Kampfgruppe Commander

Clash of Armor II

by Bill Rutherford

I reviewed these rules long ago in their first edition (Clash of Armor). I liked them then and I like them now. This 96 page 8.5” by 11” book contains all you need to get started in platoon-level (that is, a model represents a platoon) WW II miniatures gaming. There are 60 pages of rules, 10 pages containing a half dozen scenarios, 13 pages containing data charts for all equipment used in the game (looking through them, they’re reasonably complete), and eight pages containing the major divisions of seven European-theater armies: Britain, USA, France, Poland, Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union.

Oh – there’s also a one-page rules summary, a page of designer’s notes, and a single play card with necessary game charts… Scales are 100 yards per inch on the table (extended scale is 1.5 times this, for larger scale figures), 30 – 60 minutes per turn, and 1 platoon per model (Soviets and French are generally ½ company per model). Units in KGC – generally companies, though Soviet and some French units are battalions – are the basic maneuver elements, grouped into formations.

Players command forces of one or more formations, which are generally battalions or regiments/brigades. Units have characteristics – morale rating, experience level, casualty rating, and response rating. Assets are support elements – MG platoons, engineers, etc. – that might be attached to units. Formations have leaders and these are the main driving force of these rules because everything that happens is driven by formation command control. At the start of a round, the phasing player generates activation pips for his/her leaders – these are variable, not constant, being based on a combination of die roll and leadership rating. Leaders then spend those pips activating units in their formations. Units can be activated more than once, but the pip-cost to do so is higher. This is really simple, but is key to play because it answers the well-known question “Why aren’t Battalion X’s companies advancing??!?!?!” Their leader ran out of activation pips…

I mentioned response ratings – these govern the likelihood of various units’ being able to react to enemy actions, by reactive fire, falling back, etc. Basically, more responsive units are more likely to be able to react… Movement is normal, but with a twist. Units move rated distances in the open but when they encounter difficult terrain, instead of paying a fixed movement penalty, they dice to see how bad the penalty is. Spotting is deterministic – at a given range a given target will be seen if LOS exists. This (as opposed to probabilistic spotting) surprised me, given the variable movement rate penalties above. The saving grace, however, is that spotting ranges are reasonably short, relative to gun ranges and movement rates. There are some nice scouting rules, too, where the phasing player sends off scouting parties as part of normal movement and, via some die rolls, may gather information about potential hidden enemy units, etc.

Fire combat is fairly normal – guns hit at given ranges based on die rolls, modified, against target numbers. Defenders, however, may “save” against hits; in the case of anti-tank combat, the question of whether the hit penetrated is dealt with here (i.e., the defender rolls to determine this, not the attacker). Indirect fire is executed normally but requested fires are generally delayed, based upon who is calling the fire and who is being called. Units take different numbers of hits based on their experience level and their casualty rating, and take morale checks when they’re hurt. Failing morale checks reduces their capabilities until they rally. Rallying can be ordered by a leader, result in die rolls, and if successful, units return to good morale.

There are several pages of additional standard and optional rules including additional direct fire modifiers, new type of indirect fire barrages, pre-game activities, fortifications, air power, weather, etc., that all add detail to the game, the amount of which is determined by the players. The rules are programmed to the extent that after reading 38 pages, the gamer is ready to play scenarios 1 and 2; after another 10 pages, scenarios 3 and 4 are ready, etc. The scenarios themselves are well done – a (good) map, two orders of battle, historical notes, setup and victory specifications, and players notes accompany each – and make me realize how fortunate we are these days. These scenarios are “normal”, meaning they include all one needs to play and enjoy them; what a change from a few years ago when scenarios were the iffiest part of any rules set! The army lists are somewhat abbreviated – 33 division and independent formation types (and that’s not counting several artillery units) in eight pages is ambitious! Support elements (administrative and supply) are absent, and the details of various battalions and regiments are a bit simplified. Still, they’re quite adequate to get you started; there’s a multitude of other material on the market for you if you want to detail the heck out of a specific formation or force…

KGC is considerably streamlined, compared to its predecessor, Clash of Armor, retaining the command control kernel that gave the earlier game its unique flavor, while smoothing out virtually every other mechanic in the game. I would amend my opening comment – I liked Clash of Armor but I like Kampfgruppe Commander even more! These rules are available for $19.95 from your local game shop or directly from the Sovereign Press at 431 Broad St., Lake Geneva, WI 53147. Recommended!

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