A Note on Scales
Introduction
The purpose of this post is to provide some brief words on 4 different scales that wargames rules should address. The intention is to provide background information to be referenced by future posts. Version 2 of Chain Of Command (COC2) is referenced to illustrate the scales. The scales are addressed alphabetically, below.
Ground Scale
Ground scale is the ratio of distance on the table to the real world. The ground scale for COC2 is 1:120 so 1" on the table represents 120" = 10' in the real world; hence, 12" on the table represents 120' = 40 yards in the real world. Clearly, the distance across the table a unit may move is determine by the speed the unit was capable of and the ground and time scales.
Ground scale is also used to derive the range of weapons (eg, arrows, muskets and machine guns) used in distant combat.
At The Sharp End (ATSE) is a set of rules (from TooFatLardies - the publisher of COC2) for campaigns of COC games; a campaign is a series of games in which the result of early games influences the start conditions for later games; for example, a character killed early in the campaign is unavailable to take further action in the campaign and may or may not be replaced by a different character.
ATSE confirms the ground scale to be 12" represents 40 Yards and states this is defined in COC (which I've not read) but I've found no reference to ground scale in COC2.
Model Scale
Historical Tabletop Wargames (HTW) are played with scale models of real world objects. Model scale is the ratio of the size of the model to the real world size of the item it represents. The model scale of 1:100 indicates that 1 centimetre of a model represents 1 metre (100 centimetres) in the real world. A model scale of 1:100 equates to a figure that is nominally 15mm tall when standing, which is sometimes referred to as a scale of 15mm - note that the distance from sole of boot to eye is 15mm for a 15mm figure - not sole of boot to top of head - please don't ask me why.
For World War 2 (WW2), this is approximately consistent with the mean height of soldiers. At 1:100, 15mm represents 1.5 metres = 4' 11". This Wikipedia article includes the comment 'an average height of 1.65 to 1.70 meters was aimed for' by the German army early in WW2. Those extra couple of mm of model, from eye to top of head, make up the difference. Compared with heights of Europeans today, the mean height of a soldier in WW2 was short; heights of 5'6" to 5'8" are quoted in several places in t'interwebrary.
Generally, models (eg, vehicles, buildings, plants, walls, width of rivers and roads, etc) should be built at the model scale so that the models look 'right' when placed in close proximity on the table.
Differences between Ground and Model scales are normal within HTW. COC2 played with 1:100 models and a ground scale of 1:120 represent a relatively close match between these scales.
Organisation Scale
Some HTW rules are intended for actions between very large forces; for example, many rules for the English Civil War/ British Civil Wars have an organisational scale of 1:20 so a company of nominally 100 men, typically commanded by a captain, would be represented by 5 infantry figures.
COC2 is a skirmish level game. The core of each force is a platoon, typically of 30 to 40 men; hence, the organisational scale is 1:1 - one model represents one real person/ vehicle.
Time Scale
As previously noted, time scale works in conjunction with ground scale and speed to derive distances that models may be moved. In common with some other 'modern' rules for HTW, COC2 has a variable time scale. Based on a mean move distance of 7" for infantry moving at Normal speed (roll 2d6), and assuming the guys are jogging over a relatively short distance at circa 6 miles per hour, the duration of a Phase in COC2 is in the order of 24 seconds.
In addition to the distance moved, the time scale influences the amount of metal that can be fired (distant combat) or thrust (close combat) at a target each Phase of the game.
