Optional Rules

[Blackcloud6]

FOW.

I always use it in solo play.  I like the disruption in causes to planning and it forces one to prioritize activations.  But there was period when I stopped using it becasue I felt it favored the defender a bit too much but causing the attack to slow down.  That was just a "feel," not a deduction of looking at my play statistics.  So I went back to using it.

[treadasaurusrex]

The FOW rule stinks, is not scalable, and should be used as infrequently as possible in my humble -- and apparently minority -- opinion. This is after all a board game and should be played for enjoyment and not just to engender frustration and force actions that would not likely otherwise occur in one's opening few activations. Those oft-maligned, block-style wargames have an advantage in terms of FOW as one cannot readily see -- and/or remember the composition of the units you are facing until contact is made.

[joe_oppenheimer]

(pumping some life into this thread)

I am thinking about smoke today...

maybe, the Smoke optional rule has it right by seeking middle ground with the limiting of each gun/artillery with one available smoke use per ten turns.

It's limited and unreliable so risky to plan your tactics around. It can be very helpful when it works.

[Hugmenot]

I do agree with a previous poster that the FoW optional rule does not scale well. It's a real problem in scenarios with 100+ combat units.

[JayTownsend]

The FOW rule stinks, is not scalable, and should be used as infrequently as possible in my humble -- and apparently minority -- opinion. This is after all a board game and should be played for enjoyment and not just to engender frustration and force actions that would not likely otherwise occur in one's opening few activations. Those oft-maligned, block-style wargames have an advantage in terms of FOW as one cannot readily see -- and/or remember the composition of the units you are facing until contact is made.

I don't use it either. There is a point in the game where I'll quit earlier if it looks like there is no hope of a side winning towards the end of a scenario but many times, I just play it through anyway to see the actual results.

Playing mostly solitaire, I never use the Hidden rules either.

[goosebrown]

Playing mostly solitaire, I never use the Hidden rules either.

I do. My memory is so bad they always surprise me.