Sho’t
(AISBX02)
includes two Sho't tanks with L7 105mm & OQF 20 pdr gun options, two Searchlights (optional), two .50 cal AA MG, one Tank Commander sprue suitable for the Israelis, two Tank Commanders suitable for the Jordanians & four Rare-earth magnets.
Israel attempted to acquire Centurion tanks for several years from Britain, but was rebuffed until after the Suez Crisis of 1956. In 1959 a clandestine army delegation was sent to Britain to begin training and familiarization with the Centurion tank. As the agreement was secret, the code name Sho’t (Scourge or Whip) was used to refer to the Centurion in Israeli service. Israel initially received roughly 20 used Mark 5 tanks, but later began to purchase new Mark 8 tanks. By the time of the 1967 conflict, Israel had nearly 300 Centurions in service. All but 12 used around Jerusalem had been upgraded with the new British 105mm L7 gun. The Centurion originally had a poor reputation with the Israeli Defence Force, being thought unreliable and inaccurate. This turned out to be a result of the Israeli’s extremely ‘rough and ready’ approach to maintenance and gun calibration. After an embarrassing incident during the Water War in which they failed to hit anything in a day-long engagement with the Syrians, the Armoured Force dramatically improved their maintenance and gunnery practices. After that the Centurion became the preferred tank for its accurate gun and resilience when hit.
After the Six-Day War of 1967, the Israelis further upgraded their Sho’t Centurions by replacing the Meteor petrol engine with an American Continental diesel engine, giving it more speed and a longer range.
Protected Ammo
Many tanks are destroyed not by the enemy shell but by their own ammunition being hit by white-hot fragments of armour and exploding. The chances of this were minimised by providing a safe place for stowing ammunition within the vehicle such as an armoured compartment or inside a water-filled jacket.
If forced to bail out, crews of tanks with protected ammunition are far more confident when it comes to remounting their vehicle quickly.
Tanks with Protected Ammo re-roll all failed Motivation Tests to Remount Bailed Out vehicles in the Starting Step (see page 102 of the main rulebook).
Skirts
The British-supplied Centurion tanks were fitted with ‘bazooka skirts’ or ‘bazooka plates’ and turret stowage bins to protect them from bazooka-armed tank hunters.
If a tank protected by Skirts fails an Armour Save against a weapon with a Firepower rating of 5+ or 6 hitting its Side armour, roll a special 4+ Skirts Save:
■ If the save is successful, the Skirts protect the tank from the hit, which has no effect.
■ If the save is not successful, the shot penetrates the side armour as normal.
Unreliable
Whether poorly designed, unsuitable for the conditions, or requiring more maintenance than current supply considerations will allow, these vehicles have a significant chance of breakdown when pushed too hard.
If an Unreliable vehicle attempts to move At the Double, roll a die. On a roll of 1 the vehicle becomes Bogged Down.
Wide Tracks
Some excellent tank designs have successfully utilised wider tracks, allowing them to cross almost any Terrain.
If a vehicle with Wide Tracks becomes Bogged Down while attempting to cross Rough Terrain, roll again. On a roll of 4+ the vehicle immediately frees itself and continues moving.
Firing Smoke Ammunition
Smoke ammunition is used much like any other, except that when it hits it doesn’t explode but gives off a dense cloud of white smoke instead.
Use the normal shooting rules to determine the number of hits scored. Unlike normal shooting, the shooting player may choose which teams out of the valid targets were hit when firing smoke ammunition.
For each hit scored, place two Smoke markers 2”/5cm in diameter and 2”/5cm tall (balls of cotton wool work well), one on either side of a line running between the centre of the shooting model and the centre of the target model, to form a 4”/10cm wide screen directly in front of the selected target team. The hit has no other effect.
Stabilisers
A stabiliser is a device fitted to the tank’s gun that keeps it level so the gunner can stay on target while the tank moves.
■ A moving tank firing a gun fitted with a Stabiliser shoots at its full ROF.
■ If the gun has ROF 2 or more, it adds a penalty of +1 to the score To Hit.
■ If the gun has ROF 1, it ignores the normal +1 penalty To Hit when moving.
Before shooting, a tank can choose not to use its Stabiliser.
The Centurion in Jordanian Service
Jordan’s armoured forces used the same British Centurion and American M48 Patton tanks as their Israeli foes.
The Sho't box set includes the necessary options to field the Centurion for the Jordanians in Fate Of A Nation.
The Centurion in Fate of a Nation
Centurion
Mobility: Slow tank
Armour Front: 12
Armour Side: 6
Armour Top: 2
Co-ax MG, .50cal AA MG, Protected ammo, Skirts, Unreliable, Wide tracks
OQF 20 pdr gun
Range: 40”/100cm
Rate of Fire: 2
Anti-tank: 17
Firepower: 3+
Smoke, Stabiliser
The Sho`t in Fate of a Nation
Sho´t
Mobility: Slow tank
Armour Front: 12
Armour Side: 6
Armour Top: 2
Co-ax MG, .50cal AA MG, Protected ammo, Skirts, Unreliable, Wide tracks
L7 105mm gun
Range: 40”/100cm
Rate of Fire: 2
Anti-tank: 18
Firepower: 2+
Smoke, Stabiliser
15mm, metal/resin
Battlefront Miniatures
