Art De La Guerre

[Andy Fyfe]

Hi Guys,

I had not previously realised that a commander only attaches to a unit for one game turn (i.e. 1x your turn and 1x your opponent's turn).

p27 Attaching a commander to a unit

During the movement phase, a commander can be attached to an adjacent unit or move individually (up to 5 UD) to attach to another unit. He can then move with this unit if he has enough CP to give other movement orders. When a commander is attached to a unit, he stays attached to it until the end of the game-tum or until the end of the melee if it is engaged in combat.

This brings up a couple of questions and points that look to not be allowed by this rule:

Does attaching to an adjacent unit cost the commander's 'free' CP?

What constitutes 'adjacent' (only next to, or diagonal etc.)?

I had also never noticed the last section of that rule stating that the commander stays attached to the unit if it is in melee. So he cannot, for example, move to another unit to help rally it.

Andy

[SteveR]

That is interesting. I had not noticed (or seen anyone play that way)

So, for example, a commander is attached to a unit in a group to help move the group. Once the unit in the group he is attached to is in combat he is stuck it seems.

[madaxeman]

1. "Attaching a commander to a unit" is not one of the 7 things listed as requiring CPs on p25, "Giving Orders", making it unlikley to be something which requires a CP

2. "Attaching a commander to a unit" is not one of the three things that a Commander can spend his free pip to do, as listed on p27, "Free Command Point", making it even more unlikley to be something which requires a CP

3. It seems quite unlikely that the rules were written in such a way as to require Commanders to spend a whole pip every single turn that they want to "attach" themselves to a unit they start that turn adjacent to, as that would effectively make the Commanders free pip almost always irrelevant. Were this the case I suspect it would also be clearly stated in either of the two sections of the rules specifically covering CPs - which it is not.

4. For "adjacent" to also mean "diagonal" in this specific context does sniff somewhat of opening up possibilities for fromage, so on that basis alone "probably not" - but its also hard to see how that same semi-fromage might be game-breaking, so I'm not sure it matters much either way.

5. You do have a point on the "melee" thing - however given all of the other, many detailed rules about how and when a scenario can exist that generates "risk to generals" in melee that are liberally spread like Tiptree Jam elsewhere all across p27-28, and the errata already in place on this same subject for p26 & 28, none of which mention anything about unengaged generals being stuck in place, my guess is that the last part of this sentence should also have been errata'ed at the same time to instead read "...if he is engaged in melee" rather than "..if it is engaged in melee". Also, everyone plays it that way anyway and always has, so I suspect almost everyone else will all carry on doing so until/unless v5 and/or further errata emerge to contradict that implicit consensus.
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[Andy Fyfe]

[madaxeman]

Fair shout Andy... must be too hot down here in Sassenach land today

Orignal reply now edited...
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www.madaxeman.com

[SteveR]

There is a fundamental issue problem when we both don't do what the rules actually say but then (like I have in the past in response to a question) also tell people to just read the rules to see what to do.

I know managing a polyglot stele in 4 and a half languages is difficult and appreciate the work of the committee.

[Ramses II]

Guys, please check p27, attached commander BP 3

[madaxeman]

[Ramses II]

Umm, the section title is “Attached commanders”

[SteveR]

Hi all,

Gavin - I am not sure what you are getting at, that BP does not seem to address the issue.

Tim - I agree that if the last sentence said "He" instead of "it" it would reflect how we are commonly playing it. And that is exactly the type of thing a translation from another language may introduce.

[Zoltan]

P.27 is clear.

"When a commander is attached to a unit, he stays attached to it until the end of the game-turn..."
Q. Does this mean at the end of the game-turn the commander is no longer attached, and requires "re-attaching" next game turn?
A. No. You're over-thinking it. An attached commander remains attached until he moves away (by choice or the unit routs)

"During the movement phase, a commander can be attached to an adjacent unit or move individually (up to 5UD) to attach to another unit."
Q. Does moving the commander to an adjacent or another unit cost the free commander's CP?
A. Yes. "This free CP can be used ... to move the commander individually".

Q. When an attached commander has (previously) been declared as being "engaged in combat" can he move away in the next movement phase?
A. No. The commander is "stuck" in combat until the melee ends (we've always played it this way).

[madaxeman]