Those Darn French Halftracks!

[Robert Fabbro]

After playing Showdown In Syria, my buddy and I were confused as to how to effectively unhook the French guns in that scenario.

The problem arises from the method these are being towed. It’s the situation where the guns and crews are in separate halftracks due to the resricted PP capacities of those vehicles.

We played it thus:

Halftrack A (carrying crew)
Halftrack B (towing gun)

First Turn:
Halftrack A unloads the crew. The crew and halftrack A then use up any remaining movement as per D6.5, noting “…[the crew] may continue to move from that Location with any remaining MF but must do so as part of the same MPh as the conveying vehicle.”

Halftrack B now moves and ends its MPh in the same hex as the crew.

Second Turn:
Crew rolls to possess towed gun (C10.111 – not mentioned in 1st Ed. But covered in 2nd Ed. and Debriefing 96 Q&A). This costs the crew 1MF.

Crew unhooks gun requiring ½ MF/MP expenditure. This costs 2MF for a total cost of 3MF. Halftrack B also spends ½ its MPs and a further ¼ for the MF already expended by the crew in rolling for possession of the gun.

Gun and crew are TI.

Halftrack may complete its move with any MP remaining.

Did we play this right?

Is there any way that the above could be accomplished in a single turn?

 

[The Purist]

C10.12 states "A Stopped vehicle not in bypass may unhook a Gun only by spending half (FRU) of its MP/MF allotment...under the otherwise same conditions as for hooking up."

If you have met the restrictions of "C10.11 Hooking Up" then I would think that you could accomplish the task in one turn thus:

IE: HT#1 and #2 are in ADJACENT hexes.

Crew unloads from HT #1 for 1MF and remains (3MF remaining)in hex as per C10.11, HT#1 then starts up and drives away as it has 3/4 if its MP remaining.

HT#2 then enters the same hex as crew and stops. Provided it has not expended more than 1/2 of its MPs (2/3 if circled M#) the crew in the hex could then unload the gun. Gun and crew are then marked TI.

On the other hand, C10.111 states: "A crew must be in Good Order in order to (un)hook/(un)limber/push a Gun it possesses" (italics are mine). This appears to create a problem as the gun is in tow and not possessed by the crew. I could not find how one could gain possession of a gun if the vehicle towing it cannot could not carry the crew. However, one could read the first sentence of C10.11 as allowing the unhook "providing a crew...is on foot is in that hex".

I still have a problem with the "...Gun it possesses" phrase from C10.111 though but would yield the point,...otherwise the Gun is forever trapped aboard the carrier.

 

[Robert Fabbro]

Thanks, Purist!

The bit about possession came about due to a Q&A that asked whether a crew must possess any gun it is unhooking. The answer was yes, and subsequently made it into the 2nd edition rules.

The part about the crew being eligible to Unhook as long as it has > = 1/2 its MFs remaining, sounds right, but I am unsure whether this violates "Mechanics of Movement" rule in Chapter A (Sorry, I don't have the reference. NRBH) which I believe states that a unit may no longer move once another unit begins moving.

I suppose one could argue the crew is no longer moving, but has merely reserved its remaining MF to facilitate the Unhooking procedure...

Just another "squishy" area of the rules I suppose.

Thanks again!

 

[The Purist]

One other option is the that the crew could unload from HT#1 for 1 MP, move to the adjacent hex with the gun (1MP) and unhook the gun (2MP), if it is QSU.

After the crew has completed its movement then HTs #1 and #2 could complete their moves as per the (un)load/(un)hook rules.

JMO.

 

[Robert Fabbro]

One other option is the that the crew could unload from HT#1 for 1 MP, move to the adjacent hex with the gun (1MP) and unhook the gun (2MP), if it is QSU.

After the crew has completed its movement then HTs #1 and #2 could complete their moves as per the (un)load/(un)hook rules.

JMO.

Except the crew would still have to roll for possession, costing it one more MF and thus forbid it from Unhooking this turn since it has now spent > 1/2 its MF.

But I agree with your first solution, since I think it does not violate A4.2 Mechanics of Movement: "Once a unit...stops, and another unit moves, the original unit may move no farther" (italics mine).

As long as the crew has the MF in reserve and will not otherwise expend > 1/2 its MF, it could make the possession attempt. This does not violate A4.2 since the crew is not moving "farther".