Questions about Units ....

[ArmyVet]

This may sound silly and may have been asked before but I could really use some help understanding the value of units.

What I mean by "value" is for example ...... 1 SE Paratrooper ..... is that one trooper/infantry or does he represent a platoon, company, battalion, or division size unit?

The same goes for a single tank, plane, arty ... ect ....ect ....

Thanks!

-ArmyVet

[Y2UAsk]

Page 10 of the rulebook has a sidebar (the green box) that explains the game's scale.

Vehicles: Each Vehicle miniature represents 1 vehicle.
Soldiers: Each Soldier miniature usually represents several soldiers.
Map: 1 hex is about 100m, or about 1/2000.
Turn: 1 turn is about 1 minute.The scale for Soldiers isn't defined precisely, but it's safe to assume that one figure represents a half-squad, a weapon team, or a leader + 1-2 riflemen, radioman, or runners.

Steve

[ArmyVet]

Steve,

So if I wanted a platoon of SE Para's I would have to use multiples (2 per squad, 8 per platoon) right? :confused:

How many tanks would I need for a company of tanks?

I'm trying to build whole units ..... 502nd, 101st. ...... 82nd Airborne Div. .... ect....ect....

Thanks again,

Tony

[Y2UAsk]

Well, ToEs are always a tricky subject. Your platoon of Screaming Eagles, for example, would have included three rifle squads and a command element (probably a lieutenant, a radio operator, and a runner). Somewhere in there would also have been a machine gun team and perhaps a mortar team, either integrated into the rifle squads or pulled out and under the direct command of the lieutenant. Depending on the situation, they might also have carried a bazooka.

So what constitutes a 'correct' paratrooper platoon? Six Screaming Eagles and one SE Captain? Six SEs, one SE Capt., one mortar, one BAR, and one bazooka? Four SEs, one SE Capt., one mortar, and one MG? or one Sniper? or one Hero? It's a slippery thing to grasp and has as much to do with what you're trying to reflect as with paper strength.

That doesn't even delve into the subject of attrition, since most platoons became understrength pretty quickly.

The same thing goes for tanks. An American tank company (IIRC) should contain three platoons of five tanks each. The mix of vehicles was in constant flux as new models appeared and mixed with older, surviving vehicles in the field. The British used 3-tank platoons (again, IIRC). The Germans frequently had only two platoons per company, and their strength varied significantly. SS units were generally kept at full (5-tank) strength, but Wehrmacht platoons routinely operated with only 4, 3, or even fewer. They had fewer mixed-vehicle units because of their different replacement system.

So I guess that's a long-winded way of stating, I don't know. There's no set answer. This is largely a design-for-effect situation rather than design-for-cause.

As to building the 82nd Airborne Division ... well, you'll need a lot of half-squads to build a whole division. :eek:

Steve

[ArmyVet]

I hope they make a 82nd Paratrooper in one of the upcoming sets soon. :o

I have been collecting SE Para's thinking that each one only stood for 1 troop/soldier ..... I have ALOT of them. :o

Your help has really helped me out. Thanks for everything.

-ArmyVet