Box Contents

The Ayo Gorkhali! – Gurkha Starter Army is an Indian Starter Army containing:

• x6 British & Canadian Army Infantry (1943-45) sprues (36 Infantry) – Plastic
• x2 British Heavy Weapons sprues (x2 MMGs, x2 Med. Mortars, x2 Heavy Mortars) – Plastic
• x12 British & Canadian Heavy Weapons crew – Resin
• x1 6-pdr Medium AT Gun – Plastic
• Cromwell Tank – Plastic
• Humber Armored Car – Plastic

The Guards Armored Division List

Breakdown

(x) denotes a vehicle-mounted weapon.

Notes and Analysis

The objective of this list is two-part: 1) use as much of the Starter Army as possible, and 2) make a List that works at a competitive level. Please keep in mind, this List was written using only the contents of the Starter Army.

More plastic Heavy Weapons and Artillery have kicked off a series of new Starter Armies – Cross of Iron for Germany, Stars and Stripes for the US, and next up, For King and Country. Built with the core British & Canadian Army Infantry (1943-45) plastic kit, this Starter Army is perfect for a Late-War British or Canadian force. And now, with Armies of the British Commonwealth, Canada has their own Army List unique from the Brits. That being said, I think the British & Canadian Army Infantry (Winter) kit is a better fit for the new Canadians because the sprue includes a Flamethrower. So, we will return to Canada another time – right now, it’s all England – specifically, Guards.

This 1,250pt Army List uses every model in the box and uses For King & Country (Guards) extensively. And by “extensively,” I mean every unit that can have Guards, has Guards. A quick reminder: For King & Country (Guards) provides Iron Discipline to any Reg or Vet unit that pays the +1pt per model price, and with Iron Discipline, the unit removes two Pins instead of the usual 1 whenever it passes an Order Test. As far as unit special rules go, this one is awfully strong. A shame we cannot give Iron Discipline to the Cromwell Tank and Humber AC as well.

Let’s touch on the relevant Army Special Rules for this list. We’ve included a Forward Artillery Observer who can use Artillery Support to roll two dice and pick the highest when using the Artillery Barrage Table – not bad at all when you need that Arty strike to arrive on time. Don’t overlook Fix Bayonets!, especially on the defensive. Extra swings in CQ while holding onto objectives can swing the game. Before accounting for casualties, each of your three Rifle Sections will have 10 attacks in CQ, and each of the Platoon Commander squads will have an extra swing – a powerful upgrade when combined with Tough Fighter. And finally, Come on, lads! Combined with Guards, it will all but ensure your troops keep moving and follow orders. The +3 Morale from each of the three PCs is crazy powerful. But you need to keep them out of harm’s way; the -1 Cover Save can be brutal.

The Rifle Platoon is three Rifle Sections of Guards, a Light Mortar Team, a PIAT Team, a Forward Artillery Observer, and an SMG-toting Platoon Commander with four buddies (all also with SMGs). Starting with the core infantry, you have three identical Rifle Sections to get the job done. They have eight men each, but are only Regs. There is an LMG in each one (mostly because I ran out of models and needed to spend points) that will help toss out Pins at range during the initial turns. Although they are only Reg, they are all Guards, so Pins shouldn’t be much of an issue. Especially if you keep a PC within 6″ for that insane +3 Morale. Don’t be too aggressive with these three units. You need them alive in the closing stages of the game to take and hold objectives. Will have plenty of fire support with your Weapons Teams and Heavy Weapons Platoon; don’t rush. The PIAT can play sneaky against enemy vehicles. It’s not your primary AT – the Cromwell and 6-pdr are. Use it to keep enemy AFVs at bay. The Light Mortar is perfect to advance up with the Rifle Sections to toss 1″ HE overhead.

Now for the specialists: Artillery Observer and Platoon Commander. With the extra indirect punch from the pair of Heavy Mortars, a well-placed Artillery Barrage has the chance to lock down significant enemy units. The extra Pins from the Barrage might be all you need to halt units and open them up to serious hurt from the Heavy Mortar 3″ HE. You’ll notice there is only one Mortar with a Spotter. That is a conscious choice; the other Mortar can use the FAO as their dedicated Spotter. We also have a pair of SMGs on the FAO if you want to play around with a more aggressive deployment. The Platoon Commander for the Rifle Platoon, and the one from the Heavy Weapons Platoon, are both boosted with extra men and SMGs. The British Army Lists can struggle to get close-range firepower, and tossing SMGs onto your PCs is an option that is always available. However, you need to keep these PC Squads out of the enemy’s line of sight until they are able to close the distance and strike. It’s just a squad of five and a squad of four Regular Infantry, and they both have -1 to their Cover Save because of Come on lads! Best keep their heads down.

We’ve started to discuss the Heavy Weapons Platoon and the pair of Heavy Mortars and the up-gunned Platoon Commander – all Guards. One Heavy Mortar has a Spotter; the other can use the Forward Artillery Observer. Deploy both of them behind a building, woods, or ruins to keep them hidden. You won’t need to babysit them with a Platoon Commander, so let’s use the PC as another attacking unit to advance with the Rifle Sections and Rifle Platoon PC. You’ll have two Moral +3 SMG Squads to play with. Unlike previous Starter Army with pre-determined resin or metal heavy weapon kits that don’t allow for any build options, this Starter Army comes with two plastic Heavy Weapons sprues and 16 plastic crew, giving you a host of options. I went with two Heavy Mortars as this is a plastic option unique to the Brits (as of the time of writing), but you could go for MMGs or Med. Mortars as preferred. The Heavies are a more expensive choice, but when they land? Devastating. 3″ HE is a bad time. As we only have the three Reg Rifle Sections, I wanted to build a deadly base of fire.

Speaking of, the plastic 6-pdr in the Artillery Platoon adds just a bit of extra AT punch. Static AT gets a bad wrap, but when you have the option to bring one, in plastic, in your Starter Army, you gotta bring it. Plus, a Medium AT Gun on Ambush can block an entire lane of advance. Paired with the Medium AT Gun on the Cromwell, this list has some solid AT. Plus, we cannot forget the PIAT! Never forget the PIAT. As with everything else in the list, the 6-pdr and the solo PC are Guards. Even if the 6-pdr takes some fire, Guards and the PC will make sure it won’t have any trouble returning fire.

Rounding out the list is the Armored Platoon. Both of the included AFVs are solid. The Cromwell has both Improved HE (can fire a 2″ HE or +5 AP) and Fast, making it a versatile tank. Except for road movement, the Cromwell is just as quick as the Humber. Keep this in mind as it makes it much easier for the two vehicles to work in tandem and support each other. Use the Cromwell to shield the Humber and play around with Recce to keep the Humber out of the line of fire. You can also use the Humber to bait enemy vehicles out into the Cromwell’s LoS with its escape move. The Humber’s Light Autocannon is a fantastic weapon, especially against Infantry and Artillery. Not even Vets want to take hits from multiple 1″ HE templates. I like the Med. AT on the Cromwell to give this list redundant AT – Med. ATG on the tank, static Med. ATG, PIAT – but you also have the option to go with a Cromwell CS for +5pts and swap the Med. AT for a Med. Howitzer. Not a bad option at all! But, at 1,250pts, I’d be worried with only a PIAT and Medium ATG to deal with enemy tanks. If you go with the CS, be sure to add some additional AT. Adding a PIAT Team to the Heavy Weapons Platoon is an option.

Let’s talk models. This list uses every single model in the box. All 36 plastic infantry and all 16 plastic crew. Play around with your builds. You have both the Infantry sprue and the Crew sprue to make your Spotters, FAO, and Officers. Mix and match the Infantry with the Crew to add variety to your Weapons Teams and Artillery crew. Having all your crew in plastic is a huge boon to anyone looking to try a few conversions.

What’s Next?

Thoughts and musings on where to go from here:

• Add Transports – The British Officer Army Special Rules Come on lads! is extremely powerful when used effectively. But it also leaves your PCs very exposed. One way to mitigate the -1 Cover Save is to toss your PC into a Transport. Any Soft-skin will work, but an Open-topped Armored option is better. I’m partial to the M3 White Scout Car with the pintle HMG myself, but even the humble Bren Carrier will do the job just fine. Once aboard, the PC still projects their 6″ +3 Morale Bonus, but now they are kept safe and secure within an Armor 7 shell.
• Get some Specialists – I’m a fan of the British & Canadian Army Infantry kit. It’s a great sprue with a lot of options. But it’s not great for building specialist units. To bring some serious CQ punch and/or Vickers K covering fire of the Commandos or SAS to the table, you need to grab one of their kits. Warlord has great Commando options in both plastic and metal, and Wargames Atlantic also has a lovely Commando/SAS option. If the Guards are not giving you enough oomph, consider a Commando Subsection.
• Change up the Heavy Weapons – The plastic Heavy Weapons sprues give you all the options you could hope for. Drop the Heavy Mortars for MMGs. Or add to Medium Mortars along with two MMGs! You’ve got options; build what will support your force the most effectively. We are in a brave new world of plastic weapons teams. It was a long time coming, and I couldn’t be happier.

– Andrew

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