Heroes of the Pacific Example of Play

Heroes of the Pacific is barreling down the release pike. Below is the example of play from the game's rules. Never one to shy away from a chance to multipurpose what I've written, I'm also posting it as a blog. Clever, no? No? I mean right?

Example of Play: Infantry Combat

Example of play, basic infantry combat. Our little battle opens with a platoon of Japanese staring down a similar force of Marines.

Turn One Initiative: The Japanese player rolls a 4, and the Marines roll a 3. The Japanese win the initiative. If the die rolls had been identical, the player who had won the initiative in the previous turn would keep it.

Rally Phase: The Japanese would go first, but neither side has anyone to rally, nor can they swap support weapons. Unlike most other LnL nationalities, the Japanese Squads and Leaders don’t Shake.

Operations Phase: The Japanese get the first impulse. Although they can see the Americans on the board, the Marines aren’t Spotted. A Japanese Squad or Leader could attempt to spot them, but they default to the more direct approach. The Japanese player Low Crawls a Squad from 29H5 to 29H6. 

The Marine decides to Opportunity Fire with the Squad in H7. Firing will render the Marine Spotted, but doing nothing is no better. The adjacent Japanese Squad also reveals the Squad in 29H7 as well as 29I8. The Marine Squad fires.

The Squad boasts 2 Firepower (FP), and + 2 to the subsequent die roll because its target is adjacent. If the Japanese Squad elected to Move the Marines would receive an additional +1 to their die roll for firing on a currently moving target, but this bonus doesn’t apply to a Low Crawling target. The Marine player rolls 1d6, and the die reads 3. The Marines add their 2 FP, + 2 for adjacency for a modified die roll of 7 (3 + 2 + 2 = 7).

The Japanese rolls 1d6 and adds the Target Modifier of the terrain he occupies (0 for Clear terrain). The Japanese roll a 5. Because the attacker’s modified die roll is greater than the defender’s modified die roll, the Japanese Squad must take a Damage Check by rolling 1d6, adding the difference between the attacker’s modified die roll and the defender’s modified die roll (7 - 5 = 2) and then consulting the Japanese Direct Fire Table. 

The Japanese Damage Check die roll is 4. The Japanese player adds the difference between the Marine’s modified die roll (7) and the defender’s modified die roll (5), which is 2, to arrive at a Damage Check die roll of 6. Because 6 is greater than the Japanese Squad’s morale (5), the Japanese Squad is reduced to a Half-Squad. The Japanese Half-Squad is marked with a Low Crawl marker, and a Fired marker is placed on the Marine Squad. The Japanese impulse is over.

Because this attack took place during the Japanese impulse it is now the Marines’ impulse. The Marine Squad and M1919A6 in I6 could fire at the Japanese, but they decide to move into Melee instead. Melee is odds-based. The Marines have the Squad’s 2 FP and the 2 FP of the M1919A6 machine gun that they are carrying. The Japanese player has 1 FP. Hence the Marines attack at 4-1 odds. Consulting the Melee Odds table, we see that if the Marines roll 4 or greater with 2d6 they win. They roll a 2 and a 3 for a total of 5, eliminating the Japanese Squad. Melee, however, is simultaneous, so the Japanese may counterattack before they are removed. The Japanese attack at 1-4, but the lowest column is 1-3, so they use that one. They need an 11 to eliminate the Marines. They roll a 9, and the Marines survive. It is once again the Japanese impulse.

The Japanese Squad in I4 attempts to spot Sgt. Stryker and the two Squads in J6. Kunai is the terrain in J6, and it is blocking terrain (see the Terrain Effects Chart (TEC)). Hence, the Japanese squad must roll 2 or less on 1d6 to spot the Marines. The Japanese player rolls a 2. The Marines are spotted! A Spotted marker is placed on the stack, and the Japanese Squad promptly fires at them.

The Japanese get 1FP for the Squad and another FP for the cool-looking Type 96 machine gun, for a total of 2 FP. The Japanese player rolls 5 on 1d6 for a modified die roll of 7 (2 FP + 5 on the die). The Marine player rolls 2, and adds the Target Modifier of the Kunai grass, which is 0, for a total of 2. Damage Check 5! Ouch!

First the Marine player rolls for Stryker, and he rolls a 1. The die roll (1) plus the Damage Check Modifier (5) doesn’t exceed Stryker’s morale (6), so Stryker passes. Note that although Stryker rolled a 1, you do not check for hero generation because Stryker is a Single Man Counter (SMC).

The Marine can now use Stryker’s leadership (2) to lessen the severity of the Damage Check. Accordingly the Damage Check, in essence, becomes a Damage Check 3 (Damage Check 5 – Stryker’s 2 Leadership = 3). The Marine rolls for the top Squad, turning up a 3. Because the combined Damage Check die roll (6) is equal to the Squad’s morale, the Squad passes. This is starting to look good. Unfortunately, the Marine player rolls a 4 for the bottom Squad, and it Shakes (the modified Damage Check die roll of 7 is greater than its morale of 6).  A Fired marker is placed on the Japanese.

Stryker and his men want some payback. They fire on the Japanese that just fired on them. They have 2 FP for the Good Order Squad +2 for Stryker’s Leadership. They roll a 2 for a total of 6 (2 + 2 + 2 = 6). The Japanese roll 5 (there is no Target Modifier for Brush), and must take a Damage Check +1, which is the difference in the American’s modified die roll (6) and the Japanese modified die roll (5). The Japanese roll is a 4, plus 1 for the Damage Check modifier, for a total of 5. The Japanese Squad passes its Damage Check. Stryker’s stack is marked Fired. Remove the Spotted marker as it is no longer needed; units marked Fired are spotted.

Japanese Impulse. Banzai! Sgt. Hiro initiates a Banzai charge. Only the Squad that he is stacked with is eligible to participate. The other unit that is within range (the Squad in I4) has a Fired marker on it. Hiro and the Squad are marked with a Banzai marker and move from I5 to J6, entering into melee with Stryker and his men. A Melee marker is placed on the hex. The Japanese have a FP of 1 + 1 for the Banzai charge, for a total of 2. The Marines have 2, so the attack is 1-1, and Hiro’s Leadership (1) is added to the roll of the Japanese dice. The Japanese roll a 6 modified to 7 by Hiro’s Leadership. This falls short of the target number 8. The Marines also have 1-1 odds, but get a +2 due to Stryker’s Leadership. The Marine player rolls a 6, modified to 8, which eliminates the courageous Japanese. Stryker and his squads remain under a Melee marker. Note that the Shaken Squad stacked with Stryker is not Melee-eligible and cannot be targeted during the Melee round. It would be removed if the defending units suffer elimination.

Administrative Phase. All the Fired and Melee markers are removed.

Turn Two Initiative. The Japanese roll a 3 and the Marines a 5. The Marines win the initiative.

Rally Phase. Sgt. Stryker attempts to rally the Shaken Squad in his hex. The Squad has a morale of 6. Kunai, the terrain that the Squad occupies, doesn’t offer a positive Target Modifier, so there isn’t any additional rally benefit from the terrain. Stryker’s Leadership, however, is subtracted from the 2d6 rally dice roll. The American player rolls 8, which is reduced to 6 by Stryker’s Leadership. The number 6 is equal to or less than the Marine Squad’s Shaken morale, so it rallies.

No Japanese unit needs rallying. Japanese Squads, Half-squads, Remnants, and Leaders never Shake.

Operations Phase. The Americans have 4 Squads, a Leader and a machine gun versus the Japanese Squad and machine gun. It doesn’t look good for the Japanese. Our example of basic infantry combat ends here, but feel free to play it out to the bitter end.

Example of Armored Combat.

The Japanese face off against the Marines in this example of play. We pick up the skirmish in the Operations Phase. It’s the Japanese initiative.

Japanese Impulse. The Japanese 47mm ATG Weapons Team (WT) decides to take a shot at the Sherman M4A2 clanking towards them. The Sherman is 3 hexes from the Japanese ATG. The Japanese player consults the table on the back of the counter and sees that the Sherman is within range of the “5” column. The To Hit number is 7 or less, rolled on 2d6. There are no modifiers. The Japanese player rolls 7, and the shot slams into the Sherman. Now we must check if the projectile penetrated the tank’s armor. The Japanese rolls 1d6 and adds it to the 47mm gun’s penetration, which on the range 5 column is 3. They roll a 2, for a modified penetration value of 5. The American player rolls 1d6 and adds it to the Sherman’s front armor of 4 (where the shot hit). The American player rolls a 3, for a modified armor value of 7. Hence, the American’s modified armor value (armor + 1d6) is greater than the Japanese modified penetration value of 5, so the shot caroms into the humid air.

Since the shot didn’t penetrate, the American must take a Morale Check, subtracting the difference in the modified penetration value from the modified armor value. This value is 2 … (7 modified armor – 5 modified penetration). The American throws down a 7 on 2d6, subtracts the difference mentioned in the previous sentence, and passes the Morale Check. The Sherman is unaffected, and the Japanese player places a Fired and Acquiring marker on the 47mm WT and a -1 Acquisition marker on the Sherman. If the Sherman moves to a new hex or the ATG engages a different target, remove the Acquisition and Acquiring markers.

American Impulse. Lt Leckie decides to kill two birds with one stone and attempts to drop artillery (105mm 5 HE) on both the Japanese ATG and Lt. Kusanagi’s hex. He calls the spotting round on K5 and rolls 2d6. The white die is 3, and the colored die is 1. To determine the amount the spotting round drifts, subtract Leckie’s Leadership (1) from the white die, and halve the remaining number. So 3-1=2, which halved equals 1. The spotting round drifts one hex. The colored die, which was also a 1, indicates the direction of drift, in this case one hex due north, toward Leckie. The spotting round lands in hex K4. The spotting round may be corrected one hex. Leckie returns the round to K5, and flips the marker to its FFE side. The artillery will attack K5 and the 6 adjacent hexes with 5 FP. This is done in exactly the same manner as the DFT attacks we explained under infantry combat. First the 47mm ATG WT’s hex.

The American rolls a 6 and adds this to his 5 FP for a modified die roll of 11. The Japanese player rolls a 2, and must take a Damage Check 9 (11-2). The Japanese rolls a 5, which equals 14. This is twice the Weapon Team’s morale and it is eliminated. The Japanese player removes the ATG from the board, and the American removes the Acquired marker from his Sherman tank. Dead men can’t acquire tanks. 

Next the artillery attacks Kusanagi and the Squad in J6. To make a long story short, Kusanagi is unharmed. But the Squad is reduced. The Fire for Effect marker stays in K5 until the Administrative Phase. Leckie is marked Ops Complete.

Japanese Impulse. The Japanese player wants to get even. He activates the Squad in G5, and declares that he will attempt to Close Assault the Sherman tank in the adjacent hex. First the Squad must pass a pre-assault Morale Check. Because the Squad is entering the tank’s hex via a hex with a positive Target Modifier, 2 is subtracted from the Morale Check dice roll. The Japanese player rolls a 7, which is modified to 5. Pass! The Japanese Squad moves into the hex with the Sherman. Now the Japanese player must roll 1d6 and add it to the Squad’s FP. He rolls a 4 + 1 for the FP equals 5. The American must roll 1d6 and add it to the Sherman’s lowest armor value. He rolls a 2 + 2 for the lowest armor, which equals a 4. The Japanese player’s modified die roll is greater than the Sherman’s modified die roll, and the tank is destroyed! A wreck is placed in the hex. No die roll is made for crew survival in a Close Assault. The Japanese Squad remains in the hex and gets a spiffy new Melee marker for its efforts.

American Impulse. The Marine Squad in J4 fires on the Japanese Type 97. Because the Japanese tank is open the Marine’s FP has a chance of Shaking the tank. The Marines roll a 2 and add it to their FP for a total of 4. The Type 97 rolls a 3 and adds it to their lowest armor (0) for a total of 3. The American modified die roll is one greater than the Japanese modified die roll by 1 so the Japanese must take a Damage Check 1. The Japanese rolls a 4, and passes with ease. Note that if the Type 97 had been buttoned, the American Squad would not have been eligible to fire at it. Mark the American Squad with a Fired marker.

Japanese Impulse. The Type 97 wants to take a shot at the remaining American Sherman. He starts by buttoning. He’ll need to drive through the artillery barrage to get to the Sherman, and if the tank is open, the artillery barrage will attack it with 5 FP, and might shake it. By buttoning up, he makes himself impervious to the American artillery.

Now the Type 97 chooses to Assault Move (all vehicles may Assault Move). The tank moves to L5 and then K4. The Sherman chooses to opportunity fire on the Type 97 in hex K4. Looking on the back of the Sherman counter we see that the range to the Type 97 (5 hexes) falls under the first column. The To Hit number at that range is 8. The American checks the Ordnance Fire Table (OFT) and determines the 2d6 roll will be modified as follows: +1 for firing on a moving target, +2 for firing through 2 hexes of degrading terrain (the wreck and one hex of the artillery barrage), -1 because the Sherman is open, and -1 for the Armor Leader, Judge…er, I mean Sgt. Dredd. Total modifier is +1. The American rolls 2d6 for 8 + 1 modifier for a modified To Hit roll of 9. Dredd misses, and the Sherman is marked Fired.

The Type 97 continues to move. It can move half of its movement allowance (4) and still fire, and the Japanese wants to get out from under the artillery barrage. The tank moves to J5 and stops on I5. The Type 97 fires. The Sherman is three hexes away and falls on the first column on the back of the Type 97. The basic To Hit number is 7. The modifiers are +3: +2 for Assault Movement, +1 for degrading terrain (the wreck). The Japanese player rolls a 4, adds the 3 and hits the Sherman. Since the To Hit number is both equal to or greater than 4 and an even number, the shot hits the Sherman’s turret. Since the Sherman’s front turret armor is the same as its hull armor it doesn’t matter, but it might in the future.

The Type 97’s penetration is 3. The Japanese player rolls a 5 and adds it to the 3 for a modified penetration factor of 8. The American adds his armor of 4 to his die roll of 3 to arrive at a modified armor factor of 7. The Sherman blows up! The American rolls a 3 for crew survival, and the crew is eliminated with their vehicle. Thus ends this armor example of play.

If you are interested in more information about Heroes of the Pacific, or would like to place an order, click here. 

Mark H. Walker is the author of World at War: Revelation, a creepy, military action, with a love story, alternate history, World War Three novel thing. It's available from Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing right here. Just $3.99. Give it a try. What the hell?