House Rule For Infantry/Transports - A Discussion

Current Rules:
According to the rules, A single (1) infantry base is a platoon of troops. That's 4 Squads of 7, costing 3 tons.
If you want to transport this base, a infantry transport carries 1 ton. So you would need 3 transports. But each squad requires its own transport, so that's 4, 1 ton vehicles.

In summary, 1 infantry base requires 4 transport vehicle. All up 7 tons.

Problem 1 is that while you can buy small vehicles to stack on a base, they're about 1 pound each, So that's 4 pounds per hex, and you get about 6 hexes worth of troops in a pack. So 24 pounds+8 pounds for the troops = 32 pounds, not including shipping.

Problem 2 is that a platoon of soldiers isn't sensible to pack into a hex representing a 30 meter increment. Yes I know its a representative thing, but every other unit in the game is 1 for 1. And I'd like the tactical flexibility (and the fun) of being able to maneuver a platoon and its transports around the map... like infantry should.

My Suggestion 1:
I've been trawling around the forums and BT sites regarding this, and here's one that's been brought-up/implemented a fair bit.
Consider each base of infantry a single squad. (1 ton) And each squad can have its own transport (1 ton). Each squad is also considered 7 troops on the chart as well.
Pros: Looks great on the table. Can be used dynamically. Feels a bit more realistic. Fixes the stats to model issues. 1 for 1 models to target also makes combat visually accurate.
Cons: Much lower durability. Much lower damage output. Swarm/sabotuer attacks become near pointless.

My Suggestion 2:
Keep all the ideas above, but count each hex as a full unit in regards to the record sheets. Instead of number of troops, the numbers now represent durability, use of cover, medics, body armor etc.
Pros: Much more durable. Much more effective. Can actually threaten mechs. Become more than battlefield filler.
Cons: See above. Mainly infantry becomes an actual player.

Now, as you know I love the idea of combined arms games, so I'm in favor of the empowered infantry. The idea that we can play the game much more like a regular 6mm sci-fi army game excites me. Mechs will still pulverize them, but they can't just be ignored anymore.

But you also play the game, so I'd like to hear you suggestions and comments. Got a better idea? Please share!

I think suggestion 1 is a legit rule from tactical ops. The same book that introduces kangaroo mounted infantry.

Suggestion 2 would work better in practice.

Alternately you could find a transport with 3 or more tons of cargo space. The Karnov Ur for example carries 6 ton of cargo = 2 regular platoons deployed.

The default APC's are pretty craptacular. I would recommend shopping around for an alternative with more cargo tonnage.

protocolture wrote:...The same book that introduces kangaroo mounted infantry.

You wot mate?

protocolture wrote: The default APC's are pretty craptacular. I would recommend shopping around for an alternative with more cargo tonnage.

The Swiftwind can carry 3 tons. Light as tinfoil, but faaaaast.

Huh.
The Packrat's been updated. It apparently can transport 1x platoon? Wow.
And carry an SRM6.

I still like the idea of 1 base per squad tho. Hmm. Spose as long as we all agree on what a base represents, and how much durability it has... it dosen't really matter.

Dingo wrote:Huh.
The Packrat's been updated. It apparently can transport 1x platoon? Wow.
And carry an SRM6.

I still like the idea of 1 base per squad tho. Hmm. Spose as long as we all agree on what a base represents, and how much durability it has... it dosen't really matter.

Yeah that's right.