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Just picked up my first models for FoW.

i am going for an American Armoured company.

I have 2 command Shermans, 3 M4A1 shermans, 5 M4A1 75mm Shermans, 2 morter and 1 spotter Halftrack, Mechenized rifle platoon(5 tracks, 5 riflemen stands, 5 bazookas, 2 LMGs, 1 morter, 1 37mm AT gun, 1 command stand)

so that gives me roughly 1500 pts(if i make them all veterans)


what should i get next?

I would like to have mostly armour with some infantry support(like maybe 1 more Mech rifle platoon at most)

i was thinking either Priests, M10s, or some Stuarts


also: Should i get Hedge trimmers on the Shermans?


the hopeful goal is a Fast armoured attack force backed up by Artillery and some infantry for line holding.

depends on which way you want to take the army and how many total points you're planning on taking.

Right now you have 4 platoons and probably want to operate about 6 for a 1750 point sized game. You'll probably want to take a Recon unit so your last platoon would either be Priests or additional tanks (either Shermans or Stuarts).

Since you're playing as an Armoured Company, the M10s can largely be replaced by the 76mm Shermans. Going Veteran on your guys means that you won't be able to afford all the toys that the Trained version can, but you're harder to hit in return.

Here's a sample list to look at:

2 HQ Sherman
4 Sherman 76mm
4 Sherman
4 Stuart
2 81mm Mortar Halftracks
1 Full Armored Rifle Platoon
3 Recon Teams + Bazooka

If you'd rather play w/ artillery, replace the Stuarts and downgrade the Recon Platoon to take 3 Priests + an AOP.

This build gives you 10 medium and 4 light tanks as your primary attackers, recon to keep them from being ambushed, smoke to mess with your opponent and a big infantry platoon to solve problems. Proxy it out and see how you like it and then make adjustments as you see fit.

Hedgerow clippers probably aren't really necessary unless you do a lot of bocage combat, where they become essential for tanks. Probably wouldn't hurt to stick one or two one just in case.

I only have the rule book at the moment. what models are in a recon team for armoured company?

What would models i need to have to field a couple of priests(besides the priests)


I am picking up the cobra book next time i go in, but don't have it right now.

In Cobra (and most other late war books) an armored field artillery battery has 1 or 2 Gun Sections (with 3 Priests) and an HQ consisting of Command Team in a Jeep, Staff Team in an M2 Halftrack and an OP M4 Sherman.

An Armored Recon Patrol (you can take 1 or 2) consists of 2 M8 armored cars and a recon jeep and a mortar jeep -- before deployment, all the vehicles can be replaced with a total of 3 stands from up to 2 .50 cal HMG, up to 1 LMG, up to 1 60mm mortar, or up to 3 carbine teams

Ah ok, you're thinking Cobra. I built the sample list out of Fortress Europe, but it should be similar. For starters, the Cobra guys are a little bit more expensive because they have the "always attacks" rule and free pre-game move. Nothing too big though.

Fortress Europe recon teams are Rifle infantry with jeeps. Most of the time they'll operate dismounted from their jeeps and just sneak forward through terrain. Cobra recon replaces those with M8 Greyhound armoured cars, which are more expensive but have better firepower (these can also be taken in Fortress Europe.)

A Priest battery is 3 (or 6) Priests, a command team (with optional jeep), a staff team w/ halftrack (technically optional since it's doubtful you'll ever use it) and an Observer Sherman tank (an unarmed Sherman for your artillery spotter to hang out in).

spmusubi wrote:
A Priest battery is 3 (or 6) Priests, a command team (with optional jeep), a staff team w/ halftrack (technically optional since it's doubtful you'll ever use it) and an Observer Sherman tank (an unarmed Sherman for your artillery spotter to hang out in).

The American spotter tank is armed, I had thought it was unarmed as well until someone asked me why I wasn't shooting with it and pointed out in the Arsenal list that it was, in fact armed. The British spotter tank is unarmed.

so if i was to add priests i would need to buy: 3 priests, an artillery command team, a staff team, a half track, and another Shermen?

and for a recon team i would need: 1 rifle team and 1 jeep for each team, and a Bazooka?

duncana wrote:

spmusubi wrote:
A Priest battery is 3 (or 6) Priests, a command team (with optional jeep), a staff team w/ halftrack (technically optional since it's doubtful you'll ever use it) and an Observer Sherman tank (an unarmed Sherman for your artillery spotter to hang out in).

The American spotter tank is armed, I had thought it was unarmed as well until someone asked me why I wasn't shooting with it and pointed out in the Arsenal list that it was, in fact armed. The British spotter tank is unarmed.

Interesting, learn something new every day. I guess that most people (like me!) assume it's unarmed since they spend most of their time observing for artillery with it and not shooting. Guess it wouldn't be bad for a few more shots here and there, tho I do notice that its main gun only has a ROF of 1 instead of the normal Sherman's 2 due to the observer's radios taking up space I assume.


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Grey Templar wrote:so if i was to add priests i would need to buy: 3 priests, an artillery command team, a staff team, a half track, and another Shermen?

and for a recon team i would need: 1 rifle team and 1 jeep for each team, and a Bazooka?

Pretty much. Keep in mind though that the recon teams do not appear in Cobra and you can only take the Armoured Recon Platoons there (the M8 armoured cars). The Bazooka is an upgrade and is not mandatory, though it does tend to come in useful.

This is good stuff! I was actually thinking of starting a similar thread, as I recently picked up the FoW box set. I too am thinking of playing the Americans, as Ze Germans appear to be the most popular at my FLGS.

US Tank Company List - US 2nd Armored Tank Company under Cobra at 1750 Points

Company HQ w/two M4A1 Shermans with M3 75mm guns

Tank Platoon w/four M4A1 (76mm) Shermans

Tank Platoon w/four M4A1 Shermans with M3 75mm guns

Armored Mortar Platoon w/HQ Section in M2 half-track w/ AA MG; two Mortar Sections each with 1 M4 81mm MMC

Armored Rifle Platoon with HQ Section w/Bazooka team in M3 half-track w/ AA MG; Two Rifle Squads w/Bazooka team in M3 half-track w/AA MG; Mortar Squad w/ Bazooka team in M3 half-track w/AA MG and Light Machine-gun Squad w/Bazooka team in M3 half-track w/ AA MG

Armored Recon Platoon with two M8 armored cars, Mortar Jeep & Recon Jeep with AA Machine-gun

Engineer Combat Platoon with/ HQ Section w/Bazooka team in Jeep with .50 cal MG and Operating Squad in 2 1/2-ton truck and Weapons Squad in 2 1/2-ton truck

Total List Cost: 1750

This list gives you six Platoons with some recon, engineers and infantry although a bit light in theartillery department.

Another option would be to drop the Engineers and add in a Field Artillery Platoon with four 105mm howitzers and add in a recovery vehicle with an AA gun and Hedgrow cutters across the various tank platoons.

Artillery can be pretty effective against most targets and smoke will help your advance, which you will often be doing as an armoured company.

Whether or not the hedgerow cutters are useful depends on the terrain you will playing on (and I suppose, whether or not you like having big metal spikes sticking out of the front of your tanks -- I quite like the look of the hedgerow cutters!)

i assume Hedge cutters let you reroll bog checks?

or do they only work on hedges?

No, the hedgrow cutters let you cross a Bocage Hedgrow (the rules for which are here http://www.flamesofwar.com/Portals/0/Documents/Rules/D-Day-Bocage-Rules.pdf -- and in the D-Day book)) on a roll of 2+ instead of a skill check and if the tank with the cutter gets through it makes a gap which other fully-tracked tanks can get through on a 2+ as well.

So, if there is no bocage then there is no value in having the hedgrow cutters.

So otherwise they just look cool.


since they don't seem to be an option under the Tanks in the Cobra book(IIRC) i guess i will just put them on and if we ever play Bocage they will be useful.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
So otherwise they just look cool.


since they don't seem to be an option under the Tanks in the Cobra book(IIRC) i guess i will just put them on and if we ever play Bocage they will be useful.

In the Cobra book, for most (if not all) Tank platoons there is an option to fit half the tanks in the platoon with cutters for 5 points.

Well, i can just say they arn't there.


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Played a Game tonight

a guy was selling some of his americans and i scored 5 shermans and 5 Stuarts for 30 quid


Game was a five on three 5k match. Allies had 1k each and germans did 1700 each.

1600 pts of Canadian armoured Rifle company.

400 pt russian tanks

1000 pt Russian infantry company.

2 1k American Tank companies.

vs 3 German Mechanized and Tank companies.

Allies won soundly.

i had 5 76mm shermans and 4 M1A1 shermans and 2 command. i lost 3 tanks out of the 76s and 2 out of the normal platoon and the 2iC tank. killed 4 Stugs, 3 stitsinpanthers(something like that. small Stuglike build) and 1 Panzer IV.

other armoured company and the Russian tanks whipped the Panther company soundly.