Spontaneous column leaving difficult

[foxgom]

Hi

If a long spontaneous column of ordinary warband leaves a wood, does it break up into several shorter columns?

i.e., when the head of the column approaches the edge of the wood from the inside, the first elements can make full 160p move into the open.
The elements further to the rear can still only move 80p.

The question came up at Britcon and I did not want to waste time on it.
I think the column breaks up but my opponent argued (page 30, 2nd paragraph) "impetuous troops must davance..in columns if they can....." and thus the elements at the front are "braked" by the elements further back, which seemed non-intuitive to me.
If I follow this argument for crossing a river, the result would seem even stranger.

neil

[Barritus]

I think I agree with you.

The words "if they can" mean that obviously sometimes they can't. In any case, I don't see a problem with two columns being formed out of one original column - it certainly doesn't violate the wording of the relevant rule.

[Orcoteuthis]

I also incline to think the column should be broken up in this circumstance. Impetuous columns are supposed to hold together not because the guys in front wait for the rear ranks, but because the latter do their darndest to keep up. It seems within the spirit of the rules they may fail in this circumstance.

[LawrenceG1]

"The maximum move of each element of a group is that of the group’s slowest element."

So if the back of the column has to move at DGo speed, all of its elements do.

If you allow columns to break up into separate columns, what is to stop a column of 6 LH(S) in the open splitting up into three columns to attack one enemy and get 2 overlaps?

You would also have the odd situation where if only the front element could reach the good going it would be held back by the others, but if two could reach then they wouldn't (except they would be held back if it was a column of 3).


Lawrence Greaves

[foxgom]

"If you allow columns to break up into separate columns, what is to stop a column of 6 LH(S) in the open splitting up into three columns to attack one enemy and get 2 overlaps?"


The difference is, that 6 LH in the open all have the same move distance.

If a long column of warband leaves a wood then, say, the first 4 elements could move 160p and are in column in the open
The remainer move only 80p, remain in the wood and are also in column, it´s just a second column.
So all of the impetuous troops have moved in column(s).

I find it a strange concept that impetuous troops should wait for troops further behind; it´s not what I see on the motorway when the cars exit the roadworks (,-)
("slow down dear, we´re leaving those poor people behind...")

I even had a look online for videos of troops wading but found very little:

At 1 min 25 this shows Americans wading. The first guys across do not wait, they move on fast.

http://www.criticalpast.com/video/65675057849_35th-Division-320th-Infantry-Regiment_soldiers-wade_smoke-rises_machine-guns-fired

[LawrenceG1]

"If you allow columns to break up into separate columns, what is to stop a column of 6 LH(S) in the open splitting up into three columns to attack one enemy and get 2 overlaps?"


The difference is, that 6 LH in the open all have the same move distance.

So what? They have all moved as columns.

If a long column of warband leaves a wood then, say, the first 4 elements could move 160p and are in column in the open
The remainer move only 80p, remain in the wood and are also in column, it´s just a second column.
So all of the impetuous troops have moved in column(s).

No, they all have the same movement distance, the speed of the slowest element in the group (as per p 28).

I find it a strange concept that impetuous troops should wait for troops further behind; it´s not what I see on the motorway when the cars exit the roadworks (,-)
("slow down dear, we´re leaving those poor people behind...")

Strange, but clear in the rules. And no stranger than the "quantum-well" that already exists for elements moving out of terrain (i.e. if the element's rear edge is 160p from the edge of the terrain it can move up to 80p or it can move 160p but it can't move 81-159p). It is also consistent with Phil's principle that sponno columns should not split up.
Playing it as you suggest would not completely eliminate this strangeness because if all elements of a column could exit the terrain except for the last one, the last one would not move as a column and the ones in front would be forced to slow down to his pace. In fact, this would be stranger because the results depend on the exact positioning of the elements. The same applies if only the front element can exit the terrain.

I even had a look online for videos of troops wading but found very little:

At 1 min 25 this shows Americans wading. The first guys across do not wait, they move on fast.

http://www.criticalpast.com/video/65675057849_35th-Division-320th-Infantry-Regiment_soldiers-wade_smoke-rises_machine-guns-fired

They  may have paid PIPs. Besides which, I can see at least 1 man waiting in the shade under the bush for the others to cross.