Box Contents

The Forward to Berlin! Soviet Army 1943-45 Starter Army is a mix of plastic, metal and resin models containing:

• x7 Soviet Army Infantry sprues (42 Infantry) – Plastic
• Soviet Infantry Officer – Resin
• x2 Soviet Army MMG Teams – Resin crew with metal gun
• Soviet Army Medium Mortar Team – Resin crew with metal gun
• ZiS-3 76mm Divisional Gun – Metal
• Katyusha – Plastic
• T-34/85 Medium Tank – Plastic

The Scouts Out! 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.

For Bolt Action Third Edition, a new Armies of book means new Starter Armies. We’ve already had some great releases for Germany, the US and Great Britain – now it’s time to breakdown what the Soviets have to offer. There are two Soviet Starter Armies that include the new plastic Soviet Army Infantry – we’ve already covered Red Star Rising. Now it’s time for a Late War Army List using Forward to Berlin! This 1,250pt Army List contains four Platoons, 15 Order Dice, and is all about forward-deploying, SMG-armed Vets.

Although the rules for Scout Squads have been updated to align with the other Armies of books and full armies of Infiltrators are no longer possible, there is a lot you can do with forward deploying shenanigans. We have one squad of four Scouts with SMGs, a Sniper Team, and two three-man Tank Hunter AT Teams with SMGs and a Panzerfaust; all with Infiltrator. That’s 12 Vet infantry spread across four squads. Nine of them have SMGs and two have Panzerfausts. These four units will be more than enough to take early board control and force your opponent into a position they do not want to be in. The two Tank Hunters AT Teams can forward deploy with your Scouts. They are small squads, only three men each, but with a Panzerfaust in each they make a perfect speed bump for any enemy vehicles that were considering flying up the table on Turn 1. One squad has three SMGs, the other two. Any enemy Infantry around below six models will have to think twice before closing within SMG range. Effective use of cover is critical for your Infiltrators to be effective. That Infiltrator +1 Cover Save brings Hard Cover to a whopping 3+ save without having to go Down. And don’t forget Tough Tank Hunters – in a desperate situation you can assault enemy armor and stand a real chance to deal damage. That three-man Tank Hunter Squad has six swings against vehicles in close quarters.

For immediate support we have a squad of six Scouts, again all with SMGs. They don’t have Infiltrator (you are limited to one Infiltrator Scout Squad per Platoon), but they do have Scouts Lead the Way. This new unit special rule gives the Scouts the ability to make one full Run move before the start of Turn 1. You could use this to bring these Scouts into direct support of the ones already deployed or even use it as a way to “re-deploy” the unit after seeing where your enemy is coming from. Farther back will be your Platoon Commander and Veterans Squad. Both of these units are also 100% SMGs and want to get up into the fight as quickly as possible.

Supporting your Scouts, SMG Vets and PC Squad is the Heavy Weapons Platoon led by a lone PC with a pistol (use the resin model). This Platoon packs two MMG Teams (both with Gun Shields) and a Medium Mortar Team with a Spotter. The MMGs can put down serious suppressive fire. Use them to block lanes of enemy advance with your Scouts and AT Hunters to force the enemy into the open. You want to create a web of coverage between these MMGs and all your forward-deployed SMGs. The Med. Mortar can let loose on any enemy fixed weapons. The Mortar Spotter can also forward-deploy giving you an additional asset to control the board early and take space.

And now for your AT. You have a single, but powerful, ZiS-3 Divisional Gun. It’s a Medium AT Gun that can also fire indirectly as a Light Howitzer thanks to its Versatile special rule. Combined with the Mortar, these two indirect fire assets can be a real pain for your opponent. Especially as the ZiS-3 is also an AT asset that cannot be ignored. The +5 Pen it brings is threatening to even Heavy armor.

Supplementing both the AT and indirect fire of the Heavy Weapons and Artillery Platoon are the two vehicles in the Armored Platoon. First is the venerable T-34/85 as our Command Vehicle. We’ve gone with the No Radios option to save 10pts and reduce the +1 Morale range to 6″. The Heavy AT Gun on the T-34 is your primary method to remove any enemy armor. Your have a great base of fire in this list, let the T-34 go and hunt enemy vehicles. If the Tank Hunter AT Teams have been deployed well, you’ll be able to trap enemy vehicles between the T-34 and the Panzerfausts. And that brings us to the Katyusha. The final piece of the puzzle. The Multiple Rocket Launcher is often feast or famine. But even when it’s not hitting, the threat alone forces your opponent to play differently. They will be hesitant to bunch up and concentrate their forces. The Katy will force them to move before they are ready. Quick note, you can only use the Spotter from the Med. Mortar for the Katy – just not in the same turn as the Mortar.

As for modeling, you’ve got enough capes for all the Infiltrators if you want. There are 14 capes in the box, 2 per sprue and I think they are a great way to denote your Scouts, Tank Hunters and Sniper Team. For some reason the metal ZiS-3 only includes models for three crew. The unit has four crew so you’ll need to either build a fourth crew from the plastic Soviet Army Infantry or use one of the Katyusha crewmen. No trouble either way, just wanted to call it out. The list only uses 32 of the 42 plastic infantry so you’ll have plenty of spares.

There you have it! A mixed Vet and Reg force packed with SMGs and Infiltrator units. What it lacks in Armored support it makes up for in volume of small arms fire. You may struggle against enemy Heavy Armor and Light Armor spam but against enemy infantry? Like an Airborne list? You are ready to absolutely shred.

What’s Next?

Thoughts and musings on where to go from here:

• More Armor – You know what’s better than a T-34? Two T-34s. Or three. Or maybe even four Tractor Factory T-34s … In all seriousness, a single Med. Tank is often easily overwhelmed. At a minimum you’ll want a wing-man to support – this is a role the Katy does not fulfil.
• Transports – I love the idea behind the multiple units of forward-deployers and Infiltrators. But there is a big weakness, getting caught out alone and swarmed. You need to get support up to your Scouts as quick as possible. A truck or two loaded with Veterans or even Regs would do the truck. I’m thinking a pair or Trucks or Lend-Lease M3 White Scout Cars to zip up the table and reinforce your recon elements.
• Reg Infantry – This list may have 15 Order Dice but there really are not many infantry. Swapping out Scouts for big squads of Regs with Rifles and an LMG or two is a valid route to take if you want to run a less MSU list.

– Andrew