Command Assets and 'Out of Command' Squads

GypsyComet

Emperor Mongoose
We're just getting up to speed on WaW locally and ran into a question. Well, several questions, but this one stuck out. It may be that our using 15mm made this more likely than it would be in 20mm or larger, since the troops tend to be closer packed in 15mm because it looks right.

The situation was of a Command Squad in cover behind a ruined tank (FoW Wrecked Crusader II, if you need the visual) while one of their associated Rifle Squads was advancing between the wreck and the next piece of cover over (a JR Minis supply dump). The Rifle Squad gets chewed up by enemy fire and very shortly is (internally) leaderless and below half strength, but is never outside of the Command Squad leader's command radius. With slightly different cover circumstances this also happened to the other side.

Can the Command Squad do anything about their own platoon? The section on being Out of Control mentions that some leader models have special rules for this, and I've seen the Soviet Commissar, but the idea that platoon command has no actual command effect on its constituent squads seems rather odd.

Are we missing something?
 
GypsyComet said:
The section on being Out of Control mentions that some leader models have special rules for this, ...
That is a reference to the Independent trait. And yes that only applies to the NKVD officer.
 
Nope, the ability to call in artillery strikes is "Commanding", or?
:wink:
Anyway, my initial writeup included the old Command trait (may give a 3rd action...). I have also recently rewritten it for the next Gear Krieg book.

Add +50 points to the Command unit and your Command squad may benefit from this trait!
 
A third action? That would turn a lot of the smaller artillery pieces (like anti-tank guns) really nasty. It IS what the Soviets were depicted as doing with their small field pieces (hoof the gun forward a bit, seat it, and fire it), but it seems a bit much even if you have to burn a Ready on the prior turn to pull it off.

"What's that they just rolled out?"

boom. SPANG!

"Anti-tank gun!"

---

You just can't get that element of surprise with two actions a turn.

In any case, I was thinking more of a leadership proxy function. Not quite the "mob up" of the NKVD Officer, but more of a partial mitigation of the effects of losing the squad/team command figure if the squad's survivors are close enough to the Command Squad's Lt or Master Sgt. (adjust for nationality as needed). What that distance would be is not obvious, though. 6 inches? 9 inches? 12 inches?

This game is brutal on infantry...
 
GypsyComet said:
A third action? That would turn a lot of the smaller artillery pieces (like anti-tank guns) really nasty. It IS what the Soviets were depicted as doing with their small field pieces (hoof the gun forward a bit, seat it, and fire it), but it seems a bit much even if you have to burn a Ready on the prior turn to pull it off.
That is the reason why it was not included in the rules, and my version of the Command trait for Gear Krieg is tuned down a bit exactly for that reason too...

As far as your ideas :idea: are concerned, try them in your games and let us all know! 8)
 
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