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Tactical hint #1 - killing infantry with infantry from a distance in HoS is hard! Get up close and personal in a melee combat.

It is easier to use the old Army adage: Find, fix, flank and finish.
Find the enemy: locate your enemy so as to be able to fire at him. This requires the target hex to be Spotted. (A hex is Spotted if someone in it has fire or moved or you have troops next to it.)
Fix the enemy: fire at him so that he can't move and is unwilling or unable to fire back, ie shaken them.
Flank the enemy: part of your force should be moving around the enemy while the first part Fixes him.
Finish the enemy: move your flanking force in the enemy's hex and kill him in melee combat.

In HoS, moving into a hex that contains nothing but shaken enemy units will result in the automatic killing of those enemy units. Even a single half squad of yours that is in good order (ie not shaken) can move into a hex with several shaken enemy squads and kill them all. In the boardgame circle of this series this is called "Shake 'n Take".

Melee is very powerful in this game and is your friend if used properly.

Good tactical advice. Particularly like the term "shake and take."

Thanks for the tips. However, it seems to me that a half-squad should not be able to do that much damage. Are there other negative states for troops once they are hit other than Shaken? IOW, do they got from OK to Shaken if affected by fire?

Thanks again,

Gerry

ORIGINAL: Barthheart

Tactical hint #1 - ...
Even a single half squad of yours that is in good order (ie not shaken) can move into a hex with several shaken enemy squads and kill them all. In the boardgame circle of this series this is called "Shake 'n Take".

ORIGINAL: Gerry

Thanks for the tips. However, it seems to me that a half-squad should not be able to do that much damage. Are there other negative states for troops once they are hit other than Shaken? IOW, do they got from OK to Shaken if affected by fire?

Thanks again,

Gerry

Yes. A full squad, when damaged by being fired at, can be shaken or if enough damage is done reduce to a half squad.

Half squads typically have less fire power or range or both. Half squads cannot be combined later on.

Some half squads have a firepower of 0. When they are in melee combat, they fight with 1 firepower but get a -1 on the dice roll to kill.

Hello:

Your comments about the weakness of half-squads makes me wonder even more how they can destroy a few shaken squads in melee?

Thanks,

Gerry

ORIGINAL: Gerry

Hello:

Your comments about the weakness of half-squads makes me wonder even more how they can destroy a few shaken squads in melee?

Thanks,

Gerry

Because shaken squads are combat ineffective. They are cowering in the hex when the guys still full of fight come running in to their hex. They just surrender... and are out of the fight for good.