"Do you allow players to move trees in skirmish games?" Topic

I do not, and it irritates me when people try.

In "larger" format games, trees are placed on a cloth or similar. There, it's perfectly fine to "make room".
But a skirmish game has terrain for specific reasons: mostly to get in the way.

I was participating in an IRA game by Leo Cronin at a convention. Some scoundrel tried to move buildings so his truck would fit in an alley. That was definitely beyond the pale! I bet the scalawag would've also liked to exit through the sides too! Balderdash! Harrumph!

In a skirmish game a tree is a tree, it stays put, in woods my trees are based, so skirmish troops can go around them and formed troops have a tougher time moving through and fighting in.

Some skirmish games still use a cloth to define the exact boundaries of woods. I would say you can temporarily move trees in order to measure distance or to place a unit within a piece of terrain. Particularly if your skirmish game uses movement trays (Sharp Practice for example).

I'm with DeRuyter.

Indeed, most of my games have cloth under trees, which allows for there being undergrowth to hide in and makes movement for ham-fists like mine!
If a tree is in position on its own, its a 'rock-which-shall-not-be-moved'

Only if they are using an Ent faction.

No, but half the players do anyway.

Depends on what you mean by skirmish. I run some larger skirmish games where the trees are on neoprene mini mats that mark the boundary of the woods. In those cases I invite players to move the trees as they need since it doesn't affect play.

However I am prepping a game for Little Wars that will feature 5 minis per player and some dead trees that will not be moveable.

Context is important.

I typically allow moving trees if they are in the way. The location of the woods are marked with a piece of felt. The minis are smart enough to take cover if they are in the woods.

In "some" skirmish games, things are exactly where they are placed on the table. You aren't going to move a house, or an outhouse. Why should you be able to move a tree? Do you move hills, bridges or walls if they "get in the way"?

Even if you are starting to use more figures, houses and walls aren't moved if they disrupt your formation.
A few weeks ago I was playing in a Franco Prussian War game. I had a "brigade" with a few battalions or regiments. So, naturally trees in the felt "forest" were adjusted to allow my clumsy formations.

However, if the GM shalt decree that what you see is what you get…
I shall keep a nun's heavy yardstick on hand. Woe to ye who should move a tree because it blocks his line of sight.

If the terrain is using templates, then yes of course, the models are just representative. If there. Aren't templates, then no.

Yes.

This question raises a good point. In mass battles games, I allow it, I even encourage it! I rarely play skirmish games, but when I do, I do not allow it. I never thought about it before. Thanks. Cheers!

Like others have said, if a tree is a tree, it is immovable. If a wood is a wood, then the trees are movable.

But my idea of "skirmish" involves singly based figures, moving trees is only necessary for multiply based figures.

Only if you are hiding behind it, John.

Eric

And Roger gets a clearer shot at my back?

I think my view is closest to Herkybird's.

I use cloth to define wooded (and other) areas. So a wooded area will have trees and other scatter terrain on piece of cloth.

Wooded areas typically block line of sight through, but not into, them. So it doesn't matter where a specific tree is. If a straight line between two units enters and leaves the cloth, line of sight is blocked.

I think my view is closest to Herkybird's.

I use cloth to define wooded (and other) areas. So a wooded area will have trees and other scatter terrain on piece of cloth.

Wooded areas typically block line of sight through, but not into, them. So it doesn't matter where a specific tree is. If a straight line between two units enters and leaves the cloth, line of sight is blocked.

As various have said, plenty of skirmish games use area terrain, just like "larger" ones.

But if a tree represents an individual tree, no, you don't move it (unless you cast an entification spell on it or something).

My trees at home are pins into board but made for figures to go under. Shame as no one is here to want to move them.

Yes,

Woods are define by cloth I put down. Trees go on top of the cloth. Trees are just decoration. You move them out of the way when moving. The cloth doesn't move.

Buildings and structures are like cloth. They don't move. If there is furniture in the building you can move the furniture out of the way.

Rough terrain is designated with a different color cloth. Any rocks or sticks on it can be moved out of the way.

The cloth denotes woods. The trees can be moved out of the way for movement.

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Move the trees out of the way. I am not going to do individual trees.

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I am not going to roll a die to see where the barn-yard animals move. Move them out of the way.

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At the scale you are playing, it's a "woods". I'm talking about a scale where there are individual trees.

I do play 1:1 scale.