Exploring Japanese Command Cards By Jacob Hopkins Command cards are probably my favourite part of Flames Of War Version 4. They bring so much variety and historical flavour to the game with a super small format that frees up a ton of space in the books. The Pacific is no different with a great selection of thematic options and we’re going to take a look at my top five Japanese Command Cards from it.

Naval SMG Platoon This card lets you take an entire platoon from your Naval Infantry Company with SMGs instead of the rifles. A huge boost in the close-range firepower that will be a very useful in trying to pin the enemy before launching an assault. This will make it easier to combine with a smoke barrage as you won’t need to count as much on landing the artillery hits on them beforehand. You can easily fit this into a maxed-out company with 1-2 platoons having it, keeping the other two with longer ranged weapons.

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Gun Nests A tournament staple for the Germans that I have often seen is their Pakfront card. Giving them the ability to take their anti-tank assets like Pak 40s or Flak 36s as independent gun teams with the nest trait. As Japan was well known for making use of nests and other concealed fighting positions throughout the point it makes absolute perfect sense to give them a version of the card. Especially useful on a Rapid-Fire Gun Platoon with the 47mm guns, as this will help keep your AT8 assets alive and a threat to your foe for far longer.

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Banners One of the best parts of playing Japan is the Banzai rule, being able to effectively negate any enemy defensive fire from stopping your glorious assaults. But that won’t help you if you are pinned and cannot get up to launch said assault. So, the Banners card will be exceedingly helpful in keeping your troops pushing forward by making them that much harder to pin. Also, a cheap card such as this is handy to fill points.

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Regimental Standard As if the combination of excellent morale, Banzai, and Banners was not enough for you, Regimental Standard comes in to be the final say in keeping your troops pushing forward. The ability to counterattack on a 2+ is huge, and will make it so you almost never will fall back from combat. As for rallying, a 2+ with potential commander re-roll will make sure your brave troops never stop fixing bayonets and pushing forward for glory!

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Veteran Naval Infantry As you can probably tell, I am a huge fan of the SNLF forces present in this book. I think they are really going to play to the strengths of our style of play of aggressive and brutal assaults to carry the day over sitting back and shooting. I think this, and its accompanying Veteran upgrade cards, are going to be a staple in my lists. Getting that extra boost to the hits on number will ensure I can send the allies reeling before they even get a chance to attempt a counterattack.

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There you have it! Our top 5 picks for the Japanese Command Cards and we I think they will be huge for the game going forward! We hope you have enjoyed, and may glory on the tabletop be yours! Cheers! ~ Jacob, Lack of Foresight Gaming

FW258JC - The Pacific Japanese Command Cards Command Cards allow Flames Of War generals to field iconic warriors, build new types of units, field new types of equipment, enhance your commander’s capabilities, and bring new tactics and stratagems to the battlefield.  These packs are a strictly limited release and are only available whilst stock last. Purchase your Japanese Command Cards on the Battlefront Webstore...