Maybe with additional comrades, so there is only 2 Operator PCs each with 2 comrades (again vehicle dependent). One can pick tank ace at the first milestone to mix it up a bit (the fact that you keep comrade advances is awesome for this). The rest of the squad can be infantry supporting the tank.

Gives the players variety in classes, but still would require a large player group to seem realistic (A lone Leman Russ with a Segeant and Vox Tech running around behind it would look pretty weird).

Ultimately, Vehicles with crews greater than 2 (or lesser, what does a sentinel operators comrade do?) are poorly implemented in Only War and so are the concepts for armored regiments. Armored regiments have a completely different structure to infantry, on that in game terms would require a completely different set of classes, or at least variants of the current choices.

(or lesser, what does a sentinel operators comrade do?)

To be perfectly honest, I see the sentinel as probably more problematic than the LRuss.

I have yet to GM with either though, so it might not be much of a problem.

To be perfectly honest, I see the sentinel as probably more problematic than the LRuss.

In a different thread someone suggested that a Sentinel Operator's Comrade runs along beside the Sentinel, like a loyal dog...

Ultimately, Vehicles with crews greater than 2 (or lesser, what does a sentinel operators comrade do?) are poorly implemented in Only War and so are the concepts for armored regiments.

I absolutely agree, which is why I started this thread. I think the big discrepancy between the number of people who say they want to play a tank-based campaign vs. the number of people who actually do it is at least in part due to the lack of guidelines on how it would work in actual play. Hopefully this discussion will stir up some useful info for bridging the gap between the vague vehicle rules and the necessary elements of an ongoing tank-based campaign.

Arise....

I gm’ed a long running rpg campaign about a French Gearkrieg walker crew. Their main roles were reconnaissance, infantry support and anti-walker/vehicle. By mixing & matching these main roles, you could create diverse adventures.

If you limit your tank-based campaign to massed tank battles, you indeed run the risk of repetitive encounters. My advice would be to focus on single tank adventures as much as possible.

While ideally tanks are used in platoons or companies (for mutual support), in reality often single tanks are used for a variety of tasks.

You can have your tank support infantry on a variety of missions including city fighting, enemy emplacement suppression and whatnot.

You can have your tank escort vital convoys. They can be attacked by a chasing mad max style pack, face a road block or encounter fleeing civvies. Each adventure would be distinctly different yet still based on an escort mission.

You can have your tank perform reconnaissance which includes getting out of the tank for a closer look (which can lead to many nice dismounted missions). FYI, German WWII tank battalions had actual tank reconnaissance platoons because they could properly determine if terrain was suitable for tanks (which half-track recon couldn’t) and were less vulnerable to enemy fire.

The Germans in WWII would use tanks on flatbed railcars as gun emplacements to provide firepower to trains traveling through partisan country…These could be obsolete tanks or tanks on their way to frontline units. Once again, this basic mission could lead to numerous variants; the railroad is blocked, a station is occupied by the enemy, fuel hasn’t arrived and the train is stalled, a senior officer halts the train and commandeers the escort troops to (re)capture a town/free his general etc…

Another fun variation is having your vehicle commandeered….Senior officers would commandeer a tank if their own was disabled. There are examples of tank advances in which a depleted (German) company attacks. Due to breakdowns and losses, the final assault it finally undertaken by 1 company commander and his 4 platoon commanders, all riding commandeered tanks…

Having a gung-ho or cowardly senior officer “take over” your tank for a while is a nice change of pace…

Just add (dismounted) adventure options to these military missions and you have a fun game.

In the end, you are not simulating an actual tank unit. You are out to have fun. So adventures need not be confined to what is logical for a tank but squarely aimed at what is fun, with or without the tank!