Easy E wrote:I have never played Flames of War, NAM or Team Yankee, but for some odd reason Fate of a Nation interests me.
Can some one point me to or provide a high-level overview of the game system?
Thanks.
Its not a perfect representation (these are "Lite" rules based on Flames of War v3, the current version being v4 which itself is more lightweight than v3, and also Fate of a Nation is a different time period, but these free Open Fire rules (from the v3 Flames of War starter box) should give you a very good feel for the game system:
https://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=3547
That web page has links to rules and unit data.
At a high level, its a staged turn based game - distinct actions available in moving, shooting, assault stages. Attacker rolls to Hit, Defender rolls to Save, Attacker rolls to Damage (assuming no save). Vehicles have front and side/rear armour (plus top vs aircraft and assault).
Armies have distinct flavours based on national rules - there is some overlap.
Can't help you with Fate of a Nation as I only have the v3 rules and won't be buying into v4.
But if you want to get into Flames of War, my advice is:
Buy the rule book from Battlefront or your
FLGS - if you are after Late War, also pick up the Armies of Late War
Buy a Plastic Soldier Company starter box e.g. their Late War Panzer Army gets you :
(
http://theplasticsoldiercompany.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_161&products_id=1155 )
6 Panzer IV
4 Panther
4 SdKfz 251/D Halftracks
2 Tiger
47 Panzergrenadiers
Which is a pretty neat force with a good mix of infantry, armoured transport and tanks.
That's 60 quid - less than the price of Battlefront's Late War Kampfgruppe, which gets you:
3 Panzer IV
5 Panther
2 TIger
2 Puma
2 8.8
AT Guns
There are other deals on US, Brit and Russian army boxes.
If its Mid-War, be advised that you'll need multiple books - so I would recommend (if you are time-period agnostic) the Late War period as the army box deals have the best options, and the single Armies of Late War unit book covers US, Ger, Brit and Russian forces all-in one, whereas you'll have to by 4 books to cover US, Ger, Brit, Italian forces in Mid-War (plus another 2 for German East Front and Russia to cover that period). The force list is restricted in the single Armies of Late War book, but there's enough variety for each of the 4 main nations - and it aligns with the cheap box sets for Late War - to get you up and fighting with a strong variety of units.
If its really Fate of a Nation you are after, the official Battlefront FOAN store is doing 25% off some items (but not the army box deals).