By Dennis Campbell AKA Matt Varnish

Photos by the Author

Rob and I did a test game with the new Nam rules for Team Yankee (Team Yankee Early War?) but instead of using traditional lists, we decided that since Team Yankee the novel is a what-if scenario, then why not do a what-if of the Oil Crisis of the 1970s!  In our case, we did a Canadian Tank force (Aussie Centurions) vs some T-55s and Motor Rifles out in a desert oil facility.    As usual, video bat-rep at the end.  Thanks to Rob for hosting as usual, this time on his awesome AFG board where I added my 15mm terrain to good effect:View from the industrial center

by Tom Burgess

Welcome back Comrades,
PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR BRIEFING

 

Now that we have covered our glorious foot soldiers who take the fight to the Capitalist Dogs, let us turn our attention to our Ironclad warriors. Many are unaware that we have such powerful legions of steel and that we know how to use them even in the jungles.

 

Mitch and Sean are back at it in this first “On the Road” episode for No Dice No Glory. This time they are playing Team Yankee at an event hosted by You Hobby Place in Fredericksburg VA.  They speak with some of the players and NDNG writer and event organizer Ed Sales.

 

The return of the Vietnam War in ‘Nam is eagerly anticipated by many of us as our Vietnam forces are gathering dust on the shelf.  All the favorites are back:

• The airmobile 1st Cavalry Division (abbreviated 1CD and called “First Cav” if you want to sound like a cool Army guy)
• The mechanized 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (abbreviated 11ACR and called the “11th ACR”)
• The infantry-based 25th Infantry Division (abbreviated 25ID and called the “25th ID”)

Unlike the earlier version of Vietnam, the differences between these forces are much more subtle.  Previously, you could choose between having Confident Veterans with the First Cav or 11th ACR or the cheaper Confident Trained 25th ID. Now all forces are equivalent to Veterans and hit on a 4+.  There are differences however with the First Cav being the most elite infantry who hit in an assault on a 3+ and have a Skill of 3+, and the 25th ID who are pretty much 4+ on all their stats. With only slight differences like that, players should probably focus more on choosing a force based on the toys they are allowed to bring.  Let’s get a little bit more in-depth.

Today we are taking a look at what may be the most intriguing book to come out so far for Flames of War (FOW) MW V4, Avanti. In this article, you will read how Avanti will change the tournament scene.

Verison 4 has really become much more of a dice game than the more historical simulation that FOW Verison 3 was. In the shooting step, it is now easier to hit previously impervious units (veteran, gone to ground, concealed and long range). Players are now able to roll a 7 or 8. To do so is difficult, but not impossible.

It’s easier to get dig out pesky infantry since repeat bombardments force a re-roll of successful saves. The more dice you throw, the better chance you have of killing what you’re shooting at.

Currently, it seems the key to what Battlefront is pushing, is horde armies. The more models you’re pushing around the table, the better. Crusader Swarms. Gobs and gobs of armoured rifle stands bouncing around the table. Or that guy who brings as many Stuarts as he can fit in his list with some heavy guns behind them.

Heck, even my German list, which has done very well, is all about getting as many Panzer III Short 5cms on the table that I can. I support these with Marders and other low expensive German units.

by NDNG-Dane and Tom Burgess

Welcome back Comrades,

PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR BRIEFING

We last briefed you on our glorious regulars from North Vietnam, now we will cover the heroic Local Forces who strike at the enemy from the South and the Special Tasks units that attack the bases of the Capitalist.

by NDNG-Dane and Tom Burgess

Welcome Comrades,

PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR BRIEFING

The new ‘NAM  book provides a lot of options for the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN). In fact, the North Vietnam Forces could have easily have been divided and printed solely as a Communist Forces in Vietnam book.  The Politburo has directed that we brief you on our glorious and loyal forces battling the Capitalist foes in the South. We will do so in to four separate briefings so that you may better understand each.

by Troy A. Hill
Photos by the Author

I’ve recently begun a series that looks at the . This piece will look at some basic rules of the game. All page references are from the Battlegroup Rule Book, hardcover revised edition.

Winning the Game: 

The first question a player asks of any game is: “how do I win” (or lose)? In Battlegroup, there are several ways: controlling all objectives at the end of your opponent’s turn, causing the opposing force to be destroyed or pinned so they cannot use any orders on their next turn, or (as

occurs most often) when your opponent’s Battle Counter Chits sum exceed their force’s Battle Rating.

Battlegroup uses a secret countdown of these Battle Counter tokens as a core mechanic. During the course of the game, players will be required to blindly draw morale “chits” from a bag or cup. These chits range up in value from one to five points each. Typically, there are more of the middle numbers (two and three) than there are ones and fives in the pool of chits. There are also special chits, with beneficial effects for the one who draws them. I will cover these more in a later piece.

Many people understand that the Team Yankee (TY) rules were essentially the Beta version of the Flames of War (FOW) V4 rules. The refinements of the TY rules into V4 were mostly positive.  The frustrations came for players who play both games. The rules were similar enough that players (including me) were often confused as we switched between the rulesets.  We are all used to playing multiple rule sets and keeping them straight. But, when the rules systems are this close to each other, trying to remember if you made a Dash or Tactical Move when breaking off from an assault is difficult to do.

Many were hoping that the new version of the TY rules was going to take TY to V2 and make it rules capable with FOW V4, but that is not going to happen just yet. Instead, TY Early War (‘NAM and Fate of a Nation) is going to start that integration. Early War (EW) for TY means the 1960’s and ’70s.  This makes sense as there was a huge difference between Generation 2 tanks and Generation 3 tanks.  If you are not familiar with the generations of tanks,

I had a chance to play a FOW V4 game with one of my regular opponents, Karl this past week.  My purpose was to test the new formations in the new Armies of Late War (AoLW) book. Ed Sales has written a review of the forces in the book which can be .

Scouting Stuarts prepare for the battle of the century

I knew from looking at the book that it was geared more towards newer players.  And in that respect, it accomplishes its goals well. In others, it falls a bit short. But to be fair, the old Forces book had generic lists as well.  This book was never intended as a points fixing cure-all for LW issues. It was meant to give new players a simplified system for list building, to provide force diagrams, and to give a look at the command cards for LW forces BF is working to put out.