Games PC STEEL PANTHERS III-BRIGADE COMMAND User Manual

5 (2)

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999

CONTENTS

STEP UP TO A HIGHER LEVEL OF WARFARE! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 What Comes with This Game? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Copy Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Mouse and Other Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Pop Up Text On The Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Starting the STEEL PANTHERS III Tutorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Selections Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

TUTORIAL SCENARIO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Setting Tutorial Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Going into Battle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Tactical Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Battle Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Game Turns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Your Turn One . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 The Computer’s Turn One . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Your Turn Two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 The Computer’s Turn Two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Your Turn Three . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 The Computer’s Turn Three . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Your Turn Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 The Computer’s Turn Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Your Turn Five . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 The Computer’s Turn Five . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Your Turn Six . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

GAME PLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Game Play Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Tactical Screen Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

PREFERENCES SCREEN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

General Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Player Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Realism Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

CAMPAIGNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Campaign Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

North Africa 1941-42 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Stalingrad 1942 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Market Garden 1944 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Vietnam 1964-71 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

N.A.T.O. 1988 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Holy War 2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Purchase Unit Formations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Deployment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Manually Deploying Formations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Deployment Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Unit Command Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Campaign Scenario Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

BATTLE GENERATOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Set Troop Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Set Other Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Select a Country . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Player Control Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Map Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Map Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Set Type of Battle Mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Set Month . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Set Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Buy Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Purchase Specific Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Deploy Formations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

SCENARIO EDITOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Selecting Nationality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Set Year and Month . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Visibility Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Buy, Deploy and Auto Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Select Mission Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Map Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Build a Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Deploy Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Saving Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999

Map Editing Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Deploy Screen Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Scenario Editor Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Editor Keyboard Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

CREATING CAMPAIGNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Linking Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Choose Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Victory Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Campaign Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Select Nation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Name Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Build Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Start Date and End Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

PLAYING BY EMAIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Email Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Playing a Generated Battle by Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

TACTICAL NOTES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Reconnaissance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Infantry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Infantry vs. Infantry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Tanks and Anti-Tank units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Helicopters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Artillery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Last Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Appendix A — Nationality Command Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 Appendix B — Hidden Artillery Spotting Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Appendix C — Experience Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Appendix D — Morale Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Appendix E — Leadership Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

ABBREVIATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

GLOSSARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

HOTKEYS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

1 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

STEP UP TO A

HIGHER LEVEL OF WARFARE!

he latest game in the STEEL PANTHERS series, STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND, is a

T

tactical wargame involving modern units and weapons which reflects battlefields from World War II to 1999 and the nations involved. The scale has been increased,from individual tanks and squads of infantry commanded at the company and platoon level, to tank, artillery, and air strike sections and infantry platoons commanded up to the brigade level, creating the feel of real combined arms command in the late 20th century. Individual leaders are attached to each unit (“unit”refers to a section or platoon) and have the capability to rally their troops when the going gets tough. New command and control rules enhance the feeling of real command. From a direct overhead view, you can command the entire battlefield from

afar, or zoom in to see all of the action.

Choose from over forty nations including the participants of World War II and the forces of many modern nations. All of the weapons from both of the previous STEEL PANTHERS games are included, to allow you to experience the evolution of modern warfare from 1939 to the near future.

In all-new scenarios you can command companies of infantry, platoons of tanks, specialist team units, or squads of missile launchers, from the bazooka in the 1940’s to the yet-to-come smart weapons in 1999. In the scenario-linked campaigns, you can purchase a core force to which you add replacements, upgrades, make repairs, or add single-scenario-only support units as you use combined arms tactics to overcome each new opponent.

Featuring tanks and other weapons from a half-century of warfare STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND has been designed to satisfy both the novice and experienced wargame enthusiast with dozens of optional realism settings allowing each battle to be anything from a rollicking good shoot out, to a realistic, grinding, frontal assault. In addition to the units and modern weapons, there are also night battles and equipment for night-fighting.

There are over forty individual scenarios and six campaigns from which you can choose new nationalities,the starting years of the war, and play vs. the computer or a friend via Email; and if that’s not enough, an Editor allows you to create any type of battlefield you want from the ground up, complete with the units of your choice.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 2

Getting Started

We strongly recommend that you proceed step-by-step through the “Tutorial” section of the manual which begins on page 5 since it has been written to familiarize you with the menus and aspects of a STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND scenario. The tutorial explains many of the basic concepts of how the game works; however, if you just want to learn about how the interface works as a whole, then turn to the “Game Play” section on page 23. A glossary at the end of this book also defines some commonly used terms in the game. We also strongly recommend you view the README.TXT file for the latest information.

What Comes with This Game?

Your box should contain this User Manual, a data card, and a STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND CD. The User Manual explains how to play and has important information on menus, scenarios, unit classes, and equipment. To play, install the game according to instructions on the data card.

Copy Protection

There is no physical copy protection on your STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND CD, but in order to play, the CD must be in the CD-ROM drive.

Mouse and Other Controls

STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND features an active mouse pointer; whenever the mouse pointer is passed over a unit, a button, or an icon, a description of that item appears in a popup window, unless this feature has been disabled. This allows for quick and easy gameplay. In this book, the term “click” means move the mouse icon (an arrow) to the desired area on the screen, and press either the left or right mouse buttons. “Left-click” means move the mouse icon to the desired area and press the left mouse button.“Right-click”means move the mouse icon to the desired area and press the right mouse button. When viewing video footage, simply hit the Spacebar or ESC key on the keyboard to stop the video.Also, the Spacebar can be used to stop a game at the end of the current turn if the computer is playing itself.

Pop Up Text On The Map

As you move the cursor over the map, text information is displayed regarding the unit and hex the cursor is currently pointing to. The information includes the terrain and its elevation in the hex, any minefields, barbed wire, and dragon’s teeth in the hex that are visible to you, the victory point value of any objective in the hex, information concerning the type of friendly or enemy unit the cursor is pointing to, including (if the unit is an enemy unit) the basic chance to hit the unit if you fire at it with the currently selected unit.

32 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

STARTING THE STEEL PANTHERS III TUTORIAL

Even if you are experienced with the STEEL PANTHERS system, you should play the tutorial scenario to become acquainted with the new tactical level and features involved in this game.

The tutorial has step-by-step instructions to allow quick familiarity with the screens, unit types and options. For individual unit information, the Encyclopedia screens provide detailed information for each nationality’s units.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Selected Scenario

 

 

 

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Selector Buttons

 

 

 

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Briefing Text

Selections Screen

The Selections screen contains the game options for STEEL PANTHERS III. There are nine buttons on the right side of this screen. The rest of the screen contains a window that displays the available scenarios, campaigns, and saved games, along with their descriptions.

Start

The Start button begins the selected scenario, campaign, or saved game.

Load Save

This button allows you to load a saved game. Click on the game you want to load, and then click on the Start button.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 43

Scenario

Clicking on this button allows you to play any individual scenario, including one you craft yourself with the STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND Editor. There are more than forty scenarios that come with STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMANDER, and provisions have been made for up to 200. Left-click on the words NEXT and PREVIOUS to display all of your choices. Click on the one you want to play, and then click on the Start button or simply double-click on the one you want to play.

Campaign

STEEL PANTHERS III offers six different campaigns, which can be selected by left-clicking on this button; each campaign is made up of several scenarios each. For more information, see the “Campaigns” section, starting on page 41. You can also create your own campaigns as mentioned below.

Battle

This option allows the quick creation of new battle scenarios.You determine the nationalities for the battle, as well as the battle size, year, and more. Please note that this option is not the same as the Editor, below. For more information, see the “Battle Generator”section, starting on page 55.

Editor

The STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND Editor allows you to build custom scenarios and campaigns literally from the ground up. You create the actual battlefield, complete with streams, hills, buildings, and other kinds of terrain. For more information, see the “Scenario Editor” section on page 60.

Preferences

This button opens the Preferences screen where you can change settings that affect game play and the appearance of STEEL PANTHERS III. For more information, see the “Setting Tutorial Preferences” starting on page 5, or the “Preferences Screen” section on page 37.

Edit Campaign

STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND features the ability to create campaigns by linking scenarios.Details on this process can be found in the“Creating Campaigns”section,starting on page 74.

Exit

The Exit button quits the game and returns to the DOS prompt.

5 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

TUTORIAL SCENARIO

Before beginning the STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMANDER tutorial and actually fighting,lets review one of the features of the game that provides a powerful tool for customizing the experience of commanding a combined arms force in the modern world, the Preferences screen.

Setting Tutorial Preferences

Left-click on the Preferences button found on the Selections screen. Complete details of the Preferences screen can be found in the “Preferences Screen” section, starting on page 37, but for now lets concentrate on just a few. The default for two of these settings Fast Artillery and Control is OFF.

Fast Artillery On / Off Button

The Fast Artillery setting controls how the delivery of indirect fire is displayed — when this is toggled ON, the indirect fire is displayed as one set of explosions per firing unit, rather than a series of shots, arriving one at a time.

Control On / Off Button

The Control option is one of the most important changes to STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND.When the Control option is ON, each leader attached to a formation generates a certain number of “orders” which are required for units to function. In addition, the unit’s assigned stance, either Advance or Defend regulates the unit’s behavior in situations where the unit is forced to respond during the opposing player’s turn. For complete information, see the “Command Control and Orders” section, starting on page 23. The rest of the tutorial assumes that the Control option is ON, and results may differ if it is left off.

Message Delay

You can control how long messages are displayed during each turn using this option. The upand down-arrows adjust the message delay in increments of 10, or left-click in the field to set a specific amount of delay.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 6

Exit

When these options are set, left-click on the Exit button to return the Selections screen and begin the tutorial.

Going into Battle

On the Selections screen, click on the Scenario button, and a list of available scenarios appears in the window to the left. Click on Next until you find the Tutorial. Click on Tutorial, and then click on the Start button to continue.

The next screen is the Set Player Control screen, which allows you to determine which side you are going to play. The defaults are set for a human controlled German side and a computer controlled U.S. side. These settings can be changed by clicking on the switches, but for this tutorial, keep the default settings and click on Continue. The Germany Player screen appears. On this

screen, you can Start Turn, Save Game, Quit Orders, set AI Level, and Exit Game. Leave the AI

Level at its default of 0 and click on Start Turn to continue with the tutorial. If you change your mind and do not want to play the tutorial, click on Exit Game.

In this tutorial scenario, you lead German forces and your orders are to halt the American advance, and counterattack where possible. Capture as many of the Victory Objective flags as you can, but do not allow the Americans to capture the Victory Objectives where your headquarters unit starts the tutorial.

Tactical Screen

Your units are deployed on the west side of the map in four groups. The group with your headquarters unit occupies an urban area near the northwest corner of the map. A Panzer IV formation is near the west edge of the map, and slightly to the southwest, a group of anti tank weapons occupies a village. To the east of this group is a formation of infantry entrenched in another village.

Games PC STEEL PANTHERS III-BRIGADE COMMAND User Manual

7

STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Battle Map

The Tactical screen is where most of the game is played. The Battle Map, the actual playing area, is composed of individual hexes; each hex equals about two hundred yards.

There are four main display sections of the Tactical screen: the Battle Map which displays the battlefield terrain and your units; the Unit Information bar; a small Overall Map; and a set of twenty-three Tactical Control buttons which permit orders, other than straightforward fire and movement, to be given to your units. These buttons also make options available such as an extensive equipment encyclopedia, the Preferences screen, and the Save Game screen.

To see different portions of the Battle Map, move the mouse to the upper border to scroll the map up, move the mouse to the right border to scroll the map to the right, and so on.

Unit Information Bar

During gameplay, the Unit Information bar along the bottom of the screen displays the current active unit’s information as follows:

The current unit’s formation designation such as A0, A1, and so on.

The unit’s name.

STANCE: shows unit’s assigned stance,either Advance to or Defend,followed by a hex location.

The movement status such as Entrenched, Pinned, or Ready. Once the unit has moved, the display changes to read Ready followed by the unit’s speed in miles per hour (MPH).

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 8

SHOTS: shows the number of times this unit may shoot during this turn.If there is more than one number, the unit has more than one type of weapon available. The number of shots for each weapon type is listed in the order in which the weapons are listed on the Unit Command screen.You can view the Unit Command screen by right-clicking on a selected unit.For example, a tank always has a main gun and usually has one or more additional machine guns.An asterisk means that weapon has been turned off in the Unit Command screen.

MOVES: shows the unit’s number of movement points remaining. If “Moves” is not displayed then it means the unit may not move that turn.

ORDERS: shows the source of and number of available orders.

SUPPRESSION: shows the unit’s current suppression level.

ENEMY SEEN: indicates the number of visible enemy units.

TARGET: identifies the unit’s current target.

RANGE: shows the unit’s attack range in hexes. If the range is 5, then this unit may start shooting at enemy targets when they move within 5 hexes (1000 yards away).

Altitude if unit is a helicopter.

Unit ID and Type

Status

Weapons and Ammo

Statistics

Unit Leader Statistics

Armor Placement

Viewing a Unit

Right-click directly on tank platoon B3 to switch to the Unit Command screen containing details about it. The unit’s name, HQ Link (which indicates whether it is in or out of contact with its leader), weapon type(s), amount of ammunition, experience, morale, and leader information

9 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

is displayed.A unit’s stance and fire range can also be changed here. The amount of ammunition remaining is displayed for all types of ammunition carried by the unit. The armor diagram indicates a unit’s front, side, and rear armor ratings for both the turret and hull separately where applicable. Red armor numbers indicate that the top of the unit is not covered with armor (open topped), and is more susceptible to enemy attacks. For more information about the unit statistics and controls available on this screen, see the “Unit Command Screen” section, starting on page 50 for more information.

Strategic Map

The Strategic Map (in the lower-right corner of the screen) provides a view of the entire battlefield. To quickly move the Battle Map display to an area, left-click over what you wish to view on the Strategic Map.

Hex Description Text

Below the mouse pointer appears the pop-up text box that describes the hex which the mouse pointer is currently over. If the hex is occupied by a unit, the pop-up text box describes the unit’s identification, combat status, and the height and terrain type of the hex. If the hex is empty, then the hex coordinates, elevation, and type of terrain appear. Weapon fire information is displayed here during combat.

Hot Keys and Menu Buttons

For easy play in STEEL PANTHERS III, the Tactical Control buttons have their keyboard equivalents marked in their lower-left corners. For example, the Zoom In and Zoom Out buttons have a “+” and a “-”, respectively.

Zoom In and Zoom Out

To view the entire Battle Map at different magnifications, left-click on the Zoom In or Zoom Out buttons.

Game Turns

Each scenario in STEEL PANTHERS III is made up of a number of turns, and each turn equals six to thirty minutes of real time. Basically you move and fire all your units, and then your opponent does the same. This tutorial scenario has twelve turns. In each turn you and the enemy are given a chance to move or load units, attack enemy units, rally troops, and call for indirect fire.

For complete descriptions of the Tactical Control buttons, see the “Tactical Screen Controls” section, starting on page 32. Now for some important game concepts.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 10

Your Turn One

When the scenario begins, the screen is centered on a unit outlined by a red hex. This is unit A0, your Headquarters unit; orders and leadership stem from here, so protect it well.

Reviewing the Troops

A list of your entire force can be viewed by clicking on the Go to Unit Menu button. All your forces and their current statistics appear on this screen. Each unit identification, A0, B2, and so on, is actually a button which returns to the Battle Map and selects that unit unless it is a passenger, in which case the carrier becomes active. For information on the

other features of the Unit Menu screen, see the “Unit Menu Button”section on page 34. Notice that the Panther units’ Ready status appears in yellow. This indicates that they are not on the map yet and enter later as reinforcements.

Back on the Battle Map,to cycle forward unit by unit through your roster,you can press the N key on the keyboard or left-click on the Go to Next Unit button. Pressing the P key on the keyboard or left-clicking on the Go to Previous Unit button cycles through the roster in reverse order.

To cycle forward through all of the formations in your force, left-click on the Find Next Formation HQ button, or press the G key.

Setting Objectives

You have one Pz-IV tank formation near the west edge of the map. Locate and click on unit B0. Notice that clicking on a unit causes the number on it to “color cycle,” the strobing effect. Units belonging to the same formation do this together. This helps you locate all the elements of one formation.

Move the cursor to the bottom edge of the map to scroll downward. There is an Objective Flag marker in hex (9,22). This is the tank formation’s current objective. Since much of the combat is going to take place near the center of the map, you are going to give these tanks an objective closer to the action.

Make sure B0 is selected using the Next or Previous buttons. Click on the Set Object button (red flag) and the Objective screen appears. Click on hex (47,19), and an objective marker appears in that hex. Press Esc to leave the screen. All of formation B in “contact” with B0 should have the orders,“Advance to (47,19).”

11 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

Moving Your Units

To move, a unit’s stance must be set on Advance. An activated unit is basically in one of two display modes, either “view move radius”or “view LOS.”First, left-click on a unit to activate it. A red hexagon-shaped border surrounds the currently-active unit.When a unit is first selected, lighter-shaded hexes appear around it to show where it can move to given its movement points. This is the “move radius.” The darker-shaded hexes are areas where the unit cannot move to. To move the active unit, simply left-click on a light-shaded hex and the unit moves toward that hex.

Moving Several Units at Once

The All Formation Mode button allows you to select whole formations at a time. Just left-click where you wish one unit to go and the others follow it. Bear in mind, however, that when units move as a whole formation, they seldom stay in a straight line.“ALL” is displayed next to the formation ID (A0, B0, and so on) which lets you know that you are currently moving entire formations with one left-click. Left-click on All Formation Mode to switch back to single unit move mode.

Note: All Formation Mode is automatically reset to the “Off”setting at the beginning of every turn. Formation moves cannot be taken back with the Undo button.

Movement Status

A unit’s current movement status affects its ability to hit targets and to be hit by enemies. There are many types of movement status.

Ready — Ready for action.Your units have a much higher chance of hitting targets and of spotting enemy units if they haven’t moved.

Entrenched — In a prepared position.Visually this looks like circles of piled-up sandbags. Units are difficult to hit when entrenched, or in protective cover such as under trees or inside buildings.

Dug-In — The unit has improved its position and is harder to hit. The unit appears to surrounded by a trench, however, the defensive value of being dug-in is not as high as being entrenched.

Moving — Moving units do not spot enemy units as well as positioned units and have a reduced chance to hit units they shoot at.

Pinned — Unit may not move. Shoots and spots enemy units less effectively. Being pinned is caused by taking a lot of suppression (basically being shot at). Suppression is discussed in more detail on page 17.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 12

Routed — Unit is running away from the battle. Their morale has broken and they have panicked and don’t want to fight anymore. Routed units are out of control, they move on their own, cannot shoot, and are basically useless unless or until they can be rallied by a leader.

Retreating — Unit is falling back from an untenable position. They move on their own but halt to rally rather than leaving the map.

Buttoned — Hatches are closed, spotting ability is reduced, but the unit can still move and fire. HE artillery fire can cause tanks to become buttoned, as can small-arms fire.

Keep in mind that if a unit such as a tank is moving at its fastest rate it is going to be difficult for the enemy to hit, but it also limits the tank’s accuracy if it tries to shoot while moving.

A unit may have additional symbols displayed after its status:

* — An asterisk appearing after the unit’s status indicates that the unit has been spotted by at least one enemy unit.

# — A “pound-sign” symbol appearing after the unit’s status indicates that the unit has been fired upon in either the current turn or the previous turn.

Movement Cost

Each terrain has a different movement point cost to cross. A table listing the five types of ground units and the movement costs to cross different types of terrain is on page 26.

Combat Friction Movement Limitations

Soldiers have a tendency to slow down and become more cautious when they are being shot at or when they know enemy troops are in the vicinity. To reflect this, the movement points a unit is given in a turn is not always equal to the speed of the unit. The following chart outlines how many movement points a unit is given as a percentage of its Speed based on the situation it is in relative to enemy units (a unit may also lose movement points during the turn as its situation changes).

 

VEHICLE UNIT

INFANTRY UNIT

Unit has been fired upon within the past two turns:

67% of Speed

50% of Speed

Unit sees enemy units but has not been fired upon:

100% of Speed

67% of Speed

Unit sees no enemy units and has not been fired upon

100% of Speed

100% of Speed

LOS and Unit Facing

Facing is important since obviously you can’t shoot what you can’t see and units such as tanks generally have their best armor at the front of the vehicle and less armor in the rear. You should turn your units to face the enemy to receive the benefits of the better frontal armor and

13 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

so you can see the enemy. To change a unit’s facing simply right-click several hexes away from the unit in the direction you want it to face. Notice that the cone of view changes and if you changed the facing far enough, the unit actually turns in place. Try right-clicking one hex at a time in a clockwise direction to slowly spin the unit 360° to see the unit’s LOS change. Changing facing costs no movement points. This is the “view LOS mode.” Simply left-click on the unit again to display the unit’s move radius.

Units are able to fire directly only when enemy units have been spotted and are in the unit’s LOS. Keep in mind that some units are difficult to spot, depending on their type and the terrain they are in. In general, infantry can spot enemy units much better than vehicles. Smoke is often used to obscure an enemy’s LOS, masking either attacking or retreating enemy units. Note: It is much easier to destroy vehicles when shooting them in the rear or in the side.

Stacking

You may purposely stack multiple units in the same hex including enemy occupied hexes by holding down the Shift key and left-clicking on the hex containing another unit while you are issuing movement orders. This costs one extra movement point per unit or wreck in the hex.

Victory Objectives

The winner of a scenario is the side with at least a 1.25 : 1 advantage in accumulated points when the scenario ends. Points are accumulated for all the scenarios you complete during a campaign. Points are accumulated in two ways, by comparing the number of enemy units you destroy vs. how many of your units are destroyed, and most importantly by capturing geographical objectives (being the last side to have moved a unit into the hex). Nationality flags mark each Victory Objective flag and which side currently controls it. On the small Strategic Map in the lower-right corner of the screen, the objective flags appear as green dots.When you capture Victory Objective flags, the enemy flags turn into the flag of your units’ nationality. A beige flag with a large white “V” on it represents a neutral Victory Objective flag which neither side has captured yet, or can no longer capture because it has been destroyed in the case of Fuel and Ammo Dumps.

Now you can move the Panzer IV formation toward its new objective. Select B0, and a range of hexes is highlighted. These highlighted hexes indicate where the selected unit can move without using any orders. If orders are available, a unit can move within its movement limit to any hex. In this case, since all the tanks are going to the same place, you can move them as a formation. Click on the All Formation button, or press the A key. Click on a highlighted hex somewhere near (12,7),and all the tanks move toward there. Turn the All-Formation Mode off so you don’t accidentally move all elements of the next formation. Moves made while the AllFormation Mode is on cannot be canceled with the Undo button.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 14

Indirect Fire Basics

All units that attack by indirect fire must have their fire called in using the Indirect Fire menu.

Artillery Spotting

Leaders for each unit have an Artillery rating that shows how good that leader is at calling in Indirect Fire missions. To have a successful Indirect Fire, left-click on a unit whose leader has a good Artillery rating,and can see the hex you want to target.Remember that in order to check what a unit can see, you must left-click to select the unit, then right-click on a hex that is in the direction you want the unit to view. Visible hexes are the lighted ones, non-visible hexes are darker.You can check a leader’s Artillery rating by right-clicking on a selected unit, so that the Unit Command appears. The leader’s statistics are listed on the right side of the screen.

Priority Target

Delay

Targeted Hex

Bombard with Cluster

Shift Mission

Cancel Mission

Fire Smoke

Bombard with H.E.

Show Data

Indirect Fire Missions

When you left-click on the Indirect Fire Menu button,or press the B key,the Indirect Fire menu appears. Every unit that can be assigned to perform an Indirect Fire mission is listed here alpha-numerically. Left-clicking on the unit name shifts the view on the Map screen to the currently targeted hex of that unit. If the unit has no target selected, the view does not change.

Selecting a Target

Selecting a hex to be bombarded is a simple two-step process. Left-click on the hex to be attacked; the standard red hex outline appears. Now, left-click on the button for the type of ordnance you wish to use: HE, smoke, or cluster bombs. The hex changes to show the “Targeted” icon. The number at the right end of

the line of buttons indicates how many turns before the fire arrives.

15 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

Following each unit’s listing are six buttons which control that unit.

View Unit: Left-clicking this button displays the Unit Command screen for the unit.

High Explosive: This button orders a barrage of High Explosive rounds on the target hex.

Smoke: This button orders Smoke rounds to be fired at the target hex.

Cancel: Left-clicking this button cancels the unit’s current fire mission.

Shift: This button allows a fire mission that has not yet been delivered, or that is arriving on multiple turns to be shifted. Left-clicking this button displays the target hex outlined in red, and a larger red circle. Left-clicking in any hex wholly within the circle causes the unit to

change targeting to that hex. To cancel, click on the Shift button again.

Cluster Munitions:Also known as dual-purpose improved cluster munitions (DPICM), cluster bombs can be chosen to be deployed by artillery shell. They blanket the target area with hundreds of ‘bomblets’ which are capable of penetrating the top armor of tanks.

Cluster munitions are also effective against infantry, whether Dug-in or not.

Time on Target: The column following the cluster munitions button indicates the delay before the barrage or aircraft arrives. The delay length is the number of turns it takes the artillery to get a fix on the target, fire the shells, and for the shells to strike. For example, a

0 means the unit can fire at the end of the current turn, and a 1 means the unit cannot fire until the end of the next turn and so on.

A barrage arrives in the vicinity of the target at the end of your turn, from 0 to several turns later, depending on the type of Indirect Fire requested and quality of the crew in question.

Frequently, the arrival time is expressed as a number plus some decimal fraction, for example, 1.3. This means that the Indirect Fire is going to arrive over two turns.

Finding Your Spotter

Pressing the F key or left-clicking on the Current/Spotter Unit button jumps the view to the unit acting as a spotter.You can also zoom the view with the Zoom buttons, and return to the Tactical screen with the Exit button.

Setting an Indirect Fire Mission

You have two units, K0 and K1, with 120mm mortars that are capable of indirect fire. Pick the unit that is spotting for indirect fire. The A0 unit is often a good choice, as it contains officers skilled in spotting and designating artillery fire. If, however, A0 cannot see the target hex, the fire is considered unspotted, and the casualties are halved. In this case, use unit F0. Click on the Indirect Fire button or press the B key.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 16

Left-click on hex (43,19) and then click on the Bombard button for unit K0. Now do the same for K1. For K0, click on the Shift fire mission button (4 way arrow) and left-click on hex (45,19).A bombardment marker appears there. Click K0’s Shift fire mission button again and move the mission to hex (47,19). Repeat the process for K1’s fire mission.

To the right of the row of buttons is a number. Hopefully this is 0.2. This shows the delay until the indirect fire arrives. 0.0 means immediately after your turn, 0.1 through 0.3 are delayed, but fall during the enemy turn, 0.4 and 0.5 fall after the next enemy turn, 1.0 or greater is the number of full turns before the delivery of this indirect fire. When you end your turn, the enemy units begin to move, and some should get caught in this bombardment.

Ordering Direct Fire

Moving the mouse pointer over any unit that can be fired at causes it to change to a target reticle. Left-click on a unit you want to have your Panther or Panzer fire at, as long as the pointer changes to a reticle. Any resulting casualties are displayed by the smart text next to the mouse pointer. Moving the pointer over the unit afterwards displays the unit’s status in smart text.

You can fire a single volley at the current target again by left-clicking on it, left-clicking on the Fire Weapons button, or pressing the F key. Right-clicking on a target causes the active unit to fire until it runs out of shots, the target moves, or it is destroyed. The active unit can fire at the current target until the target is destroyed, the firing unit is destroyed by enemy OP fire, the firing unit runs out of shots for this turn, or the target unit is obscured by something.

Save the Game, and End Your Turn

After setting a new objective for the Panzers and moving them toward it, you do not need to move any other units. They are entrenched and waiting for the assault.

Saving Your Game

During play there are several occasions to save a game. To save a game currently being played, left-click on the Go to Save Game Menu button, or press the S key, from the Tactical screen. You can save up to 200 games, depending upon your available hard drive space. To save a game, left-click on the slot you wish to save to, then type a title at the top of the screen or accept the default title. Press the Enter key when you are finished.

After you have moved all your units, left-click on Quit the Orders Phase button, or press the Q key. It is then the U.S. turn, and the computer moves its units, displays combat results, and your next turn begins.

The Computer’s Turn One

The computer now moves the U.S. side. They approach from the east and assault your infantry forces near the center of the map with M8 Greyhounds.

17 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

Your Turn Two

At the end of the computer’s turn one, there was a pop up screen announcing that two Panther units have arrived on the map. They arrive in hex (15,0). They have orders to support your forward positions, so move them along the road by selecting one unit, then clicking on hex (24,7) while holding the shift key down. The shift key allows you to move into a hex already containing other units.

Continue to advance the Panzer IV’s toward the center of the map. They should be close behind the Panthers.

Find and click on unit D0, then right-click on it. This screen shows details about the unit. In the lower left hand area of text, find the line that reads Set Range, and click on it. You are asked to enter the maximum range for the unit to fire at. Type 2, and then press the Enter key. This anti-tank gun will now wait until a visible opponent comes within two hexes - 400 yards - before firing. It’s an ambush.

Set Formation Stance

 

Set Formation Range

‘H’ Indicates HQ Units

 

Shows Number of Men

 

 

 

 

 

 

Select this Unit and

Display Info w/left-click

Change/Displays Max

Firing Range

Change/Displays Stance

Detail: upper right portion of screen

To do the same for units C0 and C1 nearby, use this method: There are two units in formation C. Clicking on the Headquarters button, or pressing the H key, brings up the Headquarters menu. Click on the line of text that says‘C>Maj.Schwartz’and note the information on the left.The fourth button lets you set the maximum firing range for whole formation.Click this and enter 2,and your group of anti-tank weapons is now set to open fire at a range of two hexes. Exit this screen.

Suppression

Whenever a shot is fired at a ground unit, the men in that unit automatically stop what they are doing, seek cover, and return fire if possible. Suppression points measure the unit’s chance to recover and are based on the unit’s morale.When men are killed, leaders lost,adjacent units

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 18

rout, or a unit is near a hex which is being bombarded by artillery, the unit suffers the most suppression. Even being in the immediate vicinity of burning tanks, being in a burning hex (forest or building),and being near other friendly units being attacked can cause suppression. Units which are suppressed may suffer the loss of available fire and movement.

Reducing suppression is accomplished by using the Rally control, which is described in the “Rally” section, starting on the following page.

Morale

No one likes to get shot at, so when a unit is suppressed by enemy fire, the unit’s morale is checked: the higher the unit’s morale, the lower the suppression will be. If a unit has low morale, however, it may become pinned, routed, retreat, or even surrender. To increase a unit’s morale, the men look to their formation or unit leaders.

Leaders

Leaders provide command and control for your units. Each leader has several important ratings. A leaders rank gives a guide to the number of orders that leader can generate and hold. The leader’s name and rank is listed with the following ability scores: Rally, Infantry,Artillery, Armor; and the leader’s score in kills. The higher the number, the more skillful or influential the leader is.

The Rally rating determines how well the leader can rally units, Infantry and Armor ratings reflect the leader’s ability to affect the unit’s accuracy when directing the fire of Infantry and Armored units respectively. Artillery is how accurate the leader is in calling in indirect fire. This last ability rating is particularly important when selecting a unit to act as a forward observer for any form of indirect fire.

It is important to note that the brigade commander (his rank is normally that of Colonel), is always attached to the “A” unit. He is the overall field commander for your troops. Each individual unit (platoon or company) has a leader attached to it. Additionally, a formation (platoon or company) normally has a leader who is physically attached to the“0”unit (B0, C0, and so on), and a company is placed under a leader. Units A0, B0, and so on, are often referred to as Command units. If a Command unit is destroyed, the next senior leader takes command of the formation and that unit is designated with an H on the Headquarters Menu screen.

Rally

Rallying is how suppression is lowered and the morale of units is raised. Select the unit by leftclicking on it, then left-click on the Rally button to have the unit’s leader attempt to rally the unit. A battalion/brigade commander that is adjacent to (which counts as in contact with) a unit can also attempt to rally them. When a leader successfully rallies his troops the unit gets a boost in its morale and its suppression is lowered. Once successful, a leader may attempt to

19 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

rally the unit several more times, until he fails. If he fails, then the next highest-ranking leader may attempt to rally. You may never attempt to rally if the suppression is less than 2. Rightclicking attempts to rally a unit until it reaches 2 or less, or fails to rally.

There are four types of ranked leaders:

The Overall (brigade) Commander — Can rally any unit as long as he is in physical contact with or adjacent to the unit.

The Battalion Commander — Can rally any unit as long as he is in physical contact with or adjacent to the unit.

The Formation Leader — Can rally a unit in his formation as long as he is in physical contact with or adjacent to the unit. Formation leaders are in the‘0’ unit of the formation,A0, B0, and so on.

The Unit Leader — Can attempt to rally the men in his single unit.

If the attempt to rally a unit fails, a leader must wait until the next turn to try again. With renewed fighting spirit, retreating or routed units can press on to achieve Victory Objectives.

If units have radios then they may be in “radio contact”if they are not in physical contact with or adjacent to their leader in order for that leader to assist in rallying the troops.

Note: Units automatically attempt to rally at the end of each turn.You may still want to Rally units during your turn in order to have them see, move, and shoot more effectively if they are suffering from suppression. When manually rallying your troops, don’t forget to keep leftclicking on the Rally button until you get the message stating that Unit X is unable to be rallied and the Rally button turns gray.

Your front line infantry units have probably taken a bit of beating. One or more of your units have probably sustained some damage and suppression. It is a good time to reduce this suppression by rallying them. Click on one of the units that has been attacked. If the Rally button is not grayed out, the unit can be rallied. Click on the Rally button or press the R key. If the rally is successful, a message pops up saying that your officer has reduced suppression. Each successful rally cuts suppression in half. Keep rallying until the attempt fails, which is indicated by a message, or until suppression drops below 2.

When all units are rallied as far possible, attack where you can. Select the unit you wish to have attack, then move the cursor over an enemy unit. The cursor becomes a “cross hair”type reticle, indicating that an attack is possible.After the attack and any enemy response, you may want to rally units again, if they can do so.

Though it may not seem to do any good to attack targets with weapons that cannot penetrate their armor, any hit inflicts suppression on the target. Putting these units under fire slows them down and reduces their ability to spot and hit enemies.

End your turn.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 20

Infantry Surrender And Dispersal

A unit’s surrender is determined by its losses and morale rating.You must be adjacent to force an enemy unit to surrender.

Infantry units that are reduced to below 2/3 of their starting manpower surrender if they are forced to retreat and cannot retreat to a hex that is not adjacent to an enemy unit. Infantry units that are reduced to below 1/3 of their starting manpower and are forced to retreat will disperse and be removed from the game.

The Computer’s Turn Two

The U.S. M8 Greyhounds continue to advance and attack your infantry. An M5 Stuart platoon may also join in the attack.Your position may start to fall apart during these attacks.

Your Turn Three

The general theme of the enemy attack should now be clear. They are driving west down the road with flanking elements to the north and south.

Rally your infantry, and attack where possible; they can still help delay the U.S. advance.

Bring the Panthers up to the defensive position of the Marders and anti tank gun. The most important thing is to get the Panthers, which have the most potent guns in the scenario, out of the way of the first wave of the attack. Bring up the Panzer IV’s so they can stem the first armored charge. Keep back unit B0, the headquarters of the tank company, and use it later to attack the rear of the enemy after they are committed.Your headquarters unit loses its capacity to generate orders if it becomes heavily suppressed, so keep it out of harm’s way.

End your turn.

The Computer’s Turn Three

The U.S. forces continue to advance. Any of your remaining infantry units will be assaulted by the wave of Jumbos and M3 Halftracks. This is a second wave of slower, more dangerous vehicles in the American thrust toward the westernmost part of the German position.

21 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

Your Turn Four

The U.S. forces have scattered and overrun your infantry position, and are going to advance toward your anti tank position. In preparation for the U.S. assault, your Panzers and Panthers should be deployed on the ridges around the village. Hex (30,21) provides an excellent location for “opportunity fire” for your Panthers where they can fire upon vehicles coming up the road, and hex (27,19) gives you a good position for “overwatch.”After you rally any remaining infantry and put your tanks in position, end your turn.

The Computer’s Turn Four

U.S. tanks and halftracks continue to advance and hunt down your infantry, but they will not reach your position this turn.

Your Turn Five

You may want to bring a couple of tanks to the edge of a ridge in order to fire on advancing vehicles that are ahead of the

main force. Remember to pull them back after firing or they could fall prey to enemy tanks.

The Computer’s Turn Five

Opportunity Fire

When a player is moving a unit during his turn, it may be fired on by an enemy unit if the enemy unit is in range and has LOS to the moving unit. This is called Opportunity Fire (OP Fire). A unit’s ability to use OP Fire depends on whether or not it has used up all of its shots in its own attack turn or not and at what range the unit is set to react at.

Your Turn Six

Watch your flanks; the U.S. forces also have infantry and an anti tank gun that can cause you trouble.Attack the flanks of the enemy advance, and use the terrain to your advantage, so you can “overwatch”and gain “opportunity fire.”Attack Stuarts and other light armor at a range of two hexes. Don’t get any closer; their light guns can damage you up close. Since you have entrenched units, attack cautiously and be patient. Wait for the enemy to come to you.

Soon, the Jumbos will arrive. These are heavily armored tanks with a good, but not great, main gun. These tough American tanks are your chief concern. Do not close with them unnecessarily, and move so you shoot at them in their rear or sides. Even then they will be a challenge to

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 22

kill. Try to bring them into contact with the dug-in troops and move around them. Some tanks will undoubtedly get entangled with other non-tank units. Run them off now, hunt them later.

Eventually, other U.S. forces will attack you in the city. Close assault from the protection of the urban hexes. Rally your lads constantly and hang on. You should win the fight at the ambush point, and those units can help later. You are on your own from here on. Later you may enjoy playing the American side. Happy hunting!

After the Battle

Immediately after the last turn, the scenario Battle Report is displayed. A description of the types of units on both sides is displayed, followed by Player 1’s losses and Player 2’s losses. Below that is a score based on Victory Objectives captured and enemy units destroyed. Losses are displayed in two columns,“Battle” and “Total.” In scenarios and battles you create

with the Battle Generator, both columns contain the same information. Later on when you are playing campaign games, the “Total” columns contain the total losses each side suffers during the course of the campaign.

Now you can review the units left on the battlefield for each side by left-clicking the Player 1 or the Player 2 button. To end the game and return to the Selection screen, left-click on the

Continue button.

Score

Your score is the number of Battle Points won for destroying enemy units and capturing Victory Objectives.A Decisive victory occurs when your score is 8 times that of your opponent, a Minor victory merely requires twice the points.A point total between 2 to 1 and 1 to 2 is considered a draw although in many individual scenarios, you can consider a point total of 1.25 times your opponent a Marginal victory. Units that retreat off-map are not counted as losses.

Campaign Summary

When playing a campaign game,the next screen that appears is the overall summary of the campaign,the total number of marginal and decisive victories,and the Campaign Score are displayed.

Now that you have completed your first STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND scenario, feel free to play another scenario or start a campaign, design a quick battle with the Battle Generator, or go all out and create your own scenarios with the Game Editor.

23 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

GAME PLAY

The Tutorial described the fundamentals of playing a STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND scenario. The following section describes the remainder of the game controls found on the Tactical screen and other game play areas which can be reached from there.

Game Play Notes

The following items are not really interface functions, but are important to your enjoyment of

STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND.

Command Control and Orders

Certain actions performed by units in the game require the use of “orders.” Each formation leader has orders which a unit in its formation may use if the unit is in contact with its leader. A unit may also use the orders from a higher HQ if it has contact with the higher HQ either directly or through indirect contact through its formation HQ.

Example: Assume there is a battalion formation with B0 as the Command unit and units C0, C1, C2 and C3 as a company formation belonging to B0’s battalion. Unit C1 could use the orders of unit C0 if it is in contact with C0. If it is in contact with B0, or if it has contact with C0 and C0 has contact with B0, it could use the orders of B0. If it is in contact with A0, or if it is in contact with C0 which is in contact with A0 either directly or indirectly through B0, then it may use the orders of A0.

When a unit is active, it determines which HQ it thinks it should obtain its orders from at that moment, and that HQ’s letter designation and the number of orders the HQ has available is displayed in parenthesis at the bottom of the screen. If a unit has multiple HQ’s it can draw orders from, the selected HQ can change during the turn as orders are expended.

At the beginning of each turn each leader has a chance to gain new orders. Some unused orders may also be carried over from the previous turn.

Note: Helicopters and reconnaissance units do not use orders for movement, however, they are affected normally by their stance setting, when the Control option is “On.”

Gaining Orders

At the start of each turn leaders may receive new orders. The number of new orders a leader receives ranges from 1 to 10. Every leader receives a minimum of one new order per turn. The number of orders allotted is based on the leader’s command rating and the nationality’s command rating based on the formula:

(Command Rating + (A Random Number From 0 To 9) -40 + Nationality Command Rating) /10

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 24

The Nationality Command Ratings for the nations in STEEL PANTHERS III: BRIGADE COMMAND can be found in “Appendix A — Nationality Command Ratings” on page 80.

Leaders may also retain unused orders from the previous turn and add them to the newly received orders. The maximum number of unused orders a leader may retain is determined by the leaders rank:

Private . . . . . . . . . . . 0 Sergeant . . . . . . . . . 1 1st Lt. . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Major . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Col. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Corporal . . . . . . . . . 0

2nd Lt. . . . . . . . . . . 1

Captain . . . . . . . . . . 2

Lt. Col. . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Gen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

The total number of orders a leader may have available at the start of a turn is equal to his retained orders plus his newly received orders.

Adverse Morale States

After the number of available orders has been calculated this number may be reduced if the leader’s unit is in an adverse morale state:

Buttoned . . . . . . . . . . . . . orders halved

Pinned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . orders halved

Retreating . . . . . . . . . . . . orders reduced to zero

Routed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . orders reduced to zero

Unit Stance

Each unit in the game may be assigned either an Advance or Defend stance. Units assigned an Advance stance that are not suffering from one of the adverse morale states listed previously, may be moved or fired by the owning player. Units assigned a Defend stance may fire but may not be moved,and attempt to dig in if they are either infantry,infantry weapons teams,or vehicles (i.e. gun units cannot dig in) and they do not fire during the turn. If a unit with a Defend stance is forced to retreat, it changes its stance to Advance. The number of turns it takes to dig in is based on the experience of the unit and its suppression level and can be sped up by adjacent engineer units. It usually takes several turns to reach a dug-in state.

Formation Movement Objectives

Formations may be assigned movement objectives. Whenever a new objective is selected for a formation, units then in contact (physically or by radio) with the formation HQ are given the new objective. Units not then in contact are not given the new objective but will receive the new objective whenever they begin a turn in contact with their HQ. Objectives can only be given for the entire formation, but units within a formation may have different objectives depending on whether they are in contact with their HQ as new objectives are selected.

25 STEEL PANTHERS III: Brigade Command 1939-1999

Units with an Advance stance may move toward their formation’s movement objective without their leader expending any orders. Only hexes the unit can reach without expending orders are highlighted, although the unit may be able to move to other non-highlighted hexes by expending orders as long as the player is not in all-formation mode. A unit that attempts to move in a direction that is not toward its formation objective requires a leader in the chain of command to spend one or more orders. If a unit does not have access to any orders, it can only move to highlighted hexes. Units with a Defend stance may be given movement objectives, but may not move until they have changed their stance to Advance.

Unit Actions That Require A Leader To Spend Orders

Certain unit actions require a leader in the chain of command,that is in physical or radio contact with the unit, to expend one or more orders. If none of the leaders in the chain have the required orders then those actions may not be performed. Listed below are the orders costs for each type of action:

 

PHYSICAL CONTACT

RADIO CONTACT

 

WITH HQ

WITH HQ

single unit movement - not toward objective

1

2

request an indirect fire bombardment (per artillery unit)

1

1

change formation movement objective

3

3

change mission - single unit

1

2

change mission - all units in formation

3

3

Movement

When using“All Formation”move mode,be careful if transport vehicles such as barges belong to the same formation. This movement mode causes everything to move, including the barges, after you have unloaded your unit. Also, since this movement mode is a little tricky to use, it is toggled “Off” at the beginning of each turn. You must select it each turn if you wish to use it.“All Formation” move is great for moving formations down a road, but is dangerous to use in combat as the Undo button doesn’t work when in this mode.

Infantry units gain a defensive bonus if they only move one hex during the game turn. However, this is most often not practical as there are time limits for each scenario.

Routed or retreating units are not able to load onto vehicles, you must rally them first. Pinned units can load and assume the suppression level of the carrying vehicles.

If a unit cannot move, either you have already moved the unit that turn, it is a routing or retreating unit (the computer is moving it), the unit’s stance is set to Defend, or the move requires orders you do not have; check the unit status display.Also, if your units are retreating or routing, you are NOT able to move them until you rally them and their status changes to “positioned” or “buttoned.” They attempt to retreat from the enemy under computer control at the end of your turn.

STEEL PANTHERS III : Brigade Command 1939-1999 26

Terrain Costs Chart

 

FOOT

WHEEL

ALL-TERRAIN WHEEL

TRACKED

BARGE

Clear

2

3

2

2

Imp

Plowed Field

2

4

2

2

Imp

Slope

1

6

4

2

Imp

Stream

6

12

9

6

Imp

Urban

2

2

2

2

Imp

Village

2

2

2

2

Imp

Primary Road/Bridge

1

1

1

1

1*

Secondary Road/Bridge

2

2

1

1

1*

Railroad/Bridge

2

2

2

2

1*

Swamp

3

12

9

6

1*

Water

Imp

Imp

Imp

Imp

1

Shallow Water

6

Imp

Imp

Imp

1

Deep Water

Imp

Imp

Imp

Imp

1

Rough

3

15

12

9

Imp

Rice Paddies

3

8

6

4

Imp

Trees**

+1

+6

+4

+2

Imp

Barbed Wire***

+3

+2

+2

+1

Imp

Dragon’s Teeth***

+0

Imp

Imp

Imp

Imp

*on bridge hex only

 

 

** add to base cost of hex except when road or railroad is present

*** add to base cost of hex / negates roads in hex

 

Imp = Impassable

 

 

Notes:

Units that have movement points can always move a minimum of one hex per turn.

Movement during winter battles is always +1 per hex for all units.

Hexes containing wrecks and other units cost +1 movement point per unit or wreck.

Roads and railroads supersede other terrain except for Holes,Barbed Wire,and Dragon’s Teeth.

Once an Urban or Village hex is reduced to rubble it is treated as a Rough terrain hex for movement.

Vehicles with amphibious capability may move on any type of Water at a cost of one movement point per hex.

Infantry cross Water and Deep Water in Rafts when they have them at a cost of one movement point per hex.

Terrain And Movement Effects on Combat

Cover For Vehicles Against Direct Fire

Vehicles are considered hull down in the following situations:

1)They are in a Rough or Urban hex

2)They are Dug-in.

3)The hex they are in is higher in elevation than the hex containing the unit firing at them.

4)They are entrenched and are being fired on from the front.

Vehicles hull down are harder to hit and can only be hit on their turrets, and vehicles are also harder to hit by direct fire if in a village or a hex with trees.

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