Finale: Onhaye SSR5

[boylermaker]

I am gearing up to play the very cool looking Finale: Onhaye from Dinant. SSR5 reads:

The Germans receive one module of 100+mm OBA (HE only), directed by the Observer that sets up onboard. Should this Observer be eliminated or its radio malfunction, the radio that enters as a reinforcement may be used to attempt Radio-Contact/Battery-Access as if starting a new Fire Mission. Any onboard SR/FFE counter is immediately removed upon the elimination of the original Observer/radio.

I have near-100% certainty that what will happen in my game is that the original radio will be malfunctioned and repaired, or that the original Observer will be killed and the radio recovered. When this happens:

1. Can either radio call in a fire mission?
2. Can different radios be used over the course of the same fire mission? E.g., Radio 2 calls in an AR, then Radio 2 corrects it to an SR, but it's converted to an FFE1 based on Radio 1's LOS?
3. I have some vague idea (NRBH) that things can happen to your fire mission if you don't maintain radio contact. If this is the case, do BOTH radios need to maintain contact? Can EITHER?

I'm sure this came up in playtesting, and it was a good idea not to include on the scenario card the 750 words you would need to lock down all the edge cases, but perhaps the scenario designers might weigh in here, since there are no space limitations? I'm not trying to be a nit-picking ass; I think that this is a neat idea for how to make OBA a bit less brittle, and if it's going to see future use, it might be worthwhile coming up with baseline answers for this sort of thing.

 

[Carln0130]

The key is, "Should this Observer be eliminated or his radio Malfunction." If neither of these two happens, the initial Observer is still the only one that can attempt contact. So the second radio is strictly a backup for whether or not one of those two conditions happens to the first one.

 

[boylermaker]

But what happens when those conditions trigger, but then the first radio comes back in the fray? The radio could malfunction (turning the second radio "on") and then be repaired. Or the Observer could be eliminated (turning the second radio "on"), but his (first) radio picked up by another leader. In either case, the first radio could now be used again (at least under normal rules), but the backup radio has already been engaged. Then what happens?

 

[klasmalmstrom]

My guess would be that the intent is that only one Radio at a time can have Radio-Contact/a-Fire-Mission going.

 

[Carln0130]

Klas is exactly correct. One Radio in use at a time. No swapping back out unless/until the triggered again.

 

[boylermaker]

So if I have this correct:

1. Observer-elimination or malfunction of the start-on-board radio means that the Germans can trigger the start-off-board radio.
2. If the Germans do so, only the start-off-board radio may be used, regardless of what subsequently happens with the start-on-board radio.
3. If, after that, the start-off-board radio is malfunctioned or its observer eliminated, then the Germans can trigger the start-on-board radio.
4. If the Germans do so, then only the start-on-board radio may be used.
5. #1-4 could repeat ad infinitum, at least in theory.
6. Should #3 happen, any onboard SR/FFE is removed, just like if #1 happens.

Does elimination of any onboard SR/FFE happen whenever the trigger conditions occur, or only if the German player chooses to switch to the other radio? I'm assuming the latter?

 

[phlegm027]

We anticipated this type of question. The short answer is no you can not have 2 radios operating on the same Fire Mission. If the 1st radio is eliminated/Malfunctions then the 2nd radio can be utilized. This radio now becomes THE radio for the OBA. If the 1st radio gets repaired that does not take Control of the OBA from the 2nd.
We wanted to prevent dodgy tactics with the radios and limit the ability of the player to have the observer jumping from radio to radio.

 

[Carln0130]

So if I have this correct:

1. Observer-elimination or malfunction of the start-on-board radio means that the Germans can trigger the start-off-board radio.
2. If the Germans do so, only the start-off-board radio may be used, regardless of what subsequently happens with the start-on-board radio.
3. If, after that, the start-off-board radio is malfunctioned or its observer eliminated, then the Germans can trigger the start-on-board radio.
4. If the Germans do so, then only the start-on-board radio may be used.
5. #1-4 could repeat ad infinitum, at least in theory.
6. Should #3 happen, any onboard SR/FFE is removed, just like if #1 happens.

Does elimination of any onboard SR/FFE happen whenever the trigger conditions occur, or only if the German player chooses to switch to the other radio? I'm assuming the latter?

1. Yes, so long as he is on board when this event happens. Otherwise, you have to wait until he gets there. If the radio is still malfunctioned or the original Observer dead when the second Observer enters, he is now THE observer as per Dan's statement above.
2. If by this you mean, if the observer that comes in off board gets killed or the radio malfunctions, the original observer can take over if he fixed his radio, (you can't fix being dead) yes.
3. Answered above.
4. Whenever one takes over for the other, that observer is for all intents and purposes the only one who can use the OBA until such time as he is dead or the radio malfunctioned.
5. Yes.
6. Yes.

 

[boylermaker]

OK, thanks guys. I am still kinda confused around the margins of this rule, but I think that I understand everything that is likely to happen now, at least!

If future designers wanted a slightly less flexible, but more rules-tight version of this SSR, I think maybe something like this:

The Germans receive one module of 100+mm OBA (HE only), directed by the Observer that sets up onboard. The German player may eliminate this radio even if it is unpossessed/captured. Should this radio be eliminated by any means, the radio that enters as a reinforcement may be used to attempt Radio-Contact/Battery-Access as if starting a new Fire Mission. Any onboard SR/FFE counter is immediately removed upon the elimination of the original radio.

 

[Carln0130]

OK, thanks guys. I am still kinda confused around the margins of this rule, but I think that I understand everything that is likely to happen now, at least!

If future designers wanted a slightly less flexible, but more rules-tight version of this SSR, I think maybe something like this:

I see your confusion. Let me rephrase. If the Observer available in the at start OB is eliminated/ or the radio he possesses becomes malfunctioned/eliminated...……………………….....