TEXT: Over the Channel, Across the Desert:
  PL Commonwealth 7 & 8
  By Byron Henderson
  The units included on the
  PL Commonwealth 7 and
  8, coupled with the earlier
  German 
  and 
  Italian
  counter 
  sheets, 
  allow
  Panzer Leader players to
  recreate the battles of the
  North African theatre.
  These two counter sheets
  fill a substantial void in the
  Commonwealth counters
  covering the middle part of the war,
  1941 through 1943. Here you will find
  additional engineer AFVs, infantry and
  artillery counters, and a variety of tank
  types proposed for use by the countries
  of the United Kingdom before the
  Sherman-spewing factories of the
  United States made them unnecessary.
  Also included are three proposed
  corrections to the Ramiro Cruz 1940
  B.E.F. counters that are necessary to
  allow a coherent AFV transition from
  1940 through to 1945 for Common-
  wealth forces within the Panzer Leader
  game system.
  Recognition should be given to all
  those involved in the making of this
  counter sheet: Carl Schwamberger,
  Derek Quintanar, Glen Coomber, Chris
  Fawcett, Doug Swanson, Steven Bucey,
  and Richard Borenstein all
  contributed 
  valuable
  information and debate
  that shaped the counter
  factors. No less influential
  were the articles by Alan
  Arvold on the original
  PanzerBlitz and Panzer
  Leader counter ratings,
  which provide the basis for
  the counter factors. Many
  thanks to all involved and I apologize if
  I have neglected to mention anyone
  else who contributed.
  The following is an explanation of the
  new counters and notes on their
  background and inclusion in the game.
  Infantry and Artillery
  Out of all the nations represented in
  the PanzerBlitz/Panzer Leader game
  system, the Commonwealth of Nations
  arguably contributed the largest variety
  of combatants to World War II yet they
  possess the fewest infantry types in the
  game. Even with the addition of
  airborne troops and commandos, there
  is less variety in the Commonwealth
  infantry counter mix than that of any
  other major power. To redress this
  
  PL Commonwealth 7 & 8
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  Imaginative Strategist, 5 February 2007
  issue somewhat, the new counter sheets
  include a number of stronger infantry
  (2 I 2*/8—1) for Commonwealth
  forces. These are designed to allow for
  the inclusion of elite (or perhaps just
  “better”) infantry, such as the New
  Zealand and Maori troops, which were
  held in high regard by all armies
  during the North African conflict.
  The short 25-pounder artillery piece
  (18 
  (H) 
  25/2—0) was used by
  Commonwealth forces in two gun
  sections. It was airdropped into difficult
  terrain and used as support artillery.
  The Canadian Land Mattress (25 (H)
  2 5 / 1 — 0 ) was a multiple rocket
  launcher possessing 32 tubes armed
  with light (76.2mm) rockets. While the
  smaller rockets are somewhat limiting,
  the saturation they achieve make this
  unit a very effective artillery piece,
  although not on par with the heavier
  rocket artillery produced by the
  Germans and Russians.
  The Bishop (35 (H) 18/6—6) was
  Britain’s first attempt at producing a
  self propelled artillery vehicle (SPA).
  Unfortunately, its role on the battlefield
  was not clearly defined during the
  planning stages; the tank enthusiasts
  wanted a heavy assault gun and the
  artillery enthusiasts desired a self-
  propelled artillery carriage. The art-
  illery group eventually won out, but the
  large fixed-box turret — a result of the
  assault gun school of thinking — limited
  the Bishop’s effectiveness as an artillery
  piece. Mounted upon a Valentine
  chassis, the gun had limited range (less
  than half that of the towed 25-
  pounder), resulting in the need to build
  earthen ramps beneath the vehicle to
  give it proper elevation for effective
  indirect fire.
  Reconnaissance Vehicles and
  Engineer AFVs
  Two armored cars are included in the
  counter sheets: the Lanchester Mk II (2
  I 2/2—8) and the Rolls Royce armored
  car (2 A 1/2—10). Both are early war
  units used primarily in the Far East but
  are included here for completeness as
  a very few of these vehicles made their
  way into early part of the North
  African conflict. Both armored cars
  move as trucks.
  
  PL Commonwealth 7 & 8
  3
  Imaginative Strategist, 5 February 2007
  The Australian-adapted LP Carrier (2 A
  1/2—10), like the Rolls Royce armored
  car, was armed with an antitank Rifle.
  Even though they are rated with an
  “A” class weapon type, the Rolls Royce
  armored car and the LP Carrier may
  only overrun non-armored vehicles.
  Those gamers who wish to add their
  own rule allowing multiple LP Carriers
  to gang up on the occasional Tiger
  tank should be warned that the attack
  factor is never doubled in the game;
  “2” is as good as it gets.
  Several engineer or specialty AFV are
  included in the counters. The Churchill
  bridge counter (0 – 0/11—5) should be
  self-explanatory. The Churchill Carpet
  Layer (0 – 0/11—5) unrolled a
  “Hessian carpet” reinforced with steel
  tubes over soft ground or barbed wire
  to make the terrain more accessible to
  vehicles. The game currently provides
  little opportunity for its use, however
  Doug Swanson has produced several
  desert maps that include “soft sand” as
  a terrain feature where these units
  could be used. In addition, scenarios
  covering the Normandy landings could
  also include “soft” beach terrain or
  improved positions which these units
  may be useful in overcoming. The
  standard 
  engineering 
  rules 
  for
  removing blocks should adequately
  reflect these vehicles’ ability to overlay
  difficult terrain or light defensive
  impediments.
  Two early-war Matilda specialty
  vehicles, the Baron bulldozer tank (6 A
  3/8—5) and the flame-throwing Frog
  (40 H 1/8—5) are also included.
  (Notes on the reduced defense factor
  for the Matilda tanks are included
  below). These were Australian variants
  of the British Matilda tank, used in the
  Far East.
  The light Mark VIb reconnaissance tank
  (2 I 2/2—11) appears to be the
  recipient of the tactical modifier given
  by Ramiro Cruz to the early war
  German tanks. I reduced its defensive
  value to 2, which is what it should be
  based upon its armor thickness (only
  15mm). This also allows it to fit well
  within the developmental progression
  of British tank design within the game.
  British tanks
  During 1940—1943, British designers,
  incapable of grasping what was really
  happening on the battlefields of
  Europe, continued to produce both
  “infantry” and “cruiser” tank types. The
  Matilda infantry tank (6 A 3/8—5) is a
  correction to the original Cruz counter
  for Panzer Leader 1940. The Matilda
  never possessed more than 78mm of
  armor and any appreciable slope that
  
  PL Commonwealth 7 & 8
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  Imaginative Strategist, 5 February 2007
  would 
  improve 
  its
  defensive performance
  was more than offset
  by its slow speed. With
  this in mind, I lowered
  the defense factor of
  the Matilda to 8, which
  fits in nicely with the
  existing tanks in the
  game: the Italians still
  cannot touch it, but the
  better German tanks
  (primarily the Mark III)
  can penetrate its armor if they close
  with it. Due to the danger inherent in
  this maneuver, expect the Axis to rely
  on their antitank guns to challenge the
  reputed “Queen of the Battlefield.”
  The A-13 Mark IV cruiser tank (6 A
  3/3—10) is another correction to an
  earlier Cruz counter. As the tank only
  had 30mm of armor, Cruz apparently
  decided to give it the same tactical
  modifier (doubling the defense factor)
  as he gave the 1940 German tanks.
  There can be no doubt that the British
  record in effective tactical use of their
  tanks was spotty at best during the
  early and middle years of WWII, so
  that adding a modifier based upon
  tactical expertise seems ludicrous. In
  addition, by doubling the armor
  defense factor, the A-13 would be
  rated in the game as a better tank than
  the AFV that took its place (the
  Crusader)! For these reasons, I found it
  necessary to remove the modifier and
  rate the tank’s defense factor only on
  its armor thickness.
  Some people may argue that the
  problem of the higher defense factor
  for the A-13 can easily be solved
  simply by applying the
  same modifier to the
  Crusader tanks and
  hence doubling their
  defense factor to 8.
  There are two reasons
  for not following this
  line of thought: First,
  the late-war Crusader
  tanks, already rated by
  Alan Arvold using the
  original 
  Z 
  factor
  PanzerBlitz 
  rating
  system, possess a defense factor of 5.
  To be consistent with the original game
  pieces, we need to keep the defense
  factor for the early Crusader tanks
  consistent with the previously rated
  late-war Crusader variant — this is
  especially necessary as both Crusader
  tank types served together during the
  Alamein battles. Second, the tactical
  modifier that Cruz added disappeared
  from the counter-mix after 1941 (he
  applied it to the early war Russian
  counters 
  as 
  well). 
  Counters
  representing AFVs from 1942 and later
  simply do not include any sort of
  modifier. In addition, the gallant British
  tankers, given their low level of tactical
  training from 1940 to 1943, should not
  receive any bonus.
  
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  Imaginative Strategist, 5 February 2007
  The British Crusader tanks (6 A 3/4—9)
  first made their appearance in late
  1941 during the offensive named in
  their honour, Operation Crusader.
  Although still armed with the 2-pounder
  gun, they were an improvement over
  the A-13 as they possessed more armor
  and still had good speed. Equally
  important, the turret ring was large
  enough to allow for improvement of
  their main armament as larger guns
  became available. By the time of
  Alamein, the majority of the Crusader
  tanks had thicker armor and mounted
  the 6-pounder gun, greatly increasing
  their attack capabilities (9 A 5/5—9).
  The Valentine IX (9 A 5/6—6: the 5-
  tank counter is included in the Russian
  counter sheets; ratings for both were
  supplied by Alan Arvold) also
  appeared at Alamein.
  Both the Matilda (5 H 8/8—5) and
  Crusader tanks (5 H 8/4—9) receive
  their early war close support variants.
  Each was armed with only a 3-inch
  howitzer, roughly akin to the light
  75mm howitzers of other close support
  AFV of the early war period.
  With the inclusion of these tank types in
  the British AFV counters, one can
  logically trace the development of the
  Cruiser tanks from the early A-13
  through the Crusader and finally to the
  existing Cromwell and Comet tanks. A
  similar developmental path from the
  early Matilda, A-11 and A-10 tanks to
  the Valentine and Churchill AFVs is
  easily notable as well. The result is a
  consistency and logic in British AFV
  counter values in the Panzer Leader
  game that could not exist without the
  correction to the original Cruz counters
  of Panzer Leader 1940 fame.
  Lend-Lease tanks
  Two U.S.-supplied AFVs are included in
  the counter sheets: the much-loved
  M3A3 Honey (5 A 5/4—12) and the
  M3 Grant (8 A 8/6—8). 
  When
  comparing the existing British tanks
  (Crusaders and Valentines) to the
  Honey and Grant, it is easy to see how
  
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  Imaginative Strategist, 5 February 2007
  these fairly average AFVs were
  considered such an improvement over
  the existing British AFVs in North
  Africa. Ratings for these tanks were
  provided by Alan Arvold.
  Commonwealth tanks
  Before the U.S. entered the war and
  began openly supplying the Common-
  wealth with more Sherman tanks than
  any country could possibly imagine
  using, several nations experimented
  with producing their own AFVs.
  The Australian AC1 tank — commonly
  known as the Sentinel (6 A 3/5—10) —
  rolled off the production line in August
  of 1942, just 22 months after the
  original specifications for it were
  issued. Although too lightly armed for
  that period of the war (later models
  replaced the 2-pounder gun with the
  17-pounder), the tank was considered
  a success. However, production was
  halted after it was established that the
  U.S. would supply Australia with
  enough Shermans for their needs. The
  66 tanks produced were used for
  training.
  Canada produced a number of
  variants, primarily of the M4 Sherman,
  for use during WWII. Some, like the
  Kangaroo APC (on PL Commonwealth
  3) saw fairly widespread use. Others,
  such as the anti-aircraft armed Skink
  (14 H 10/8—8) or the Grizzly
  (basically a Sherman tank assembled in
  Canada), were cancelled after very
  short production runs. The most
  common Canadian-built tanks were the
  Ram I (6 A 3/8—8) and Ram II (9 A
  5/8—8). Over 1000 were produced
  but their use was limited to either
  training vehicles in Canada and Britain
  or conversion to Kangaroo APCs. Their
  generous quantities on PL Common-
  wealth 8 are meant to make up for the
  immense but self-effacing contribution
  of the nation that produced them.
  © Byron Henderson
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Panzer Leader & Panzer Blitz/Imaginative Strategist - Panzer Leader/Factors Commonwealth 7-8.pdf