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A detached element question

From: Thomas Barclay <Thomas.Barclay@s...>
Date: Tue, 14 Jul 1998 10:53:34 -0500
Subject: A detached element question

Check me on this one (I think I've got the rules right)

Okay, I've got two units, each capable of taking an independent 
action. I take a reorg, put them together into one unit. Now they 
only take one action. I take another reorg, I re-detach the second 
unit. I can still only take one action - I then have to activate the 
re-detached squad with one of the actions of the original squad. 

I'm not saying you'd do this all that often, but it strikes me that 
in some types of circumstances, a 'detached element' should become a 
unit on its own with its own ability to move, etc. without input from 
the original body it was detached from. 

One might do what was mentioned above to combine for a huge fire 
attack on something, then wish to revert to original unit control. I 
think the actual 'detached element' rules should only be used if the 
element is not capable (as a rule) of independent action. 

Another example, a sniper squad (2 or 3 guys) temporarily attached to 
a regular squad. The snipers are trained to act independently, but if 
subsequently detached, following the existing rules, they'd have to 
be activated by the squad they detached from, which seems kind of 
wrong. 

I'd guess detached elements are meant for situations where the 
detaching unit is actually an organic part of the unit it is being 
detached from (pointman, squad hw, etc) rather than a temporary 
attachment which is not really organic (belonging to and working as 
an integral part of the unit). Hence in the normal case, the detached 
element rules make sense. If the unit attached is capable of 
independent action (attached mission specialist squad - snipers, 
other mission specialists, or is another squad with its own 
independent command structure temporarily merged), then when it is 
detached, it should be thereafter treated as an independent unit 
fully capable of independent action.

What sayest thou, oh savants and sages of the list?

Tom.


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