USA

by Tom Burgess

It always amazed me how many comments I have heard over the last year or so about the “collapse” of the US tournament scene. For sure, Flames of War (FOW) tournament play has declined with Version 4, along with other factors. And though I’m sure FOW has completely dried up in some areas, overall I never felt that the situation was particularly as dire as many have portrayed.

So I did some research to get some actual numbers beyond my own or other’s personal perspectives. Fortunately, US tournament data for the last several years can be easily pulled off of the website, to include its predecessor’s Ranking HQ data. I will share here the data for what its worth. I’ll offer my opinions with it, but I encourage all to make up there own minds on what it all means for the current state and future of the game and our community.

 

I have begun testing various MW Infantry lists and trying to use them as the aggressor/attacker. It is my belief that infantry lists could be played very aggressively and with good effect. To define “infantry list” it means that the majority of the points are put in infantry formations. It is not an “all out infantry list” with no gun teams or vehicles or tanks, nor is it only 1 infantry formation.

I will try to share my knowledge/experiences. Be aware, that it is NOT a “how to”- manual, but simply meant as an inspiration for the readers to develop further, if they are interested in playing infantry lists.

I will use 100 points as my list size. Effects may vary depending on the point size.

By No_Dice_Dane

In January, NDNG looked at the “equalization” of the US Air Defense Artillery protective umbrella resulting from the release of Stripes. That Article :

Stripes has provided the US player with the agile M551 Sheridan. Not realized in the game, the Sheridan was actually deployable by parachute airdrop.

Background:- Post-Vietnam Era

The military had just been through a complete withdrawal from Viet Nam. In the late 70s, Military tacticians went down many dark paths and “learned” wrong lessons from its experience in South East Asia.

In the air, Operation Rolling Thunder bombing Campaign started in March 1965 was supposed to bring the North Vietnamese to the peace talks table.

Instead, it strengthened the resolve of the NVA. North Vietnam did not have much of an air force. As a result of Rolling Thunder, the NVA was able to mount an effective defense against the bombing raids. Using surface-to-air missiles and radar-controlled anti-aircraft artillery, the NVA shot down hundreds of American planes over the course of the bombing campaign. As a result, pilots and aircraft weapon systems operators accounted for the majority of the American prisoners of war who were captured and held by NVA.

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.

By Ed Sales

Hello there! Today we are going to take a look at what Stripes brings to the Tournament Scene. (Spoiler Alert: It’s a game changer.)

There has been a ton of intrigue about what Stripes would bring to the table after Red Thunder came out. If you play Americans, this book helps immensely when you deal with the Red Scourge in competitive play. If you play a USSR or East Germans, be warned, the lists in this book will give you headaches, but you can learn a lot when you see what your opponent might bring to the table.

Stripes brings a new set of tools for the Americans and NATO Allies to wield, in a way that can be used the same way East Germans wield T55s. The M60, at four points a tank, is not as cheap as the T55, but I’d take those over the T55s. More shots and being hit on fours is a good break away from the Abrams which comes in at twice that amount, though the Abrams has a lot more survivability.

 

A lot of people were excited when Stripes came out and finally allowed a NATO ally to fight alongside the U.S. force.  BF quickly came out with modifications to all the force diagrams so everyone could have an Allied Formation even on the Soviet side.

I saw quite a few people on the BF forum misinterpret this change.  Many people harkened back to FoW v3 which allowed you to take a Churchill Flamethrower Platoon as part of a U.S. Infantry Company, for example.  That is not what this new change allows.  If you want another country to fight alongside you, you need to take an entire formation.  So, no you can’t simply add a platoon of rock-hard Leo2’s to beef up your force.  You would have to take a minimum sized company of five Leo2’s coming out to a whopping 55 points.

By Tom Burgess

This article, about the US Army in Stripes, is a follow up to one  I wrote for WWPD.net in late 2017. Though I am much less of an expert on the United States Marine Corps in the mid-1980’s than the US Army, my brother, Brian, and several of my friends served in the USMC during that period. I am grateful for their assistance in writing this article.

First, just let me say that I was both very surprised but extremely pleased that Battlefront added the USMC to Stripes.  For almost a decade, Flames of War gamers had to wait on the Marines being available for WW2 games. It is great to see Battlefront add force options from the 2^nd Marine Division on the front end for Team Yankee.

The recent wildfires in California actually impacted a December Team Yankee tournament hosted by Game Empire in Pasadena, CA. Shipments of the new Stripes book, and new models for the US faction were delayed due to being re-routed around the fires. But, the in-store demo copy gave players enough of a glimpse to see what they might be able to run. A few new units, or upgraded equipment did hit the tables in this tourney.

Kevin and Christian in round 1

There were three US faction players (and a fourth player, in his first tourney with a borrowed list and models that did not use any new units or upgrades). Three Warsaw Pact players ended up in a three-way tie for first. The best showing from a US player was Kevin Morris, tied for fourth with Igor Torgeson (British). I, of course, managed to win a free set of dice to help me improve my win/loss ratio in the next tournament and climb out of last place.