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Russia
Tactical Notes : Equipment &
Defense Notes : Troops & Units : Keys Tactical
Notes:
Russian units continued to use close order troops formation
through at least 1916. The Brusilov Campaign of 1916 saw the first widespread
use of open order and assault tactics, but even this was exceptional. An
adjoining campaign begun at the same time by another senior commander continued
using the old close order formations, much to the great loss of Russian
soldiery.
Equipment & Defense Notes:
The standard field gun for Russian units was the Model 1902 76mm, which is
shell size 5 for game play. Also used in scant numbers was the
Model 1909 122mm, which is shell size 8 for game play. All trench mortar
quantities mentioned in the troop and unit lists are approximations. Below are
the defense values used to establish troop defenses (if any) to be used during
the setup phase of the game. These defensive levels are meant only as rough
averages. Players creating their own scenarios may want to adjust them for
different situations. For example, an "old" battlefield may have very heavy
wire entanglements and many pillboxes. A "new" battlefield located in an area
not previous fought over would have very little or no wire entanglements and no
bunkers. See the Game Setup page or
Advanced Game Setup for more information.
- Defense Setup:
- 1914 | Trench ½40
- 1915 | Trench ½40 | Wire ½40 | Pillbox ¼
- 1916 | Trench ½40 | Wire ½40 | Pillbox ¼
Troops and
Units:
The orders of battle shown below offer a list of average unit
values in order to give 1916 players an idea of how historical formations
should be represented for game play. Real life units varied in type, strength
and quality, depending on their location and readiness level. Overall, there
were a huge variety of units created during the war, from forestry battalions
to assault companies. This prevents us from trying to list them all, and
players are encouraged to use these lists as guidelines for creating other
units they would like to use on the battlefield. Note: Most heavy weapon
quantities are estimates.
- Cavalry Squadron 1914
- Units:1 | Bases:12 |
Morale:Steady | Training:Average/Poor
- Infantry Battalion 1914
- Units:4 | Bases:12 |
Morale:Steady | Training:Poor | Machine Guns:1
heavy
- Light Infantry Battalion 1914-15
- Units:5 | Bases:9 |
Morale:Steady | Training:Average
- Infantry Battalion 1915
- Units:4 | Bases:12 |
Morale:Steady | Training:Abysmal | Machine Guns:1
heavy
- Infantry Battalion 1916
- Units:3 | Bases:12 |
Morale:Steady | Training:Poor | Machine Guns:1
heavy
- Infantry Battalion 1917
- Units:3 | Bases:12 |
Morale:Shaky or Mutinous |
Training:Poor | Machine Guns:1 heavy
- Infantry Regiment
- Battalions:4 infantry (3 in 1914)
- Rifle Regiment
- Battalions:2 light infantry
- Cavalry Regiment
- Squadrons:6 cavalry | Machine
Guns:1 heavy
- Infantry Brigade 1914
- Regiments:2 infantry
- Rifle Brigade 1914
- Regiments:4 infantry
- Cavalry Brigade 1914
- Regiments:2 Cavalry
- Infantry Division 1914
- Brigades:2 infantry, sometimes 1 rifle
- Cavalry Division 1914
- Brigades:2 Cavalry | Guns:6 horse
artillery (medium?)
- Defense Setup Key:
Each line on the Defense Setup list covers the
setup values for a certain year of the war. These values are approximates only,
and players with special insights are encouraged to adjust these values
according to their own preferences, or for specific scenario elements. Below
are definitions of each basic feature type.
- 1916
The year of the war with applies to the following
defense allotments
Trench ½70 The
player receives game board trenchlines equal one-half die roll (½D6)
multiplied by seventy inches. Other multiples will be forty inches and
one-hundred inches. For example, the hypothetical player who rolled a 5 on this
die roll would be allowed to set up a maximum of 210 inches worth of fire
trenches, slit trenches and foxholes on the game board.
Wire
½40 Same die rolling method as for trenchlines,
but applies to acquisition of barbed wire entanglements. Note that for ease of
play, the length of each barbed wire segment should equal the width of an
infantry base.
Pillbox ½ Values
shown without a second number immediately following will use that final value
to establish the number of those items allowed for that player. For example:
The hypothetical player who rolled a 3 on this die roll would be allowed to set
up two pillboxes on the game board.
Bunker ¼
Same system as for pillboxes, but applies to
acquisition of bunkers instead:
- A ½ die roll means
that a 1 or 2 = One, 3 or 4 = Two, 5 or 6 = Three. A ¼ die roll means
that a: 1 through 4 = One, and a 5 or 6 = Two.
- Unit Key:
- Formation Type - Year
- Units:number of subunits in the formation ¹ |
Bases:number of bases per subunit |
Morale:approximate formation morale
| Training:approximate training level of the
units | Machine Guns:average number
of machine guns which the formation may possess |
Mortars:average number of trench mortars which the
formation may possess | Towed Cannon:average number of towed cannon which the formation may
possess. | Special:special weapons
or conditions, such as flamethrowers, etc.
¹ — Note
that higher level formations will be composed of companies, battalions or
regiments instead of bases and units.
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