Hail of Fire

The player declares one target Team, and modifiers (+1 Concealed, +1 Long Range up to twice range) raise the target number. Hits go first to the target, then to other Teams within 4 inches in LoS and range, and to Small Teams last. Each non-vehicle Team takes at most 1 hit per Fire order and adds RFPs equal to the weapon's Firepower. Teams that have taken hits cannot be hit again by the same enemy unit that turn except through Hero Points.

Each firing Team rolls a number of Fire Dice equal to their weapon's Rate of Fire (RoF), trying to roll 4+, applying the following modifiers

The first Order Points of the turn order the battery and fix an Observing team. Next turn a Range In marker is placed in LoS and deviates d10 inches, with direction taken from the d10's point. The player fires for effect there or returns the marker and rolls deviation again next turn. Every Team within 4 inches (+1 inch per extra gun) takes RFPs by weight (1/2/3), as does any Team ending activation in the radius; the barrage continues on a 4+ each turn. Smoke, mortars (direct hit on 8+) and forward observers have their own rules.

Fire for Effect (FFE) - Resolve the barrage at the current marker location, OR return the marker to its original position.

If AR is at least twice AT, the weapon has no effect. If AT is at most AR, roll AT dice: any 6 gives RFPs equal to FP. If AT exceeds AR, roll dice equal to the difference: any 6 destroys the vehicle, otherwise it takes RFPs. Flank Armor is used when firing from behind the hull front line, and wrecks remain as concealing Difficult terrain.

AT > AR: Roll dice equal to the difference Any 6 Vehicle is Destroyed No 6 Receives RFPs equal to weapon FP

Light artillery has 4 fire missions per game, Medium 3 and Heavy 2. Flamethrowers are one-shot weapons that become standard teams after firing.

Each Artillery Unit may Fire For Effect a limited number of times per game, based on its weight. 4 for Light, 3 for Medium, 2 for Heavy.

Woods and fields give Concealment (+1 to hit); buildings and stone walls give Concealment and Hard Cover. Area terrain can be fired into but not through. Linear obstacles give Hard Cover only to a Team touching them on the side away from the fire, and fire from both sides counts as unprotected. HE ignores Concealment against soft targets.

Firing at Concealed Teams applies a +1 penalty to Fire rolls. Hard Cover improves a Team's chances of survival when resolving RFPs.

Each Order Point activates one Team (or a Platoon Leader, who brings his unit) to Move or Fire, and a Team cannot be activated by Order Point again that turn. Platoon Leaders with unresolved RFPs, and vehicle units more than half destroyed, suppressed or carrying RFPs, contribute no die. Leadership losses therefore shrink the activation pool directly.

Roll 1d6 for each friendly Platoon Leader and Vehicle Unit deployed; each 4+ generates 1 Order Point. Always add +1 to the total.

Hidden Teams are not pre-plotted and can be revealed at any time without an Order Point. They must be revealed in their deployment zone, either out of enemy LoS or in concealing terrain beyond 16 inches of infantry, guns and open-topped vehicles, or 8 inches of other vehicles. Recon Teams extend the reveal distance to 24 inches and may reactivate on a Training Check when they reveal enemies.

Hidden Teams do not need to be pre-plotted and may be revealed at any time without spending an Order Point.

The PL activates all Teams of his unit within his line of sight and gives one order to all or two orders split between them. Vehicle units nominate a leader vehicle instead. Once per activation an unsuppressed PL can add +1 RoF to a Team in contact, rally a Team in contact, or give a Team +3 inches of move. If an RFP reveals the PL was killed, only one ordered Team acts, and a Training Check is later needed to place a replacement.

If the PL is activated, he may also activate any Teams in his Unit to which he has Line of Sight (LoS), and issue one order to the entire Unit, or two orders split between Teams in the Unit

Each player ranks the opponent's units from strongest to weakest, and units are paired by rank. Each pairing scores 1 for the more threatening unit, plus 1 for heavy hitters and 1 for size advantage, and each extra unit scores 2. The higher total takes the difference as Penalty Points, each spent as a starting Break Point for itself or a Hero Point for the opponent, or reduces its force instead.

The Force Parity Procedure provides a method for balancing forces for "pick up" matches without the use of a points system.

All Checks are a d6 needing 4+. Elite units re-roll 1s on Checks and anti-vehicle fire; Poor units re-roll 6s. Quality also applies to RFP resolution: Elite may re-roll one 1 and Poor must re-roll one 6.

Elite troops re-roll 1s on all Checks and when firing at vehicles, taking the second result. Poor troops instead re-roll 6s in each of these cases.

Keywords include Bunker Buster, Fast, Slow, Man-Portable, Light Mortar, Limited HE, Unreliable, Overloaded and Wide Tracks. Optional national characteristics include British Mike Target and Stubborn Defense, German Mission Tactics and +1 Order Point, Soviet Artillery Saturation, Massed Assault and Follow The Leader, and US Semi-Automatic Firepower and Time on Target.

Unreliable: If any movement die shows a 1, roll 1d6 per Unreliable Team in the Unit; a roll of 1 suppresses that Team.

Suppressed Teams cannot Fire or Move toward visible enemy. When ordered, a suppressed Team with no RFPs makes a 4+ Rally Check, but one with any RFPs cannot rally itself. A Leader in contact can rally it, and Teams that start or end activation out of enemy LoS rally automatically. Keeping a single RFP on a team therefore keeps it pinned.

Maintain just 1 RFP on a suppressed Team and they will never Rally without the aid of a Leader or retreating from their position.

Triggers are a unit falling below half (1 roll), a unit destroyed (1 roll) and an objective captured (2 rolls). Each roll gives 1 BP on 1-3, 2 on 4-5 and 3 on 6. The Break Limit is 5 plus 2 per unit; once Break Points exceed it at a qualifying moment, the force routs and the game ends. There is no fixed turn limit.

When certain conditions are met, your opponent rolls 1d6 to generate Break Points: 1-3 generates 1 BP, 4-5 generates 2 BP, and 6 generates 3 BP.

The check is taken as soon as it is revealed that the unit has lost more than half its starting Teams (not counting Small, Leader or Transport Teams). Failure destroys the whole unit. A unit reduced to a single infantry or man-portable gun Team is removed.

When it is revealed that a Unit has fallen below half strength, it must make a Morale Check immediately. If failed, the Unit is destroyed and all remaining Teams are removed.

Infantry move 2d6 inches, guns 1d6 and vehicles 3d6, rolled once per team type in the unit. A team that rolls short moves toward its declared destination as far as the roll allows. If the whole move stays out of LoS of unsuppressed enemy, the team may move its maximum. The designer presents this as a built-in overwatch: short dashes are safer than long sprints.

The random movement rates used in these rules are a simple method for introducing a kind of “overwatch” mechanism to an otherwise “I go/You go” turn structure.

Infantry move freely, and guns cannot enter Very Difficult terrain. Tracked vehicles drop their highest move die in Difficult terrain and must pass a Terrain Check in Very Difficult. Half-tracks drop the highest die in Difficult and cannot enter Very Difficult. Wheeled vehicles take a Terrain Check in Difficult. Roads add +6 inches for tracked and +12 inches for wheeled vehicles, and optional rules add Bogged vehicles.

Unless deemed impassable, Infantry Teams move through terrain and obstacles freely. All other Teams are affected as shown below. A failed Terrain Check stops the Team in contact with the terrain.

Transports carry two to four Infantry or Man-Portable Gun Teams plus one towed Gun Team, only from their own Unit. To load, teams must be within 4 inches and in LoS; loaded infantry are set aside. Unloading is a Move order measured from the Transport, after which the Transport is Called to the Rear and may return within 4 inches of its Unit if no enemy is within 16 inches and LoS. If a Transport is destroyed, its passengers are placed within 4 inches and resolve 2 RFPs (as in or out of Hard Cover depending on how it died).

Transports carry between two and four Infantry Teams and/or Man-Portable Gun Teams, and one towed Gun Team per Vehicle. Transports may only carry Teams from the Unit they belong to.

Bunkers are always concealed, are +1 harder to hit and treat Killed as Suppressed. Trenches give lasting Concealment and Hard Cover. Minefields inflict 1 RFP on contact. Wire needs a Training Check to cross. Obstacles are removed by building up Clearing Points (AT obstacle 5, minefield 3). Defenders in the generic scenario start Dug-In (Hard Cover) until they move.

When a Team’s movement brings them into contact with a minefield, that Team must immediately resolve 1 RFP.

A destroyed vehicle is not removed but left in place. Fire traced through it gets concealment, and units crossing it treat it as Difficult Terrain and so move at a penalty. It is a simple persistent obstacle with no clearing procedure.

WRECKS - Destroyed vehicles are left on the table, offering concealment when fired through and counting as Difficult Terrain.

Attackers must start within 12 inches, with at least one unsuppressed Team that has LoS, and no more than two may contact one enemy Team. Defenders activate for free, rally and resolve RFPs; any not Ready are destroyed. Ready defenders may move away or roll an Assault Check to kill an attacker, then attackers roll, and the steps alternate with 3-inch consolidation moves. Every Team that made an Assault Check ends suppressed (Regroup), leaving victors spent.

Repeat - Continue alternating Steps 2 and 3 until no Teams remain in contact.

A successful Assault Check against an armored vehicle counts as a hit on Flank AR. AT teams get +1 AT, teams without AT count as AT 2, and an adjacent Bazooka or Panzerschreck lends its AT value. Open-topped vehicles in contact are destroyed when resolving RFPs, and concealed infantry ambushing vehicles strike first.

When Infantry or Gun Teams contact an enemy Armored Vehicle, a successful Assault Check counts as a hit against the target's Flank Armor.

Once per turn the defender may make a Reserves Check, at +1 to the target per reserve unit already arrived (max +2) or -1 by spending a second Order Point. On an odd roll the defender chooses which unit arrives, on an even roll the attacker chooses. Off-board artillery can also be held in reserve.

If the roll is odd, the Defender chooses which Unit arrives. If even, the Attacker chooses.

The weaker force chooses to attack or defend. The attacker places 1 objective plus 1 per two defending units, all starting under defender control. An objective is captured by being the only player with an infantry Team within 4 inches; vehicles may contest but not capture.

The Attacker places objectives (1 plus 1 more for every two of the Defender's Units) on terrain 6" away from any table edge and at least 12" from another objective.

Before the game each player secretly rolls 1d6 Hero Points (1-2 count as 3). They can be spent to activate Teams normally, to activate Teams that already acted, or to act between enemy activations. If the coloured Hero Die among the Order Dice rolls a 6, the player discards remaining Hero Points and secretly rolls a new total with no minimum. An optional rule lets a Hero Point interrupt a vehicle mid-move to fire at a point on its path.

They may also activate Teams already activated this turn, or activate Teams during the opponent's Turn (after an enemy activation resolves, before the next begins).

Each turn starts with resolving artillery, then rolling Order Dice. The active player spends points one activation at a time. When all points are spent or the player ends their turn, the opponent rolls Order Dice and becomes active.

When all Order Points are spent, or the Player ends their Turn, the opponent becomes Active and rolls Order Dice.

Each AA Team rolls its RoF against the aircraft's d6, with each higher die a hit; the aircraft is driven off if it fails a save against the AA's AT. The attack is rolled on d6: bombs (3-inch radius, 3 RFPs, d10-3 deviation), rockets (AT 5 or 3 RFPs) or a cannon strafing line 12 inches by 2 inches (2 RFPs). Aircraft cannot target enemies within 12 inches of friendly teams.

When rolling Order Dice, if the Hero Die rolls a 1, an air attack immediately occurs on the Active Player's behalf before they spend any Order Points.

When a Team activates (or is assaulted), it rolls 1d6 per RFP and takes the worst result. In the open, 1-2 is Killed, 3 Suppressed, 4+ Ready; in Hard Cover, 1 is Killed, 2-3 Suppressed. Vehicles and suppressed teams always count as Hard Cover. Neither side knows the effect of fire until the target tries to act.

Received Fire Points are not resolved until a Team activates for exactly this reason: the truth only emerges when someone is forced to act.

Training, Assault, Rally, Morale and Reserves Checks all need 4+ on d6. Modifiers change the target number rather than the roll, and a re-roll's second result stands. A single d10 is used for artillery deviation.

A Check is a d6 roll trying to equal or beat 4+.

An Engineer in contact with a building, bunker or bridge spends an activation and passes a Training Check to place a charge, then detonates it on a later activation: occupants resolve 3 RFPs as if in open ground. Engineers count as AT 3 when assaulting vehicles and clear obstacles more easily.

An Engineer Team that starts its activation in base contact with a building, bunker, or bridge may spend a full activation attempting to place a demolition charge, requiring a successful Training Check.