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After watching a demo game earlier tonight, and having a general interest for a year or so, I've decided to take the metaphorical plunge.

However, before I get any further, I need a bit of advice. What I've been thinking of is something along the lines of a British Artillery force, and I have absolutely 0 idea of where that leaves me in terms what to buy and where to buy it from. My FLGS had one Open Fire! box left, but I didn't buy it earlier because I wasn't sure A) If I would actually end up using anything in it except the pocket rulebook, or B) If there was in fact something that I could use, whether there would be anyone able to trade the remnants with.

So yeah, I might need a bit of guidance as to what I should go about doing next.

EDIT: The group plays late war.

Open fire is USA and Germany IIRC. If you want British I'd suggest looking around their website and seeing what's on offer. You'll need to decide which period you want to play, Brits are lucky here as they're relevant in all 3 periods. As a German player few things scare me more than a British artillery parking lot.

The group plays mostly late war, I believe.

Open fire is British and Germans. The Shermans and the Fireflys are the British versions. It is a nice little start for a British armoured company. You may want to think about a Rifle company box and some sort of Artillery.

British with US paratroopers to be exact, but yes if you were to make the army list it would be british please see http://www.easyarmy.com/FOWCompany.aspx?PDF=26&Company=11

Americans would be the Parachute Rifle Platoon

Is there anything in that box that I could use for an artillery-focussed force?

The Shermans I guess could be used for an armoured artillery force with Sextons providing the 25lders, but it seems a little fragile.

 Avatar 720 wrote:
Is there anything in that box that I could use for an artillery-focussed force?

Not in the Allied part of the starter, I am afraid.

Avatar...I'd recommend you get on easyarmy, spend a few dollars on a source book. Throw together a 1750 point army and post it back here.

That way you should get some good feedback on what you're about to plunge into and maybe some advice on how to use them.

If you like artillery, then British Paras, with their evil evil howitzers would see you right and you'd be bang on trend for when the new market garden books appear next year.

HTHs

Well, that's part of the reason why I posted: I have no idea what should go into a 1750pt army. I've been on EA for 2 days and played with a few lists, but at the end of the day I'm no more enlightened after I've made the list than I was when I was staring at it going "Huh?".

Ok, so just knock the list together and post it here. And then people will have a chance to comment on some obvious issues as well as comment whether the contents of the Open Fire Starter could be used for that purpose. Btw, I am intending to buy this starter after New Year and will put the Allied part together with Rule book, allied cardboard tokens and cardboard terrain on British e-bay (yes, that was self-advertising ).

Well, first off, which book? v3 Forces? or Turning the Tide?

This is the sort of stuff I mean when I say "I have no idea".

Read this....

http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/Starting_a_Flames_of_War_Force

Any questions post up and on here or PM me. Alternatively find a local gaming group they will help you through.

Gone for something armoured to start with, since there's not so much choice and I won't get bogged down trying to think which ones to take.

From the v3 Forces Book

Headquarters:
Armoured Squadron HQ - 4 Sherman V - 265

Combat Platoons:
Armoured Platoon - 1 Sherman V, 1 Sherman V with .50 cal AA MG, 1 Firefly VC - 220

Armoured Platoon - 1 Sherman V, 1 Sherman V with .50 cal AA MG, 1 Firefly VC - 220

Weapons Platoon:
Recce Patrol - 3 Stuart V 120

Brigade Support:
Rifle Platoon - 1 Cmd Rifle/MG team, 1 PIAT team, 1 Light Mortar team, 6 Rifle/MG team - 140

Divisional Support:
Anti-tank Platoon (SP), Royal Artillery - 4 M10 3" SP - 240

Field Battery (SP), Royal Artillery - 2 Cmd Rifle team, 1 Staff team, 1 Sherman OP, 4 Sexton - 195

Parachute Rifle Platoon - 1 Cmd SMG team, 1 Bazooka team, 4 Rifle/MG team, 1 M2 60mm mortar - 205

Field Battery, Royal Artillery - 2 Cmd Rifle team, 1 Staff team, 1 Observer Rifle team, 1 OP Carrier, 4 OQF 25 pdr gun - 145

Company Points: 1750

Just to re-state, I know sod all about what I've just made, so you're going to have to tell me what to cut, why to cut it, how to cut it, and most importantly, what I shouldn't cut and why.

Okay, so you've been playing with easyarmy already then...got to know. Have you bought any of the sources or are you just experimenting with the free ones?

I think it's great that you already have a rough idea of what you'd like to try out. You can't go too far wrong with a British artillery list, I wish I'd done it.

Broadly speaking what kind of armies are you likely to face? Tank..infantry...swarms or elite.

Do your friends take planes?

What sort of a player are you, aggressive, defensive, something else?

How badly do you want to win, or do you play for fun?

Do you want an army quick so you can get going, or do you prefer to take your time?

Painting...what's your style (I looked at your gallery, but the photos are quite dark), are you a slow painter (like me) or a 3 colours and they're ready for the tabletop type painter?

Need more info....


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Ah, you posted a list...wasn't there before.

What's the sourcebook?

Initial impression is good list...I like it only thing that bugs me initially is the sherman platoons feel a bit small. I think perhaps they should be a bit more fleshed out.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Ahhh I found it, I see 3 sherman Vs is the max size for the platoon.

 Hangfire wrote:
Okay, so you've been playing with easyarmy already then...got to know. Have you bought any of the sources or are you just experimenting with the free ones?

I think it's great that you already have a rough idea of what you'd like to try out. You can't go too far wrong with a British artillery list, I wish I'd done it.

Broadly speaking what kind of armies are you likely to face? Tank..infantry...swarms or elite.

Do your friends take planes?

What sort of a player are you, aggressive, defensive, something else?

How badly do you want to win, or do you play for fun?

Do you want an army quick so you can get going, or do you prefer to take your time?

Painting...what's your style (I looked at your gallery, but the photos are quite dark), are you a slow painter (like me) or a 3 colours and they're ready for the tabletop type painter?

Need more info....

I've just bought Turning the Tide to start with, I'm not really interested in non-British armies *Land of Hope and Glory plays softly in the background* And I don't think there are any other supplements for Late-War Brits.

I don't know what I'm likely to face, probably a mix.

I haven't seen any, but I've only been once, and they were mentioned, so I'm going to say yes, but without the knowledge of how many or how often.

I don't really have a playstyle. I generally adapt on the fly, and don't really make any armies with a specific aggressive or defensive theme in mind.

I aim to play for fun, since I'm not really good enough to win most things. I'll try to win, but usually my main goal is to kill stuff, so a close draw where lots of stuff has suffered brutal deaths is usually preferable to a win, for me.

I prefer to try and get going as soon as possible, else I have a tendancy to run out of steam if I haven't really done anything.

I am a horrifically slow painter, and I don't really like painting anyway.

One of the next books coming up (Bridge Too Far?) Has Late War Brit lists in it I believe.

 Hangfire wrote:
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Ah, you posted a list...wasn't there before.

What's the sourcebook?

Initial impression is good list...I like it only thing that bugs me initially is the sherman platoons feel a bit small. I think perhaps they should be a bit more fleshed out.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Ahhh I found it, I see 3 shermans is the max size for the platoon.

Source is the v3 Forces.

Yeah, the Sherman sizes bug me, too, but as you say, max size is 3 Vs and a Firefly. I could've gone for max, but it'd have meant losing the Rifle platoon, and I'm not quite sure whether 2 tanks is worth swapping out the platoon for.

I'm currently using the 2 Sherman and 1 Firefly with a .50 cal setup (similar to Avatar's, but the MG is on the firefly), and I've had decent success.

The benefit to this strategy over a maxed platoon of tanks is that the commander of the platoon can take himself and one of the other tanks, leaving the third one behind in cover with a good field of vision to anything that might cross in the way. I'm sure you can do that with a 4 tank platoon, but idk... my demos were with 3 tanks, and my games have been with 3 tanks...

So, lets say you go with this list and I'm interested to hear other's thoughts...in fact I'll text my mate to have a look as he is very good at list construction.

You must must must, spread out especially your artillery. Get yourself an artillery template and practice deploying so that at any one time only one can be hit under a template.

You have no AA, not by any means disastrous, but you've got to hug trees and buildings in order to make life difficult for them.

Next you're trained, so you'll be hugging any and all terrain so you don't get shot up so easily.

If you were playing against me (Fallschrimjager Fearless vets), i'd dig in and go to ground, waiting and waiting for you to get close. Then at an opportune moment I'd open up, with everything and try to kill your tanks as quick as possible.

Here's what you'd do. Annoy the heck out of my force by flanking with your tanks, but don't engage. Push up with the infantry, so they are a constant threat, but not engaged.

The thing that's going to give you the edge are the scouts. They can make it easier for your observers to range in with the artillery...sad face for me...Focus your fire on any anti tanks assets (pak 40s) Once they're gone, pin and smoke, pin and smoke, get in there and put those 50cals to good use and hit an objective hard...but stay out of my assault range, which is 10" (6" move and 4" assault). you can pr-measure, so you want to be 10.1" away.


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@Alfndrate, how do the additional 2 tanks in the HQ team work? Do you allocate them out? Can you split them up?

It's not been an issue i've experienced.

I take 2 tanks in my HQ Platoon, but the way it was explained to me is that the Commander of a Platoon can take half of his platoon with him (outside of 8 inches) and leave 1 tank behind.

What I tend to do is take the Commander and 1 tank (half of his 2 tank platoon) and go off with the rest of my main force, while I leave the firefly behind with a good field of view and decent bit of terrain or buildings nearby. That tank loses the ability to move, but when I have a good field of view it doesn't matter.

Which as an edit to my previous post, it wouldn't work very well with a maxed out platoon because you would still only be able to take 1 tank since you can't take more than half of your commander's platoon with him.

Edit: I could have the rule backwards, and you might not be able to leave more than half your platoon, if that's the case, it would work with a maxed out squad since you'd be able to leave just 1 tank out of the 3 available in the platoon (never including the commander in that number).

If you want British armour IMHO go for a guards (reroll failed platoon moral tests is their special rule, makes these confident vets less likely to run tgan fearless vets) list from 'hell's highway' - soon to be in the new 'market garden' book

Get a couple if HQ shermans

Then 3 squads of 2 shermans and 2 fireflies

Next get come Recce, I would go cheap and use carriers.

If you want artillery support get some 25pdrs, cheap and effective smoke and pinning - sextons are overpriced IMHO

Maybe then some lorries infantry ( to keep pace)

And then air support.

If you take the special character Vandeleur, your shermans get reroll's. if they move and possible extra movement iirc, and your air support can come up to 12 inches from friendly units instead of 16!

Hells highway is awesome for Guards Armoured lists, but wait until the new A bridge too Far book is out as there might be some nice lists in there.

Well, I grabbed Open Fire! yesterday, since it contains half my army and it was £45, and I truly despise the Vs and two-man MG figs.

One Shermy went together fine after fixing it, two went together alright-ish, and one refused completely, no matter how much trimming and filing I did. The Fireflies, however, were easy to put together, so that made it at least slightly bearable.

Both the MGs, however... *ahem* Well, the less said about those, the better.

Trading the Jerries for a box of PSC Shermans so I can have the last two I need for the command team, I have my Sexton's OP, and I get 2 spares to use in bulking out my other squads if I need to.

After that I just need Rifles, 4 M10s, 4 Sextons, 4 25lb guns, and a bunch of other stuff I don't understand, so my question is this: what do I use for staff teams (both the Sextons and the 25lders), their Rifle squads, and the 25lber OP?