Re: [SG2] close assault query

On Fri, 17 Nov 2000 11:37:07 -0500, "Barclay, Tom" <tomb@bitheads.com>
wrote:

>However, the other night, a squad in the open was CA'd by another
squad. The
>defending squad had no position to defend, so they wanted to beat feet.
>Several questions came up. 

Oops. Ignore my last post. It seems that it IS covered by the rules.

The rules do allow for the unit to retreat voluntarily (top of the right
hand
column, page 41). 

It's implied that the following happens: 

1) Attacker charges and makes Confidence Test.
2) Defender makes Confidence test. Defender loses CL if fails the
Confidence
Test.
3) Defender voluntarily retreats 6" or base move. 
4) Attacker occupies vacated position.
5) If attacker chooses to make Follow-through move, he makes a Reaction
Test.
If passed, makes a combat move towards retreating defender.
6) If attacker makes it into contact with defender, defender may choose
to
stay or voluntarily leave. Either way, he makes a Confidence Test and
applies
results. 
7) If defender retreats, attacker takes up this new position, and the
assault
is over.

>1) The defender had 1 suppression. Can they leave? The suppression
rules
>would seem to indicate no, but the CA rules themselves make no mention
of
>this and the only thing they seem to restrict while suppressed is
reaction
>fire. 

Actually, the rules allow a suppressed unit to make a defensive fire.
The
rules are on page 43, and they must make a Reaction Test to do so (TL =
to the
number of suppression markers).

Since a suppressed unit that fails the Confidence Test to stay put
during
close assault must retreat, and the rules state that a unit can
voluntarily
retreat from a close assault, it's implied that a unit with a
suppression
marker can also retreat from close assault. 

>2) Assuming they can bug out (which I let them do), what are the
effects?
>Does this affect their morale? Must they still test to "stand for CA"
even
>if they break so as to possibly drop them a confidence level or two?

Yes. The rules state that the unit must still make the Confidence Test.
The
wording is a little muddy, but it says, "Should the defender withdraw
(he may
elect to do so voluntarily if desired, irrespective of the Confidence
Test
result)..." Okay, so it is implied that the Confidence Test is still
made...

>3) In actual fact, they bugged out and moved 8". 

Uh, uh, uh! The rules state that they retreat 6" or their base move. So,
encumbered troops may still move 6", but Power Armour could move
further. If
this squad wasn't PA, it could only move 6".

>They then activated,
>cleared suppresion, and cut to bits the pursuer who'd chased them with
a
>feeble 6" roll.

In reality, they should have contacted them. 

> It seemed odd to me that you could beat feet away from an
>attack, pull up short (given the attackers never stopped chasing you)
and
>kick the crap out of them with point blank fire. This seemed like
cheese.
>What should have happened according to the rules? 

That is how the rule should be applied.

Imagine a group in the open being close assaulted, they turn tail and
run, and
the sergeant of the unit sees they are being pursued. "Quick, boys,
they're
chasing us! Let 'em have it!" The unit drops prone, and fires back at
the
enemy who are chopped to pieces. 

I can see it happening. Don't think of it as the squad waiting until the
enemy
is almost on top of them before retreating. Think of the squad seeing
the
charge, and immediately retreating. They run away, a few seconds later
the
attackers get to the vacated position and run straight through, perhaps
pausing for a moment. They then pursue, but not before their pursuers
turn
around and let them have it. 

>4) If you let a suppressed unit flee at all, should they have to move
to
>cover before removing their suppression (taking a page from an FMA
>suggestion about suppressed in the open)? Should this apply more
generally
>to other suppression in the open cases? 

That's not implied in the rules. I'd say no. 

Having gone over the rules, the situation is pretty clear (except for
the
implied parts about a unit with suppression being allowed to retreat). 

Allan Goodall		       awg@sympatico.ca
Goodall's Grotto:  http://www.vex.net/~agoodall

"Surprisingly, when you throw two naked women with sex
toys into a living room full of drunken men, things 
always go bad." - Kyle Baker, "You Are Here"