FOW: Intelligence Handbook Review: A Bridge Too Far
After the marathon painting sessions of the past two weeks I thought I would take a deep breath and put my thoughts to paper about some of the Late War Intelligence Handbooks.
A Bridge Too Far is the second handbook in a two part series on Operation Market Garden. This handbook covers the British 1st Airborne Division, Polish Airborne, Kampfgruppe Graebner, Spindler and von Tettau. Of the Intelligence Handbooks that I have this one has really taken more time for me to come to understand. Part of that could be because I play neither of these nationalities as of yet.
On first read through both of the nationalities seemed rather weak compared to other Intelligence Handbooks I’ve read. After my first time through I was convinced that the best army to play in this book was the Polish forces because of their rules, and access to some mechanized elements. However as I studied the book longer I began to see how the other armies worked.
After really looking at the lists I think that for a defending force the British 1st Airborne will be a pretty tough nut to crack. The access to two types of anti-tank guns and medium artillery with a great special rule will make any opponent pause and worry about what they are facing. The special bombardment rule on the 75mm pack howitzers is amazing and really turns these lack-luster guns into potential tank killers. Of the Allied forces in this book I think the Paratroopers have the best chance of being a tournament capable force, but I caution that it will take a veteran player to do so.
The German Forces in this book are interesting. They really capture the spirit of everything the Germans pressed into the defense of Arnhem. Kampfgruppe Graebner is a mechanized company and I find mechanized forces to be a paper tiger. My experience with most mechanized forces is that they will fold quickly when the heavy guns start shooting and the British Paratroopers have access to a lot of long range firepower. However the warrior available to them should mitigate this problem some and give them the speed to get into range and tear up the heavy gun teams. Even though I have little respect for Mech companies I think that this Kampfgruppe is the most tournament capable force in this book.
The other two lists in this book are infantry companies. Of those I like the Kampfgruppe Spindler the best. It packs a pretty serious punch with the Königstiger and Panther tanks. It also has a large selection of Weapons Support Teams and Divisional Support. Kampfgruppe von Tetau is interesting. I would take this as horde infantry backing 2 full size Flammwagen platoons of 5 tanks. These two forces are great historical forces but I don’t feel they would be appropriate for tournaments. I think that there are other books that can bring many of these same units to a tournament in a more points effective way.
On the whole I’m pleased with this book and what it brings to the game. I will admit that the Late War British Paratroopers in this book are better than their counterparts in D Minus 1 but they do lack the wealth of toys in D Minus 1. The Germans are interesting and will work well against forces in this book but I think it will be rough going if they attempted a tournament. Hopefully I will see some of these units in action soon in an upcoming Market Garden Campaign.
For those of you who have played forces out of this book tell us what you think of what is in this book.
