OK, a question that was raised in the last game a few friends and I were playing. A unit of High Elven Spearmen (5x5) where charged by heavy chariots. The chariots did impact wounds and took out 6 models. Now if they were armed with swords those models who died could not fight back as the rulebook makes it very clear that models that step forward to replace killed models may not fight that round.
Here though is the issue, spears allow you to fight in three ranks, so theoretically if 6 models died, that still left 9 models to fight back. Problem is, all 9 had to step forward since the dude in front died and by the rulebook that means they do not get to strike this round.
So question is this, for spears when fighting, are they really as bad as they seem as you only need to kill the front rank for them to lose the whole bonus of spears that round? Seems kind of weak that you only need to kill 5 models to take 15 (or 10 for most armies) attacks away from the unit. Seems like that by the rules, but has this been fixed anywhere?
Here though is the issue, spears allow you to fight in three ranks, so theoretically if 6 models died, that still left 9 models to fight back. Problem is, all 9 had to step forward since the dude in front died and by the rulebook that means they do not get to strike this round.
So question is this, for spears when fighting, are they really as bad as they seem as you only need to kill the front rank for them to lose the whole bonus of spears that round? Seems kind of weak that you only need to kill 5 models to take 15 (or 10 for most armies) attacks away from the unit. Seems like that by the rules, but has this been fixed anywhere?