The Commander Series Forum

Book arrived today v nice.

I was planning a French Battlegroup and looked at the lists. Just one thing....have I got this right:

Tanks must be mixed with infantry formations at no more than 3 per formation.

Any order to a combined command, tanks and infantry, is -1.

As tanks have to be with infantry then any order to that formation will be -1 when the basic command for a HQ is 7 which will take it down to 6 for its 1st throw. Unless I only give an order to the armour or infantry alone within the formation then the -1 does not apply?

I just want to make sure Im reading that right.

Correct, but don't forget you have can have HQs with a higher CV than that.

As it says that the French tanks "must" be attached to an infantry formation, are you sure its possible to choose to move just the tanks or the infantry separately?

You can issue orders to any number of units within a formation, yes.

You sure can - the formation is made up of the different units, but there's nothing to say that they *all* have to do the same thing at the same time...

So if I want them to do different things that's fine [eg tanks fire while infantry move] or even for units to do nothing while others within the formation do something else that's fine too [eg tanks fire, ATG fires, infantry hold] etc etc.

Of course with rigid tactical doctrine you're getting a bonus if you choose to command everything to do the same - but even then you don't *have* to...

Cor - look, it clearly took me a load of time to type my four lines & Pete answered it in 13 words

You don't have to follow this rule dean.

The period I mainly play is Fr 1940 and have used a combo of tanks in penny-packets and/or more usual all tank/infantry formation for ages, depended upon the engagement. I'd simply use it as a guide. The French didn't penny-packet there tanks in ALL situations and it depends on what formations you are representing.

I'm not sure that the "penny packets" rule accurately reflects the way several of the key French units operated - for example the DCRs and DLMs (the nearest they came to having Panzer Divisions). It seems a bit like modelling the entire German list on Infantry Divisions.

The "poor combined-arms" rules however does ring true - indeed if anything it is probably appropriate to several other armies (including much later ones - for example the British/Canadian first tank battles in Normandy) to which it hasn't been applied.

All the best

Pb

I will be commanding the French on saturday, I am concerned.

All some of you seem to do is moan

The lists provide you with some rules that apply generally to a particular army - that doesn't mean there weren't exceptions, but just like the Jerries didn't deploy Tiger IIs in every battle, the French rarely got all their tanks massed together for action. When they tried that, the tanks were without any support and they failed to show up anyway!

Moaning comes with the territory when you play French....

Well, if it's any consolation Pete we only moan because we care about the rules. So the more we care, the more we moan! Take it as a sign of affection?

All the best

Pb

oh now there is a real typo! He meant sign of affliction!

Big Hug

So what it kinda means is that if you want to simulate the usual French performance and tactics, you should try and deploy tanks and infantry mixed in together, and then try and either move them together (taking the -1 hit on command) or perhaps move them with separate orders (avoiding the command penalty but taking the risk that your command fails part way through leaving one lot hung out to dry).

I can see that that would have taken up more room ..

Yes, that's about it

I wasn't moaning, I like a challange!

"Big Hug "

And a big hug right back at ya!

All the best

Pb

Ouch.. Having developed a DAK 1942 Battlegroup (approx Brigade sized), and a Commonwealth Desert Force - and having lots of PzIII, II and I left over, I immediately thought of The Ghost Division.. ok, that's another Battlegroup.. (then there seem to be some leftover PzIV F2, Tigers, and my job lot of eBay CinC Germans had a bunch of PzIV - so there's one for Italy due..) In the midst of the lead obsession, I thought about a nice small French 1940 Battlegroup.. and erk! Nobbled... and with all my lovely GHQ models arriving today, I feel a dose of Gallic ennui coming on at the prospect of trying to roll 6 and under on 2 dice to do anything...