Built-up areas afford plenty of cover for infantry to shelter within and set ambushes. Buildings can become strong points in any defence, whilst even the most heavily armoured tank can fall prey to infantry using short-ranged anti-tank weapons from concealed positions.
The rules we have already described for difficult terrain will serve to represent ruinous buildings and rubble. The following rules cover buildings that are substantially intact, as well as defensive structures such as blockhouses and pillboxes. These kinds of structures pose an interesting conundrum to the wargamer. Do we want our building models to be hollow, with roofs and floors that can be removed, so as to allow us to place models inside? Or are we going to have solid buildings that serve to set the scene, but which can only be occupied in a nominal way?
Players can agree that models cannot enter buildings at all if they prefer. Perhaps the buildings are burning as a result of preliminary shelling or bombardment. However, although practical, this is not a very satisfactory solution, as we would like to picture our soldiers shooting from windows and dashing from door to door.
Only infantry units are permitted to enter buildings during the game. In order to enter a building, an infantry unit must be ordered to Run, all the models in the unit must get to within 1” of the building, and at least one model must reach an opening such as a door or window. The entire unit is then removed from the table. Note that this is comparable to the procedure for a unit mounting into a transport vehicle.
If a building has more than one floor, units will enter on the ground floor. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll assume that most buildings are large enough for a single unit to occupy each floor. This would be about correct for a house, small office building, or similar structure. Floors that are occupied by enemy troops cannot be moved into except by means of an assault as described later.
Note that infantry and artillery units can be set up inside a building at the start of the game if the building is completely inside their side’s set-up zone. Artillery units set up in this way will be unable to move for the duration of the game.
Gurkhas storm a Burmese village
Units cannot normally enter a building with a regroup move.
The rule for leaving a building is comparable to dismounting from a transport vehicle and is worked out in a similar way. The unit must be on the ground floor and must be ordered to Advance or Run. Make the move as normal, measuring the unit’s move from any opening on the ground floor.
A unit is allowed to make an assault move from within a building, either against an enemy on another floor, into an adjoining building where they are connected, or by leaping out from the building and attacking enemy outside their building (including enemies in a different not-adjoining building, in a transport, etc.). An enemy who is outside a building and more than 6” away from the building itself can react by firing at the assaulting unit in the usual way, but calculates fire once the assaulting troops have left the building, i.e. without the benefit of cover. Enemies on a different floor of the same building or in an adjoining building cannot react by firing in this way – see the rules for assaulting buildings.
Units inside buildings must be given orders in the usual way. An Advance order can be used to either leave the building, to move from one floor to another floor, or to move into an adjoining building and in all cases to shoot as well, as is usual for Advance orders.
The fight for the tobacco factory, by Steve Noon © Osprey Publishing Ltd. Taken from Campaign 257: Salerno 1943
A Run order can be used to either leave the building, to move up or down two floors, to move up to two adjoining buildings, or to make an assault into an adjoining floor or building. A running unit cannot also shoot – as per the usual rule. Note that some buildings have a flat roof which is accessible from inside the building, and might even have a low wall around its perimeter. Simply treat such flat roofs as the uppermost floor of the building.
Sometimes players may want to represent a larger building: a railway station, a factory or workshop, a school, town hall or other substantial public building of some kind. In these cases it is best to treat a large building as a number of roughly house-sized adjoining buildings all connected together. It is impossible to cover every kind of eventuality – but it is best that house-sized portions are no bigger than about 8” by 8”, and preferably about 6” x 6”, as this allows infantry to move through at a reasonable pace. These can be thought of as individual building ‘sections’. If a single building section has dimensions greater than a standard infantry move, running troops are not allowed to move through two sections at once, as that would obviously enable them to move unfeasibly quickly.
The rules given here assume buildings and building sections of about house size, so when considering larger buildings bear in mind that they are treated as multiple connected buildings and not just one.
Units inside buildings may shoot from any visible opening including windows and doors. Measure range and calculate line of sight from these openings. We assume that up to two men can fire out of any domestic-sized window or door. A unit in a building can divide its fire against different targets on different sides of a building, but all fire from each side of a building must be aimed at the same target. If a unit occupies the flat roof of a building, up to five of its models may fire from each side of the building.
If a unit of infantry or artillery begins the game already set-up inside a building, the player can declare that the unit has ‘made an opening’ in one side of a building floor occupied by the unit that has no other openings – mark this wall with a suitable counter. This allows two men in the unit to shoot out just like a window, but it also allows enemy small-arms fire to hit the unit through that opening.
In the case of fixed weapons that have a limited arc of fire, the player must specify the opening where they are deployed; usually this will be a window or door. They will fire only out of the designated opening until the unit makes an Advance or Run action, when they can be redeployed to another opening if desired.
If troops that occupy an upper floor fire against an armoured target within 12”, any heavy weapons hits scored will strike the target’s top armour and therefore score the extra +1 penetration bonus. Note that this doesn’t apply twice to mortars or howitzers shooting indirect as they already receive this bonus.
Fallschirmjäger overrun the Veldwezelt Bridge, by Peter Dennis © Osprey Publishing Ltd. Taken from Raid 38: The Fall of Eben Emael
Units armed with small-arms can shoot at enemy inside buildings if they have a line of fire to any opening on the floor occupied by the target. Range is measured to visible openings (or to the wall if the unit has ‘made a hole’ as described above).
Apart from flamethrowers, heavy weapons don’t need to see an opening to shoot, but just need to be able to draw a line of fire to any wall of the corresponding floor – big shells go through most walls.
Roll to hit the target as normal. Units inside buildings are in hard cover (–2 to hit), can react by going down in the usual way when shot at, and benefit from the extra protection rule (see below).
When targeting infantry or artillery units that are inside a building, the die roll an enemy requires to score damage for a hit is increased by +1. This means that inexperienced troops are damaged on a 4+, regulars on 5+ and veterans on 6+. This die roll is modified by the penetration value of the weapon in the usual way. This rule has no effect in close quarters or against hits from HE and flamethrowers.
When firing a HE weapon over open sights against a building, simply choose a unit you are aiming for, regardless of whether the gun can see any openings – you are literally firing at the walls of the building itself. Range and line of sight are measured to the walls of the building’s floor occupied by the target unit.
This means that when rolling to hit you ignore any tohit penalties for cover.
US M8 HMC Scott
If you score a hit, this means the shell has managed to find – or make – an opening. The unit inside that floor of the building suffers a number of hits equal to the ‘damage in buildings’ value in the HE chart for that shell (D3, D6, 2D6 or 3D6). If the unit has not taken an action yet this turn, it can declare it is going down before you roll to determine how many hits are caused – in which case the hits are halved rounding up. When hit by HE, the extra protection rule given above does not apply. Even the crews of guns fitted with a gun shield are hit as if in the open – the gun shield having no effect.
In addition, if a weapon with HE value of 2D6 or greater hits a unit inside a building, the explosion might bring the entire house down about their heads. In this case, roll to determine how many hits are inflicted as usual. If the total number of hits scored (before halving if the unit goes down) is ten or more then the building is blown to rubble and all infantry and artillery units inside it are destroyed. Remove the building and replace it with a ruinous equivalent or an area of rubble and debris.
Note that if a HE shell explodes outside a building (assume it targeted a unit right outside the building) and its template clips the building, any units inside the building are not hit at all, assume that the walls absorb the shrapnel.
When firing an indirect fire weapon against a unit in a building you just need to declare the target unit and measure the range to the building (as above for HE shells fired directly) to make sure it’s not within your minimum range. If you score a hit, roll a further die. On the roll of a 4, 5 or 6 the shell explodes immediately hitting any target on the uppermost floor of the building. On the roll of 1, 2 or 3 the shell has plummeted straight through the topmost floor, so roll again to see if it explodes on the floor below. On a roll of 4, 5 or 6 the shell explodes on the floor below, and will hit any target on that floor. Once again, on a roll of 1, 2, or 3 the shell plummets down to the next level. Keep on rolling in this way until the shell explodes or reaches the ground floor, where it will explode automatically.
In any case, even if you hit an empty floor, roll for number of hits, as this might take the building down as described above.
A flamethrower can only be used against troops inside buildings where there is a window, open door, or some other gap to shoot through. Flamethrowers ignore to hit modifiers for cover and are therefore very useful when used against troops within buildings.
As with HE shots, troops and gun crews derive no protection from their gun shield or the extra protection rule.
If a flamethrower is used against troops in a building then the building catches fire on D6 roll of a 4, 5 or 6 and is considered impassable from then on (all floors). Any and all surviving infantry units inside a burning building will immediately abandon it in the same way as units disembarking from a vehicle that has been immobilised or destroyed (see here). Artillery units inside a burning building are automatically destroyed.
The following points explain how to resolve an air strike against a unit in a building:
• FAOs can call air strikes against a unit in a building as long as they have line of sight to the building itself (see HE against buildings, above).
• When the aircraft arrives, pin markers are placed around as normal, measuring ranges from the building itself.
• After pin markers have been placed, follow the procedure for indirect fire against units in buildings to determine which floor is hit. As with HE shots, troops and gun crews derive no protection from their gun shield or the extra protection rule.
• If the aircraft inflicts ten or more hits (before halving for units that are Down) on the target, the building collapses, as described above.
The following points explain how to resolve an artillery barrage against units in buildings:
• Place the aiming point as normal, and this can be a point on the top of any building that is visible to the FAO.
• When the barrage arrives, measure the distance between the aiming point and the building itself. If the building is in range, simply roll a die for each unit in the building as well as other units within range, including all units inside nearby buildings that are themselves within range of the artillery barrage. As normal with HE shots, troops and gun crews hit by a ‘heavy howitzer’ result derive no protection from their gun shield or the extra protection rule.
• Total the hits inflicted on all units in the same building by all ‘heavy howitzer hit’ results, and if the total is ten or more hits (before halving for units that are Down), the building collapses, as described above.
Players are allowed to target an empty building with HE weapons, flamethrowers, air strikes or artillery barrages in order to attempt to destroy it or set it on fire.
Infantry units outside a building can assault enemy units occupying the ground floor of a building. Measure the move to any opening on the ground floor. Resolve the assault sequence as normal, except that the assaulting models are moved into contact with the building, with at least one model in contact with an opening. The rest is exactly the same as an assault against a defensive position, with the combat fought simultaneously by both sides; see here. In particular, if a unit assaults a building and wins the assault, it can use its regroup move to enter the building and take the place of the unit that has been defeated.
Infantry units inside a building can assault units on a different floor immediately above or below, or on the same floor of an adjoining connected building section. This is always considered to be a surprise charge (i.e. from within 6”) so no reaction shooting is allowed. Otherwise it is worked out the same way as described above.
Finnish Anti-Tank Rifle Team
A heavy or super-heavy tank can attempt to drive into a wooden or brick-built building in the same way as already described for ramming other tanks. This is treated as an assault and the building has a total damage value that is established randomly when the assault is made as follows.
| Wooden building | 2D6 |
| Brick building | 3D6 |
Tanks are not allowed to attempt to assault fortifications such as pillboxes, blockhouses, tank traps, bunkers or any other structures that are equally solid or substantial. See bunkers, below. Note that the damage values given for buildings are meant to reflect fairly substantial buildings – it is not intended that a tank should be troubled by a garden shed, kennel or sentry box.
A heavy tank would therefore roll its damage value (10+) plus a D6 (D6+10) whilst a super-heavy tank would roll (11+) plus a D6 (D6+11). The opposing player rolls for the building.
If the building scores higher resolve damage against the tank as described for a vehicle ram. If the building is a wooden shack only superficial damage can be caused. The tank model is placed in front of the building having failed to demolish it.
If building and tank score equally then resolve superficial damage against the vehicle as for a vehicle ram and the building is destroyed as described below.
If the tank scores highest the building collapses in the same way as described for an HE shell. The building is destroyed and the model representing it replaced with an area of rubble. The tank is placed within the rubble area and comes to a halt. Show this by turning the vehicle’s order die to Down.
Finally, any tank that survives driving into a building takes a further pin marker in the same way as tanks surviving a collision.
Artillery units cannot enter buildings during a battle, but can be placed in buildings during deployment. We assume their position has been prepared in advance. If so, the player must pick an opening for the gun to fire from. This cannot be changed during the game. An artillery unit placed in this manner cannot move and cannot therefore be ordered to Run or Advance during the game – its position and its arc of fire are both fixed.
The following rules cover bunkers, pillboxes and all other reinforced buildings specifically designed to protect soldiers from enemy fire. Bunkers follow the rules given for buildings with these exceptions:
Bunkers can only be accessed through doors and not through firing slits. Similarly, models can only fire from/towards firing slits and not through doors or through solid walls (this applies to heavy weapons as well as small arms).
It’s extremely difficult to hit troops inside bunkers through the narrow slits in the reinforced walls; therefore when shooting against them, the cover modifier, which normally is –2 is increased to a whopping –4. This makes flamethrowers the perfect tools against bunkers because they ignore cover modifiers (but note that they cannot set bunkers on fire).
HE weapons (at least those of the calibre we cover in our games) are not very effective against bunkers with thick reinforced concrete walls and roofs designed to be shellproof. Proceed as normal as described for HE and indirect fire weapons targeting buildings, but after placing any pinning on the unit hit as normal, do not roll to damage. Do proceed to roll for the number of hits caused anyway, as the hits may still bring down the bunker itself – bunkers are not destroyed when suffering 10 hits like normal buildings, but if a bunker suffers 12 or more hits from an HE shell, it collapses and is destroyed, alongside all units inside it.
Tanks cannot assault bunkers no matter how heavy they are!
Units in bunkers suffer the additional pinning markers from air strikes and artillery barrages as normal, but never suffer any actual damage – however, any of these attacks that inflicts 12 hits on a bunker would destroy it.
Soviet DP-28 Light Machine Gun
