VASL AARs

[pjh]

Hello everyone. I'm still quite new to both ASL and VASL, so perhaps this question is wrong-headed or easily answered: Is there a repository of VASL logfiles and/or save files that offer a 'complete' review of games people have played --- VASL AARs, so to speak?

The reason I ask is because, as someone learning ASL and its tactics, I like reading over AARs. Then, after playing a few PBEM games, I realized that, if we are careful in our naming conventions, I can 'string' together the various vlogs and create one vlog for the whole game, for post hoc analysis and review[1] --- an (quasi) automatically-generated AAR! I can click through this vlog file and add extra commentary or clean up commentary, and store it for easy access and review.

While obviously not the same as a blog/forum-post AAR, the fact that a VASL AAR is relatively easy to generate, I was surprised to find that there wasn't a big repository of them out there on the web (or at least my searching ability didn't turn any up).

I hope it is clear what I'm looking for; likely there is a reason VASL AARs aren't popular (or perhaps my searching ability is novice).

[1] I couldn't find a 'best practice' for naming conventions in PBEM games, but what I have started to do is the following naming convention: each vlog file has the TURN NUMBER followed by the initial of the ATTACKER followed by the iteration ('a' through 'z'), e.g., 1PJHa, 1PJHb, 1FDHa, 1FDHb, 1FDHc, 2PJHa, 2PJHb, etc. When finished I can just string the highest iterated version of each half-turn together to create on vlog for a review. (It is manual, but automation would be relatively easy, I'd think.)

 

[Pacman Ghost]

I got back into ASL recently and was in a similar boat to you. I found going through "series replays" very useful - they're move-by-move replays of a scenario, with commentary from both players, and sometimes a neutral third-party.

I thought about creating VASL save files when I was going through these, but there's real value in pushing the pieces the around by yourself as you go through the replay.

Search for archives of "The General" magazine, there are a bunch of them in there.

 

[Tuomo]

Coupla things.

* The esteemed Texas ASL dudes have compiled a bunch of the old ASL Examples of Play into one document. The VASL graphics are old, and there are occasional errors in the play itself, but of course the ASL commentary is STELLAR.

* I have long wished for just a few more bits of functionality to make compiling and editing such VASL Scenario Replays easier. It would facilitate an e-publication called AAR or some such, featuring VASL games. One could walk through the VASL SR file much as one would a normal VASL logfile, but there'd be additional features such as on-map annotations that would aid the commentary. Creating these things would kinda/sorta be like editing HTML, but with VASL as one end platform (along with a simple export-to-text option that would facilitate making a traditional print version of the AAR).

Yes, there'd be maybe 3 people in the world who would use this feature, but they'd only use it for good

* Dave Ramsay used to have a VASL logfile builder. IDK how much work it would take to update it to basic functionality (assembling one big logfile from many component pieces). Maybe he could chime in. Would be kewl.

 

[Vinnie]

You might be best seeking them log files. I could give you log files of some games but since they are conducted with Skype, the actual movement woukd not make any sense.

 

[MAS01]

I've got logfiles of PBEM games saved. They could show you some of my "brilliance" and dice rolling abilities.

Drop me a PM with an email address.

 

[hongkongwargamer]

http://www.hongkongwargamer.com
http:

 

[Stewart]

The reason I ask is because, as someone learning ASL and its tactics, I like reading over AARs. Then, after playing a few PBEM games, I realized that, if we are careful in our naming conventions, I can 'string' together the various vlogs and create one vlog for the whole game, for post hoc analysis and review[1] --- an (quasi) automatically-generated AAR! I can click through this vlog file and add extra commentary or clean up commentary, and store it for easy access and review.


[1] I couldn't find a 'best practice' for naming conventions in PBEM games, but what I have started to do is the following naming convention: each vlog file has the TURN NUMBER followed by the initial of the ATTACKER followed by the iteration ('a' through 'z'), e.g., 1PJHa, 1PJHb, 1FDHa, 1FDHb, 1FDHc, 2PJHa, 2PJHb, etc. When finished I can just string the highest iterated version of each half-turn together to create on vlog for a review. (It is manual, but automation would be relatively easy, I'd think.)

The convention doesn't need to be as "coded" as you have there.
Why not simply NAME the turn?
Scenario Name, Player Turn and Phase
i.e. Last of their Strength, Japanese 3 Prep
Its FAR easier to read in your folder and once you splice all of the phases together in Vasl...just name the entire file the Scenario?

Also, I believe there aren't a whole lot of replay files for various reasons.
1) Difficulty of writing down dice rolls ( if this is to be done)
2) Reviewing the entire game and adding written commentary (in the Margins) about the turn.
3) Media in which to share files? GS YT FB?
4) Its a lot of work to "do it right" especially if you have both players give their 2 cents.

Hence the simplified VASLING with Stew videos.

 

[Abe]

Judd Vance did a great tutorial of Empire of the Sun using vassal log files. One of the best learning resources out there for that game.

It’s a good idea.

 

[buser333]

Being that they were a big factor in drawing me back into the game, I have always wanted to take part in a detailed Example of Play, but don't have much interest in the technical side of things as far as putting together the actual computer information goes. So if anybody out there is of like mind and wouldn't mind handling the technical side of things I am throwing my name in the hat as someone who would like to do an analysis of that sort.

 

[witchbottles]

I have about a hundred or so VASL PBEM logfile'd games saved as logfiles - usually for my purposes after action, I can review them before writing up an AAR to try and get the items in the right order they occurred in my narratives.

As I PBEM about 80% of the time, this is common to accumulate them if you do not dump them or delete them - simply keep the logfiles in a folder with the scenario name or ID # - I add in a .pdf scan of the scen card, and in the name, what side I played. then I simply number the logs consecutively (and get my opponent to do the same) so logs run in numerical progression, ie log 001 then 002 then 003 then 004, etc and so on ad nauseum.

A few things.

This allows one to do as Jackson does and "screenshot" the action, then label it using any number of graphic software programs to illustrate a key point in the game (and jazz up your AAR accordingly).

I would not transfer those logfile collections of games finished to a third party without permission from the opponent of that time to do so - Not everyone is fond of having their play foibles and failures illustrated for all to see - which is why I always check with my opponent before writing up AARs on a scenario. Me, I don't care myself, I am equally capable of losing regardless of whether you know I always choose to throw my DCs or not. . But not everyone is always so equitable.

There is a lot of truth to the concept mantra of "Want to make the same mistakes as other players, read AARs before you play that scen. Want to make your own mistakes, do NOT read those AARs first."

Saving the logfiles in sequence also allows readily for life to intervene, as it can in ASL, and both players take a break for a bit, then return to a close game to finish it by simply reviewing the last couple of logs to get a "re-feel" of the flow of action before it re-commences in earnest. This is a big benefit to such collections of VASL PBEM logfiles.

 

[gweiloh]

pjh - I got to thinking about your request and it inspired me to create a (very brief) example of what I think you're looking for. Using just the beginning part of a playthrough that Tuomo linked (Scenario A - Guards Counterattack, from "Basic Infantry Example of Play" by Tom Repetti (2000)), I threw together an updated Scenario Setup as well as LogFile of what amounts to the RPh and PFPh of Turn 1. Clearly, the proper "color commentary" makes or breaks the usefulness of these teaching tools. As Tuomo indicated, higher functionality to visually edit the board within VASL to achieve hongkongwargamer-like presentations would make for a much more entertaining vlog file step-through. It would be wonderful to have a collection of the old General replays available via VASL. For me, this small effort taught me more about VASL than ASL, but it was fun nonetheless...

 

[Stewart]

I have about a hundred or so VASL PBEM logfile'd games saved as logfiles - usually for my purposes after action, I can review them before writing up an AAR to try and get the items in the right order they occurred in my narratives.

I would not transfer those logfile collections of games finished to a third party without permission from the opponent of that time to do so - Not everyone is fond of having their play foibles and failures illustrated for all to see - which is why I always check with my opponent before writing up AARs on a scenario. Me, I don't care myself, I am equally capable of losing regardless of whether you know I always choose to throw my DCs or not. . But not everyone is always so equitable.

When you write up AAR's do you just regurgitate the Logfile on the screen?
When I create my AAR's no one knows who my opponent is. The point is to analyze MY reaction and setup based on my varied opponents. Many requests are made to see DR's. I usually avoid this because player names are seen and the DR's are just random numbers. It's what you do AFTER the result that makes it a better gaming experience.
Teach ASL through what YOU know and how YOU think. We can only react to our opponents.

If your opponents are afraid of foibles and failures in a game as complicated as ASL with 100's of Random DR's in a game, they just might be playing the wrong game.
There is not a SINGLE player that hasn't foibled or failed throughout their ASL "career" its the journey that matters.


Fear of failure is fear of learning.

But I'm with you. Making mistakes is HOW you learn...believe me... The point is to learn from the mistakes and not to repeat them.

You have a valuable resources WB. It would be great to chat on Discord some time!

Drop me a line if you want to discuss.
Thanks!

 

[witchbottles]

When you write up AAR's do you just regurgitate the Logfile on the screen?

What kind of #$#%^&$%#&* are you spouting off now? Have you even BOTHERED to read ANY AAR I have ever written? I doubt it by the sound of that#$%^^& remark.

When I create my AAR's no one knows who my opponent is.

I'm not bashful at all about who beats me in a game, I lose as much as I win, to be sure. For me, if the opponent acknowledges they are okay with an AAR- then they are going to get acknowledgment -win or lose.

The point is to analyze MY reaction and setup based on my varied opponents.

The point for me is to show others how we won, or lost, and what strange and silly events ASL can create in the midst of a game - I'm not out to analyze anything post-game, it's just a f#$%(&g game. I'm not playing for kidneys or sheep stations.

Many requests are made to see DR's. I usually avoid this because player names are seen and the DR's are just random numbers.

you know, in 29 years of ASL, this has GOT to be the very first time I have ever heard someone asking to "see a DR/dr " set from a game, what a crock. Who has ever asked you to display the DR/dr sequence? You're not doing a Series Replay for an ASL Journal, so that simply doesn't make any sense at all as a remark.

It's what you do AFTER the result that makes it a better gaming experience.

No f^%&#(&g way. It's what you do while your tableside, playing the game, and laughing at all the silly, strange things that come up, like the heroic 6+1 waltzing up to a tank and placing a DC with optimal placement while passing a deluge of MC's, then having said DC go "click" on a DR of 12 in the AFPh, to X out of the game as a dud. and laughing and joking about it..... or Mr. Russian 7-0 who takes out 4 MMCs single-handed in CC, one turn after the next, getting nicknamed thereafter "Zhukov's Nephew", to the amusement of all... What makes it a "better gaming experience" is your disposition and your opponents, during, before and after the game, not what comes about because of any DR/dr itself occurring in the game. It's just a fucking GAME.

Teach ASL through what YOU know and how YOU think. We can only react to our opponents.

A. If you think I write an AAR to "teach" anyone anything, you are sadly, sadly, mistaken.

B. Teach ASL by following the mantra: "play, play, play, play, and oh yeah, play some more, and while you're at it, play another game. The more you play, the more you learn, and play as many different people as you can, so you learn more from more different resources (people)." Teach ASL by finding out what it is that noobie likes/ is interested in , and go for it. They like tanks? Get them in an AFV as soon as you can. They like big guns, find a scen like Silence that Gun and play it. They like lots of MG fire and making that ratatatat noise? Play some Le Manoir, a few times. Don't teach ASL by what "you think". Odds are , you're probably mistaken, anyway, most of us are.

If your opponents are afraid of foibles and failures in a game as complicated as ASL with 100's of Random DR's in a game, they just might be playing the wrong game.
There is not a SINGLE player that hasn't foibled or failed throughout their ASL "career" its the journey that matters.

If your opponent is one who prefers to avoid publicity especially in online forums, respect their wishes, it's called common f%^&ing courtesy. not everyone is as fond of getting in bed with people like Mark Zuckerberg as others. Nor do all prefer to have their name bandied about on the interweb. If that's their wish, respect it.

Fear of failure is fear of learning.

Fear of ridicule is fear of learning.

Success or failure with one's ability to grow and master rules sets is a function of the game. The more you play, the more you learn. You only get out of ASL what you are willing to put into ASL. That is how you learn the game, put into it.

But I'm with you. Making mistakes is HOW you learn...believe me... The point is to learn from the mistakes and not to repeat them.

Nope. You learn by playing, whether you make mistakes or just get dumb-ass lucky from time to time, you learn by playing the game. Over, and over, and over and over and over.

You have a valuable resources WB.

I like to think so. At least those logfiles and $6.00 will buy you a cold beer at the local pub.

It would be great to chat on Discord some time!

I'm on Discord frequently, never seen you there yet.

Drop me a line if you want to discuss.
Thanks!

Not really, as you can tell, I've got a fairly decent memory still of how much of a first-rate male anatomic organ you can be at times.

 

[Stewart]

Someone's blood pressure just hit 230/200

You are about as Toxic as a 12 yr old that didn't get his Post dinner Cookie.

What kind of #$#%^&$%#&* are you spouting off now? Have you even BOTHERED to read ANY AAR I have ever written? I doubt it by the sound of that#$%^^& remark.

Ok, where are your AAR's?
They aren't in the first 20 PAGES of the AAR section (about 3 years) ...is there a special section for WITCHBOTTLES??

I'm not bashful at all about who beats me in a game, I lose as much as I win, to be sure. For me, if the opponent acknowledges they are okay with an AAR- then they are going to get acknowledgment -win or lose.

My comment that you quoted isn't about your personal concerns had you read it....its about your opponents concerns...being respectful...oh...ooppps...guess not.

The point for me is to show others how we won, or lost, and what strange and silly events ASL can create in the midst of a game - I'm not out to analyze anything post-game, it's just a f#$%(&g game. I'm not playing for kidneys or sheep stations.

Showing how you won and lost IS analyzing post game....did you even read your own statement?
A F@#$ing game you seem to get heated when discussing it.

you know, in 29 years of ASL, this has GOT to be the very first time I have ever heard someone asking to "see a DR/dr " set from a game, what a crock. Who has ever asked you to display the DR/dr sequence? You're not doing a Series Replay for an ASL Journal, so that simply doesn't make any sense at all as a remark.

Then you haven't been around long enough.
I do replays intermittently.... yet leave the DR's out as they are fickle...yet get requests to include DR's YOUR method of AAR isn't Gospel.

No f^%&#(&g way. It's what you do while your tableside, playing the game, and laughing at all the silly, strange things that come up, like the heroic 6+1 waltzing up to a tank and placing a DC with optimal placement while passing a deluge of MC's, then having said DC go "click" on a DR of 12 in the AFPh, to X out of the game as a dud. and laughing and joking about it..... or Mr. Russian 7-0 who takes out 4 MMCs single-handed in CC, one turn after the next, getting nicknamed thereafter "Zhukov's Nephew", to the amusement of all... What makes it a "better gaming experience" is your disposition and your opponents, during, before and after the game, not what comes about because of any DR/dr itself occurring in the game. It's just a fucking GAME.

Uh...this is exactly what I said...your reaction AFTER an event not the game....sorry you were inflamed by this point to miss that. All of your examples of "Tableside" play were based on DR's...again...I think you were a little bent by this point...

A. If you think I write an AAR to "teach" anyone anything, you are sadly, sadly, mistaken.

But isnt' that what you are doing? Inadvertently? seeing you move units in wrong positions and getting whacked by a conscript with a captured MG?
Why are you doing them? why does ANYONE do them? You seem to do them for your own purposes, maybe that's why I don't see any on the first 20 pages of the AAR folder.

B. Teach ASL by following the mantra: "play, play, play, play, and oh yeah, play some more, and while you're at it, play another game. The more you play, the more you learn, and play as many different people as you can, so you learn more from more different resources (people)." Teach ASL by finding out what it is that noobie likes/ is interested in , and go for it. They like tanks? Get them in an AFV as soon as you can. They like big guns, find a scen like Silence that Gun and play it. They like lots of MG fire and making that ratatatat noise? Play some Le Manoir, a few times. Don't teach ASL by what "you think". Odds are , you're probably mistaken, anyway, most of us are.

Play, Play, Play doesn't really work in learning if you continue to do the same mistakes over and over without analyzing your gameplay...
It's like saying "keep shooting the Basketball Witchbottles it'll go in sometime today" without showing the proper mechanics or knowledge on why the ball goes in the hoop easier one way vs another.

If your opponent is one who prefers to avoid publicity especially in online forums, respect their wishes, it's called common f%^&ing courtesy. not everyone is as fond of getting in bed with people like Mark Zuckerberg as others. Nor do all prefer to have their name bandied about on the interweb. If that's their wish, respect it.

You referenced the reason why some don't want to be posted is fear of embarrassment and you ignored that aspect of my answer.

Fear of ridicule is fear of learning.

Again.....maybe only you...but I've never seen ANYONE nor heard of anyone ridicule another ASL player...
I'm not really sure this is a factual statement wrt ASL play. F@#$ing Courtesy, you so eloquently phrased, is usually followed.

Success or failure with one's ability to grow and master rules sets is a function of the game. The more you play, the more you learn. You only get out of ASL what you are willing to put into ASL. That is how you learn the game, put into it.

Unfortunately, I have to agree with you here...yet...taking advantage of post game analysis which you refuted as a good source but then used examples of such...is another learning tool.

Nope. You learn by playing, whether you make mistakes or just get dumb-ass lucky from time to time, you learn by playing the game. Over, and over, and over and over and over.

Luck is not learning...its just chance. Making the best decisions to minimize LUCK, as ANY GOOD ASL article will include is the path to success.
I could have 50 games under my belt and you could have 20,000. Yet it's still possible to have equal understanding of the game. I'm sure you will say otherwise...NOTE: I didn't equate experience in repetitive games played as knowledge.

I'm on Discord frequently, never seen you there yet.

Is that the ONLY place to chat online?

Not really, as you can tell, I've got a fairly decent memory still of how much of a first-rate male anatomic organ you can be at times.

ROFL Hi kettle! I'm POT

Funny how the vulgarity of my post seemed to be just a bit reserved from yours. I apologize if my vulgarity offended anyone in my first post.

With your vast knowledge of online forums etc...you have failed to see the IGNORE feature that the admins have so graciously inserted and I am ALL to happy to use.

 

[hongkongwargamer]

Zov & Witchbottles grabbed me years ago and just got me to play. They found out what I like (PTO) and keep feeding that to me since. Week after week I haven't stopped playing.

Reading AARs or even going on VASL to watch live games doesn't do much when it comes learning ASL. You need to play and go thru the mental process yourself.

You need to build muscle memory, especially when ASL is a complex game. ASL is like martial arts. Watching doesn't make you better.

I rather enjoy Witchbottles's AAR though, they often point out the exhilarating fun movie sequences that makes ASL such a great game.

And I am so pleased to have ran into Zov & Witchbottles when I started.

To quote another ASL'r I like "Shut up and play".

And play.

And play some more.

Rgds Jack

 

[witchbottles]

To quote another ASL'r I like "Shut up and play".

And play.

And play some more.

Rgds Jack

exactly....

 

[witchbottles]

Someone's blood pressure just hit 230/200

You are about as Toxic as a 12 yr old that didn't get his Post dinner Cookie.


Ok, where are your AAR's?
They aren't in the first 20 PAGES of the AAR section (about 3 years) ...is there a special section for WITCHBOTTLES??


My comment that you quoted isn't about your personal concerns had you read it....its about your opponents concerns...being respectful...oh...ooppps...guess not.



Showing how you won and lost IS analyzing post game....did you even read your own statement?
A F@#$ing game you seem to get heated when discussing it.





Then you haven't been around long enough.
I do replays intermittently.... yet leave the DR's out as they are fickle...yet get requests to include DR's YOUR method of AAR isn't Gospel.



Uh...this is exactly what I said...your reaction AFTER an event not the game....sorry you were inflamed by this point to miss that. All of your examples of "Tableside" play were based on DR's...again...I think you were a little bent by this point...




But isnt' that what you are doing? Inadvertently? seeing you move units in wrong positions and getting whacked by a conscript with a captured MG?
Why are you doing them? why does ANYONE do them? You seem to do them for your own purposes, maybe that's why I don't see any on the first 20 pages of the AAR folder.



Play, Play, Play doesn't really work in learning if you continue to do the same mistakes over and over without analyzing your gameplay...
It's like saying "keep shooting the Basketball Witchbottles it'll go in sometime today" without showing the proper mechanics or knowledge on why the ball goes in the hoop easier one way vs another.



You referenced the reason why some don't want to be posted is fear of embarrassment and you ignored that aspect of my answer.




Again.....maybe only you...but I've never seen ANYONE nor heard of anyone ridicule another ASL player...
I'm not really sure this is a factual statement wrt ASL play. F@#$ing Courtesy, you so eloquently phrased, is usually followed.



Unfortunately, I have to agree with you here...yet...taking advantage of post game analysis which you refuted as a good source but then used examples of such...is another learning tool.



Luck is not learning...its just chance. Making the best decisions to minimize LUCK, as ANY GOOD ASL article will include is the path to success.
I could have 50 games under my belt and you could have 20,000. Yet it's still possible to have equal understanding of the game. I'm sure you will say otherwise...NOTE: I didn't equate experience in repetitive games played as knowledge.




Is that the ONLY place to chat online?




ROFL Hi kettle! I'm POT

Funny how the vulgarity of my post seemed to be just a bit reserved from yours. I apologize if my vulgarity offended anyone in my first post.

With your vast knowledge of online forums etc...you have failed to see the IGNORE feature that the admins have so graciously inserted and I am ALL to happy to use.

I don't ignore ignoramii, it is much more enjoyable morning coffee reads listening to them whine about being called out. I am glad to see you are another of those " ohh I don't like the way this person talks, so I'm going to quit reading /listening to them, right after I let everyone know I am going to quit reading/listening to them first...."
I am as "toxic" as I can always be WRT people who are first-rate "southbound ends of a northbound donkey." a Series Replay is not an AAR, but feel free to make and name things whatever you choose. I cannot imagine a Series Replay in any publication that did not give a complete rundown, turn by turn, of the DR/dr sequence of events. But again, you are welcome to create whatever you wish. Don't get your panties in a wad whenever someone like me comes along and notes that something is amiss about the foul odor emanating from it. You are correct in one sense, I do AARs to share my own amusement at how silly this game can be from time to time. I follow another very good ASL quote, and pass it along to other players now and again:

"If you want to make someone else's mistakes - read an AAR or two about the scenario first. If you want to make your own mistakes, read them AFTER you play, not before."


Bringing up "Discord" was your idea, not mine. It's okay - a slipping memory is a sure sign we are getting older than we might otherwise prefer to be.

Let me enlighten you. You were fairly active on the "pre-upgrade" GamesSquad server from around 2013-2016, with hundreds of posts, almost invariably acting the horse's "less preferable end to have a conversation with" part. In far too many instances, jumping on one person or another without provocation. So by all means, take offense if you like, that I too can carry a big stick, and thump repeatedly like I did upthread.

Geez... At least the Pitmonster was able to recall things he said and did prior to the event, whenever getting into a flame war on GS.

Don't be surprised when you lead off with a verbally attacking position as you did upthread:

When you write up AAR's do you just regurgitate the Logfile on the screen?
When I create my AAR's no one knows who my opponent is. The point is to analyze MY reaction and setup based on my varied opponents.

and someone, like me perhaps, takes immediate offense to your verbal attack.

To clarify, you were responding to a post I made about collecting logfiles of previously finished games. Like I mentioned, they have various uses, one of which is to allow for artwork to be introduced into an AAR as we all can readily see in Jackson's endeavors ( and nicely done, too.) THAT was the only reference I made to how I might personally use them in an AAR, I made a subsequent note ON ANOTHER TOPIC, about how I prefer to check with my opponent before writing an AAR, as mine will always appear in public for everyone to witness the foibles and funny moments of the game, if I write them.

Like I said in a lot more words than required: if you act like a penis, and you respond like a penis, (something you are famous for here on GS, BTW), I'm going to treat you like a penis and move on.

Have a nice f$%&ing day.

 

[dlazov]

Hello everyone. I'm still quite new to both ASL and VASL...

Welcome to GS, ASL, VASL and the land of passion or enpassioned manhood, guided or misguided, likable or unlikable, hot or cold, smart or dumb, always colorful, opinionated and ready to type. They may seem dangerous and toxic but in person they are mostly harmless and at least some of der mothers even loves em.

 

[witchbottles]

Welcome to GS, ASL, VASL and the land of passion or enpassioned manhood, guided or misguided, likable or unlikable, hot or cold, smart or dumb, always colorful, opinionated and ready to type. They may seem dangerous and toxic but in person they are mostly harmless and at least some of der mothers even loves em.

and you promised not to bring up mom anymore,

 

[dlazov]

and you promised not to bring up mom anymore,

Gives her hugz & kizzez from me lol