Tanks for Coming! US Armoured Forces

Protection from who Tommy? Ze Shermans?

(Photo Above: This piece of history sits near Juno Beach, M4A4 Sherman with the Duplex Drive propellor add-on)

Right around the corner, we’ve got the two options for running armour in Late War. It’s been a while since the release of the Late War books for V3. In the new book for the American forces in Normandy BattleFront has delivered a collection of lists I think will get people excited about their models that have been collecting dust for a while.

Some chose to wait and see what V4 would bring in the way of options for Late War, book by book and the addition of cards has once again delivered some interesting choices for the US forces. You might have to wait some more to see some of the lists that are part of this era.

Some would say it’s the most popular and that Battlefront have truly saved the best for last, with the addition of the M4 Sherman Tank Company and the M5 Stuart Company, the US forces have something for any scenario. Whether you plan on running either as a strong arm to your infantry formation or getting them on the table as a single force, the two armoured lists out of the new D-Day book has what you need.

The new book includes the M4 Sherman (76mm) Tank Platoon, as well as the M4 Sherman (105mm) Assault Gun Platoon. The 76mm version lacks HE, but has a stabilizer. The 105mm has the rules of Brutal, Slow, Smoke and Smoke Bombardment. You can get three of the 76mm version for 13-pts (+5 pts for each thereafter). The 105mm comes in multiples of two, and begins at 7-pts for the first pair.

Let’s face it, these two pieces of armour will compliment your force on the table. If you don’t look at these options while you’re making your lists, you may as well give your opponent the game. Thick armour needs to have that American heavy AT to take down the big German cats that will be running around the table.

You have the flexibility to use the Semi-Indirect artillery type gun of the 105mm, where the 76mm will pack a punch against most opponents at range. You lose the HE ability with the 76mm, but that’s less of an issue with V4 than it was when V3 was still relevant. You’re getting five tanks for 23 points with a decent moving rate of fire.

If you looked at them like a five-point difference between the unit sizes, they cost about five points per tank, a savings of two points if you stick with the three tank unit. The 105mm unit surprisingly comes in at only 21 points for SIX tanks.

With the 105mm variant, you’re down to one shot each, but with BRUTAL and the ability to fire direct smoke, so you’re not exactly at a disadvantage. I listed these two add-on units on purpose, the Sherman formation without one or the other is doomed for failure, so build around your SUPPORT elements for a change.

Ok. Let’s have a look at the Formation and the few options you get to add-on for the US M4 Sherman Tank Company.

The first thing you notice is the bare bones of choices. Gone are the days of rolling around upgraded tanks as we saw in V3. Instead of paying points to add to already existing units, you are confined to choose a few options when constructing this formation.

With the way it’s been set up in the book, I think most players would run this formation along with another one. There are just not enough choices to ’round out’ running this formation alone. Transitioning from the V3 Overlord book to the new book, you’ll find many of your flexible options like Rifle or Para units, artillery and Tank Destroyers are all gone from the support ranks. You won’t have the numbers to effectively deal with infantry, being unable to assault into buildings will give the other player a clear advantage.

Right, so the meat of this formation is the M4 Sherman, mostly a follow up to the landings. They were quickly moved inland to support infantry and para operations in the days, weeks and months after D-Day. Decent stats with the cost of 7 points for the HQ unit, you need side shots and the smoke is going to be instrumental in helping you achieve that.

Just like the other M4 units, you have the 3+ Last Stand to help in those tough spots. You’ll likely take a few hits and be able to remount. The key to gaining an advantage with this formation is to ensure you make use of smoke, trying for those flank shots will help secure victory for your side. There’s nothing that really jumps off the page and the formation setup is pretty straightforward.

The second and only other armored option in the D-Day book is the Stuart Tank Company. You have the option of adding one Sherman M4 unit as well as the 105mm Sherman platoon to bolster your ranks. The stat lines for the quick Stuart tank are nothing spectacular, it’s a nimble and agile tank bent on moving around the table and securing objectives quickly.

I would use this formation as an add-on to another formation, I don’t think this list alone is viable with some of the lists you could be facing in the coming months. I was never a fan of the Stuart, I opted instead to waited for the Chaffee to be released and pray I will be able to field them (all 15) in the weeks to come.

I know this list used to be very popular among tournament and casual players alike, the speed and support options afforded to this list in the past was worth fearing. With the new releases being pumped out and the great looking casts of this tank, there will be some who will try and make this formation work. Next, we look at the other two units that can be added to either the M4 Sherman or M5 Stuart formation lists.

You have two fairly inexpensive and effective units at your disposal for your armoured formations. The 81mm mortar half-track unit is a little more than I would expect them to cost at the Late War stage for Flames of War.

They would be better served to cost either 1 point or get a bit of a bump in the skill department, mortars operated from a vehicle are quicker to get into ‘crash action’ and can put fire down range fast than an infantry based mortar platoon could. Pay careful attention to REAR FIRING in the notes, the addition of self-defence AA is a nice touch and will keep the enemy infantry teams away when supporting tank units.

Use the smoke, get the enemy pinned down, move around and when you think you’re finished, move some more. The M8 Scott Assault Gun is the second of the additional units you have the ability to add to your formation. With semi-indirect and direct fire smoke, it’s another unit you’ll want to keep away from enemy fire and create a screen between you and the enemy. Look for those side shots if they present themselves, just don’t expect the M8 to do the bulk of your heavy lifting.

Utah Beach 2007

You’ve got options for armour from the new D-Day book, there’s more to come with the next set of books and command cards. You can bet Battlefront is in high gear trying to get out as much new material as possible. If you’re like me and have been sitting on the sidelines for a few months waiting for the Late War books to pick up steam, then I think you’re good to get started. If you are a new player and plan on getting into this great game, look no further than a starter army and the D-Day book.