Manila maps....

[Tater]

I got paid by the hex

Yeah, sure...when will the VASL maps be ready! Get busy!

 

[Neal]

Unless you have a another dedicated ASLer living in your same town (and a dedicated game room with massive tables), some of these CGs are just too big. You'd have to leave them set up for months to have a hope of finishing.

Waiting anxiously for the VASL map(s).

 

[sdennis]

We've done Tarawa, RO, RB, almost all of them and I only had to extend my standard table once (for Tarawa I think). I have a "slip on" cover that makes my standard 30" table into 34.5 but I need a new cover to get to 48"...

 

[VonHutier]

Slightly related...when I started wargaming, late '70s early '80s, we only had a few 25mm figures to play with...table was fine. By the '90s, we were playing 25mm Naploeonic on the floor of a flat, with all the furniture removed, with 5,000 + figures . ...These massive ASL CGs , they're great but impractical. .for those that ;

1. Aren't retired
2. Have access to a massive space

It's odd that all the earlier posts talk about VASL as the way forward with these Leviathans...

 

[MAS01]

If I had a rig like that I would not be using it for LOS checks, and It would not be in my game room.

Dreaming again???

 

[hongkongwargamer]

Dreaming again???

Folks often use them for "fall protection" in physical therapy

 

[Honza]

I just tried the mini map for several LOS checks...works OK, even for my 62yr old eyes. Probably works good enough for any places you can't reach...at least between reasonable players.

That is good to know.

 

[Honza]

Neil and I are looking at CG2 which is 4 mapsheets, so we need a table that is 4 feet x 6 feet!!!

You could try CG III which is 2ft x 6ft in the first phase and then 4ft x 3ft in the second stage.

 

[Fiedler]

If I had a rig like that I would not be using it for LOS checks, and It would not be in my game room.

I would use it to sneak a late night sandwich w/o the wife and family noticing

 

[Den589]

I do agree that VASL is great for CG play. But I personally prefer ftf play when it comes to scenarios or small CG's. Pushing around cardboard is more fun I think. As for Manila, I do not think I'll ever get to the CG's but am hoping the scenarios are playable on a normal table, my table is about 4ft by 6 feet, so the CG is a no go.

VASL is great to keep the hobby active and going IMHO, but nothing matches playing FTF over an adult beverage. Me and Steve are trying to figure out a reasonable solution to this map issue. For the center-map LOS problem, I think we'll just keep the second set of real size maps from the other player handy so you can do the LOS check on the unused map on the side. The table issue we are working on.

 

[sdennis]

I don't like VASL because even with a 4K monitor you cannot see the entire map at once. The scrolling, recentering etc. drives me nuts. I use VASL for setup, between session planning etc. I will never use VASL for playing. Just not my thing for a variety of reasons.

 

[Gunner Scott]

I use VASL occasionally but I to prefer ftf play, getting out the counters, setting up the maps and like any good German general, pouring over the map deciding my tactics.

I don't like VASL because even with a 4K monitor you cannot see the entire map at once. The scrolling, recentering etc. drives me nuts. I use VASL for setup, between session planning etc. I will never use VASL for playing. Just not my thing for a variety of reasons.

 

[Vic Provost]

VASL is a life-saver for me and Dispatches, especially as gas is becoming a real issue and driving an hour+ to see any ASLer is becoming an option I really have to think about. If we can VASL most of the time and see each other monthly or seasonally, that might be the way of the future, like it or not. I always would rather do ftf play but VASL is very OK if not.

 

[sdennis]

I see where VASL would be valuable for some, but I honestly will not play at all if VASL is my only option for some future reason. My brother and I are 20-30 minutes apart right now and some times that is a PITA (he does come to me more than I go to him) but even though I'm a computer professional VASL just doesn't work for me.

 

[von Marwitz]

I don't like VASL because even with a 4K monitor you cannot see the entire map at once. The scrolling, recentering etc. drives me nuts. I use VASL for setup, between session planning etc. I will never use VASL for playing. Just not my thing for a variety of reasons.

I agree that using real cardboard remains the 'real' thing.

But...

... look at that complete Manila map and then try to string a LOS in the center with highly stacked units clogging the board. Purest PITA!

In such situations VASL is simply - better. Sure, you'd have to scroll. But for the immediate playing activity, you see exactly what you need to see in the vast majority of situations.

von Marwitz

 

[von Marwitz]

I use VASL occasionally but I to prefer ftf play, getting out the counters, setting up the maps and like any good German general, pouring over the map deciding my tactics.

If you wanna do it like any good German general, you should consider taking up reenactment and driving around in half-tracks to lead from the front.

von Marwitz

 

[footsteps]

 

['Ol Fezziwig]

Any unboxing videos? Or are we all luddites?

Why would I rob anyone of the whiff of cardboard, the rustle of paper

I see where VASL would be valuable for some, but I honestly will not play at all if VASL is my only option for some future reason. My brother and I are 20-30 minutes apart right now and some times that is a PITA (he does come to me more than I go to him) but even though I'm a computer professional VASL just doesn't work for me.

It's better than no ASL at all...

 

[VonHutier]

If you wanna do it like any good German general, you should consider taking up reenactment and driving around in half-tracks to lead from the front.

von Marwitz

Used to do just that....when I was younger and thinner....

 

[PabloGS]

nothing matches playing FTF over an adult beverage.

I agree, but sometimes one has to rely on VASL over an adult beverage!