"TRACTICS" Topic

Yes all the way from 1975(I say that because in my copy it lists Greyhawk as the only D&D supplement).

Last night my eldest son and I started a game. I have not played with these since the late 70's. We had some bumps and such but it actually gave a good game.

Lookimg to finish the scenario (From Wargamers Digest) today.

I wish I still had a copy myself!

Some of the penetration tables are a bit off – 5cm PAK isn't equal to the 6pdr, 3.7cm isn't as good as the 2 pdr. However, we had a lot of fun with the rules (came up with some different tables using penetration formulas after a while).

You can still see them on Ebay – sometimes quite cheap. Sometimes not…..

We found that for a number of things we had to look 2-3 places to find all of the detials (and no cross refernece) i.e. HE pentration and Building Armor values.

Still Got mine and can remember the first game I played.

A single panther ambushes three shermans on a road.

Panther fires and misses…..
Shermans move off road and return fire next round…panther fires again and misses.

3 shermans fire, all at long range.

First misses, second gets a direct hit on the front armour and bounces.

..Last shot lands on the top deck, hits the panther turret ring, penetrates and results in a catastrophic explosion…..Game over in 2 turns.

Tons of charts and slow play?….game finished in ten minutes!

Took longer setting up the table!

This is a great game that we cut our teeth on back in 75. Once you know how to play, it is not that tough. Like most games really.

Always loved the detail and the chance of a "lucky hit". You could get a hatch hit but those only count when there is a hatch to be hit. You only had to look at the model to discover this important fact.

The game probably tops out at a company and a platoon of tanks per side. I still have fond memories of this game. I own two copies, one from back in the day without the charts and another complete set.

Even if you hated the game, it is a fantastic reference for the vehicles because it gives the armor thicknesses on each part of the tank including the actual angle of slope.

I wish I still had my old copy as well.

We played Angriff and Tractics. My problem with them (Tractics) was they were slow to resolve larger actions. I ended up using other sets.

Thanks,

John

There was a best of Dragon compendium that had a Tractics versus Greyhawk game. Great fun, Orcs versus MG-42's and Trolls versus Panzerfausts!

Battalions in Crisis is a cleaned up version with all the armor sheets on seperate forms for the vehicles. Makes working out all the hits and penetrations much quicker and neater
Inf rules are geared to 10 man squads

Still have my copy of Tractics. I bought it in a tiny game shop in Ipswich in 1981 or 1982 along with a big pile of Heroics & Ros 6mm armour, which I also still have.

I still play Tractics from time to time, and I still enjoy it.

At this point I don't look at it so much as an accurate simulation of real tank warfare, it's more of an accurate simulation of the fun we had playing that sort of game way back in the 1980's.

Yep. Played Tractics on and off from 1979 'til about 1990. I have been itching for another game for years. I actually skimmed through the rules and charts about a week ago. I fully expect I will drag out the figures and give the game a go this year (it is on my list of possibles to do in 2013).

I know the rules still quite well. I do also have Battalions in Crisis, which as has been mentioned, tidied up the rules. But I never played them and would prefer to play what I know. We always played the quick infantry rules using a d6 rather than the d20 with lots of modifiers. And we used to speed up the game by rolling 5 of different coloured dice at one go when firing – 1d20 for hit, 1d20 for location, 1d20 for auto damage, 1d6 for damage and 1d6 for crew casualties.

Monstrous Jake hit it on the head – it is not an accurate simulation, but a simulation of the fun in the 80's.

I always liked the indirect fire in Tractics, you had to guess the x and y measurements …..classic 70s mechanics, superb stuff.
We had huge actions on the floor of the local church hall…." just bring everything you've got " was the general rule for the day, good memories. Nothing was ever finished but we didn't care….did it all again the next weekend.

Tractics and Angriff… Does that take me back. Played the daylights out of both back in the '70s with (of all things) Airfix figures and Minitanks (when minitanks were dirt cheap). Then my group discovered the very early releases of GHQ microarmor (also dirt cheap back then). Still have the microarmor (but, alas, not my Tractics rules or Minitanks).

Bought my copy in the early 70's, but never found anyone in the hinterlands of Ontario who had even heard of wargaming to share them with. Sadly lost now, and I never did really figure out the rules, but it was, without doubt, my first introduction to miniature wargaming!

Tractics will be back in print in April or May of 2021. The new edition combines the Classic rules from 1971, the Modifications from 1976 (Little Wars article), and Updates by Mike Reese. So some sections of the rules have a 2nd and 3rd version to choose from.

DFM, the core section has changed little (Direct Fire Mode), though now with 148% more vehicles than the first set. The focus is on WWII. Modern rules are presented as they were but not expanded or fine-tuned (and Modern Vehicles can be downloaded free of charge). You can see more at CombatRules.com.

I think that the rules by contemporary standards are not as oriented to fanatics per se. By comparison to Fast Rules or Donald Featherstone, indeed, Tractics is more detailed. But the detail helps "write the narrative" more effectively than just rolling a single die, and the result is a miss or knocked out. Tractics gives the how, the what and flukes that one may remember for years to come. (As some posters indicate.)

I think that the Tractics style of play is a great one to get a gaming group raised up from non-gamers. That's what we did. I judged most of the games and kept inviting random people--most not wargamers at all. They had a blast and stayed on to play other wargames too. Only D&D derailed us from another 70 games. But recently I decided the contemporary rulesets just didn't cut it.

Incidentally, we have added a lot more cross-indices to where to find things!

Mike Reese, one of the designers, will be a guest speaker at Little Wars.

link

Wolfhag

And running a Tractics game.

Oh, now that is cool Bill!

Also played TRACTICS back in late 70's when Dad, first got me into
Wargaming, first with ROCO & Airfix, then GHQ, C&C, and Heroics & Ros.

Dad, then opened up a Hobby Shop In Sterling, Va early 80's till early 90's before selling it. We carried Historical, Sci-Fi & Fantasy Board Games and Minis (15mm, Micro Armor, etc). Played TRACTICS, but quickly changed to Micro Armor Rules.

I still have a copy of TRACTICS (had 1-2 in past) and using for Micro-Armor, but made some modifications to give proper penetrations closer to Rexford's work with Armor & Penetration. Also Changed many of Small Arms to better simulate proper ranges (Tractics decided to make Small Arms ranges longer for games sake) for 1"=25 meters and included provisions for Fireteams and 1-2 man scouts/snipers instead of individuals.

I also play Battlefronts ‘Combat Mission' Computer Simulation Game (CM•1 and CM•2). If you haven't played them then I strongly suggest you download the free Demos (even if only to compare how Armor Combat is resolved, etc.
for example; U.S. M4/76 w/APCR or M36 w/90mm plain ammo in Tractics can penetrate Panther Hull frontally @500 meters (short range)…However, in Combat Mission this isn't possible.
A lot of this has to do with how Armor Angles are really portrayed against different Ammo types (and not as simple as Tractics has it). A good work around is to move 2x columns over for 15•, 4x columns over for 30•, 8x columns over for 45•, etc.

Joe

Sorry, but edited too many times and unable to change last sentence.
Ok…2x Columns 15•, 4x columns 30•, 6x columns 45•, 8x columns 60•.

Tractics will be back in print in April or May of 2021.

Excellent, I missed these the first time round as I was only 2 yrs old when they were released!

Has anyone purchased the new one?

Wolfhag

Yes, it's been 50 years…Tractics & Fast Rules have been re-released.

Ok, so for those who might remember a set of rules called TRACTICS HO Miniature Rules (Mike Reese & Leon Tucker) first released back in the early 70's…The Re-release contains the Classic Tractics, a Modified Tractics (modified from a wargaming group in 70's), and an Updated version (2020).

Check out this site for more info: combatrules.com

Unofficial Tractics fan group on Facebook at:
link

Wolfhag

Anyone played a game with the fast rules and blogged about it. How do the rules compare to other fast rules like Rapid Fire?

I did have the original Tractics box set back in the day, I was impressed by the detail but found them difficult to use. Not helped if I remember by not having a D20!

I picked up a copy of the new updated Tractics rules a few days ago, via Amazon (softcover, full color). I'm enjoying reading them – I never had the original set, but was familiar with it via D&D and Dragon mag back in the day.

The book seems like it's received a lot of additional commentary, options and the like, and weights in at 234 pages. It feels very tool kit-y – which I like – especially given it offers about 2-3 major options for various rules section (Classic, Revised, and/or Updated). The publisher also invites the reader to toolkit and use other games, and keep what parts they like from Tractics.

Both Tractics and Fast Rules are back in print.

Fast Rules comes in two print editions: softcover from Amazon and saddle-stitch from Lulu (lays flat when opened) plus a Kindle edition. All three editions are identical.

Tractics comes in eight* identical print editions. The variation is in the three following features:
1) binding: softcover, hardcover (both Amazon), or coil (Lulu, lays flat when open)
2) interior: black ink or full color
3) view of game reference charts: portrait or landscape

There is also a PDF edition of Tractics (only). Identical to the color interior and landscape view edition, but the images are "screen" resolution which means that printing a page, the photos will be fuzzy, and one cannot highlight/copy/paste text. A big plus is hundreds of hyperlinks in the text, index, table of contents, and to/from charts. These clickable links give you instant navigation to the relevant section. The PDF comes from Wargame Vault as an instant download.

*For easiest use in a game, I recommend the printed coil-bound with Landscape-view charts (color ink). One can buy a booklet of Charts Only (3 versions) if you want to paste them to a wall, organize in a 3-ring binder or hold them in your hand.

See Combatrules.com for both rulesets.

Fast Rules was my gateway to miniature wargaming. The rules are similar to Tractics in some ways, just simplified. The new edition has a few added clarifications but is nearly the same as the original set.

I wanted to see a new edition of Fast Rules because I think that a key to having a more suspenseful, realistic, and exciting game is hidden set-up movement. Ideally played with a judge or at least the defender performs that role. Too many contemporary games have lots of gritty and often ambiguous rules to make up for the lack of hidden movement.

There are a few free downloadable play aids (like more vehicles' stats and rules on aircraft) at:
link

Once I thought about reissuing Fast Rules, I assumed Tractics re-release would be a snap. Boy, was I wrong! Mike Reese was revved up to add lots of new rule sections and fix some original bits from the Classic and Modified editions. So over 1900 emails and phone calls later over 26 months, ta-da! Tractics came out in December 2021.

Having judged 70 games of Tractics, I had lots of opinions about both simplifications and ADDED detail (why not both so gamers can choose). I had ideas about how the Game Reference Charts could be streamlined. The Indirect Fire Mode is an excellent example of 4 pages of text-heavy charts that we made straightforward in 2 pages (with larger print). You can see this IFM conversion at:
link

Note: the Tractics 2nd edition is focused on WWII. The Modern Rules are present but NOT updated. The Modern Vehicle stats are available as a free download* instead of included in the rulebook.

I always viewed Tractics as somewhat of a "free Kriegspiel," and we started with limited rule sections, adding new parts with each game. I kept info limited to the player(s) who knew what happened. I rolled the dice so all players could start playing without knowing any rules. This approach meant that our gaming group grew quickly. Later, a few others took on the judge role occasionally.

Duckbills is the name of the free Tractics downloadable newsletter with variants (like multi-figure based teams and squads) and related articles. You can download Duckbills and free play aids from:
link

PS just like my comment for Fast Rules, my core assumption is hidden set-up and movement with my goal of making a Double-Blind table asap.

I do agree with you about using a hidden set up. It's almost as if the war gamer of today has forgotten about this. Even without an umpire it's possible to do this in attack and defence scenarios as you point out.

Tractics discount code on Facebook: link

Wolfhag

There are weekly discounts for the coil-bound edition of Tractics from Lulu (we call them Rulebooks F & G--the difference between the orientation of the charts: F=portrait or G=landscape).

Nearly every week there is a discount announced on Monday (which I enter asap at the URL below) that is valid from Monday-Friday. Never seen discounts on Sat/Sun.

Below the Order Code Grid, where you see a green triangle, the discount code can be found in the 2nd paragraph entitled Discounts.

This discount can be used for the other Lulu products:
• Fast Rules, saddle-stiched (Amazon's is perfect bound)
• Chart Supplement 3, coil bound, full set of color Tractics charts
• Tractics Wargames Journal (which is half blank pages for recording games played etc. and the other half a complete set of black & white charts)

link

PS Amazon never runs discounts. However, if one wants to save money one can buy a perfect-bound black & white edition. Personally, my favorite is coil-bound and color pages from Lulu.

In addition to the 8 print editions (which are identical but vary by binding, page color and chart orientation--thus price differs), there is also a PDF version.

Key differences in the PDF edition:

1. It has hundreds of hyperlinks so one can teleport to relevant pages.

2. One can print the charts in the back in sharp resolution.

3. But printing the whole book (234 pages) the photos and some examples of play would be fuzzy. That's because the non-chart pages are at a "screen resolution".*

The PDF link is:
link

ALL editions are found at:
link

*This was done for two reasons: to protect Michael Reese's intellectual property from piracy and a printable PDF would be a giant file otherwise.

My message from 05 March 2022 said that there would be a Kindle edition. I failed to figure out how to produce a useful Kindle edition. So instead we have a PDF version that looks just like the printed edition:

PDF: link
Printed: link

Mike Reese and fans continue to support the game with clarifications, variants and germane info in a free newsletter called DUCKBILLS. You can download that at this link:

link