General Impressions
- Thumbing through the book, I am predictably impressed with the graphic design.
- Similarly, the pictures of units covered in snow, and treking across snow covered boards is awesome and inspiring. Almost makes me want to make a snow board for myself... almost.
- Is that a Jagdtiger? Be still, my beating heart!
- 4 pages at the end worth of awesome snow terrain pictures and rules.
- The first 12 pages or so are typical of the quality of Battlefront's history presentations. Just enough detail to keep you interested, so those totally unfamiliar with the engagement have something to sink their teeth into. Probably not much new info to veteran historians, but hey this IS a game book!
- Hey, have you ever heard of a certain Easy Company?
USA
- 3 lists: US Parachute Rifles, US Parachute Engineers, Glider Rifles
- Tons of Easy company heroes!
- Captain Winters: +70 points, FV, higher command team
- Combat and weapons platoons get eyes and ears thanks to Nixon
- re-roll first failed morale check.
- Lt. Speirs +45 SMG, Gammon Bomb Company Command
- Gets to be deployed in a pseudo ambush.
- Re-roll failed infantry saves while he is not in bullet proof
- 1st Sgt Lipton- +25pts, 2iC Allows combat and weapons platoons he joins to re-roll morale checks.
- Private Eugene Roe. + 50 points. NOT a team, just a marker
- Medic that teleports to teams who just failed a save- roll a 5+ once per turn. If passed, the team lives. Otherwise the team dies.
- Toccoa Sergeants
- Sergeants that replace the platoon leader on a per platoon basis. +10 points, gives them the ability to re-roll to rally from being pinned
- Shifty- replaces a rifle or rifle/MG team for +15 pts
- Once per turn he can re-roll one failed To Hit roll.
- Has firepower 4+ rather than 6
- All in all, I don't think the heroes are too unbalanced, really. They sure make Easy Company Easy Company though, don't they?
- PARACHUTE RIFLES
- Fearless Vet, duh. Gammon Bombs and Mission Tactics.
- 3 Combat platoons, MG platoon, mortar platoon for weapons
- Support: 2 armor slots: (tank/TD & TD), airborne AT, infantry (including armored rifles, rifles, engineers, glider rifles, parachute engineers etc), Recon (Cav Recon or airborne div recon), Artillery (glider or parachute arty or armored artillery).
- Core platoon is familiar structure: 6 Rifle/MG, 1 Command Rifle/MG, 1 zook, 1 mortar.
- Can add an extra zook to the combat platoon (for +20ish points). Can replace up to 1 Rifle/MG per squad with a zook for +5 (as 2ID). Can replace Rifle/MG teams with Rifles for -10 pts per squad.
- LMG platoon: up to 8 LMGs and 2 zooks
- AT platoon w/ 4 57mms and 4 optional zooks
- AIRBORNE ENGINEERS
- Can either be CV (Gliders) or FV (Paras)
- Core platoon is 4 Pioneer Rifles, 2 Pioneer LMGs, 3 optional zooks, optional handcart (as PSV) (can swap LMGs w/ rifles)
- Similar support as the paras
- GLIDER RIFLES
- Basically a Rifle company with para stuff available as support.
- Can swap bazookas as 2ID (1 per section)
- Each core combat platoon has a 60mm mortar included in it
- Can swap one rifle team in any or all rifle sections with a .50 cal for free
- The weapons platoon is 2 LMGs and 2 60mm mortars
- Their AT platoon is back to the standard 3 57s w/ 3 optional zooks
- SUPPORT
- Can be either CV or CT in most cases
- Shermans w/ all the usual options from the new books. Jumbos, M4A3s (w/ late option) etc
- TDs are only veteran, and all are M18 Hellcats
- Airborne div recon is a ton of .50 cal jeeps. Can get up to 2 patrols of 4 each.
- The Airborne div recon also has a cool optional support section with pioneer jeeps that you can use to dismount them to pioneer teams using the motorcycle recon rules.
- Can combine all of the patrols into a big dismounted platoon like you'd expect (similar to other dismounted recon options in other US lists, also including the 4 pioneer teams from the pioneer jeeps)
- Can get a Reluctant Vet US Rifle platoon. Can swap out bazookas per 2ID.
- Armored Rifles available.
- Only trained 155s available. No requisite for 105s
GERMANS
- 3 Lists: Volksgrenadiers, Panzergrenadiers, Jagdtigers
- Hero is Siegfried Moldenhuer. He hits on 2+ in assault. He can try to unpin platoons he leads that are pinned by defensive fire. They still fall back, but unpin on a motivation test. +55 points higher command SMG
- Volksgrenadiers that field a Volksgrenadier scout platoon can have their Sturm, Schutzen, and Pioneer platoons make a spearhead deployment as long as the scout platoon starts on the board.
- VOLKSGRENADIERKOMPANIE
- Either CV or RT.
- Holy smokes so much support! 2 Armor options, AT, AA, Infantry, Artillery, ME-262s
- Their core combat units are 1 Sturm platoon and 1 Schutzen platoon.
- HQ can get 3 panzerschreck teams
- Volksgrenadier Sturm platoon is 5 Panzerfaust Assault Rifle teams and 2 MG Panzerfaust teams. Can add a Panzerschreck as well.
- Schutzen platoon is 7 Panzerfaust Rifle/MG stands. Can also add a panzerschreck
- They have some cool new infantry guns available (IG37) (ROF 2, AT 9, FP 3+)
- Pretty standard weapons platoons- mortars, heavy mortars, HMGs
- Scout platoon is 5 Rifle teams. Can upgrade them to Assault rifles.
- Divisional support Tank Hunter platoon: 4 Hetzers, 4 Stugs or 4 Stugs (late) (get an extra MG)
- Volks Pioneer platoon support: 10 Panzerfaust rifle teams!
- Can get artillery in 3s or 6s. 105s, 7.5s, or heavy artillery- 8.8cm FK43, 2 flavors of 15cm arty
- One of the artillery options is FK 7.5cm Artillery guns which are basically pak 40s that can fire bombardments. Ditto the heavy artillery with FK43 pak 43s that can fire bombardments
- 30cm Nebelwerfers! AT 3, FP 1+. Have a "super heavy rocket" rule that makes them have to reload similar to calliopes (except they all only count as 1 launcher)
- PANZERGRENADIERS
- Special rules: Ignore the reich divided, Can choose to night attack if facing a fortified company and have a flammpanzer platoon in the unit
- Either CV (heer) or FT (SS). TONS of support. They're trucked but count as mech.
- core platoon is 7 panzerfaust MG teams
- Can get a unit of drilling AAA
- Heer units can have Panthers or Panzer IV/70 (A)s in support. SS get Stug IV or Stug G (late)
- FLAMMPANZER HETZERS! (So cool- get 3 of em for 170 at CV). Flame thrower is ROF 3, FP 5+
- SCHWERE PANZERJAEGERKOMPANIE
- The Jagdtiger is just silly. Front 16, ROF 2, AT 17, FP 2+, breakthru gun
- 345 a piece. 2 platoons required so, bare minimum of 1 in the HQ and 2 platoons of 1 each.
- Limited support- some infantry, artillery, and planes
- DIVISIONAL SUPPORT (CV or FT)
- Panzer IV Js and Panthers for the Panzers. Jagdpanthers, Stugs, and Panzer IV/70 (V) for the tank hunter platoons
- Can get 4 brummbars at 280 for CV.
- STURMTIGERS ARE COOL NOW
- 320 pts for 2, 160 for 1. Rated CT
- minimum range of 8", armored targets take a hit on their top armor. Do not add +1 for range. A single hit pins a platoon that takes a hit.
- Can't assault
- The gun rolls a skill test to hit bunkers, buildings, or gun teams rather than normal shooting. It MAY target bunkers over 16" away.
- When it hits a large building, all teams in rooms adjacent to the target room (to the sides AND above and below) are also hit. OUCH.
- Armor 12/8/2. Awkward layout.
- ROF 1, AT 6, FP 1+. Bunker Buster of course
- Can get skorzeny commandos per Devil's Charge
Summary
So I think it's a pretty solid book! I have to admit that as huge of a fan of Band of Brothers as I am, the German lists are doin' it for me a bit more. Once you load everyone up with a panzerfaust they get expensive of course, but there's some great support options. This just may persuade me to finally do some US paras though, especially now that they're comin' out in plastic!
Nothing is jumping out at me as being particularly game changing, but the lists are also all solidly competitive. Some beautiful pictures as usual. Now, off to remind myself that I absolutely don't need to make a snow board.. and winter armies... and snow terrain...
