This sparked a rethink of the ORB rules and this is what we have come up with:
Comments?Orb Formation
• ORB formation is a special all round defensive formation permitted only to battle groups entirely of pikemen or spearmen.
• It is depicted by contracting the battle group to 2 files wide, and turning at least half the battle group’s ranks to face the rear. The normal rules for a stationary contraction are used, except that it can be performed by undrilled troops. A battle group can therefore only form ORB if it starts no more than 4 files wide.
• A complex move test (CMT) must be passed to form or leave ORB formation.
• A battle group cannot form or leave ORB formation while in close combat.
• A battle group leaving ORB formation can face any of its four edges as if making a 90 or 180 degree turn.
• A battle group in ORB formation:
•• Cannot charge.
•• Can move 1 MU directly to front or rear in its side’s manoeuvre phase.
•• Never counts as charged in flank or rear and never turns to face enemy contacting its flank or rear. It never conforms to enemy in close combat.
•• Fights in any direction with one quarter of its bases, rounded up. Half of these, rounded up, count as front rank bases. It cannot be overlapped, and suffers no POA penalty for fighting in more than one direction.
•• Cannot count any pikemen or spearmen POAs, but, if steady, counts as steady pikemen or spearmen for the purpose of determining enemy POAs.
