British Starter Force: Desert Rats Squadron

British Desert Rats Squadron (BRAB13)
The armoured squadron is the strike force of the British Army. With their exceptionally fast Cromwell tanks, the ‘Desert Rats’ have the ability to rapidly strike the enemy rear area and relentlessly pursue the slower enemy forces. This speed allows the armoured squadron to continually work around to the weaker flanks of enemy formations, always striking from the side rather than slogging their way up the middle.

British Desert Rats Squadron includes:

• Five Plastic Cromwell (75mm) tanks
• Two Plastic Firefly (17 pdr) tanks
• Four Plastic Stuart (37mm) tanks 
• Three ChurchillCrocodile tanks
• One Paratrooper Platoon 
• Three Universal Carriers
• Four 25 pdr Guns
• Two Plastic M10 tank destoryers
• Complete A5 Flames Of War rulebook
• One British "Start Here" Guide
• Two Decal Sheets
• Seventeen Unit cards

The Cromwell (75mm) boasts a Rolls-Royce Meteor V12 petrol with 600 horse power giving it a speed of 40 mph (64 km/h). This added speed gives it an edge over a Sherman, letting it easily outflank enemy tanks.

Sherman armoured troops combine the general-purpose Sherman tank with the Firefly specialist anti-tank variant. The Firefly is armed with the 17 pdr anti-tank gun which is ideal for taking out the big German tanks. The Firefly will keep the enemy tanks occupied as your Sherman tanks rush around the flank to finish them off.

The Stuart offers a fully tracked and fast tank that can keep in front of the main battle tanks and scout out possible ambush locations along the route of march. Lightly-armed and armoured, the Stuart uses stealth and cunning to get close to and threaten the enemy.

The Churchill Crocodile flame-throwing tank is one of the most feared allied tanks in Normandy. Its thick hide makes sure that its crew remain safe from even the heaviest German guns as they close to deliver their deadly cargo.

The highly trained men of the paratroopers are assigned the job of securing the extreme eastern flank from the enemy. On D minus 1 (the night before D-Day), they dropped by parachute into France. In the darkness of the night the paras have been scattered and disorganised, but they have quickly rallied and successfully executed their missions to isolate the beaches. Parachute platoons are well equipped to deal with the difficult mission ahead of it. They have PIAT anti-tank projectors to use against enemy tanks as well as knock out particularly difficult enemy positions.

The carrier platoon gives the motor company its own scouting force to locate the enemy, protect its flanks, or find sneaky routes forward that the enemy hasn't guarded. Carriers might look like miniature tanks and are good at beating up infantry.

The self-propelled guns are best used as part of a mobile defence. They have the ability to stage an ambush, then leave before the enemy can retaliate strongly. They also have the advantage of not needing to be dug in to survive. The M10 (17 pdr) and to a lesser extent the M10 (3-inch) tanks have powerful main guns and penetrate even the heaviest of the German tanks.

The 25 pdr gun artillery batteries can serve in dual roles, both as artillery and anti-tank, although its anti-tank capability has been reduced over time with the thicker armour on the German panzers and so care should be taken when engaging enemy tanks. While the 25 pdr is of some use in anti-tank work, it excels in its primary role as a field gun. It can fire to a range of over 12km (7.5 miles), threatening distant enemy infantry, guns, and even tanks.