Being an avid FOW player and being a fan of the 21st Panzer in WWII gaming, I could not wait until the release of the new Battlefront force booklet on the 21st Panzer Division. This book follows the format of the recently release airborne releases, where you get a booklet (instead of a hard back book) with the command and unit cards in the same package. The booklet itself is only about pages. The two card decks only include those that are unique to the formation, as everything else is from the German D-Day book and card. This keeps the price low and gives the player only what they need, not a bloated redux.
The book has background on the 21st in Normandy and lists for Buete Panzers, Gepanzerte Panzer Grenadiers and Panzer Aufklarungs Greneadier lists. Everything is printed in high gloss color with plenty of photos showing campaign maps and every new unit card and descriptions of rules.
The two card decks are the same as all the other releases. Each is in full color high gloss protected card stock. The unit cards include all the Baustau Becker conversions on Hotchkiss, Lorraine, UE and Renault chassis. In comparing the list from the older offering, there are a couple of casualties. You no longer have a choice between the two different halftracks and have to use the UE304 halftrack only. You also do not have the UE304 AA haftrack, Loraine AOP or the UE Maultier. These are minor things, as you can just keep using your miniature with existing cards, as the stats are the same for the first three (UE304, sdkfz-10/4, sdkfz 250 AOP respectively). As their are no SP rocket launchers in the game yet for late war, you will have to miss out on those for now.
The new book allows you to fill out the 21st, with not problems. You also can play a normal Pzkw-IV list and tweak it using the command cards to a a Sherman or Firefly. The von Luck Pzkw-IV is also in the mix. So, you still get a little of flavor, even playing a regular Panzer list.
The Beute Stug list is similar as before, with both the 75mm and 105mm versions available (you can even have a Reihenwerfer as core to bolster up your number of platoons and salvo ability!.
The Panzer Grenadier can be on foot or in their UE304 halftracks. The have options to add Panzerfausts, but not Panzerschrecks. The Aufklarungs are similar, but in sdkfz-250 halftracks. The Genadiers have the option to add SP 75mm UE307s, to give a little punch!
All in all, a fun little release. I think this is a must buy if you like the 21st in Normandy and gives value for your buck. I hope this bodes well for future division specific releases from Battlefront in the future!
- Manteuffel