Buttocks of Death (or Mooning)

This tactic is considered by many as "dirty play" and often appears at tournaments in the repertoire of less scrupulous players. Its legal within the rules, but only because (I assume) the authors have been unable to write it out without affecting other gaming mechanics.

The Buttocks of Death relies on blocking an enemy element's ability to recoil from combat, hence destroying it along with the obstructing element as well. The latter is counted as destroyed although not as a result of combat (meaning no ZoD.)

So why do players use it?

Executing this tactic and recoiling the enemy element from combat will essentially sacrifice your own piece while taking out your opponents. At face value it may appear an even exchange but if the death of the enemy element is important or critical; eg. general’s element or final EE required to break a command, then the payoff might be is considered acceptable.

Example:

Diagrams drawn to 15mm scale.	Fig A - Spear Y is in combat with an enemy Blade element. Spear X is set back by a base depth. It could support Y by moving into overlap, or............
	Fig B1 - block the Bd's recoil. Spear X moves forward until it completely clears the back edge of the Blade, then it slides across to the right by a few millimetres or more. The Blade's recoil is now blocked and if the subsequent combat goes against it, both itself and Spear X are removed as destroyed.
	Fig B2 - An alternative to B1 is the Elbows of Death (don't you love these labels!). Spear X moves forward until its front edge is level to the back of the Blade, then wheels slightly to the right and moves forward again. Its side edge now blocks the Blade's recoil. This achieves with the same result as in B1 (the Buttocks of Death)

The rules section covering the destruction of elements dying from enemy ZoD's;

RECOILING ELEMENTS, page 24, 2nd para -

A recoiling element is destroyed if it starts or ends its recoil with an enemy element's front edge in contact with its flank or rear; or if, before it has completed its recoil move, its rear corner only or rear edge either:

• Meets enemy (other than Psiloi contacted on a side or rear edge or rear corner, who immediately flee.) Unless the recoilers are psiloi, this enemy is also destroyed if contacted on a rear corner only or a rear edge by the recoiling element's rear edge, or on a rear or side edge by its rear corner only. It does not then count as having been destroyed in close combat.

The key to preventing the Buttocks of Death occurring is to deploy extra elements behind those elements in combat (easier said than done!) within a base width behind. This prevents Buttocks of Death by forcing the guilty element to cross a ZoC which makes it otherwise illegal.