Dismounting mg teams dropping ammo

[Shmavis]

This happened to me in a scenario that I've been playing. I had a couple of HMG crews in a halftrack and, when they dismounted, their ammo count went from around 100 to around 70. I did a search, but couldn't find exactly what I wanted. Does this happen all the time?

[stikkypixie]

Were they at full strength? Squads with casualties will lose ammo.

I myself have never seen it before.

[ June 23, 2005, 11:48 AM: Message edited by: stikkypixie ]

[Shmavis]

Nope. Full strength teams. They weren't under fire and dismounted behind a hill.

[dieseltaylor]

perhaps if you provide details of the HMG's and the carrier and what month we can test it out.

[Pzman]

That does sound odd, but as the above poster said, we need details.

[Shmavis]

Hmmm. D'oh! On closer inspection, the 2 teams each had one casualty, but both had ammo of around 110 which dropped to 69 when they dismounted. I'm playing with SS mechanized troops. The HMG's(one regular and one veteran crew) dismounted from a SPW 251/1. August 1943 is the date.

I didn't expect any playtesting from you guys, just a back-handed grog answer. Heh.

[Bannon DC]

Could also be the unit was "over supplied." I just checked something in the manual (I have the original printed manual... looking on page 111).

The unit may have been considered to be in a prepared defensive position (but actually started in the HT at the beginning of the scenario). When units leave these defensive positions, they can only carry the amount of ammo they normally could carry and therefore they leave the rest of the ammo behind.

[Shmavis]

Ah. That makes sense. Thanks much!

[Andrew H.]

I don't think it's oversupply. When a unit with a MG takes a casualty, its ability to carry ammo decreases, and thus the ammo available for the MG decreases. However, the decrease doesn't actually occur until the unit moves because the inability of the wounded crew member to carry the ammo does not matter until the MG attempts to move.

Conceptually, I suppose this is the same thing as oversupply - an oversupplied unit has more ammo than it can carry just as a 6 man team with three casualties can no longer carry 6 man's worth of ammo.