Ah... B9.321. So it is. Nobody ever thought this might be more appropriately located in Chapter J? Are there any other Deluxe-only exceptions sprinkled elsewhere in the core rules?
Although there are plenty of places in the ASLRB where things aren't where you'd expect to find them, this one came about quite by accident. (See below.) If there are any other Deluxe-only exceptions (I don't remember any), I expect they showed up the same way.
along those same lines, why the difference in how wall advantage is handled.
In short, because Deluxe is "right" and straight ASL is "broken"!
When the system first was published in 1985, WA was handled on a hexside-by-hexside basis in
normal ASL -- just as it now is in Deluxe. In the version of the B9 rules which came with the '85 rulebook, both of the WA examples clearly show the 4-6-7 having WA over the 4-4-7, but then allow the 4-4-7 to claim WA over the
other hexside in its hex (U2/U3, and Y2/Z2).
This is why there is no mention of the "Deluxe exception" in Chapter J -- because there wasn't one! This is also why the WA rules as originally written were actually very simple, not to mention shorter...
But the problem with them was that in the worst-case scenario, keeping track of who had WA over what could require trying to fit up to
six WA counters around the edges of a 3/4" hex! This could result in some really interesting balancing acts. :nuts:
I presume that this is why the designers quickly decided something needed to change; it's also possible some people found that first version of the WA rules as confusing as they were
about to find the second! In any event, with the '87 Errata Pages came a revised B9.32, in which WA was now decided on a whole-hex basis. This resulted in all sorts of bizarre situations with units, but at least it only requires a maximum of one WA counter per hex.
However, the original version is still much more realistic, especially in hedgerow country. Actual bocage tactics had a great deal to do with who had control over which side of what field. And the only problem with the original version was the counter-density issue, which is
not a problem in Deluxe ASL.
Given that the second Deluxe module was going to be all about Bocage, where the rule change was going to have the most impact, it therefore makes sense that they decided to write an exception leaving the old rules in force for DASL scenarios.
And to be honest, Fred, while it may not matter much in the city streets, IMO if you play DASL Bocage using the standard ASL WA rules then you're missing out on much of the tactical richness of the DASL experience.
(The HTH rules are chump change by comparison.)
John
Me too.
