tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5046718381652470590.post5991377629496542745..comments2023-11-13T19:18:29.280-07:00Comments on Wargames and Stuff: My Two Rules for Wargaming HappinessBrenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13034997568862879687noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5046718381652470590.post-369938110089443272020-01-23T04:59:45.559-07:002020-01-23T04:59:45.559-07:00Phil Barker nailed the rule of twelve with DBA.
He...Phil Barker nailed the rule of twelve with DBA.<br />He didn't invent the concept, but codified what gamers had come to accept.<br /><br />Combine two adages form the modern military and you'll see why it works.<br /><br />A commander can effectively manage three manoeuvre units, and a reserve.<br />Notice how most armies have followed a rough "rule of three" since the 1930s (with the occasional 4th unit - often specialists) thrown in.<br /><br />The second adage is "Issue commands one echelon down, know your dispositions two echelons down".<br /><br />Combined with the rules of Three (and a bit), yields a company commander in charge of aproximately 12 sections, which are handily grouped into 3 or 4 platoons.<br /><br />Several armies work a strict rule of three, with 9 sections, but such a company will nearly always fight with attached support elements.<br /><br />At the top end of the count, I've only come across one company that deployed 16 sections. This was a glider company, and the numbers had a lot to do with the carry capacity of their craft.SteveHolmes11https://www.blogger.com/profile/17392212343858957364noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5046718381652470590.post-2736931382433780852013-07-01T20:48:16.610-06:002013-07-01T20:48:16.610-06:00I think that's a very normal tendency. As a v...I think that's a very normal tendency. As a very general rule, people feel comfortable managing or dealing with a maximum of three things - units, results, things to remember. Too much, and things just don't get done. Too few, and it feels incomplete or insignificant.Brenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13034997568862879687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5046718381652470590.post-78963928344631961622013-07-01T16:38:32.705-06:002013-07-01T16:38:32.705-06:00Another one I've wondered about is ROS (the Ru...Another one I've wondered about is ROS (the Rule of Sub-division?). No matter how many units an individual wargamer gets to play with on the table, is there a natural tendency to split the total into, say, three or four (maybe even five) forces / 'command groups.' In which case, there is no point in having too many units because you will group them into a handful of forces anyway. Thoughts? <br /><br />DavyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5046718381652470590.post-91129544286575679562013-06-30T06:12:18.398-06:002013-06-30T06:12:18.398-06:00The RoT was based on observations of games. No ma...The RoT was based on observations of games. No matter what the basic unit was called (company, battalion, regiment, brigade, etc), the vast majority of games seemed to have around 12 units of the basic type (infantry, usually) in them. As for a reason - I use it as a means of liberating me from the tendency to over-collect and create armies that are larger than I really need. Brenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13034997568862879687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5046718381652470590.post-49384001185419097082013-06-30T02:41:02.505-06:002013-06-30T02:41:02.505-06:00Hi Brent interesting post. but whats the reason be...Hi Brent interesting post. but whats the reason behind your Rule of Twelve ? I can understand the Rule of reason but cant figure out why twelve core units is the business other than the fact that you might be able to make nice divisions into 3x4 unit groupings (or 4x3 or 2x 6 for that mather)Paint-Inhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15976748985737827519noreply@blogger.com