Another Army in an Afternoon and some simple rules

So I’ve finished my Strelets WW1 Russians in a similar style to my previous Fallschirmjager:

The Russians came in green plastic so I was able to do the same black paint and Mod Podge wash directly onto the plastic. I picked out their gas masks and weapons with citadel’s Black Templar and then just a couple of other details, my favourite being their yellow eyes:

I do like the more cartoony look of the older Strelets figures, they have a lot of character which is perfect for wargaming. You do have to give them a really good scrub before painting though, the mould release on them will mess up your paint, far worse than other manufacturers (I don’t bother washing Italeri figures at all).

Now I’m on the hunt for simple rules that work for futuristic combat with a decent number of figures per side. The rules Stuart Asquith included in his Comfortable Wargaming are the sort of thing I’m imagining but in a form more suitable for games involving guys are with automatic weapons, vehicles, maybe giant robots and air support. I’ve been looking at Lionel Tarr’s WW2 rules and they do fit the bill, but I’m never a fan of smaller ground scale games (SMGs can fire 3”). I could quadruple those ranges to more of a wargaming standard, but I’m feeling a little more innovative than that. So how about:

The game is played in rounds and during each round each figure is activated.

When a figure is activated they can do one of the following:

Move up to 6” and shoot.

Move up to 9”.

When a figure shoots you select a target for them. The target can then decide to shoot back, stand or fall back.

If the target shoots back roll a die for each figure adding any modifiers below:

Bigger gun +1

Better cover +1

Better training +1

Already activated this round -1

Higher roller kills their opponent. In the case of a draw neither figure is killed. The survivor/s of the firefight count as having activated.

If the target decides stand then they are killed on the roll of a 4+ if they are in the open, and on the roll of a 6 if they are in cover. If the target survives they do not count as having activated.

If the target falls back then they can move up to 6” away from the shooter and are then killed on a 5+ if they are in the open or on a 6 if they are in cover. Both figures then count as having activated.

When two opposing figures come into base to base contact they immediately fight, roll a die for each figure.

Better training +1

Already activated this round -1

Higher roller kills their opponent, in the case of a tie the attacker wins.

When a figure moves without firing if an enemy that has not yet activated has line of sight to them during their move they can attempt to kill them on a 5+. Both then count as having activated.

To avoid covering the board in counters when a figure has activated I’ll lie them down. When all figures have activated the round ends and a new one begins.

Hopefully that’s enough for me to start out with and maybe have some fun!