Re: [GZG] Question: small-arms tech and troop quality....

At 5:01 PM +0000 12/13/08, Ground Zero Games wrote:

>
>Yes, so can we all; the thing is, if we do this, then we might as
>well throw away all wargames rules and reduce it to who can present
>the best argument to the umpire about why their force should win.

But heres the thing. Most wargames ignore certain 
factors like weather or darkness. I can't think 
of maybe but one game where darkness was stated 
as a limitation.

Who buys Night vision for troopers when every game is a daytime
scenario?

>There are innumerable other factors, as you rightly point out, that
>will contribute to who ACTUALLY wins. But, in writing a rules system,
>we have to have some method of determining relative effectiveness. To
>take the classic and much-argued WW2 example, most folks accept that
>a Tiger is more effective than a Sherman (in simplistic terms of
>which is likely to win a one-on-one firefight).  BUT, we have to
>determine HOW much better it is, and therefore how many Shermans the
>Allied player must have to "balance" the game against the German
>player's Tiger. You could easily devise a specific and limited
>scenario which makes it quite likely that a single Sherman could
>defeat a Tiger, but that does not mean that the rules should say that
>the two tanks are effectively equal, or even that the Sherman is
>better.
>
>ALL I am talking about is raw weight of firepower in terms of bullets
>or energy pulses being sent downrange with a reasonable chance of
>killing something when they arrive, with all other factors being
>equal for now. The only factors under consideration IN THIS PHASE OF
>THE DISCUSSION are the combination of the firepower output of the
>weapon system and the training/experience level of the guy firing it.
>All the rest will be factored in later.

But it's not only firepower, but also command and 
control methods. a Char B1bis is a FAR better 
tank, in terms of firepower than is a Panzer IV 
Ausf B. And the bulk of french tanks Somua S's 
were far better than Panzer IIs and IIIs which it 
faced. The key factor was not their firepower but 
tactics and command and control. The lack of 
radios and the use of single man turrets 
hamstrung the french tanks badly even in fights 
where they had the advantage of weight where 
Germna tanks were concerned.

I'm thinking that in a stargrunt context, you 
should attach more command counters to a given 
commander as tech levels increase. Because the 
platoon commanders ability to designate targets 
and and issue orders goes up as tech levels go up.

Tech level 0 you're having to tell troops where 
to fire by pointing. Tech level 1, you can load a 
tracer round, fire at a specific target and your 
guys will fire at that target. Tech and quality 
level 3 or 4 and you're starting to be able to 
electronically designate targets. look at BFT and 
the other electronic aids the US Army is using.

With an officer who has headset radios that reach 
all of the troops, his ability to coherently give 
orders goes up in a practical way before combat 
is joined, it's less easy when you've got weapons 
going off next to you BUT it is still better. It 
also means that the 2 guys in the fox hole 40 
meters on the flank can still report accurately 
and coherently to the squad leader what they're 
seeing.

So, really, as tech and training goes up, the 
number of command counters you can give should go 
up as well.
-- 
--
Ryan Gill	       rmgill@SPAMmindspring.com
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'60 Daimler Ferret '42 Daimler Dingo '42 Humber MkIV (1/3)
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