"Engineers - special rules?" Topic

Are there any special combat rules you use for engineers?

Other than the basic bridge building and fixed demolition of obstacles.

Any anti-tank or close combat bonus?

Thanks in advance.

Well CEs will have some AT capabilities based on various weapons, improvised and otherwise. They have in their TO&Es, etc. If they have e.g. flamethrowers, demo charges, etc. they should get that bonus in the close assault. This is based on the system/rules you use, of course. Along with the Army and period of the war you are talking about.

In my games infantry has a generic "anti armor" rating. This is grenades, satchel charges, molotovs etc. etc. Engineers just have a higher rating.

Never gave them an advantage in CC though…

And it also depends on the game scale you play …

Generally, you have Combat Engineers that use demo charges, EOD, Bangalore torpedos, flame throwers, large shaped charges for breaching concrete bunkers, lay and sweep mines, etc. They might also make small demo charges for the infantry to use.

Combat Engineers would normally be at the Battalion and Regiment level and attached to infantry assault units as needed. They would be equipped with the needed weapons and equipment for the mission.

Then there are the Construction Engineers or Pioneers. They specialize in heavy equipment operations, defensive structure construction, trenching, roads, and bridges. That would include the Navy CBE's.

You should be able to find different TOE's that would give the details. At the end of WWII, each Marine Rifle Squad had a two-man Combat Engineer team with a flame thrower and demo charges.

Wolfhag

Depends what kind of engineers.

Assault pioneers tooled up with demo charges, teller mines, grenade bundles, hollow charges and flamethrowers – then yes, they get the odd bonus.

Blokes building bridges or blowing stuff up. Not so much.

Nomenclature, equipment and role varies somewhat between one country and another.

e.g. Soviet anti-tank sapper detachments, are specifically trained and equipped to combat enemy armour.

In close combat the engineers dont have a lot of advantages. However they will be able to place such things as minefields with fast dispersal mine layers like Volcano almost in game timeframes. Lay off route mines, Claymore mines etc. a bit quicker as well as the stuff Wolfhag stated. In big games I always take the Engineer vehicles allocated to companies great to get tanks out of the way quickly if they have a problem. I had tank lost in proving a cleared lane and was able to drag it out and keep the lane in use quickly.

Proably the most often used by us is bridge laying, track laying and filling cratered roads and other road blocks.

In Flames of War, they're really bad ass.
They assault tanks with slide rules, architect triangular rules, trig and log tables… They rock!

they will be able to place such things as minefields with fast dispersal mine layers like Volcano almost in game timeframes. Lay off route mines, Claymore mines etc. a bit quicker

The last time I checked these things were not available during WWII.

Blowing bridges, disarming charges on bridges (Remagen), blowing trees by roads to make roadblocks, clearing roadblocks, deploying and removing mines, building bridges, etc., etc..

Yes as I said it really depends on the Army and time period, even in WWII. Many modern CE weapons were not there in WWII obviously. E.g. our Modern Mech CEs had 90mm RRs even in the late '80s. But WWII CEs … not that lucky …

But as note by Wolf :

Combat Engineers that use demo charges, EOD, Bangalore torpedos, flame throwers, large shaped charges for breaching concrete bunkers, lay and sweep mines, etc. They might also make small demo charges for the infantry to use.

The CEs were trained in WWII[and currently] to make improvised AT, etc., weapons … e.g. Pole Charges, improvised breaching charges/blocks of TNT[or C4 today] with a blasting cap, satchel charges, even Molotov Cocktails …

Thresher also posted a good list of CE missions/ops …

So based on the scale of your game, I'd think you'd give the CEs a bonus in the assault. When I had a CE Squad[rarely !] attached to my Mech Co. on FTXs, etc. When we were going to the assault/attack. The CEs made improvised Pole Charges, etc., as SOP.

CE missions generally include the Assault as well as Mobility[clearing mines & obstacles building/laying bridges, improving & make even roads, etc.] and Counter Mobility[laying mines & creating obstacles, etc.].

As an ROTC Cadet, '78, I was assigned to a CE Training Co. at Ft. Leonardwood, Mo. They(I) trained in pretty much all those things I mentioned as well as crossing rivers with RB-15 Rubber Boats and going into the assault. The Co. Cdr, put me in charge of the CE Co., for a night river crossing then going into the assault on an exercise. [Great fun ! My first Command !!! And I didn't it up !!!]

Then years later as a Mech Co Cdr, '87-'89, the CEs manned with CE crews, provided RB-15s. To transport my dismounted Mech. Co across one of the many rivers at Ft. Benning, GA. For a night attack/assault …

The CEs can do a lot of things and always seemed there were not enough of them …

The Brits did have the Funnies in Normandy. Lots of fun vehicles, ones with Fascines for anti-tank ditches. Flails for mines, track layers (mainly on the beaches). Not sure where Churchill Crocodiles (flame tanks) were, Engineers generally or part of the Funnies. Last but not least the Churchill AVRE with the 280mm Petard Mortar, devastating but short range.

The Churchill Crocodiles were initially just fielded by 141 Regt, RAC, latterly 1st Fife & Forfar Yeomanry and finally 7 RTR moved onto Crocs as well. Similarly the Flails (Crabs) of 30th Armoured Brigade were all RAC. The 1st Assault Brigade, RE handled the AVREs.

Gary