You Probably Shouldn't, But You Do Anyway

[Faded 8-1]

The probability thread got me thinking about all the situations in ASL that just plain BEG you to do something stupid... somthing low-odds and improbable, but, dammit, if you pull it off it could win you the game!

Intensive Fire - This is the most obvious. Oh, the stories to be told about IF shots that either took out a crucial enemy tank or stack, or broke a crucial gun!

Advance In Safe or Move In Rambo-Style - This one comes up all the time, but is not as easily quantified as Intensive Fire. When to do the conservative thing and move up concealed and advance in, or when to just move on in, perhaps advancing to a better spot if you survive. Lots of factors in play - how much you are moving, how much fire you are being exposed to, how important it is to draw fire, or perhaps you are trying to get the enemy to drop ?. At the end of the day, you still have to make that decision.

ESB - Lots of times I really WANT 1 or 2 extra MP. This one I try to gauge how useless my tank would be if it gets Immobilized. If it's still a viable gun platform for at least the foreseeable future, I'm likely to go for it.

Those are the ones that come to mind for me but I'm sure there's others.

 

[JoeArthur]

Toby was giving Simon Staniforth a tutorial at Heroes back in March. I listened in to see what tips our "world class" ASL player would provide Simon in return for a few beers.

There was one interesting one. Simon, as things stood, had lost the scenario. Toby told him to "go a bit crazy" and take those shots and hope for that three. I have also seen players in the same situation run a squad through several -2 shots (and survive).

Make something happen was his advice. Another way of putting it might be "go for the low probability outcomes"?

 

[Philippe D.]

Well of course if the game as it stands is lots, and only a lucky break would save the day, I'll go for the attempt at a lucky break - even if it means the most likely outcome is that I'll lose badly.

On the main topic - I believe we all have our faults, things we like to do and that we are prone to overdo. I'm probably a bit over-agressive in that I will do some moves with Infantry that will put it at risk with the hope of tying the defender's hands, or exploiting a momentary weakness in the opponent's position. While this is certainly something that has its value, I believe I do it a bit too much sometimes, and I do lose some troops that way more than I should.

OTOH, one thing that I do and think I should do, is look for Encirclement opportunities, even at long range.

 

[Actionjick]

I would get a wild hare up my a$$ to attempt something that the system or a scenario offered. Ferrying an AFV across a river or way back in the SL days getting out of an AFV to fix the tracks. Things that seemed challenging, unusual or fun to accomplish. I would keep trying to do whatever it was until successful.

I was more guilty of not doing some things that I should have, low FP attacks with slim chances for a positive result for example. This was partially to speed up the game but also to keep Fish from blowing a gasket and destroying his dice towers when the attack succeeded. LMFAO!!

 

[WuWei]

I'm guilty of doing cavalry charges against unbroken infantry. I know it's a bad idea, but I have to try it anyways - at least once in a while.

 

[WuWei]

There was one interesting one. Simon, as things stood, had lost the scenario. Toby told him to "go a bit crazy" and take those shots and hope for that three. I have also seen players in the same situation run a squad through several -2 shots (and survive).

Make something happen was his advice. Another way of putting it might be "go for the low probability outcomes"?

There comes a point in a game when you are clearly losing. So you can continue to "play it save" for that guaranteed loss, or you take some risky actions. In the unlikely event that they succeed you preserve your chances for a win, and in the likely event that they fail - you were losing anyways, so what's the harm? You probably will now lose even faster, but that's something positive.

 

[Robin Reeve]

Cautious moves where you still get hit hard and reckless actions that succeed are two extremes that I tend to suffer - rather, that I remember more.
I still don't know what is good or not.
I tend to be too agressive, because I want to destabilize my opponent.
But when I decide to be more cautious, it doesn't always work as hoped.
I believe that good players - of which I am not - have a sense of "where not go too far" and "where go for it" inbedded in their brains: in other words, a gift.

 

[gorkowskij]

Ah like a moth to the flame if I were the Russians in Bridge to Nowhere I would want to put that amphibious tank in the river for no other reason than it can swim.

It goes without saying that knowing when (and what) to ESB and IF are the keys to victory; actually making the right call at the right time is another matter.

Generally speaking, I find that caution pays the most dividends. So much so that I have seen (more than once) expert players complain that a particular scenario is "boring" as they skulk their way to victory on defense.

 

[Actionjick]

Ah like a moth to the flame if I were the Russians in Bridge to Nowhere I would want to put that amphibious tank in the river for no other reason than it can swim.

It goes without saying that knowing when (and what) to ESB and IF are the keys to victory; actually making the right call at the right time is another matter.

Generally speaking, I find that caution pays the most dividends. So much so that I have seen (more than once) expert players complain that a particular scenario is "boring" as they skulk their way to victory on defense.

Yes if it's Amphibious get the thing in the water!

 

[Tuomo]

Yeah, come to think of it, I haven't ESB'd in a long time. Used to do it all the time. Like you said, you gotta really need those extra MP's to make it worth it, and the price of failure is usually much worse than just accepting a lesser position on the board.

Lately, though, I love me some crashing tanks into buildings. Despite the threat of falling into the cellar. I need to tone that down.

Repairing MA's is like scratching an itch. Most of the time your vehicle is still pretty effective without it. But it tasks you, and you roll for it and boom, bye-bye tank.

Yeah, Toby's advice is called "gettin' stoopid" in my book, and sometimes it flat-out works. It may only work if you truly accept in your heart that the game is lost, so make sure to meditate about that before you try it.

 

[Paul John]

CC

 

[kcole4001]

Using 'Personal Leaders' back in the SL days the big merit points target was CCing a tank.
Never worked, not once and the casualty list was very long...so many dead leaders.
It was much safer to hang back and rally to accrue points, but where's the glamour (or fun) in that?

 

[Tuomo]

"Show ignored content"

 

[kcole4001]

Ah like a moth to the flame if I were the Russians in Bridge to Nowhere I would want to put that amphibious tank in the river for no other reason than it can swim.

It goes without saying that knowing when (and what) to ESB and IF are the keys to victory; actually making the right call at the right time is another matter.

Generally speaking, I find that caution pays the most dividends. So much so that I have seen (more than once) expert players complain that a particular scenario is "boring" as they skulk their way to victory on defense.

I've actually had quite good luck with ESB, and won a scenario by using it once many years ago (T-34/M41 if I remember correctly).
I don't do it a lot but if the opportunity presents itself and a success means a major problem for the opponent, I let 'er fly.
I've also stranded a tank in the back field behind some buildings once, the thing never got a shot during the whole scenario because of it.
I guess making the choice while it still could have an impact on the firefight is the key, rather than trying to extend his long drive - it's all in the timing.

I do tend to play more risky in scenarios as opposed to CGs where every single cardboard soldier matters.

 

[Actionjick]

Using 'Personal Leaders' back in the SL days the big merit points target was CCing a tank.
Never worked, not once and the casualty list was very long...so many dead leaders.
It was much safer to hang back and rally to accrue points, but where's the glamour (or fun) in that?

Wwbitd the first time I tried CC versus a tank, Streets of Stalingrad maybe, it succeeded. Wow! This is easy!!
Lmfao. Live and learn.

Play and learn is more correct than live and learn. Die and learn also more correct. Hopefully you learn.

 

[Martin Mayers]

I can't resist a banzai charge.

I've been known to do it frequently...on turn 1...with every Japanese unit I have...just as a movement mechanism to get to the front quicker.

But I do like the look on an opponents face when I CX everything on turn one...then banzai everything on turn 2..."how far can you move outa CX status"..."8"...."huh...but you can't advance right"..."I sure can"

Only works the once but it's a doozy

 

[Actionjick]

Forgot about the SL personal Leader. That was a hoot! Great fun!!

 

[boylermaker]

Shooting into melees!

 

[daniel zucker]

sounds like "Buzzlightyear moments"

 

[bendizoid]

I don’t require a unit be temporarily revealed to see a ‘real’ unit. I believe you.