A House Divided

“New” Optional Rules

Submitted byWilliam Sariego

When A House Divided (or simply AHD) was first released in 1981, a single double sided sheet was enclosed containing optional rules. Both the 2nd edition in 1989 (also by GDW) and the fantastic 3rd edition by Phalanx continued and expanded on this.  However, a couple of rules got dropped along the way, and are not included in the current (Phalanx) edition.  This little piece of internet chatter will correct that!

The two new optional rules are “Breaking Rail Lines and Foraging”.  Both will require players to make a few home made counters, but as gamers tend to have blank counters laying around by the score it will hardly matter to a Grognard!  Counters will show a rail line break and for one and a the word Stripped for the other.  Foraging is not a stand alone rule, as it must be used with Advanced Rule 2.0 “Supply”.  Below is the verbatim text from the 1981 edition for these rules.

BREAKING RAIL LINES

Players may destroy rail lines in order to slow enemy advances or destroy enemy communications.  In order to break a rail line between two boxes, an infantry piece must first move over the line, ending a march in one of the two boxes connected by the line.  Then the piece must spend on march in the box, performing no other activity; of course, other pieces beginning the march in that box could use the march to move, fortify, or even break other rail lines.  Cavalry may break a rail line for free at the end of any march as long as it only moves one box in that march.

A broken rail line is treated as a road.  Mark it with a rail break marker to indicate its broken status.

Broken rail lines may be repaired at the beginning of a player’s movement segment.  One march is expended to repair one rail break; remove the marker.  In addition, the Union may repair one rail break per turn free of charge.  No piece has to be present in the area to repair a rail break; just expend the march.

FORAGING

Pieces in a box which does not contain a stripped marker may be supplied by foraging.  Simply declare the box stripped of forage and placed a stripped marker in it.  All stripped markers are removed at the beginning of the June turn each year; thus each box may be used for foraging once a year.

Players may strip boxes to deny their resources to the enemy.  A box containing more than one piece may be stripped (even if it could trace a supply line) at the beginning of a player’s turn.

In addition, boxes may be stripped during movement.  One piece must must spend one march in a box to strip it.  Of course, other pieces beginning the march in the box could use that march to move, entrench, or break rail lines.