I have never understood the partisans. Why do they become worse when they attack with any other piece, including other partisans? What is this supposed to represent thematically? A rule variant in the back of the new book says that you could always make them attack with d8’s, but I was thinking that they should always use d8’s when they are alone or with other partisans…but not with regular troops. This still don’t make any sense to me. Any thoughts?

Thematically, Partisans represent guerilla forces or militia. They are trained with rifles, pistols, small arms weapons in general. However, they are trained to operate independantly and to make use of the land in contrast to infantry who are trained to cooperate in conjuction with armour and airforce. This means that Partisans will not be as good as they could be if they are forced to attack or defend with other units. It thematically makes sense that Partisans are better on their own; most guerilla forces operate in independant cells and don't perform well in pitched, large scale battles.