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Nope, that's not a Disabled result, and it won't be recovering in this game...
The latest GEV rules are from 2018 and the Battle Box. They are by far the best compendium of the latest rules, to my knowledge. However, with all due respect to Steve Jackson, they still suffer from some over-engineering that reminds me of the 1970s and 1980s fixation with granular mechanics that are beneath the notice of a commander. Sometimes that can be kinda fun, like with the Missile rules. Othertimes, it bogs the entire game down somewhat, and that's the case with the Disabled rules.
The Disabled rules as they stand demand that you remember the cause of being disabled. If it was by Fire or Ramming [!] they recover automatically after losing a player turn. If by entering difficult terrain, they recover 2/3 of the time [so may never recover, theoretically, or may recover next player turn with no loss of actions]. This can be awkward in a larger game and the counters aren't number so you could only scribe this by noting the hex, unit type, and cause of Disabled. All of which is not in the spirit of a fast-play game, and definitely not in the spirit of contemporary gaming which trends towards simplicity of mechanics with an emphasis on player decisions.
The math for 8 Disabled Units is like this, if one rolls average:
- if by Terrain on Player Turn 1 [PT1], of 6 Disabled Units 4 Recover on PT2. One more recovers PT3, and the final one on PT4 or 5.
- if by Fire on PT1, 0 Units Recover PT2, and 6 on PT3, or 100% automatically.
Ergo, I offer this mechanic as an alternative that is in keeping with the simplicity of the rules and is - arguably - more realistic.
"In Phase 1 Recovery, roll a d6 for every Disabled Unit regardless of cause - they recover on a 4+"
The math behind this results in the following for 8 Units Disabled PT1:
- on PT2, 4 Units Recover. On PT3, 2 more Recover [so 6/8 total]. On PT4, 1 more Recovers so a net 7/8. The final Unit has a continuous 50% chance to Recover.
It will probably not Recover, and it will almost certainly be a Howitzer...!
Using this results in more Units returning the next Player Turn, on average. However, it also introduces the possibility that some units will not recover for a few Player Turns on average, and of course the lesser probabilities that almost all will recover next PT or almost all will not recover soon enough to be of any use in the specific scenario you're playing.
[EDIT] Switching the Recovery Phase is a very good idea from James Doty at the Ogre Fb page [now why didn't I think of this??]. If one is invested in the concept that there must be a penalty to the ability of a Disabled Unit to function, then if you switch the Turn Sequence and put Recovery at the end, after GEV second Movement Phase then any Disabled Unit definitely loses a Turn.
OTOH, the intention of the original rule is clearly that the opponent gets a second shot at a Disabled Unit on his next player turn, as in:
- My PT I disable you.
- Your PT you are stuck, Disabled.
- My PT I have a shot at you while you're Disabled.
- Your PT you auto-Recover.
Which makes Disabled an additional hazard, but presents the opponent with an interesting choice of finishing off Disabled Units or trying to Destroy / Disable functional Units.
Note that this does allow a possibility at a quick recovery for a vehicle that just became Disabled by moving into rough terrain. However, as the vic lost the rest of its movement by being bogged down, I think it is fine - I never move a GEV through such terrain anyway, so the deterrence is still there.
If one switches Recovery to the end of the Player Turn, and uses a 4+ Recovery roll, then I think you are closest to the original intent of the rules while still adding some uncertainty and a bit more realism into the mix at reduced memory pain. A 3+ or 5+ recovery roll are also possibilities, depending on the scenario.
Overall, this is both much more manageable - no need to take notes or use markers - and much more realistic - if an armored Unit is damaged by fire or bogged down, all a commander needs to know is when it becomes operational again. Meanwhile, all Disabled Units continue to defend themselves in an Overrun situation.
An interesting variant on this would be to use a better Recovery number for a side that has superior tools, training and hardware/software, a 3+.
A side that has a poor supply situation and/or is falling behind technologically might recover on a 5+.
All of which can feed into any number of scenario objectives. For example, if Command Post Gamma is the S4 Supply & Maintenance CP, then if it is taken out perhaps the recovery number of all units goes from 4+ to 5+.
Alternately, if Mobile Command Post Beta is the Maintenance CP, then when it enters the board as a reinforcement, it grants a 3+ Recovery number, but if destroyed it declines to a 5+.
All of this adds up to more scenario-driven fun that can shape your Ogre / GEV scenarios, so enjoy and LMK how it works for you, and your bright ideas!
I do like the simplified Recovery roll. It makes sense to me to just make it 4+ and reduce having to remember how a init was disabled.
ReplyDeleteAnd I love James' idea to switch the Recovery Phase. That will work well for those who want to keep the "Lose a Turn" aspect of being Disabled. Between the Recovery roll and that, there's plenty of options to satisfy discriminating gamers.
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