Solitaire Campaign Games

Blackcloud6

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Who plays the campaign games solitaire and how do you play them? Do you do anything different than when playing FtF or just go about playing as in a normal FtF game?

I played the one on the Arracourt battle solo and I enjoyed it. But i wonder if a full up campaign is doable solo.

I have tired to play the campaign games against a real opponent and didn't really like it. I tired one PBEM and it just took forever and it was hard to stay into it. Also, a part of the campaign game I don't like is the purchasing of forces between the campaign days. To me, commanders can request but they don't always get what they want. I figure in a solo campaign one could roll for the reinforcements.

So, what say you? Are campaign games doable solo?
 

Honza

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LOL. Yes I play CGs solo. It is hard work because you have to do everything yourself instead of splitting the workload between two people. But it is great fun and very rewarding. I tend to use my omniscience against myself. I know exactly what both sides are doing and plan the set ups and CG accordingly. I don't pretend that I'm unaware of any plans or HIP units. A full frontal conflict between one omniscient side and another.

If you like you can keep certain units off board ready to be brought on at any given notice - like AT Guns. It will keep the other side very careful as they know a Gun could suddenly pop up out of nowhere.

It is actually very challenging and exciting.
 

Blackcloud6

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What I've done in past solo plays for AT guns is chose 2 or 3 hexes where the gun could go. The defender then can plop it on the board where he sees fit when he wants to. That does make the tanks move more cautious. If for some reason such as an enemy unit entering the hex or such, then you roll to see if that is where the gun goes or not. if not, it drops off the list of possible places. Same can be done for other HiP stuff too.
 

kcole4001

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I've played Red Barricades solo a bit.
It's a lot of extra work, it is NOT the same game at all as there really are no surprises (until you start forgetting which concealed units are which!).
It is fun, at least compared to not playing RB at all.
Trying to use HIP and pretending lack of knowledge are the most difficult bits. It's hard to fairly balance how much each side would suspect what the other is doing.

I quite enjoy the refit phase, however.
It's a big part of the campaign game feel: improving your forces, adding key elements, somewhat recovering from the day's hardships.
I see it more as being all the commanders rolled into one. You get to decide what reinforcements are available within limits, where they are deployed, in addition to how they are employed during the battle.

Again, definitely a lot more fun than not playing a campaign at all. I'd have a game set up right now if I had the space.

When I do finally manage enough space to leave a CG set up, I'll likely give the SASL RB campaign a try.
SASL is very different than both normal ASL and solo ASL.
 

Honza

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.....pretending lack of knowledge are the most difficult bits. It's hard to fairly balance how much each side would suspect what the other is doing.
The KEY to enjoying solo ASL is not to pretend at all. You need to use the full knowledge of both sides to each sides maximum advantage. You'll be amazed at how balanced and exciting it gets.
 

GeorgeBates

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I have not tried them yet myself, but there are four SASL missions designed for Red Barricades. Though it is a different flavor of ASL, the AI provides an alternative to the omniscience of solo play. The missions do not constitute a campaign game, but if played in serial with a personal leader counter they might make a very satisfying experience.
 
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Sand Bar Bill

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I have played.. an HIP gun/unit gets 3 concealment counters. If you want to fire (or move) from one of three assigned concealment counters, roll a die:
1-2 place the HIP unit there
3-6 either remove the concealment counter (leaving two counters) or leave it there.

With two concealment counters and you want to fire from one of them:
1-3 place the HIP unit
4-6 all concealment counters stay in place.

At an appropriate time (like an enemy unit is threatening to move close or through one of the ? markers), you can force the unit somewhere by the random selection method of the 3 (or 2) ? counters.
 

Honza

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Yes some house rules are necessary for solo play. Like no searching & no recon by fire etc.
 

kcole4001

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I highly recommend SASL play to anyone interested if it's at all possible.
Adding the command rules really almost make it a different game.
Being in command is essential, so your setup and play will follow the need for remaining within command radius at the end of every player turn.
The AI can be rather silly at times due to randomness, you can have the enemy units act more sensibly as a house rule if necessary, but there is definitely plenty of challenge in a SASL campaign.

As in any campaign, force preservation is extremely important, obviously.
 

Blackcloud6

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I played two SASL missions once. I played the first one and enjoyed it. But I then played one where I was on the defense and the BOT seemed to just keep on pooping units at me and I kept gunning them down and more came, lots, but I kept gunning them down. it was a cardboard shooting gallery and didn't seem real nor exciting at all. Maybe this was an anomaly but I came with a bad feeling about SASL because of it.
 

kcole4001

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Yeah, that can happen, but I either re-roll or modify the enemy actions to make more sense. I guess it's more of a hybrid solo/sasl style play.
 

witchbottles

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Try using the SASL VPO generation tables as a base and suspect units- it will take some tinkering to make it workable across the board for a full CG, BUT, once it is working, it functioned well for a solitaire run of Scotland the Brave I and for a solitaire run of Cemetery Hill CGs, once the fine tuning was done. Overall using the SASL rules and tables meant it was not difficult to convert them into a running multi-scenario CG. Also ,do not forget a SASL CG already exists for Red Barricades, SASL CGs for VotG, BR:T and a couple of others are in various points in the publishing pipelines.

KRL, Jon H
 

Nadir_E

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I have played.. an HIP gun/unit gets 3 concealment counters. If you want to fire (or move) from one of three assigned concealment counters, roll a die:
1-2 place the HIP unit there
3-6 either remove the concealment counter (leaving two counters) or leave it there.

With two concealment counters and you want to fire from one of them:
1-3 place the HIP unit
4-6 all concealment counters stay in place.

At an appropriate time (like an enemy unit is threatening to move close or through one of the ? markers), you can force the unit somewhere by the random selection method of the 3 (or 2) ? counters.
Really interesting approach. How do you handle 1/2" concealment counters that are in a side's as-start OB as dummies?
 

witchbottles

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It works well f
I always thought that Eben Emael would be a perfect SASL CG. You play the Germans and let the system control the Belgians.
or smaller OB CGs I've tuned it to - I've not tried it on the larger ones, although I've play tested the BRT version and used the RB version a few times for much fun. ( more in tune with a "standard" SASL CG in those formats, just on HASL maps using HASL SSRs.)
 

Blackcloud6

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Really interesting approach. How do you handle 1/2" concealment counters that are in a side's as-start OB as dummies?
I'm not Sand Bar Bill nor did I portray him in a move. How I handle dummy counters is much the same way I handle AT guns. I set up a real stack and corresponding dummy stack in a nearby location. Until exposed, the owning has a choice of which of the two positions to use if and when he wishes to fire or move with the real units. Until that time though, if enemy action causes the stack to lose concealment, roll a die, odd it is a dummy, even the real stack goes there. Once a corresponding dummy stack is taken off board, the real stack goes in the other hex, concealed. It's easy and works quite well.
 

Tooz

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So, if anyone has an idea on the SASL I will help with the research. There is a lot of detailed info on this battle but how to incorporate "casemates"--my new ASL term to separate these from regular bunkers/fortified buildings- is my one last ASL puzzle to solve.
 

Sand Bar Bill

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Really interesting approach. How do you handle 1/2" concealment counters that are in a side's as-start OB as dummies?
The real units under a concealment counter are actually there and can be used as normal. Where a dummy stack exists of the same number of counters, you get to optionally try to roll to switch the two stacks if you want to do that. The number you need to roll is set by yourself at the start of a scenario, depending on how challenging you want to make the defense.

This switching about between "real" concealed stacks and "dummy" stacks is only allowed for units that start concealed at the start of the game. If a unit loses concealment and then later gains it, it isn't available for switching out.

This has worked really well for solo play for me, though I tend just to play small scenarios.
 
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