call for playtesters - Malaya, Normandy & Winter War scenarios

GeorgeBates

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Greetings, Friends!

As some of you may have seen on ConSim, I am preparing two scenarios for submission to MMP. One, tentatively titled, “Careless At Bakri,” features the Australian 8th Division in the Malaya Campaign. 2/29 Btn and a pair of 2-pdrs attempt to throw back an armored thrust from 5 Rgt, Imperial Guards Div on 18 January 1942. The other title, “A Textbook Case,” depicts Band Of Brothers E Coy, 506 PIR, 101 Abn Div’s action at Brecourt Manor on 6 June 1944.

The playtest team has made significant progress on "Bakri." A few more playings should confirm that the last round of revisions is working. Looking for at least 6 volunteers for three independent playings.

Here's a look at the top of the scenario card and the terrain:

BakriCardTop.jpg
BakriMap.jpg

By coincidence, this spring while wandering the Imperial Palace grounds at cherry blossom time my wife and I stumbled on the headquarters building for the Imperial Guards. It is now an art museum.
FmrImperialGdsDivHQ_PalaceGrounds_20170409.JPG

The playtest team is very enthusiastic about this one. Several have agreed to share their comments:

Imagine scrambling backwards trying to slow down a banzai tide and onrushing armor, that's what Bakri's about!
Jackson "Tank-Jacker" Kwan​

Bakri is a blast from start to finish. Banzai charges and tanks rolling through a rubber trees in a furious, whirling firefight - plays fast!

Ivan "The Terrible" Kent​

Wouldn't touch it with a twenty-foot bangalore torpedo!

Bruce "Rhymes With Abuse" Probst​

"A Textbook Case" needs more riders to put it through all its paces, but is not far behind. More on this one later.

In exchange for your investment of time, responses to a short questionnaire, and your AAR I can offer you and your opponent a playtest credit, a howlin' good time, the smug satisfaction of having played them first, and of course, my eternal gratitude.

Please contact me off line for further information.

Cheers!

- G
 

GeorgeBates

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Many thanks to our friends in Syracuse who have joined the playtest team. Plenty of room for more on the bus.
 
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GeorgeBates

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Friends said if I wanted to succeed at my playtest recruiting efforts I should show a bit more leg. How's this?

LegLamp.jpg


No? Or this?

Fawlty.jpg


Still nothing? In that case, feast your eyes on "A Textbook Case," starting with the scenario card top and the play area on board 43.

TextbookCaseCardTop.jpg TextbookCaseMap.jpg

For a look at the local topography, here's an aerial recon photo and 1/25000 map:
BrecourtAerial(source_unk).jpgStMarieDuMont-Brecourt-vicinity(1-25000).jpg

Situation is straightforward - US has 5 turns to capture, destroy or drive off the crews of all four guns. A malfunctioned gun also counts toward a US victory.

Now, if you want a peek at the garters, you'll have to join the playtest team.
 
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GeorgeBates

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Big shout to our friends in Peachtree for agreeing to give the Brecourt Manor scenario a try. Lines are still open, and operators are standing by to take your volunteer call!
 

GeorgeBates

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Our new friend Randy T has done some serious drum-beating today to bring more new players on to the team. At this rate, we'll be done before State Fair time. Thanks, Randy!
 

RandyT0001

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Our new friend Randy T has done some serious drum-beating today to bring more new players on to the team. At this rate, we'll be done before State Fair time. Thanks, Randy!
I am happy that members of the ASL-SL Scenario Design and Development Facebook group stepped forward to help with the playtest.
 

wrongway149

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Still nothing? In that case, feast your eyes on "A Textbook Case," starting with the scenario card top and the play area on board 43.

Situation is straightforward - US has 5 turns to capture, destroy or drive off the crews of all four guns. A malfunctioned gun also counts toward a US victory.

Now, if you want a peek at the garters, you'll have to join the playtest team.
I always enjoy 'Take out the artillery' scenarios. Was a common mission for a small infantry unit during WWII.
 

GeorgeBates

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Hey friends, here's an update on how these projects are coming along. New volunteers are welcome.
  • "Careless At Bakri" was submitted to MMP last autumn. Since then it has undergone minor changes, but subsequent playings continue to indicate that the design is sound. More testing by players of all experience levels can only help.
  • "A Textbook Case" (Brécourt Manor) was submitted at the same time. However, conversations with playtesters about rigidity of the setup and the vulnerability of such a small scale action to bad dice led me to re-magine the scenario under the alternate title, "A Bustle In Your Hedgerow." This new version is a search-and-destroy mission on an expanded map (below, North to the left). It features variable OBs and leverages the cloaking rules to re-create the confusion at dawn after the D-Day drop. It has held up well under our early work, so I gave it to MMP to evaluate side-by-side with "Textbook." 'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings...
BustleMap(sm).jpg

There's more in the pipeline. Drop me a PM if you'd like to contribute to the development effort.

Cheers!

- G
 

Ric of The LBC

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Hey friends, here's an update on how these projects are coming along. New volunteers are welcome.
  • "Careless At Bakri" was submitted to MMP last autumn. Since then it has undergone minor changes, but subsequent playings continue to indicate that the design is sound. More testing by players of all experience levels can only help.
  • "A Textbook Case" (Brécourt Manor) was submitted at the same time. However, conversations with playtesters about rigidity of the setup and the vulnerability of such a small scale action to bad dice led me to re-magine the scenario under the alternate title, "A Bustle In Your Hedgerow." This new version is a search-and-destroy mission on an expanded map (below, North to the left). It features variable OBs and leverages the cloaking rules to re-create the confusion at dawn after the D-Day drop. It has held up well under our early work, so I gave it to MMP to evaluate side-by-side with "Textbook." 'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings...

There's more in the pipeline. Drop me a PM if you'd like to contribute to the development effort.

Cheers!

- G
Board 54 is hard to come by.
 

dur

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Nevertheless, it was the best fit for the terrain. Meanwhile, we have VASL.
George, I would love to help out with playtesting the Brecourt scenario! Please drop me a line either here or at
 
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Eagle4ty

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Board 54 is hard to come by.
Try Alex Key at Key's Games & Hobbies as he has always come through for me and at a reasonable price (and usually with a nice little "prize" to boot). Note: He's currently on vacation, so there may be some short delay in response time if contacted right now. Not to mention, he's a great guy!
 
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GeorgeBates

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George, I would love to help out with playtesting the Brecourt scenario! Please drop me a line either here or at...
You've got mail, Sir!

P.S. You might want to hide your mail address from the trolls and bots that occasionally stroll through GS.
 

GeorgeBates

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And now for a change of scenery. When I got my copy of Hakkaa Päälle! in 2015, I was mildly surprised that the existing scenarios featuring the Finns had not been updated. This appears to have been a deliberate part of the effort to re-cast Finnish forces and and put some distance between the module and some scenarios that were not world-beaters. That marketing strategy may not have convinced Dan Dolan, but by and large in this respect the module is a success.

However, it didn't seem right that those old scenarios and (more importantly) the battles they depicted should just be left to gather dust. There are nine pre-HP! titles that feature the Finns. Two have credited designers who presumably would update them if they felt the need. A third, "Fighting Withdrawal" is ASL Scenario 1. It did not make sense to monkey with first card out of every box of Beyond Valor. After some conversations with one of the Hakkaa Päälle! principals and a fair amount of follow-up research I drafted revisions for four of the remaining six. These proposed updates have been shared with MMP. A decision on whether to pursue publication is pending.

The four scenarios have progressed at different paces. The one that has come the farthest, and now least resembles the original title is, "The Borders Are Burning," scenarios A10 and 123. As of 15 June 2017, A10 was 20 F - 10 R, 123 was 8 - 4. Apparently neither a popular nor a well-balanced match.

It was also not accurate. This action should be set nearer the city of Kuhmo about two weeks after, not the day of the invasion. Border clashes did not involve large Finnish forces, and a tank battalion was not attached to the Red Army's 54th Rifle Division until 5 December. 54 RD personnel were trained as mountain troops. Neither of the combatants featured were present in the area of Kuhmo (81st Rifle Regiment had been transferred to 163rd Rifle Division). The Finnish 14th Independent Battalion did not have any ordnance AT assets. Try as I might, I was unable to identify any “Lt. Kaariala.” Play area is wilderness - forested glacial moraine (no level 3 hills) with a single road running through it.

Here's what the top of the new scenario card looks like:
123_BordersAreBurning_CardTop(sm).jpg

Based on contemporary maps and present-day views of the stream crossing, a new map was also created for the scenario.
East
9121overVääräjoki_E.jpg

North
9121overVääräjoki_N.jpg

South
9121overVääräjoki_S.jpg

West
9121overVääräjoki_W.jpg

New Map
123_BordersAreBurning_v2_Map(sm)only.jpg

Hope these new possibilities look exciting. The design has come a long way already. It can still use more playings to prove that it is nearly ready to publish. Let me know if you want to try shaking it down.

Cheers!

- G
 
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Tuomo

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Here's what the top of the new scenario card looks like:
I'm sorry, George, but those guys in the picture look like WW2 reenactors from Akron. Weren't the Finns... ya know... kinda ROUGH? MEAN?
 

GeorgeBates

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I'm sorry, George, but those guys in the picture look like WW2 reenactors from Akron. Weren't the Finns... ya know... kinda ROUGH? MEAN?
Tom caught me red-handed. Yes, that's actually me and my buddies in our "snow fort" somewhere outside of Bemidji back in the '80s.

But seriously, Finns are the nicest guys if you're just getting together with them for vodka shots. Try fishing their lakes out of season, kidnapping a reindeer or annexing Karelia and they put their game faces on.
 
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