2018 Albany NY State ASL Championship AAR

[J. R. Tracy]

Round 1 - AP 87 Empire’s Fall

Opponent

Wai Wong, a member of Canada’s sinister effort to subvert the North American ASL community



Does not cower

Situation

Burma, January 1942 – 35 British and Commonwealth squads supported by OBA and a battery of four Bofors defend against 29 well-led IJA squads attacking from two directions, supported by artillery of their own. Minefields and wire augment the already difficult terrain, as the British attempt to defend multiple objectives. The Japanese score VPs for completing a variety of tasks – one each for clearing board 9b of good order Commonwealth MMCs, one point each for capturing two hilltop multihex stone buildings (8aN6 and 8aG3), one point each for clearing all good order Commonwealth MMCs from within a four hex radius of hexes 8aE7 and 8aE17, and one point for every two Bofors eliminated or captured (FRU). The IJA win immediately if they get one VP by the end of turn three, two VP by the end of turn five, three by the end of turn eight, or four by the end of turn ten, the conclusion of the scenario. Wai had the Commonwealth to my Japanese.



Moving out

Plan

My troops were split into two roughly equal groups, one attacking from board 40 (the hills on this board do not exist by SSR) and the other across board 9b. Each group had a handful of elite squads stiffening a majority of first liners, plus MMGs and light mortars; sadly, no DCs. The leadership was solid, however. I planned to open by dropping a smoke mission on 8bN6, a great spot for a leader-directed MMG stack. On board 40, I set up to Banzai into the light jungle around 8bL1, with some forces on the left flank moving in support; on the right flank, I HIP’d a platoon of LMG-armed 448s led by a 9-1 in 40E9, ready to move out on turn two and attempt to break into the rear area to grab some AA guns. On board 9b, I set up for two separate Banzai charges – one out of the 9bW2 area to breach the defenses around 9bR4, and the other composed of troops stretching from 9bX2 to 9bCC6, really just for movement and morale purposes. I had my 10-1 leading this flank’s elite platoon, opting out of the Banzai charges but ready to exploit any breakthroughs. The far left had a pair of half squads and a pair of 9-1-led MMGs, with a mission of inhibiting Commonwealth reinforcement from that flank while maybe causing some trouble of their own. I figured I had an outside chance of taking building 8aN6 by the end of turn three with converging forces, but my real hope was to take it on turn four and kill at least one Bofors by turn five.



May you live 10,000 years

Early Going

Before I launched my Banzai charges my scouts probed for minefields and discovered a solid belt from 8bO1 down to 8bQ4. However, to my surprise the board 40 charge route was unobstructed, and I reached 8bL1 and M2, with supporting forces just behind. Thanks to mortar smoke my second charge easily reached 8bQ4 and Q5, and the rest of that board’s forces moved up without incident. By turn two I was closing in on 8bN6 from two directions, as further Banzais carried me into 8bN4 and 8bP6/P7/P8; my HIPsters emerged but thanks to a bad Wire roll got no further than 8bB2/C2. I still had a shot at a turn three capture of 8bN6 but Wai’s redeployments were making life difficult.



Crashing through the second line

Uh-Oh!

My entire game plan was fueled by Banzais and black coffee, but mines and Commonwealth firepower took their toll. I sensed if I did not win early I would not win at all. At the end of turn two, Wai survived a 2:1 HtH CC in 8bN4. That ultimately killed two squads of the Emperor’s finest but more importantly, it broke up my anticipated Banzai group for the coming turn. I needed maximum efficiency from my charges and I would now have to scramble to piece together my final assault on 8bN6.



Up the hill

Big Moment

Opening turn three, I had a live SR on the map for my 70mm OBA. I could deliver another smoke mission atop 8bN6 but I reckoned additional cover wasn’t worth the movement penalties. Instead I went for a harassing mission against some Commonwealth troops on board 9b – Wai had six MMC still on 9b, one of which was broken and another locked up in melee. A perfect drift roll plopped the FFE into 9bR11. A pair of green squads in the kunai broke, and two more squads in Q12 and Q13 pinned – the latter possessed an MMG, and the pin would loom large.



Gunning for the Big House

Endgame

Opening the movement phase of turn three, my focus remained on the 8bN6 building. Three separate Banzai charges got me into the ground level but Wai had troops upstairs as well. I was mulling how to possibly break them all and kill them for failure to rout when I noticed the precarious Commonwealth situation on 9b. My 10-1 and a platoon of elites were in and around 9bQ8/Q9 with LOS to Q12 and Q13. My own OBA was in the way but I figured that’s why the gods blessed me with such highly motivated infantry. My 10-1 led one more Banzai, straight through the OBA – I took some lumps from the 4(-1) shots and Wai’s defensive fire, but crashed into Q12, forcing a break on an FPF shot. That same break disrupted the defending squad, allowing my last unit in the Banzai to continue through into Q13. The Q13 MMG squad also broke on the FPF, so all that remained was assembling a 4:1(-1) HtH attack on the melee’d halfsquad in V13 to close out a turn three win. Had the Q13 squad not been pinned by my OBA, I would’ve been charging straight down a 2(-2) firelane, which might have exceeded my capacity for recklessness.



Not-so-friendly fire

Lessons Learned

The power of multiple Banzai charges is a wonder to behold. The movement and morale benefits are substantial, and successive waves force difficult choices on a strapped defender. Sequenced properly, they can force FPF shots as well, with potentially devastating results. They come at a price, as my dead pile demonstrated, but the payoff is worth the risk. We also had fun with the classic ASL Sicilian Dilemma with the 8bN6 building: “You think I wouldn’t put a leader-led machine gun stack up there because it’s too obvious, but I know you think it would be too obvious, so I might have put it up there after all, unless I thought you knew I thought you thought it would be too obvious.”



The price of empire

Scenario Impressions

This scenario is all about the planning. Often for PTO scenarios it’s the Japanese who must construct an intricate defense so it’s refreshing to see them on the other side of the ball for a change. That said, the attack takes just as much thought, due to the timing issues and all the options in the IJA toolbox. I like the mix of forces, with two thirds of the Commonwealth subject to cowering and one third on the precarious edge of disruption (green troops with two ELR), but well supported with infantry kit and the Bofors. The IJA order of battle is potent but outnumbered, with just a very basic loadout of SWs. I think the attacker has the edge but thanks to the Pleva Balancing System, Wai picked up an LMG and boosted his SAN, getting things close to even. Happy to play it again as either side.

 

[J. R. Tracy]

Round 2 - YASL 7 Making a Break For It

Opponent

Michael Hershey, who’d as soon pick you off from 800 meters as face you across a table



A Tennessee gentleman

Situation

It’s 20 September 1944 on the wrong side of the Rhine, and 1AB is starting to realize this whole bridge-grabbing adventure has gone seriously sideways. Fifteen 648s led by a 10-2 and friends need to push through a crowd of SS OCS students and 658s and exit. The Paras have some support weapons and a few extra dummies but are light on ammo, while the SS have basic SWs of their own plus a B11 20mm Flak gun. Four of the OCS 447s may be secretly recorded as Fanatic. The British have six turns to travel the length of half a board, with the benefit of a permanent +1 LV hindrance.

Plan

With the board 5 woods on my right and the board 46 town on my left, my defenders had to be ready to address whichever axis of attack Mike chose. I split my force evenly between the two, with light pickets in the 46V8 building supported by a stronger position around 46W7, a couple squads in the 46V2 woods (bd 46 brush is woods by SSR), an LMG-armed 658 looking down the road from 5L2, a light mortar in 5I6, and supporting infantry on the far right and between the mortar and LMG. My leader-directed MMG started in 46Y3 ready to move to either flank, and the Flak piece sat in 5oB6 facing toward my right flank. I planned to reinforce whichever board faced the greatest threat, maintain a two-hex cushion for as long as possible to avoid stealthy Paras assault-moving adjacent, and generate a sea of residual for Mike to navigate in his final movement phase.



Stymied at the edge of town

Early Going

Mike split his force with about a third coming down board 46 and the balance pushing through the woods on board 5. We didn’t have much early contact beyond a lucky shot by me which broke a 648 pushing up into U7. I promptly sent a halfsquad out to kill it for failure to rout but was broken in turn, our only moment of drama. Otherwise we settled into a standoff between Brits in the 46U7-V8 region facing my defenders centered on 46W7, with an ominous mass of Paras forming up in the board 5 woods north of the road, opposed by a thin film of SS-like residue.



Another fine product from Weyland-Yutani

Big Moment

My woods position looked dicey – my 9-1/MMG/658 ran over to lend a hand but Mike’s midgame attack cracked my defense of the 5J6 clearing. However, a Fanatic 447 then rolled snakes on a 2MC, generating a Xenomorph on the HOB table. It proceeded to terrorize and distract the board 5 Paras until Mike finally blew it out the airlock on turn five. It bought me enough time to regroup and establish a new line of defense.

Uh-Oh!

Even with the HOB my extreme right was still in bad shape. Mike had delayed entering a platoon until turn three and it was now racing up the flank. I had just two halfsquads over there and was on the verge of being overwhelmed before I could scrape together some help for Flak gun and the goal line defense.



Forming a fist

Endgame

A German sniper pegged the leader of the reinforcing platoon, slowing them down drastically. Mike was pushing hard and on turn four his 648s just bounced off my defenders. With the 10-2 close behind, they rallied immediately, but it was costly in terms of time and position. Prepping for turn five I fell back to cover the open terrain around 5F9 and the 5H3-E2 road, while my board 46 force adjusted itself to make sure exiting was either mathematically impossible or required crossing open ground adjacent to my troops. Mike knew it was now or never and burst out of the woods. The wall of residual grew steadily until it was time for the 10-2 to move. He gave it his best shot but his squads fell one by one until finally it was too much even for him. With the break of the 10-2, Mike extended his hand.



Trading space for time

Lessons Learned

This scenario is all about space/time considerations in the spirit of a classic fall back defense situation. We both enjoyed a refresher course in woods fighting as he worked the flanks to compromise my successive lines while his main force attempted to bull up the center.



Only one way out

Scenario Impressions

This is straightforward infantry ASL with a few flourishes (Fanatics, +1 LV, ammo shortage, and stealthiness), and feels tightly balanced. After one playing my sense is that board 5 deserves a demonstration force but the main Para thrust should be up board 46. The intermittent open ground is hazardous but the LV hindrance helps and the terrain itself is favorable for exploitation once a breakthrough occurs. I’d like to try it myself as the Brits at some point.

 

[J. R. Tracy]

Round 3 - HF 6 Jackpot Jones

Opponents

Bob and Stanley Bendis



Bob and his XO

Situation

11 January 1945, in Hatten, France – a German attack presses into the center of town, aiming to seize the heart of the American defense. The GIs have nine squads (two elite) supported by a couple MMGs, two 60mm mortars, two BAZ’45s, and three Hellcats. Two of the Hellcats may be set up HIP in orchards or woods. The entering Germans attack with a dozen squads, including four 548s, good leadership, an HMG, a pair of MMGs, some lights, a ‘schreck, two PzIVs, a Panther, and two SPW 250/1s.

Plan

As the German, I needed to take nine of the ten stone locations within two hexes of K21 (eight if I had more mobile AFVs with functioning MAs at game end). Bob’s setup had a big stack in K16, a smaller one in L15, pickets in D17 and D20, big concealment counters in I21 and K20 (both rubbled), something in G23, and the rest in the K20 building or strung out westward in buildings lining the road.



Not long for this world

Given his defense, I sent two full platoons (one with the HMG/MMGs) up into L14 and I14, able to advance adjacent to his defenders while retaining concealment. On the northern flank, halfsquads scounted D17 and D20, with more infantry behind to react based on what was found. The Panther supported them, initially to blow its sN and then to head to the extreme right. The SPWs would be ready to freeze-sleaze any real defenders up front, or swing to the right and nose their way through likely orchard hiding spots, dropping off an occasional halfsquad along the way. The PzIVs would end up around G15 and G16 to spit out some smoke and support the attack as the defense revealed itself.

The general idea was for the northern force to grab outlying buildings and deny rout paths while the eastern force pounded its way into the K20 building.

Early Going

Things went swimmingly at first – D17 held a pair of dummies while D20 was occupied by a very short-lived 8-0. My heavy infantry hustled up and quickly drove Bob out of the K16 building. A lucky PzIV shot broke a 666 in K17 but it backfired when I sent an 8-0 around to cut off a rout path; a Hellcat in K20 revealed itself to put a 76mm round right between his eyes. Another popped up in M20 to kill a scouting SPW. Meanwhile, my Panther parked in J26 to dominate the road while the surviving halftracks continued to probe the American rear.



Pushing up from the east

Uh-Oh!

Oh God, so many Uh-Ohs – I don’t know which one to pick. It could have been the Battle Harden/Hero rolled up by the 667 in I21 right next to my Panther, but a 75mm shell took care of that problem. It could’ve been the stunning appearance of a Hellcat on turn four (turn four! TURN FOUR!) in M19 but Bob rolled back to back boxcars on his AAMG/MA shots. It could’ve been the unholy ROF tear by the K20 mortar that cost me a turn, but at least you can come back from failed morale checks. It could’ve been the three Bob needed (and rolled) to hit my PzIV in I16, but I’m gonna lose a tank eventually. No, I’ll have to pick the critical hit on the +5 TH attempt against my poor misbegotten 548s in K18, preparing to advance into some smoke on their way to the victory building. Yahtzee on the random selection, 2KIA on the result - vaya con dios, amigos.



Drawing the noose

Big Moment

I was making decent progress with my northern/western group but Bob had my ears pinned back on the eastern flank – those were the boys who had to do the heavy lifting and I was making zero progress. The M19 Hellcat repaired its AAMG and along with the M20 Hellcat held the corner. However, it was the 9-1 armor leader in K20 that was controlling the game. In the bottom of turn four Bob rolled my SAN, I responded with a ‘2’, and suddenly the AL was hunkering down around the ammo racks. On the face of it a ‘2’ sniper is no big deal but in this case I think it swung the win probability from 80% Ami to 65% German.

Endgame

With the K20 Hellcat buttoned up, my surviving PzIV was able to roll up and kill it outright on turn five. I took the hex but was immediately turfed out by Bob’s counterattack. However, all my troops were good order and ready to press home. The M19 Hellcat attempted to repair its MA but headed for the depot instead, so Bob decided to use his remaining TD to make life a little harder for me, parking it in bypass on the back side of L21 to force a PAATC on my final advance.

I had to take four of the remaining six stone locations still in American hands on the final turn. My Panther broke the defenders of one location while a mere 7-0 defended another, but I’d have to survive substantial defensive fire to take two more. Unfortunately luck had run out for the Americans about half a turn earlier, and Bob had no success with DFire. I managed to pass my PAATC and win most of the ambush rolls, closing out the game with a snake eyes on the final close combat. It was a long twisty road to a hard-fought victory.



Preparing to advance

Lessons Learned

Two lessons, one universal, one specific. The first is, never give up – if you don’t attempt to come back from difficult situations, you’ll never learn how to overcome a daunting position. I think a lot of ASLers lack a solid endgame because either they or their opponents throw in the towel too early. Even if it looks out of reach, play it out, or at least play a little bit longer, because a precisely timed and targeted bit of luck can have a surprising impact.

The second is all about Bob. I was shocked Bob wanted to defend, because historically he has been all attack, all the time. That said, the old Bob still lurked within – that M19 Hellcat was a doozy. Bob passed up juicy fire opportunities for three straight turns until I finally served up a morsel he couldn’t resist. I love the way he managed to express his natural aggressiveness even on defense, making this an even more challenging (and entertaining) scenario.



That's a wrap

Scenario Impressions

This is a neat little set piece situation, evenly matched in my opinion with several options for both sides. Two Hellcats can set up HIP, the Ami gets dummies to fake some on board setups if he wishes, and he can enter TDs from offboard too. That’s a lot for the German to consider, but he has ample flexibility himself with a broad entrance area and the highly mobile SPWs. Bob observed that the American position is pretty static once the action starts, and there’s a bug-hunt element as the German sweats the possibility of a Hellcat behind every apple tree, but overall I think it’s a nice compact scenario on a great looking map. Good choice for a weekday evening or a Saturday afternoon.

 

[J. R. Tracy]

Round 4 - DFB 135 The Block on the Trail to Hell

Opponent

Brian Wiersma, fresh off a casual half marathon he ran for fun that very morning



Fit and feisty

Situation

1943 Bougainville – a dozen squads of Marines push through the board 37 jungle to drive eight IJA squads and a pair of crews off a critical trail. The jarheads are bolstered by a couple assault engineer squads, a flamethrower, and a pair each of MMGs and DCs, while the Japanese have an HMG and MMG, a DC of their own, a 50mm MTR and a couple of lights, along with a phat pillbox and a pair of trenches. For the Marines to win, there must be no good order IJA MMC on or adjacent to a specified six hex stretch of trail at game end.

Plan

I hesitate to outline my setup because some gullible soul might mistake it for the proper way to play this scenario. I stupidly defended in force at the forward edge of my set up area. I anchored my defense with a bunker complex in Y7/Y6/Z5, with the PB in Y6, occupied by two crews, the HMG and MMG, and a 9-1 for direction. A halfsquad manned a mortar in a foxhole in Z8, boresighting W8. A 447 occupied the Y7 trench, while an LMG/448 held the Z5 trench. I put a 447 in Y2 accompanied by a 238 doing its best impersonation of a 50mm mortar. I put another 238 in Y6, since an empty hex in such a defense just screams “HIPsters lurking here!” A first line HS set up in X1 with a mission to edge forward to complicate USMC routing options. Finally, I set up another LMG/448 in the bamboo of Y3, and HIP’d my DC/8-0 and a 447 in the bamboo of AA8, the terminus of a tunnel leading back to the pillbox. The general idea was to give Brian a bloody nose before falling back, with the HIP infantry slipping back into the pillbox for an endgame thorn in Brian’s side.



Overexposed

Early Going

Brian rolled right up on my D, and I made the mistake of being cagey at first, allowing a few too many Marines to engage relatively unmolested. Brian faced off against my bunker line with a substantial force, and probed ahead into the W3/W4 kunai. A bold squad CX’d to X4 to toss WP into Y4 without success, and was soon joined by a halfsquad. The FT hadn’t revealed itself yet but strong support backed Brian’s powerful assault, and I was suddenly questioning a variety of personal life choices. My sole success was breaking the Marines sassy enough to move into X6, but it was small solace.

Uh-Oh!

On my far left, my mortar missed a full platoon of jarheads in boresighted W8, and my manning halfsquad promptly bottled on the return fire. My bunker force now had to contend with Brian’s strong push up the middle with their flank unprotected – the X7 447 had its hands full with no promise of help.



Closing for a kill

Big Moment

As my first player turn began, there was a squad and a half of unconcealed Marines in X4, along with CX Marines in W4 and W3; I had concealed units nearby in X1, Y2, and Y3, along with my bunker defenders in Z5 and Y6. I advanced my concealed units adjacent to the kunai jarheads, weathering Brian’s defensive fire while retaining concealment. Sensing a chance to create a lot of chaos for little risk, I sent my Y6 238 into X5, heading toward W5; the 668 in X4 scored a 2MC on a 12(-1) shot but I rolled a four and kept on trucking; a subsequent 6(0) in W5 had no effect. An MMG/668 in V3 fired and missed as well. With the kunai Marines already Final Fired, Brian was out of options, leaving the 238 miraculously unscathed. It would prove to be a game-breaker.



Not enough green

Endgame

With the rout path of the X4 Marines compromised, I thought, "In for a penny, in for a pound". I assault moved my LMG/448 into Y5 and got striped on an FPF MC. My 9-1 followed with the MG crews – Brian FPF’d again, but a 2MC merely striped a single crew. My subsequent AFPh shots from X3, Y5, and W5 encircled the X4 stack, breaking the halfsquad and pinning the 668. The CX Marines in W3 self-broke for safety’s sake, but a CX 9-1/768 in W4 and the X4 squad stood to face the music, in this case the mournful melody of a bamboo flute coming from beneath a nearby concealment counter. It was not pretty, as the Marines were wiped out at the cost of a single Japanese squad.

Well behind the curve at this point, Brian had no choice but to take chances. He pushed his flamethrower halfsquad forward only to see it double-broken to the land of wind of ghosts, closely followed by a brave 8-0 who tried to scoop up the torch. Ensuing close combats only added to the Marine dead pile. By turn three, five of the original twelve USMC squads were dead, along with half their leadership. A relentless torrent of terrible dice proved too much to overcome, and Brian threw in the towel.



The honored dead

Lessons Learned

I made a lousy assessment of the situation at the outset – my main ally here was the terrain, given the tight Marine time schedule. Instead of utilizing that with a defense in depth, I chose to meet the massively superior Marine firepower head-on. Only horrific rolls by Brian and great dice for me could save the day, and that’s exactly what happened. Even my little HIP/tunnel ploy would’ve come to naught - as we were picking up Brian casually said, “I assume your HIP guys are here” and pointed right at the hex.

Scenario Impressions

I think this is a good, balanced situation, given a better Japanese setup and even dice. Brian had a solid plan of recon by fire and WP grenades (those 768s have Willy Pete on a ‘4’ or less), but even there his dice denied him. With average luck, he would’ve steadily driven me back and cordoned me off from the victory area for the win. Conversely, a better Japanese setup would’ve delayed with a fraction of the force, inflicted casualties opportunistically, and orchestrated an endgame battle at the edge of the victory area with room for flanking counterstrikes. I think the ingredients are here for a fun scenario, and I hope my next session with Brian is driven more by skill and execution than the fall of the dice.

 

[J. R. Tracy]

Championship Round - HF 8 Fahrenheit 352

Opponent

John McDiarmid, another northern interloper concealing his dark intentions behind a veneer of good-natured Canadianess.



Canada's finest

Situation

Back in Hatten, this time with the Americans on the attack. The Americans must have good order units in both of buildings K16 and L19 at game end. The initial German defense consists of eleven first line squads supported by a smattering of SWs and leadership, plus a handful of foxholes. The Americans attack with a baker’s dozen of squads, over half elite, led by a 9-2 and friends, with three MMGs, two 60mm mortars, three BAZ’45s, and three Shermans (one 76L and two 75s). The Americans receive three more Shermans as reinforcements on turn two (two 76Ls this time and a 75) with an armor leader, while the Germans receive a platoon of 548s and a 9-2, with three LMGs and a demo charge, along with a pair of PzIVs and, oh yeah, two Flammhetzers. The German reinforcements arrive on turn three, with the option to enter a pair of AFVs on turn two with six MPs already expended.



Slogging across the fields

Plan

The dice gave John the defense, and he set up strong in the two objective buildings with flanking protection strung out on either side, all within three or four hexes of the heart of the defense. I started on the far side of the N30-X10 road, with a lot of plowed fields to cross. My Brandts had WP9 for the first turn by SSR, so I figured they would try to screen an attack in the center with help from the Shermans.

I had my 9-2 lead a stack of 3xMMG/667s on my far left with a pair of 346s in support, while an 8-0 led a pair of squads on the right, one with a bazooka in case the German armor came that way. The rest would head straight up the gut. One 75 Sherman was committed to an opening smoke shot, while the other would support the right flank as my 76L Sherman headed left. I figured the problem wouldn’t be getting into the buildings, but rather staying there in the face of John’s formidable reinforcements.



All up in his grill

Early Going

The opening mortar barrage gave a small taste of things to come – after dropping a couple rounds of WP in the orchards in front of the objectives, I quickly ran out of smoke, and started dropping HE instead. My first shot, with a +5 TH, was snake-eyes – the resulting 16(-3) casualty-reduced an MMG-manning squad which finished itself off with boxcars in the ensuing Rally Phase. Elsewhere my advance proceeded about as planned, with John giving ground while landing a few blows without killing anything outright.

After the infantry reached the building line, my onboard 75 Shermans headed to the right to interdict the shortest path to the victory buildings for John’s reinforcements, parking CE in K13 and I11. My onboard 76L Sherman went to J24 to control the road behind the objectives, joined by a reinforcing 75 Sherman. Last, the two reinforcing 76Ls went deep left to prepare a meet ‘n greet, sighting down the C hexrow from C25 and C26 – they popped their hatches as well. I figured my armor was better utilized slowing the counterattack while my dogfaces did the heavy lifting in town.



Face-off in the corner

Uh-Oh!

On turn two John gave ground on my right, abandoning the L16 building for the most part, using foxholes to cross the J hexrow. On my left he stood and fought – without any foxholes in this sector, my Shermans made a retreat too hazardous to consider. I liked my chances, with a concealed halfsquad shrouded in smoke in one hex and the 9-2 leading a stack of mayhem in another. However, John’s defensive fire pinned or broke two of the 9-2’s squads, so he advanced against a German squad with just one 667, while the concealed 346 went after another 467 on its own. I failed to ambush in each, lost the 346 CC outright, and ended up in melee with the 9-2. John was in position to reinforce the melee on his turn, declare hand to hand, and take my most important piece off the board.



The 9-2 prepares to enter

Big Moment

There were two key moments on German turn three. First, John sent his armor after my C25/C26 Shermans. My armor leader killed one PzIV but I missed the other with my second Sherman – fortunately John missed his Bounding Fire shot as well. The Flammhetzers followed. The first skirted the wall beside my M4s along the B hexrow, aiming to get behind my C26 Sherman. My AL spun his turret for an intensive fire shot and pegged the Hetzer in the side with a ‘3’. John sent the second straight down the C hexrow – my AL didn’t have a chance and was sent off with a Viking funeral. I came out ahead but by rights John could've reasonably expected to kill both Shermans for maybe the loss of just a single PzIV.

Meanwhile, John moved up to reinforce the melee in L21. He had two possible stacks ready to advance as my defensive fire phase began. All I had were a pair of 6(+4) shots…and I rolled back to back snakes. Each broke a squad, saving my 9-2 who cleaned up his little predicament in the Close Combat Phase. John had two good chances to swing the game in his favor but the fickle finger of fate pointed elsewhere.



Establishing residency

Endgame

The 9-2 had an eventful entry, arriving in the thick of things with one less halfsquad than he started with but accompanied by a hero and a fanatic squad.

After that brief bright spot, cascading ill fortune ultimately doomed John’s Germans. I forked the remained Flammhetzer with my M4s, killing it on its start-up MP. John bagged one Sherman on the J hexrow but the offending squad soon departed the playing area. After that my infantry firepower proceeded to break almost all the remaining German infantry on the board. With just three good order squads remaining and all his armor eliminated, John called it on turn four; even teamed up with a hero, there was only so much his 9-2 could do.



Bad day for 21st Panzer

Lessons Learned

My flanking scheme with the Shermans aimed to slow the reinforcements and deny rout paths, but I missed a great opportunity on turn three – John pointed out after the game that I could’ve parked one M4 next to a stack of broken Germans and killed three squads for failure to rout. I completely missed an LOS from their position to US squads about ten hexes away – between all the rubble and foxhole counters, I just didn’t see the opening. The lesson here is take a good gander in a situation like that, particularly on an unfamiliar map. Ultimately it didn’t matter but I could’ve ended things a little earlier.



The story of the game

Scenario Impressions

I like the situation, particularly the attack/counterattack aspect. I reckon it’s reasonably balanced, but the onus is on the German to grok the essence from the outset. He needs to balance a central defense against denying total freedom of movement to the Shermans, somehow slowing the initial American onslaught while preserving enough force to counterattack. A Panzerschreck in K29 or at least the possibility of one would’ve altered my gameplan on that flank considerably. Giving up on one building and nutting up in the other might be the way to go. On the American side, I think I spread myself a bit too thin – the US needs to pressure both flanks but perhaps one side can be a more limited threat-in-being while the hammer hits the other. I think the replayability is substantial, and the fun factor is high with both sides getting an opportunity to set the pace. It was a good choice to end the weekend, and despite the brutal dicing John remained a cheerful, fun opponent throughout.



Sweet hardware

 

[Eagle4ty]

Round 1 - AP 87 Empire’s Fall
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Lessons Learned

The power of multiple Banzai charges is a wonder to behold. The movement and morale benefits are substantial, and successive waves force difficult choices on a strapped defender. Sequenced properly, they can force FPF shots as well, with potentially devastating results. They come at a price, as my dead pile demonstrated, but the payoff is worth the risk. We also had fun with the classic ASL Sicilian Dilemma with the 8bN6 building: “You think I wouldn’t put a leader-led machine gun stack up there because it’s too obvious, but I know you think it would be too obvious, so I might have put it up there after all, unless I thought you knew I thought you thought it would be too obvious.”


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The price of empire

Scenario Impressions

This scenario is all about the planning. Often for PTO scenarios it’s the Japanese who must construct an intricate defense so it’s refreshing to see them on the other side of the ball for a change. That said, the attack takes just as much thought, due to the timing issues and all the options in the IJA toolbox. I like the mix of forces, with two thirds of the Commonwealth subject to cowering and one third on the precarious edge of disruption (green troops with two ELR), but well supported with infantry kit and the Bofors. The IJA order of battle is potent but outnumbered, with just a very basic loadout of SWs. I think the attacker has the edge but thanks to the Pleva Balancing System, Wai picked up an LMG and boosted his SAN, getting things close to even. Happy to play it again as either side.

Great AAR for one of my all time favorite scenarios (even though I had lost with the Japanese).

 

[Jacometti]

Brilliant AAR as always, JR. For the AARs alone you deserve to win.

You smartly avoided being outsmarted by any of the Death To Fascism designs on offer......I look forward to reading some of your AARs on those in the future.

Congratulations again on a most impressive tournament victory !

 

[Justiciar]

What are the Post it Notes with little colored Xs? on them mean/indicate?
(I second the AAR award win.)

 

[J. R. Tracy]

What are the Post it Notes with little colored Xs? on them mean/indicate?

Steve used them to keep track of people's wins - each skull and crossbones is a victory.

 

[J. R. Tracy]

Brilliant AAR as always, JR. For the AARs alone you deserve to win.

You smartly avoided being outsmarted by any of the Death To Fascism designs on offer......I look forward to reading some of your AARs on those in the future.

Congratulations again on a most impressive tournament victory !

Thanks, Peter. Sadly, no DTF this weekend - a couple were my first choices but things didn't line up. I was especially looking forward to AK '44, which looks really interesting. Fortunately I got to play three of them at ASLOK and hope to play them all soon!

 

[Doug Kirk]

Impressive AAR. Well written, nice pics. Congrats!!!

 

[Yuri0352]

Loved the pictures ( Bob and his XO is a classic!).
Best AAR write-up ever.

 

[Perry]

Steve used them to keep track of people's wins - each skull and crossbones is a victory.

Color coding?

 

[jrv]

Color coding?

Just a guess: strength (or would difficulty be more appropriate?) of opponent?

Also, according to the big board it looks like Stanleto had four wins. Anyone care to own up and admit you lost to the dog? How does he play? Does he nudge the counters forward with his nose? Does he bark to indicate he has DFF?

JR

 

[Eagle4ty]

Have to get the details from Gunner Scott. I've heard he's had a few face-to-face engagements with him.

 

[synicbast]

Have to get the details from Gunner Scott. I've heard he's had a few face-to-face engagements with him.

Stanlito is a great roommate at ASLOK, always willing to say hello and bring a blanket (usually Scott's)