Break off after pursuit

[accard]

If you pursue into a new opponent after winning in the melee phase(phase 5.3) can you break off immediately after(phase 5.4), prior to there being any combat?

[Roger]

IMO, Contact doesn't happen technically until charge phase in new turn, so you don't have any one to break off from

[lionheartrjc]

IMO, Contact doesn't happen technically until charge phase in new turn, so you don't have any one to break off from

Completely wrong as far as I can tell [but see below, I was wrong!].  There is nothing in the rules that forbids a break-off move after a pursuit.  Whether it ought to be allowed or not is another matter...

Richard Jeffrey-Cook

[nikgaukroger]

The current rules glossary says a Break Off is "Moving back out of combat ..." so I would suggest you can argue that if there has not yet been combat you cannot break off.

That said, I am not sure that this would be consistent with other rulings e.g. that a file counts as a supporting file if in position to be one even if it has not yet contributed as a supporting file.

[daveparish]

But under pursuit moves (p167 point 9.2) it says "otherwise fight in the next charge phase" .... with next underlined. That doesn't seem to allow any exceptions - you have to fight in the next charge phase but can subsequently break off after that.

[lionheartrjc]

Reviewed this rule with Simon.

The intention is that the UG cannot break off until at least one turn of combat has been fought.  This will be incorporated into the next set of clarifications and into the new PDF edition which I can report has gone to the design people to do the layout work...

Richard

[Roger]

Presumably this also means that the freshly contacted enemy also can't break off in 5.4

[lionheartrjc]

Presumably this also means that the freshly contacted enemy also can't break off in 5.4

Indeed. It applies to both pursuers and those they charge into.

Richard

[accard]

Excellent.