Grumble Jones November Scenario GJ141 Shulzhenok and the Three STUGS

I fell a little behind on getting the November scenario posted. It's been on the burner for a couple months now. Life and a lot of ASL got me off track. Playing 4 games a week takes up a significant amount of time that would normally be available to work on the blog and complete scenarios. This will be the 889th post for the blog. Still a few years away from 1000 posts. I'm averaging 2-3 a month now. 

This month's scenario comes from page 372 of Anthony Beevor's excellent book on the Battle of Berlin. 

The snippet I focused on deals with the exploits of a Recon Soldier known simply as Shulzhenok. This dude took on three STUG's as the Germans counterattacked the Soviet 3rd Shock Army as they advanced towards the Spree River bridges.

He succeeded in hitting two of the STUG's, which made the third beat a hasty retreat.

Recreating Heroic actions in ASL can be problematic. Hero creation in ASL is such an organic part of the game and can be so much fun, when they pop up and do their thing. But trying to stage a scenario around heroic actions can feel contrived as you add SSR's to make it possible for the hero to take his performance onto the ASL stage. A great example is trying to recreate Michael Wittmann's exploits at Villers Bocage. Our game doesn't allow for a single Tiger Tank to roll down a column and plunk away at leisure. Nope...after Wittmann rolls his first 11 on the first bounding fire shot, the Cromwells swarm him and down he goes. And the application of a ton of SSR's to make it possible results in stilted and unfun game play...especially for the guy on the receiving end of the hero's actions. 

That said, based on Beevor's account, Shulzhenok was equipped with three Panzerfausts that he had picked up all the way. Of course our game really doesn't allow an SMC to run around with three of these, so an SSR is put on to give Shulzhenok that capability and heresy...RoF of 1, so he could possibly shoot two Panzerfausts in a given turn. I also gave him the ability to gain concealment to reflect his ability to move unseen in the rubble against the STUG's.  And those are the only SSR's geared to assist the heroic narrative. 

This scenario is also a Deluxe game, which some folks love and others...well not so much (sorry Eric G.). DASL worked well for assisting Shulzhenok recreate his exploits in ASL. With a 3 PF range, he can sit in the center of the DASL board and hit anybody along either flank. 

I relied on some Critical Hit counters for my Germans for the Volkssturm and Hitler Youth units needed for this scenario. My apologies to those readers who do not have those counters. I included the 1.131 CH rule detailing the key characteristics of the Hitler Youth units. 

As an aside, I personally like this particular CH product. The map is great...the counters are ok and of course include some counters of the Nazi Hierarchy. So if you wanting a Hitler counter for whatever reason...well..his 6+1 Counter is included with this kit. 

I do have a Halloween scenario in the mindscape that would use the Hitler counter in a scenario involving CASCA.

The CASCA series (if you are unfamiliar) were the product of the historical imaginings of Green Beret and Vietnam Veteran Barry Sadler. Sadler was murdered in 1989 while in Guatemala City. Before his death, he had written nearly twenty different Casca stories. Casca is a Roman Soldier, who pierces Christ's side during the crucifixion. Christ's blood hits his mouth and Jesus tells him that he would be as he is until Christ's return. So Casca is an immortal warrior who fights in nearly every war that Barry Sadler could throw his way. And of course, Casca is manning a Panther tank at the Battle of Kursk. And at the end of the book, we see him confront and kill Hitler in the Fuehrer Bunker. It's an excellent read, as are all of the books. Great pulp fiction in the model of Robert E. Howard. Highly recommend.

So, one day....you'll see a Grumble Jones...CASCA scenario!!! I'm sure it will be so unbalanced!!! But...taking down the Fuehrer in ASL...that's got to be on everyone's bucket list!!

Alright, here is the November scenario. Good luck my Shulzhenoks!

As always, these monthly "Basement Quality" Scenarios are offered for fun only and as a thank you to the readers of this blog.

Remember to open pictures in a new window in order to maximize the size. 

All Grumble Jones scenarios are available from the ASL Archive website. 

               (Just search on Grumble Jones)