Ayton 2022 Rules

[Paul]

Yes by "Win" I meant scoring highest.

I take it that all players just need to see if a unit is "damaged" rather than the exact numbers lost?

I'll send you a message to avoid clogging up this thread.

[Essex Boy]

Yes by "Win" I meant scoring highest.

I take it that all players just need to see if a unit is "damaged" rather than the exact numbers lost?

I'll send you a message to avoid clogging up this thread.

You're clearly a 'half full' kind of guy, Paul. Andy has been heard to mutter "bollock, that's typical, it's all shite" whether he rolls highest or lowest. He's only really happy if the result of the two rolls is a draw. And on that subject, thanks to a brilliant idea from Paul, henceforth, a drawn result on the dice converts to a lower roll by the side who went first last turn.

That's probably really fecked Andy's day up.

And, fecking use markers so that everyone can see your hits.

E

[garyp]

And, fecking use markers so that everyone can see your hits.

E

I don't have enough!

[Essex Boy]

[Essex Boy]

Today I’m mostly going to be explaining the Brigade Move order, which you’re likely to use quite a lot.

Brigade Move….

So, you’ve indicated which Brigade you wish to activate and done the unit morale and Brigade Cohesion stuff (to be explained another time), the next step is to give an order. Rather than activating one unit at a time, you announce that you will be giving a Brigade Move order.

Before anything else you must say where you wish the Brigade to move to. For example, you might say “the Brigade will move as far as it can to here (indicating the new position)” or “the Brigade will move forward/back/sideways in this direction as far as possible”. Be careful, because if you don’t put a limit on the Brigade’s move you must move the full distance rolled on the movement dice. You should also say whether an unlimbered gun is included in the Order (if you don’t include a gun, you can give it a Unit Order after the Brigade has moved).

*The point of the order is to speed things up. Rather than rolling to move units individually, you roll just once for all of them – and you get a little bonus. You’re basically going to pick the Brigade up and plonk it down, in the same formation, somewhere else. As always, no figure can move further than the movement pips allow.
*You will need an un-activated Leader to lead the Brigade (Leaders will be explained in a future exciting episode). He’ll activate and move with the Brigade.
*You can’t give a Brigade order if any of the Brigade’s units is currently Broken.
*When the order is given, all units must be within 6” of the Leader leading the move, or within 3” of a unit which is within 6” of the Leader. This doesn’t include a unlimbered gun which you’ve chosen to excluded from the order.
*The Brigade is going to move at the rate of the slowest unit, so if you do include an unlimbered gun, that’s going to be a very slow move indeed!
*None of the Brigade’s units can move to within 3” of an enemy unit.
*All units must move in the same direction and maintain their position relative to the Leader when the order was given. Some small adjustment is allowed for obstacles and enemy units.

The distance the Brigade will travel is governed by the dice. Roll the movement dice appropriate to the slowest unit but, unlike the Unit Move order, you reroll ‘1s’ (just the once though). Then you roll the Leader’s bonus D6 and pick the two dice you prefer – totting up the pips (doubling for cavalry) gives you the movement distance. All the rules for terrain and passing through friendly units apply (to be explained another time). The odds are that you’ll move slightly further and more consistently using a Brigade Move Order than you would by giving individual Unit Move orders.

[Essex Boy]

So, a very quick summary of the Move Order and the Fire Order.

You've activated the Brigade and done the Morale and Brigade Cohesion stuff. Now you pick one of the Brigade's units to activate. You point out the selected unit to your opponent.

The Move Order

The unit isn't Broken so you don't have to Rally it. So, you could order it to do nothing or to fire, or you could attempt to have men Return to the Colours or you could have it rapidly retreat to safety (controlled running away). Instead, you decide to have it change from a column to a line and move to it's left. And that's what you tell your opponent "I'm ordering this unit to Move. It will form line facing left and moving to here (indicating the new position)".

With the exception of heavy guns and manhandling, movement is always based on 2D6. The unit is light infantry so it rolls 3D6 and discards 1D6 of choice. Totting up the pips gives the move distance in inches. Before you roll though, you realise that you may need a little help to get the required pips. There's no Leader within 6" of the unit so it doesn't automatically gain the Leader's bonus D6. So, you decide to activate the previously un-activated Brigadier and move him closer. You tell the opponent what you want to do and then roll the Leader's movement dice (3D6, pick two and double the pips). Loads of movement.

Now the Leader's close enough to give his bonus, so you roll 4D6. That's the unit's 3D6 and the Leaders bonus D6. You pick two of the dice and tot up the pips.

There's no deduction for changing formation or facing. The only condition is that no figure of the unit can move further than the pips rolled. You move your unit with that in mind.

The Fire Order

There's no premeasuring but you're convinced that the unit beside the unit you just moved is within long range (12") of an enemy line unit. "This unit will shoot at your unit there" you tell your opponent.

You measure from the centre front rank of your unit to the closest visible figure of the enemy unit - 10", so you can shoot. Unfortunately, not all of your unit's figures have the enemy within a 45 degree arc, so your unit counts as obscured.

Your unit is undamaged line infantry. That's 9D6 when shooting. The basic chance of a hit is 4+ pips, but you must deduct 1 pip from each D6 for shooting at long range (over 6") and another because part of the unit is obscured. In effect then, you'll have to roll a '6' to hit. You roll and get two sixes. Your opponent can attempt to 'save' these hits. Rolling 1D6 per hit needing 4+ pips to succeed. If his unit had been behind cover the chance of success would increase. As it happens, he saves one hit, the other is marked against the unit.

Stay tuned.

E

[Count Belisarius]

So you can activate a leader at ANY time? Even during the activation of another unit?

[Essex Boy]

Yep. Well spotted.

From the very start to the very end of the Brigade's activation, it's Leaders can themselves be activated at any time. So a Leader can, for instance, give a charge movement bonus because he's within 6" of the charging unit when the player orders it to charge, then activate and follow the unit to give it a bonus in the melee.

Or, he could activate and gallop over to a unit which has to take morale ......morale is tested first, even before any orders are given.

A Brigade's Leaders are: the Brigadier, the Major General of the Division of which the Brigade is part, and the over all CinC (the General). Each Leader can only be activated once per turn. So when you activate them, and where you place them for the next turn is crucial.

E

[Paul]

So that means that there's potentially a big command advantage to basing your units on smaller bases and reducing the frontage? In that a Brigadier could more easily run from one side of the Brigade to the other and boost everyone's movement.

[Count Belisarius]

Or he could just issue a brigade order and do that anyway?