Professional Documents
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P HAS E L IN E B R AV O
Iron Cow 21
103AD is a copy
yright of Steve Blease
B
and Wess
sex Games. This
s unofficial supp
plement is not produced, supporrted, or
endorsed by
y them, and they
y retain all origina
al rights.
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Table of Contents
FOREW
WORD
Iron Co
ow 2103AD
D is a set of
o light rulles for scien
nce-fiction g
ground-com
mbat wargam
ming.
The rule
es generally
y match th
he excellentt line of 6mm sci-fi microarmorr available from
Brigade Models, whiich I highly recommend
d.
IC2103, being a light rule set, forms a co
ore rule set that does not,
n
at this time, delve
e into
more spe
ecific warga
aming possib
bilities. Thu
us this supp
plement was
s born. The
e contents of this
supplement first saw
w life as pos
sts on the Brigade
B
Models discussio
on forums. I want to thank
t
all the po
osters there
e for their time and participation.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INFANTRY ................................................................................................................ 4
General Infantry Rules: .......................................................................................... 4
Close Assault ........................................................................................................ 4
Targeting infantry (tanks) ...................................................................................... 4
Targeting infantry (artillery) ................................................................................... 4
Urban cover ......................................................................................................... 4
Special Infantry Teams .......................................................................................... 5
Forward Observers ................................................................................................ 5
Jump Infantry ....................................................................................................... 5
Anti-Tank Infantry ................................................................................................. 5
Medics and Mechanics ............................................................................................ 5
Snipers ................................................................................................................ 5
Mortars ................................................................................................................ 5
Dragoons ............................................................................................................. 5
Anti-Aircraft Infantry ............................................................................................. 5
MISSILES, ROCKETS, AND MORTARS ............................................................................... 7
Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs) .......................................................................... 7
Salvo Rockets ....................................................................................................... 7
Mortars ................................................................................................................ 7
Counter-Mobility ................................................................................................... 9
Emplacement ....................................................................................................... 9
M-Type Obstacles .................................................................................................. 9
L-Type Obstacles................................................................................................. 10
Scatterable Mines ................................................................................................ 10
Demolitions ........................................................................................................ 10
Breaching .......................................................................................................... 10
Bridging ............................................................................................................. 11
Clearing ............................................................................................................. 11
SUPERTANKS.......................................................................................................... 12
Composition ....................................................................................................... 12
Stats ................................................................................................................. 12
Damage ............................................................................................................. 12
Firing ................................................................................................................ 13
Movement .......................................................................................................... 14
Command, Control, and Electronic Warfare ............................................................. 14
UNCONVENTIONAL WEAPONS ...................................................................................... 15
Nanite Clouds ..................................................................................................... 15
Chemical Weapons .............................................................................................. 15
Tactical Nukes .................................................................................................... 16
Remote or Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) ........................................................ 16
Shield Generators ............................................................................................... 17
LOOKING FORWARD .................................................................................................. 18
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Table of Contents
INFANTRY
Slow
Thin-skinned/Lack of armor
Undergunned/Lack of firepower
Lack of systems (ECM, radar, fire
control, etc.)
Less mobile in certain terrain (water,
swamp, temperature extremes)
Urban cover
Infantry in bunkers or in buildings ignore
the first successful attack on them each
turn.
A subsequent successful attack
would kill the stand, however.
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Infantry
chanic attac
ched,
vehicular unit has a Mec
orale rolls.
thatt unit gains +1 to its Mo
Forward Observers
Infantry designated as Forward
d Observers
s
(FOs) may
m
only engage
e
in direct fire
e
combat at the "Und
der 50" rang
ge band, as
s
they are
e armed on
nly with light personal
defense weapons. However, artillery fired
d
on a targ
get within their line of sight would
d
use the range to the target as figured
d
from the
e FOs. Exam
mple: an FO
O stand is in
n
woods with
w
line of
o sight to
o a targett
100mm and calls in artillery from a
battery 700mm aw
way. The artillery
a
can
n
roll to hitt using its 100mm
1
% to
o-hit value.
Snip
pers
If us
sing the opttional Morale rules, a sniper
stan
nd causes a decrease in Morale fo
or its
targ
get.
If th
he target is
i infantry, the
Morale penalty is -2 and the stand must
mak
ke a Moralle roll.
Iff the targe
et is
vehicular, therre is a -1 penalty to any
Morale roll ta
aken that turn, butt no
auto
omatic Mora
ale roll is req
quired.
Morrtars
Infa
antry units equipped
e
with mortars may
fire over blocking terra
ain, using the
artillery rules but the infantry range
r
bands. The bla
ast template would only be
50m
mm across ra
ather than 100mm.
1
Jump Inffantry
Jump tro
oops are eq
quipped witth jet packs
s
that allo
ow them to move at normal
n
rate
e
over any
y terrain. Of
O course, unit integrity
y
rules stilll apply! Ju
ump troops attempting
g
to move into Close Assault by air may be
e
fired upo
on by the target unitt as if they
y
were airc
craft.
Drag
goons
Drag
goons are
e mounted
d troops who
have
dism
mount to fight.
D
Dragoons
mottorcycles, an
nti-grav skim
mmers, or some
s
othe
er unarmore
ed, fast forrm of trans
sport.
an
Consequently,
dragoons
s
under
Adv
vance orde
er may mov
ve double their
norm
mal speed,, but cannot make any
attacks that turrn.
Anti-Tan
nk Infantry
AT team
ms receive +25%
+
to-hitt bonus and
d
+4 to their
t
Penetration when targeting
g
armored targets AND when und
der a Static
c
order. If
I not underr a Static order,
o
there
e
is no to
o-hit bonus
s, but there is still a
Because
Penetration bonus.
e they are
e
carrying heavy antii-armor wea
apons, they
y
can only carry lig
ght person
nal defense
e
weapons
s as small arms; therrefore, they
y
can only
y target othe
er infantry units at the
e
"under 50"
5 range ba
and.
Antii-Aircraft Inffantry
Infa
antry stands
s equipped with
w
AA mis
ssiles
targ
get aircraft with
w
increas
sed accuracy
y and
effectiveness, giving
g
them
m +3 to their AA
factor.
Medics and
a
Mechaniics
If using the optiona
al Morale ru
ules, medics
s
reduce morale
m
pena
alties for in
nfantry, and
d
mechanics for vehic
cles. If an infantry unitt
(not jus
st a single stand, butt an entire
e
platoon) has a Med
dic attached
d, that unitt
gains +1
1 to its Mora
ale rolls. Liikewise, if a
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Infantry
Possible Natiion-Specific
P
c Infantry Trraits:
A
America
Rep
public: ...............................
C
Chinese
Dem
mocratic Soc
cialist Union: ......
E
EuroFed
Reg
gular Army: ........................
E
EuroFed
Legion Etrange
ere: ...................
No Mo
orale penaltty for Ambush
No An
nti-Tank allo
owed; No Morale
M
penalty for Ambu
ush
No Po
ower-Armor allowed; frree Mortar stand
s
per platoon
No Po
ower-Armor allowed; +15%
+
To-Hit when in Urban,
Woo
oded, and Jungle terrain
Indonesian Republic:
R
........................... No Po
ower-Armor allowed; +10%
+
To-Hit when in Ju
ungle
terrrain
K
Khallistani
Le
eague: ............................. No Ju
ump Infantry
y allowed; No Morale penalty
p
for
casu
ualties taken;
O
ONESS:
............................................. One free
f
Power-A
Armor stand
d per platoo
on
P
Pacific
Federration: ............................... One free
f
Medic per
p platoon
S
South
African Commonw
wealth: .............. All inffantry are trreated as Dragoons
N
Neo-Soviet
R
Regular
Arm
my: .................... +20%
% to hit whe
en attacking en masse (four
(
or more
stan
nds attackin
ng same targ
get)
N
Neo-Soviet
P
Peasant
Infa
antry: ................ Double Morale pe
enalties for casualties taken; may
y force a
succ
cessful Mora
ale roll by sacrificing on
ne stand
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Infantry
Salvo Rockets
Salvo rockets are unguided rockets fired
in large batches, such as WWII-era
Calliopes or modern Hydra-70 rockets.
Salvo rockets also have a Class rating, as
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COMBAT ENGINEERING
In IC2103, combat engineers, also known
as sappers, have two main functions:
mobility and counter-mobility.
Mobility (MOB) consists of bridging rivers
and gaps, breaching obstacles, and
reducing terrain features to a point where
maneuver units can traverse them.
Emplacement
Engineer units may emplace an obstacle
by taking a Static order. They do not
receive the normal defensive bonus since
they are standing out in the open, laying
out mines and wire, blowing cratering
charges, etc. They may not make any
attacks, although they may defend
themselves against aircraft as per any
other unit. At the end of the turn, the
player may place an obstacle marker
adjacent to the unit. An engineer unit
may move out of its obstacle's effective
zone, but may not move back into or
through the obstacle without breaching it.
Counter-Mobility
Anti-tank obstacles, consisting mostly of
minefields, concertina wire, dragon's
teeth, and ditches, should have one of two
effects: an effect on mobility or a lethal
effect. For simplicity of the discussion,
we'll just call those "M-Type" (for
mobility) and "L-Type" (for lethal).
M-Type Obstacles
When a ground vehicle encounters an MType obstacle, it stops and rolls a single
d10, then doubles it; the result is how
many 10% increments its speed is
reduced by during that turn.
Example:
A Zhu De platoon moves
60mm up a road, where it encounters an
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Combat Engineering
L-Type Obstacles
For an L-Type obstacle, there is no
movement penalty, but the unit moving
into its radius must stop while the
opposing player rolls a single attack on
the unit, at %/PEN of 60/20. For each
10mm the unit travels through the L-Type
obstacle's zone of effect, the unit must
suffer another attack, until it either
withdraws or is destroyed completely.
Withdrawal from a minefield may be
accomplished by moving directly back the
way the unit came at no danger to itself;
exiting it any other direction will subject it
to more attack rolls.
Demolitions
An engineer unit may destroy a bridge by
sitting adjacent to it for a full turn while
on a Static order. This represents the
time it takes to place demolitions or use
breaching guns to destroy enough of the
span to prevent enemy units from
crossing it without special equipment.
Mobility
An engineer unit that is breaching,
bridging, or clearing may defend itself
against Aircraft as would any other unit.
Breaching
A combat engineer (or "sapper") unit that
enters the effective zone of an obstacle
marker may choose to breach the
obstacle.
This requires a Cautious
Advance order, and the sapper unit stops
moving at the nearest edge of the
obstacle's effective zone. If it is an LType obstacle, then the opposing player
gets one attack on the sapper unit at the
normal 60/20 attack value.
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Combat Engineering
they may
y have had left. They also do nott
receive the
t
defense
e bonus norrmally given
n
with Cau
utious Adv
vance orde
ers, as they
y
are standing right out
o in the op
pen as they
y
attempt to breach th
he obstacle!
The brea
ach is automatic and reduces
r
the
e
effective radius of the
t
obstacle
e marker by
y
1d10 x 5mm (millimeters, no
ot percent)..
So, if the
e d10 roll is
s 8 or greate
er, then the
e
obstacle marker is removed entirely;;
otherwis
se, it is redu
uced by thatt amount. A
die or small
s
chit can
c
be plac
ced on the
e
obstacle marker sho
owing the ne
ew effective
e
zone.
An engineer un
nit may mo
ove into Wo
oods,
Jung
gle, or Urban
U
terrrain while on
Cau
utious Adva
ance orders
s and clear away
a
brus
sh, trees, debris,
d
and
d rubble. After
mov
ving into th
he terrain, the unit must
stop
p, and then may roll a single die,
perm
manently re
educing both
h the movement
pena
alty and defensive bonus of that
Or, while
terra
ain feature
e by 1d10%.
w
already on terrrain of this
s type, the unit
may
y reduce the
t
terrain''s modifiers
s by
2d10% by takin
ng a Static order.
Example
e: A Zhu De
e platoon moves
m
into a
minefield
d and lose
es a tank..
On the
e
players next turn, he issues a Cautious
s
Advance
e order to a sapper platoon
p
and
d
then mo
oves them up
u to the ne
earest edge
e
of the minefield (40
0mm from th
he center off
the marrker). They
y execute the
t
breach,,
and the player rolls a d10. He rolls a 5, so
o
the effe
ective radius of the minefield
m
is
s
reduced to 15mm from
f
the ce
enter of the
e
L-Type marker
m
(40m
mm minus 25mm).
2
He
e
places a small ha
and-written chit with
h
"15mm" on it to
o show th
he reduced
d
effective zone.
Bridging
Bridging requires an engine
eer unit to
o
move to the edge of
o a river or gap. Theirr
order the next turn
n must be Static,
S
and
d
during this time they may nott make any
y
attacks, and neithe
er do they receive the
e
normal defense bo
onus for being
b
on a
Static order.
o
Afterr one full tu
urn spent in
n
this posiition on a Static
S
orde
er, you may
y
place a Bridge marker across the river orr
gap, sho
owing that units may now move
e
normally
y across the
e river or gap
g
at thatt
specific point.
p
Plac
ce a chit on the spot where the
engineer unit was sitting
g, showing the
new
w modifiers in effect fo
or that piec
ce of
terra
ain. The ch
hit covers an area 20m
mm in
radius, so multiple clearing
g efforts ma
ay be
requ
uired to imp
prove a patth through thick
swathes of vege
etation.
An engineer un
nit may exe
ecute this order
o
multiple times
s on the same piec
ce of
grou
und if neces
ssary, so long as it is given
g
the proper orde
ers each turrn.
M67A2 Wolfhound
W
Combat Engineer Vehicle
aken at Jethro Colon
ny, Mars
Photo tak
April 9, 2098
2
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C
Combat
Engineering
SUPERTANKS
A fun theme to play with in sci-fi games is
the concept of the supertank, such as
Keith Laumers BOLOs or Steve Jacksons
O.G.R.E. tanks. These massive constructs
tend to overshadow everything else on the
battlefield.
Infinite repeaters:
Armor 18; %/PEN: 75/18, 60/14, 45/10,
30/4, --/--, --/--; AA factor: 3
Vertical launch missile system:
Armor 18; %/PEN: 80/12, 70/12, 60/12,
50/12, 40/12, 30/12; no AA factor
Composition
A supertank is treated as a single-model
unit within an Iron Cow brigade.
So
rather than multiple tanks moving and
fighting together, the unit is a single
supertank consisting of an equal number
of components as it replaces individuals in
the order of battle. Perhaps, for even
bigger ones, it might even take the place
of an entire tank company!
The CPU
Front drive unit
Rear drive unit
Forward Hellbore battery
Left side infinite repeaters
Right side infinite repeaters
Vertical launch missile system
Air defense system
The Shnlng takes the place of two, fourtank units from a tank platoon in the
CDSU order of battle.
Stats
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Supertanks
Front Drive
Hellbores
Left
Repeaters
CPU
Right
Repeaters
VLMS
Rear Drive
When taking direct fire, the targeted
component must be one of those facing
the firing unit. For instance, if a tank is
shooting at the Shnlng from the
supertank's right-front quarter, then the
tank may target the Front Drive, the
Hellbores, or the Right Infinite Repeaters.
If the Hellbores or Right Infinite Repeaters
are already destroyed, then the firing tank
may target the CPU.
Firing
Weapons components may only fire in a
180 arc in their facing (Front, Left, Right,
Rear), unless the component in question
is a missile system, such as on the
Shnlng above. Then it may fire on any
arc.
Because of the stability of the supertank,
its weapons always fire as if it were
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Supertanks
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Uncon
nventional Weapons
UNCONVENTIONAL WEAPONS
Just to add more variety and flavor, here
are a few ideas for unconventional
weapons for the Iron Cow battlefield.
Nanite Clouds
Note: I've taken some inspiration for this
from Ian Douglas's Inheritance trilogy as
well as other sources.
Nanite disassemblers ("Nano-D") are
microscopic, semi-independent robots that
attack targets at the atomic level,
breaking the bonds between molecules in
order to reduce the affected materiel to a
simple grey sludge.
Chemical Weapons
Chemical weapons can be delivered by
artillery or aircraft. A unit firing chemical
weapons at a target does so using the
small artillery barrage template.
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Unconventional Weapons
Neutron Artillery
Essentially the same as for tac nukes
above, except that there is no thermal or
overpressure
damage,
so
buildings,
vehicles, trees, etc., under the blast
template continue to exist and don't catch
fire.
Tactical Nukes
Nukes are hard to incorporate into many
games because of their vastly-outsized,
apocalyptic effects. However, here's one
possible way for integrating low-level,
"tactical" nukes into Iron Cow. Examples
of tactical nukes would include manpack
suicide bombs, US Army M110 nuclear
artillery batteries, "Honest John" light
atomic rockets, etc.
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Unconventional Weapons
%/PEN:
75/15, 60/12, 45/8, 60/5, --/--, --/--;
AA factor: None
The suicide attack is essentially an
onboard PETN shaped charge designed to
detonate at close range. The UGV must
be in base-to-base contact to make an
attack, which has a %/PEN of 80/20. A
failed attack still means that the UGV is
destroyed, as it has blown itself up trying
to kill its target!
Shield Generators
This is a concept I have been working on
for my own homebrew 6mm sci-fi rules.
The shields would be represented by the
clear plastic domes of "toy capsules" or
"vending machine bubbles" such as this,
placed over the miniature:
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Unconventional Weapons
LOOKING FORWARD
These are only a few possible ideas for adding spice and variety to your games of Iron Cow
2103AD, and I encourage you to develop your own ideas and house rules. And if you come
up with some you really like, feel free to bring them to the Brigade Models forums and share
them with the rest of us!
Thanks for reading!
Andreas Udby
a.k.a. javelin98
June, 2010
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Looking Forward