KmnpfPanzer Expanded by Charles C. Sharp

Kampf Panzer is the latest example of the longline of tactical games in a modern setting. Thegame system used in Kampf Panzer (and inDesert War) solves most of the problemsassociated with a modern small-unit tacticalsituation. Notably, the combination of simul-taneous movement and "random walk" (PanicLevel effects) finally builds in the confusionand uncertainty of small unit actions. ThePanic Level effects also provide a technique forreproducing the variation in small unit tacticalabilities long needed to simulate suchsituations as Russia 1941-42 or France 1940,where the tactical response of the unitsinvolved varies so greatly. All of this gives theKampf Panzer system a tremendous flexibility.

Unfortunately, Kampf Panzer does not realizethe full flexibility of this simulation system.Several of the most important elements ofwarfare of the period are left out of the game.Adding these elements is not difficult andprovides a chance to test many more varietiesof simulated situations. What follows is adiscussion of the additions in counters andrules and the reasons for some of the additionsand the precise manner in which theywere added.

HORSE CAVALRYHorse cavalry was combined with tanks andother motorized elements by the French,United States and Soviets in the 1930's, andthe Soviets continued the combination rightup to 1945. Many smaller armies, especially ineastern Europe, had large amounts of horsecavalry in service for most of World War Two,used with or in place of mechanized forces.Particularly in a game which purports torepresent mechanized actions in their earlierdevelopment, horse cavalry must be repre-sented.

Now, cavalry has some pecularities to it whichmake it something more than just fleshy tanksor fast infantry. The horse is, after all, much

more vulnerable to modern firepower than aman because of its size, while its greaterspeed is matched by his increased unreliabilityunder fire - the horse will not give up itssense of self-preservation due to patriotism,the way a man can be induced to do. Cavalryhas also much lower firepower due to lack ofautomatic and heavy weapons and the shorterrange generally of the cavalry carbines asopposed to infantry rifles. Cavalry, by theperiod of the twentieth century that we areconsidering, dismounted to fight - but thetime required to mount or dismount can beincluded in the three minute, forty secondperiod of the Kampf Panzer Game-Turn, soseparate mounted and dismounted units willnot be necessary to add cavalry to the game.Finally, the maneuverability of cavalry is aspecial problem requiring special rules for thecavalry charge and the overrun combatassociated with it.

A cavalry charge might seem hopelessly out ofdate by 1940, but in fact there are records ofsuccessful saber charges by the Sovietsagainst the Germans and by the Hungariansagainst the Soviets during 1941-42. Suchheadlong attacks, because of the moral andphysical impetus of the mounted. man, greatlyincrease the close-combat effectiveness of thecavalry unit, while they also greatly increasethe disorganization of the unit - not only themen, but the horses must be brought backunder control to continue military operations.

The Kampf Panzer rules allow for only one typeof High Explosive fire, that of the 75mmcannon or howitzer In direct fire mode.Actually, even the earliest mechanized unitsincluded such diverse HE weapons as the81mm mortar and the 105mm howitzer.Besides the range differences, there aredistinct differences in the amounts of HEwhich each of these weapons can deliver tothe area defined by the Kampf Panzer game

hex in one turn. The 75mm weapon can deliver1350 pounds of HE in 90 rounds, the 105mm1500 pounds in 60 rounds, and the 81 mmmortar 1100 pounds in 180 rounds in a singleGame-Turn's time scale. It is reasonable,therefore, to make some distinction betweenthe effects of three such diverse types ofweapons.

ARMORED CARSArmored cars were an integral part of virtuallyevery early motorized or mechanized forma-tion, and were frequently combined with horsecavalry as well. Essentially, the armored car is atank on wheels, with the mobility of a truckand at least in the period 1935-40, armor andarmament equal to that of the light tank ortankette. Originally, the armored car wasenvisioned as the true successor to the horsecavalry in the roles of reconnaissance andscreening, and the armored car became themost common mount of the "mechanized"cavalry in the mid-twentieth century.

TACTICAL AIR SUPPORTPerhaps the most important innovation inwarfare in this century, short of atomicweapons, was the combination of tactical airsupport and mobile mechanized forces. Thiscombination started back in World War One,when the German "schlachtflugzeuge" strafedand bombed enemy front-line positions prior toan attack, and Allied light bombers strafed andbombed roads, bridges and artillery positionsbehind the lines. Between the two world wars,many air forces, notably the British andFrench, spent a great deal of time and effortdeveloping special planes like the Hawker Hartfor light bombing and close air support.

Tactical air support, for our purposes, is ofthree types:1. Level bombing, characterized by someinaccuracy of delivery but able to affect a widearea due to the number and size of bombsdropped.

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2. Dive bombing, characterized by consider-able accuracy but pinpoint effect due to onlyone bomb per plane usually being available.3. Strafing, which in our period (1935-41) wasfor all intents and purposes performed entirelywith rifle-caliber machine-guns. Strafing ischaracterized by a linear pattern of effectfollowing the firing pass path of the plane, andextreme disruption of unarmored targets,caused by masses of men and animals'instinctive attempt to scatter to shelter whileunder strafing attack.

Tactical air support has one other character-istic which is, perhaps, its major drawback:unreliability. Weather, poor communication,bad navigation or missed ground-air identifi-cation can all cause "tac" air to be at bestunavailable and at worst used against theFriendly forces. World War Two is full ofinstances where the tactical air supportexpected either did not appear or appearedand bombed the wrong side by mistake.

In addition to allowing new scenarios to be puttogether, these new rule concepts may beused to balance the scenarios provided withthe original game. This is particularly true ofairpower, which may be added on to theweaker side as realistically-available increasedfirepower.

It is not easy to tell what will balance ascenario, since the usefulness of the varioustypes of airpower varies with the targets to beengaged. Basically, however, level bombingand strafing are useless against mobilearmored forces, strafing is useless againstentrenched troops, while dive bombing iseffective against any target but is notrealistically available to all opponents in 1940.

For example, several of the more unbalancedscenarios can be quite legitimately balanced.Bain-Tsagan Hill (scenario 14.3) can be fairlyevened up by adding four level bombers to theJapanese order of battle. The Japanese ArmyAir Forces did not use dive bombing at thattime, but the Japanese Navy did, so bystretching things slightly, you could use divebombers in place of the level bombing attacks.This, however, tends to unbalance the game inthe opposite direction.

In the Summa Scenario (scenario 14.5) theSoviets could be given air power to eventhings up - anything except dive bombers,which they did not employ at the time. Thetrouble here is "panic" -affected aircraft can domore damage to the attacker than they do tothe defender - especially if they end upstrafing the Soviet infantry. This scenario isliable, therefore, to wind up as a gameof chance.

In all the German scenarios any type of airsupport can be added to the German side, butonly in the hypothetical Czechoslovakian

scenario (Scenario 14.2) would it be legitimateto give any air support to their opponents -after all, close and continuous air support wasone of the mainstays of the "blitzkrieg"system. Only the Flavion scenario (Scenario14.7) actually warrants any balancing, andthere two dive bombers with one additionalstrafing pass each are usually more thanenough to edge the scales over in theGermans' favor.

Of- course, any scenario can be "player-balanced" for you and' your opponent byadding air support to one side or the other.However, remember that a little goes a longway - two or three bombers can completelydestroy or neutralize the artillery or anti-tanksupport for a force for the most critical part ofthe game very easily. The small forcesrepresented in the Kampf Panzer scenarios arenot likely to have had massive air supportavailable to them anyway - especially not inthe period 1935-40, when the entire ability ofair forces to deliver such support was muchless than it became later in the war.

EXTRAPOLA TlNG TO OTHER GAMESA final note: no doubt some people out thereare already considering how to apply Kampf-Panzer rules and system to the earlier tacticalgames, such as PanzerBlitz or CombatCommand. The rules suggested here wouldremain applicable for any scenario up to thepresent day, with the following changes.

1. After 1942 most strafing would become twoor three Strength Points per hex of "M" typefire. Some of the special "tank busting"aircraft, like the Ju-87G or the HawkerTyphoon, could be given an "A" type of five orsix Strength Points. "A" type firepower fromaircraft should be slightly inflated because forthe most part the aircraft is attacking theweakest armor on the tanks.

2. After 1941 most good infantry would try tofight tanks at close-quarters. This shouldprobably be simulated by a "close-assaultcounter-attack" against overruns based on thePanic Level of the infantry unitts). However,recent psychological studies have shown thatarmored cars do not have the terrifyingmorale effect that tanks have, and so are morelikely to be engaged by infantry at closequarters. Possibly this special effect could beindicated by requiring a die roll equal to or lessthan the Panic Level to close-assault counter-attack, except against armored cars, which anyinfantry can automatically counter-attack.

SPECIFICS OF APPLICA TlONS

AIR SUPPORT

1. Strafing.a. Strafing affects three hexes in a straight lineat the discretion of the player owning the airsupport for the scenario. Each of the threehexes is attacked with four points of firepower,"R" type.

b. Strafing is considered to be a direct fire plot.It affects only those units in the target hexes atthe start of the turn.c. Any cavalry, dismounted infantry or dis-mounted artillery in a strafing target hex inopen terrain are automatically" D 1" as a resultof the strafing. This is the minimum strafingeffect on such units, which may suffer worseeffects as a result of the die results from theCRT' rolls. Use the worst possible effect,in such cases.

2. Level Bombing.a. Level bombing affects one hex, the targethex, and its contiguous six hexes as a "loosepattern HE fire" direct fire plot.b. The target hex as designated in a levelbombing plot may "scatter" according tochance. After plotting, but before any otherfire is executed for the turn, roll one die foreach level bombing plot and consult the"scatter diagram" (Panic Effectsl. The targethex will move one hex in the directionindicated' by the scatter diagram and thedie roll.

c. Level bombing affects hard targets in thetarget hex only, and only soft targets in thesurrounding six hexes.d. Level bombing, though an HE plot, onlyaffects those units in the target hex and itsadjacent hexes at the beginning of the turn,and has no effect on units moving throughthose hexes later in the turn.e. All units in hexes affected by level bombingare considered to be stationary for the "HResults Table."

3. Dive Bombing.a. Dive bombing affects one hex as a "tightpattern HE fire." The dive bombing is plottedand results are obtained just as if it were anormal tight pattern HE fire, except that divebombing only affects units in the hex at thestart of the turn, and has no effect on unitsmoving through the hex later in the turn.b. Dive bombing is not subject to scattering.

4. Reliabilitya. When rolling for Panic Effects each turn, rollan additional die for each air attack plotted forthat turn. If the result on the die is less than orequal to the Panic Level of that side's groundunits, the air attack "scatters." In scattering ofan air attack, the target hex (the middle of thethree for a strafing attack) goes for a t'randomwalk" on the scatter diagram, just as if it werea ground unit affected by Panic Effects.b. The target hex scatters in the directionindicated by the scatter diagram and the dieroll for same until it intersects a ground unit ofeither side. The air attack then takes place inthe normal fashion, against that unit, includingscattering of level bombing plots. If no unit isintersected then the air attack does not takeplace that turn, and it may be replotted for thenext Game-Turn, or any Game- Turn thereafter.

KampfPanzer & Desert War: A Wider View by John Fernandes

The following is a series of observations,suqqestions. additions and ideas for players ofKampf Panzer/Desert War who wish to widenthe scope of the game system to includesituations not included in the original version

as well as additional unit counters, rules andnotes on tactics.

THE ARTILLERY1. The artillery fire tables for Kampf Panzer and

Desert War are different. This shouldn'tpresent any problems if you realize that thecaliber of the guns in the two games aredifferent by several milimeters las much as30mml. To reconcile this diffeence simply

consider artillery to be divided into two·classes:a. 76mm and smaller caliber (see table I)b.87mm and larger caliber (see table II)

2. In post-publication play testing it was foundthat tank units, especially heavy tank units, canoften run the gauntlet of opposing tanks andAT guns and rush the artillery pieces in thehope of knocking out much of the opposingside's firepower.

The rules as they stand do not provide forshort range direct fire by large caliber guns.The Germans in Russia often found that theirtanks and AT guns could simply not stop T34'sand KV's when they first appeared. And thesetanks would simply roll through this screen andclose with the artillery which had to deal withthem in a direct fire mode at ranges of 500meters or less. The effect of a 105mm shell ona tank at less than 500 meters is, to say theleast. devastating. Yet. the rules do not takethis into account. Artillery has exactly thesame effectiveness at 100 meters as at fivekilometers.To alleviate this annoying situation I havedeveloped a simple means of improvingartillery effectiveness at short ranges:

ARTILLERY RANGE EFFECT TABLE.Hex Range Effect on Artillery Die Roll

25 or less subtract 1

12 or less subtract 2

6 or less· subtract 3

3 or less subtract 4

(See revised artillery fire tables: Tables I and II)Fire must be tight pattern; tire must be directfire; table applies only if fire is to affect onlyunits which begin their turn in the hex firedupon.

3. In the "New units" section, you will seeseveral SP (self-propelled) artillery weapons.These fire like artillery and move like vehicles.They must obey artillery facing rules. SP unitsmay change facing freely at the end of theirMovement Phase, whether or not they havefired. Disrupted SP units cannot changefacing.

4. In the "New units" section you will also findthe Russian SU152 and 122mm field artillery.These are solely direct fire, close supportweapons and may not use indirect fire.

5. The British 251br. (87mm) gun was mountedon a platform which allowed full 3600 traverse.This weapon should be allowed to changefacing freely at the end of any turn it is notpanicked or disrupted. The same applies tothe 88mml gun.

REVISED ARTILLERY TABLESTable I. Table 1/.76mm (or smaller) 87mm (or larger)

Die Static Mvng Die Static Mvng

-3 04 04 -3 04 04-2 04 04 -2 04 03-1 03 02 -1 04 0200 03 02 00 04 02

+1 03 01 +1· 03 01+2 02 01 +2 03 01

+3 02 • +3 02 •+4 01 • +4 02 •+5 01 • +5 02 •+6 • • +6 01 •

INFANTRY

The Germans.The Germans started the war at a fairly highlevel of efficiency and kept up that level untilwell into '43 at least. After that, increases infirepower kept anybody from catching ontothe fact that the rot was beginning to set in.Therefore, I agree to the strength givenGerman units in the game system.

The Russians.Unlike the Germans, the Russians entered thewar with something less than adequate tacticsand weaponry. But, it didn't take very long forthem to recover from the initial shock of theBlitzkrieg and begin the Jong climb towardtactical superiority.

The values given Russian infantry may berelevant to June 1941, but they are notaccurate if the scenario in question is takingplace in November of the same year. The"New Units Chart" includes several differenttypes of Russian infantry, along with whenthey may be used.

Other Infantry.The values for the other infantry in both gamesis relatively accurate-tat least up to mid-43). Inthe New Units Chart you will find an Alliedinfantry unit circa '44. This can be used torepresent just about anybody on the allied sidefrom 1944 on, with the exception of theRussians.

Additional Infantry Rules.Certain infantry units should be allowed toclose assault armored vehicles under thefollowing restrictions:a. The vehicle must be in other than clearterrain.b. The infantry unitlsl must be adjacent to thevehicle at the end of the Movement Phase.c. The intention to close assault must beplotted for the infantry units that turn. (CLA)This takes place after movement and is notconsidered a separate operation.d. Strengths of Close Assaulting Units (may beadded freely to any other plot):

German: 2 ('39-'41); 3 ('42); 4 (mid '43 on)

Russien: 1.5 ('41); 2 ('42); 4 (mid '43 on)

Allies. 4 ('44 on)

Terrain effects are not taken into accountwhen computing Attack Superiority.

Infantry should be able to stack 2 high. In thisstate they attack normally but defend athalf-strength (round up tractions].Entrenchment markers should increase thedefense of infantry (and AT guns) by 1.The "counterattacks against overruns" ruleshould be kept in both games (Kampf Panzerand Desert War), but units should use theirclose assault strength if they have one (seeKampf Panzer, 9.68),

Russian infantry may be able to ride on tanks.They defend with a Defense Strength of 1. Ifthe tank they are being transported by is hit byA Fire, the infantry scatters one hex at random.If the tank receives H Fire, both units areaffected. The infantry unit is consideredmoving if its trarisporting unit is. If the tankreceives R Fire, only the infantry is affected.Opportunity Fire, hit or miss, causes theinfantry to scatter. In mounting tanks it mustbe plotted, and both units may not move thatGame- Turn. In dismounting the tanks havetheir Movement Allowance cut in half.

TERRAIN EFFECTS

Trucks should expend 6 Movement Pointswhen entering slope hexes. Since trucks arenot on board when empty, this rule takes intoaccount that trucks are always fully loaded.They, therefore, have more trouble climbingslope than AFV units.

AFV units should only receive 3 additionalPoints in town defense. This reflects the factthat they cannot get the complete benefit ofbuildings as cover and still be able to fireeffectively.

Otherwise; I find terrain effects acceptable asthey stand.

TACTICSThere is a great deal to say on this subject. Infact, it really ought to be the subject of acompletely separate article. To really play thegame properly, study closely the writings ofRomel, von Melenthin and Liddel Hart. Whatworks in the actual campaigns works in thegame. I'm not going to conjecture whether thereverse might also be true.

That is one of the truly great things about theKampf Panzer/Desert War system. It reallycaptures the flavor of small unit actions. Withthis in mind, here are some ideas.

Panic.Anything worth doing is worth doing morethan once. Always shoot at a target with morethan one unit. Three or four units per target is agood idea if you really need to knock the thingout. If you really need a certain piece ofground, go after it with half your availableforce. This way you have a chance of taking it.

What this all boils down to is: With a highpanic level, keep you objectives clearlydefined. Don't compound your trouble bytrying to do more things at once than you canhandle. Mass your fire. Keep together butdon't bunch up. Don't wait for stragglers!

The Russians in the last war had it pretty wellfigured out by mid '42. The tactics theydeveloped worked equally well for them, theChinese in Korea, and the Egyptians in'73; to wit: "When you are faced by a superiorenemy, overwhelm him at a crucial point. Pourall you can into the breach. Dig in! Let him beathis brains out trying to get you out again!"Just grab some piece of real estate that youropponent can't do without and hold on. Thisforces him to do all the maneuvering. Thispractice necessitates giving the terrain a reallyclose scrutiny. Watch for bottlenecks: roadjunctions, rough terrain he can't bypass, ridgelines. If you're lucky you'll find the ideal spot:good fire protection, with a good field of fire, ina place which cannot be bypassed. Mastery of"reading" ground is necessary in any goodfield commander (or wargamer) but with anunreliable army, it's vital!

The Mixed Assault.Every player has his own style. And whether heknows it or not, this style becomes predictableto an observant eye.

Realizing the pattern of your opponent'sactions is terrific. But, using a system thatgives you flexibility combined with the greatestpossible security gives you the time to feel outyour opponent's style and thus control hisplan. Always keep in mind, "You're playingagainst another person, not his pieces. Theyare just extensions of him." Always rememberthat any game is a friendly contest betweenminds.

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Flexibility is based on mobility and foresight.Keep your tanks out in front. Light tanks first(when possible) then heavier types. Behindthese should come the infantry and AT gunsapproximately one half Movement Phase tothe rear (depending on speed and weaponrangel.Lastly should come the artillery. For this youshould find a safe position with good fields offire and leave it there. The whole formationshould resemble a fan with the artillery at theapex and the other units radiating from it. Thisgives you maximum firepower forward withthe fast units out in front, but able to call onfire support whenever necessary to eliminatestrong points. You might even say it resemblesa hand with the fingers outspread. Anythingthat falls between those fingers is crushedagainst the palm.Security is a function of interlocking fire and agood eye for ground. This formation is veryhard to outflank. Even if you do, you're in fortrouble. You are faced with increasingfirepower as you near the apex until the"fingers" close in on you from all sides.

The Pure Tank Force.The Allies are saddled with this formation inAfrica. There's only one real tactic for this

force. Alternate firing and moving units. Thissets up a sort of leapfrog pattern that is veryhard to predict. It also retains some semblenceof tactical flexibility. Somewhere around halfyour units should fire each Game-Turn and halfshould move. Your opponent's artillery won'thave any sure targets this way exceptdisrupted units, and it will be a while before hefigures out what your objective is.

Defense.There is an old maxim, "He who would defendeverything, saves nothing." Don't spread yourunits allover the map, but don't bunch themup. "Read the ground." Interlock you fire.Don't lose your nerve! When the reinforce-ments arrive, use them as a group with somepositive goal in mind.

Tank-to- Tank.Don't over-kill. Keep your priorities straightand you can't go too far off.a. Set out to disrupt as many enemy units aspossible;b. Give undisrupted units priority whenallocating fire;c. Then, and only then, build the disruptionsinto D4's.

By disrupting as many enemy units as possibleas early as possible you destroy his mobility.By repeatedly hitting any units that becomeundisrupted you keep your opponent offbalance. Now the artillery (if you've got it) caneasily pick off the disrupted enemy units whileyour tanks keep everybody else from returningto normal.

Parting Shots.I really think the Kampf Panzer/Desert Warsystem is great (And I own 12 sets ofPanzerBlitz counters!'. The possible variationsare endless. The scope is limitless. And it's fun!Two little things though:7947 Breakout Scenario:German mixed Assault force defending;Russian tank Assault force attacking (noartilleryl. Russians get Points for each unit thatgets past the Germans.Ketvushe: Russian Rocket Artillery.This may be used once per game. Pick a targethex. "Katyusha" fire affects it and the sixhexes around it. Now, roll the die for each ofthe seven affected hexes. A roll of one and thehex is impacted. Anything else and the fire onthat hex scatters 1 or 2 hexes in a randomdirection.