Art De La Guerre

[Nostrebor]

Given the following. Side A has a group of 3 Heavy Infantry screened by 3 Light Infantry. They are faceing a block of Heavy Infantry, Elephant (screened by a Light Infantry) and a Second Heavy Infantry. See text diagram below


HHH Side A
LLL

L Side B
HEH

Side A decides to charge with the entire group (both ranks). Side B's Light Infantry can evade. Things are simple if it does not. Side A's group hits the Light Infantry. One of Side A's Light infantry is in combat the other two are in overlap. Since you cannot interpenetrate a unit in combat or overlap the heavy infantry line up behind the Light Infantry.

In the more likely case that Side B's Light Infantry evades things are more interesting. Side A's center LI can hit the Elephant, but the other LI cannot hit Side B's heavy Infantry and must stop 1UD from the HI.

1) Can Side A's infantry which are behind the LI that stop, continue and hit Side B's HI (I think yes). The ending position looking like this

LHL
HLH Side A
HEH Side B (Evading Light infantry somewhere to the rear)

2) The rules state that LI charging a unit that evades must stop one UD from any enemy unit it cannot contact. What if it starts the charge closer than one UD to the enemy unit (applies to more cases than this).

[Nostrebor]

My text diagram got a bit messed up (try it with some dots).

HHH
LLL

..L..
HEH

[footslogger]

[JohnTheBoring]

If the LI start closer than 1 UD to the enemy heavies then their heavies must be in charge range of them too. So the heavies can charge each other through the lights.

If the lights declare a charge on lights who evade and are then within 1UD of heavies I suppose the lights recoil back through their heavies to avoid being within 1UD of the enemy heavies.

If you charge the whole group of lights in front of heavies then if the enemy lights stand the LI fight, otherwise the heavies can continue in if they have the move distance.

[Ramses II]

I don't have the rules or FAQ to hand, and much depends on distances and grouping. However I think they state that;
- Part of a group may continue forwards after one of the units makes contact, or the entire group may halt at that point.
- LI must not contact heavier troops frontally.

So when charging as a group, I tend to agree with the premise that the flanking LI must stop short, and that the HI can continue into contact if there is sufficient distance remaining (i.e. they throw 3+ on the variable distance dice). Don't forget, the group only has a charge range of 2UD as it contains HI.

Obviously it would be better if they charged as two separate groups, as the LI would move into contact with the elephant as desired, and the HI would then hit the flanking HI, the central unit being forced to stop by the engaged LI (as per your diag).

[Viking709]

I don't see how the heavy infantry can pass thru the light infantry as the two flanking light infantry are supporting the center light infantry in melee. You can't interpenatrate units that are supporting a melee

[Ramses II]

If the enemy LI does not evade, then you are correct that the charging group led by the LI will stop on contact. All other circumstances being equal, that will leave the charging LI +2 in the melee, with a chance of killing the enemy unit immediately. If this does not occur. the enemy HI charge the LI destroying them immediately (because they cannot evade when supporting), giving the enemy a chance of destroying the remaining LI in melee, and the fight see-saws.

However I was assuming that the enemy LI evaded the initial charge. In this case the central LI can engage the Elephant but the issue becomes the decision as to whether the flanking HI can charge through the LI into contact with the flanking enemy HI units.

The point is that the flanking LI units must stop before they contact the enemy HI, which I believe overrides the requirement to stay in the group. As a result the remains of the group may continue forwards into contact as I described (assuming they have sufficient move allowance).