Slitherine

Hi - could someone please explain the difference between "engaged in melee" and "committed to close combat"?

Situation:
Legionaries are in frontal close combat with Galatian Warriors A; Warriors B are an overlap with corner contact only. One round of melee has taken place, with Warriors B involved as an overlap. Neither side breaks - combat continues.
Next turn is the Galatian player's turn. He sees potential for Warriors B to advance against a new target. Can they leave this melee (corner contact only) to make a normal charge or advance? Or are they stuck as they are already 'involved' in a 'fight'?

My uncertainty arises because both examples quoted on Page 76 of troops able to move from corner contact describe situations where combat has concluded by one side breaking, so the remaining corner contact is now a 'non-combat' contact.

On page 50, 'A battle group which fought in a melee in the previous turn as an overlap only, can choose to charge a different enemy or evade in the impact phase, move normally in the manoeuvre phase, or continue to fight against its existing opponents in the next melee phase'.

Marvellous! Why do I always forget about the General Movement Rules section? I looked through impact, manoeuvre... Just call me dumb. Sorry.

Thanks very much for that - it certainly clears up any doubt about the situation.

However, if anyone can still point me at the definitions of "engaged in melee" and "committed to close combat"

Cheers.

Check out page 134, in the Glossary (there's a lot of good stuff hiding there)--there's a definition of 'Close Combat'. It's not exactly getting to your question, but does say that 'Close Combat' is a general term for impact and melee combat, and that "Once such a combat has been joined, battle groups are deemed to be in close combat until one side breaks off, breaks or is destroyed (or a battle group fighting as an overlap moves away)."

I'm not sure where you saw a distinction between "engaged in melee" and "committed to close combat", but I would venture that the first refers to those fighting in the melee phase, and the second means those BG's that are stuck in until one side or the other breaks or breaks off.

Hope this helps.

Thanks - I was happy with the definition of close combat (although, had I looked it up again, I would have noticed the bit about overlaps moving away!).

It was a reply to someone else's question on this forum that said 'engaged in melee' and 'committed to close combat' were different things, although I can't find the post again now.

Never mind - the overlap issue is doubly cleared up now!