Troop quality grades

The Company Quality table cross-references commander commitment with the majority contingent type (riding retinue with peer, riding retinue, well-wishers, array, mercenaries) to give starting Courage 0-4. Retinue archers outshoot levy archers.

To do this, he references the Company Commander’s Commitment level with the predominant types of contingents that made up the company.

On a d10, infantry and cavalry are green on 0-6 and regulars on 7-9; artillery are regulars 0-6 and veterans 7-9. Confederate grades are fixed in the OOB (elite, veteran, regular).

Infantry & Cavalry: 0-6= green; 7-9= regulars

1st Class grenadiers and light infantry; 2nd regulars, Continentals, rangers, jagers; 3rd raw regulars, veteran militia, loyalists; 4th militia; 5th other Indians. Grade sets movement dice, ability to redress ranks, and +3 per grade advantage in combat.

lst Class: Grenadiers, Light Infantry. 2nd Class: Regulars, Continentals, Rangers, Jagers. 3rd Class: Raw Regulars, Veteran Militia, Loyalists.

TO&E tables suggest force cohesion ranges by nation, theatre and year, and players agree a value. That value sets initiative, every check, how many dummy minefields and pre-registered targets a force gets, and whether lost commanders can be replaced. GHQ quality (-2 to +3) changes the number of movement orders, and the cohesion ratio between sides scales scenario points.

A force cohesion level, or suggested range of levels, is provided in the scenario or agreed upon by the players prior to the start of play.

Classes (from Empire): Old Guard, Guard, Grenadier, Elite, Crack Line, Veteran Line, Conscript Line, Landwehr, Trained Militia, Untrained Militia; each has a probability distribution over performance levels.

from best to worse, Old Guard, Guard, Grenadier, Elite, Crack Line, Veteran Line, Conscript Line, Landwehr, Trained Militia, Untrained Militia.

Infantry base values by quality run green 2, trained 3, experienced 4, veteran 6, elite 8. For CD II armour crews, each extra hit or chance to hit above experienced adds 10%, so elite crews add 20% and green crews subtract 20%.

So an elite crew increases the cost of an AFV 20%, and a green crew decreases it 20%.

1 SP per 2000 infantry, 1000 light cavalry, 750 heavy cavalry or 12 guns. Add +3 excellent (Old Guard), +2 good guards, +1 good line, 0 average, -1 poor (Landwehr), -2 awful; +/-1 for good or poor officer corps; +/-1 for heavy or light guns.

1 SP per 2000 infantry or 1000 light cavalry or 750 heavy cavalry 12 guns ... +3 if excellent troops eg Old Guard

Experience points come from turns flown (1), kills (24), missions and red hits; novices (<50 XP) cannot tail enemy aircraft or perform restricted manoeuvres and take -1 on spin tests and recovery.

A novice may not tail enemy aircraft, but may tail friendly aircraft. Novices may not perform restricted maneuvers.

When two elements of the same nominal type fight, the one with more disadvantage points (worse armour, low prestige, etc.) takes a single -1. General ability can be simulated by +1/-1 to movement dice.

If so, when two elements of the same nominal type fight each other, that judged to be worse counts a single extra -1 tactical factor.

Green 5+/6+/1, Seasoned 4+/5+/2, Veteran 3+/4+/3, Elite 2+/4+/4 for Activation, Expertise and maximum Suppressed figures respectively. This single rating drives nearly all unit performance.

Each Unit is defined by its level of training & experience & by its weapon/armour selection.

Fair: 5+, 2", no bonuses. Good: 4+, 4", +1 to hit. Excellent: 3+, 6", +1 to hit and +1 ROF, plus +1 to artillery availability.

Our version here splits the difference, using the free online game QRS to establish three quality ratings: FAIR GOOD EXCELLENT

Gunnery modifiers: Veteran +2, Average +1, Green 0, Poor -1. Grade also sets the morale pass ranges.

Crew is: Veteran +2 Average +1 Green 0 Poor -1

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.

Class reflects motivation, arms and training: most troops are B-D. On the CRT, A-class units suffer only recoils where lower classes flee. A-class infantry may decline to follow up or pursue and can step back to disengage.

All troop types e.g., infantry, mounted, artillery, hordes etc., are given a classification from A (the best!), to E (the worst!).

Raw characters may not aim, must move the full rolled distance and roll for combat points rather than allocating them. Skilled/Veteran/Hero get 6/8/10 combat points, and fortitude dice of 3 (Raw) to 6 (Hero). Class also gates which action cards a character may claim.

There are four classes of character: Raw: ordinary or worse regular soldiers who have no experience of skirmish warfare

British regulars are good quality and high morale; loyalists and mercenaries average/average; natives good quality but fragile morale; American regulars good/average; militia poor quality but high morale; Canadian labourers poor. One company of about 50 men is one unit.

The militia are of poor quality but with high morale, and the natives have both average quality and morale.

Optional: Italian HQ distance is 9" instead of 12" and Italian foot infantry need a 6 to hit tanks. In the Blitzkrieg edition French tanks move at infantry speed and must stay with the infantry.

Count the Italian HQ distance as 9" rather than 12". Italian Foot Infantry is short of AT weapons, so require a 6 to hit Tanks.

A Grade veteran Romans, B experienced, C average, D poor. Grades give +2/+1/0/-1 combat dice and govern DP removal when redressing and the die used for control tests.

A Grade: Veteran Romans with high morale B Grade: Experienced Romans with good morale, or others with high morale.

1st Class grenadiers and light infantry; 2nd regulars, Continentals, Rangers, Jagers; 3rd raw regulars, veteran militia, Loyalists; 4th militia, inexperienced Loyalists, European-led Indians; 5th other Indians. Each grade above the opponent is +3 in combat, and grade sets DP recovery and pursuit behaviour.

Each unit is given a basic efficiency grade at the start of the game, indicating its training and experience.

Movement classes I-III, Firing Classes I-IV (US Sharpshooters best, other Mexicans and other cavalry worst), melee base numbers from 10 (US Regular infantry) down to 6 (Mexican militia), and Morale Points of 3 (US Regulars, elite volunteers), 4 (US Volunteers), 5 (US Militia, Mexican Regulars) and 7 (Mexican Militia). Quality also modifies interpenetration tests.

Battalions/Regiments are assigned a Firing Class per training, specialty, etc.

Classes Old Guard, Guard, Veteran, Regular, Conscript and Raw each have effectiveness triples (e.g. Old Guard 4/2/-, Raw 7/6/5) looked up from the Napoleon's Battles disorder/rout number.

Transcribing Disorder/Rout ratings from Napoleon's Battles to the McFarlane napoleonic variant for Fire & Fury.

Crew quality is Well trained +1 or Green -1 (manoeuvre and Battle tests). Crew morale is Determined +1 or Poorly motivated -1 (morale tests). Ships are Fast +1 or Heavy -1, applying only to diekplous and periplous. The modifiers combine freely, e.g. well-trained but reluctant crews.

This allows you to field well trained, but reluctant squadrons (Phoenician subjects of the Great King, perhaps?), or goofy but determined crews, such as the dogged Corinthians.

Toughness is the target number for d10 tests (lower is better): veterans 3-4, experienced 5-6, nervous 7-8; 1, 2, 9, 10 to be avoided or reserved for exceptional cases.

Each character in the game has a Toughness value, serving as a “catch all” score to represent his grit and combat experience.

Class modifies shooting and fighting dice (Citizen -1, Shootist +1, Legend +2), sets nerve and fast-draw dice (3-6) and decides which action cards a character can claim. Citizens must move the full rolled distance and cannot fire deliberately. Indians use Young Blood, Warrior and Mighty Warrior classes with extra action cards outside town.

Citizen: ordinary citizens who have never been in a gunfight and are likely to be in a state of considerable panic.

France, Prussia, Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden and Saxony each have morale ratings by troop type (e.g. French line 6, Guard/Zouaves/Turcos 7, Garde Nationale 4). French reserve troops fire on a worse table, some use muzzle-loaders, and cannot use deep column. Prussian line infantry is -1 morale when charging.

Prussian Infantry is -1 on morale if charging. This rule does not apply to other German infantry.

+1 British / -1 Spanish to Target Score, tacking and boarding; British round gunnery up; Spanish add collision risk. These can be ignored for a balanced game, and special captains can get bonuses (e.g. Redoubtable +1 boarding).

For the purposes of this game, British ships are reckoned to be better than their French and Spanish opponents.

Grades modify melee, morale and stand-and-fire timing. Horse are also classed as Gallopers (must countercharge, charge 16") or Trotters (pistol fire, 12" charge).

Units should be classified as Raw, Trained, or Veteran.