Slitherine

Hi everyone.
I've just started using these weapons and I have many questions.

How do they count for morale if they're in column?
a BG of 2 wagons in column, it needs 1 or 2 hits to check morale??

Shooting phase: they shoot only from the long side, 1 dice every base width so 2 dices per miniature? Can they shoot in either long sides in the same time?
if they're in close combat in the front edge, can they shoot 1 dice from the other half of the miniature? (it does not partecipate in the melee because it do not support in melee, I think)

Impact & Melee phase: they throw 2 dices per base width, am I right? so 2 dices also in the front edge? If they're contacted in the long and in the short edge too, do they fight with every base width or only in 1 direction? do they suffer of the - "fighting in 2 directions" if it happens?

Thank you for the help

You may want to consult section 10 of the FAQ
http://www.fieldofglory.com/onthefieldofglory/faq.html

Nicola_GMBS wrote:

Shooting phase: they shoot only from the long side, 1 dice every base width so 2 dices per miniature? Can they shoot in either long sides in the same time?

Good question. I would say no. It states "either" not both.

if they're in close combat in the front edge, can they shoot 1 dice from the other half of the miniature? (it does not partecipate in the melee because it do not support in melee, I think)

Not miniature as its still a base.

Impact & Melee phase: they throw 2 dices per base width, am I right? so 2 dices also in the front edge?

Correct.

If they're contacted in the long and in the short edge too, do they fight with every base width or only in 1 direction? do they suffer of the - "fighting in 2 directions" if it happens?

Another good one. p 56. BWG do not turn to face if flank attacked. The definiation of two directions is page 88. Since the base does not turn you are not fighting in two directions.

Hi everyone.
I've just started using these weapons and I have many questions.

How do they count for morale if they're in column?
a BG of 2 wagons in column, it needs 1 or 2 hits to check morale??

A BG of BW counts the bases from one rank or file, whichever is greater. Each base counts as 2 bases for cohesion test purposes. So counting as 4 bases, needs 2 hits to generate a CT. Will then be at -1 for 1 HP2B.

if they're in close combat in the front edge, can they shoot 1 dice from the other half of the miniature? (it does not partecipate in the melee because it do not support in melee, I think)

No base can shoot when engaged in close combat. BW bases are counted as 1 base when fighting on their short edge, therefore, a BW base in close combat on its short edge cannot shoot.

Impact & Melee phase: they throw 2 dices per base width, am I right? so 2 dices also in the front edge? If they're contacted in the long and in the short edge too, do they fight with every base width or only in 1 direction? do they suffer of the - "fighting in 2 directions" if it happens?

A BW base is counted as 1 base if contacted on its front edge, two bases side by side if contacted on its side. Two dice per base width. In Impact if either half of the BW is contacted by more than one base the enemy chooses which will count as attacking, so 2 vs 2. In the melee phase, a BW is never considered fighting in two directions so suffers no penalty. According to the FAQ, in melee, if one half of the BW base is contacted on more than one side, it must split its 2 dice between enemy bases.

Thank you very much for the answers and for the suggestion to read the FAQ.
Now I can start thinking some dirty jobs they can do in the battlefield.
Bye
Nicola

Nicola_GMBS wrote:Thank you very much for the answers and for the suggestion to read the FAQ.
Now I can start thinking some dirty jobs they can do in the battlefield.

They have upsides and down.

1) they are generally defensive
2) there effect on your opponents thinking is often greater than the effect on their troops
3) there ae vulnerable to a mass attack, but quiet efficient to fending off a single enmy BG
4) they will hold on longer when you don't need them to, but shorter when you do.

hazelbark wrote:

Nicola_GMBS wrote:Thank you very much for the answers and for the suggestion to read the FAQ.
Now I can start thinking some dirty jobs they can do in the battlefield.

They have upsides and down.


4) they will hold on longer when you don't need them to, but shorter when you do.

Sounds like every girlfriend I had in college. LOL
Gino
SMAC

hazelbark wrote:

Nicola_GMBS wrote:Thank you very much for the answers and for the suggestion to read the FAQ.
Now I can start thinking some dirty jobs they can do in the battlefield.

They have upsides and down.

1) they are generally defensive
2) there effect on your opponents thinking is often greater than the effect on their troops
3) there ae vulnerable to a mass attack, but quiet efficient to fending off a single enmy BG
4) they will hold on longer when you don't need them to, but shorter when you do.

From games I have played against them
Movement and/or manouvre are not their strong point, although they shoot quite well- especialy the ones with artillery.

Spike

Just a quick note. The FAQ does not square with the melee capabilities listed for battle wagons on page 92. Page 92 says that BW contacted on a side edge count the contacted side edge as the front edge for melee and count the contacted file as the front rank. Bases contacted by enemy on both a long and short edge only fight the ones in frontal contact with the side edge, unless qualifying as an overlap (on that side). Enemy fighting on a short edge get their normal dice, but the BW does not fight back. This is very important because only one rank or file (whichever is greater) is counted when determining HP3B. Also, it means that the enemy must meet the criteria for a legal flank charge to contact your battle wagons on a non fighting side, even though you are never penalized for being "charged in the flank or rear". Insist that this rule be used. The FAQ seems to have used the rules for Orb formation. NOT the same thing. Orb is only allowed for Spears and Pike.
If you should be so unfortunate as to be contacted on opposite long sides, well, you probably don't need to worry about it for long. I would play it that the BW player declares which long side counts as his front edge. No. You cannot claim both.
Ditto if contacted on opposite short sides (only).
Don't get caught in a block. It's like elephants fighting in column. you lose half your combat power, and half your mass.

gozerius wrote:Just a quick note. The FAQ does not square with the melee capabilities listed for battle wagons on page 92. Page 92 says that BW contacted on a side edge count the contacted side edge as the front edge for melee and count the contacted file as the front rank. Bases contacted by enemy on both a long and short edge only fight the ones in frontal contact with the side edge, unless qualifying as an overlap (on that side). Enemy fighting on a short edge get their normal dice, but the BW does not fight back. This is very important because only one rank or file (whichever is greater) is counted when determining HP3B. Also, it means that the enemy must meet the criteria for a legal flank charge to contact your battle wagons on a non fighting side, even though you are never penalized for being "charged in the flank or rear". Insist that this rule be used. The FAQ seems to have used the rules for Orb formation. NOT the same thing. Orb is only allowed for Spears and Pike.
If you should be so unfortunate as to be contacted on opposite long sides, well, you probably don't need to worry about it for long. I would play it that the BW player declares which long side counts as his front edge. No. You cannot claim both.
Ditto if contacted on opposite short sides (only).
Don't get caught in a block. It's like elephants fighting in column. you lose half your combat power, and half your mass.

But this opinion doesn't agree with the sentence in the FAQ

What happens if a BWg is contacted on two different sides in the Impact phase?
A single base can only fight a single base at impact. Again consider each long edge as two bases as above and proceed
normally. So if a long edge and a short edge of a 40 x 40 half of a BWg are contacted at impact it can only fight against
one of the contacting bases. In melee of course it rolls one dice (if possible) against each enemy battle group.

I understood that in close combat you have 2 dices with every half BW. In impact 2 dices against only one side (the other enemy charge isn't fought). In Melee otherwise you can split the dices

@ hazelbark: 4) they will hold on longer when you don't need them to, but shorter when you do. It seems like the Murphy's Law

But I think that if you managed to move them, they can hold the flanks of a big charging knight's line. Without being threatened by CV or LH or MF on the flanks

What I'm saying is the FAQ does not agree with the melee rules for battlewagons on page 92. Instead it attributes to the BW the ability of a BG in Orb formation. I therefore present a dissenting opinion.

Orb formation as defined on page 122 "is a special all round defensive formation permitted only to spears and pike."

Page 92 says that BW are treated as two bases side by side when fighting on their long edge, 1 base if fighting on their short edge. When fighting on their long edge they count the file nearest the enemy as their front rank.

Page 92 again" A base contacted in front and flank and/or rear will now have more than one enemy base fighting against it. It fights against its front edge opponent (even if it fought the impact round against a different opponent)."

So a BW base in melee can only fight in one direction at a time, either on one short edge or one long edge. If it fights on its long edge, this defines its front for melee purposes. It cannot claim all its sides as its front simultaneously.
* (or base equivelant)