Slitherine

When a BG charges an enemy BG that is not evading does the charging BG roll a VMD?

VMD only if ALL charge targets evaded. Page 91.

Thanks I see that point on the second to last page of the section.

A question for the design why only roll a VMD if all targets envade? I can understand rolling a VMD each time you charge but only if the target evades is odd. A VMD that allows for extra movement if fine but shorten the charge? In one game of FoG-AM I charged some skirmishers who evaded over three turns and rolled 1,2,1 which meant it took me three turns for cover a normal move which proved to be a disadvantage to me.

The VMD mechanism is to allow a chance that evading troops will be caught. (Or not caught, even if the chargers are normally faster).

If this sometimes means that chargers move less far than otherwise, as in your example, this merely represents the effects of enemy harassment.

Clearly your battle group commander was trying to avoid over-tiring his troops' horses.

You wouldn't really expect opposed troops always to be able to march forward as easily as unopposed troops, would you?

Personally I like the VMD rule, I always figured if your chargers roll down it was they let loose with a furious battle yell then started to move forward and watched the little lights scattered and then stopped to jeer at the cowards. Sometimes its a bad thing but other times it can be good or bad to pick up 2 extra MU and end up farther forward then rest of your line. A nasty tactic we have used in A/M to break up enemy battle lines so you can charge them and get overlaps on your opponent.

I have no basic problem with the VMD in fact due to our misreading the rules we have been rolling the VMD for every charge which has lead to some interesting events. I understand the main reason for VMD is to allow for the possibility of catching skirmishers. It just seemed odd to roll it in one circumstance but not a similar one, but yes not roll for all charges would speed up the game a bit. Our misuse of the rules was probably a hangover from earlier rule sets.

If your target is going to stand and accept the charge the VMD is really not necessary. They are not going anywhere so your charge move should remain the same. The VMD for evaders is a neat feature that allows an increase in charge, your boys were all riled up to take them down, or roll down, they your boys decided to save their energy for a real opponent and probably stopped to shout out rude insults and obscene hand gestures.... harder to do if you're still running after the cowards.

The idea that a charge could "fail to contact" a stationary opponent is a trifle bizarre, and really doesn't represent anything historical. It is a feature of a certain other rule set which does not allow premeasuring, and it is only relevant in that rules set because those rules give too much weight to the issue of which side initiates a charge. As it makes no difference which side initiates a charge in FOGR, it would be entirely pointless as well as unrealistic to have it happen in FOGR.