WACHT AM RHEIN F&M #8 ERRATA

updated 031105

ADDENDA & ERRATA WACHT AM RHEIN
From F&M 8; by Joe Balkoski

• 2.3 THE PLAYING PIECES -- Counter mistakes:
1. German 26 VG engineer unit was left out. It's a standard VG engineer unit.
2. Some units appear as battalions on the counters but are already
   considered broken down into companies at the start of the game:
   801199xx(D), 612/2xx(D).
3. 741/99xx and 61/lll(D) are not used in the game. 4. U.K. 260/42xx(E)
   should be 260/43xx(E).
• 2.31 Sample Combat Counters -- HQ units are not combat counters.
• 6.3 ARTILLERY MOVEMENT--German artillery may change from In Battery to Out of Battery, and also move, all in the same turn.
• 6.8 TERRAIN EFFECTS CHART -- Motorized infantry (as referred to on the chart) is a unit with a pure infantry, or parachute, symbol, with over 6 MPs.
• 7.2 MOVEMENT POINT COSTS TO CHANGE MODES -- A unit may change modes on a woods-road hex.
• 8.4 ZONES OF CONTROL AND COMBAT-- Sub-section 8.42 states that HQs may never attack. If they find themselves in enemy ZOC during their combat phase, they are immediately eliminated. The following section, 8.43, states that units occupying towns, villages, improved positions, or entrenchments are not obliged to attack adjacent enemy units in their friendly combat phase. Section 8.25 states that river hexsides are the only hexsides through which ZOCs do not extend. I have posed this question to SPI: is an HQ unit eliminated if it starts its combat phase in enemy ZOC, even if it is not obliged to attack, per 8.43. If the answer is yes, then cut-off Allied units can quickly become isolated and eliminated, because their defense strength can quickly be halved (14.64), and they also may surrender (14.7). If the answer is no, then cut-off Allied units, provided an HQ is present, can avoid isolation and hold out nearly indefinitely, as discussed in the text of the article.
• 10.1 WHICH UNITS MAY ATTACK -- Subsection 10.19: two units with parenthesized attack strength may not attack when stacked together, if a unit with a normal attack strength is not present .
• 10.4 REGIMENTAL INTEGRITY COMBAT BONUS -- This may be fulfilled by one, some, or all of the attacking stacks, but there is a maximum of one shift per attack.
• 10.5 COMBINED ARMS COMBAT BONUS--Same as above. The attack gets two shifts if one stack has CA, and that same stack, or another, Rl.
• 10.7 COMBAT RESOLUTION--Subsection 10.75: in an attack by more than one stack, the attacker may retreat some of the attackers, and pay the step penalty to not retreat others, so long as the retreat result is completely fulfilled in one way and/or another.
• 11.1 ARTILLERY DIVISIONAL AND CORPS INTEGRITY -- SPl's suggested restriction on German infantry divisions is discussed in the text of the article. It should be noted that this does not restrict the ability of these units to draw supply from any HQ. In my opinion, the German player should reject SPI's tightening of the rules, and insist on freedom to reassign infantry divisions with advance notification of at least a day.
• 11.7 GERMAN ARTILLERY BARRAGE RESTRICTION--The 20-point maximum applies before halving, but it applies only ta pure artillery factors. Rocket artillery barrage points may bi applied against any hex within their range without maximum.
• 14.11 UNITED STATES SUPPLY--Although I did not raise the point with SPI, I believe they would be better advised to use the term 'Allied' in many places where they say 'U.S.', because I do not believe they mean to draw a distinction between the U.S. forces, and the other Allied nationalities, except in a few specific and clear sections of the rules. At any rate, an Allied unit with access to the board edge may trace a supply line to it which would then connect, by going offboard, with an HQ unit which would then have access itself to the board edge. 15.2 German engineers which are allowed to 'pick-up' bridges, ma~ do so from either side of the hex-side which the bridge spans
• 16.0 IMPROVED POSITIONS AND ENTRENCHMENTS-- No unit in March Mode can ever be involved in the building of Improved Positions or Entrenchments.
• 16.13 The phrase 'next Movement Phase' should read 'next friendly Movement Phase'.
• 17.0 U.S. BATTALION BREAKDOWN--Artillery support for U.S. companies when alone in a hex is always halved, except on the first three G-Ts (Game Turns). Or one might want to consider this under heading 11.6.
• 19.2 PATROL -- Air points allocated to Patrol should affect enemy air points allocated to resupply, ground support, and interdiction .
• 21.22 This section deals with blocking Allied entry points. At first SPI ruled that there must be a one G-T delay for each individual road entry hex blocked, and that if an entry point is not blocked, but made into a trap, the Allied forces must enter there anyway. After I protested, they replied 'Regarding U.S. reinforcements, admittedly this rule is an abstraction. I would say that your solution is fine -- giving the U.S. player the option at all times to shift one entry hex to the West, but they must state this fact one G-T beforehand. Also, I'd say it would be realistic to allow them to shift up to two entry hexes to the West for each G-T.' As for the question of entry traps, although SPI have not specifically clarified this, Jim Dunnigan did comment that he did not share my view that such traps are unrealistic. I believe the U.S. player should insist on the right to freely shift his entry from the points stipulated at the rate of 3 entry points for a delay of 1 G-T.
• 22.0 MASTER REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULE -- There are some mistakes.'
  1. 776/V(A) starts on the map. It should not appear on the Reinforcement
     Track.
  2. Units left off the Reinforcement Track (all U.S.):
  • G-T 17, D3-4-5 737/lll(T), 818/lll(D)
  • G-T 17, D1-2 602/ l l l (D)
  • G-T 32, between D4-B4 654/lll(D)
  • G-T 7, C7 613/V(D)
  • G-T 11, C2 740/VII(T), 643/VII(D)
  • G-T 12, C7 195/VII(A)
  • G-T 23, between A12-B12 629/VII(D)
  • G-T 11, C6 Should say 'all remaining units of 1st Infantry Division'.
  • G-T 7, C7 Should say '9/V(H), not 9/VII(H). Delete 9 / V (H ), G-T 21 ' .
• 24.3 GERMAN 'TRUPPENEINHEIT' -- See text of article.
• 24.61 ADDITIONAL GREEN UNITS--Green units which are in an attacking or defending stack, but do not take part in combat, do not roll to see if they are stepped down. They would still have to roll the first time they take part in combat. 25.12-25.22 Initial Deployment -- For purposes of artillery support, U.S. corps units listed with divisions in the initial set-up are still considered corps units. 'Historically, they were attached to the commander of that division during December 16th, but they had the ability to attach to any division in the same corps.' 25.16 U.S. and German Movement Restrictions -- The only action which may be taken by non-committed units is that if they are artillery, they may fire Barrage and FPF.

A comment about errata:

Recently a writer in an important wargaming magazine accused Richard Berg of having 'botched' TSS, largely because of the errata which has appeared for that game. It is hard for anyone who has not been personally involved in game design or development to realize the impossibility of perfecting the rules before they are printed. I use the word 'impossibility' advisedly. When someone comes out with a flawless rule-book, then we can say that it is difficult. Until then, I feel justified in saying that it is impossible. Taking WACHT as an example, I believe that exasperation is justified for certain oversights. For example, surely SPI should know better than to use the term 'U.S.' when 'Allied' is meant. There are at least half-a-dozen examples of this sort. I don't know if SPI has a 'style-book' for rules writing, but if they do, it should include the niggling, but annoying, points such as these. It is the larger points that seem to me more excusable, despite their greater significance, such as the question of blocked entry, or entry traps. In a game of this scale particularly, it is a Herculean labor to anticipate all the tricks which the players will discover, and it is only by a willingness not to pretend to perfection. but to issue those ubiquitous errata sheets, that we finally arrive at thoroughly sorted games.