"Good rules for 1/72 skirmish gaming?" Topic

Hi there! I have a bunch of 1/72 figures and tanks that I'd love to do some skirmish gaming with. Can anyone recommend a good rules set for battles involving at absolute most a platoon of guys and 3-4 tanks a side?

Things I'm looking for:
-Not terribly complicated. I'd like to be able to play a game with one or two squads and a tank in 2-3 hours. I also might want to teach this to my young (well, 18…god I feel old now) cousin.
-Reasonably detailed. Nothing insanely complex, to be sure, but something that differentiates between a Bren and an MG42 and so forth would be nice.
-Tank-friendly! I know armor historically wasn't that common in squad-level actions in Normandy in 1944, but I have a lot of tank models, and I like them, and they're cool, so a rules set that models tanks reasonably well (especially British armor) would be good.

Lastly, I own The Face of Battle and IABSM. Both of these seem like neat systems, but maybe not exactly what I'm looking for.

Your assistance is appreciated, gentlemen.

Depending on taste you can't go wrong with the follwoing, they all have the level of detail you seem to want:
NUTS from Two Hour Wargames … still one of my favourites. Squad to platoon.
Flying Lead from Ganesha Games … yes I wrote them but they are aimed at squad level and you can get a tank or two on there.
Force of Force Ambush Alley Games – bit more complex (as in learning the mechanics)but give excellent game play.
Rate of Fire – platoon level with an armour add on download, some interesting mechanics (I think it is what 40K SHOULD have been like)
Rules of Engagement – platoon level – as above

There are a horde of other excellent games but the above are the ones I thought suited your 'request'the best.

Disposable Heroes is a fine system. Complete, quick play, GREAT armor rules.

I'd like to try the new Rate of Fire rules. They read very well, but I have not actually PLAYED them yet.

I also like the Flying Lead rules. Haven't played those yet, but their post-apoc rules were very elegant with a low learning curve and fast play. Perfect for cons.

If you already play (and like) IABSM, then its skirmish level cousin is Tactics, Weapons and Troops (TW&T).

Similar concepts but pitched at smaller actions.

I'll also recommend Flying Lead. I've only tried it out a couple of times, without tanks, but I really like them. (But I'm a sucker for Ganesha games.)

Well worth $8 USD for the pdf to check out, at least.

Disposable Heroes

Any skirmish rules will work with 1/72 figures. Rules are figure scale agnostic.

Another vote for Disposable Heroes.

Nuts! is also a good choice, but I have played it as an infantry only game so far. So I have no idea how tanks would play in the system.

I very much enjoy Battlefield Evolution: World At War for the scale of game your looking at.
But like most games at this level, most forces have trouble fighting tanks once their own tanks are taken out.

Arc of Fire

Battleground WWII. Once you get the hang of it its actually pretty simple. Plenty of detail if you want it. Syr Hobbs wargaming still carries it.

Anything that is declared for 28mm skirmish works as weel for 20mm.

Battlefield Evolution: World At War is indeed very good and very straightforward. I's also easy to teach somebody else and it handles many vehicles very well as it does for planes. A lot of cover helps the game. WAW rules are clear enough to work with tournament games.

Rules of Engagement is also very good but a bit more complex so both players should have read the rules. It's emphasis is on infantry combat with vehicle support. It's not as deadly as the others.

Disposable Heroes is also good and easy. It's pretty deadly and vehicles need a lot of table space. It also handles planes but the vehicle system is not as easy as with WAW.

All three sets are good and worth playing, it's a matter of taste what you want to go for.

I'm loving Rules of Engagement right now. The game is infantry focused but the vehicle rules are fun and there is a new vehicle book out.

Nuts has some nice detail in the vehicle rules that you don't see in many other sets, such as each crew member performing individual actions.

Disposable Heroes has got practically every tank and truck you could want and has got nice detail in terms of location hits and penetration. If you really wanted to focus on tanks, I think this is the set to look at.

I've got a set of rules I use. My scale is 1/72 scale too. These rules are 1 figure equals 1 man. You can download them here (bottom of the list, "WW2 Skirmish rules".

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US

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Scenario based, reasonable accuracy, quick simple rules but provides interesting games. We even do scenary if its you thing. Remember to make it interesting you will need a fair bit of terrain, woods, houses hils etc.

Download the free rules, Chain Reaction 3.0, and see if you like the reaction system first. This way you can try it free and if you like it then invest in NUTS as it has all the details you'll need.

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Also there's a very active Yahoo Group with about 4000 members where you can ask questions and get answers usually the same day.

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CR3.0 is a great set of rules and they are the basis of most 2 hour wargames. You cant beat the price either. If you want more detail into the WWII era after getting the hang of CR3.0 then NUTS would be the next purchase. I stongly suggest trying CR3.0…it make a great modern day skirmish set as well.

We use Disposable Heroes in the 20mm scale with tanks, a platoon or less of troops and play from 9 pm to 11:30 or so on Friday nights. I really like this rule set for WWII skirmish, and my friends and I have used it for years. Plus, the online support from the author/designers is excellent. Good gaming.

BattleGround WWII is my fav for skirmish.

All my gaming is in 1/72 and I use CR3.0/Nuts. I've played other rules and find the "fun factor" the highest with these rules. The reaction system makes each game replayable and unpredictable. I get that "one more turn" feeling because I'm eager to see how each side reacts.

Rules of Engagement with the Armoured Assault bolt on will be great in 1/72nd.

I use Force-On-Force for WW2 skirmish… or Rapid Fire.

Both work for me and are easy enough. One is realistic and suspense filled, the other is fast and furious. Use of which set depends on my gaming mood at the time of play… :-)

Arc of Fire for me ;)

I use 1/72 with Nuts! and am very happy with it.

Nuts and Battle Field Evolution are good ones…

Also worth checking out is Operation World War Two:
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Developed from the commercial Operation Overlord rules but currently free.

From the website:

• Number of players: Two
• Level of difficulty: Medium
• Realism: High
• Simulation: Single man, single tank
• Scale: 1/72
• Average length of a game: 2 and ½ hours
• Armies included: Americans, British, Russians, Germans
• Measurement: Centimetres
• Dice used: 10-sided dice

Anyone know of reviews that or care to compare and contrast Nuts and Disposable Heroes themselves for me?

TerryL, I can't find anything on your site mentioning WW2 Skirmish rules?
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Tim

Troops weapons and tactics. Only platoon level set you will ever need. If I was told I would only ever be able to play one set of WW2 ever again, this would be the one. PLUS TFL are currently having a sale- £8.50 GBP until the 10th of May

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I don't own TW&T (I know, ha ha) and can't comment on other systems but one thing I love about Nuts! is that it is specifically designed to allow you to play solo, co-operative or head to head. All three modes of play are integral to the rules, not tacked on.
Jason

Not sure I'd want to use a CR3 game for a platoon- thats an awful lot of reaction rolls every turn.