Alright, confession time: I am not a <PERSON> . Not that I have anything against Grognards, and in certain ways I kinda wish I did have that level of focus & dedication to "proper" wargames. But, alas, I simply do not have the inclination to wade through 30-page rulebooks in rule/case form in order to memorize the rule that states every infantry unit named after a Danish king is permitted to volley fire 2 extra times on the second Thursday of the month as long as they are firing downhill into a unit of troops dressed in beige & primarily named <PERSON> (with a +1 for each troop wearing a fez.) This does not appeal to me, but I still want to play the occasional "proper" wargame. Enter Tank On Tank: West Front.
So, mayor, what are the particulars of this game?
The game is primarily a tank battle set in a generic Western Front setting. There are 2 double-sided maps included, with each being 9x11 hexes (for reference: Memoir 44 is 9x13 hexes.) Both maps have a "grass/dirt" side and a "snow" side, but each is identical front-to-back, so you basically have 2 maps, with each having a seasonality. This game's sister game Tank on Tank: East Fronthas more maps (as well as twice as many counters) and some maps that combine to create larger maps. There are a total of 63 counters in the game, though each side will typically only have 8-12 units in any given scenario (of which there are 14 in the box, with the ability to create your own, more on that later.)
So how do you play this game? How do Action Points work?
Each side (Allied & German) will get at least 2 Action Points (aka APs) per turn. Further APs are determined by a chit-pull system that has your opponent drawing one of a possible three chits that will have either a 2, a 3, or a 4. You use your 2 APs, then your opponent will tell you if you have a 3rd, then you use it (if you have it) and then your opponent will tell you if have a 4th, and if you do that is the most you can have. There is also a solo-method of using your 2 APs, then rolling 1d6, on a 1-2 you are done, if not take the 3rd. Then roll 1d6 again, on a 1-3 you are done, if not take the last. So the most APs you can muster on a turn is 4.
What can you do with APs?
You have 3 choices: Move one unit, target one unit for attack, or promote one piece to a Headquarters (aka HQ, more on this later.) Units can only move once and attack once per turn.
How do attacks work?
Notice the AP is used to target an enemy unit, not spent to use one of your units to attack. 100
This is because the game hinges on concentrated fire, but the process is really quite simple: Roll 2d6, add +1 for each attacking unit within range & line-of-sight (so the more units within range the more powerful the attack,) add +1 for each unit firing into the target's flank, and subtract one from the die-roll if the target unit is in a forest/town hex. That is it. If the total amount of damage rolled is equal or greater than the target's defense value (middle number on the chit) it is dead. The unit doesn't flip, there is no step-damage, there are no damage counters, the unit is GONE.
Hmm... seems bloody!
That it is! The crux of the game IMHO is the HQ effect of the tanks. Since you only get 2-to-4 APs per turn, you are going to want to exploit the HQ effect whenever possible. That effect says: When you activate an HQ unit, all adjacent units get a free move. So say you have an HQ Sherman with 3 tanks adjacent to it. Instead of hoping for a 4 AP turn, you spend 1 AP for the HQ tank, and you can move every adjacent unit for FREE. This means you are going to want to coordinate your units to take advantage of the HQ unit's ability. This is also why the third option for APs (promote generic tank to HQ ability) is also kind of a big deal. So if your HQ Sherman bites the dust, you at least have the opportunity to promote a generic Sherman up to the level of HQ, so you can keep on exploiting that ability.
What about these custom scenarios? 100