Alberta Assault 3 06-07 March 2021

Eagle4ty

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And they're off!!! Round One of the Alberta Assault 3 Tournament officially kicked off this morning.

For round one we have sixteen players in four groups battling it out over Scenario 238 from Croix de Guerre 2 (current ROAR 52% Ger:48% French).

Stay tuned for more updates as the round progresses.
Best to all and special good luck for my buddy Geoff.
 

The Purist

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Round One: 238 - Audacity (CdG 2)

Good morning all.

Edit: With seven of the eight games reported I thought I would post the results before sending out the card and vsav file for Round Two.

We have five German and three French wins which seems to be in line with close to the ROAR and ASL Archives records.

Group 1

Steve S defeated Nate S for a German win.
Colin J defeated Paul Ch for the second German win

Group 2

Brain W managed to overcome Bill S for a third German win
Paul Sch defeated Michael W for the first French win

Group 3

Rob O snipered his way to victory against Andrew Y for the fifth German win.
Geoff W (Uncle Duke), in his first tournament match, managed to overcome Dave G for a second French win

Group 4

Ken Y defeated Steffen K for the fourth reported German win of this scenario
Chris D led his poilu to the third French victory against Brad H's stubborn German defenders.

Congrats to all the players.
 
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Paul John

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Paul Sch defeated Michael W for the first French win
My attacking French managed a win that may have been the closest run game I have ever won. My shocked, then UK'ed tank recovered and thus I didn't pass the CVP cap. Tanks and trucks felt like a liability in this one. Infantry losses brought me quite close enough to the cap! Also important was a T1 lucky shot that put the 9-2 and both squads out of action for a couple turns. That breather was probably essential to keep at least some of the on board units alive. Michael played a nice game, really pushing me hard in the early turns that left me despairing, but his losses added up and the reinforcements finally pushed the scales to my side. Really a fun scenario! Thanks.
 

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My attacking French managed a win that may have been the closest run game I have ever won. My shocked, then UK'ed tank recovered and thus I didn't pass the CVP cap. Tanks and trucks felt like a liability in this one. Infantry losses brought me quite close enough to the cap! Also important was a T1 lucky shot that put the 9-2 and both squads out of action for a couple turns. That breather was probably essential to keep at least some of the on board units alive. Michael played a nice game, really pushing me hard in the early turns that left me despairing, but his losses added up and the reinforcements finally pushed the scales to my side. Really a fun scenario! Thanks.
The cap is a killa! It gives the French ulcers almost every time.
 

The Purist

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Gents,

We had one player drop out due to family and grad school issues.

If you know someone who would like a free entry courtesy of Mike we have two games to play in two weeks. They will be short and low density so should go quickly.

First come first serve.

Gerry.
 

The Purist

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Half way through Round Two and the battle for "The Amy H" is split 50/50. Congrats to the winners and 'charge on' to the games still in progress. Round Three map and scenario card will be posted Thursday night and the contents of the prize table will be emailed out this evening.

Edit: Two games to report by midnight (06-07 Mar) and the The Amy H has maintained its 50/50 split in wins v losses.

Well done to the players.

Round Three begins tomorrow.

Cheers.
 
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The Purist

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OA 29 The Amy H

Round Two has wrapped up (except for one late start, which has a deadline of 2359h tonight). Below is the record of the for the seven games reported so far (4 Brit and 3 German wins)

Group 1

Paul Ch's (1-1) Brits won out over Steve S Germans (1-1)
Colin J (2-0) rode his Matilda to victory against Nate S panzers (0-2)

Group 2

Bill S (1-1) and the Brits held the town winning his game against Paul Sc (1-1)
Stephen S ('0-1) and Brian W's were unable to complete their game by the deadline so I have assigned the win to Brian W ('2-0) in a "no fault decision". For the ROAR records (only), Brian and I will play the 8th game for fun this coming week.

Group 3

Dave G (1-1) and his German panzers rolled on to victory against Rob O's (1-1) defending Brits for a German win
Andrew Y (1-1) and his Germans edged out Geoff W (1-1) for a German win

Group 4

Chris D (2-0) rumbled through town and on to the Channel coast for a German win vs Steffen K's (0-2) stalwart but doomed Brits
Brad H (1-1) led the Brits to a fourth Brit win against Ken Y's (1-1) Germans

Well done to all players.

On to Round Three.
 
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The Purist

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Round Three Kicks off this morning.

While I had hoped the random draw of the remaining four scenarios would take us to Russia we are packing our snow shoes for Norway and...

J36 The Bridge at Verdalsora (current ROAR/ASL Archive rated at 52% Ger, 48% Norwegian)

(apologies to our Norse friends as I don't know the hot key for an "umlaut" above the O :p )


NB: A note to all players. Please ensure you are flexible on the means of holding your live games. It matters not whether you use Skype, Discord, Google Hangouts, Zoom or whatever. There are plenty of options available. Thanks and good luck in Round Three
 
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The Purist

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Now that round 3 is underway here is the list of swag available.

I would like to thank all those who contributed to the prize table (alphabetical order) - ASL Scenario Archive, Battleschool, LCP, MMP and the anonymous amongst us.

Thanks also to Lightspeed (Indy) for sourcing the bullet pen.

The top players in each group will get first choice (so there will be four leaders). If the top player slot is tied the first choice will be assigned randomly. Choices will then flow down the record track from there, most likely randomly due to the three round format.

So,.... the table:

  • Bullet Pen - Bolt Action (see attached photo) made by a local craftsman. A very nice piece of kit,... for your kit. And yes,... the 'action' opens and closes the pen.
  • A copy of the original "Last Hurrah" module still in the shrink wrap courtesy of Anonymous
  • Best of Friends 2 (w/ Board 85) courtesy of the MMP team
  • Panzer Aces #2 scenario Pack courtesy of LCP
  • Combat History of 653 Schwere Panzerjager Abteilung 2nd Edition scenario prize pack courtesy of LCP
  • Wacht am Rhein Volume 1, 2nd Edition (w/countersheet) produced by LCP but donated by Anonymous
  • Quick 6 II Tournament scenario Pack produced by LCP but donated by Anonymous
  • Battleschool Dice set #1 - Belgian (in keeping with the early war format) courtesy of Battleschool
  • Battleschool Dice set #2 - Belgian (in keeping with the early war format) courtesy of Battleschool
  • Battleschool Dice set #3 - Hungarian (early war) courtesy of Battleschool
  • Battleschool Dice set # 4- Hungarian (early war) courtesy of Battleschool
  • Digital Scenario Pack (download) courtesy of the ASL Scenario Archive team in the UK
  • Seven additional Digital Scenario Packs (downloads) purchased from the ASL Scenario Archive team in the UK.
In the best of ASL rules tradition, any extras left after each player has made their choice will be awarded via random selection

17039
 
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BattleSchool

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My opponent and I groaned when we saw a "bridge" scenario in the last round. (We inadvertently over did it with "bridge" matches in a bygone CASLO.) We didn't like the chances of the Allies and felt that an extra second-stringer squad wouldn't be enough to stop the German juggernaut. (Or as least I thought so.) So we created a list of Pleva bids. I bid G4 and my oppo bid G3. The defence got the extra 4-4-7 and exchanged the Norwegian 7-0 for an 8-1.

The game swung back and forth. The initial German Prep Fire exposed/broke a number of positions on the riverbank, while a spotting round landed on the road directly east of the bridge. Then the Germans malfunctioned the radio (overlooking the parenthetical part of SSR4 that gave the Germans automatic Radio Contact for the first fire mission). :mad:

The Allies repositioned and largely recovered from their Turn 1 losses. As the clock wound down, it was looking increasingly unlikely that the Germans would be able to exit any units. (My game plan, in any case, was to eliminate/capture as many defenders as possible and reserve exit as a measure of last resort.) At one point, it appeared that the Germans would capture a full squad and 8-1 leader should they break under Advancing Fire. They did break, but the squad suffered Casualty Reduction, sparing one HS from capture. This put the game back in the hands of the Allies, as the Germans scrambled to secure enough VP to win.

On the last turn, only an 8-0 was able to navigate a steeplechase of resid'. Attention turned to a concealed British HS to the north. Enough SMC--including a hero--and MMC were able to reach the enemy HS to engage it in CC. The Germans failed to ambush the (no longer concealed) HS, and therefore risked the Brits slipping away on double ones (or the Germans rolling boxcars). Moreover, the Germans needed to capture the HS, not eliminate it. So it came down to a 4-1 capture attempt with no DRM due to a CX leader. Needing ≤ 9, the Germans rolled exactly 9. This gave them exactly 20 VP, just enough to win.

I never expected the game to be this close. (A couple German heroes, Fanatic HS, and a berserk HS helped. But so did a British hero and the "Pleva" balance provisions.) The OBA had no impact on the game, but the 81mm MTR came through midgame with a couple of well placed salvos of Smoke that allowed the main German force to cross the bridge. Ken played it well, corralling my forces toward his four MMG, all of which were still functioning at game end.

Ken recalled playing J36 before. This was my first crack at The Bridge of Verdalsöra. I'm hoping it will be my last. I felt hung over yesterday following this grueling contest. Not once did I take a sip from the bottle of Jägermeister on the shelf behind me. I should have. My mountain hunters were dragooned into playing my opponent's game. And it very nearly worked for him.
 
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Paul John

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Worrisome that the Germans won even without OBA...
How close did the Brits get to the CVP cap?
 

BattleSchool

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Worrisome that the Germans won even without OBA...
How close did the Brits get to the CVP cap?
Close enough that I was reluctant to run full squads through heaps of resid on the last turn. I think it was around 9 CVP, maybe 10, at game end. Instead I sent a succession of HS and 8-0 through the green goo. Admittedly it was a gamble. Had the CC not paid off, I would have been short 2 VP. A Brit hero was adjacent to the path of most units that needed to exit. He was getting two-down-threes, and could FPF until he bled out if necessary, as he was worth no CVP.
 

The Purist

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That's the beauty of a blind tournament,.... surprises.

It is of interest that of two games reported for round three,... it's a 50/50 split so far. The casualty cap played a role in both games. Will that ratio hold? We'll see.

I should note that I also received emails as round two was announced claiming that the The Amy H was an easy pro-Brit win,... and yet the split was 4:3 favouring the Brits (4:4 if we count Brian's and my game played to record the eighth game).

The worst 'record' of the six potential scenarios chosen for the tournament was 54/46.

Edit: Note I listed a 4:4 split as the first game played was technically a German win with the Matilda recalled (admittedly a tough row to hoe for the Brits),This was the eighth tournament game. The replay would have been Game 9 and a 5:4 split in favour of the Brits. Still very close.
 
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BattleSchool

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I should note that I also received emails as round two was announced claiming that the The Amy H was an easy pro-Brit win,... and yet the split was 4:3 favouring the Brits (5:3? if we count Brian's and my game played to record the eighth game).
It might be telling if the players who expressed this view were also among the more experienced players. Tourney veterans (I make no claim to be one, but I'd argue that your Amy H opponent is) have a knack for grokking a scenario before playing it. After playing it one or more times, these same vets tend to have a good sense of what works and doesn't, and therefore a better appreciation for which side a scenario actually favours. I'd be interested in what someone like Mike McGrath would have to say on the matter.

Despite its dicey nature, Amy H has proven to be remarkably "fair" to both sides.

FWIW, I've played all but one (OA30, IIRC) of the scenarios in OoA2. The magazine is a bargain. It contains some of the most overlooked scenarios in the "MMP" catalogue. Worth picking up before Out of the Attic 2 goes out of print.
 

The Purist

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J36 The Bridge at Verdalsora

Good afternoon,

Round Three of the tourney wrapped up last night and we have the results for all eight games. Six were played to completion, one was a forfeit due to RL issues and the eighth was a mutual 'wash' as neither side could rearrange their schedules to meet the deadline. Such things happen in the real world.

With six completed games for J36 The Bridge of Verdalsora we have three Norwegian and three German wins.

Group 1

Steve S (2-1) led his Germans to victory over Colin J's (2-1) Norwegian/British defenders
Paul Ch (1-1) and Nate S (0-2) had outside issues preventing their getting together so there round is discounted.

Group 2

Stephen Stewart (1-2*) and the Norwegians won a hard fought match against Bill S (1-2), who's troops hit the casualty cap.
Brian Wiersma (3-0) won a German victory over Paul Sc (1-2) and the Norwegians.

Group 3

Rob O (2-1) used the famous 'death by a thousand cuts" defence to put the German over casualty cap in an attack conducted by Geoff W (1-2)
Andrew Young (2-1) and the Norwegian's used the hand grenade and bayonet to turn back David G's (1-2) Germans for the third Norwegian win.

Group 4

Steffen K (0-3) had to concede this round to Brad H (2-1) due to outside concerns
Chris D (3-0) gained the third German win of the round versus Ken Y's (1-2) Norwegians.

I will sort out the ties and post the final standing by tomorrow morning. Players can expect an email regarding the prizes at roughly the same time.

* Steve stepped in to cover for Mike W so the combined record is one win and two losses. Thanks to Steve for stepping in.
 
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BattleSchool

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J36 The Bridge at Verdalsora

Group 3

Andrew Young (2-1) and the Norwegian's used the hand grenade and bayonet to turn back David G's (1-2) Germans for the third Norwegian win.
When I looked in on this game, it looked like the Germans had this well in hand, as most had/were crossing the bridge, and the Allied force was split neatly in half.

Well done Andrew! How did the last turns play out? And what decided the game: Germans failing to gain enough VP, or Germans hitting the CVP cap?.
 

The Purist

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Alberta Assault 3 (2021) Final Standing.

Congratulations to all players who participated and a job well done. I learned a lot in this first kick at being a TD so I'd like to thank all the players for their patience while I sorted through the Q&A on the various SSRs.

A really big thanks once again to the ASL producers, anonymous donors and Indy (Lightspeed) who contributed to the prize table.

  • ASL Scenario Archive,
  • Battleschool
  • Lone Canuck Publishing
  • Multi Man Publishing
Here are the final standings for the players.

Chris D (3-0) 1st
Brian W (3-0) 2nd
Steve S (2-1) 3rd
Brad H (2-1) 4th
Colin J (2-1) 5th
Rob O (2-1) 6th
Andrew Y (2-1) 7th
Paul C (1-1) 8th
Bill S (1-2) 9th
Geoff W (1-2) 10th
Kenneth Y (1-2) 11th
David G (1-2) 12th
Paul S (1-2) 13th
Stephen S (1-2) 14th
Nate S (0-2) 15th
Steffen K (0-3) 16th


Standings within a groups are:
Group 1
1 - Steve S - 1st
2 - Paul Ch - 3rd
3 - Colin J - 2nd
4 - Nate S - 4th

Group 2

1 - Bill S - 2nd
2 - Paul S - 3rd
3 - Stephen S - 4th
4 - Brian W - 1st

Group 3

1 - Rob O - 1st
2 - Dave G - 4th
3 - Geoff W - 3rd
4 - Andrew Y - 2nd

Group 4

1 - Steffen K - 4th
2 - Chris D - 1st
3 - Brad H - 2nd
4 - Kevin Y - 3rd


 
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Stewart

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Worrisome that the Germans won even without OBA...
How close did the Brits get to the CVP cap?
After playing and reviewing other games....I'm thinking the OBA is to be used MID game and not early. The guaranteeed Mission means 7 hexes of smoke to block LOS off the board.
 
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