Bolt Action – Armies of Germany (2nd Edition)
Armies of Germany (2nd Edition) is a supplement for our
award-winning tabletop wargame Bolt Action, and deals with the German Army of
World War II. Within you will find background and details of the German
Army’s organisation and equipment from the beginning of the war (the invasion
of Poland in 1939) to the very end (the fall of Berlin in 1945).
Central to this book is its Army List. This includes all the information you
will need to play games using the German Army. This large list details all the
main troop types, vehicles and equipment fielded by the Germany Army during
World War II. Alongside this main list are a number of Theatre Selectors, which
give the force details for different periods and theatres of the war. These are
not definitive, but are designed to give a theatre-specific flavour and
character to a force. Over six years of fighting the German Army changed a lot,
and many units and vehicles that were common in 1939 were obsolete by 1945 –
and there were countless oddities and exceptions on every front. These sub-lists
allow players to select forces suitable for the theatre in which they are
playing.
What's New?
We've taken the opportunity to include additional units and options, we've
revised a few points costs here-and-there, and made some more changes to bring
the book more in-line with the rest of the range… here's a teaser of what
you'll find inside…
Army Special Rules
German forces now have FOUR Army Special Rules – some of which you'll be
familiar with, some you won't…
- Blitzkrieg – German officers were expected to act on
initiative and take decisions on the field based on their judgement rather than
wait for orders or confirmation from HQ. This made them very effective tactical
commanders and made the Wehrmacht a formidably reactive force.
This offers a bonus for German officers when they use the ‘‘You men, snap
to action’’ Special Rule, giving them more influence.
- Initiative Training – Even at squad level, in the German
army every man is trained with some of the skills of his superiors, and
encouraged to show initiative and decisiveness rather than just sit and wait to
receive orders.
This Rule provides a little relief if squad leaders are KIA – as other
squad members may adopt their roles…
- Hitler's Buzzsaw – German-made machine guns, but in
particular the lethal MG42, are vastly superior to their enemies’ and rightly
feared by Allied infantrymen.
Carried over from the First Edition book, this rule combines with the MG
boost brought-in with the Second Edition rules – making German MGs even more
lethal…!
- Tiger Fear – Such was the lethal reputation of Tiger
tanks, that often Allied troops were spooked by the appearance of any German
heavy armour, mistakenly thinking that any Panzer IV was a Tiger waiting in
ambush!
Any vehicle with the ‘Tiger Fear’ rule conveys a negative modifier to any
enemy unit within line of sight's Morale…
New Units – We've also compiled the German Additional
Units and Special Rules which we published elsewhere (in other books, and/or
online) into the book – including the likes of Night Fighting Units,
and more!
Couple all of this with tactical notes, invaluable historical background
text, gorgeous artwork and reference imagery from the masterful Peter Dennis and
Osprey Publishing, and Armies of Germany 2nd Edition is the must-have Bolt
Action book for all German generals out in the field!
