The Commander Series Forum

We used the above for the first time and decided that the rules as they stand; treating helicopters as airplanes, are a bit of a disapointment. You may as well use airplanes.

So ... seeing as in every army helicopters are always under army command rather than the air force, we instead use helicopters as flying vehicles using the following rules;

First off the air superiority rule still applies (possible interdiction on the way to the front line).

They start off table and must be requested by the C-in-C or a HQ command. They cannot be scheduled.

When on-table helicopters may be ordered to either move, fire or perform a pop-up attack by the C-in-C or HQ, as normal, but cannot form part of a formation with non-helicopter units. Ignore the range modifier.

A helicopter’s move is unlimited. It can include nape of the earth flying counting as below high area terrain or smoke.

Helicopters can use opportunity fire and can be attacked by enemy opportunity fire.

Helicopters attack as if a vehicle (not by using a template) including only one ATGW attack per turn and only using one weapon type per action.

Helicopters take hits and suppression as normal.

Pop-Up Attack
A pop-up attack from behind terrain or smoke is one action and consists of rising, firing, and then dropping down again. Enemy opportunity fire is performed before the helicopter fires. Note that as per the rules, a pop-up attack suffers a -1 penalty both for the attack and for enemy attacks.

Sounds good. I don't like these "fast-burner-like" helos myself. Does not really capture the helicoper support feeling, i think...

Do you use the same point costs as in the original rules?

Greetings,
Michael

I tried these house rules for helicopter and they work well but we made some minor modifications. First, we had the helicopter move at 100 instead of unlimited. The person moving the helicopter had to show the helicopter's flight path giving AA units the ability to opportunity fire at any helicopter that flew over an obstacle giving the AA unit line of site to the chopper. For instances if the helicopter flew around the back side of a forest which was blocking the enemy AA LOS then there was no opportunity fire but if the helicopter flew over the woods, thereby giving the AA unit line of sight then opportunity fire could occur. Secondly, we limited the ATGW weapons that a helicopter could fire in a game to what that type would normally carry.

These modifications made helicopters very deadly but not invincible and required the player to really think about how they were deployed and maneuvered in the game.

Cheers

Gary

Yeah, unlimited Movement is way too much - and makes them more like a Recon unit.
I think you also need to show the Movement path for each Move to allow for clear Op Fire calculations.
If they are to be made to be a bit more like Vehicles then make them exactly like Vehicles, but with of course a lot more Move.

Making them EXACTLY like vehicles would mean being commanded as many times as an order is passed (though of course 1 missile attack though still - or whatever Missile rules is used). So, making the Movement say 60-90cm, treble a tanks move, which is about right, for stop start chopper movement. This would allow an Attack Helicopter to cross the table if it concentrated on flying only, perform a missile attack and scoot off (like it may) or get stuck in with rockets and guns in Apocalypse Now mode, etc.

The problem would be command distances, so just make Attack Helicopters independent (like in FWC), this would make them worth their points

I think this would lead to much better games as helicopters would be (as they would) a common integral part of a cold war battlefield, and not overlooked as an underpar and therefore rarely used sub-standard aircraft. For example, a Fulda Gap 80s type game should have swarms of Mi-24s, Mi-8s swooping over their T-72/BMP comrades heading west, and/or Apaches and Lynxes sniping from deep forests at a maelstrom of unyielding armour.

A similar thing could be done with Assault/Transport Helicopters like Hueys in a Vietnam game, or Hinds in an Afghan game, whereby these flying IFV type vehicles move in a group with a command (much like a tank/IFV formation) but "Deploy" their troops and "Move" away and/or "Fire" in support. I would attach an HQ to such formations though (at the normal pricing).

So in essence, treating helicopters as normal vehicles (but of course harder to hit by none-AA as normal), with a 60-90cm Move (3 times a normal tanks Move):

- Attack Helicopters (ATGW)
e.g. Apache, Hokum, etc.
designated Tank Hunters = Independent

- Assault Helicopters (IFV)
e.g. armed Hueys, Hinds, MG Blackhawks, etc
Commanded. Similar to IFV Vehicles

- Transport Helicopters (Transport)
Chinook, Hook/Hips, etc.
Commanded. Similar to APCs, Trucks.

- Recon/FAO/FAC, etc
e.g. Kiowas, Gazelle, etc
Could act as required unit.

- HQ Helicopters (Command)
HQ/Chopper stand. May carry/deploy 1 ground type HQ
Commands as per normal HQ but with increased Helicopter Move

I will be using something similar to the opening poster, but with these added tweaks in our games. It obviously needs a bit more thought, but adding something along these lines would make helicopters more realistic. Choppers are a really fun element that goes a bit missing in CWC, adding something like this in CWC2 would enhance the game, getting our dusty helicopters out of their boxes and opening up a few more tactical thoughts and scenarios. Not to mention being great fun.

I love these revisions