Art De La Guerre

[Mike Bennett]

What happens if you wish to interpenetrate a friend but an enemy is so close that there is not enough space to fit. Eg are you banned or does the friend move back? Is the answer for light infantry, who normally pass through, different to that for others, who normally push the passed through friend back

[Ramses II]

In all cases, since the space is constrained, the first paragraph of "Adjusting positions" is key here (and it does not matter whether the move is intended to contact enemy or friends).

• Light infantry cannot pass through and push their friends back, so may not interpenetrate like this. So your light infantry cannot do this to prevent the enemy troops from harrassing your front line.
  
• Heavier troops can interpenetrate their friends to move into contact with the enemy, since they may push their friends back.
  
• If the units are not aligned with the enemy, a single unit advancing must consider whether it can interpenetrate both friends since both will be pushed back when conformation occurs.

[Mike Bennett]

Hi Gavin

I can see that is very clear when the unit moving through lacks the speed to get completely out. It seemed to me much less clear if the problem was space not move distance.

[Ramses II]

The move distance of the friendly units is constrained by the position of both the enemy unit it will contact and the unit being interpenetrated. The interpenetrating unit must move as far as possible through it’s friends before the two units are repositioned. The presence of the enemy unit marks the limit of possible movement. 

What I think you may be asking is whether, under these circumstances, a unit may interpenetrate it’s friend but stop short without moving into contact with the enemy.

Given the way “Adjusting positions” is worded, the answer is “No, because it has not used it’s full movement capacity”