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So I was going to do Finns, but decided that they are not something I want to play. So I decided to step up to bat for the home team and make my first army US. I want to do either a Rifle Company or paratroopers. So what are the pros and cons of each. Also which book is best for Mid war of both? Also which one has the most air support options?

Paratroopers are great. I like the 101st, but with the 82nd, you can get Jeep Recon teams.

If you ever decide to pick a U.S armoured company, get your hands on the book "Blood Guts & Glory" all the armoured lists totally surpass the ones in Turning Tider. I mean instead of a tank that has AP 12, BG&G has tanks with AP 13 for the same points.


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I think from memory that U.S paras get the same air support as the U.S infantry.

Cons for paratroopers-no armoured support and very little artillery support as well.

Pro's fparas-There AT is fantastic, boozkas in almost every time. Fearless Vets are also really good for beginners.

Cons for GI's-IMO, to much points for what there worth, Cof-trained is average at best and for the points there worth...meh

Pro's for GI's-Lots of Support Options, the dreaded M10 Ambush, Shermans, Artillery (105's, 150's) good AA, and good reece/recon.

Okay I think I will do paratroopers. Which books have the 101st and the 82nd. Also are they late war only or is there mid war paras.

There are also Mid War Paratroopers, which are covered in the book North Africa (which also covers MW forces in Italy).

Okay thanks. Which book is the prefered book for late war paratroopers? Would it be turning tides or Hells Highway? Granted I haven't read either so this is just a guess on which books their in.

There are airborne lists in both Turning Tides and Hell's Highway. It just depends on what campaign you want to do. Turning Tides is for forces in Normandy, and Hell's Highway is for Market Garden.

Turning tide has American divisional support.Market Garden uses British Divisional support.
Good choice on the Para pik.I am quite happy with mine.Also on the Turning tide book.You do get a decent selection of Tanks and Artillery for support.101st. get Stuarts and the 82nd get Tank Destroyers and both companies have a nice selection of Artillery plus regular Shermans.Priest,105,155 arty support and the good old relible 75mm Howitzer for your weapons platoons.i currently have 8 75mm Howitzers,6 105 Howitzers,3 priest with Fo Sherman and saving my money up for some 155 Howitzers.
Alot of people here disagree with me about Snipers but i would recommend some for pinning the enemy down.Then you can hit them with the Mortars.Also you will want to get 8 y 30. cal teams so you can add 4 to your combat platoons and use the other 4 to protect your Barrages.
i play the 101st airborne and have a little over 4000 pts.The main reason why i play the 101st is that they. In the D day campaign have the 50. cal. And what a great weapon.Perfect for AA and lite vehicle and the Infantry destruction.The 82nd Has armored jeep recon and Tank destroyers.For my Jeeps i have 2 squads of the Glider recon/Intel,You get 4 jeeps with 50 cals.3 infantry squads plus command.Well i could rant all day but i will cut this short for now.

Mid war paras are a bit different, more MSU like, and way less AT in general

Why don't you want to play Finns? They are one of the best pure infantry lists in the game. Admittedly they take some finesse to use well.

Turning Tide has a better Paratrooper list IMO, since you get to use US tanks instead of British, and not constricted by the Ally rules.

I play both though, because the British Armored Platoon comes with Fireflys, with have a really big gun on them.

I'm suprised Paratroopers don't have a bigger following, I've had great success with them so far. The only beef I've had with them is that they are NOT an offensive force. It sucks when you end up against another infantry force, and you have to be the attacker. Armored companies seem to be the favorite at my store, so I don't have to do that very often, but all of my losses have been against other infantry lists.

They are awesome for fighting armored companies, since they have the base AT3, and can bring a lot of bazooka's which are AT4. So no tank commander will want to assault you when you are at full str. Your Fearless Vets, so you can pretty easily pass your tank terror check, and you can hit back very easily. You'll almost always be a defender in those missions, so all you have to do is dig in on your objective and wait it out. They'll need 6's to hit you, you get our 3+ save, then they'll have to do a firepower test to actually kill you if your still in contention. Last game I played I had 12 T-34's shooting at me for 3 turns before I took a casualty. Eventually your opponent will get fed up with failing to kill you with shooting, and he'll assault, and that is where you'll eat him for lunch.

The only down side is it gets kinda boring when you sit there and all you have to do is roll dice to see if you made your save.

They were my first list, I'm glad I got them. It's a good army, one that was relatively cheap to buy given the high point cost of everything, and one that is easy to play so learning the game isn't redonkulous.

Palindrome wrote:Why don't you want to play Finns? They are one of the best pure infantry lists in the game. Admittedly they take some finesse to use well.

I do, but I want to play something with more diversity. The Finns will be my 2nnd army.

Hey djones520,

I've started an 82nd Airborne list, and I'm still working things out with the rules. I haven't played a game yet, but I have a question. When you say "so all you have to do is dig in on your objective and wait it out" do you mean the objectives your opponent is trying to capture? Am I correct in assuming you win by denying the objectives to your enemy, and wiping out their force?

Thanks!

djones520 wrote:Turning Tide has a better Paratrooper list IMO, since you get to use US tanks instead of British, and not constricted by the Ally rules.

I play both though, because the British Armored Platoon comes with Fireflys, with have a really big gun on them.

I'm suprised Paratroopers don't have a bigger following, I've had great success with them so far. The only beef I've had with them is that they are NOT an offensive force. It sucks when you end up against another infantry force, and you have to be the attacker. Armored companies seem to be the favorite at my store, so I don't have to do that very often, but all of my losses have been against other infantry lists.

They are awesome for fighting armored companies, since they have the base AT3, and can bring a lot of bazooka's which are AT4. So no tank commander will want to assault you when you are at full str. Your Fearless Vets, so you can pretty easily pass your tank terror check, and you can hit back very easily. You'll almost always be a defender in those missions, so all you have to do is dig in on your objective and wait it out. They'll need 6's to hit you, you get our 3+ save, then they'll have to do a firepower test to actually kill you if your still in contention. Last game I played I had 12 T-34's shooting at me for 3 turns before I took a casualty. Eventually your opponent will get fed up with failing to kill you with shooting, and he'll assault, and that is where you'll eat him for lunch.

The only down side is it gets kinda boring when you sit there and all you have to do is roll dice to see if you made your save.

They were my first list, I'm glad I got them. It's a good army, one that was relatively cheap to buy given the high point cost of everything, and one that is easy to play so learning the game isn't redonkulous.

Dez,

It just depends on the mission. There are some where you will have to capture an objective in order to win the game. Those can be rough to do. But most times, since you are an infantry force you will be the defender, and they will have to come at you.

Read towards the back of the book, you'll see all the differant scenarios that you can play through. In most situations you'll be the defender so you can see what your objectives will be.

Thanks, I haven't read through the missions much yet. I've just been trying to learn the mechanics. I'll give them a read!