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Keith Medlin
United States
Holly Springs
North Carolina
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This is an overview of the high points with a few examples of section D9 in the rulebook which covers "VEHICLES AS COVER." One of the things that vehicles offer in ASL that might not be as obvious at first is a protected method for the transport of infantry. In this regard, they provide some additional armor coverage, but with that comes some additional rules coverage.
The first thing to remember about AFVs is that their inherent crew can be BU/CE. This status only applies to the inherent crew though which means that any Riders are going to be vulnerable regardless of crew state. Also remember that elevation counts for riders who may be subject to attacks from a multi-story building that would not affect them from ground level.
The second big thing to remember is that while most attacks against AFVs resolve the attacks against the vehicle and riders separately, any attack that destroys (but not burns) a vehicle triggers a roll for Survival. I'm generally not keen on trying to apply real world logic to wargames, except when there appears to be an intentional nod to such a comparison. In this case, it makes sense because explosive destruction would cause enough instantaneous trauma that escape would be rare whereas burning may provide riders an opportunity to escape.
One of the other things to keep in mind about AFV/wrecks is that they can act as cover as well. In most cases, all the infantry in the same location with a wreck are granted a +1 TEM. This rule applies to abandoned enemy vehicles as well as occupied friendly ones as well. This could provide you with some necessary rolling cover when attacking across open terrain provided that the AFV is not unarmored. I'll talk about this further when I cover Armored Assault. Every modifier helps and particularly at long range while avoiding the dreaded FFNMO.
That said, there are some exceptions to this seemingly free +1 TEM. So before you race your infantry into that "free" +1 TEM, keep these in mind:
 Le Wreck...It is Le Burning! - Makes sense if you've ever grilled out that you'd likely not want to huddle close to such a hot piece o' cover.
 Down in the Ditches - If the wreck is entrenched, dug-in, or at a different level than the infantry in its depression hex.
 Rolling AFVs gather no TEM - If the AFV is stopped (or turned into a wreck), but was in motion or moved during the current Player Turn's MPh. During the ALL SUBSEQUENT phases it will provide that +1 TEM, but not as it rolls to a stop in front of your infantry.
 The Tin Can Exception - If an unarmored AFV is not a wreck it does not provide the TEM modifier.
 Nothing Else Around - This TEM is ONLY applicable if there is no other TEM, but it is cumulative with SMOKE/Hindrances that affect ranged attacks against the hex.
 The AFV To Your Left - If Infantry or Cavalry are in the same hex as a vehicle when it is eliminated are not affected by that elimination. Please, however, keep in mind exception: &/or in this case as it would most likely apply.
So when you combine this rule, and exceptions, with infantry movement you can perform a move called the Armored Assault. Essentially, any infantry that begins its MPh beneath an AFV are eligible to move with it and maintain the +1 TEM. Please keep in mind that this does not apply to unarmored AFVs! Also keep in mind that when doing this your infantry and AFV cannot move farther than the infantry even if the infantry fail to take advantage of their full movement allowance.
For example, A stack of two 4-4-7 Russian squads begins under a T-34 and declares they will Double Time. The T-34 cannot move farther than the double-timed 4-4-7 Russian squads normally could. This applies even if the squads don't move to the fullest extent of their MF allowance allowing the T-34 to end its movement in a different hex than the infantry squads.
So what benefits do the infantry get for making this kind of move?
The infantry making the armored assault is not subject to FFMO. They are, however, still subject to FFNAM (unless otherwise declared). In the case of FFNAM, remember that the modifiers will cancel each other out. So FFNAM is -1 for the attacker's DR while the AFV provides the +1 TEM modifier making it a straight roll.
How does the motion state affect the +1 TEM?
Great question! Please note that exception states that AFV which stops or is eliminated, but was in motion, provides its benefit during ALL SUBSEQUENT phases. So, during that upcoming DFPh, you can still expect the +1 TEM for an AFV which has also stopped in the same hex as the accompanying infantry. If it continues on and ends it's MPh in another hex, then it does not contribute it's +1 TEM during the DFPh.
Wrecks from which your infantry is not receiving a TEM bonus also have special rules with regards to ranged attacks. Wrecks provide a Hindrance modifier of +1 for ranged attacks which pass through it. There are a few caveats, as always, that you need to be mindful of as you determine what constitutes a hindrance:
Only Through - The hindrance is only calculated when the shot passes through the wreck, but not into or out of the wreck's location.
Same Level Only - The hindrance only counts for firing through the wreck's hex on a same-level shot. Please note that this means Wrecks/AFVs which are dug in or in an entrenchment won't count either.
Just Once! - The hindrance does not increment with additional wrecks in the same location. The hindrance is always +1.
Bypass my @ss - A wreck/AFV in bypass does not affect hindrance calculation unless the LOS passes through the hexside of the bypass.
Burning, Burning, Hunk a Love - If the wreck is burning which would cause a +2 hindrance rather than a +1.
Slow Rollers - Again, if the AFV/Wreck was in motion or moved during the current player turn's MPh it doesn't count as a hindrance for that phase. It will, however, count in ALL SUBSEQUENT phases.
One of the other interesting things about this particular hindrance calculation is that if your concealed AFV would affect the result of an attack the owning player MUST show that it is not a dummy stack. This is an opportunity to try to reveal dummy stacks. Remember that you don't have to actually have a chance of hitting for the owner to be forced to reveal the AFV(s) in the intervening hex(es).
I am not going to get into the rules which cover armored cupolas because they are a great example of something you can virtually ignore until you need it. The rules are short, make sense, and are easily found in the rulebook.
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