Defensive Stealth aka Skulking

[applecatcher4]

If you look at a full defender's movemeent phase in a tense and close game where the defender is constantly in danger of being swarmed, you see counters doing a number of different things that altogether form a very intricate and appealing dance.

Some units might bypass between the buildings/woods out of LOS to reach less vulnerable positions, some units appear to skulk but in the advance phase are replaced by the guys that are still concealed or by the MMG guys, some skulk but advance to new positions, some am back and then advance even further from the enemy.

There are many possibilities and often those moves are constrained and dictated by the dispositions of the attacking force. This is one of the great features of this game and I trhink that skulking is one of the components that makes it work so well.

 

[Tater]

I guess he does mean "skulking"...

I'd break down the problem in two aspects:
- reality: doesn't matter. ASL is not a simulation of WW2 tactical warfare, has never intended to be, will never be. It's a game where you're supposed to try fulfilling victory conditions by any means allowed by the rules. If a J8 errata allows Panthers to fly, I would fly them.

- gameplay: certainly, a situation where the defender is able to assault move/advance back and forth on the same line for several turns is not the most interesting. But it only means that the attacker is not doing his job, or that the scenario is plain boring. Generally you should always force difficult choices on your opponent, if he's able to fall back and reoccupy the same positions without putting his units at risk (remember Snapshots) then you're probably losing the game.

BTW, skulking can involve "recycling" Concealment markers, transferring SW between units, shifting Dummies around... not necessarily a trivial move.

BINGO!

If a defender is able to freely skulk more than once then the attacker has failed to put enough pressure on the defense via maneuver.

I use skulking whenever possible on the defense...what I have noticed is that vs aggressive opponents who understand the importance of maneuver over firepower, skulking is only moderately effective and only for a few positions in the defense.

If one is a player who, as the attacker, is losing to the skulking tactic repeatedly...then one is relying to much on firepower.

 

[Tater]

The method involved in skulking, IE AM out followed by Adv back in, requires the presence of an unobserved (by the enemy) hex. If all adjacent hexes are observed then skulking is not possible. I see this as the equivalent of local (in-hex) cover being partially out flanked by the enemy.

Disagree...the idea of skulking is not to just to be out of ALL enemy LOS...rather the over-all intent of skulking is to reduce exposure to enemy FP. So if I AM my 666 back a hex to get out of LOS of my opponents 9-2/467x2/HMGx2 kill stack but said AM leaves me in LOS of the CX 467&LMG firing through an orchard and 2xBrush hexes..then I am using skulking in the very purest sense of the tactic.

 

[Jockster]

BINGO!

If one is a player who, as the attacker, is losing to the skulking tactic repeatedly...then one is relying to much on firepower.

I've noted that SK players transitioning to ASL have considerable problems with this. SKs lend themselves more toward shooting than moving, ASL lends itself more toward moving then shooting.