same thing so I created my own version which contains everything on one letter sized page (US - A4 in the UK?). I have the relevant notes there plus I keep it in a protector with the original chart folded behind it so that i can pull out and reference if needed.

It is an excel spreadsheet and once I get home I can send post it here for you. I can also convert it to a PDF as well.

As for the Mire rules, we are playing a PBEM game now and I am not really enthralled by it (probably because I have most of the Armor in this one! ).

Yes please Tony

[waynebaumber]

How about that, I'm playing a PBEM game and I LOVE the mire rules. Probably because tlangstons's tanks can't run all willy nilly thought the trees.

And that's why the mire rules are poor, as I recall (am writing this at work) AFV's are mired for 3 turns at least and then its only a 50/50 chance of getting unmired. Thus in effect stopping AFV's moving through woods during a scenario. Poor rule design IMHO.

In early war on east front my Russian tanks lived in the woods when playing Herr Hughes

[Blackcloud6]

2. Notwithstanding the above, Assaults are different because of the chart change and the 2 X D6 change there are more morale results specially with 18/24 attacks. This tends to make assaults last for longer.

I'm deep into my second playing of the 4th edition rules (Kursk BT Scen 10) and I'm thinking that assaults get over quicker than before. The higher end of the chart is allowing more causalities to the defender in my view. Also, buried in 12.2 is this sentence that I don't recall was in the previous edition: "Resolve the assault after all active units which were to enter the assault hex this action segment have finished entering the hex." This, to me, allows me to enter the assault hex from multiple hexes if all were activated together. Thus you can get three units into an assault hex by spreading out on the approach and not face the negative modifier for stacking three combat units in a hex adjacent to the enemy.

[campsawyer]

2. Notwithstanding the above, Assaults are different because of the chart change and the 2 X D6 change there are more morale results specially with 18/24 attacks. This tends to make assaults last for longer.

I'm deep into my second playing of the 4th edition rules (Kursk BT Scen 10) and I'm thinking that assaults get over quicker than before. The higher end of the chart is allowing more causalities to the defender in my view. Also, buried in 12.2 is this sentence that I don't recall was in the previous edition: "Resolve the assault after all active units which were to enter the assault hex this action segment have finished entering the hex." This, to me, allows me to enter the assault hex from multiple hexes if all were activated together. Thus you can get three units into an assault hex by spreading out on the approach and not face the negative modifier for stacking three combat units in a hex adjacent to the enemy.

Fred, end in the 3rd edition you could move all units in from any direction. It is the only way to get in with out being blasted.

[Blackcloud6]

yeah, I just dug out the 3rd ed rules and 12.2 has the same wording.