Following our great Grumbler event, Dan and I were back in the saddle for four games over each of the succeeding weekends. Currently, we are playing Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. It's a lot of ASL and a pace that I probably won't be able to sustain indefinitely. But we will be getting in the games for the foreseeable future. I'm on pace for nearly 150 games this year...which again is a lot of ASL and probably a tad too much.
Of course, no great time goes unpunished...and my work life has kicked into oppressive. We recently acquired a sizeable piece of acreage in the Delaware Basin and my job is to to onboard all of the suppliers servicing the wells on that acreage. Well...that number is just over 200. For reference, I onboarded just over 400 suppliers all of last year. Currently, I'm tasked with onboarding half of that in 20 working days. Yeah...suffice to say I've been working 6:30 am to 10:00 pm for a few more days than is desirable. I'm completely exhausted and next week will be even harder. So, I'll enjoy my ASL whenever I can!
Three of this weekend's scenarios would come from the updated version of Doomed Battalions. Like many...many other folks, I couldn't wait to get this updated pack. My Allied Minor counters needed replacement. They were side-nibbed...battle worn counters, that now have a much needed rest. I never liked blogging games with my old Allied Minor counters...of course not as bad as the goat eaten, moldy counters on them that you often see on some other folks ASL FB posts. Counter dignity...it's a must.
Our Thursday game would be ASL 308 Riding the Coattails. This a fast-playing game between Poles and Slovaks. I would be the Poles vs Dan's attacking Slovaks.
As the attacking Slovaks Dan would command elements of Reconnaissance Company , 1st Division "Janosik". His force would consist of 12 x 3-4-7's led by a 9-1, 8-0 and 7-0 with an MMG, 3 x LMG's and 2 x 50 MTR's.
As the defending Poles, I would command elements of the 18th Border Battalion with some local Police Forces thrown in for cannon fodder. My force would consist of 4 x 4-5-7's, 4 x 4-3-7's and a 2-3-7 led by an 8-1 and 8-0 with an MMG, 40 MTR and Wagon thingy with an MMG.
The battle space is pretty confined, and the Slovaks have good cover for their advance. The Slovaks win if they have control of 1 building in the Polish setup area and have more VP then the Poles. Both sides earn CVP normally and the Slovaks get 1 VP for all each building controlled in the Polish setup area.
My defense was designed to strip Slovak concealment and hit them hard as they hit my MLR. I would then fall back and repeat.
Turn 1 would start very badly for me. I had place my wagon MMG upfront to put down fire. That was a mistake. Dan's mortars concentrated on it and rate it to pieces. 2 CVP to Dan and no wagon MMG for me. Then as expected, Dan just moved right up to me and took a terrible beating. My wall of resid would be evidence of massive fire directed at this advancing force. I would break a bunch....but not enough.
As you can see from Dan's wall of Advanced facing me. I had dented his armor but not nearly enough. I had no way to take advantage of all his brokies in the backfield. The terrain was favoring the attacker.
Decision time for me. Stand and trade volleys or fall back and gain concealment for the next Slovak advance. Ten years ago, Playing against Chris Brackney, aka Big Kansas I watched the master of falling back. I all my years of ASL, I've never faced another opponent who had better instincts for when to fall back and no one has executed the fallback as effectively as he did. I tried to channel my inner Big Kansas and elected to fall back.
Dan would naturally pursue. And I had run out of terrain for falling back. I had to hold the buildings. Now, Dan's superior numbers would come into play.
My MLR was now stretched and restricted to the buildings. I had to hang on to them. Meanwhile, Dan's boys were rallying in the backfield and preparing to deliver the hammer blows that would fracture my line.
Dan would throw his advance elements into close combat with me and tie me up. Meanwhile a lone 3-3-6 would sidle around my flank and head for the rear buildings.
Final picture that I would take. Both Melees would end with everyone KIA and with me still in control of those buildings. But Dan's 3-3-6 would take control of two buildings in my backfield. It would cost the game as Dan ended with control of the 1 needed building and 14 VP to my 10 CVP inflicted. It was a tough loss for me. I had played my heart out and really believed that I was in control of the battle up to Turn 2. Losing my wagon on Turn 1 was a real killer. I should never have set it up where his mortars could hit it. And Dan's dogged attacks simply never stopped coming. I'll never for sure, but I did wonder if should have traded volleys and tried to throw him back on Turn 1. It was a good game and certainly one in which the Poles cannot afford any errors.
Our next game, played on Friday night would be ASL 309 Will to Fight...Eradicated. Set in 1939 Poland, this scenario pits Poles vs. grenadiers of the 1st SS Infantry Regiment "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler". This scenario is aptly named as it will eradicate my will to fight by the end.
And for the second game in a row, I would be the Poles. And in this scenario, I would have absolutely no support weapons...really???
As the defending Germans, Dan would command the men of the 1st SS Infantry Regiment. In Poland, the 1st SS would establish their reputation for wreckless bravery. Dan's force would consist of 11 x 4-6-8s, a 2-4-8, and 3 x 4-4-7's led by a 9-1, 2 x 8-1's, an 8-0 and a 7-0 with 2 x MMG's and 4 x LMG's.
As the attacking Poles, I would command elements of 2nd Kaniov Rifle Regiment. My force would consist of 7 x 4-5-8's, 8 x 4-5-7s, 2 x 2-4-8's and a 2-3-7 led by 2 x 8-0's a 7-0 and a 6+1.
This scenario's battlespace is also very confined. The Poles win at game end if the Germans secures less than 26 VP. VP are building based.
This is a picture taken during Turn 1 movement. The setup is sequential. The Poles place 2 x 2-4-8's HIP in cellar locations. I would place them both in the center building. This would prove to be not so smart. Then the Germans set up and then the main Polish forces sets up.
I would move most of my units on Turn 1, without much shooting.
I didn't do badly, but I should have been much more aggressive. Despite some caution, my 8-0 was shot dead dashing across the street. I would emerge from one cellar location to go into Close Combat. It would not end well.
Turn 2 my boys advanced and gobbled up some building locations. But, I was struggling to evict Dan's grenadiers from the center of the village. My failure here would lead to my defeat.
The Germans get reinforcements on Turns 2 and 3. My would not arrive until the last turn of the game, which is this side of ridiculous. I wouldn't even bother with them. Dan's Turn 2 reinforcements arrived in time to stall my building gobbling activities.
Turn 3 - Dan's big force arrives, and these guys would ensure a German victory.
Eight 4-6-8's is nothing to sneeze at.
A look at German control after mid-game.
The arrival of Dan's 4-6-8's heralded the end for my boys. I was also starting to check out of this scenario. I just wasn't enjoying the game very much. It had been frustrating for me as I failed to take out the Germans in the center of the village. I was also losing squads to KIA's, casualty reduction and being taken captive.
A last look at the battle. Dan had done a great job of linking up with his embattle grenadiers in the center of the village. I rapidly lost my grip on various buildings and Dan was soon take more and ultimately win the game. This would be my least favorite scenario of the weekend.
Our third game, played on Saturday would be the big game of the weekend and also the one with the highest highs and lowest lows. ASL is always a bit of a rollercoaster as momentum shifts occur in parallel with good and bad dice rolls. Dice rolls would have both of us on edge and feeling the feels of frustration. The latest 2 Half-Squad podcast has a portion of their inteview with Steve Pleva where they talk about the Zen of dice rolling. The Zen state is when you can play the game without angsting over bad dice. I tip to my hat to those players. I'm not one of those guys. I have struggled with bad rolls for a great part of my ASL experience. And not just a few bad rolls here and there...but a continuous and oppressing accumulation of bad. The average of 7 is fine...but when it pushes to 9 and 10 and you find yourself missing every single Morale Check even with a 10-0 Japanese Leader managing your 4-4-7 and it still ELR's and stripes. That would be my unhappy experience of AL 314 Defeat in Java.
Hyperbole aside, I'm quite serious about this game's negative impact on my pysche. I literally lost my @#$t at one point and tossed...yes I tossed by die tower across the floor. Am I ashamed...nope not really...(of course I should be)...but this dice tower consistently gives me very poor rolls. Now, the 2 Half-Squads interview correctly states that the game is far more important to enjoy irregardless of the dice, which giveth and taketh away with equal vigor and cruelty. And, in this game, even Dan's dice were just smacking him around with terrible...terrible morale checks and boxcars that MALF'd his machine guns left and right.
I share these emotional anecdotes, because I believe many of us have experienced the agony of the dice. The ambush gone awry or the boxcars that breaks your most important asset on its very first shot. These are gut punches and sometimes bend your personal ELR to the breaking point. In this game, Dan even reached the point where he was ready to concede. I said he should finish the second part of the turn and then see how he felt. He reviewed the victory conditions and realized that the was very much in this game and was very likely to win it. So, we both took some deep breaths and went back at it and finished a really good game. It didn't feel good getting to the end, but I kept telling Dan, that we would look back on this game as one of the great ones. I think you will agree.
And yes, my dice tower is fine and back in action.
ASL 314 Defeat in Java is one of those rare scenarios where the Japanese are actually defending against the Dutch. Essentially, the Dutch have to exit 40 EVP off the west board edge for the win. And for each CVP inflicted on the Japanese, they get deduct that number from the EVP required to win. In our game, Dan would inflict 18 CVP on my Japanese (remember I rolled terribly and did not pass a Morale Check during the game). So, that meant Dan only had to exit 22 EVP to win the game. Did he make it??? Let's find out.
As the defending Japanese, I would command elements of the 230th Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division and 1st Independent Rapid-Fire-Gun Battalion. My force would consist of 15 x 4-4-7's, and 4 x 2-2-8's led by a 10-1, 10-0 and 9-1 with 2 x MMG's, 5 x LMG's, 5 x 50 MTR's, and two horsedrawn 37L AT Guns.
As the attacking Dutch, Dan would command elements of Dutch 3rd Netherlands Native Infantry Regiment and British C Squadron, 3rd Hussars. His force could consist of 24 x 4-3-7's led by a 9-1, 2 x 8-0's and a 7-0 with an MMG, 3 x LMG's and 6 Tanks (10 Factor MG).
The battle space is very busy with very few good lines of sight. Dan would Schwerpunkt through board 35, which gave him the best road for exiting. His Green troops only had 3 MP, so they needed the roads wherever possible.
Dan would line up to Schwerpunkt through Board 35. I had most of my force just north of where his assault would go for broke. I was very worried about the 6 Tanks. Their 10 factor MG's could be absolutely devastating.
Turn 1 Dutch - the Tanks would be the main show as they quickly outpaced the infantry and drove right up to me. Dan would park outside both of my HIP MMG's. With 1 armor factor, they would be vulnerable to my MG's particularly if adjacent. I would manage to stun one, but that was all.
On my part of Turn 1 - I would manage to knock out two of the tanks.
I would also send my boys up in the north on the run to get south as soon as possible. I would also set up one of my AT Guns. The other one in the north was mission killed.
I would jump into CC with three tanks. I would knock out one, but not the other two. At this point, the Dutch has lost half of their tanks and all of the ones in the north, whose job was to prevent my northern force from shifting south.
Ill luck would plague us both. My 10-1 would die with an 11 on an NMC and then a 6 on wound severity. Dan would MALF the MA on one of his tanks and never fix it. The rest of his force continued its sweep to the west. In the far south, Dan's kill stack with his 9-1 would be held up by two dummy stacks. In the center, only my 9-1 was providing significant fire power. The terrain was also helping my cause as it funneled Dan's boys around the water obstacle.
My AT Gun in the south would manage to knock out one of the tanks while my 9-1 would take out another tank. Only one tank remained its MA was MALF'd.
Despite some frustrating dice and lost tanks, Dan's force was covering some ground and inflicting damage on my Japanese.
Dan's MALF'd tank would make for the exit and pass my wagon looking to get out of harm's way. Dan's boys hit the road and surged towards the exit.
Dan was pushing hard towards the exit and victory. My boys were scrambling to cut off the advancing Dutch.
Dan and I were racing each other for the exit. Would I get there in time??
I would get close, but Dan's advance force was going to beat me to the exit. But the stragglers might be in trouble.
Dan's Green troops were significantly slowed by the Kunai, so I was able to get my boys into the battle. Whether they would stop the Dutch from exiting was still up in the air.
Miracle beyond miracles and in spite of terrible morale check dice, I was able to throw out a line of resistance to Dan's exiting Dutch.
Dan's boys would begin exiting. His MALF'd Tank would exit along with the 9-1 and most of the advance group...but three squads would be broken and two of these would be Disrupted. At this point, Dan had exited 20 EVP and needed only two more for the win. And those points were broken and disrupted.
A final picture. With six turns in the bag, and with Dan's stragglers broken and disrupted, the Japanese were completely blocking the exit and would mop up the broken and disrupted squads. With that, Dan gave the concession and a Japanese victory by the thinnest of margins. The game had been exhausting and stretched our good humor beyond the breaking point...but it had been some great ASL...we didn't see it immediately...but in the light of day....this was a very good game.
Dice rolling in ASL be like...
Our fourth and final game of the weekend would by Rally Points's RPT 51 Arrivederci Nembo.
After last night's intense scenario, Dan and I would opt for a leisurely Starter Kit scenario for a calm Sunday, where we will both experience Dice Roll Zen and accept the vagaries of the dice with smiles and deep acceptance of their mystical importance.
Probably not...
But a 2-factor shot +3...yeah I'll take that shot...no Sniper. Oh yeah!!!
Starter Kit scenarios can be a nice change of pace, but they can also be maddening for ASL players when fire lanes, bypass movement, concealment, etc. are absent from the game.
SK scenarios do tend to go quickly to the action and usually finish quickly. Sounds perfect for a Sunday.
As the defending Canadians, Dan would command elements of the West Nova Scotia Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 1st Canadian Infantry Division. His force would consist of 2 x 4-5-8's, and 4 x 4-5-7's led by a 9-1 and 8-1 with 2 x LMG's and 51 MTR.
As the attacking Italians, I would command elements of the 3rd Battalion, 185th Folgore Regiment, Nembo Parachute Division. My force would consist of 10 x 3-4-7's and a 3-4-6 led by a 9-1 and 2 x 8-1's with an MMG, 2 x LMG's and a 45 MTR.
A nice small battle space. The Italians win immediately upon exiting 8 EVP off the east edge.
The setup for this scenario is a bit squirrely and clearly in place to create/force a narrative. The British have to setup on or adjacent to the road with a single MMC per hex. The Italians have to exit...so running around the north edge seems like a pretty good strategy. I would leave the mortar and MMG behind to plink away at Dan's Canadians.
As indicated, I ran everyone over the top to head for the exit. I needed 8 EVP for the immediate win.
Dan would move to counter and interdict my hasty exit from the field. I had placed two 3-4-7's each with an LMG to meet the expected attack through the woods. I would succeed in breaking the 9-1 and casualty reducing the 4-5-8 with him. Both would rout to the south.
On Turn 2, my LMG squads in the woods would assault move to keep the 9-1 broken and put pressure on the Canadians moving to the northeast.
Dan's next movement phase would meet disaster as two of his squads in the woods would be broken and then the 8-1 's 4-5-8 would be broken and casualty reduced. I was rolling very well with threes. At this stage of the game, Dan had two unbroken 4-5-7s and a 2-4-8 with the MTR. The remaining squads were broken. I had 7 squads and three officers in position to move to the exit. The 8-1 and 3 squads would go CX and escape for the immediate win.
While Dan and I played this one as a Starter Kit scenario, we both feel it would play better as a full ASL scenario. Starter Kit is already pretty plain vanilla, and this scenario didn't have much to spice it up. The British setup is truly limiting, and it didn't take much for my Italians to sweep around the flank.
So that was the end of another of our 4 game weekends. I'm currently at 109 scenarios played and 3 Korea Playtests. 2024 will be an amazing year for ASL.
That's a wrap on this week's ASL.
We'll hit the cardboard arena again next week!
We will see you then!
A great weekend of ASL. 150 games in the year that will be some feat
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