FoW Tactics: Live by the Stormtrooper, Die by the Stormtrooper.
a guest piece by Eusebius Rex
My very first Flames of War game I knew nothing of how to play FoW, but during my first Assault phase when someone explained to me that I get a special move prior to the enemy’s turn I fell in love with the Stormtroopers German Special Rule.
The ‘Stormtrooper Move’ special rule is quite simple: any German platoon that did not fire a bombardment or shoot (gun teams only) and are not currently pinned down may take an extra 4” move during the Assault phase (final phase) of the German players turn upon a successful skill test. They do this instead of assaulting, but making this special move count for something other than gained ground is key.
SturmTruppen were actually German WW1 assault infantry. These specialist assault troops used fast infiltration tactics and aggressive short ranged weaponry like flamethrowers, SMGs and bundles of grenades to assault objectives quickly and were very successful when employed properly. By WWII, the modern Wehrmacht doctrine, equipment and training regimen were all based on the stormtroopers of WWI.
Now FoW veterans may want to check out of this article unless you want to make sure you’re doing it right or countering it right when playing against Germans. For new players and prospects, the Stormtroopers rule is probably the single most impacting special rule for any faction and easiest to pick up. For German players, it is important to fully understand how to use Stormtroopers because German units are pointed with this rule in mind. If you aren’t using it, you are losing it.
Stormtroopers for Infantry
Infantry and man-packed gun teams use Stormtroopers primarily to give them a total of 10” movement from concealment to concealment. Area terrain in FoW typically limits LOS to 6” in and out to a target if completely in the terrain. Being able to start and end a turn concealed by terrain or out of LOS completely is a huge advantage and with a potential 10” movement, German infantry just don’t get shot as much. All infantry can move 6” in the Movement phase and then assault 4” in the Assault phase, giving infantry platoons a 10” threat range. Using your stormtrooper move to move forward into range or LOS of an enemy platoon, shoot it, then Stormtrooper back outside of 10 inches so that they can’t be assaulted the next turn is easy and effective.
Transports and Gun Teams
Gun teams certainly do not come to mind as stormtroopers. They are actually limited in the scope of the rule in that gun and man-pack teams cannot stormtrooper move after shooting. They can still take advantage of the movement and being able to move a heavy gun team 6” over the usual 2” is certainly an advantage, but it is still best to keep in mind that if your infantry and tanks are moving forward quickly then someone needs to provide over watch. Use your mortars and other smoke generators to cover enemy strong points with smoke so they aren’t able to shoot your stormtrooper moving units – especially when they fail the skill test to make that stormtrooper move.
Ironically, Irwin Rommel – known for his brilliance in armored warfare – began his military and combat career not as a cavalry or armored officer but as a stormtrooper in WW1.
Armored Stormtroopers
Armored tank teams – light armored vehicles and tanks – benefit the most from the Stormtroopers rule by far. This is where the stormtrooper move becomes more important as a shooting tactic than a method of supporting advances. It is quite simple and 40k veterans will recognize it as JSJ – Jump shoot Jump – but in this case the vehicle in question can move forward 8-12 inches in the movement phase, shoot, then move back 4” into a forest or on the other side of a hill. In Flames of War, area terrain, like forest, not only conceal but can take your unit completely out of LOS if you pass the edge and there are no enemy teams within 6”. So, German tanks can and will quite often shoot and kill whole platoons of enemy tanks and vehicles w/out ever worrying about a shot being fired in response! I like to call it the “Stormtrooper shuffle” and it makes cheap lightly armored AT vehicles like a Marder worth far more than their point value.
Stormtrooper moves are certainly a double edged sword and so many times your troops are caught out in the open and shot up. This probably explains how the Ewoks won on Endor.
Die by the Stormtrooper
Ok, so you’ve heard all the good things about Stormtroopers and the 4” move it entails, but here is the bad – you fail 1/3 of all skill checks needed for it. The overwhelming majority of all German troops are Veterans and they use a 3+ skill check to earn their stormtrooper move in the assault phase. Invariably those 1’s and 2’s will show up and it always seems to occur to that one platoon that you really needed to get back into cover.
Most FoW players agree that Stormtroopers is the most powerful Special Rule in Flames of War, and it is certainly key to most German victories. It can also contribute to some amazing defeats as there are always those games where 1’s and 2’s turn up more often than not. What are some of the ways you’ve seen the stormtrooper move used effectively and what do you think is the most effective way of engaging German units doing the stormtrooper shuffle?
