1) Defending a Wall 2) Morale boni 3) Rifles/weapons - questions

[Dr. The Viking]

Hi gang!


We had an enjoyable game of T&T last night where the brave Zulus assaulted a compound held by British troops. However a few questions came up:


Firstly:

What happens when you try to charge a defended position? The rules state that you cannot cross an obstacle in one move and that you have to stop at the obstacle and move over in the next turn. Does that mean that you cannot charge over a sand bag wall unless you spend a round in front of it first?

If so, can you still use throwing spears? And do the defenders get a bonus for being assaulted behind a wall of sand bags. The rules state that both defender and attacker get -1 for figthing over an obstacle. That seems a bit odd though unless the wall is only meant to provide help against shooting. 


Secondly:

When taking morale checks are the bonuses cumulative? So a veteran unit with a hero get +3 (2 from hero, 1 from veteran status) or do you choose the higher one?


Thirdly:

Weapons have a stat line that indicates any penalties or bonuses on different ranges. Are these applied as well as the regular bonuses for eg. short range. So a rifle firing at short range has +1 or +0? And firing at long range is it -2 (from both  being at long range AND being a rifle at long range)



Please no "just do it the way you feel like". I want to know what you lot thinks or new perspectives on how you would work it out. 

[Driscoles]

Hi,

good to hear you had an entertaining game.

I know some things are not 100 % clear in the rulebook.

I try to answer

Firstly :
when fighting over an obstacle both sides are penalized with a malus of - 1. This really seems odd but the basic thought behind this rule is that your units have different basic close combat scores.

If one side is on a  higher position its getting a bonus too.

Example. Attacker unit elite cc score of 6 - 1 for obstacle. Hits on 7
Defender raw unit cc score 8 - 1 for obstacle + 1 for higher position. Hits on 8

What we forgot in the rules was the  defending a wall situation and the attacker is climbing up a ladder.
In this case I would penalize the attacker for fighting over an obstacle. The defender is not penalized and gets a bonus for attacking from above.

You can not move over a sandbag wall. You have to stop at the obstacle. Especilly if the other side of the sandbag wall is occupied.  The period T&T covers is not famous for fully trained elite soldiers. Experience and fitness is growing on campaign. So we stated that units stop at an obstacle and continue movement on the next activation. But units with the trait Nimble can do so. See the colonial supplement for the special rule.

If you charge a unit behind a sandbag wall with your Zulu. You move them towards your enemy. Stop 5" infront of your target. Throw your spears, ( move and shoot penalty for throwing spears is - 1 ) remove casualties and continue your charge until you reach your target. If there is a sandbag wall between do so as described above.

The whole bonus and malus thing is a matter of taste. If you do not agree with any malus  or bonus feel free and change it or dump it. From my experience with the rules the modifier ballancing is fair.

Secondly. A veteran unit will always get its unit bonus. if it has a leader it gets this bonus too. If the unit  also contains a hero the unit will benefit from the hero bonus but not from the leader bonus.

Thirdly
The weapon stat line contains the modifiers you need.

I know of players who also add the range modifiers. That is totally fine with me. I do this too when we play games with lots of miniatures. The kill ratio is higher and the games are quicker.

Hope I could help.

Best
Björn

[Dr. The Viking]

Perfect Björn, thank you!

I fear my Zulus will have a harder time climbing the sand bags next time. Which is very good for the British though. 


Normally we change rules all the time. But the first few times you play a game I think you should play as intended. So you know what you're changing. 

[Driscoles]

youre welcome !

A very nice T&T fella once wrote me, he was very happy with the Colonial Supplement and the Zulu war because with T+T the Zulu are not cut down in masses as it is in other games. That might not be 100 % historical correct but probably is a greater challenge for all players.

if you want it more historically give the British the short range modifier of + 1
That changes a lot !

I know the rules will be happy to be  in your hands 

Have fun.

Björn