A full hex of trees does block LOS
usually, but it depends also on the game
visibility setting - at high and very high visibility, LOS penetrates deeper into all covers. Thermal Imagers can also see a bit better into cover versus units with no NV gear at all. It has always been that way - and is perhaps supposed to show the effects of more sunlight? - ask the original designers.
(rant mode - skip if you like!)
The game ( its not a "simulation") does not (like most tabletop wargames rules) have limits on vision for e.g. rifle teams in the open. If something is spotted and in "LOS" then it is instantly visible to anything in visibility distance and LOS.
This is similar to the US-made paper and hex wargames of the 1970s, where it was "LOS" that was the king, and in opposition to normal wargames rules as played in the UK with 1/300 models which may have had e.g a 1000m limit on rifle groups, 3000m on ATG say, even if the theoretical LOS was there, and would have rules to "pass on" contacts within own platoon, to other formations etc along chain of command. Then the unit would still have to individually dice using the spotting rules to aquire the passed-on target. In tabletop wargame rules, LOS was merely a factor.
However - even in tabletop wargame rules, the "Player God" still knows about the unit that B333 spotted and will move all other units accordingly, even if they have not yet had the acquisition passed on yet.
That's why wargames are
games and
not "simulations". Wargames players have total control of their individual units firing, movement etc with the rule book attempting to try to put some limit on him. But he has too much information and actual control, hence the "Player God".
A simulation really only works when the player is totally limited to one point of view (e.g. an individual tank, plane, sub, or the Turcan Napoleonic/ACW games if you used the "lock view to Napoleons HQ" mode). Subordinate actors in sims will
only do their own (AI) thing subject to your orders relayed by radio, rider etc delays, and you cannot "pop into" tank 3 and see that its got 12 HE left and a damaged suspension, or that it can see some Stug that you
as Colonel don't yet know about because the report has not made it to your staff officer or the dispatch rider was killed or whatever.
If this was a "simulation" of battalion battle group HQ level, then you would probably be limited to a "Doom" type first-person view of your forward HQ and the various "head shed" tents. You would spend a lot of pre-game time making these "plan" things that wargamers really don't seem to like, having pre-battle orders groups with your AI subordinates etc.
You could have a POV where you jump into your land rover or command tank, wandering randomly round the battle area and subject to being shot of course - but then lose the message flow from most of your subordinates, the big map plot in your Intel tent (which is made up from true and false reports, not an SP type gods eye view!
) etc..
That sort of "realistic" HQ simulation could be put together as a text-based adventure game format actually. A simple map could be printed off for the player to mark up himself from incoming text reports in standard army format. Something like that may sell to the real military, since it's just a computer version of the "Tactical Exercise Without Troops" training scenario they already do. It would
not sell well to the civvy market, who want "boom bang" and Hollywood style eye candy.
(end of rant)
Andy