Questions of rules

[Carraz]

Hi everibody ! Some questions from France : succession war

-for artillery : can we move and fire ?

-Hand to hand : there is 3 North bataillons one after the other.

I’m charging with 1 south bataillon on the front and 1 south bataillon on the flank of north bataillons.

what happened please, could you explain in detail please.

-Now I’m charging these 3 North bataillions on the flank. What happened?

Thanks very much to France for your answers

[Big Al]

1) Yes artillery can move and fire. Artillery can be manhandled a total of 6 inches regardless of how low your command roll is. Movement happens during the Command Phase and shooting during the Shooting Phase. Some of the supplements have suggested rules to reduce the distances that a unit can move and still fire, but they are suggestions and not actual rules. It is up to you and your opponent whether you choose to use them or not.

2) The unit charging the flank is contacting which of the three units?

Anyway, any unit contacted on the flank <i>must </i>place at least half (rounded up) of its attacks to the front, regardless of whether an enemy unit is in contact with the front or not. It can then place the rest of its attacks against the enemy contacting its flank. It fights with a -1 to hit modifier on all its attempts to hit regardless of where they are placed.

A unit charged in the flank cannot be supported, so any unit in a position to support just stands and watches.

Depending on which enemy contacts first, the charges unit may be able to give closing fire against the enemy to the front. If it was contacted in the flank first, then it can’t because it counts as engaged.

If the North battalion loses and fails the break test with a “Break” result, then any North battalion that was in a position to support, even though it couldn’t because of the flank contact, they must take a break test for seeing the friendly unit break. It is a straight break test without modifiers, but you can see how a brigade can suddenly collapse in such a situation.

[Mike]

In the example, of three battalions charging the flank of unit normally only one unit will melee and the other two units will provide potentially flank or rear support.  So say both units normally got 6 HTH attacks… then the attacker would get 6 attacks and the “flanked” defender would get 3 HTH attacks (the other 3 would fight to the front and if there were no units attacking its front, they would be lost).  The charging unit would need “3” to hit, so on average would hit 4 times.  The defending unit would need “5” (-1 for being engaged on a flank) so on average would it .67 times… so let’s round up to 1.  Morale throws would normally be “4”… meaning the attacker on average would inflict 2 casualties… the defender would inflict 0 or 1.

Next, to resolve the combat, the attacker would start with 2 for the 2 hits and add 1 per each support… so if it had two supports that would equal a final Combat Result total of 4.  The defender cannot count any support because it is engaged to its flank.  So its Combat Result would remain 0 or 1.  So the defender loses and rolls on the Break Table.  Then follow the Break Table results, but if the defender holds its ground and the melee continues to the next turn remember the attacker has “advantage” and gets the won last round of melee modifier.

If the loser breaks or retires, then the attacker has the prescribed options after combat.

[Big Al]

Sorry, Mike, but as I said in my response, if a unit is fighting to its flank, it cannot be supported. So, the Combat Resolution will not add +1 for each supporting unit – page 70 Units unable to be supported – Units fighting to its side or rear.

[Carraz]

Thanks very much for your answers, I don’t see them before now, I had trouble with my account

Other question please :

1-in the brigade, there is five bataillon…..the command failed his order on the first bataillon, is it finish for this brigade? Or the command can continuing with the second and……

2-I’m charging with a bataillon A against other bataillon B(infantry for exemple); is B firing immediatly or must I roll the dice for order in order to know if I can do this fire?

[Big Al]

1) Yes it is, really.

Right, it all depends on which command rules you are using. The ones in the “Commanders” chapter do not allow any other orders to be given. However, if you read further into the chapter, it tells you that you can use the old rules from The first Black Powder Rules. In those, which most people have played for years, the Army Commander is allowed to issue orders. He can give orders to any unit or brigade. He can even give orders to a group of units made up from two different brigades. In this case, the Army Commander can give orders to the other units in the failed commander’s brigade. However, as with any other commander. Once you have finished giving orders from the Army Commander, you cannot go back to him later in that turn. So, I would activate him last, just in case you need him to do a little more.

Read the chapter I mentioned and it should give you more detail.

 

2) When unit A charges, it moves into contact with B. Then you work out closing fire.

It could happen that the closing fire could cause a break test, as well as causing disorder <i>and</i> shaken. The break test could prevent the charge from happening. Disorder or Shaken will negate the charge bonus (+1 to hit for charging, -1 to hit for being disordered or shaken. <b>Note</b> – there is only one modifier applied for being disordered or shaken, not two if the unit suffers both conditions)

[Mike]

I misread his example, I thought he had three units charging a unit on the flank… not three units being charged on the flank…. I agree a unit being attacked on the flank gets no support.

[Carraz]

Thanks to you both Big Al and Mike for replying………..to big Al , I understood the commander rules old and new. But my question is..when I roll the dice to give an order to a unit by the officer in charge of the brigade, if the dice roll fails does this mean that that officer can give no more orders to anyone that turn??………..or can he continue to give other orders to other units in his brigade ??   I hope this is clear……thanks in advance for your replies…so far you both have been a great help…

 

[Big Al]

Sorry, that is what I meant by the first sentence of my reply. Yes, the commander’s turn is over as soon as he has failed a command roll.

Again, this can be dependent upon which version of the  Rules for Commanders you are using. The ones presented in the BP2 rulebook allow a General’s reroll if the failing Commander is within a prescribed distance from the General. If the reroll is successful, then the commander may carry on because the reroll has changed the failed result into a successful one. However, if the reroll fails or the General is too far away to use the reroll, then the commander’s turn is over and he cannot issue any further orders.

[Carraz]

To Big Al

Thanks again for replying………Your explication has really cleared things up for me……I find the explications often in the rulebook are not so clear. Maybe it’s just me and I should retire from ordering my little figures around as I’m sure they are getting fed up standing around while I flip like crazy through the rule book.

Cheers again

 

[Author]

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