Dropzone Commander

Dropzone Commander is my newest wargamming addiction.  DZC is produced by Hawk Wargames and is a 10mm scale game, meaning that its models are smaller than say those from Warhammer Fantasy or 40K.  It is vastly different than either of those two games and that is one of the reasons I really dig it.

I got seriously into wargames shortly after high school.  I saw Necromunda played and loved the models and the terrain.  That led me to Warhammer 40K.  That in turn led to Mordheim and eventually Warhammer Fantasy.  While I had enjoyed all of those games the fact that Games Workshop completely rewrote the rules every few years and seemed to make (IMO) boneheaded decisions I have since lost interest. That and the cost to get into either game is astronomical any more.

DZC plays differently than many other wargames.  It has an alternating activation sequence - meaning I activate a unit, they do their thing, then you activate a unit, and so on. The turns are very quick and you normally don’t sit around while your opponent moves their entire army.

The rules are tightly written and it’s almost as if they have an actual editor review them for clarity. This is refreshing after having to wade through interpretations in other systems (I’m looking at you GW). There are no spam units - every unit has its purpose and you cannot skimp on one over another.  Most of the missions are objective based - meaning that there is a goal and not just killing as many of your opponents units as you can.   You can destroy many more units than your opponent and still lose if you don’t meet the mission objectives. 

You need infantry to actually capture objectives inside of buildings.   You’ll need transports to move your infantry into position - APC’s and then dropships of some kind to get the APC’s into position.  You will need Anti-Air to shoot down and destroy the dropships.  You then need heavy armor to help destroy the AA.  There is also air support that comes on from one edge of the board, makes its run, and then flies off. The AA is designed for them as well.

If you don’t take enough infantry then you won’t be able to capture objectives.  Take too much infantry and you won’t be able to take as much AA or armor. Too much AA and you can control the skies but you’ll be vulnerable to the main battle tanks. Too much armor and your enemy can fly around you and ignore the deadly firepower.

The models are gorgeous and all to scale. The Condor dropship can be put together in such a way you can show it carrying three tanks or two Bear APC.  The PHR Poseidon can be assembled to show it carrying the walkers into battle.  You can put the Hunter tanks or Invader APC’s onto the Marauder dropship.

The boxed set is a great value as well - for about $75 you get TWO starter armies (UCM and Scourge), the full 1.1 rulebook, not some mini rulebook that has most of it cut. You get cardboard buildings for your battle field, two cityscape maps for the buildings. You get dice, even a tape measure (not some red whippy stick to harass your opponent with).  It’s a great way to get started. The models are plastic and go together easily.

I’ll be providing my views and thoughts on the various factions and units in the future.  Dropzone Commander has reignited my love of wargamming and I’m looking forward to the future with Hawk Wargames!