Long post coming . . .
This past weekend seven players in the Ottawa (Canada) area got together to play RB05 The Last Bid and RO05 Men of Steel as one combined scenario as provided for in Red Factories. Given the intensity of play required and size of the map, we chose an out of town location at the wonderful Opinicon Resort at Chaffey’s Locks. We codenamed the project the All-Stalingrad All-Weekend Weekend (ASAWW) - clever eh?
Before discussing the actual play, a few words on the logistical effort. We split into 2 teams of 3 and allowed each team to plan their setup as they wished. My team (Russians) divided the map into 3 sectors (north RB1-32, middle RB33- RO18, and south RO19-45) with each of us taking one. We first divided our at-start resources into 3 equal parts and each planned our setup (using VASL). Finally, we had some Skype sessions to integrate the setup on VASL but also redistribute resources between sectors to ensure that the right type of units were in the factories. We gave each side about 2 weeks to accomplish this – in retrospect, given that there is life outside of ASL and the limitations of VASL – we should have given ourselves more time. Nonetheless by daybreak on Friday, November 15 each side had their setup ready to go.
Two of us got to the site early and set up the map, pulled counters and started getting counters on board. When you are talking about over 300 squads (150+ per side) and accompanying other stuff, that is a shitload of counter pulling and stack making. We had planned on using 2-3 hours for this and needed every minute of it (in large part due to some version control issues with the VASL file containing the German setup. Dissension in German High Command was evident before fighting began!). While the scenario is well-suited to team play (and perhaps only really playable in teams . . . or by the truly obsessed), I would underline that the mechanics of planning and setting up the scenario are significant. As other players arrived, they joined in the setup fun and by the planned 6:30 pm zero hour we were ready to go but missing one player who got lost on route! LOL. He soon showed and we got underway. These first two pictures shows the at-start setup. I will continue the AAR in other posts.
This past weekend seven players in the Ottawa (Canada) area got together to play RB05 The Last Bid and RO05 Men of Steel as one combined scenario as provided for in Red Factories. Given the intensity of play required and size of the map, we chose an out of town location at the wonderful Opinicon Resort at Chaffey’s Locks. We codenamed the project the All-Stalingrad All-Weekend Weekend (ASAWW) - clever eh?
Before discussing the actual play, a few words on the logistical effort. We split into 2 teams of 3 and allowed each team to plan their setup as they wished. My team (Russians) divided the map into 3 sectors (north RB1-32, middle RB33- RO18, and south RO19-45) with each of us taking one. We first divided our at-start resources into 3 equal parts and each planned our setup (using VASL). Finally, we had some Skype sessions to integrate the setup on VASL but also redistribute resources between sectors to ensure that the right type of units were in the factories. We gave each side about 2 weeks to accomplish this – in retrospect, given that there is life outside of ASL and the limitations of VASL – we should have given ourselves more time. Nonetheless by daybreak on Friday, November 15 each side had their setup ready to go.
Two of us got to the site early and set up the map, pulled counters and started getting counters on board. When you are talking about over 300 squads (150+ per side) and accompanying other stuff, that is a shitload of counter pulling and stack making. We had planned on using 2-3 hours for this and needed every minute of it (in large part due to some version control issues with the VASL file containing the German setup. Dissension in German High Command was evident before fighting began!). While the scenario is well-suited to team play (and perhaps only really playable in teams . . . or by the truly obsessed), I would underline that the mechanics of planning and setting up the scenario are significant. As other players arrived, they joined in the setup fun and by the planned 6:30 pm zero hour we were ready to go but missing one player who got lost on route! LOL. He soon showed and we got underway. These first two pictures shows the at-start setup. I will continue the AAR in other posts.