FoW North Africa Mid-War Forces review – long name for a big book

• Posted on 22 January 2022
• By Simon Thurtle
• Posted in 15mm, Flames of War, FoW, Review
• 0

FoW North Africa Mid-War Forces review – long name for a big book

When Flames of War version 4 was released, it was focussed on the mid-war era and specifically North Africa. Since then, we’ve moved on through D-Day in the West, Bagration in the East and now into the winter of 1944 for the release of the first Bulge book. The end of the war is in sight…

But then in early January, in a video looking at the year ahead, Battlefront announced the impending release of North Africa Mid-War Forces (from here called The Book for ease) along with some new, two-player starter sets.

So, what is it? The book covers the North Africa campaign and includes formations, statistics, painting, basing and the usual catalogue for all four forces which were involved in that conflict. Britain, Germany, Italy, and the US.

Now, that should be your first hint that this book is BIG. Getting up towards 300 pages big. It’s also heavy, being a hardback.

What it’s not, however, is ground-breaking. If you’ve been playing FoW since the start of V4 or before, and you have your army in place, then there’s little for you in this book (that’s not nothing though.). The formations, points and stats are the same as the original releases with each army receiving a selection of unique units to spice things up. Many of these new units are also wildcard, letting you build them into a force fairly easily.

Who’s this for then?

Well, if you’re new to FoW, missed mid-war or fancy adding in a new army, then this book is a must.

Equally, if you’re a true collector? Order it now.

But if you’re happy with your mid-war army, have everything you need or just don’t like really heavy metal on the field? First, how does that feel? Second, this book might not be one you need. Still, on the plus side, it will likely bring more players into the mid-war era, so if you love playing there, you’ll still get the benefit of the book without buying it!

Mid-War, the basics

If you’re in the new-player-to-mid-war category, what should you know? Is it not just late-war, but different? Well, yes and no.

Mid-War sees a lot more focused formations, so little mixing of armour and infantry. You’ll also note that the armour is a little less scary than in late-war; you’ll not be seeing Panthers or Sherman 76’s rumbling around. When you do see them, you’ll also find that your armour costs more; three M4’s are 10 points in D-Day, 24 points here.

Overall, this means you’ll likely see more infantry, light tanks, anti-tank guns and artillery. Making it a very different game.

The Forces

Rather than diving into every detail of the forces, we’ll cover the core formations and the new toys. We don’t want to keep you all day!

Afrika Korps (Germany)

The Afrika Korps includes five core formations:

• Panzer III Company
• Panzer IV Company
• 90^th Light Rifle Company
• Africa Rifle Company
• Fallschirmjäger Company

In addition, you’ll find a range of support units, including Marder II, Tigers and Stukas. So, what’s new?

The Germans now have access to the mighty Tiger P, this beast loses some speed at every level on the standard Tiger but gains a 2+ cross rating. Aside from that? They’re the same, even in points.

The only other addition is the 15cm Bison. A shorter ranged, marginally better front armoured Lorraine Schlepper for the same points. With a slow firing gun direct fire option.

Avanti (Italy)

The Italian forces are much lighter when it comes to armour than the Germans, focusing more on Infantry, but they still have some heavy armour, worthy of respect. The core formations include:

• M14/41 Tank Company
• Bersaglieri Weapons Company
• Bersaglieri Rifle Company
• Parachutist Company
• Heavy Tank Company

The support options include an array of anti-tank, light armour, artillery and even aircraft to keep things interesting.

First on the new units for the Italian forces, the P26/40 Heavy Tank. First things first, the heavy in that name should have “for Italy” after it. If you want to go toe-to-toe with Allied armour, it may not go so well. That said, they’ll give you some teeth.

Next, we have the Semovente (long) self-propelled gun, rocking the same main gun as the P26/40, the Semovente has some nice tricks. First, it offers an artillery option, with a tasty 64” range. They’re also Fearless, meaning they’ll likely stick around when things go wrong. You can also take these in batteries from 2 to 6 guns.

Lastly, we have the Semovente 90, what is, in effect, a mobile anti-tank gun. It might be slow, poorly armoured, easily hit and fairly expensive, but we can forgive all of this, for a 40” range, AT14 gun for the Avanti!

Armoured Fist (British)

So, who’s for cricket? The Brits are here! Bringing with them a range of options and formations which will turn your blood to tea!

• Sherman Armoured Squadron
• Grant Armoured Squadron
• Crusader Armoured Squadron
• Honey Armoured Squadron
• Death or Glory Squadron
• Churchill Armoured Squadron
• Valentine Armoured Squadron
• Rifle Company
• Motor Company
• Parachute Company
• Commando Company
• Armoured Assault Squadron

And if that wasn’t enough, you have a wealth of support units including Hurricanes, Priests and all manner of artillery and guns.

As if that wasn’t enough, the British get a new Armoured Assault Squadron which brings the big stuff including the T14. Essentially a British-ified Sherman, the T14 rocks a 75mm gun, bristles with MGs and has a good balance of armour and mobility.

The Churchill GC 3-inch gun carrier is a tough little box with a big gun. The 32” range, AT 11 gun packed into a FA8 chassis makes these tough units which can really do some work on Axis armour. Though not cheap and forward firing, they’re well worth a look as a defensive or back-field option.

Big, bigger, biggest… and here it is, the TOG 2. Slow, fairly tough and with an impressive gun, the TOG 2 is an interesting unit!

With reasonable front armour, good side armour and an AT12 gun, the TOG 2 sounds amazing. Then you see how slow it is, and the relatively reasonable points cost makes sense.

From big, to fast, the Boarhound. What happens when you slap 57mm gun on an eight-wheeled chassis? Mayhem.

The Boarhound is very quick, especially on the road, packs an AT10 gun on a spearhead/ scout unit. The armour isn’t so strong, but with care, that’ll never be an issue.

Fighting First (US)

And last, we come to the US forces in North Africa. Almost as numerous as the Brits, but not quite. So, grab a cup of joe and check out the formations:

• M4 Sherman Tank Company
• M3 Lee Tank Company
• M3 Stuart Tank Company
• Armored Rifle Company
• Armored Regiment Weapons Platoons
• Rifle Company
• M10 Tank Destroyer Company
• Parachute Rifle Company
• Ranger Company
• M27 Tank Company
• T14 Assault Tank Company

For support, you can call in the P40 Warhawk in the air, some AAA and artillery, but not the same scope as others in the book.

The first new tank is something the Brits also had, the T14. So, if it sounded good above? It’s still good here! However, you can also mix these into a Sherman Assault Tank platoon as chaff to protect your big boys.

Secondly a new tank with serious stats, actually this is a Sherman on steroids, and would have not be a bad option for late war as well. It is Fast, has more armour then a Sherman, and carries one of the few option of getting a AT 12 gun! And the best part of all, you can play them in a formation!

Next up is a big boy, the M6 Heavy. Wow. The 36”, AT12, ROF 3 including on the move gun will not be making you any friends. Then the 24”, AT7, ROF3 gun will make it worse. Finally, the FA8, mass of MGs and reasonable mobility will really add to the fun!

The M6 comes in platoons from one to six tanks, so you can mix them in as your points allow and, for what they do? The points aren’t awful.

Last of all, we have the T55 Interceptor. Pretty fast, completely unarmoured, but bringing a 36” range, AT12 gun to the table and a mass of MGs, this is a fun little slice of crazy.

Very reasonable on points and available in platoons of 2 to 4, these little guys will add some spice to your games.

So, there you have it, the short version of the North Africa Mid-War Forces book. If you’ve yet to experience the very different world of mid-war, then this book is arguably a must. But, even if you’re already enjoying games in North Africa, the new units in here are almost certainly worth a look to bring a new aspect to your games and lists.

Look out for our review of the new North Africa starter sets, coming soon and, for now, you can pre-order Flames of War North Africa Mid-War Forces right here.

And with Tabletopper you get the Airborne mid-war cards when you pre-order the book as well for FREE