[Rules] [Terrain in Beyond Normandy & War in the Hedgerows: Operation Epsom, 1944

[broadsword]

The Campaigns & Commanders book, "The King's Officers" has several pages of terrain rules that bring PG Beyond Normandy into synch with the PG 3rd Edition ruleset.

A lot of these rules are helpful clarifications, while others (like eliminating formation morale) simplify and streamline PGBN.

The one I keep having some trouble wrapping my head around is a really basic and important rule: Hills.

Beyond Normandy is a "real terrain" map, unlike many other PG games.

The Campaigns & Commanders book states:
"Hill: See TEC. Note that there are no Clear hexes on the Beyond Normandy maps; all hexes are Hill hexes because they are above 20 meters in elevation.
Many Hill hexes have other terrain in them as well, and all terrain effects are cumulative. Note also that while Hill hexes are limiting terrain (8.2) they do not block LOS all by themselves; elevation lines block LOS per rule 8.4, and other terrain in a hill hex can block LOS per the TEC and the rules below."

I'm trying to nail down how this affects movement.

In the basic PG Terrain Effects Chart, a Hill hex is +1/+5/+3.
But in Beyond Normandy scenario rules, The Hill terrain has no MP cost of its own and the chart says to use only the effects of whatever other terrain might be in the hex.

So, I've been playing Hill (which is every hex on the board in Beyond Normandy) = 0 MP cost, but adding MP costs for other terrain in it, and for any scenario or campaign/specific rules. For example, the first day of the War In the Hedgerows campaign has Light Rain weather conditions, and that means +2 MP for all vehicles to enter any non-road hex.

Question: Is there also any MP cost for crossing an elevation line "uphill" in Beyond Normandy? If everything is on a slope of some sort, I wouldn't see why. But I'm wondering if I'm missing a terrain cost.

Also: In Beyond Normandy, each elevation level adds 6 hexes of LOS distance. The current weather in effect says the maximum visibility is 12 hexes. So, how do I reconcile elevation vs. weather? Is the weather limit a firm, absolute number of hexes one can see, no matter what the elevation? That's how I play it, so the elevation bonus for LOS is always "weather pemitting." Makes sense in the real world. Just want to see if this is correct.

[vince hughes]

Also: In Beyond Normandy, each elevation level adds 6 hexes of LOS distance. The current weather in effect says the maximum visibility is 12 hexes. So, how do I reconcile elevation vs. weather? Is the weather limit a firm, absolute number of hexes one can see, no matter what the elevation? That's how I play it, so the elevation bonus for LOS is always "weather pemitting." Makes sense in the real world. Just want to see if this is correct.

Absolutely !

Think of yourself on a hill on a pea-souper foggy day. Ain't going to help you see further being higher, so yes ......................... Whatever the weather maximum is, then that is an absolute maximum.

On all the other stuff ?

I play the Beyond Normandy maps as any other. Makes life easier for me at least.

[upintheattic]

The Campaigns & Commanders book, "The King's Officers" has several pages of terrain rules that bring PG Beyond Normandy into synch with the PG 3rd Edition ruleset.

A lot of these rules are helpful clarifications, while others (like eliminating formation morale) simplify and streamline PGBN.

The one I keep having some trouble wrapping my head around is a really basic and important rule: Hills.

Beyond Normandy is a "real terrain" map, unlike many other PG games.

The Campaigns & Commanders book states:
"Hill: See TEC. Note that there are no Clear hexes on the Beyond Normandy maps; all hexes are Hill hexes because they are above 20 meters in elevation.
Many Hill hexes have other terrain in them as well, and all terrain effects are cumulative. Note also that while Hill hexes are limiting terrain (8.2) they do not block LOS all by themselves; elevation lines block LOS per rule 8.4, and other terrain in a hill hex can block LOS per the TEC and the rules below."

I'm trying to nail down how this affects movement.

In the basic PG Terrain Effects Chart, a Hill hex is +1/+5/+3.
But in Beyond Normandy scenario rules, The Hill terrain has no MP cost of its own and the chart says to use only the effects of whatever other terrain might be in the hex.

So, I've been playing Hill (which is every hex on the board in Beyond Normandy) = 0 MP cost, but adding MP costs for other terrain in it, and for any scenario or campaign/specific rules. For example, the first day of the War In the Hedgerows campaign has Light Rain weather conditions, and that means +2 MP for all vehicles to enter any non-road hex.

Question: Is there also any MP cost for crossing an elevation line "uphill" in Beyond Normandy? If everything is on a slope of some sort, I wouldn't see why. But I'm wondering if I'm missing a terrain cost.

Also: In Beyond Normandy, each elevation level adds 6 hexes of LOS distance. The current weather in effect says the maximum visibility is 12 hexes. So, how do I reconcile elevation vs. weather? Is the weather limit a firm, absolute number of hexes one can see, no matter what the elevation? That's how I play it, so the elevation bonus for LOS is always "weather pemitting." Makes sense in the real world. Just want to see if this is correct.

Only apply the additional MP costs when entering a hex that has one or more elevation lines; it doesn't matter if you're going uphill or downhill. And if the weather causes max visibility to be 12 hexes, then that's a firm limit.

[broadsword]

The Campaigns & Commanders book, "The King's Officers" has several pages of terrain rules that bring PG Beyond Normandy into synch with the PG 3rd Edition ruleset.

A lot of these rules are helpful clarifications, while others (like eliminating formation morale) simplify and streamline PGBN.

The one I keep having some trouble wrapping my head around is a really basic and important rule: Hills.

Beyond Normandy is a "real terrain" map, unlike many other PG games.

The Campaigns & Commanders book states:
"Hill: See TEC. Note that there are no Clear hexes on the Beyond Normandy maps; all hexes are Hill hexes because they are above 20 meters in elevation.
Many Hill hexes have other terrain in them as well, and all terrain effects are cumulative. Note also that while Hill hexes are limiting terrain (8.2) they do not block LOS all by themselves; elevation lines block LOS per rule 8.4, and other terrain in a hill hex can block LOS per the TEC and the rules below."

I'm trying to nail down how this affects movement.

In the basic PG Terrain Effects Chart, a Hill hex is +1/+5/+3.
But in Beyond Normandy scenario rules, The Hill terrain has no MP cost of its own and the chart says to use only the effects of whatever other terrain might be in the hex.

So, I've been playing Hill (which is every hex on the board in Beyond Normandy) = 0 MP cost, but adding MP costs for other terrain in it, and for any scenario or campaign/specific rules. For example, the first day of the War In the Hedgerows campaign has Light Rain weather conditions, and that means +2 MP for all vehicles to enter any non-road hex.

Question: Is there also any MP cost for crossing an elevation line "uphill" in Beyond Normandy? If everything is on a slope of some sort, I wouldn't see why. But I'm wondering if I'm missing a terrain cost.

Also: In Beyond Normandy, each elevation level adds 6 hexes of LOS distance. The current weather in effect says the maximum visibility is 12 hexes. So, how do I reconcile elevation vs. weather? Is the weather limit a firm, absolute number of hexes one can see, no matter what the elevation? That's how I play it, so the elevation bonus for LOS is always "weather pemitting." Makes sense in the real world. Just want to see if this is correct.

Only apply the additional MP costs when entering a hex that has one or more elevation lines; it doesn't matter if you're going uphill or downhill. And if the weather causes max visibility to be 12 hexes, then that's a firm limit.

But the elevation line itself is a completely arbitrary and artificial map symbol, which simply indicates the elevation of a particular contour.

In other PG games, where there are "clear" flat hexes and distinct hill terrain, I can understand paying a cost to cross a contour line.

But in CMBN, where every hex is hill slope terrain, why would a vehicle cruise smoothly from 117 to 188 to 119 meters elevation, then suddenly have this huge movement penalty as it goes from 119 to 120? These contours are not crests, as the scenario booklet points out (and you can see from wartime photos and maps) that the Epsom area everywhere is very very gently sloping land.

[Blackcloud6]

But in CMBN, where every hex is hill slope terrain, why would a vehicle cruise smoothly from 117 to 188 to 119 meters elevation, then suddenly have this huge movement penalty as it goes from 119 to 120? These contours are not crests, as the scenario booklet points out (and you can see from wartime photos and maps) that the Epsom area everywhere is very very gently sloping land.

Well, one could surmise that at that point it is simply where the movement penalty is calculated for traversing the slight rise over a number of hexes over which it is actually spending the movement point in fractions.

[Bluebell88A]

Broadsword,
Thanks for the heads up about the modified rules for BN in The King's Officers. I downloaded a copy from APL this morning.
Tim