What next?

[Martin Mayers]

After that he needed more than a cigarette!!

I've got loads of stories. My friends call it 'Mayers Bingo'. I'll be telling someone a story at a tournament and they'll jump up as one and shout "BINGO".

The one above is my favourite. Closely followed by my oppo in a Semi Final match at a tournament needing to kill a tank in 1 game turn with an 88LL tube to win a scenario....rolling 5 TH DRs (ROF and Intensive Fire...), scoring a Hit and a Critical Hit....and Dudding both to leave me with the win.

I guess playing for 25 years would mean most people have similar stories but I do seem to have a lot of such stories. All witnessed by other players to I should add.

 

[Philippe D.]

What do they say again? Oh yeah, "Don't stack".

Cool story

 

[Actionjick]

What do they say again? Oh yeah, "Don't stack".

Cool story

The spice this game provides is amazing!

 

[atago44]

I've got to tell the story (again).

Red Barricades day 3/4 (can't remember) and the Germans have struggled to take that pivotal North West corner building (two hexes). They'd been at it constantly and not managed to get a foothold but were nearly there. They tried to place a DC the day prior...the engineer got shot up and I was able to recover the DC for my own.

Decided I'd try to lay a trap so, next day, I left a scant force to 'defend' the building. Dummies and some half squads. Germans finally fought there way in and then over the next couple of turns crammed as much as they could in those hexes, it being pretty much the only safe haven they'd secured. Literally my oppo was counting stacks for every hex "I can put one more hs here....there....the HMG/MMG deathstars upper level....three more squads in the cellars...." and so forth.

Course...I'd set the captured DC in one of the hexes. With a HIP HS unit with the lever nearby.

Passed the TC. Blew the building....Snake Eyes. So, we did all the subsequent dicerolls and the whole building went up and falling rubble took the adjacent building with it. 18 Squads (give or take). 5 leaders (including more than one -2 leader). Piles of SWs....

My opponent, after a period of around 2 minutes of complete silence said...

"You'll have to excuse me Martin. I need to go outside. For a cigarette"

Can't remember if my oppo was Stefano Cuccurrullo or one of the Spanish opponents I used to play, Jesus, Santiago?? This was 15-16 years back.

And that is why ASL is so fun.

You won? Not so fast. We have to make a die roll. Oops. Sorry.

 

[atago44]

Why do the Russians have an advantage? Tim

As I have only played it one time, I can't answer beyond this.

I have heard that, despite strategies, maneuvers, etc., Red Barricades comes down to one thing--having more MMCs on the board.

You can buy all the wonderful toys in the world, but in the ends, what matters is killing your enemy.

A famous (infamous?) tactic is a German armored blitz (I forgot it's "official" name). Basically, you buy a lot of armor, tanks, halftracks, etc., and then take advantage of the fact that the Russian can only cover so much ground, rush to where he doesn't have a lot of troops, and occupy it.

Sounds fun--I am sure it is. Being a tank guy, it's what I would love to do.

The problem is, it just doesn't work. As the German you really should have spent those purchase points on infantry. The Russians have cheaper troops, and can buy more. German infantry costs more, and when you were buying those wonderful, very expensive AFVs, you weren't buying infantry, and the next thing you know the Russian outnumbers you two-one, and there is nothing you can do about it.

Or so that's my impression, for what it's worth.

 

[Martin Mayers]

Barricades is a mystery to me. I've read AARs where the Germans have swept the Russians off the board inflicting numerous dozens of CVP on, like, the first two days. And I've singularly never fathomed what the hell they would have done to achieve it.

I managed to pin the entire German army down in the first few days with, small calibre, OBA Harrassing fire missions.

I freely admit I just don't get it at all. I've never ever been able to imagine the Germans winning it.

 

[atago44]

Barricades is a mystery to me. I've read AARs where the Germans have swept the Russians off the board inflicting numerous dozens of CVP on, like, the first two days. And I've singularly never fathomed what the hell they would have done to achieve it.

I managed to pin the entire German army down in the first few days with, small calibre, OBA Harrassing fire missions.

I freely admit I just don't get it at all. I've never ever been able to imagine the Germans winning it.

Have you considered it might be just because you are a really great Russian general?

 

[von Marwitz]

And traps. I killed 18 German squads and 5 leaders with one Dice Roll in a playing on one occasion...

Give us the story, mate! You can't tell us this and then leave the bar...

EDIT:
Ah, I see you did a couple of posts later...

von Marwitz

 

[Actionjick]

Give us the story, mate! You can't tell us this and then leave the bar...

EDIT:
Ah, I see you did a couple of posts later...

von Marwitz

One of the best that I've read!

 

[AdrianE]

I hope you reread the Desperation Morale review of Konigsberg. It indicates that you need not only the Red Barricades rules but also Valor of the Guard and the Festung Budapest rules.

I do not believe that to be true. KBR has rules for gutted buildings (introduced in VotG), debris (introduced in RB) etc.
I have just reviewed the KBR rules and I don't see any references to anything other than the rule book.

KBR is similar to yet different from RB. The firepower and destructiveness available to each side is much higher in KBR. In RB the average gun size is 75mm which gives 12FP shots. In KBR is 85mm, 122mm or 152mm for 16, 24 or 30 FP. Each side can have a pair of spotted 120mm mortars raining destruction down. In KBR the terrain is brutal to move through.

The biggest difference is in how the refit phase works. In RB you clear everything off the map and reset the next day. KBRs refit phase is much more restrictive and units tend to stay very close to where they were.

 

[atago44]

I do not believe that to be true. KBR has rules for gutted buildings (introduced in VotG), debris (introduced in RB) etc.
I have just reviewed the KBR rules and I don't see any references to anything other than the rule book.

KBR is similar to yet different from RB. The firepower and destructiveness available to each side is much higher in KBR. In RB the average gun size is 75mm which gives 12FP shots. In KBR is 85mm, 122mm or 152mm for 16, 24 or 30 FP. Each side can have a pair of spotted 120mm mortars raining destruction down. In KBR the terrain is brutal to move through.

The biggest difference is in how the refit phase works. In RB you clear everything off the map and reset the next day. KBRs refit phase is much more restrictive and units tend to stay very close to where they were.

As I don't own KBR, I do not know. I am only saying that that is what the Desperation Morale review says. And the only reason I referred to the DM review is because Tim had indicated he read DM reviews to make his game playing decisions.

This is his original post (it is also the first post in this thread):

"Not sure that this post is put in the right area, but I did not know where to post it. My small group has ordered the Manila module, but we fear that it will not be ready by this summer. We are anxious to start by July after we all have been vaccinated. Therefore, I am asking for recommendations for monster modules to play before that we receive the Manila module. I am considering Lone Canuck's Konisberg, as well as Crossing the Moro. I have seen no reviews of the latter module. Has anyone played this German/Canadian game? Shield of Cholm looks extremely well done, but Pittman's review of it indicates that Red Barricades rules are needed, which none of us own. Can anyone give us suggestions of monster games with well done maps. I am referring to non MMP games. Tim"

What followed in the thread was explanations by several people (including me) that the rules from Red Barricades is required to play almost all HASLs, MMP or not, and Tim's replies displaying a reluctance to purchase RB. The Pittman he refers to is Mark Pittman, who owns and writes the material on the Desperation Morale page. Here is the link to the DM review of Konigsberg: https://www.desperationmorale.com/products/the-battle-of-konigsberg-the-bears-revenge/.

As for the HASL Konigsberg, I think it has the potential to be a very fun game, and I fully intend to get a copy when I can. This is true in the light that besides Berlin: Red Vengeance, which is, IIRC, a HOB HASL dating from the late 1990s (I have a copy!) , the topic of the Russian 1945 offensive on Berlin has not been addressed in any other HASL. And this is especially true for me because I only a couple of months ago finished the Anthony Beevor book The Fall of Berlin 1945.

 

[TimNiesen]

Therefore, we do not need Red Factories to play Konigsberg? This is an inaccuracy in the Pittman Review? Steve has yet to respond to my text message, telling him "to show MMP the money." Don1 is more likely to purchase the game, but he is notoriously cheap. That is how millionaires remain wealthy. I will tell him to purchase Red Factories instead of preordering Rising Sun. A necessary choice if he wants to play the module. Otherwise, I will buy Konigsberg. Tim

 

[Honza]

As for the HASL Konigsberg, I think it has the potential to be a very fun game, and I fully intend to get a copy when I can. This is true in the light that besides Berlin: Red Vengeance, which is, IIRC, a HOB HASL dating from the late 1990s (I have a copy!) , the topic of the Russian 1945 offensive on Berlin has not been addressed in any other HASL. And this is especially true for me because I only a couple of months ago finished the Anthony Beevor book The Fall of Berlin 1945.

CH did there own version of the battle of Berlin. Not a bad effort either. Several players cleaned up the rules and made a fantastic CG out of it. Konigsberg is obviously not about the battle of Berlin, but it is similar in style.

 

[atago44]

CH did there own version of the battle of Berlin. Not a bad effort either. Several players cleaned up the rules and made a fantastic CG out of it. Konigsberg is obviously not about the battle of Berlin, but it is similar in style.

Konigsberg (now Kaliningrad) is located on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in what was East Prussia. It was one of the objectives in the first phase of the Russian 1945 offensive which had as its ultimate goal the capture of Berlin. So yeah, it's not Berlin, but the basic flavor is there.

 

[atago44]

Therefore, we do not need Red Factories to play Konigsberg? This is an inaccuracy in the Pittman Review? Steve has yet to respond to my text message, telling him "to show MMP the money." Don1 is more likely to purchase the game, but he is notoriously cheap. That is how millionaires remain wealthy. I will tell him to purchase Red Factories instead of preordering Rising Sun. A necessary choice if he wants to play the module. Otherwise, I will buy Konigsberg. Tim

Tim, I would suggest you go ahead and buy Konigsberg. Look at the rules, the answer is in there. If you need them, you need them. If you don't, then just play the game.

 

[Martin Mayers]

Therefore, we do not need Red Factories to play Konigsberg? This is an inaccuracy in the Pittman Review? Steve has yet to respond to my text message, telling him "to show MMP the money." Don1 is more likely to purchase the game, but he is notoriously cheap. That is how millionaires remain wealthy. I will tell him to purchase Red Factories instead of preordering Rising Sun. A necessary choice if he wants to play the module. Otherwise, I will buy Konigsberg. Tim

If you buy something, and there are some rules needed from a different module, just ask for details of the rules on Gamesquad. The community will fill you in. Personally I'd be comfortable just sending you a scan of the specific rules section from the appropriate rules. No-one could persuade me that this would be in breach of copyright given that you have purchased the module and I have purchased the other module...

 

[Vic Provost]

I understand your point about wanting non-MMP games.

Nevertheless, even though you are wanting TPPs, a copy of Red Barricades would be a good investment, given that many TPP HASLs reference it when it comes to rules. It is available in the Red Factories HASL module, which granted is quite an investment financially. However, Red October--the "other half" of Red Factories--was still available as a stand alone product last time I checked the MMP website. It should include the Red Barricade rules, and costs half as much. Of course, despite the cost, I think the full RF is worth the investment, given that RB is currently not available as a stand alone product.

I noticed that you refer to being part of a group. Another selling point for RF is that it has a campaign game that combines both RB and RO. If you've got four guys, they can all play at the same time.

I hope this helps.

I agree, get Red Factories, that will keep you busy before and after you get Manilla and is the basis for so many other HASLs, Vic.

 

[Robin Reeve]

Tim, if you still don't have a rulebook, I would suggest that you started buying one (the electronical one is fully up to date and as you have a device with which you can use Internet, you wouldn't have the problem of not having the rules handy).
As you often ask very basic questions about the rules, do you think that the Manila HASL is for you?
I would suggest that you went for a less "esoteric" HASL. Ostfront being a good choice - Red Factories being the best one, as it lays the bases of most HASL.

 

[Vic Provost]

After that he needed more than a cigarette!!

Yeah, better be smoking a 'funny' cigarette after that disaster, I sure would, LOL!

I had all my infantry OB at 3 different levels of a stone building once, they got hit on the bottom floor by an on-board USA Long Tom 155 CH, which rubbled the ground floor and the whole building hex collapsed down, killing everyone! Try not to stack like that if you can. Vic. grrrr...

 

[Actionjick]

Yeah, better be smoking a 'funny' cigarette after that disaster, I sure would, LOL!

I had all my infantry OB at 3 different levels of a stone building once, they got hit on the bottom floor by an on-board USA Long Tom 155 CH, which rubbled the ground floor and the whole building hex collapsed down, killing everyone! Try not to stack like that if you can. Vic. grrrr...

Well at least not when the Big Boys are around.