Contents 1. Introduction 1.1. System requirements 1.2. Installing the Game 1.3. Uninstalling the Game 1.4. Product Updates, Bonus Content and Registering your Game 1.5. Re-downloading your Game 1.6. Game Forums 1.7. Technical Support 1.8. Starting a New Game 1.9. Multiplayer 1.10. Options 1.11. Scenarios and Campaigns 1.12. The Action Bar
7 8 9 9 9 11 12 15 15
3. General Game Concepts 3.1. Units 3.2. Counters
31 31 32
2. Quick Start 2.1. Getting Started 2.2. Moving Stuff 2.3. Attacking 2.4. Turn Two 2.5. Don’t You Forget About Me 2.6. Spotting the Enemy 2.7. Melee Combat 2.8. When Opportunity Knocks 2.9. Smoke ‘Em if You Got ‘Em 2.10. Rally ‘Round the Flag 2.11. The Battle Continues…
5 6 6 7
16 16 17 22 25 27 27 28 29 30 31 31
3.3. 3.4. 3.5. 3.6.
Dice Stacking Half-Hexes Morale
4. Support Weapons and Weapon Teams 4.1. Support Weapons 4.2. Tripod Machine Guns 4.3. Flamethrowers and Satchel Charges 4.4. Molotov Cocktails 4.5. Weapon Teams 5. Sequence of Play 5.1. Rally Phase 5.2. Operations Phase 5.3. Administrative Phase
6. Fire Combat 6.1. Leaders and Their Influence on Attacks 6.2. Direct Fire Table (DFT) Results 6.3. Multiple Attacking Units 6.4. Opportunity Fire 6.5. Extended Range 6.6. Flanking Fire 7. Movement 7.1. Assault Movement 7.2. Double-time 7.3. Low Crawl 7.4. Stealth Movement
34 34 34 34
35 36 37 37 38 39 40 40 42 46 46 47 48 50 50 52 52
8. Smoke
52 55 56 56 56
9. Melee Combat 9.1. Locked Units 9.2. Reinforcing a Melee 9.3. Zero-Firepower and M-Rated MMCs
58 60 61 62
57
10. Line of Sight and Spotting 10.1. Spotting 10.2. Hills and Buildings 10.3. Figuring Line of Sight (LOS) 10.4. Terrain Characteristics
62 63 65 65 67
12. Skill Cards
68 68 69 70 71 72 72 73 73 74
13. Ordnance 13.1. Hits on Unarmored Vehicles 13.2. Non-Penetrating Hits 13.3. Angle and Point of Impact 13.4. Special Ammunition 13.5. Target Acquisition
74 77 77 78 79 79
11. Single Man (or Woman) Counters 11.1. Leaders 11.2. Heroes 11.3. Medics 11.4. Snipers 11.5. Scouts 11.6. Armor Leaders 11.7. Soviet Commissars 11.8. Nurses
14. Vehicles 14.1. Vehicle Counters Explained 14.2. Vehicle Facing and Movement 14.3. Assault Movement in Vehicles 14.4. Overruns 14.5. Vehicle Crews
15. Passengers 15.1. Passengers Riding Inside 15.2. Passengers Riding Outside 15.3. Passengers of Abandoned Vehicles 15.4. Mounting and Dismounting
80 80 82 83 83 85 85 85 86 87 88 3
16. Infantry and Artillery vs . Vehicles 16.1. Close Assault 16.2. Small-Arms Fire vs. Armored Vehicles 16.3. Small-Arms Fire vs. Unarmored Vehicles 16.4. Mortars and Artillery vs. Armored Vehicles 17. Indirect Fire 17.1. Onboard Mortars 17.2. Off-board Artillery
90 90 92 94 95 95 95 96
18. Night Combat 18.1. Ordnance Attacks During Night Scenarios 18.2. Melee During Night Scenarios 18.3. Star Shells
99 99 99 100
20. National Characteristics for Lock ‘n Load 20.1. German Forces 20.2. Soviet Forces
102 102 103
19. Fortifications 19.1. Foxholes 19.2. Wire 19.3. Trenches 19.4. Railroad Tracks
21. Fixed-Wing Aircraft 21.1. Machine Guns and Bombs 22. Glossary
player’s reference
100 101 101 101 102
105 106 108 111
Credits 117
1. Introduction The Lock ‘n Load franchise comes to the PC with Lock ‘n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad. Designed by Mark H. Walker and programmed by elements of the team responsible for bringing you Panzer General Online, Heroes of Stalingrad remains faithful to Lock’ ‘n Load’s ease of play and immersive format, while incorporating all the advantages of playing on your computer. The game features two, branching campaigns. One that is playable from the Soviet side and one from the German point of view. The campaigns are story driven, using graphic noveltype panels to propel the plot. A turn-based game, Heroes of Stalingrad retains Lock ‘n Load’s engaging impulse system while adding features, such as flanking fire, hidden units, and residual machine gun fire, that would just be too fiddly for the boardgame. In each campaign gamers will not only need their tactical wits as the fight company-sized battles in, and on the approaches to, Stalingrad, but will also need to manage their troops in the campaign interface. It is in the campaign interface that they decide who to take into to battle, how to spend their precious resource points, and whether to lead a tank-heavy for, vulnerable to enemy infantry in the streets of Stalingrade, or a less mobile, infantry only, contingent. Heroes of Stalingrad ships with 12 stand alone missions for those who want to jump right in to the fighting. There are bridge seizures, Partisan ambushes, and even a reprisal of several of the scenarios from Lock ‘n Load Publishing’s Not One Step Back. 5
1.1. System requirements Please ensure your system meets the minimum requirements listed below. 1.1.1. Minimum Requirements OS: Windows XP SP3, Vista, 7, 8 CPU: 1GHz RAM: 1GB Video/Graphics: DirectX 9.0c+ Video Card Sound: DirectX 9 Supported Hard disk space: 2GB DVD-Rom: Yes, for physical version only DirectX version: 9.0c Peripheral hardware: Mouse, Keyboard Internet Connection for Multiplayer++
1.1.2. Recommended Requirements OS: Windows XP SP3, Vista, 7, 8 CPU: 2GHz Dual Core RAM: 2GB Video/Graphics: 256MB DirectX 9.0c+ Dedicated Video Card
1.2. Installing the Game
To install the game, insert the game DVD disc into your DVD drive. If you have disabled the Autorun function on your DVD or if you are installing from a digital download, navigate to the DVD or download file location, double-click on the installation file, and if it is a zip archive, then double click on the executable (exe) file that is shown inside the archive. The correct file name will normally include the words “SetupRelease”. Follow all onscreen prompts to complete the installation. 6
1.3. Uninstalling the Game Please use the Add/Remove Programs or Programs and Features option from the Windows Control Panel or the “Uninstall” link in the game’s Windows START menu to uninstall the game. Uninstalling through any other method will not properly uninstall the game.
1.4. Product Updates, Bonus Content and Registering your Game
In order to maintain our product excellence, Matrix Games releases updates containing new features, enhancements, and corrections to any known issues. All our updates are available free on our website and can also be downloaded quickly and easily by clicking on the “Check for Updates” link in your Game Menu or by using the “Update Game” shortcut in your Windows START menu folder for the game. We also periodically make beta (preview) updates and other content available to registered owners. Keeping up with these special updates is made easy and is free by signing up for a Matrix Games Member account. When you are signed up, you can then register your Matrix Games products in order to receive access to these bonus game-related materials. Follow this process: 1. Sign Up for a Matrix Games Member account: THIS IS A ONE TIME PROCEDURE; once you have signed up for a Matrix account, you are in the system and will not need to sign up again. Go to www.matrixgames.com and click the Members hyperlink at the top. In the new window, select Register NOW and follow the onscreen instructions. When you’re finished, click the Please Create My New Account button, and a confirmation e-mail will be sent to your specified e-mail account. 7
2. Register a New Game Purchase – Once you have signed up for a Matrix Games Member account, you can then register any Matrix Games title you own in your new account. To do so, log in to your account on the Matrix Games website (www.matrixgames.com). Click “Register Your Game” near the top of the menu in the Members Club to register your new Matrix Games purchase. We strongly recommend registering your game as it will give you a backup location for your serial number should you lose it in the future. Once you’ve registered your game, when you log in to the Members section you can view your list of registered titles by clicking My Games. Each game title is a hyperlink that will take you to an information page on the game (including all the latest news on that title). Also on this list is a Downloads for Registered Games hyperlink that takes you to a page that has all the latest public and registered downloads, including patches, for your registered titles. You can also access patches and updates via our “Latest Downloads” section (http://www.matrixgames. com/products/latestdownloads.asp).
1.5. Re-downloading your Game
If you were logged into your Members Club account when you purchased your game, it will be automatically registered and you can access an automatic re-download link by going to http://www.matrixgames.com/members/myorders.asp or using the “My Orders” link in the Members Club. If your download does not show up there, you can contact our Help Desk at http://www.matrixgames.com/support/ to receive a new download link. This process generally takes one business day, but is often faster during normal work hours. 8
1.6. Game Forums Our forums are one of the best things about Matrix Games. Every game has its own forum with our designers, developers and the gamers playing the game. If you are experiencing a problem, have a question or just an idea on how to make the game better, post a message there. Go to http://www. matrixgames.com and click on the Forums hyperlink.
1.7. Technical Support
Should you have a technical problem with the game, the best way to get help is to post a note in the Technical Support subforum of the main game forum at http://www.matrixgames. com/forums. You’ll then hear back from either our Matrix Games Staff, the development team, or from one of the many helpful players of the game. This is usually the fastest way to get help. Alternatively, you can contact our Help Desk at http:// www.matrixgames.com/support/ . Support requests will generally be answered within 24 hours, except on weekends or national holidays.
1.8. Starting a New Game
To begin a new game of Lock ‘n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad start the program and then select “New Game” from the opening menu. You will then be given the choice of either playing an individual scenario or a complete new campaign, which is a series of linked scenarios in which units that survive each scenario continue in the next scenario until the campaign’s conclusion. To play a scenario, choose “New Scenario” from the menu, and, after reading the descriptions of each, select one and then select “Start” at the bottom of the screen. Then select what side you will play, what side the computer (or another human player) will play, and select “Begin” at the bottom of the screen. 9
To play a campaign, go through the same procedure using the choices from the campaign menu. 1.8.1. Loading Saved Games
To resume a saved game, select “Load Game” from the opening-screen menu; find your save in the list and select it (in the screenshot below, the selected file is called “partisan save.sav.”) then select “Load” at the bottom of the screen. 10
1.9. Multiplayer Starting and joining multiplayer games in Lock ‘n Load (LnL) is a straightforward process. First, each player needs an active Slitherine.com account. If you do not have one, go to Slitherine.com and register for your account by clicking “Login” in the upper right-hand corner and then select “Sign up here.” Once you have your credentials in hand, start the game and click “Multiplayer” from the opening screen. At the prompt, enter your Slitherine login and password, as above; this will then take you to the Multiplayer Lobby. Once in the lobby, in the left-hand column, you should see your Slitherine login name, along with other players currently online who may be seeking an opponent. Click on any of the names in the lobby and then click “Whisper” to send them a message. Once you have worked out the details with that person about playing a game, click “Create Game” at the top 11
of the screen. You will then plug in whatever scenario and side that you agreed upon with our opponent (and note that next to your name in the left-hand column there is now an icon indicating you have created a game), click on your opponent’s name, then select “Invite”; once they have accepted your invitation, the game begins. Enjoy! Also note that any incompatibilities between game versions will be shown here as well; playing an opponent using a different version of the game will most likely cause it to crash. Any games you are currently playing will be listed by clicking “Current Games.” the second tab at the top of the lobby screen. Select a game and re-invite your opponent once you are both online and in the lobby. Lastly, leave messages for your opponents about times to meet online to resume hostilities, and start a new match, etc., in the Forum, the third tab at the top of the screen.
1.10. Options
Select “Options” from the opening-screen menu to find settings that you can use to fine-tune gameplay to your taste, from music, sound levels and game difficulty to pop-up info levels and various graphic choices, such as the size of the button icons The game defaults to an automatic setting for all these options; as you get to know the game better, feel free to change them to suit your gameplay style. The options are: Difficulty: Pick from Normal or Hard. Hard is intended for experienced and expert LnL players. Normal gives the player some advantages over the AI. Hard levels the playing field. Master Sound Volume: Starts at 50%; adjust as desired. Music: On/Off 12
Ambient Sound Effects: On/Off Button Icons: Small or Large; this affects the size of the buttons in then Action Bar. Die Results Timer/Show Die Results: Increases or decreases the time that the die roll is shown; the default setting is “Hold,” which means you need to click the spacebar to move farther into the phase. You can also set this not to show the die results at all. Scrolling Die Results: If set to “Off” (the default), the dice are rolled on the screen and there is an automatic pause after each roll. If set to “On,” the roll results are shown in a text summary on the left-hand side information. Condensed Scrolling: If set to “Off” (the default), all the modifiers and other details that are part of each result are listed. If set to “On,” modifiers are summarized and the results are condensed. Show Clouds On/Off: Turning this to “Off” might help system performance. Melee Art On/Off: This determines whether additional action art is shown during melee resolution. Move Cost Shown Yes/No: Default is set to “Yes;” when on, this indicates the movement cost as plotted by a unit, as per sections 2.2 and 7.0, below. Counter Peek All/Enemies/None: Controls whether some, all, or none of the stacked unit counters “scoot” when hovered over on the map to show all the units in that stack. Auto Rally Phase On/Off: If set to “On,” the computer will begin the rally all possible Shaken units and take in to account all the bonuses given them by any applicable Leaders. If set to “Off,” this must be done manually by the player. 13
Auto End Impulse On/Off: If set to “On,” the computer will automatically end an impulse after the last pass; if set to “Off,” this must be confirmed by the player. Auto-select Stacked On/Off: If set to “On,” the computer will automatically select all the units in a stack. If set to “Off,” the player must select any units in that stack. Counter Pop-up Info On/Off: If set to “On,” hovering a mouse over a unit in the Unit Display Panel will revel important statistics such as Morale, Leadership and Movement in the case of a Leader; Firepower, Range, Movement and Morale in the case of a squad; and a vast array of vehicle data such as Firepower, Movement, Range, Morale, Armor thickness by facing, Ordnance data, maximum passenger loads, and more. If set to “Off,” the pop-up will just reveal the name of the Leader/squad/ vehicle, etc.
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1.11. Scenarios and Campaigns New players should start their Lock ‘n Load experience by playing through the tutorial scenarios first, as they introduce the basics of movement, fire combat, melee, and squad management. After the completion of the tutorials, start with a small scenario such as “Partisan Defense.” As you gain experience in the game’s mechanics, try playing some of the larger scenarios until you have worked your way up to taking on either of the two campaigns. Feel free to adjust the difficulty as needed in the Options screen (see above).
1.12. The Action Bar
The Action Bar is the set of icons at the bottom of the screen arrayed in two rows, starting at the upper left with the “Move” icon; these buttons allow you to issue orders and actions to your units. If a certain action is not available to that selected unit, the icon will be dimmed, or grayed out, and is not clickable. Actions that are available to that unit are not dimmed/grayed out, and when the mouse is placed over them they become outlined in yellow.
For example, in the screenshot above, the selected squad at the current time could Move, Low Crawl, make a Spotting attempt (the Ops Complete button), attempt to lay Smoke, or use the Line of Sight (LOS) tool or check the Victory Conditions display. Keep in mind that as an impulse progresses, more actions may become available! Each of the Actions in the Action Bar is described in more detail later in the manual. 15
2. Quick Start You’re just a few clicks away from being right in the middle of the action! Grab your rifle and follow along.
2.1. Getting Started
At the main menu, click “New Game,” then click “New Scenario.” From the available scenarios, choose “A Partisan Defense.” Read the scenario synopsis, make sure the German side is set to the Human player, then click “Begin!” at the bottom of the screen. The AI rolls for initiative at the beginning of each turn, indicating which side goes first. Using the mouse cursor or the arrow keys, scan the board to locate your units’ positions and possible enemy positions. Use the mouse wheel or the +/ – keys to zoom in or out. While there are no enemy units visible to start, the hexes you need to capture are pulsating with a white glow, and displayed in the top right of the screen (press “V” to remove the window) These are the factory at hexes D4, E3, F3, G2 and the open hex at K4. The enemy units will reveal themselves soon enough. It is important to note that because of the vagaries and randomness of combat in LnL—for example, whether the enemy passes his Spotting roll to see some of your units—it is very difficult to lay out a scenario, step-by-step, and have it happen every time in a way that we could put down here. So, should the action commence before it does below, or not at all, or in a different, unexpected way, you may need to either jump ahead a section or two in the Quick Start or back up. It’s simply impossible to gaze too far in the crystal ball—but that’s what makes the LnL system so dynamic. 16
2.1.1. The Rally Phase The game begins with the Rally Phase, but since neither you nor your enemy begin the game with units that need to be rallied, the game will advance to the Operations Phase (to see what phase you are in, just look at the box in the upper lefthand corner). More on the Rally Phase later.
2.1.2. Operations Phase The Operations Phase, which is where the bulk of the game occurs, functions through an impulse system: players alternate impulses, during which they activate friendly units in one hex at a time, per impulse, or pass. To check the (friendly or enemy) units in a stack, click on that stack. For example, click on the stack in hex L8 led by Lt. Koch: a yellow border now outlines the hex, and the units in that hex—Lt. Koch, his two accompanying Pioneer Squads, and their Support Weapons—appear in the Activation Box at the lower right side of the screen. The default is for all units in a clicked hex to be activated; activated Squads are surrounded by a red border in the Activation Box. To deactivate these units, move the cursor over each of them and click; the red square will appear or disappear depending on how many times you click. If you change your mind, it’s OK; just click any unit you wish to deactivate, or click “Unselect All.”
2.2. Moving Stuff
Once you’ve activated all the units in Lt. Koch’s stack in L8, hover your mouse over one of squads. A small menu of the unit’s capabilities will appear. Let’s get these troops moving. A Movement Factor (MF) is the total number of Movement Points (MPs) a unit, or stack
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of units, has. The stack’s MF (in this case, 6) appears in the upper-right corner of the Activation Box. Next, rightclick on the hex you want the stack to Move to, in this case the building at M5, and a white arrow will appear showing you the route to the target hex and the MPs needed to get there. The white arrow indicates that you have enough MPs to reach the hex; a red arrow will appear if you don’t. Click on a hex at a range of eight or nine hexes away to see how this works. Both arrows will be traced back to the stack. In this case, the arrow remains white, but the reality is that while Lt. Koch, who has a MF of 6, could reach that building, but his Squads, which only have MFs of 4, could not if they were on their own. However, and this point is extremely important: Lt. Koch increases their movement to 6 when they all move together. Try selecting just a Squad without the Leader and testing how far it could go. Let’s keep our stack together and move into cover in the building in M5, but instead of walking down the street, let’s use the row of buildings as cover. Click the stack, make sure all the units are selected, and right-click on hex M7. To confirm the Move, right-click a second time on the destination hex; the stack will then move out. Upon entering M7, because your stack still has MPs left, you can keep moving as long as 18
you have more MPs or you haven’t taken damage or been Shaken as a result of enemy fire. Let’s keep moving your Pioneers and Lt. Koch north into the building at M5. You should end your turn as the screenshot below shows; note that due to the vagaries of combat and the route you decided to take, you may have encountered the enemy (hint: the enemy can see your troops easily in open hexes like the road in L6 and L7, but moving through a building is much stealthier). Did you notice when you moved away from Koch’s initial hex that the hexes surrounding his starting point were shaded green? This is the game reminding you that because Koch is a Leader, you can also activate—during this impulse—any units that started the impulse adjacent to him (in one of those greenshaded hexes). This is a very important attribute and rule; remember that normally you can only activate one hex worth of units per impulse, so it is easy to see how this Leader ability can be very important under fire. To complete the impulse, click “Finished,” or press the Enter key. Again, remember that units that become Shaken or Wounded during Movement must stop in that hex; they cannot continue. If Lt. Koch or some of his Squads were Shaken or took casualties, they’ll remain in that hex until they can be Rallied. Assuming you survived any Opportunity Fire and completed your move, note that the stack also has a Moved marker on it to indicate that its units have completed their action for this turn. 19
Note: if you don’t want your unit(s) to move to the designated hex the way the AI indicates it will move it, right-click on a hex different from the hex you want your unit(s) to end up in and move them there first, then, with your remaining MPs, finish the move to your desired destination. Do this if you think the AI’s movement route will subject your units to Opportunity Fire, etc. This is why we moved to M7 and then M6 in two onehex moves.
After finishing the initial impulse, with Lt. Koch and his Squads, it was the AI’s impulse; if you moved Koch through the buildings on the way to M5, the AI may not have spotted any of your units, so it may pass. Of course, if you took a different route or activated a different group, or enemy units have spotted units of yours that haven’t moved yet, your results may be different. Sometimes it’s better to keep a low profile when you move. To Low Crawl, follow the same steps as those for Movement, except click on “Low Crawl” in the Action Bar at the bottom of the screen. Units that Low Crawl can only move one hex per impulse, but they will remain unspotted unless they are in open terrain, adjacent to an unshaken enemy unit, or are successfully spotted by a spotting attempt. Let’s move the Squad in I5 towards its eventual destination hex of H4 using Low Crawl to hex I4, then click “Finished.” 20
Note that in this scenario, only Lt. Koch, his Pioneer Squads, and Lt. Wurtz in H6 are capable of Assault Movement (Leaders and Heroes can always Assault Move). Squads that can Assault Move are designated by a red square over the Movement Factor on their counter. This action is accomplished by following the same steps as those for Movement and Low Crawl. Select the units, click on the Assault Move button in the Action Bar and right click twice on your destination to move. Assault Movement allows units to move up to half their Movement Factor (or half a Leader’s MF if in the same stack) and still fire in the same impulse or in a later impulse. Assuming at this point that there are no enemy units spotted, let’s move some more of our guys forward. If we can possibly end an impulse in cover instead of in the open, that’s a good thing, so let’s move one of our Squads with an MG 34 in K7 over to assist Lt. Koch. Note that without Koch in their hex, they don’t have the movement boost Koch’s men did; they only have a MF of 4. This is, however, enough to get them to cover in M6. So select one of the MG 34-possessing Squads and move it towards M6... There’s a good chance when the unit hits the Road in L7 that they may get fired upon by Partisans in the Building at hex M3. If they were fired upon, what was the result? Are they Shaken or did they take Casualties? If so, they have stopped in their tracks and are done for this impulse. However, we now have targets; if the first Squad to cross to M6 didn’t draw 21
fire, try moving the second Squad from K7 there; odds are, one of them will draw the interest of a trigger-happy Partisan. For more on Movement, see Section 7.
2.3. Attacking
OK, let’s get some fire on those Partisans who so foolishly opened up on our lads. In order to fire at an enemy unit, that unit must first be spotted, which the Partisans in M3 are because they fired, and are thus under a Fired marker. Enemy units that are in open terrain, under a Moved, Fired or Assault Move marker, or adjacent to a Good Order friendly unit are considered spotted and can be fired upon. Select the unmoved Squad in hex K7 (this assumes the Partisans opened up on your first Squad; if they didn’t and you had to move both, the Partisans will have to wait until next turn). It has LOS to the Partisans and its MG 34 is well within range. Left-click on the hex with the Partisans in it; you will notice that the cursor changes to a crosshair as you hover your mouse over the target hex and gives you a very valuable percentage likelihood of effective fire. Just to highlight the efficacy of the MG 34 as a Support Weapon, click the MG 34 in the Activation Box to de-select it, and once again hover your mouse over the target. You will see that that the percentage of effective fire has dropped from 28% with the MG 34 to just 4% without it. Re-select the MG 34 and click on the hex to attack the Partisan units in it. The AI computes the results of the combat, and depending on how well your side and their side rolled, the results could be anywhere from No Effect to Shaken or various levels of Casualties or damage. In our case, we rolled well; one Partisan was Wounded and the other has been Shaken. Your results, as they say, may differ. For more on Fire Combat, see Section 6. 22
2.3.1. Indirect Fire 101 Let’s see how those Partisans react to a little mortar fire, shall we? Select the 50mm Mortar Weapon Team in hex I7 and leftclick on the Partisans; no joy. Our team does not have either LOS to the target OR a Leader with LOS to the target who could call in the mortar fire using the Call Onboard Mortar Fire action (Lt. Koch is in a good position to do so next turn, but has completed his turn already). We can check the Mortar Weapon Team’s LOS using the LOS String Tool in the Action Bar. When using the LOS String Tool, click on another hex to check LOS from that hex. Given that we can’t attack the hex with the Partisans in it using direct fire, let’s hunker down and prepare to use the Mortar Weapon Team next turn if we can spot the Partisans then. Another possibility is that the Mortar Weapon Team has been spotted and fired upon, and may have been Shaken or eliminated. See Rally ‘Round the Flag, farther down in the Quick Start Guide, for possible solutions in this regard. 23
2.3.2. Staying On Task Four of the five victory hexes in this scenario are in the factory building to the north, so it needs to be the focus of our effort. We’ve started one rifle Squad in the direction via Low Crawl; let’s get Lt. Wurtz and his two Squads in to an overwatch in the stone building in F5, which will provide good cover and an excellent vantage point to our objectives; move them there now using the same methods you have used before.
Contact! In all likelihood, Partisans in the factory didn’t take kindly to your appearance across the road. Most likely, their Opportunity Fire had no effect, but there is no certainty in war. Once you have arrived in the hex, you are done with the impulse; click “Finished.” Instead of passing, as it has been doing, the AI might take this opportunity to fire at Lt. Wurtz and his troops from other areas nearby, revealing the firing units to you. 24
Once they have fired, we can assess more of the nature of the enemy. Click on any enemy stack or unit to see more about that hex’s occupants. For example, clicking on hex D4, as long as they have indeed fired at you (sorry for the spoiler if not), shows the Soviet Partisan Leader Elana and two Squads of Partisans. By this time, we’ve moved or fired all our units except the Medic in J8 who could help us rally Shaken units or heal Wounded Leaders or Heroes. He’s under cover and unspotted, and hopefully no one needs his services yet (but if you do have Shaken or Wounded units, feel free to move the Medic to their hex so that he can help them in the next Rally Phase), so let’s leave him be, and click “Pass” in the lower right-hand corner, and keep clicking it until we get through three Passes. Again, the way this turn has played out for you may be quite a bit different from what was laid out here. If so, using the sections of the Quick Start Guide that apply to your situation is just as relevant a way to learn the game as any other; feel free to roll with whatever proverbial punches the AI has thrown your way, and keep pushing forward.
2.4. Turn Two
All that passing above will lead to Turn 2, and the computer will roll for initiative again. Depending on who wins this roll, Elana and her group may fire first, at a spotted hex; a completely new unit may move and become spotted; or, if we win the initiative,
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it falls on us to strike first. Regardless, we see reinforcements have arrived in hex M7: an armored car! Before we rub our hands together in glee over the arrival of our first vehicle unit, let’s see if we can scare up some targets. Even though we now have LOS to hexes that we know contain the enemy, because it is a new turn and they haven’t fired and aren’t adjacent to one of our units and aren’t in an openterrain hex, they are unspotted. You can tell they have not been spotted because their counters are shadowed. Time to move that armored car into the thick of things; select it, click “Assault Move” (vehicles can also do this), and let’s move it up the road toward J6. What will happen? Odds are, at the very least, the Partisans in M3 will once again rear their heads. Though we hope their rounds will ping harmlessly off of the vehicle, there is no surety of this, especially if they are in range and choose to fire their antitank rifle. But you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, right? Notice that those Partisans’ counters are no longer shadowed—they are open game for anyone with LOS to them. Never ones to leave well enough alone, we also moved the armored car two hexes to the northwest to hex J4, where a heretofore unseen Partisan appeared from hiding and fired upon it, leaving it Shaken. Feel free to return fire if you can, as 26
Assault Move will allow your armored car to fire after moving (in fact, it gets two shots as shown by the “2X” on the counter).
2.5. Don’t You Forget About Me
Remember the Mortar Weapon Team from last turn? It’s time to quit talking about firing it and do it. The Partisans in M3 who fired at the armored car are prime targets. Use Lt. Koch’s ability to Call Onboard Mortar Fire (the “Fire for Effect” button in the Action Bar) and drop some 50mm Mortar rounds on that hex! While it was emotionally gratifying to think of our rounds finding their target, sadly, our rolls show No Effect; perhaps you did better. Note, also, that hex M3 is now under a Fire For Effect marker, meaning any unit, friendly or foe, that enters that hex this turn is subject to an attack from that mortar barrage.
2.6. Spotting the Enemy
Spotting attempts are done against unspotted hexes. Enemy units in an unspotted hex are shadowed. Spotting attempts do not count as an impulse, but only one attempt can be made per friendly impulse. Spotting requires the same steps as the other available actions. For example, click on Lt. Wurtz in hex F5, then choose just his counter (by Shift-clicking the counter) in the Activation Box to activate just him. Select Spot Hex from the Action Bar; your cursor will change in to an arrow. Hovering the mouse in this mode over a hex will also give you a percentage likelihood of the spotting attempt’s success. Go ahead and click Elana’s hex, D4. A die roll will ensue. To spot a degrading-terrain hex requires a roll of three or less; to a spot blocking-terrain hex requires a roll of two or less. One is added to the spotter’s die roll for every hex of degrading terrain its LOS passes through 27
en route to the target hex. Leadership modifiers are subtracted from spotting-attempt die rolls, which means your Leaders usually make the best spotters. Units that fail a spotting attempt are marked with an Ops (Operations) Complete marker. If the spotting unit is successful it, and any other units it is stacked with, can fire at the enemy unit(s) in the now-spotted hex. Use Lt. Wurtz’s two Squads to fire on Elana’s hex, assuming it has been spotted. For more on Spotting, see Section 10.
2.7. Melee Combat
Melee combat is an effective tactic. In Melee, both the attacker and the defender roll, but not in an opposed die roll, as they do in regular Fire combat. To enter Melee, a unit must first move into an enemy-occupied hex. To do this, follow the steps as stated above. Remember the Squad we Low Crawled last turn? Well, it is right across the Road from that Partisan Half-squad that tried to shoot up our armored car, and it’s payback time. Move the
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Squad into the Partisan unit’s hex, K3. Melee combat will ensue. A Melee screen will appear. Be sure to activate not just your 1-6-4 Squad but their MG 34 Support Weapon, too. You can toggle the MG 34’s activation status by clicking on it, and the Squad’s Firepower will alter from 1 to 3, depending on whether or not it has been activated. The Melee odds will alter as well. In this Melee, the Germans have 3:1 odds, and in our specific case that proved to be enough to do the job. Click the “OK” button to move through the Melee resolution. If the attacker survives and the defender is eliminated, or vice-versa, the surviving unit(s) remains in the hex under a Melee marker, which prohibits enemy fire into the hex for the rest of the turn. If both the attacker and the defender survive, they remain in the hex under a Melee marker. Friendly or enemy units can reinforce the Melee in subsequent impulses, but no further Melee combat occurs until the next turn. In the next turn, either side uses an impulse to initiate Melee combat by selecting the hex, activating their Melee-eligible unit(s), and selecting “Melee” on the Action Bar. Melee continues in this manner until one or both sides’ units are eliminated. For more on Melee Combat, see Section 9.
2.8. When Opportunity Knocks
If and when an enemy unit moves into a hex, its movement makes that enemy unit an eligible target of any of your inactive units or units marked Ops Complete; this gives you the option to 29
Opportunity Fire (OF) on that unit. In other words, the enemy has appeared in front of you unexpectedly, and you haven’t fired yet. Would you like to? The AI will ask you should this occur. If you only want one unit in your stack to OF, click on the units you DON’T want to fire so that they are no longer outlined in red (activated). You can also use the buttons in the Action Bar to cycle between units that can conduct OF if the enemy unit is in range and within LOS of more than one of your units. For more on Opportunity Fire, see Section 6.4.
2.9. Smoke ‘Em if You Got ‘Em
Need to cross an open-terrain hex and know the enemy is out there waiting for you to try? Perhaps some Smoke is the answer. To lay Smoke, activate a unit as you would a unit for any other action, but select “Lay Smoke” from the Action Bar. The unit’s hex will remain outlined in red and its six surrounding hexes will become outlined in orange; these are the seven hexes in which you can choose to lay Smoke. Left click on the hex you want to attempt to lay Smoke in. A roll of two (2) or less is needed for success (Note: Partisans need to roll a one). If successful, a Smoke 1 marker will occupy the hex for the duration of the turn. During that turn’s Administrative Phase, the marker will be turned over to its Smoke 2 side, for the next turn, and in the next turn’s Admin Phase it will be removed. Regardless of the result of the lay-Smoke die roll, the unit that made the attempt is marked Ops Complete. Smoke is blocking terrain with a Target Modifier (TM) of +1. The TM is added to the hex’s existing TM; thus, a Smoked Forest hex has a TM of +3. Units that Fire from a Smoked hex subtract one (-1) from their die roll. Smoke can be useful both on Attack and Defense and is a key part of solving many tactical problems. For more on Smoke, see Section 8. 30
2.10. Rally ‘Round the Flag Every turn begins with the Rally Phase, and the player who holds the initiative can Rally his units first. By default, the game will automatically conduct any Rally rolls for you and pause in the Rally Phase only if a decision is required. However, you can also change the Options (set Auto-Rally Phase to “Off ”) to allow you to conduct each Rally Phase manually. The Rally Phase is also your opportunity to swap Support Weapons between Squads or pick up dropped Support Weapons. Nurses function the same way as a Medic except they can “heal” up to two Shaken units per Rally Phase.
2.11. The Battle Continues…
Once you’ve learned how to complete all of the above actions you’ll be on your way to victory. You still might have options this turn as well. Remember to use your ability to Assault Move and Fire with Lt. Koch’s group and the armored car. Perhaps the Medic might be of use to any of your troops that have taken damage or are Shaken? Good luck—the streets of Stalingrad await you!
3. General Game Concepts Each hex in LnL is 50 meters across, and each turn represents 2-4 minutes of time.
3.1. Units
Units in LnL fall under one of several categories. The most common units in the game are Multi-Man Counters (MMCs),
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which represent groups of soldiers such as Squads, Halfsquads, Vehicle Crews, and Weapon Teams. A Squad represents 8-12 men and is depicted by a counter with two men. A Half-squad or Crew represents 4-6 men and is depicted by a counter with one man. A Weapon Team (WT) represents 3-5 men and a heavy weapon, and is depicted by a counter showing the weapon’s silhouette and two men. A Single-Man Counter (SMC) represents a single man or woman, and is depicted by a counter with either a single individual or—in the case of Leaders, Chaplains, Commissars, and Nurses—a face. Support Weapons (SWs) are individual weapons that must be fired by a Squad, Half-squad, Crew, or a specific SMC. Weapon Teams (WT) cannot carry or fire additional Support Weapons. Vehicle counters represent a single vehicle of that type. The vehicle’s Crew only becomes a separate counter apart from the vehicle when they leave the vehicle.
3.2. Counters
Squads, Half-squads, and Weapon Teams each have four numbers on their counters: Starting from the lower-left corner and then moving counter-clockwise, these numbers represent Firepower, Range, Movement Factor, and Morale. For example, the unit below would be designated a 1-6-45. Often in this manual, Squads will be described with just their first three attributes, making the unit below a 1-6-4. This Weapon Team would be designated as a 4-14-2-6; note the great difference in range between the Squad and the WT. 32
Single-Man Counters such as Leaders only have three attributes on their counters, and these run along the counter’s right side. From the top, they are Morale, Leadership, and Movement Factor. Support Weapons have just two attributes on their counters, along the bottom; from the left they are Firepower and Range. For more about how these attributes are used in computing combat results, see Section 6, Fire Combat. Vehicles have a completely different set of attributes. For more on them, see Section 14, Vehicles.
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3.3. Dice The AI uses a pair of automated six-sided dice as a randomizer when computing combat results, initiative, Rally attempts, and so forth; 2d6 means both die are rolled and, unless otherwise indicated, summed, while 1d6 indicates one die is rolled.
3.4. Stacking
Each side can have up to three Squads (or their equivalent), two vehicles, and two SMCs in a hex. Each vehicle or Wreck marker counts as one vehicle for stacking. One Weapon Team or two Half-squads/Crews are the equivalent of a Squad. These stacking limitations apply at ALL TIMES. A player cannot move units through a hex if the sum of the moving and stationary units in the hex exceeds stacking limitations. Units inside a vehicle are considered part of the vehicle for stacking purposes. They cannot unload if their presence on the ground would exceed stacking limits and would be eliminated in case of a required bailout.
3.5. Half-Hexes
The half-hexes along the edge of the map are playable and have the same stacking limitations and movement cost as full hexes. The terrain surrounding a hex’s center dot defines the elevation and terrain type of the hex.
3.6. Morale
In LnL, each unit has a Morale rating (to find this rating, see Section 3.2, Counters, above). A unit’s Morale represents its 34
training and willingness to fight. There are two Morale levels in LnL: Good Order (unshaken) and Shaken. Units in Good Order are cohesive, steady, and ready to fight. They are depicted by the front of the unit’s counter. Shaken units are frightened, disorganized, and just tired of the whole war-game scene; their attributes drop accordingly. Many things can shake a unit’s confidence, but being successfully targeted by direct fire from the enemy is the primary instigator. Morale Checks (MCs) as a result of combat are resolved by the AI rolling 2d6. The dice are summed and modifiers applied. The only modifiers that can be applied to an infantry MC (including rallying attempt) are a Leader’s Leadership Modifier (LM) and a – 2 for being in a hex with a positive Terrain Modifier (TM). If the result is greater than the unit’s Morale rating, it fails the check and becomes Shaken.
4. Support Weapons and Weapon Teams Any counter with the illustration of a weapon, such as a machine gun or satchel charge, is a support weapon (SW). On the other hand, counters with the illustration of soldiers firing a weapon such as a mortar are weapon teams (WT), which includes both the weapon and its firing crew. 35
4.1. Support Weapons Support weapons (SWs) are counters that have no intrinsic firing crew and must be carried, crewed, and fired by a MMC or eligible SMC. A Squad can carry up to two SWs, a Half-squad or Crew can carry one, and a SMC can carry one SW but forfeits 2 Movement Points while doing so. The unit in a stack directly above a SW possesses that SW. Units can capture and use enemy SWs, but if such SWs use the Direct Fire Table (DFT), they are fired at 1/2 Firepower (FP), fractions rounded up. If the captured SW uses the Ordnance Fire Table (OFT), it receives a +1 die-roll modification when it attacks. A Squad can fire one SW and retain its inherent Firepower (FP), or fire two SWs and forfeit its inherent FP. A Half-squad or Crew can fire one SW, forfeiting its inherent FP in the process. Eligible SMCs can fire a SW, be it captured or friendly, at half of the SW’s FP (fractions rounded up). Heroes firing a SW forfeit their inherent FP. Example: A German Hero can fire a MG 34 at 1 FP; the same Hero also fires a tripod-mounted MG 34 at 2 FP.
Non-combatants such as Medics cannot carry or Fire SWs. Leaders who fire a SW forfeit all Leadership Modifiers, even in their own attack. If a Squad carrying two SWs is reduced to a Half-squad, it must drop one SW of its owner’s choice. If a unit carrying one or more SWs is eliminated, the SWs remain in the unit’s hex. A unit in Good Order on either side that has entered a hex containing a dropped SW can recover it during their Rally Phase, assuming the unit is eligible to carry another SW and that there are no enemy units in the hex. 36
Panzerfaust counters represent a clutch of rockets, thus they are not discarded after being used like the Satchel Charge.
4.2. Tripod Machine Guns
Machine guns shown with a tripod are special SWs. They cannot be moved when pictured with the tripod side up. Thus, units possessing a SW on its tripod side cannot Move or Assault Move. A tripod machine gun’s other side either depicts the machine gun in bipod configuration or dismantled. Either can be transported like any other SW. When units enter a scenario from off-board, their tripod SWs are either dismantled or in bipod mode.
4.3. Flamethrowers and Satchel Charges
Flamethrowers are SWs with two special capabilities: They can be used in Melee, and they can cause targeted units to retreat. If a Flamethrower, or a multiple-unit attack that includes one, causes an enemy to become Shaken when firing using the DFT (not when used in Melee), the enemy unit must retreat one hex. The retreat must increase the distance between the retreating unit and the unit conducting the Flamethrower attack. The retreat cannot reduce the distance between the retreating unit and any other enemy unit in the retreating unit’s LOS. Retreating units are marked with a Moved marker and may trigger Opportunity Fire. If the unit has no hex into which it can legally retreat, it is eliminated. Satchel Charges represent rucksacks stuffed with TNT. They can be used in Melee, be thrown into an adjacent hex, or used when Close Assaulting a vehicle. Satchel Charges are used 37
once and are then removed from play. Satchel Charges can be used by any unit that is eligible to use a SW. Leadership bonuses modify Satchel Charge attacks, unless the Leader himself is using the Satchel Charge. Satchel Charge attacks do not receive any other DFT attacking unit’s die-roll modifications, and their FP is NOT halved when used by an eligible SMC (Leader, Hero, Scout). Resolve the Satchel Charge attack as you would with any other SW.
Example: If a Soviet 2-FP Squad throws a Satchel Charge into an adjacent hex it would attack the hex with 6 Firepower. On the other hand, if the same Soviet Squad fires its inherent FP into the adjacent hex AND throws the Satchel Charge, it would attack the hex with 10 FP (2 for its inherent FP + 2 for firing its inherent FP at an adjacent hex + 6 for the Satchel Charge).
4.4. Molotov Cocktails
Molotov Cocktails are a Support Weapon (SW) with unique characteristics. Molotovs can be used whenever a unit is eligible to us a SW. Molotovs are used once and then removed from play. Molotovs can be used in conjunction with a MMC or SMC’s FP to attack infantry and vehicles on the DFT. Molotovs can also be used in Melee or added to a unit’s FP when Close Assaulting a vehicle (16.1). If a Molotov, or a multi-unit attack that includes a Molotov, Shakes an enemy unit when firing on the DFT (not when used in Melee) the enemy unit must retreat one hex, as described in 4.3. If a Molotov, or a multi-unit attack that includes a Molotov, Shakes a vehicle when firing on the DFT, the Crew must Abandon the vehicle and retreat. 38
Leadership Modifiers affect Molotov attacks unless the Leader is throwing the Molotov him/herself. Molotovs receive no other DFT modifications, although a MMC employing its inherent FP in addition to throwing a Molotov does receive DFT modifications. Molotov FP is not halved when used by an eligible SMC (Leader, Commissar, Hero, or Scout).
4.5. Weapon Teams
Weapon Teams (WTs) represent heavier or more specialized weapons, along with their intrinsic crew. The crew manning these weapons often represent the best soldiers in the company and hence have better Morale, can Self-Rally (SR), and possess other unique advantages. WTs cannot be carried or fired by other units, but have their own Movement Factor and inherent FP. WTs marked with a gun size greater than 20mm cannot set up in or enter Buildings (Stone or Wood) or cross Wall, Bocage, or Hedge hexsides. If engaged in Melee, WTs defend with a nominal FP of 1 and cannot counterattack. If a WT is eliminated, its weapon is considered destroyed and cannot be captured or re-crewed as SWs can. WTs with a red arrow in the corner of their counter can only fire in the arc defined by the arrow. They will need to change facing to fire at enemies outside that arc of fire. They can either: Change facing within their hex in lieu of firing at a cost of 1 MP per two hexsides pivoted; change facing and fire, incurring a penalty on the OFT but is permitted when conducting Opportunity Fire; or they can face any direction after entering a new hex. Place a Moved marker on any WT that changes facing. WTs cannot Close Assault vehicles. 39
Note: The German 88mm ATG cannot move. It uses its MF to pivot within its hex, as described above.
5. Sequence of Play Each game turn consists of a Rally Phase, an Operations Phase and an Administrative Phase. In the Rally Phase, Shaken units can attempt to Rally and Half-squads can be combined. In addition, eligible units can pick up SWs in their hex or swap them with other units. Only units in Good Order can swap SWs. During the Operations Phase, the players alternate impulses. In an impulse, one hex and all the units in it can be activated to Fire or Move. When activating a Leader, units not only in the Leader’s hex but also in all hexes adjacent to the Leader’s hex can be activated. In the Administrative Phase, irrelevant markers, including Fire For Effect, Moved, Assault Move, Low Crawl, Fired, Ops Complete, Smoke 2, and Spotted markers are removed. Smoke 1 markers become to Smoke 2 markers.
5.1. Rally Phase
To start the Rally Phase, the computer rolls 1d6 for each player. The player who rolls highest has the initiative. Ties go to the player who had the initiative the previous turn. The player with the initiative first attempts to Rally any Shaken units; this is done automatically by the computer. When it finishes with all the Rally attempts for the side that won initiative, it will attempt to rally the other side’s Shaken units as needed. 40
Shaken units in the same hex with a Leader in Good Order attempt to Rally with a 2d6 roll of less than or equal to their Morale. Leadership Modifiers are subtracted from the automated die roll. Armor Leaders can only attempt to Rally the tank they are crewing. Units in terrain with a positive Target Modifier (TM), such as Forest, Light Woods, and Wood Buildings, are awarded a cover bonus to their Rally attempt and subtract two from their die roll (TMs are listed on the Terrain Effects Chart (TEC)). Units without an unshaken Leader in their hex cannot Rally. The exceptions to this rule are units in a hex with a Hero; vehicles can always attempt to Rally; and units marked with a SR can Self-Rally. In general, Leaders can only Rally units whose counters have the same background color as the Leader. For example, SS Leaders (black) cannot rally Wehrmacht (gray) MMCs. This might be altered by a scenario-specific rule. Snipers, Weapon Teams, and other units designated with a SR on their counter can Self-Rally without a Leader. Unshaken Leaders present in the hex can still apply their Leadership to the Rally attempt. Each unit can only attempt to Rally once per Rally Phase but a Medic trying to assist a Shaken Squad does not constitute a Rally attempt. A just-rallied Medic can Heal another unit in the same Rally Phase. You cannot create Half-squads; they can only be created as a result of combat or be provided in a scenario’s Order of Battle (OOB). Any two unshaken Half-squads (not Crews) of the same nationality and type can join to form a full Squad if they are in the same hex as a Leader in Good Order. The units cannot currently be engaged in Melee. 41
Any unshaken MMC (excluding WTs) or eligible SMCs can pick up a discarded, dropped or otherwise un-owned SW present in its hex. Friendly unshaken units can also trade SWs. SWs can be dropped only in the Rally Phase and only by an unshaken unit. The sole exception is for a Squad reduced to a Half-squad while carrying two SWs.
5.2. Operations Phase
The Operations Phase consists of a number of impulses. During each impulse, the players take turns activating and controlling units, or passing. The player with the initiative (see the beginning of the Rally Phase, Section 5.1) goes first, then his opponent, and so on until the phase is complete. Once all units have either Moved, Fired, Low Crawled, Assault Moved, been marked with an Ops Complete marker, or after three consecutive passes (Player One passes, Player Two passes, Player One passes again), the Operations Phase ends and the Administrative Phase begins. During an impulse, the active player can activate all or some of the units in a hex. If the activated hex contains an unshaken Leader, the player can also activate any units in adjacent hexes; the adjacent hexes will be highlighted in green. Each activated unit in a hex can either move or shoot (but not both, except in the special case of an Assault Move). Not all units in a hex need to perform the same function, but all 42
firing units within a hex that are activated in the same impulse must engage the same target. There is, however, an exception: Support Weapons with To-Hit Tables on the back of their counters (such as an antitank rifle; mouse over the SW to see it flip to its own To-Hit Table) must either fire separately—not adding their inherent FP in with any other units targeting the same hex, but rather by making an entirely separate roll—or fire at another target altogether. They still must fire during the same impulse as the unit possessing them. SWs cannot activate separately from the unit that possesses them. For example, a Squad might activate to fire its MG 42 at an enemy out of the range of the Squad’s inherent FP. Even though the Squad does not fire separately from the SW during this activation, it cannot subsequently activate again until the next turn. All moving units that begin their move in the same hex and are activated in the same impulse must move together. Note that when units in a hex are activated together, some may move and some may fire, but those that fire must do so together (allowing for the special rules for SWs noted above) and those that move must also do so together. All Squads in a hex, however, are NOT required to activate in the same impulse. For example, the German player activates a hex containing three Squads, but only moves one Squad, hoping to draw fire from the enemy Squad at the end of the road. Because he neither Moved nor Fired the remaining two Squads, he can activate them in another impulse. Moving through a hex occupied by other units does not force them to become activated and accompany the units passing through. This rule only applies to units that start in the same hex during the impulse in which they are activated. 43
The computer will mark units that move with a Moved, Low Crawl, or Assault Move marker (see Section 7, Movement), and those that fire with a Fired marker. Those units cannot be used again this turn except to defend in Melee (See Section 7.1, Assault Move, for the sole exception to this). Units/hexes activated in the same impulse can act in any order desired, as long as all units that fire or move from a hex do so together, as per the rules above. Thus, in a situation where many hexes are activated at once (by a Leader’s ability), unit A could fire from the first hex, then unit B could fire from a second hex and finally unit C, located in the first hex with A, could move out of it. Chain activation is possible (a Leader can activate an adjacent Leader who then activates adjacent hexes and so on). A Leader activating adjacent units is marked by the computer with an Ops Complete marker if he does nothing else in this impulse. 5.2.1. Ops Complete Markers Units that spot (successfully or unsuccessfully), attempt to lay Smoke, or perform other actions described in the subsequent rules as rendering them Ops Complete are marked with an Ops Complete marker. Except for the instances described below, units beneath Ops Complete markers cannot spot, fire (including sniping), move, or use their Leadership ability. MMCs under an Ops Complete marker can Opportunity Fire, but do so with one-half FP (fractions rounded down). Units with an unmodified FP of 0 fire with a – 1 FP. The FP is modified BEFORE considering any other attacking unit’s dieroll modifications (DRMs). 44
For example, an SS Squad with a FP of 2 under an Ops Complete marker would Opportunity Fire with 2 FP (2 FP X .5 = 1 FP + 1 for firing at a unit marked with Moved or Assault Move marker) at a Soviet Squad in Clear terrain that moved into its LOS two hexes distant. A 0-5-4 Half-squad would engage the same Soviet Squad with 0 FP (-1 FP + 1 for firing at unit marked with Moved or Assault Move marker = 0 FP). A SW possessed by a Squad that is marked with an Ops Complete marker can also be fired by the Squad. Machine guns or Flamethrowers are halved, while SWs that use the OFT suffer a +2 DRM To-Hit penalty. Vehicles under an Ops Complete marker can Opportunity Fire, but their machine guns do so with one-half FP (fractions rounded down), and ordnance that uses the OFT suffers a +2 DRM To-Hit penalty. See Section 6.4 for more details on Opportunity Fire. A unit under an Ops Complete marker can fire its FULL FP at a hex it has spotted during the SAME impulse. By the same token, Leaders under an Ops Complete marker can add their Leadership to an attack roll, but only if directed against a hex that the Leader spotted during the current impulse. In other words, a unit can immediately fire upon any hex it has successfully spotted. Designer’s Note: The intent is to allow a unit to fire at an enemy hex that it spotted. It only makes sense that if a unit was focusing on a specific area, it would have time to fire its weapons at it. All units in the same hex as a successful spotting unit can fire with their full FP at the just-spotted hex, along with the spotting unit.
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5.3. Administrative Phase After all units have either Moved or Fired, or after three consecutive passes (i.e. Player One passes, Player Two passes, Player One passes again), the Operations Phase ends. In the Administrative Phase, the computer removes all Moved, Assault Move, Low Crawl, Fired, Ops Complete, and Spotted markers. FFE markers are removed. Smoke 1 markers become Smoke 2 markers and Smoke 2 markers are removed from the map. Once all markers have been removed, a new turn begins with the Rally Phase.
6. Fire Combat Essentially, much of LnL is based on the concept of getting your units in to a position where they can most advantageously use their weapons against the enemy; at the same time, your opponent will be attempting to do the same thing with his units. To fire on enemy units, they must be within the range of the firing weapon(s), within the firing unit’s Line of Sight (LOS), and be spotted. You can fire through friendly or enemy units, but cannot fire into a hex that contains both friendly and enemy units, nor can you fire into a hex marked with a Melee marker. To determine range, count the hexes from the firing hex to the target hex. Include the target hex but not the attacker’s hex. See Section 10, Line of Sight, to determine LOS and spotting procedures. If range, LOS, and spotting requirements are met, the attacker adds its FP and any applicable Leadership modifiers to the automated 1d6 roll. The AI then modifies the results with any target movement, degrading terrain, and flanking-fire 46
modifiers. The AI then rolls for the defender, adds the Target Modifier (TM) of hex terrain occupied by the targeted units and compares it to the attacker’s die roll. If the attacker’s modified die roll is less than or equal to the defender’s modified die roll, the fire has no effect. If the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s modified die roll, each of the defending units must take a Damage Check (DC). The AI rolls 1d6, adding the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s modified die roll, and then consults the Direct Fire Table (DFT). If an unshaken Leader is present in the hex, his or her Leadership Modifier is subtracted from the DC die roll of the other units in the hex (not himself). The Leader must survive his own DC first, and be in Good Order, before aiding the other units in his or her hex.
6.1. Leaders and Their Influence on Attacks
Leaders not under a Moved, Low Crawl, Fired or Ops Complete marker can aid ALL attacks conducted by same nationality/ force units in their hex during their impulse. Specifically, their Leadership modifier is added to a unit’s FP that is using the DFT and/or subtracted from the ToHit dice roll for SWs and WTs using the OFT. Note that the Leader can aid both Squads using their inherent FP/SWs AND SWs or WTs using the OFT that are activated in the 47
Leader’s hex in the same impulse. Leaders that aid such fire are placed under a Fired marker.
6.2. Direct Fire Table (DFT) Results
If the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s modified die roll, each of the defending units will take a 1d6 Damage Check and add the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s modified die roll. The AI will use the Direct Fire Table (DFT) to compute the results.
Note: All tables can be found at the end of this manual, in Section 22.
Results from the DFT fall under one of the following categories: Shaken, Casualties, Wounded, and Hero Creation. Shaken: A Shaken unit is flipped over to its Shaken side. A Shaken unit returns to Good Order by passing a Rally attempt during a subsequent Rally Phase. Shaken units cannot use either their inherent FP or any SWs they possess. Shaken units cannot advance (including changing a level in a Building) toward an enemy unit in their LOS. Shaken units cannot spot, nor are enemy units that they are adjacent to considered spotted. Shaken units can still spawn Heroes. IMPORTANT: If engaged in Melee, Shaken units (with the exception of SS units, see 20.1.1) surrender and are removed from the board. SS units take a Morale Check (MC) when an enemy unit enters their hex to initiate Melee. If the SS unit passes its MC, it Rallies. 48
Shaken Leaders cannot Rally units, but can attempt to Rally themselves. Shaken Leaders cannot use their Leadership for any function. Shaken Medics cannot Heal other SMCs (or themselves). Shaken Snipers cannot fire, but can attempt to Self-Rally (SR). Shaken vehicles must Button (see Section 14), their MF is halved, and they cannot fire. WTs can also attempt to Self-Rally. Heroes cannot become Shaken. Casualties: Replaces a Squad with a Shaken Half-squad; eliminates a Half-squad, Crew or WT. Wounded: If the unit is moving, it must stop immediately. The computer will flip the SMC to its Shaken side (Hero excepted; they flip to their Wounded side) and mark with a Wounded marker. A just-Wounded SMC that has yet to be activated in a turn can still do so in a later impulse, including for movement. SMCs already under a Wounded marker, or Wounded Heroes who are Wounded again, are eliminated. Wounded Leaders have their Leadership Modifier and Leadership range decreased by one. Their Rally range, too, can be reduced by one but not below zero. Wounded Leaders can still call Indirect Fire (Mortar and Artillery) and move their full MF. Wounded Snipers can still fire with no reduction in effectiveness. Hero Creation: There is a chance that a Hero is created during play whenever a Squad or Half-squad (even if Shaken) rolls a 1 during a Damage Check caused by enemy fire. The computer will roll another 1d6 in this eventuality; if the result is even, a Hero is created in the hex. The Hero assumes the activation state (Fired, Moved, etc.) of the unit that spawned it. 49
6.3. Multiple Attacking Units Only units in the same hex can fire simultaneously, and then only at the same target. One unit leads the fire and fires at its full FP. Each additional MMC adds half of its FP to the attack. Heroes always add their full FP. Zero-FP units add nothing (unless they are firing a SW). Machine guns and Flamethrowers add their entire FP. The total FP is summed, remaining fractions are rounded up and the combat is resolved as in the section on Fire Combat. Remember that, for the most part, all units firing from the same hex, in the same impulse, must target the same hex. There are, however, exceptions. Support Weapons with To-Hit Tables on the back of their counters (for example, Panzerfausts), WTs, and vehicles must fire separately even when firing in the same impulse. Although WTs and vehicles CAN fire in a different impulse, SWs must fire during the same impulse as the unit that possesses them.
6.4. Opportunity Fire
Units that are not marked with a Moved, Low Crawl, Stealth, or Fired marker, and that have a clear (not blocked) Line of Sight (LOS) to a hex in which an enemy unit expends at least one MP by any kind of movement other than Low Crawl or Stealth Movement can fire on the moving unit(s). This is called Opportunity Fire (OF). It occurs during the opposing player’s impulse, and is not considered an impulse. Low Crawling units can only be the target of Opportunity Fire if they are spotted in the hex they enter. A unit entering a hex with a MP cost greater than 1 can be subjected to OF attacks equalling the MP cost of the hex (thus two OF attacks can be made on a unit entering a Light Woods hex), even if the first attack Shakes the unit, forcing it to stop 50
moving. Moving unit(s) cannot be attacked more than once per MP expended in the hex, unless attacked by SWs with a ToHit Table on the back of its counter, WTs, and vehicles that are stacked with the units that first fired. A Fired marker is placed on units that Opportunity Fire. An OF attack is conducted like any other, with the exception that the attacker receives a +1 bonus (unless firing at Low Crawling units) to their die roll for firing at moving units, unless the moving units are in terrain that negates that modifier (Low Crops, for example). If the target hex contains both moving and non-moving units, both are affected by the same OF attack die roll, but only the moving units suffer the +1 modification to the attacker’s die roll. Example: A German 1-6-4 fires at a Soviet 1-4-4 as it moves through a Clear hex that also holds a stationary 1-4-4. The computer rolls a single 1d6 and adds 2 FP (its base FP of 1 + 1 for firing on a moving unit) against the moving Squad, and 1 FP against the stationary Squad.
Note that even though moving units are automatically spotted, the stationary Squad in the hex retains the unspotted status that it had prior to the attack IF the moving unit exits the hex. In other words, if the stationary unit wasn’t spotted before the OF attack, it remains unspotted after the moving Squad departs the hex. This is the ONLY exception to the rule that states, “If one unit in a hex is spotted, the entire hex is spotted.” Target units that become Shaken must end their movement. This includes units that are Shaken due to Casualties or Wounding. If not all of the moving units in a stack are Shaken, the remaining unshaken units can continue moving.
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6.5. Extended Range MMCs/SMCs with a black box surrounding their range can fire at up to twice their printed range. Any fire greater than the printed range, however, is halved. Accordingly, a Soviet 2-2-4 Guard Squad firing at a German Squad three hexes away has a FP of 1.
6.6. Flanking Fire
Whenever a target unit receives fire utilizing the DFT from two non-adjacent hexsides, the second—and all subsequent DFT fire for that turn—receives a +1 DRM.
7. Movement Units move from hex to hex, paying the Movement Point (MP) cost of each hex as it is entered. These costs are summarized on the Terrain Effects Chart (TEC). All units that move from the SAME hex, in the SAME impulse, must be moved together (exception, if some units in the moving stack are Shaken during movement they must stop movement while the other units may continue—see Section 6.4). To move a unit, select the unit(s) by clicking on their hex. By default, all units in the hex are selected, and are shown in the Unit Display Panel in the lower-right corner with a red border. To unselect a unit, click on it in this window to remove its red border. When you have selected the unit you would like to move, right-click on a destination. The computer will plot the route and the number of MPs needed to reach the destination. If ANY of the units in the stack can make it to the destination hex, the route will be displayed in white. 52
Note that just because the route is displayed in white does not mean that every selected unit can make it to that destination. If NONE of the units in the hex can make it to the proposed destination hex, then the route marker turns red after the last attainable hex, as below.
Once you have decided on a destination hex and plotted your route with a right-click, right-click a second time to move. The computer will then place a Moved marker on the units. In the example below, Lt. Wurtz and his two Squads have made the move to the Building, where, upon arrival, they were greeted with ineffective Opportunity Fire from a group of Soviet Partisans across the Road. Wurtz and the units in his stack have Moved markers on them, while the Partisans have Fired markers on them. 53
To move a unit or units within a hex, that hex needs to be activated at the start of the impulse by clicking on it. A hex that contains an unshaken, unwounded, yet to be activated Leader can activate both the units in that hex and adjacent hexes. The green hexes surrounding an activated Leader signify this. Units starting in adjacent hexes to the Leader are free to move or fire separately from the Leader. The units in each hex, however, must move or fire together if they do either. Example: If all three 1-6-4 German Squads in a hex are activated, some may move and some may fire, but those that move IN THE SAME IMPULSE must move together, and those that fire IN THE SAME IMPULSE must fire at the same target (exception: Ordnance (Section 13) can fire at separate targets). The number of MPs that a unit can spend each turn is called its Movement Factor (MF) and is marked on the counter. As noted above, MMCs, WTs, and SMCs under a Moved or Assault Move marker that are fired upon suffer a modifier of +1 added to the attacker’s DFT die role. Unless such a move would bring a Shaken unit closer to an enemy unit in their LOS, units with a MF equal to or greater than one (1) can always move one hex, no matter the cost, or change levels within a multi-level Building. If a unit must 54
expend ALL its MPs to move one hex it cannot Low Crawl or Assault Move into the new hex. Units can move through hexes containing friendly units (subject to stacking restrictions), but must stop upon entering an enemy-occupied hex and begin Melee (see Section 9). Thus, a unit that moves adjacent to an enemy unit but is Shaken by OF (from this enemy unit or another) does not autospot the adjacent enemy unit.
7.1. Assault Movement
Units whose Movement Factor is boxed in red, such as Heroes, can Assault Move (AM). Leaders can also AM if they start their impulse with eligible units. Units that Assault Move can spend up to onehalf of their printed MF, modified by double-time movement (see Section 7.2, below) if applicable (fractions rounded up), and subsequently fire (or Opportunity Fire). The double-time bonus (if any) is added to the printed unit’s MF before being halved for the Assault Move. Subtract two from the total attacking FP of units using AM. Example: Two SS 1-6-4 Squads using AM could fire with a Firepower of 0 (1 for lead Squad + 0.5 for second Squad rounded up to 1 – 2 for AM = 0). Support Weapon Ordnance suffers an AM penalty on the Ordnance Fire Table (OFT). Once the units fire, they are also (in addition to the Assault Move marker) marked with a Fired marker. Neither the AM nor the Fired marker is removed until the Admin Phase. The units need not fire in the same impulse that they originally moved but can be activated again later to fire or engage in OF if the appropriate situation arises. They must, however, move when they are first activated.
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7.2. Double-time Units that begin their impulse—and move the entire impulse— with an unshaken Leader can increase their Movement Factor by 2. The units cannot move farther than the Leader’s printed MF. Weapon Teams cannot double-time (DT). Shaken units can use DT.
7.3. Low Crawl
A unit or stack of units can spend its entire impulse to move one hex. This is a Low Crawl. Units Low Crawling are not automatically spotted unless they are in open terrain or adjacent to an enemy unit. Enemies targeting Low Crawling units do not receive the +1 bonus to their FP. Weapon Teams cannot Low Crawl.
7.4. Stealth Movement
Units designated with a bright-yellow square outline surrounding their MF can move without being automatically spotted—even if adjacent to an enemy unit. To be spotted, an enemy unit must either perform a successful spotting attempt (10.1), the Stealth Movement-capable unit must fire, or it must move into open terrain in the LOS of a Good Order enemy unit. Units CANNOT use Stealth Movement while Double-timing (7.2), but can use Stealth Movement to enter Melee. Heroes and Leaders cannot use Stealth Movement unless specifically designated. Stealth Movement-capable units can also move up to half their MF (drop fractions) and subsequently fire. Such fire is modified like Assault Movement fire—subtract 2 from the total attacking FP of the units using Stealth Movement fire (Scouts excepted). 56
8. Smoke Unshaken MMC counters not marked by a Moved, Low Crawl, Fired or Ops Complete marker can attempt to lay Smoke in their own or an adjacent hex. To lay Smoke, select the unit, click “Smoke 1” in the Action Bar at the bottom of the screen, and click the adjacent hex you wish to target for Smoke. The computer will then roll 1d6. If the die roll is equal to or less than the unit’s Smoke-laying capability, a Smoke 1 marker will be placed on the hex; if the die roll is higher than the unit’s Smoke-laying capability, there is no Smoke. Regardless of whether the attempt was successful,
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an Ops Complete marker is placed on the unit that attempted to lay Smoke. Smoke is blocking terrain with a Target Modifier of +1. The Target Modifier is added to the hex’s existing TM. For example, a Smoked Forest hex has a TM of +3. Units firing from a Smoked hex must subtract 1 from their die roll. In the Administrative Phase after the Smoke 1 is laid, the computer will replace the marker with a Smoke 2 marker. In the next Admin Phase, the Smoke 2 marker is removed. All Heroes of Stalingrad units’ Smoke-laying capability is 2. Partisans, however, cannot lay Smoke.
9. Melee Combat When you move into a hex with enemy units, you must Melee. Units cannot use Assault Movement or Low Crawl to enter Melee. Melee combat is normally simultaneous (nationality characteristics, Events, and Skill Cards may alter the sequence) and losses aren’t taken until the round of Melee combat is concluded. There can only be one Melee round/turn/ hex. All units that participate in a Melee round are considered activated at the same time. Melee takes place as soon as enemy units enter a hex containing friendly units or viceversa. Thus, there is no OF against the enemy unit as it enters the Melee hex. The inherent FP of all the attacking units (the units that moved into the hex) and Melee-eligible SWs (MGs, Satchel Charges, Molotov Cocktails, and Flamethrowers) is compared 58
to the FP of any defending units and any Melee-eligible SWs the defender chooses, and an odds ratio is determined, dropping any fractions.
For example: 4 FP attacking 2 FP is 2:1, whereas 5 FP attacking 2 FP is not 2.5:1, but also 2:1. Not all defending units must be attacked, but at least one must be attacked. Unmodified attacks at odds less than 1:3 are treated as 1:3, but cannot be conducted against multiple units. The computer will roll 2d6 and consult the Melee Table (MT). Leadership modifiers apply for the attacking units and are added to their die roll. If the attacker rolls equal to or greater than the Kill Number, the defending units are eliminated. Eliminated units are NOT yet removed. The defender then follows the same procedure against any of the attacker’s units he chooses. After assessing damage, remove eliminated units from both sides, and mark the hex with a Melee marker. If the Melee combatants include Heroes, they shift the odds one column in favor of their side when attacking. Multiple Heroes do not grant multiple shifts. Attacking, in the context of this section, means that your unit is making a Melee attack—it has nothing to do with whether you entered the hex. Defending means your unit is the target of a Melee attack. A unit that can only defend cannot make Melee attacks but is not automatically eliminated either. Unless modified for Ambush (Partisans only) or Skill Cards, Melee combatants use their unmodified inherent FP. For example: two 1-6-4 Squads have a FP of 2 in Melee combat, while three 1-6-4 Squads and a bipod MG 42 have a FP of 5.
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Squads and Half-squads must still abide by the SW-usage restrictions delineated in the section on SWs and WTs (Section 4). In other words, a Squad can fire one SW and its inherent FP or two SWs and forfeit its inherent FP. A Half-squad can fire one SW and forfeit its inherent FP. Leaders carrying a Melee-eligible SW attack and defend with half of the SW’s FP (rounded up), unless two Leaders are crewing one SW, in which case they attack/defend with the SW’s printed FP. Note that Leaders carrying a Satchel Charge can use the charge’s entire (6) FP, but remove the charge after one use. Just to be clear, Satchel Charges are always removed after use. Heroes defend with their printed FP unless they are crewing/using a SW.
9.1. Locked Units
Units remaining after the round of Melee are locked in Melee. A Melee marker is placed on the units to show this. Locked units cannot move (unless withdrawing) or fire, but can use an impulse in the following turn to either Melee or attempt to withdraw. Melee markers cannot be removed as long as units from both sides inhabit the hex. Once one side’s units have been eliminated, the Melee marker is removed during the ensuing Admin Phase. Units that wish to withdraw must pass a Morale Check; Leadership modifiers apply. Failure to pass this MC incurs no penalty but they must immediately fight a Melee round. Units that pass the MC can exit the hex, paying appropriate MP costs. If a player withdraws all friendly units from the hex, the Melee marker is removed and the remaining enemy units are eligible to Opportunity Fire on the withdrawing units. Note that a player may leave a unit behind as a rear guard to prevent this from occurring. 60
Leaders not carrying a Melee-eligible SW, Snipers, Medics, Nurses, and Shaken units do not attack, and they cannot be targeted in Melee. They are not considered Melee-eligible units. WTs can be individually targeted in Melee. Upgraded Leaders (11.1.3) with a FP are Melee-eligible units. If all Good Order MMCs, Heroes, and Leaders/Advisors carrying a Melee-eligible SW in the hex are eliminated, units not eligible for Melee are also removed. Any SMC left at the end of a Melee round without a possessed Melee-eligible SW or stacked with a friendly Melee-eligible unit is removed too, even if no enemy Melee-eligible units are present; it is assumed that the SMC went down with his troops. If a unit enters a hex containing only enemy units not eligible for Melee (such as those described in the paragraph above), then all the enemy units are eliminated and the unit that moved in must halt. Exception: SS units, as noted earlier.
9.2. Reinforcing a Melee Units from either side can reinforce a Melee. Any unit entering a hex marked with a Melee marker reinforces the Melee, even though it’s possible that no friendly units are left in the hex after the previous Melee round. If a unit reinforces a Melee before a Melee round is fought in that turn, the Melee round must be conducted immediately. If they reinforce the hex after the Melee has been fought, they cannot participate in the Melee until the following turn. If the reinforcing units have the Ambush capability, their tripled FP is added to the other friendly unit’s normal FP, but the Meleecombat round is considered simultaneous. 61
9.3. Zero-Firepower and M-Rated MMCs In Melee, MMCs with a FP of 0 attack and defend with a FP of 1. For each zero-FP MMC participating in an attack, 1 is subtracted from the die roll. For each zero-FP unit participating in defense, 1 is added to the attacker’s die roll.
For example: Two 0-3-4 Squads attack a 2-6-4 Squad in Melee. The odds would be 2 vs. 2 or 1:1 (each 0 FP Squad counts as 1 FP for the attack). At these odds, the Kill Number is 8. The attackers must, however, subtract 2 from their dice roll. Hence, that player would then need to roll 10 or better (10 – 2 = 8, which is the minimum needed to kill the opposition in a 1:1 attack) to eliminate the 2-6-4. Conversely, the 2-6-4 would attack the two 0-3-4 Squads at 2 vs. 2 or 1:1, but would add two to its dice roll. Accordingly, it would eliminate the two Squads on a roll of 6 or better (6 + 2 = 8). Units and SWs with an “M” superscript add 1 to their FP when attacking or defending in Melee.
10. Line of Sight and Spotting A unit has a Line of Sight (LOS) to another unit if, in the real world, it could see that unit. Units cannot fire at targets to which they do not have a LOS. LOS is traced from the center of the firing unit’s hex to the center of the target hex. LOS that crosses the silhouette of a piece of blocking or degrading terrain is considered blocked or degraded. See below for additional details. 62
10.1. Spotting It is important to note that even if a unit has LOS to its target, the attacker might not see the enemy. For example, an enemy Squad is hidden in a Stone Building two hexes distant. Just because there is nothing blocking your Squad’s view of the Building does not mean that it sees the enemy. To be able to fire on an enemy hex, it must be spotted. Hexes, rather than units, are spotted, so if one unit in a hex is spotted, the entire hex is spotted. Spotting is status driven. A hex (and all units within it) is spotted if any of the following apply: a Good Order enemy unit is adjacent to the hex, a friendly unit is currently Moving or Assault Moving through the hex, a unit in the hex is marked with a Moved, Assault Move, Fired, or Melee marker, or if the hex is open terrain. Units in any open-type terrain are automatically spotted, even if the LOS is degraded by intervening terrain. Note that the status of a hex can change over a turn.
Example: If a hex is spotted because it is adjacent to a Good Order enemy unit and that unit is either Shaken or moves away, the hex will no longer be spotted. Note that Low Crawling units are not spotted during their movement, provided they don’t find themselves in a hex otherwise spotted (such as any open terrain). Once a hex is spotted, it is spotted for all friendly units during the turn, even for those without LOS to the spotted hex at that time. But if all units leave a hex (or are eliminated), they are no longer spotted. Units (including open vehicles) can attempt to spot unspotted units to which they have a LOS just like any other unit, by using the Spot
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button in the Action Bar. Units in blocking terrain are spotted with a 1d6 roll of two or less. Those in degrading terrain are spotted on a 1d6 roll of three or less. Example: If a unit is attempting to spot an enemy in degrading terrain, it must roll a three or less to succeed.
One is added to the spotter’s die roll for every hex of degrading terrain its LOS passes through en route to the target unit’s hex. Note that the LOS must actually pass through a piece of the degrading terrain in the degrading terrain hex. One is also added if it passes through the silhouette of degrading terrain that is in part of an otherwise open hex. If the LOS passes through more than two hexes of degrading terrain, or silhouettes of degrading terrain within two open hexes, it is blocked. LOS is NOT BLOCKED or degraded by small pieces of terrain that extend from the firing unit’s or target’s hex into an adjacent hex. Leadership modifiers apply and are subtracted from the die roll. Once a unit is spotted, the entire hex is spotted and the units there go from grayed-out (unspotted) counters to normal counters. Spotting attempts do not require an impulse, but only one attempt can be made per friendly impulse, and a unit attempting to spot is marked with an Ops Complete marker regardless of the result of the attempt. Units marked with Fired, Moved, Low Crawl, Ops Complete, or Assault Move markers cannot spot for yet unspotted units, but they do automatically spot adjacent units, moving units, units marked with a Moved, Assault Move, Fired, or Melee marker or units in open terrain. Shaken units or buttoned vehicles don’t automatically spot adjacent enemy units. 64
10.2. Hills and Buildings Most of the terrain in LnL is ground level. There are, however, Hills that are Level-1 and Level-2. Each level above ground level denotes a rise of about 2-5 meters. All Buildings in Heroes of Stalingrad are one-level Buildings. There are NO multi-story Buildings.
10.3. Figuring Line of Sight (LOS)
There are two types of LOS-affecting terrain; blocking and degrading (see the TEC at the back of this manual). Any silhouette of blocking terrain crossed by a LOS blocks it (except as noted below). Degrading-terrain silhouettes don’t block LOS (except as noted below) but they degrade it. Subtract one from an attacker’s die roll or add one to a spotter‘s die roll for every hex where the LOS crosses a silhouette of degrading terrain. If the LOS passes through more than two such hexes, it is blocked and no attack or spotting attempt can be made. LOS can be degraded (modified) by only one factor per hex. Thus, a LOS traced across a Light Woods silhouette in a hex containing a tank is modified by 1 not 2. Blocking/ degrading terrain in the attacker’s or target’s hex never blocks/degrades LOS. For example, the LOS below is neither blocked nor degraded. Blocking/degrading terrain extending from a firing unit’s or target’s hex never blocks/ degrades LOS except when the LOS is traced along a hex spine crossing such blocking/degrading terrain. 65
Terrain can be located at an elevation (altitude) or be of a certain height (expressed in terms of levels on the TEC). For example: a Forest hex (Level 2) on a Level-1 Hill would be a Level-1 hex but presents an obstacle to LOS of a height of Level-3. Blocking/degrading terrain at the same elevation as both the attacker’s and target’s hex blocks/degrades LOS. For example, the LOS below is degraded: LOS traced through blocking/degrading terrain that is located at a higher total height than both the attacker’s or target’s hex elevation is blocked/ degraded. For example, the LOS between the two units below, each at Ground Level (Level 0), is blocked by the Level-1 obstacle between them: LOS traced through blocking/degrading terrain that is located at a lower total height than both the attacker’s and the target’s hex elevation is not blocked/degraded. LOS traced to a lower elevation hex is blocked/degraded if it crosses blocking/degrading terrain that is at the same total height as the attacker’s hex elevation. Units on a hex higher in elevation than the total height of a blocking/degrading-terrain hex can see and fire over it into hexes at a lower elevation than the total height of 66
said blocking – or degrading-terrain hex. Furthermore, since the LOS in this situation is traced OVER the blocking/ degrading terrain, it is not blocked/degraded in any way. However, Level-1 and – 2 blocking/degrading terrain casts a one-hex shadow that blocks LOS to units located directly behind them. LOS can be checked at any time. LOS is reciprocal. If unit A can see unit B, then unit B can see unit A.
10.4. Terrain Characteristics
Each piece of terrain has distinct advantages for units seeking shelter in it, and varying MP costs for units attempting to move through it. These advantages and MP costs, along with other information, are delineated on the TEC and are shown when the mouse is hovered over the hex
The terrain surrounding a hex’s center dot defines the elevation of the hex, and the type of terrain in the hex. 67
11. Single Man (or Woman) Counters Single-Man Counters (SMCs) represent significant individuals who have the power to affect the course of the battle. These counters include Leaders, Heroes (or Heroines), Snipers, Medics, Nurses, Commissars, and Scouts.
11.1. Leaders
Leaders are individuals with exceptional skills. They are usually officers or outstanding NCOs. Most Leaders have no Firepower, and cannot (unless crewing a SW) individually fire at enemy troops or voluntarily enter Melee alone. If enemy units move into the hex of a solitary Leader who is not carrying a Meleeeligible SW, the Leader is eliminated. A Leader’s Leadership Modifier can be used to aid attacks, modify Damage Checks, Rally units, and lead troops in Melee, as well as for the other functions mentioned in these rules. Only one Leader per hex per impulse or Rally Phase can use his Leadership Modifier in these ways, Leadership Range (for purpose of activation) is usually 1. It is decreased by one if the Leader is Wounded (the Leader can only activate units in its own hex). A Leader’s rally range is usually 0 (i.e. it can only rally units in its own hex); the Charismatic Skill Card increases this to 1 (see Skill Cards, Section 12, for more). 11.1.1. Leaders in Combat Leaders not under a Moved, Low Crawl, Fired, or Ops Complete marker can aid ALL attacks conducted by same nationality/ 68
force units in their hex during their impulse. Its Leadership Modifier (LM) is added to a unit’s Firepower that is using the DFT and/or subtracted from the To-Hit dice roll for SWs and WTs using the OFT. The LM is applied to every attack (not attacking units) that occurs from the Leader’s hex in its activation impulse. Note that the Leader can aid both Squads using their inherent FP/SWs AND SWs or WTs using the OFT that are activated in the Leader’s hex in the same impulse. Leaders that aid such fire are placed under a Fired marker. Leaders cannot call onboard mortar fire or off-board artillery and add their LM to a direct-fire attack in the same turn.
11.1.2. Leaders and Skill Cards Scenario rules may assign a Skill Card to a Leader. These cards grant special abilities such as enhanced Morale or sighting. 11.1.3. Upgraded Leaders During the two Campaigns and in some scenarios, a Leader may acquire or be given an inherent FP and a range. These Leaders function as a normal Leader in all respects but, like a Hero, they can enter and fight in Melee and initiate fire combat without crewing a SW.
11.2. Heroes
Heroes are ordinary soldiers who perform extraordinary feats of courage. Heroes may be part of a scenario’s Order of Battle (OOB) or created during play. There is a chance that a Hero is created whenever a 1 is rolled on a Squad or Half-squad’s Damage Check (DC). Roll 1d6 again: If the number is even, a Hero has been created; the computer will randomly pick a Hero and a Skill Card. Newly created A Hero assumes the activation status of the 69
unit that spawned it, so if the Squad that spawns a Hero is already marked with a Moved marker, the new Hero also receives a Moved marker. If spawned by a moving MMC, the Hero is assumed to have spent the same number of MPs as the Squad had before it spawned the Hero. If creation of a Hero violates stacking limitations, the Hero is placed in any adjacent, non-enemy-occupied hex. Heroes can Assault Move and can Close Assault vehicles (see Section 16.1). Heroes always add their FULL FP to multipleunit attacks. Units in the same hex as a Hero can attempt to Rally even if no Leader is present. Heroes shift Melee odds one column in their side’s favor (in addition to adding their own FP) when attacking (not defending). Remember: In Melee, attacking has nothing to do with whether you moved into the hex, only that you are currently conducting a Melee attack. Each Hero randomly receives a Skill Card when created during play. Some Heroes that begins the game on the map are not assigned a Skill Cards, though. There can be only two Heroes per nation on the board at any time. Heroes are always spawned in Good Order (never Wounded). Heroes created by a moving unit that is Shaken must stop their movement also. Heroes are created even if the DC result eliminates its parent unit.
11.3. Medics
Medics represent exceptional medical personnel. They cannot carry or fire weapons, or spot enemy units. They can, however, use their medical kits to Heal units. 70
During each Rally Phase, a Medic can attempt to either remove the Wounded marker from one SMC (including himself) or convert a Shaken Squad to its Good Order status. In either case, the subject of a Medic’s attention must be located in the same hex as the Medic. To perform either function, the Medic must first pass a Morale Check (MC). Two is subtracted from the MC dice roll if the Medic is in terrain with a positive TM. There is no penalty for failing the MC, but the Medic cannot perform any function in that Rally Phase if he (or she) fails the MC. A Shaken Medic cannot attempt to Heal SMCs or MMCs until it is rallied. A Wounded Medic can Heal other units (and himself) as long as he is in Good Order (unshaken). Medics do not attack or defend in Melee. If all friendly MMCs and Melee-eligible SMCs in the same hex as a Medic are eliminated, the Medic is removed from play.
11.4. Snipers
Snipers can be initially placed in any hex whose terrain has a positive Target Modifier (TM), as long as enemy units do not currently occupy that hex. Once placed, the Sniper cannot move. The Sniper can immediately attack any spotted enemy hex within its LOS utilizing the Direct Fire Combat routine. The Sniper, however, rolls 2d6 for its attack instead of 1d6. If there are multiple units in the target hex, the AI will randomly determine which target the Sniper attacks. The Sniper’s attack only affects one unit. Snipers can be fired on like any other unit, but double their own hex’s TM when rolling against incoming attacks from all units except artillery/mortar barrages and enemy Snipers. 71
Snipers can stack with MMCs, but forfeit their special TM when doing so. When stacked with MMCs they can attack in the same impulse as the MMCs, but fire separately within the impulse. Snipers cannot voluntarily enter Melee. Snipers do not attack or defend in Melee. If all friendly MMCs and Meleeeligible SMCs in the same hex as a sniper are eliminated during Melee, the Sniper is removed from play.
11.5. Scouts
Scouts subtract 2 from all their spotting die rolls. Scouts DO NOT subtract 2 from their FP after using Stealth Movement. Scouts have a FP of 0. They can assist in crewing a SW but lose all Scout abilities when doing so. In Melee, Scouts fight as a 0 FP MMC (see Section 9.3). Units moving during the same impulse and stacked with a Scout pay only one MP per Forest, Light Woods or Wheat Fields hex entered. Scouts can call for off-board Artillery fire.
11.6. Armor Leaders
Armor Leaders have the Leader’s picture on the counter along with Morale and Leadership Modifier (LM). Armor Leaders, however, have no Movement Factor. Armor Leaders are unique in that they share the fate of the tank or vehicle they command. They cannot be Wounded, but are Shaken, which represents the Shaking of the tank’s Crew. If an Armor Leader is forced to Abandon his vehicle, he is removed from play. Armor Leaders can only rally the tank they are commanding. Tanks with an Armor Leader assume the Leader’s Morale for all purposes and subtract his Leadership Modifier from the die 72
roll when rallying or performing Damage Checks. Vehicles with Leaders check DFT results under the appropriate column on the DFT—Armored vehicles or Unarmored Vehicles—NOT the Good Order SMC column. The Armor Leader’s LM can be subtracted from the ToHit die rolls and added to MG-attack die rolls (but not HEEquivalent attack die rolls). He can affect both in the same turn.
11.7. Soviet Commissars
Commissars function as Leaders (for both Guards and Line Troops) for all purposes. Hence, Commissars can Rally units, direct fire, assist in Damage Checks, and spot for artillery, etc.
11.7.1. Fight or Die
If in the Rally Phase (only), Shaken units stacked with the Commissar fail to rally, the Commissar can attempt to rally them a second time. The Commissar adds one to the Morale of the units he is attempting to rally and rolls 2d6. If the units rally, all is well; if they fail this rally attempt they suffer casualties as defined on the DFT: Squads reduce to a Halfsquad; Half-squads are eliminated, etc. If the Commissar’s owner rolls a twelve (12) during the Fight-or-Die rally attempt, the Commissar has been killed and is removed from the Board.
11.8. Nurses
Nurses have Leadership Modifiers like Leaders. These ratings can only be used to rally MMCs, not to assist in DCs. Good Order Nurses also have the capability to Heal units similarly to Medics (11.3).
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In a Rally Phase, Good Order Nurses can EITHER (not both) Heal a unit after passing a Morale Check or attempt to rally up to two SMCs or MMCs. Nurses can perform this function on ANY Soviet unit—Guards, Line Troop or Partisan. Nurses can Self-Rally, too. Nurse are non-combatant, non-Melee-eligible SMCs; they cannot spot, direct fire, or call artillery, etc.
12. Skill Cards Skill Cards bestow unique characteristics on the SMC or MMC that possesses the Card. Some Cards bestow traits or advantages that can only be used once; others give benefits that last for the entire scenario; and still others equip the owner with unique weapons or items. Each Skill Card explains its trait and when/how it can be used. In most scenarios, the Skill Cards are pre-assigned to the Leaders or Heroes. If a unit is not assigned a Skill Card or does not draw one during Hero creation it does not possess a Skill Card.
13. Ordnance Ordnance is a weapon that has a To-Hit Table on the back of its counter. These include SWs, such as an anti-tank rifle; WTs, such as the 75mm Anti-Tank Gun (ATG); and vehicle-mounted weapons, such as a tank’s main cannon. Whether it is mounted on a tank, a separate SW, or a WT, ordnance is fired separately from 74
other units in the hex. It does not have to engage the same target as other units firing from the same hex. Ordnance firing on a hex that contains both vehicle and non-vehicle units must either target a specific vehicle or all non-vehicular targets in the hex. WTs and vehicle-mounted ordnance must fire through a covered arc defined by either a red triangle in the corner of the counter or, in the case of a turreted weapon not firing through its vehicle’s hull covered arc, a covered arc defined by the gun barrel. This covered arc is displayed in the diagram below. Each piece of ordnance has three ranges printed on the back of the counter; to see these ranges, hover your mouse over the unit/ weapon in question and it will flip to its reverse side, revealing
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the ordnance’s range data. Below each of these ranges is a printed To-Hit number, and below each To-Hit number is a penetration value. The attacker uses the leftmost column whose range is greater than or equal to the target’s range. To determine if a target is hit by the ordnance, the computer rolls 2d6 and cross-references the result with the To-Hit number below the proper range/column on the ordnance counter. The die roll is modified by adding the TM of the terrain the target occupies, adding 1 for each hex of degrading terrain (or silhouette of degrading terrain that is in part of an otherwise open hex) through which the fire’s LOS passes, and other factors listed on the Ordnance Fire Table (OFT). If the number, modified by applicable modifiers, is less than or equal to the To-Hit number, the target has been hit. A 2d6 roll of 2 is always a hit; a roll of 12 is always a miss. If the target isn’t a vehicle, the target is immediately attacked with the ordnance’s HE-equivalent plus 1d6. The TM of the target’s terrain DOES NOT modify this HE-equivalent, or Leadership Modifiers, too, but 1 is added to the HE-equivalent if the target is marked with an Assault Move or Moved marker (but not Low Crawl). The defender rolls 1d6 and compares it to the attacker’s die roll. If the attacker’s modified die roll is less than or equal to the defender’s die roll, the fire has no effect. If the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s die roll, each of the defending units will make a Damage Check (DC) by rolling 1d6, adding the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s die roll, and then consulting the Direct Fire Table (DFT). If the target is a vehicle, compare the penetration value at the appropriate range plus 1d6 (modified penetration value) 76
against the vehicle’s armor thickness plus 1d6 (modified armor value). If the modified penetration value exceeds the modified armor value, the target is destroyed and a Wreck marker placed in the hex. If the attacker rolls a 1 and the target rolls a 6, the round is a dud and the target is not affected. If the attacker rolls a 6 and the target a 1, the round is a catastrophic hit and the target is destroyed. Whenever a target is destroyed, roll 1d6. If the result is even, a Shaken Crew is placed under the vehicle; if the result is odd, the Crew is eliminated.
13.1. Hits on Unarmored Vehicles
Any ordnance hit on an unarmored vehicle such as a truck, or on an unarmored facing of an otherwise armored vehicle, such as the rear facing of many self-propelled guns, destroys that vehicle.
13.2. Non-Penetrating Hits
If the modified penetration value of the attacker EQUALS the vehicle’s modified armor value, the vehicle takes a Morale Check (MC). If it fails the MC its Crew abandons the vehicle; if the vehicle passes the MC, the vehicle is Shaken. This is the ONLY instance where PASSING a MC results in a Shaken unit. If the Crew abandons the vehicle, a Crew counter is placed under the vehicle; they will immediately take a MC. Abandoned vehicles remain on the map, but they cannot be used by either side. If the attacking weapon is being fired as a MMC’s SW, the MMC, if eligible, can also attack the vehicle or surviving Crew with its small arms as described below. 77
If the attacker’s modified penetration value is less than the target’s modified armor value, the vehicle takes a MC. If it fails the MC, the vehicle is Shaken. If it passes the MC, there is no effect. When making this roll, the computer takes the difference between the firing ordnance’s modified penetration value and the target’s modified armor value and subtracts it from the MC die roll. Hence, if the modified penetration value is 4 and the modified armor value at the point of impact is 10, 6 is subtracted from the MC roll. An unmodified MC die roll of 12 results in a Shaken vehicle, regardless of the unit’s Morale or modifiers to the die roll. An already Shaken vehicle that receives another Shaken result is Abandoned.
13.3. Angle and Point of Impact
The thickness of a vehicle’s armor varies. The front armor is normally the thickest, flank armor less so, and rear armor is the weakest. Accordingly, it is not only important to know that a shot hit its target, but where it hits (front, flank or rear). The computer will compare the firing weapon’s modified penetration value to the modified armor value at the point of impact to determine the results of that impact. If the incoming shot is traced exactly down the line between hit locations (side and rear, for example) the shot is considered to hit the location most favorable to the shooter. If the ToHit die roll is both greater than 2 AND an EVEN number, the shell has impacted the target’s turret, assuming it has one. If the target is turreted, use the turret armor at the point of impact to determine whether the target has been penetrated. If the target has no turret, this can be ignored; resolve the penetration using the hull armor. 78
13.4. Special Ammunition Ordnance marked with an H within a red circle on the back of the counter fires HEAT (High Explosive Anti-Tank) as its main ammunition.
13.4.1. HEAT Ammunition vs. Infantry Ordnance that fires HEAT ammunition (as above) was not as effective against infantry in the open or taking cover behind trees/rocks as it was against armor. This rule addresses that situation. Ordnance that primarily fires HEAT ammunition subtracts 1 from its HE-equivalent when attacking infantry NOT located in Buildings or Bunkers. Note that 1 is subtracted from the HEequivalent NOT the To-Hit die roll.
13.5. Target Acquisition
When ordnance—including anit-tank rifles and shoulder-fired ordnance such as Panzerfausts—fires and fails to destroy its target, and the target does not move before the firing unit fires on it again in a subsequent impulse, one (-1) is subtracted from the ordnance’s To-Hit die roll. If the ordnance fails to destroy the target and again the target doesn’t move, two (-2) will be subtracted from the firing unit’s next To-Hit die roll against that same target. Two is the most that can be subtracted for Target Acquisition. 13.5.1. Target Acquisition and Spotting A firing unit that has Target Acquisition on an enemy unit does NOT need to spot that target again in subsequent impulses. The target unit will have a green crosshairs on it.
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14. Vehicles 14.1. Vehicle Counters Explained Vehicles can either be open or buttoned. Open vehicles have some/all of their crew hatches open and some crew members are riding with their heads and shoulders exposed to enemy fire. Buttoned vehicles (indicated by a Buttoned marker) have all their hatches closed. Open vehicles can see the enemy better, but risk injury to crew members from enemy smallarms fire. Buttoned vehicles are invulnerable (if armored) to small-arms fire, but cannot fight as well as an opened vehicle. Buttoned vehicles cannot spot, not even adjacent hexes. Vehicles can switch from open to buttoned or vice versa at the beginning of their impulse. Note: By default, vehicles are considered open. Movement: The vehicle’s MF and type. There are three types of vehicle movement types: Tracked (T), Off-road (O), and Road (R). Tracked are fully tracked. Off-road vehicles are either half-tracked or off-road capable multi-wheeled vehicles. Road vehicles perform best on Roads. See the TEC and the paragraph below for further explanation. Morale: Is the unit’s Morale. A Shaken vehicle must button (close all hatches), cannot fire its weapons, its MF is halved, and it cannot spot. Vehicles can Self-Rally, and if an Armor Leader is onboard, the vehicle uses the Leader’s Morale rating to Rally. The Armor Leader has his Leadership modifier subtracted from the Rally dice roll. Vehicles subtract 2 from their Rally-attempt die roll for being in terrain with positive TM. 80
HE-equivalent: This boxed value is the FP the vehicle’s main ordnance (gun) uses to attack non-vehicle targets on which it has scored a hit. If “N x” precedes the HE – equivalent, “N” is the number of times the vehicle/WT’s main ordnance can fire in its impulse. Note: The main gun’s To-Hit and penetration values are located on the back of the vehicle counter; mouse over the counter and it will flip to that side.
Machine-gun Firepower: These underlined values are abstract factors that depict the vehicle’s machine-gun FP. A FP of 2 has a range of 10. A FP of 4 has a range of 14. An asterisk after the number indicates a 360-degree (i.e. all around) field of fire, but the machine gun can only be fired when the vehicle is open. Machine guns without the asterisk must fire in the turret’s covered arc or, in the case of non-turreted vehicles, in the covered arc of the front hull. The advantage of these machine guns is that they can be fired regardless of whether the vehicle is open or buttoned. Unless otherwise noted, a vehicle equipped with a machine gun(s) must fire its machine gun(s) and its main gun in the same impulse, and they must fire at the same target. Vehicles with multiple machine guns must fire each separately; they cannot combine their FP. Rear-facing Machine Guns: Units with a machine-gun FP followed by an “R” can use the FP in the turret’s rear arc, which is defined as a covered arc directionally opposite that of the turret’s front arc (see Section 13). This MG must fire in the same impulse as the remainder of the vehicle’s weapons but need not engage the same target. If a vehicle has a rear81
facing MG and an available target, the vehicle’s “Rear Machine Gun” button will no longer be grayed out, and, as stated above, can be fired in the same impulse as the rest of the vehicle’s weapons. Note that vehicles without a rear-facing MG will not have this option in the Action Bar at all. Armor (Hull/Turret): The three numbers to the left of the vehicle represent the vehicle’s front, flank, and rear armor (listed top to bottom). The number before the slash is the hull armor; the number after the slash is the turret armor. If there is only one number, the vehicle has no turret. Vehicle Name: Provides the vehicle’s designation such as Pz III F, T-34, etc.
14.2. Vehicle Facing and Movement
There are several terrain types that vehicles cannot enter, and some Buildings that once entered by a vehicle are turned to the Rubble terrain type—see the TEC for complete details. Vehicles can continue moving after turning a hex to Rubble provided they have MPs left. There are also significant differences in vehicle movement as compared to movement of MMCs/SMCs. Vehicles MUST move individually, but unlike Squads, simultaneously activated vehicles need not move through, or end movement in, the same hexes. However, MMCs/SMCs on foot and vehicles can move together provided they start and finish their impulse together. All vehicles can Assault Move. Vehicles must ALWAYS face a hex spine (the corner between two sides of a hexagon). The red corner/arrow on a vehicle counter indicates the vehicle’s facing. Vehicles move into one of the two hexes that lay on either side of the spine to which the red arrow points. Vehicles can, however, pivot within their hex. The cost is one MP per hex spine turned. 82
Vehicles can also move in reverse by entering one of the two hexes to the rear of the vehicle. Such movement costs 2x the normal MP cost. For example, reversing into a Clear hex costs 2 MPs. The vehicle’s turret faces the hex spine that its main gun’s barrel points to. It costs no MPs for turreted vehicles to change the facing of their turret. There is, however, an associated penalty on the Ordnance Firing Table (OFT) for doing so. The turret automatically pivots to face the vehicle’s target, unless the attacker chooses to pivot the entire vehicle and incur the corresponding penalty on the OFT.
14.3. Assault Movement in Vehicles
Unless otherwise noted, all vehicles can Assault Move. Vehicles using Assault Move can spend up to 1/2 of their MF (round fractions up) and still fire eligible machine guns (subtract 2 from their FP as per Assault Movement rules). Vehicles using Assault Movement can also fire their main gun, but add 2 to their To-Hit die roll, as indicated on the OFT. Vehicles cannot use Assault Movement to conduct an Overrun (see 14.4 below). Vehicles can use Assault Movement to load or unload passengers, which takes the place of the vehicle’s movement, and then fire.
14.4. Overruns
Vehicles with machine guns or other main armament can Overrun infantry (MMCs, SMCs and WTs) located in Clear (or other opentype terrain), Brush, Low Crops or Wheat Fields. Units subject to an Overrun, or units in other hexes, cannot Opportunity Fire against the vehicle in the Overrun hex. 83
To do so, the vehicle must have sufficient MPs to enter the hex and an additional 4 MPs for the Overrun. After the vehicle enters the hex, it sums its HE-equivalent and machine-gun FP (MGs with a “*” can only be used if the vehicle is open), adds 2, rolls 1d6, and adds the Leadership if an Armor Leader is present. The defender rolls a die and compares it to the attacker’s die roll. If the attacker’s modified die roll is less than or equal to the defender’s die roll, the Overrun has no effect. If the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s die roll, each of the defending units must take a Damage Check by rolling 1d6 and adding the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s modified die roll, and then consulting the Direct Fire Table (DFT). If a Good Order (unshaken) Leader is present, Leadership Modifiers do apply, but Leaders must conduct, and pass, a DC first. Following an Overrun attempt, any surviving Good Order MMCs/Heroes can Close Assault the vehicle as described in Section 16.1. Ignore any reference to moving into the vehicle’s hex, as the counterattackers are already there. MMCs/Heroes that wish to Close Assault must, however, still pass a MC prior to Close Assaulting. If the vehicle survives the Close Assault, it can remain in the hex or, if it has sufficient MPs, continue moving—even conducting subsequent Overruns if it has sufficient MPs. If the vehicle chooses to remain in the hex, all enemy MMC/SMC units left in the hex, except Shaken WTs, must retreat to an adjacent hex of the owning player’s choice; mark them with a Moved marker. Shaken WTs are eliminated. 84
If the Close Assault destroys the vehicle, no further action is required from the surviving (both Good Order and Shaken) units in the hex.
14.5. Vehicle Crews
Each vehicle has an inherent Crew. If the vehicle is destroyed (except through Close Assault, Section 16.1), the Crew must make a Bailout Check. Roll 1d6: If the result is odd, the Crew is eliminated with the vehicle; if the result is even, the AI places a Shaken Crew in the vehicle’s hex. Crews are automatically eliminated in vehicles destroyed by Close Assault. If a vehicle is Abandoned, place the Crew under the vehicle. The Crew immediately takes a MC. Crews that pass the MC remain in Good Order; those that don’t are Shaken. In all the above instances, the Crew is placed under a Moved marker. Armor Leaders belonging to destroyed or Abandoned vehicles are removed from play.
15. Passengers Passengers, whether riding inside or outside of the vehicle, are placed on top of the vehicle’s counter.
15.1. Passengers Riding Inside
Vehicles marked with “P” can carry up to one Half-squad, one SW, and one SMC. Those marked with “PP” can carry up to one Squad (or its stacking equivalent), two SWs, and two SMCs. In either case, these passengers are considered 85
to be riding INSIDE the vehicle. Shaken passengers of PP or P vehicles are not required to debark (they are riding inside the vehicle). They may, however, debark when eligible at the owning player’s option. Weapon Teams with a gun or tube caliber greater than 20mm cannot be transported. 15.1.1. Bailout Checks If the vehicle is destroyed (except through Close Assault), the computer will make passengers perform a Bailout Check by rolling 1d6 for each transported unit. On an even die roll, the AI will flip MMCs and SMCs to their Shaken side, place them in the Wreck’s hex, and mark them with a Moved marker. An odd die roll eliminates the MMC/SMC. SWs also survive on an even die roll and are eliminated on an odd roll; obviously, SWs cannot be Shaken. Passengers are automatically eliminated in vehicles destroyed by Close Assault.
15.2. Passengers Riding Outside
Vehicles marked with “PO” can also carry up to one Half-squad, one SW, and one SMC. Likewise, those marked with “PPO” can carry up to one Squad (or its stacking equivalent), two SWs, and two SMCs. In this case, however, the passengers are considered to be riding OUTSIDE (on top of) the vehicle. If the vehicle fires ordnance (not MGs), the passengers immediately disembark, are marked with a Moved marker, and must pass a MC to avoid becoming Shaken. Any passengers dismounting (voluntary or not) from a vehicle are subject to Opportunity Fire. Any attack the passenger-carrying vehicle initiated is resolved before any OF against dismounting units. 86
Passengers riding on the outside of a vehicle that is hit by ordnance that does not destroy the vehicle or cause its Abandonment must immediately disembark. They are marked with a Moved marker and must pass a MC to avoid becoming Shaken. If the vehicle on which they are riding is destroyed, the passengers must make a Bailout Check, as explained in Section 15.1.1. Passengers riding on top of vehicles can be attacked by smallarms fire. The vehicle need not be open. Shaken passengers riding on top of a vehicle must immediately disembark, but unshaken passengers can choose to disembark with them or not. The computer will place a Moved marker on the disembarked units. Shaken passengers of PP or P vehicles are not required to disembark (they are riding inside the vehicle). They may, however, disembark when eligible at the owning player’s option. Passengers riding on top of a vehicle can attack eligible targets with their inherent FP (no SWs). Subtract 1 from the unit’s FP if the vehicle hasn’t moved, or subtract 2 from the unit’s FP if the vehicle is moving or marked with a Moved or Assault Move marker. Units can fire at any time during a vehicle’s movement. Units that do so are marked with a Fired marker. If units on top of a vehicle fire before the vehicle moves, the vehicle cannot activate to move or Assault Move until a subsequent impulse. For example, a Soviet 1-4-4 Squad riding on the outside of a moving T-34 fires at – 1 FP (1 – 2 = – 1) Passengers that fire cannot dismount later in the impulse, except involuntarily (in which case they are marked with a Moved marker).
15.3. Passengers of Abandoned Vehicles
Passengers of abandoned vehicles disembark and take a MC. Failure means the unit(s) becomes Shaken. Disembarking units go under a Moved marker.
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15.4. Mounting and Dismounting It takes one-half (rounded up) of both the vehicle and Squad’s MFs to load into (i.e. mount) or dismount from a vehicle. Units can only load if they begin the Operations Phase in the same hex with the vehicle into which they are loading.
To load a unit onto a vehicle, click the unit you wish to load, then click on the “Load/Unload” button in the Action Bar. If there is more than one possible vehicle in the hex that the unit could be loaded onto, you will be asked to choose which vehicle you prefer. After selecting the vehicle, the unit will be shown in the Activation Window to the right of the selected vehicle, indicating it is loaded, as below. In the image, the 1-6-4 squad has been loaded into the SdKf251. The same process is used to unload units. Units can unload at any time in the vehicle hex during the carrying unit’s impulse, as long as the vehicle still has at least half of its MPs remaining. Passengers can be fired at in the hex in which they have been 88
unloaded. Note that when vehicles Assault Move, their partial movement is consumed by such boarding and exiting procedures. Units that unload can move separately from their carrier. For example, a 1-6-4 Squad unloads from a STuG III G and then moves two hexes over Clear terrain in the same impulse. The STuG III G (MF of 10) then spends 5 MPs to travel in any direction. The above example is an exception to the rule stating that units moving from the same hex in the same impulse must move together. A Moved marker is placed atop the MMC/SMC at the moment of disembarking. The MMC/SMC finishes its movement, and then the vehicle can continue its move. Assault Move-capable units can use AM to unload and subsequently fire, but doing so prohibits them from leaving the hex in which they disembarked until the following turn. MMCs/SMCs can disembark from Shaken vehicles, but the Shaken vehicle cannot move in the turn the MMCs/SMCs 89
disembark. MMCs/SMCs cannot disembark from Shaken vehicles that have already moved in the current turn, unless debarking with Shaken infantry as required by Section 15.2.
16. Infantry and Artillery vs . Vehicles Infantry are not helpless against armored fighting vehicles. Since late in World War I, infantry have carried a variety of man-portable anti-tank weapons. Yet even without these weapons, infantry can effectively eliminate armor.
16.1. Close Assault
A MMC or Hero can Close Assault an enemy vehicle by moving into the vehicle’s hex. Shaken vehicles are not automatically destroyed in Close Assault nor do they suffer any additional penalty. Vehicles can always defend in Close Assault, regardless of their activation status, just as MMCs and eligible SMCs can always defend in Melee, regardless of their activation status. No Melee-eligible enemy units can be present in the target vehicle’s hex. Passengers inside a vehicle do not prevent Close Assault, but Good Order passengers riding outside the vehicle do. Shaken units in the same hex as a friendly tank are not automatically eliminated by Good Order enemy units entering said hex to Close Assault the vehicle. Units can move adjacent to a vehicle before Close Assault; they don’t have to begin their impulse adjacent to it. Close Assault is a form of movement in regards to unit activation in 90
a hex, meaning that, from this hex, only the Close Assaulting units can move in this impulse. Before entering the vehicle’s hex, MMCs, Heroes, and any accompanying Leaders must pass a pre-assault MC. Two is subtracted from the MC dice roll if the units are entering the vehicle’s hex via a hex with a positive TM. The Leader checks first; if he passes, he can use his Leadership to assist other MMCs (not Heroes) making the MC. Units that fail the MC remain in the hex they occupied prior to the MC. If these units moved, a Moved marker is placed on them; if not, an Ops Complete marker is placed on them. They do not become Shaken; they merely do not participate in the Close Assault. Next, move the Close Assaulting MMCs/Heroes into the vehicle’s hex. Now, each MMC/Hero individually Close Assaults the tank. The Close Assaulting MMC/Hero rolls 1d6, adding its inherent FP, the Leadership Modifier of any accompanying Leader, and the HE-equivalent of any ONE possessed antitank weapon or Satchel Charge. Units without any anti-tank weapons can still Close Assault the vehicle. The Leader can only assist ONE MMC’s Close Assault. The defending vehicle rolls 1d6 and adds the LOWEST armor factor on the vehicle’s counter (usually rear hull). If the attacker’s die roll is greater than the vehicle’s die roll, the vehicle is destroyed and a Wreck marker placed in the hex. Example: A 1-6-4 Wehrmacht Squad equipped with a Satchel Charge assaulting a T-34 adds 7 (1 FP + Satchel Charge’s 6 FP) to its die roll. The owner of the tank would also add the tank’s rearhull armor factor to his die roll. If the German’s modified die roll is greater than the Soviet’s die roll, the tank is destroyed. Repeat this process for each attacking MMC or Hero, but remember that the Leader can only assist ONE MMC’s Close Assault unless, of course, there is more than one Leader in the attacking stack. 91
If the vehicle is destroyed, its Crew and passengers are also eliminated; the Close Assaulting MMCs/Heroes remaining in the vehicle’s hex are marked with a Melee marker, and any other non-Melee-eligible enemy units present in the hex are eliminated. If the vehicle isn’t destroyed, the assaulting MMCs/ Heroes are returned to the (adjacent) hex from which they initiated the Close Assault and are marked with a Moved marker. In the case of an unsuccessful Close Assault following an Overrun, they must retreat to an adjacent hex of their owning player’s choice. Units that Close Assault a hex with two vehicles must go through the Close Assault procedure twice, thus requiring them to make a second MC if they successfully Close Assault the first vehicle. Note that you can’t opportunity Close Assault a vehicle that moves past your units during your opponent’s impulse.
16.2. Small-Arms Fire Armored Vehicles
vs .
Small arms are weapons that do not have To-Hit numbers on the back of their counters and do not use the Ordnance Fire Table (OFT). Examples are machine guns (MGs), Flamethrowers, Satchel Charges (when used in this context) and a Squad’s inherent FP. These units can attack unarmored vehicles and open armored vehicles—including open-top vehicles, such as the German Sdkfz 251 and Soviet Su-76, with their inherent FP. Armored vehicles are vehicles that have armor factors printed on their counters. By contrast, unarmored vehicles have an asterisk in place of the armor factors. 92
Small arms firing on a hex that contains both vehicle and non-vehicle units must either target a specific vehicle or all non-vehicular targets in the hex. Passengers are considered part of the vehicle that they are riding. Combat resolution in this case is nearly identical to that discussed under Fire Combat. Attacking units must meet range and LOS requirements. The attacking unit’s FP is summed and added to 1d6. The attacker’s FP is modified as indicated on the DFT’s die-roll modifications. The target vehicle rolls 1d6. The vehicle adds the TM of the terrain in its hex and the LOWEST armor factor on the vehicle’s counter (usually rear hull) to its die roll. If the attacker’s modified die roll is less than or equal to the defender’s modified die roll, the fire has no effect. If the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s modified die roll, the target vehicle and all passengers riding on top of the vehicle take a Damage Check (DC). If the vehicle is buttoned, only external passengers take the DC. Roll 1d6, add the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s modified die roll, and consult the DFT. If a Good Order Armor Leader is present, use his Morale instead of the target vehicle’s Morale. Infantry Leaders who are passengers can subtract their Leadership Modifier from the passengers’ DCs, but must pass their own DC first. Shaken EXTERNAL passengers must immediately disembark, and unshaken passengers can choose to disembark with them or not. Place a Moved marker on the disembarked units. Shaken passengers of PP or P vehicles are not required to debark. They may, however, debark when eligible, at the owning player’s option. 93
16.3. Small-Arms Fire Unarmored Vehicles
vs .
Unarmored vehicles have an asterisk in place of the armor factors. With two exceptions, the procedure for attacking unarmored vehicles is identical to that used for attacking armored vehicles. Exception One: Small arms can always fire against unarmored vehicles; the vehicles need not be open. Exception Two: The results on the DFT include Destroyed results. The attacking unit’s FP is summed and added to 1d6. The attacker’s FP is modified as indicated on the DFT’s die-roll modifications. The target vehicle rolls 1d6 and adds the TM of the terrain in its hex. If the attacker’s modified die roll is less than or equal to the defender’s modified die roll, the fire has no effect. If the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s modified die roll, the target vehicle AND any passengers that it is carrying must take Damage Checks. Both target vehicle and all passengers (vehicle first) roll 1d6, adding the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s modified die roll, and consulting the DFT. If a Good Order Armor Leader is present, use his Morale instead of the target vehicle’s Morale. Passengers riding on top of the vehicle perform DCs. Remember, Shaken external passengers are required to dismount, but Shaken internal (passengers of PP or P vehicles) are not. In some instances, one of the vehicle’s facings (usually the rear) may be unarmored, but the others are armored. In this case, use the procedure appropriate to the side of the vehicle that the fire is traced through. In other words, if the MMC/ SMC/WT fires through the unarmored facing, use the SmallArms Fire vs. Unarmored Vehicles section of the rules. If the 94
infantry fires through the armored facing, use the Small-Arms Fire vs. Armored Vehicles section of the rules.
16.4. Mortars and Artillery Armored Vehicles
vs .
Onboard Mortars and off-board indirect fire (see Section 17) affect vehicles the same way as small-arms fire does. Open armored vehicles compare their lowest armor factor and terrain TM plus 1d6 to the attacker’s HE-equivalent plus 1d6. A vehicle with an unarmored facing is attacked as if it were unarmored. Buttoned armored vehicles are not affected by Mortars and Artillery fire.
17. Indirect Fire Unlike direct-fire ordnance, described above, indirect-fire weapons may or may not see their target, and instead lob their shells through an arc-like trajectory. Indirect-fire attacks use the DFT. LnL includes both onboard and off-board indirect-fire weapons. Counters on the board represent onboard weapons, such as light Mortars. Off-board weapons are anything from larger Mortars to field guns.
17.1. Onboard Mortars
Mortars cannot fire from Building or Forest hexes. Onboard Mortars can fire directly at targets in spotted hexes within their range and LOS. The computer rolls 2d6, chooses the higher of the two rolls, adds it to the Mortar’s FP, and resolves the attack (all DFT modifiers, except the TM for Walls, apply). 95
They can also fire indirectly at targets to which a friendly Good Order Leader or Scout has a LOS. Leaders/Scouts can call onboard Mortar fire against a hex they spotted during the current impulse by first clicking the “Fire for Effect” button in the Action Bar, then selecting the hex to be bombarded, then finally by clicking on the Mortar unit that will do the shelling. When doing so, the Leader is not marked Ops Complete until after they call the Mortar fire. Leaders cannot, however, call onboard Mortar fire and add their Leadership to a direct-fire attack in the same turn. When a Leader/Scout is calling in Mortar fire, the firing Mortar need NOT have a LOS to the target hex, but must be within range of it. The AI will then mark the Leader/Scout that called in the Mortar fire Ops Complete, and roll 2d6, choose the higher of the die, add it to the Mortar’s FP, and resolve the attack. Leadership does NOT affect the Mortar’s FP when firing indirectly, and degrading terrain does not reduce it, but other DFT modifiers, except the TM for Walls (including the TM of the target hex) apply normally. The resulting Fire For Effect marker stays on the board until the Admin Phase, and attacks any unit that enters its hex. Mortars cannot Opportunity Fire. The hexes under an onboard Mortar’s FFE marker are considered Degrading Terrain for LOS purposes only. Thus LOS traced through more than two such hexes is blocked.
17.2. Off-board Artillery
The availability of off-board Artillery is indicated in the scenario description. To call off-board Artillery, a friendly Leader/Scout uses an impulse to place a Spotting Round marker (via the “Spotting Round” button in the Action Bar) on any one hex within his LOS. The hex need not be spotted. 96
The AI then adds all applicable modifiers to the initial Spotting Round’s roll (Leadership bonuses or LOS degredation) to determine the accuracy of the initial Spotting Round, then computes the scatter direction of that round. The player chooses a hex within the scatter area in which to call in his main barrage, and the AI then computes the attack’s effectiveness against any units within that hex and its surrounding hexes. Fire For Effect markers are placed in each hex for the duration of the turn, and any units, either friend or foe, that enter those hexes this turn are subject to the effects of the Artillery strike. A more detailed breakdown of the game mechanics of the Spotting Round and Fire For Effect system for off-board Artillery are as follows: After the player chooses the intended location of the Spotting Round, the AI rolls 2d6. It then adds the number of degrading-terrain hexes the Leader/Scout’s LOS passes through to the white die, subtracts the Leader’s Leadership Modifier, and divides the remaining modified white-die total (white die number + degrading terrain – Leadership) by 2 (dropping any resulting fractions). This is how far the Spotting Round impacts from the desired hex. The colored die is the direction the round drifts. One is north, two is northeast, etc. A Spotting Round marker is placed by the computer in the hex indicated by the drift die roll. If this hex is not in the Leader/Scout’s LOS, the Spotting Round marker is removed and an Ops Complete marker placed on the Leader/Scout. 97
If the Spotting Round marker is still within his LOS, the Leader/Scout can shift the marker one hex in any direction that is within his LOS or abort the fire mission. If the he chooses to continue with the fire mission, shift the Spotting Round marker in the desired direction and then replace it with the Fire For Effect (FFE) marker. The FFE marker immediately attacks all units in the impact hex AND ALL SIX ADJACENT HEXES with the FP indicated on the scenario card or Event Paragraph. Leadership does NOT affect the FP, but other DFT modifiers (including the TM of the target hex, except Walls) apply. The FFE marker stays on the board until the Admin Phase and attacks any units that enter its hex or any of the six adjacent hexes. If a previously attacked unit moves into a new FFE hex, it is attacked again. Note this all happens in ONE impulse. If the Leader/Scout decides to abort the mission, the Spotting Round marker is removed and the Leader/Scout’s impulse is over. Only Leaders/Scouts can call for indirect fire. Leaders cannot call off-board artillery and add their Leadership to a direct-fire attack in the same turn. The hexes under or adjacent to an off-board Artillery FFE marker are considered degrading terrain for LOS purposes only. Thus LOS traced through more than two such hexes is blocked. 17.2.1. Off-board Fire Mission Limitations Unless noted otherwise in a scenario’s special rules, off-board fire missions are called sequentially. In other words, if a player receives two fire missions in a scenario, he cannot call them simultaneously, even if he has two Leaders/Scouts. One fire mission must be resolved before placing the Spotting Round marker for the next. Leaders cannot add their Leadership to fire-combat attacks in the same impulse in which they direct off-board Artillery fire. 98
18. Night Combat The setting of the sun has never signalled the end of combat. Adversaries maneuver; brief, brutal firefights break out; men die. At night, units can spot, fire, and see anything within two hexes of their position (count the target’s hex but not the firer’s). A unit can only fire on units farther than two hexes ONLY if the target is marked with a Fired marker. Such attacks subtract 3 from the attacker’s total FP (not each unit) in addition to any other modifiers. For example, a stack of units conducting Assault Movement fire at a target located greater than three hexes distant subtracts a total of 5 (2 for AM and 3 for firing at a unit greater than two hexes distant). On the other hand, stationary units firing at an adjacent target would still add 2 to their FP. For example, a 2 FP unit firing on an adjacent target at night would have a total of 4 FP (2 inherent FP + 2 additional FP for adjacency).
18.1. Ordnance Attacks During Night Scenarios
Units using the OFT fire at any target within two hexes (count the target’s hex but not the firer’s). A unit can fire on units farther than two hexes ONLY if the target is marked with a Fired Marker. Add 3 to the To-Hit dice roll unless the target is within two hexes.
18.2. Melee During Night Scenarios During night scenarios, Melee is resolved normally.
99
18.3. Star Shells Leaders or Heroes that are not marked by a Moved, Low Crawl, Fired or Ops Complete marker can attempt to fire a Star Shell into any hex within three hexes of their position. Select the hex; the AI then rolls 1d6. If the die roll is equal to or less than the nationality’s Star Shell capability, modified by the Leader’s Leadership Modifier, place a Star Shell marker in the hex. Star-Shell Capabilities: German: 2 Soviets/Partisans: 1 Romanian: 2 Regardless of whether he succeeds, the Leader is marked with an Ops Complete marker. Star Shell markers illuminate their hex and the six adjacent hexes as if it were day. Units in these hexes can be spotted and fired on without the penalties described above. Star Shell markers are removed during the following Administrative Phase. On-board Mortars can also place Star Shells following the normal on-board indirect-fire procedure, placing the Star Shell marker in lieu of a Spotting Round marker.
19. Fortifications Given time, soldiers will always improve their positions. After all, even a shallow hole provides some protection. LnL reflects this with a wide range of man-made fortifications. 100
19.1. Foxholes
19.2. Wire
Units in a hex drawn with Foxholes are considered to be in the Foxholes. Unless otherwise limited, units in Foxholes have an unrestricted field of fire. A Foxhole’s TM of +1 is added to the TM of its hex. Even if a Foxhole is located in open terrain, the units DO get the +2 bonus for attempting to Rally in terrain with a positive TM.
Wire is used to impede and channel the enemy’s attack. It costs MMCs/SMCs 4 MPs to enter a Wire hex. This is total, NOT in addition to other terrain in the hex. Hence Wire placed in Wheat Fields hex costs 4 MPs, as does Wire placed in Clear terrain. Vehicular-movement costs to enter Wire hexes are listed on the TEC. Remember, units can always use all their MPs to move one hex.
19.3. Trenches
Units in a hex with a Trench marker are considered in the Trench. Trenches are neither blocking nor degrading terrain, but units in a Trench must first be spotted as if they were in blocking terrain before they can be the target of enemy fire. A Trench’s TM is added to the TM of its hex. Trenches provide a +2 TM except when the attacking units include a Mortar or offboard artillery. In such cases the Trench only provides a +1 TM. A Trench’s TM only applies to MMC/SMCs; other units receive 101
no TM for occupying a Trench. It costs no additional MPs for a MMC/SMC to enter a Trench. Tracked units (T) must pay 2 MPs total to enter a Trench hex.
19.4. Railroad Tracks
Railroad Tracks are laid on a slight rise and are thus considered to be degrading terrain with a +1 TM, in addition to other terrain in the hex. For example, a Forest hex with Railroad Tracks through it has a total TM of +3. Movement-Point cost is as per the hex terrain. If an attacking unit’s LOS crosses the tracks, it suffers a – 1 to its FP on the DFT or a +1 to its To-Hit die roll on the OFT.
20. National Characteristics for Lock ‘n Load 20.1. German Forces 20.1.1. SS Fanaticism The SS were well known as never-say-die fighters. To simulate this they ARE NOT automatically eliminated when a Melee-eligible Squad enters the hex with Shaken Meleeeligible units. Instead, the SS units attempt to rally. Leaders attempt to rally first, and then other units in the hex. Good 102
Order Leaders apply their Leadership Modifier, but a Good Order Leader IS NOT necessary for the SS units to attempt to rally before Melee. Units that fail to rally are automatically eliminated; those that do rally can fight in the Melee normally. If the only Good Order units in the hex after the rally attempts are non-Melee-eligible units (non-MG-equipped Leaders, for example) they are eliminated. 20.1.2. SS Dedication The SS were completely dedicated to the Fatherland’s fight. To represent this, in each Rally Phase, the German player can either attempt to rally one SS unit that is not in a rally-eligible hex or re-roll an unsuccessful rally attempt for one unit. In this case, rally-eligible hexes are defined as hexes with a friendly Leader or under the Leader’s influence (e.g., Leaders equipped with the Charismatic Skill Card) or hexes containing a Hero.
20.2. Soviet Forces
The Soviets fought an epic war against Hitler’s Germany, suffering millions of casualties and engaging the bulk of the German forces fielded in the Second World War. Soviet Guards units are red, Soviet Line Troops are gold, and the Partisans are orange. Different-colored Soviet units cannot stack with each other unless noted otherwise or allowed by a specific scenario. 20.2.1. For the Motherland In each Rally Phase the Soviet player can raise the Morale of ALL units in one hex by one. For example, a 1-4-4-5/5 Squad could have its Morale raised to six (6). Other rally modifiers such as occupation of a hex with a +TM still apply. This ability applies to any Soviet unit, including vehicles and Partisans.
103
20.2.2. Partisans Germany’s treatment of subjugated civilian populations, especially in Eastern Europe and in Russia, was a catalyst for insurrection, giving rise to small bands of armed men and women who harassed the rear elements of the German armies. Over the course of the war, these groups became more organized, and were often covertly supplied by the Allies. Partisan units have an orange background and possess the following capabilities: Smoke and Star Shells: Partisan units cannot lay Smoke and have a Star-Shell Capability of 1. Stacking: Partisans can only stack TWO MMCs per hex unless there’s a Leader in the hex. If a Partisan Leader in a hex with three MMCs is eliminated, the Partisan player must also eliminate a Partisan MMC (his or her choice). Firepower (FP): Each additional Partisan MMC firing from a hex adds one (1) to the FP (not halved) of the attack. For example, two 0-3-4 Partisan Squads firing from a hex would have a combined FP of 1 (0 + 1 = 1). Ambush: When a Partisan unit (or stack) makes a Melee assault on a unit that did not have LOS to the Partisan unit(s) at the beginning of the Partisan unit’s impulse, the Partisan’s FP is tripled for the first round of Melee. Additionally, this first round of Melee is considered non-simultaneous (Exception: reinforcing Melee) and eliminated opponents are removed from play. Note, however, that Partisans are Zero-FP units and are governed by rule 9.3, which states that Zero-FP MMCs attack and defend with a FP of 1 in Melee but suffer a die-roll penalty. For example, a 0-3-4 Partisan Squad ambushing a German 1-64 Squad would attack at 3:1 odds but would subtract 1 from its 104
Melee die roll (see 9.3) and would only eliminated the German Squad on a roll of 6 or greater. Movement: Partisans pay only one (not two) MPs to move into a Light Woods hex; and they pay only one MP for the FIRST Forest or Swamp hex entered during an impulse, but two MPs for each subsequent Forest or Swamp hex entered in the impulse. Target Modifiers: Partisans receive a +3 TM for Forest terrain and a +2 TM for Light Woods.
21. Fixed-Wing Aircraft A player might receive fixed-wing air support in a scenario. Such air support will be designated in the scenario order of battle. The air support’s time of arrival is randomly determined as follows: The air support enters on the NEXT impulse after either player rolls doubles for ANY game-related function.
Note: The term air support, plane, and aircraft are interchangeable within these rules.
For example, the German player has air support. It is his impulse and he decides to take a shot at a Soviet T-34 with one of his Squad’s Panzerfausts. The To-Hit die roll produces doubles. The German resolves the attack normally and concludes his impulse. The next impulse (yes, before the Soviet player gets another impulse) the German air support arrives. If in the Rally Phase either player rolls doubles while attempting to rally a unit, the air support arrives in the first impulse of the following Operations Phase, regardless of who holds the initiative.
105
Roll 1d6 to determine from what direction the air support will enter the Board. A roll of 1 signifies north, 2 east, etc. If the die comes up 5 or 6, the air support enters from a direction of the owning player’s choosing. The air support has an unlimited Movement Factor. It must, however, enter, move across, and exit the Board in the same impulse. The air support can only move in a straight line from its point of entry to its point of exit. At any time in the air support’s flight across the Board, eligible enemy anti-aircraft units (units with blue to-hit numbers on their to-hit table) can fire on the plane. If the aircraft is Shaken, it aborts and is removed from the Board. If the aircraft is destroyed, roll 1d6. The aircraft is moved the number of hexes indicated along the flight path, where it immediately crashes. The crash attacks all units in the hex with a Firepower of 6. Armored vehicles are attacked as if they were open. All units in the hex receive the TM of the terrain. After resolving the attack caused by the crash, replace the aircraft with a Wreck marker and Rubble any Building in the hex.
21.1. Machine Guns and Bombs
Air-support units are marked with a series of numbers, such as “YxZ”, where Y and Z are numbers. This represents the air support’s machine-gun Firepower (FP). Air support can attack a number of adjacent hexes along its flight path indicated by the number before the “x”. After determining from which side of the Board the air support will enter, the AI will ask the player which hex he would like to attack first with his MG FP; it will then highlight in orange the hex or hexes in the possible flight path(s) that can be attacked, and the player will choose again. The air support 106
will attack the hexes with the FP indicated after the “x”. This FP represents FP factors (6.0) or Penetration Value (13.0), whichever the owner prefers, and may represent different methods of attack to different targeted units in the same hex. For example, a Ju-87D Stuka could attack a hex containing two Soviet Squads and a T-34 tank as follows. The Stuka would roll 1d6 and add 2 (its FP) when attacking the Squads. The Soviet Squads would make a normal opposed die roll as described in 6.0. The Stuka could then attack the T-34 using a Penetration Value of 2. The Stuka does not make a To-Hit roll, but makes the opposed penetration roll as described in 13.0. The target (in this case a T-34) uses its lowest rear armor factor, (turret or hull; in this case both are 3), halved and rounded up (to represent thinner top armor) + 1d6 when making the opposed roll. Resolve results normally. Air support cannot spot, but can initiate its attack in any hex in the LOS of a friendly Leader (it doesn’t need to be spotted), or any hex that is spotted. Air support can only attack hexes within its flight path, and each hex attacked must be adjacent to another. It cannot attack more hexes than indicated on its counter. An air-support unit’s HE-equivalent (located next to its MG FP) represents the damage the aircraft’s bombs inflict on ANY hex in its flight path. This hex need not be adjacent to the hexes attacked with the unit’s MG FP. The hex chosen is attacked with the HE-equivalent FP in the same way as the MGs attacked the previous hexes. In other words, this Firepower represents FP factors (6.0) or Penetration Value (13.0), whichever the owner prefers, and may represent different methods of attack to different targeted units in the same hex. 107
22. Glossary 1d6: Roll of one die 2d6: Roll of two dice AP: Administrative Phase AM: Assault Move ATG: Anti-Tank Gun BC: Bailout Check CA: Close Assault DC: Damage Check DFT: Direct Fire Table DRM: Die Roll Modification DT: Double-time FFE: Fire For Effect FP: Firepower GO: Good Order HEAT: High Explosive Anti-Tank HE: High Explosive Infantry: Generic term that includes all MMC and SMC counters. Inherent Firepower: The Firepower printed on a counter. LM: Leadership Modifier LOS: Line of Sight LC: Low Crawl MAV: Modified Armor Value MF: Movement Factor MG: Machine Gun—normally interchangeable with LMG, but also used to denote machine-gun Weapon Teams (3/4” counters) such as the Soviet 12.7mm machine gun. MMC: Multi-Man Counter (Squad, Half-squad, Crew, Weapons Team) MC: Morale Check MP: Movement Point(s) MPV: Modified Penetration Value MT: Melee Table 108
O: Denotes an Off-road vehicle. OC: Operations (Ops) Complete OF: Opportunity Fire OFT: Ordnance Fire Table OP: Operations Phase Ordnance: Ordnance is weapon that has a To-Hit table on the back of the counter. They include Support Weapons (such as the Panzerfaust (PzF30)), Weapon Teams (such as the 75mm anti-tank gun (ATG)), and vehicle-mounted weapons. These weapons use the OFT to determine modifications to their To-Hit die rolls. P: Denotes a vehicle that can carry passengers inside—up to one Halfsquad, one SW, and one SMC. PO: Denotes a vehicle that can carry passengers outside—up to one Half-squad, one SW, and one SMC. PP: Denotes a vehicle that can carry passengers inside—up to one Squad, two SWs, and two SMCs. PPO: Denotes a vehicle that can carry passengers outside—up to one Squad, two SWs, and two SMCs. R: Denotes a Road vehicle. RP: Rally Phase SMC: Single-Man Counter (Leader, Hero, Sniper, Medic) SR: Self-Rally SM: Stealth Movement SW: Support Weapon T: Denotes a Tracked vehicle. TEC: Terrain Effects Chart TM: Terrain Modifier, also known as terrain Target Modifier Tripod Mounted: The M1919A4, Vickers, and MG 42 were mounted on a tripod for better accuracy. The MG 42 also came in a bipod version (2-10). Unit: Generic term that includes all moveable units—tanks, MMCs, etc. VP(s): Victory Point(s) WT: Weapon Team 109
110
ELIMINATED
Casualties
Shaken
No Effect
Wounded
Shaken
No Effect
Good Order SMC (Not Hero)
Wounded
Wounded
No Effect
Shaken SMC (Not Hero)
Wounded
Wounded
No Effect
Hero
Shaken
Shaken
No Effect
Armored Vehicles/ Armor Leader
ELIMINATED ELIMINATED ELIMINATED ELIMINATED Abandoned
Casualties
Casualties
No Effect
Shaken MMC
DESTROYED
DESTROYED
Shaken
No Effect
Unarmored Vehicles
DESTROYED
DESTROYED
Damaged
No Effect
Helicopter
Shaken: A Shaken unit flips its counter to the Shaken side (Exception: Vehicles are marked with a Shaken marker). A Shaken unit may return to Good Order by passing a rally attempt DR (2d6) in an ensuing Rally phase. All vehicles may Self-Rally. Shaken units may not fire their weapons or any Support Weapons they posses. Shaken units may not advance toward an enemy unit in their Line of Sight (LOS). If engaged in Melee, and there are no other Melee-eligible friendly units in the hex, they are automatically eliminated (Note: Vehicles do not melee.). Shaken Leaders cannot rally troops, but may attempt to rally themselves. Shaken Leaders may not use their Leadership for any function. Shaken Medics may not heal soldiers (or themselves). Shaken Snipers may not snipe, but may Self-Rally (SR). Shaken Chaplains may not rally troops. Heroes never shake. Shaken U.S. Advisors no longer increase the Morale of ARVN units stacked with the Advisor. Shaken vehicles must Button, halve their movement allowance (drop fractions), and may not fire any of their weapons. Shaken vehicles that receive another Shaken result are Abandoned.
Die Roll ≥ 3X Morale
Die Roll ≥ 2X Morale and < 3X Morale
Die Roll > Morale and < 2X Morale
Die Roll ≤ Morale
Good Order MMC
Direct Fire Table (DFT)
player’s reference
111
Per Target terrain
+/- Terrain’s Modifier (See TEC)
DFT Defending Unit’s Die Roll Modifications
Abandoned: Abandoned vehicles are just that: abandoned. Place an Abandoned marker on the vehicle. It may not move or fire for the remainder of the scenario… no one wants to climb into a target. The Crew is placed underneath the vehicle and makes a MC. Failure Shakes the Crew (see sections 14.0 & 15.4). Passengers of Abandoned vehicles disembark and make a Morale check. Mark disembarking units with a Move marker. Damaged: Damaged helicopters must immediately exit the board. They may not unload passengers or fire. Destroyed: Destroyed vehicles/helicopter are replaced with a wreck counter. Both Crews and passengers must take a Bailout check (see sections 15.4, 16.1, and 16.2). Destroyed helicopters crash. Roll 2d6 to determine the direction from the hex in which it was engaged the chopper crashed. The colored die is used to determine direction. A die roll of one is due north, two is northeast, etc. Half the number on the white die (rounding fractions up). This gives the number of hexes from the hex in which it was engaged the bird crashed. Place the crash marker in this hex. All units present in the crash hex are attacked by a 4 Firepower attack. This attack is resolved as per normal procedure (i.e. the 4 Firepower is added to a die roll, etc.) Casualties: Replace a full Squad with a Shaken Half-squad. Eliminate a Half-squad or Weapon Team. Wounded: Unit must stop movement. Flip the SMC to Shaken side (Hero excepted) and mark it with a Wounded marker. Wounded Leaders have their Morale, Leadership modifier and Leadership range decreased by one (i.e. they may only activate units in the same hex). SMCs under a Wounded marker who are Wounded again are eliminated. Medics may heal wounded SMCs. Hero Creation: There is a chance that a Hero is created during play whenever a one (1) is rolled during a Damage Check caused by enemy fire. Roll the die again. If an even number is rolled, a Hero is created in the hex (ARVN excepted (see section 13.4)). Randomly pick a Hero and a Skill Card (see Single Man Counters).
DFT Attacking Unit’s Die Roll Modifications Leadership Modifier
Add to die roll
Target unit is vehicle marked with Move or Assault Move or currently moving or target is helicopter in Hover mode
-1 to die roll.
Target is non-vehicle unit marked with Move or Assault Move marker or currently moving (not Low Crawl/Stealth)
+1 to die roll
Target is Helicopter in Flying Mode
-2 to Die Roll
Attacking unit is Helicopter in Flying Mode
-2 to Die Roll
Firing during night scenario at a non-adjacent unit that is not illuminated by a Star Shell
-2 to Die Roll
Target Unit is adjacent
+2 to die roll
Per Degrading Terrain hex through which the LOS passes (maximum of two - a third Degrading hex blocks LOS)
-1 to die roll
Flanking Fire
+1
Attacking unit is Passenger on (not in) non-moving vehicle
-1 to die roll
Attacking unit is Passenger on (not in) moving vehicle
-2 to die roll
Vehicle mounted MG firing after Assault Movement
-2 to die roll
Support Weapon Portage and Usage Table Unit
May Carry
May Fire
Squad
2 Support Weapons
Half-squad / Crew
1 Support Weapon
Reduces MF by 2
1 SW at half of the SW’s normal Firepower (fractions rounded down). Two SMCs may fire a SW without this reduction.
SMC
1 SW and forfeit inherent Firepower.
1 Support Weapon
Melee Table Odds Ratio Kill Number
112
1-3 11
1-2 10
Notes
1 SW and retain inherent Firepower, or 2 SW and forfeit inherent Firepower.
1-1 8
Medics, Snipers, and Chaplains can’t fire or carry Support Weapons. Leaders forfeit Leadership modifier when firing. 3-2 7
2-1 6
3-1 5
4-1 4
5-1 3
Ordnance Fire Table (OFT) Firing Weapon Mounted on a vehicle using Assault Movement or an Ops Complete Vehicle/Helicopter
Die Roll Modification
Target
Die Roll Modification
+2
Marked with a Move or Assault Move marker .
+1
+1
Adjacent
-2
Weapons Team or non-turreted vehicle pivoting to fire outside covered arc (allowable for Opportunity Fire), or turreted vehicle pivoting chassis. Not moving to new hex.
+2
In Terrain with a Target Modifier
As Per TEC
Firing Captured SW Vehicle is Open
+1
+1
Armor Leader Leadership
-1
Helicopter In Hovering Mode
- (Leadership)
Turreted weapon firing outside covered arc. In other words, did the turret pivot in order to bring its gun to bear on the target?
MMC/SMC Marked with Assault Move Marker firing Support Weapon SMC (not Hero) firing Support Weapon
Firing during night scenario at a non-adjacent unit that is not illuminated by a Star Shell Helicopter in Flying Mode
Per hex of Degrading Terrain the LOS crosses enroute to the target (Maximum two hexes)
Helicopter in Flying Mode
+2
+1 +1 +2 +2 +1
113
114
Blocking
Blocking
Degrading
Hedges
Walls
Cemetery
Degrading
Blocking
Light Woods
Woods
Blocking
Wheat Fields
Blocking
Blocking
Stone Building
Wooden Building
Type
Terrain
4
P
2
P
*+1
+0
6
P
T
6
P
2
P
P
*+3
12
P
O
8
P
6
P
P
*+4
P
P
R
2
2
2
1
*+1
*+1
2
2
Leg
Movement Cost (P=Prohibited)
+1
+2
0
+2
+1
0
+3
+4
Target Modifier
None
No vehicles unless on road. Limits stacking to two squads (or equivalent), two SW, and two SMC. NVA ignore this stacking restriction.
Negates +1 Moving or Move marker penalty for target unit.
Blocks LOS traced through, or along, the wall from the same elevation to the same elevation. Doesn’t block LOS to a hex in which the wall forms a hex side, when traced from a hex through a wall that forms one of the hex’s sides, or when the LOS is traced from the firing hex along a wall that connects to the target hex.. For example, LOS from 15K5 to 15L7 is not blocked. +1 No modifier against indirect fire (including M-79 Skill Card (Forgotten Heroes module). TM is in addition to other terrain in hex. * Denotes cost to cross hex side.
Blocks LOS traced through, or along, the hedge from the same elevation to the same elevation, with the following exceptions: 1) Doesn’t block LOS to a hex in which the hedge forms a hex side, 2) when traced FROM a hex through a hedge that forms one of the hex’s sides, or 3) when the LOS is traced from the firing hex along a hedge that connects the firing hex to the target hex. For example, LOS from 15K1 to 15L3 is not blocked. Negates movement modifier against direct fire traced across Hedge hex side. No modifier against indirect fire (including M-79 Skill Card (Forgotten Heroes module). * Denotes cost to cross hex side.
Notes
115
Open
Clear
Open
Degrading
Bridge
Marsh
Degrading
Blocking
Vehicle or Wreck
Smoke
Open
Open
Per terrain in hex and rules
Bunker / Foxhole
Pool
Hill
Open
Wire
Road
Degrading
Rubble
Brush/ Flowers
Degrading
Degrading
Light Woods
Blocking
Degrading
Forest
Low Crops
4
1
P
1
1
6
1
P
P
6
.5
P
2
2
8
3
P
4
1
3
1
1
2
2
1
1
P
1
P
.5
P
1
2
As per other terrain
As per other terrain
As per other terrain
Per other terrain +1 MP to move to higher elevation +2 MP for ‘R’ move to higher elevation
2
1
4
1
1
4
1
P
+1
+2
+1
+2 / +1
0
+1 against fire from a lower level
0
0
+3
0
0
+1
0
+2
Weapon Teams may not enter.
Degrades LOS through any portion of the vehicle/wreck hex. LOS traced down the edge of the hex is not degraded. TM applies to other units in hex, not units on the vehicle.
Blocks LOS through hex or traced down the edge of the hex.
Units in bunkers and foxholes can be spotted per the rules of the terrain in their hex.
None
None
None
Ignore terrain in hex when moving from one contiguous road hex to another.
Degrades LOS through ANY portion of the rubbled hex. LOS traced down the edge of the hex is not degraded.
None
Negates +1 Moving or Move marker penalty for target unit.
Light Woods contain four tree silhouettes per hex. None of the silhouettes touch.
No vehicles unless on road. Forest hexes contain more than four tree silhouettes. The silhouettes overlap.
Negates +1 Moving or Move marker penalty for target unit.
Credits Lock ‘n Load Publishing: GAME DESIGN Mark H. Walker PROGRAMMING Tom Proudfoot SCENARIO DESIGN Mark H. Walker, Tom Proudfoot MUSIC Jeff Edwards ART PANELS Ian Hamilton. COUNTER ART David Julien, Gabriel Gendron, Mark H. Walker, Pete Abrams CARD ART Guillaume Ries TESTING Ralph Ferrari
Tools/Libraries we used to create Lock ‘n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad Copyright © 1996 - 2014, Daniel Stenberg,
. All rights reserved. This software uses the FreeImage open source image library. See http://freeimage.sourceforge.net for details. FreeImage is used under the (GNU GPL or FIPL), version (license version). LIBEVENT Copyright © 2000-2007 Niels Provos Copyright © 2007-2010 Niels Provos and Nick Mathewson PAINTLIB This software contains paintlib code. paintlib is copyright © 19962002 Ulrich von Zadow and other contributors. Ogg Vorbis © 2014, Xiph.Org Foundation ZLIB Copyright © 1995-2013 Jean-loup Gailly and Mark Adler
MATRIX GAMES/SLITHERINE
PRODUCERS Erik Rutins, JD McNeil, Iain McNeil MARKETING DIRECTOR Marco Minoli TECHNICAL DIRECTOR Phil Veale BOX AND LOGO DESIGN Claudio Guarnerio & Myriam Bell GAME ART Nicolas Eskubi, David Julien, Marc von Martial, Gabriel Gendron MANUAL EDITING AND CONTENT Jeff Lewis, John Thompson, Mark Walker, Erik Rutins MANUAL DESIGN AND LAYOUT Myriam Bell PUBLIC RELATIONS & MARKETING Marco Minoli PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS Andrew Loveridge, Gerry Edwards ADMINISTRATION Liz Stoltz, Dean Walker BETA TEST COORDINATION Karlis Rutins, Erik Rutins QA LEAD Erik Rutins CUSTOMER SUPPORT STAFF Christian Bassani, Paulo Costa, Andrew Loveridge, Gerry Edwards, Erik Rutins, Iain McNeil FORUM ADMINISTRATION Erik Rutins, Valery Vidershpan WEB-DATABASE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT Andrea Nicola, Valery Vidershpan, Phil Veale NETWORK AND SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR Valery Vidershpan, Andrea Nicola TERRITORY MANAGERS France – Olivier Georges, Spain – Juan Diaz Bustamante BETA TESTING xavutrecht, Hrothgar, LO72, Barthheart, tgb, styler62, dougb, rgb07460, acropora, stolypin, DReaper, spillblood, designer1812, philB, MikeGER, sulla05, Hakhen, Blond_Knight, benpark, jmlima, derfderf, Light Horse, sgt_lobo, CptWasp, JMass, Bott, heyhellowhatsnew, Ubercat, jomni, grab, whako, Xacto, petdoc, genehaynes, Korsun, iprop, Panzerbri, Grim. Reaper, gillman, tvolz423, coppernob, Wartath, gre81, acb3, Jim_H, jascou
