""Across the Volga" rule in Flames of War" Topic

As *I* read it, "any" platoon capable of firing a bombardment can be held off board and fire from off board.
It is not scenario specific.
Am I right on this?

Also, do you measure range from the edge of the board you are alleged to be off?

John,

The Volga rule was first published in the Stalingrad book and meant for the city fight scenario on a smaller board loaded with buildings. Hence no room for artillery bases on the table.

Many players dislike being forced to deploy artillery tubes on table and feel WW2 artillery is more realistic offtable.

Range is measured from anywhere on the tabledge the guns are offboard of.

Steve

Range is measured from anywhere on the tabledge the guns are offboard of.

You get to pick a different spot on the table edge each fire mission? Wow.

Doug

The rule is scenario specific AFAIK.

The rule is indeed scenario specific. In most missions it cannot be used. I believe it is only available in "Not One Step Back".

Plenty of people house rule it to be allowed in other situations.

" Range is measured from anywhere on the tabledge the guns are offboard of.

You get to pick a different spot on the table edge each fire mission? Wow."

No, the rule very clearly states artillery placed "Across the Volga" have range to any target on the board.

Across the Volga makes sense in a city fight situation. It can start to break down if you begin to allow it for any mission as it unfairly favors cheaper artillery units that lack direct fire ability. By placing mortars and nebelwerfers across the volga you eliminate all of their drawbacks (shorter range, no direct fire ability).

Conversely, placing 105s across the volga means you are wasting points spent on their direct fire ability.

Use of Across the Volga as a house rule is one of the more common ones. Personally, I only ever use it in very specific situations, otherwise it's easy to game.

The rule is scenario specific AFAIK.

Isn't the rule army specific?

I thought only the Soviets kept their artillery behind the front lines during WWII.

Ahem, ever heard of an Army Group Royal Artillery…?

Sorry Dom you'll have to speak up, my uncle william just called…

I think you are mistaking FoW with history.

I think you are mistaking FoW with history.

That is a common mistake with ANY set of wargames rules.

It is my understanding that, unless the rule in question is defined as "scenario specific" within the rules for that scenario, then it is available for use with that particular army for all points from that time until the close of the war.

FoW scenarios all have special rules. If that mission you are playing uses that special rule, you can use it. Otherwise you cannot. An example of this is Across the Volga. It's not specific to the Soviet army, it's just got a funky Eastern Front name. I believe the bocage fighting rules for missions played on bocage tables had it as well.

Bloody Omaha references the Across the Volga rule for naval bombardment.

None of the scenario rules have anything like "this is a scenario rule only" written in them. If it were true that you could use the Across the Volga in any mission you want, then by the same logic you could use Ambush, Prepared Positions, Defensive Battle, Fortifications, Preliminary Bombardment, etc etc.. in any battle. They just show up in the scenario section and it is listed in each scenario which ones you get to use.

Of course, when playing in the privacy of one's home, one may write one's own scenarios, and include any damn rules one wishes.

One does not have to play in the street and frighten the horses.

Allen

Are we actually disagreeing with each other? Hard to tell reading this thread….