ericmwalters
Member
CAVEAT: I was one of the original playtesters for the ASL Rule Book. I also have nearly everything produced for the game by AH, MMP, Critical Hit, Heat of Battle, and a slew of other "third party" producers. I love this game...but I also hate this game. Here is the source of my schizophrenic reactions:
WHAT I LOVE:
The richness and detail of the tactical system--there is nothing else like it, nothing else that models the interaction of men, weapons, weather effects, and terrain. The tapestry is colorful and dense. You can spend hours just looking at it...who hasn't savored the Vehicle and Ordnance Notes for all the nationalities for hours at a stretch?
The variety of nationalities and settings--where else can you model Italians fighting Ethopians in Abyssinia at the tactical level? From Finns on skis slicing up slow-moving Soviet armored columns lumbering over muddy roads in deep snow to Marines debarking from landing craft and amphibious tractors to storm ashore against Japanese tropical island defenses to urban fights in Aachen and Stalingrad, the system can cover it all. All we're waiting for is the last module, ARMIES OF OBLIVION, which will give us Rumanian, Hungarian, and Bulgarian ordnance and vehicles....
The tension of gameplay--the fog (Hidden Initial Unit Placement and Concealment, scouting, etc), the friction (perhaps the greatest aspect of ASL--if it can go wrong, it will go wrong, at the worst possible moment, and in ways you can't imagine), and the complexity of it all (with so many variables it is very difficult to calculate everything).
The scalability. There are scenarios involving platoons and companies on half-boards as well as massive regimental-sized actions on large recreations of actual terrain that take months to play (HASLs like KAMPFGRUPPE PIEPER and RED BARRICADES). Everything in between is covered. There are hundreds of scenarios, if not thousands, available....
The graphics. From the boards (which seem so realistic) to the well-designed counters (that pack A LOT of information into a small space) and to the play components (not a lot of charts...and most are on one double-sided card), it's impressive. The rulebook, as dense as it is, is very well illustrated and laid out.
The stories. Usually these revolve around the named leaders in the game and certain locations on the map. One identifies very quickly with both...and they have a psychological significance that cannot be readily explained to non-Role Playing Game players. Indeed, in other forums I describe ASL as a "comic book come to life as a wargame"--ASL is not a realistic portrayal of ground combat, but it is so gripping in drama, you have to keep with it.
The support for the game system and the players by the companies, the conventions, and the players themselves. It's fantastic.
WHAT I HATE:
The richness and detail means a huge rulebook that is--even with the ASL Starter Kit #1--relatively inaccessible without a coach. It's very hard to remember everything without constant play...and even then, things that should be done are forgotten or done incorrectly.
The expense. Not in terms of money--which is admittedly quite considerable--but in the time it takes to both learn and maintain skills needed to play the game well enough to enjoy it.
Debates on how to best store the huge amount of counters now available...I won't say anything more about this.
It's just so convincing that you forget it's so unrealistic. I'm a lifelong wargamer and a professional military officer--the game has very little in common with what ground combat involves, but the illusion is so compelling. Granted, some things that work in the real world can work in the game...but there's far more that works in the game that can't work in the real world. You have too much intelligence and too tight control--despite the high levels of friction the game portrays--for it to be otherwise.
And lastly...I'll never be able to play every scenario ever made for the game. Sigh.
What are your trials and tribulations with this game?
--emw
WHAT I LOVE:
The richness and detail of the tactical system--there is nothing else like it, nothing else that models the interaction of men, weapons, weather effects, and terrain. The tapestry is colorful and dense. You can spend hours just looking at it...who hasn't savored the Vehicle and Ordnance Notes for all the nationalities for hours at a stretch?
The variety of nationalities and settings--where else can you model Italians fighting Ethopians in Abyssinia at the tactical level? From Finns on skis slicing up slow-moving Soviet armored columns lumbering over muddy roads in deep snow to Marines debarking from landing craft and amphibious tractors to storm ashore against Japanese tropical island defenses to urban fights in Aachen and Stalingrad, the system can cover it all. All we're waiting for is the last module, ARMIES OF OBLIVION, which will give us Rumanian, Hungarian, and Bulgarian ordnance and vehicles....
The tension of gameplay--the fog (Hidden Initial Unit Placement and Concealment, scouting, etc), the friction (perhaps the greatest aspect of ASL--if it can go wrong, it will go wrong, at the worst possible moment, and in ways you can't imagine), and the complexity of it all (with so many variables it is very difficult to calculate everything).
The scalability. There are scenarios involving platoons and companies on half-boards as well as massive regimental-sized actions on large recreations of actual terrain that take months to play (HASLs like KAMPFGRUPPE PIEPER and RED BARRICADES). Everything in between is covered. There are hundreds of scenarios, if not thousands, available....
The graphics. From the boards (which seem so realistic) to the well-designed counters (that pack A LOT of information into a small space) and to the play components (not a lot of charts...and most are on one double-sided card), it's impressive. The rulebook, as dense as it is, is very well illustrated and laid out.
The stories. Usually these revolve around the named leaders in the game and certain locations on the map. One identifies very quickly with both...and they have a psychological significance that cannot be readily explained to non-Role Playing Game players. Indeed, in other forums I describe ASL as a "comic book come to life as a wargame"--ASL is not a realistic portrayal of ground combat, but it is so gripping in drama, you have to keep with it.
The support for the game system and the players by the companies, the conventions, and the players themselves. It's fantastic.
WHAT I HATE:
The richness and detail means a huge rulebook that is--even with the ASL Starter Kit #1--relatively inaccessible without a coach. It's very hard to remember everything without constant play...and even then, things that should be done are forgotten or done incorrectly.
The expense. Not in terms of money--which is admittedly quite considerable--but in the time it takes to both learn and maintain skills needed to play the game well enough to enjoy it.
Debates on how to best store the huge amount of counters now available...I won't say anything more about this.
It's just so convincing that you forget it's so unrealistic. I'm a lifelong wargamer and a professional military officer--the game has very little in common with what ground combat involves, but the illusion is so compelling. Granted, some things that work in the real world can work in the game...but there's far more that works in the game that can't work in the real world. You have too much intelligence and too tight control--despite the high levels of friction the game portrays--for it to be otherwise.
And lastly...I'll never be able to play every scenario ever made for the game. Sigh.
What are your trials and tribulations with this game?
--emw