From bprobst@ibm.net Fri Nov 12 04:51:42 1999
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: ASL FAQ v2.11 (LONG)
From: Bruce Probst <bprobst@ibm.net>
Date: Fri, 12 Nov 1999 14:51:42 +1100
THE ADVANCED SQUAD LEADER FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
FILE
=========================================================
[0.0]
VERSION HISTORY
[0.1]
INTRODUCTION
[0.2]
CREDITS
[0.3]
ABBREVIATIONS AND GLOSSARY
[0.4] THE
HASBRO BUYOUT OF TAHGC
[0.5]
HASBRO/MMP PRESS RELEASE (abbreviated)
[1.0] WHAT
IS ASL?
[2.0] WHAT
DO I NEED TO PLAY ASL?
[2.1] SHOULD
I BUY SQUAD LEADER FIRST?
[2.11] WELL,
I ALREADY HAVE SL. HOW DO I START
PLAYING ASL?
[2.2] WHAT
IS AVAILABLE FOR ASL?
[2.3] TAHGC
PRODUCTS
[2.31]
MODULES
[2.32]
ANNUALS/JOURNALS
[2.33] ACTION
PACKS
[2.34] THE
GENERAL
[2.35] ASL
GAP
[2.36]
WEB-BASED PRODUCTS
[2.37]
ANNOUNCED FUTURE PRODUCTS
[2.38] PARTS
[2.4]
THIRD-PARTY PRODUCTS
[3.0] WHAT'S
THE BEST WAY TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY ASL?
[3.1]
Learning Scenarios
[4.0] WHAT
ELECTRONIC RESOURCES ARE AVAILABLE FOR ASL?
[4.1] ASL
Internet Mailing List (ASLML)
[4.2] The
ASL Digest
[4.3] The
Expanded ASL Index
[4.4] WWW
& FTP
[4.5]
CompuServe
[4.6] VASL
[4.7] GAPs
[4.8] Other
Software
[5.0] HOW DO
I PLAY BY E-MAIL?
[5.1]
Ladders
[6.0] I
DOWNLOADED THESE STRANGE FILES; WHAT DO I DO WITH THEM?
[6.1]
Compressed files: ZIP, ARC, Z, TAR, etc.
[6.2] .ps
[6.3] .pdf
[7.0] WHAT
AND WHERE ARE THE ASL TOURNAMENTS?
[7.1] North America
[7.2] Europe
[7.3] Australia
[8.0] WHAT
WAS THE ASL RECORD, AND WHAT IS ROAR?
[8.1] I know the scenario name, but not where to
find it?
[9.0] WHAT
IS AREA?
[10.0] ARE ALL
THE Q&A COLLECTED IN ONE PLACE?
[10.1] Can I
send Q's to MMP via e-mail?
[11.0] WHAT
ARE THE COMMON ASL QUESTIONS?
[11.1] RULES
PHILOSOPHY
[11.11] Why do
the US Marines have ML 8?
[11.12] IFT
vs. IIFT
[11.13] Where
did the squad FP values come from?
[11.14] How
can I tell if a scenario is balanced?
[11.15] Why
isn't there an electronic ASLRB?
[11.16] What
is the Australian Balance System?
[11.17] Why
can't I declare H-T-H Melee in non-Deluxe scenarios?
[11.2]
SPECIFIC ASL RULES
[11.201] How does a Human Wave work?
[11.202] How does Bocage work?
[11.203] CX and leader movement bonus
[11.204] Moving vs. Motion etc.
[11.205] Assault move and laying SMOKE
[11.206] Area Target Type vs. Area Fire
[11.207] Do mortars get ROF with SMOKE?
[11.208] Infantry Target Type CHs
[11.209] Building vs. Location vs. Hex Control
[11.210] Why do the concealment markers have a morale
level printed
on
them?
[11.211] Do I have to declare it when my opponent
rolls his SAN?
[11.212] Can a leader direct fire when he can't use
his DRM?
[11.213] What does "momentarily reveal"
mean?
[11.214] Can I dm a weapon and still move?
[11.215] OBA confuses me! How can it be made simpler?
[11.216] What is that thing on Board 8?
[11.217] The centre dots on my board aren't in the
centre of the
hexes! What do I do?
[11.218] The rules say I can HIP my foxholes. Does that mean the
units
in the foxhole are HIP also?
[11.219] Can I remove CX by declaring TI?
[11.220] What is "VBM Sleaze"?
[11.221] When is CC "simultaneous"?
[11.222] Is "No Quarter" always applied to
both sides when in effect?
[11.223] Must I use my MGs when making a SFF attack?
[11.224] OVRs confuse me! How can it be made simpler?
[11.3]
PRACTICAL MATTERS
[11.31] The Rulebook
[11.32] Counter storage
[11.33] Overlays
[11.34] Scenarios
[11.35] Good mail-order stores
[11.36] Where are the errata pages?
[11.37] I'm missing pages from Chapter N
=====================================================================
[0.0]
VERSION HISTORY
This is v2.11, dated 11 Nov 1999.
Revisions:
2.11: [11.35] Boulder Games Web address updated;
[4.5] (GEnie)& [4.7]
(AOL Club) Deleted (other sections
renumbered accordingly); [7.2]
Link for Toulouse Tourney deleted (no
longer active); [10.0] Info on
Bas' unofficial Q&A deleted (no longer
active?); [11.35] Link to
"other stores" deleted (MMP info
updated); [6.1] Macintosh info
updated; [4.6] VASL info updated; [8.1]
added; [2.4] updated; [7.0] &
[7.1] expanded; [7.2] reworded dramatically. It's almost impossible
to keep this list up-to-date; [2.37]
updated; [2.11] updated;
[11.222] & [11.223] added; [11.201]
expanded; [3.1] expanded and
updated; [11.37] added; [4.1] updated
(Virus alert etiquette added);
[0.1] & [0.2] updated (third FAQ
website removed as it wasn't being
kept up-to-date); [0.3] minor updates, more
cross-references; [0.5]
most of MMP's original press release
deleted to reduce space; [2.31]
expanded (BRT & ABTF added, module
dependency graph updated); new
[2.36] added (PP) (following sections
renumbered accordingly); [2.32]
Annual & Journal info updated; [11.224]
added; [2.33] expanded (AP2
info); [2.34] updated to include pointer to
[8.1]; [2.37] updated;
[11.15] updated; [11.211] updated;
[11.33(ii)] updated; [11.36]
updated; [6.3] updated. (Nov 11, 1999)
2.1: Many changes, mostly due to the release of
"Doomed Battalions"
and the buyout of TAHGC. [11.33] updated; [11.36] updated; [0.1]
updated (FAQ maintainer no longer has
CompuServe account); [0.3]
updated; [0.4] added; [2.31] updated
(description of DB added);
[2.32] updated; [2.34] updated; [2.36]
wiped pending new info; [2.37]
updated; [2.2] & [2.4] updated
(replaced term "amateur" with "third-
party"); [4.4] updated; [4.1] updated (info on WWW interface to
ASLML
added); [6.3] updated; [7.3] updated;
[11.17] updated (Gurkhas can
now do H-T-H too); [11.201] updated;
[11.209] updated; [11.35]
updated (TAHGC mail-order deleted, MMP mail-order
added); [11.220]
added; [11.221] added; [0.5] added; [10.1]
updated. (Jan 16, 1999)
2.04: [11.218] added; [4.2] updated (new Digest
editor); [0.1] New FAQ
site added; [10.0] info on Scott Romanowski's compilation added;
[2.34] updated (info on Classic ASL added);
[2.36] updated (complete
rewrite); [11.17] added; [11.219] added;
[3.1] expanded; [4.9] More
info on Zundel GAP and ASLAP, and SALSA
info added; [2.31] updated
(Partisan! info corrected); [8.0] rewritten
to reflect demise of
Record and creation of ROAR; [11.12]
updated; [11.14] updated (ROAR
replaces Record); [11.202] updated ('97
Annual Q&A); [11.205]
expanded; [11.210] reworded; [11.215]
expanded (reference to OBA
chart errata). (May 9, 1998)
2.03: [8.0] Updated Will Scarvie's e-mail address;
[11.33] expanded
(thanks to Tom Huntington); [4.1] expanded
(again thanks to Tom and
Paul Ferraro); [5.1] a notation on the use
of VASL for PBEM play;
[11.211] some terminology corrected; [11.214]
added; [11.35] Boulder
Games address updated (again); [11.215]
added; [11.216] added;
[11.217] added; [2.32] updated; [0.1] and
[0.2] updated. (Dec 5, 1997)
2.02: [11.35] TAHGC web-site info updated; [4.8]
VASL info updated;
[2.34] GENERAL info updated; new [4.3]
(Index) section added (later
sections renumbered accordingly); [11.208]
(ITT CH) reworded slightly
to correct minor terminology error; Pegasus
Bridge info moved from
Section [2.36] to [2.31]; [4.5] (GEnie)
updated; [4.9] Work on GAP
info started (needs lots more work still!).
(May 11, 1997)
2.01: [11.36] expanded slightly; [11.35] New
Boulder Games website
address; [7.2] More info on Belgian
tournaments; Section [4.2] &
[4.9] added (following sections renumbered
appropriately).
2.00: Complete update and rewrite by new FAQ
maintainer (Jan 13, 1997)
[0.1]
INTRODUCTION
This FAQ is intended to serve as a brief introduction
to the boardgame ADVANCED SQUAD LEADER, produced by The Avalon Hill Game
Company (TAHGC). It also aims to
provide pointers to many amateur resources available for the game, and to
answer many common questions, both about the game as an entity, and some
specific common rules questions.
This FAQ will be posted by the FAQ maintainer
regularly to the ASLML, the newsgroup rec.games.board, and the web site
http://grognard.com.
Cross-posting of this FAQ to other online services and
web pages of interest to ASL players is encouraged, so long as the contents are
not altered and the FAQ is provided in full.
Please let the FAQ maintainer know if you store this FAQ on your site.
The FAQ is currently available in HTML form at two
different main sites:
http://www.sunlink.net/~skip/aslfaq.html, and
http://www.tne.net.au/njh/ASL/FAQ/FAQ.html. Please note that these
versions of the FAQ are *not* maintained by the FAQ
maintainer, and any problems with the information at those web sites should be
directed to the respective web-site owners.
Errata and suggestions for this FAQ are always welcome. Please contact the FAQ administrator at the
address below.
[0.2]
CREDITS
This FAQ is currently maintained by Bruce Probst
(bprobst@ibm.net).
It is based on the previous version of the FAQ that
was maintained by Don Hancock, but has been substantially updated and
reorganised.
Much assistance and many important suggestions were
given to the FAQ maintainer by the following individuals:
Ole Boe, Scott Brady, Paul Ferraro, Patrik Manlig, Tom
Repetti, Matt Romey, Asad Rustum, Hennie van der Salm, Fritz Tichy, Tom
Huntington.
Thanks to NJ Hickman and Skip Kreitz maintaining the
HTML FAQ sites.
Thanks also are due to the miscellaneous members of
the ASLML who provided additional proof-reading and suggestions for this FAQ.
And finally thanks also to The Avalon Hill Game
Company for producing "The Game".
Where would we be without it?
[0.3]
ABBREVIATIONS AND GLOSSARY
The following terms may be of use for those not
familiar with them:
ABS
Australian Balance System. See
[11.16].
ASLRB The
ASL Rules Book. (Often referred to as
"The Holy Tome",
"The Word", etc.)
ASLML ASL
Internet Mailing List. The online
"discussion group". See
[7.1].
CG
Campaign Game. A series of
scenarios played in sequence,
usually using survivors of one scenario to determine the OB
for
the next. CG rules are usually integral
parts of HASL
modules.
DASL Deluxe
ASL. ASL played
on boards with very big hexes.
ETO
European Theatre of Operations
FTF Face-to-Face. Your opponent is sitting across from you, as
opposed to PBEM.
Grognard "Old grumblers". Originally the term used by Napoleon to
describe his veteran troops, who were habitual complainers,
it's
now applied to "veteran" wargamers (not just ASL
players) -- you know, those "old fogeys" who remember way
back
when ....
HASBRO The
mega-game-company that as of October 1998 is the new
owner
of TAHGC (and hence ASL).
HASL
Historical ASL. Used to denote a
module using a mapboard
designed to recreate a specific battle, rather than using the
generic geomorphic mapboards.
ML Morale
Level
MMP
Multi-Man Publishing. The group
of ASL players (and longtime
playtesters
for TAHGC) that have been contracted by HASBRO to
oversee all future ASL products.
OBA
Off-Board Artillery
PBEM Play
By E-Mail. Your opponent is on the
other end of an
electronic connection, as opposed to FTF.
PTO Pacific Theatre of Operations
Q&A
Questions and Answers. Rules
clarifications from TAHGC/MMP.
SASL Solitaire
ASL.
TAHGC The
Avalon Hill Game Company, now a Hasbro affiliate.
[0.4] THE
HASBRO BUYOUT OF TAHGC
In October 1998 the Hasbro corporation
(www.hasbro.com) completed their purchase of TAHGC from the previous owners,
Monarch-Avalon. Naturally enough, this
purchase threw the ASL world into a chaos of uncertainty; what was the future
of ASL likely to be under the new
regime? Would
there even BE a future?
Fortunately, it would appear that Hasbro are well
aware of ASL's popularity, and Hasbro have announced that they will continue
ASL in the same fashion as TAHGC did before it: namely, the third-party group
MMP has been sub-contracted to produce new ASL material for publication
by HASBRO. See
[0.5] for more information.
Furthermore, if HASBRO is committed to producing new
ASL material, logically it would follow that the older material needs to be
kept in print. There may even be an
opportunity to retrofit errata to older products.
On a more practical level, any references in this FAQ
to "TAHGC" should be assumed to include an implicit understanding
that TAHGC is actually now an affiliate of HASBRO, and that MMP are
sub-contracted to HASBRO to produce new ASL material.
[0.5] HASBRO/MMP
PRESS RELEASE (abbreviated)
(Released 15 Jan 1999)
MMP Partners With Hasbro's Avalon Hill Games For ASL
Multi-Man Publishing, LLC (MMP) is proud to announce
its new exclusive association with Hasbro, Inc. to develop, produce, and
distribute games and other products for Avalon Hill's Advanced Squad Leader
(ASL) game system. Hasbro's purchase of
the Avalon Hill line puts the undeniable
resources of this industry giant squarely behind the
ASL game system and combines with MMP's proven track record for developing
quality ASL products to promise a ton of ASL fun this year and the years to
come. We are truly thrilled about the prospects for ASL and for the other
great games of Avalon Hill.
...
Product information is available at, and purchases can
be made via,
our web sites:
http://www.advancedsquadleader.com/
or via phone at:
410-519-4411
or via fax at:
410-519-4151
or e-mail at:
sales@advancedsquadleader.com
or via mail at:
MMP, PO Box 601, Gambrills MD
21054-0601
Contact us at through any of the above methods or
e-mail us at:
info@advancedsquadleader.com
[1.0]
WHAT IS ASL?
To quote the TAHGC 1996 catalogue:
"Our
crowning achievement, and the ultimate wargame. No other can
match its
combination of beauty, detail and excitement.
ASL is a
system
based on the original Squad Leader game, but revised and
expanded so
that ultimately a player can simulate any company or
battalion-level
ground action in any theater of WWII.
Playing
pieces
(counters) represent squads, half-squads and crews, plus
individual
leaders, heroes, vehicles and guns.
Each ASL module
contains
eight or more carefully balanced, historically based
scenarios
-- but players can also design their own using the 40+
geomorphic
SL/ASL mapboards, numerous terrain overlays, copious
historical
notes, and thousands of counters depicting virtually
every
vehicle, gun and troop type in action during the war by
every major
and minor combatant nation."
In addition to the above, there have been many
"amateur" products released over the years since ASL was first
released in 1985, so that now there are hundreds of scenarios and campaigns that
can be played in addition to the "official" ones produced by
TAHGC. It is quite possible
to play nothing but ASL for the rest of your life, and
you still might not get to explore every facet of the game.
[2.0]
WHAT DO I NEED TO PLAY ASL?
The bare minimum required is the ASL Rulebook (ASLRB),
and either Beyond Valor (Module 1), or Paratrooper (Module 2) plus boards
1-4. You'll also need at least two
(preferably four) six-sided dice of different colours (dice are provided in
BV), some cotton thread or
string (for tracing LOS), and somewhere to set it all
up!
See the product listing below [2.2] for more
information on what's available for purchase.
[2.1]
SHOULD I BUY SQUAD LEADER FIRST?
Before ASL, there was SL. The original SL game was released in 1977 and was an instant
hit. It became so popular that
additions and expansions were deemed necessary, and these followed as Cross of
Iron (COI), Crescendo of Doom (COD) and GI: Anvil of Victory (GI). Each new
module required that you owned all the previous ones,
and provided additional rules, revisions of old rules, and new boards and
counters.
While an excellent game, it became something of an
administrative nightmare: important rules were scattered through several rules
books, early parts of the system didn't sit well with later ones, and it became
obvious that things couldn't go on this way.
So, ASL was born.
A complete revision from the ground up, with all new
rules and components that were based on the SL system but clearly separate to
them -- and, in the opinion of most players, a considerable improvement
overall.
SL (without the add-ons) remains an excellent game,
though it is much simpler and more abstract than the ASL system. However, there are so many differences in
detail between the SL rules and the ASL rules that learning SL can actually
hinder your ASL development. So
although SL
can teach you some basic ASL concepts, it is the
opinion of the author that you are usually better off going direct to ASL.
There is a caveat:
many ASL scenarios require the use of the boards supplied with SL and
its expansions. If you do not have
SL/COI/COD/GI, there are 12 boards (1-8, 12-15) that you will need to purchase
separately before you can play these scenarios. Usually it is cheaper
to buy them separately from your local game store or
direct from TAHGC than to buy the four SL games, but if you can pick them up
second-hand or whatever you may end up saving money. (GI also includes several terrain overlays to modify the
mapboards, but to date no official ASL
scenario has used any of these overlays.)
[2.11]
WELL, I ALREADY HAVE SL. HOW DO
I START PLAYING ASL?
Probably the most important thing to remember is to
not make any assumptions. Many rules in
ASL are similar to SL rules, but have important differences. Almost no rule is identical between the two
systems. If you're busily flipping
through the ASLRB trying to find
that rule you're *sure* you read somewhere, chances
are you may be thinking of a SL rule instead.
In the '90 Annual [see 2.32] an article is provided
for those players who are changing from SL to ASL. In eight steps you're taken through the rules chapters, starting
with infantry rules to OBA and finally AFV's.
The article uses a "programmed instruction" technique very
similar to the way the original SL rules were
presented, and makes use of (modified versions of) the scenarios provided in
the original SL set. Unfortunately the
'90 Annual is very hard to find these days, but fortunately the article was
reprinted in Vol.30 #1 of the General [see
2.34]. Even
more fortunately, this article is now available in its entirety on the MMP
website at www.advancedsquadleader.com.
See also Section [3.0].
[2.2]
WHAT IS AVAILABLE FOR ASL?
ASL products fall loosely into two categories: "official" products, which are
released by TAHGC, and "third-party" products, which are released by
others. While it is generally true that
the TAHGC products are better-looking and better researched, this is by no
means
always the case, and many of the third-party products
are the best things that an ASL gamer could spend his money on. There is a tacit understanding however that
if it comes down to rules conflicts or similar problems, the "official"
products will win out, mostly because
the TAHGC products usually have a much wider
distribution, and it is unfair to expect new players to know about the
alternatives.
Within the above broad categories, ASL products may be
defined as "modules", "magazines", or
"other". Modules are
self-contained settings for a particular nationality or campaign, usually with
rules and counters. Magazines should be
self-explanatory. "Other"
includes things like scenario packs.
[2.3]
TAHGC PRODUCTS
[2.31]
MODULES
The meat and potatoes of ASL. Every player will need at least some of the
following:
ASLRB: Binder and rules organised in chapters. Chapters A-D, H, J
and N
included. Subsequent Modules provide
new chapters (and
expansions of existing ones).
Necessary for all ASL play.
1: BEYOND VALOR
(BV): German, Finnish, Russian and
Partisan
counters. Important
informational counters, 4 mapboards (20-23), 10
scenarios. Required for all
other modules (except Paratrooper).
Boards 1-4
and 8 are recommended.
2: PARATROOPER
(Para): German and US intro
module. Training manual
(Chapter
K), 1 mapboard (24), 8 scenarios. Used
as intro to ASL.
An
excellent way to start learning the game, and much cheaper than
BV (but you
will need BV eventually). Boards 1-4
are required.
3: YANKS: US counters, weather, paradrops, gliders,
fighter-bombers,
night rules
(Chapter E). 4 mapboards (16-19), 8
scenarios. The
Chapter E
rules make this module a prerequisite for most subsequent
modules. In addition to BV
requirements, boards 7 and 12 are
recommended.
4: PARTISAN!
(Part): Axis Minors infantry (Hungary,
Rumania, etc.),
partisan
forces. No new rules, 2 boards (10,
32), 8 scenarios.
BV is a
prerequisite.
5: WEST OF
ALAMEIN (WoA): British &
Commonwealth counters, desert
warfare
(Chapter F), 5 boards (25-29), 8 scenarios and overlays.
Yanks is a
prerequisite.
6: THE LAST
HURRAH (LH): Allied Minors infantry
(Poland, Belgium,
etc). No new rules. 2 boards (11, 33), 8 scenarios.
Yanks is a
prerequisite.
7: HOLLOW
LEGIONS (HL): Italian counters, 2
boards (30, 31), 8
scenarios. WoA is a
prerequisite.
8: CODE OF
BUSHIDO (CoB): Japanese counters and
rules, half of the
Pacific
theatre rules (Chapter G). 4 boards
(34-37), 8 scenarios,
overlays. WoA is a prerequisite.
9: GUNG HO!
(GH): Chinese and US Marine counters
and the rest of
Chapter G,
including amphibious landings. 2 boards
(38-39), 8
scenarios,
overlays. CoB is a prerequisite.
10: CROIX DE GUERRE (CdG): French (Pre-surrender, Vichy and Free)
counters, 2
boards (40-41), 8 scenarios, overlays.
WoA is a
prerequisite.
11: DOOMED BATTALIONS (DB): Allied Minors (Poles,
Dutch, Belgian,
Greek,
etc.) Vehicle and Ordnance counters, 3 boards (9, 44-45), 8
scenarios,
overlays, new Chapter B terrain types, and Chapter A
errata. HL and LH are
prerequisites (some boards from other
modules
needed for some scenarios).
D1: STREETS OF FIRE (SoF): German and Russian "deluxe" module.
Deluxe ASL
uses very large hexes so miniatures can be used if
desired,
but this is in no way a prerequisite.
DASL is especially
for
scenarios with a high density of forces.
The large hexes allow
painless
coordination without much fumbling and tossing stacks
over that
would otherwise be unavoidable in scenarios with 20-25
MMC per
side on an area equivalent to 1/2-1 standard board.
Scenarios
are especially designed for that fact.
4 boards (a-d),
10
scenarios. BV is a prerequisite.
D2: HEDGEROW HELL (HH): US deluxe module. 4
boards (e-h), 8
scenarios,
some useful info counters. Board b
required.
H1: RED BARRICADES (RB): Stalingrad historical module, contains
several
stand-alone scenarios (including the largest in the system,
"The
Last Bid") as well as providing rules for playing scenarios
that link
together into a campaign game, i.e., you need to
preserve
your forces each scenario for use in the next one. Many
additional
German and Russian counters, Chapter O, 2 unmounted
mapsheets
representing the Barrikady area of Stalingrad in October
1942,
created from actual aerial recon photos of the area. Yanks
is a
prerequisite. A monster, but widely
seen as the most
exciting
ASL experience around!
H2: KAMPFGRUPPE PEIPER I (KGPI): The Battle of the Bulge, given the
RB
treatment. 2 mapsheets representing the
historical area of
Stoumont,
Belgium; many additional US and German counters, Chapter
P. Yanks is a prerequisite.
H3: KAMPGRUPPE PEIPER II (KGPII): They couldn't fit it all in one
box! More of the same. 3 mapsheets representing the villages of La
Gleize and
Chenaux, errata for Chapter P. KGPI is
a prerequisite.
H4: PEGASUS BRIDGE (PB): A HASL campaign centred on the British
glider
landings on D-Day. Aside from the
campaign rules (Chapter
Q), there
are several new German vehicle counters and corresponding
Chapter H
notes. There is one unmounted
historical map sheet
depicting
the terrain around the Canal de Caen bridge (renamed
"Pegasus Bridge" after the war), one countersheet and a
continuation of Chapter K covering SW mortars and basic ordnance
principles. PB is a smaller,
simpler CG than has been previously
published
and would be an ideal introduction to the CG "concept".
WoA is a
prerequisite.
H5: BLOOD REEF: TARAWA (BRT): A HASL campaign dealing
with the USMC
invasion of
the island of Betio in the Pacific.
Chapter T provides
the
necessary special rules. Two unmounted
mapsheets depicting
almost the
entire island, four countersheets with additional Marine
and
Japanese units and weapons, and various markers necessary for
play. GH is a prerequisite.
H6: A BRIDGE TOO FAR (ABTF): A HASL campaign dealing
with the failed
Allied
attempt to capture the Bridge at Arnhem in September 1944.
Chapter R
provides the necessary special rules.
One unmounted
mapsheet
depicting the town of Arnhem on the north side of the
bridge,
eight countersheets depicting the additional units and
markers
required, a complete replacement set of counters for German
SS done in
white-on-black for those that prefer them to the
traditional
blue (the use of these black counters is completely
optional),
and some replacement counters for those that were
misprinted
in the first edition of DB. WoA is a
prerequisite.
S1: SOLITAIRE ASL (SASL): A system for playing ASL scenarios
solitaire. Rather than adapting
existing scenarios, this system
uses generic
scenarios and random activation of enemy units to
create new
scenarios. "Campaigns" are
encouraged. Rules (Chapter
S) provide
for US, German and Russian/Partisan forces only. Yanks
is a
prerequisite.
Module dependency graph (best viewed in
non-proportional font):
ASLRB
/ \
BV Para
/
\
------------ \
Part, Yanks SoF
/ \ |
---------------------------------
\ |
LH, WoA,
RB, SASL, KGPI HH
| |
|
| ---------------------- |
| HL, CoB, CdG, PB, ABTF KGPII
|
/ |
DB GH
|
BRT
Note this dependency list is not always as
"absolute" as presented here, e.g., it is possible to play some WoA
scenarios without owning Yanks.
[2.32]
ANNUALS/JOURNALS
The ASL Annuals are TAHGC's magazine dedicated to
ASL. As their name implies, they are
theoretically released once a year. In
practice this has varied somewhat. Each
annual includes many scenarios and several articles on various aspects of
ASL. The current list of
available annuals is:
89, 90, 91,
92, 93a, 93b, 95w, 96, 97
The 89, 90 and 95w Annuals are apparently out of print
and very hard to come by. There were
two annuals released in 93 but none in 94.
(The 95 annual was supposed to be released in a "Winter" and
"Summer" edition but as it turned out only the first was released.)
The Annual has now been replaced by the "ASL
Journal". J1 was published in 1999.
[2.33]
ACTION PACKS
The "Action Pack" is a collection of new ASL
boards plus a bunch of miscellaneous scenarios using those boards.
Action Pack #1 includes Boards 42 & 43 and 8
scenarios. It also includes a new
official OBA flowchart which greatly simplifies the OBA procedure (see
[11.215]). AP#1 is available without
the boards if you already own them (they were available separately for some
time prior to the AP release). Note:
AP1 is now officially out of print.
Action Pack #2 includes Boards 46 & 47, 8
scenarios, some new terrain overlays, new Chapter B pages (the same as were
included in DB) and an "OVR flowchart" (see [11.224]).
The scenarios in an AP have no particular theme (other
than use of the new boards) so the prerequisites for being able to play these
scenarios are diverse.
[2.34]
THE GENERAL
The General was TAHGC's "house organ" and
included articles on virtually all of their gaming products. A lot of coverage has been given to ASL over
the years since its release, usually in the form of a new scenario or two each
issue (see [8.1]). There were a number
of articles on ASL game play etc. as well.
Subscribers occasionally received benefits not available to newsstand
purchasers, for example sometimes special countersheets were issued to provide
new or replacement counters; a small number of faulty ASL counters were
replaced this way a couple of
years back.
With the purchase of TAHGC by HASBRO, the General
ceased publication (Vol.32#3 was the final issue).
A new product to make it easier for those who didn't
subscribe to the General for the last ten years is "Classic
ASL". This is a 48-page
composition of out-of-print articles, scenarios, and variants, presented in a
magazine format. There are 16 scenarios
(in the center, easy to remove and add to your collection!) Included in this package is a re-release of
the IIFT! It's a lot cheaper than
paying $1 per photocopied page. Note
that there is no "new" content; all the enclosed material has been
published before.
[2.35]
ASL GAP
The GAP (Game Assistance Program) is a computer
program designed to make it easier to keep track of many of ASL's book-keeping
requirements. It is more fully
discussed in the section on electronic resources (see Section [4.9]).
[2.36]
WEB-BASED PRODUCTS
MMP have added a new category of ASL Product: the free
web-based scenario pack. The first
example of this is the "Provence Pack", a collection of scenarios
dealing with the invasion of Southern France in 1944. The web-pages provide historical background and scenario
analysis; the actual scenarios themselves are provided in full-colour and in
PDF format for easy cross-platform printing (see [6.3]). The Provence Pack can be found at http://www.advancedsquadleader.com/pp.
[2.37]
ANNOUNCED FUTURE PRODUCTS
MMP are working on Journal #2, scheduled to be
released in Jan 2000.
Apart from the usual goodies (articles and scenarios)
it will include a mini-HASL on Kakazu Ridge.
Also scheduled for release sometime in 2000 is
"Armies Of Oblivion", the last "core" module for ASL. It will provide units and weapon counters
for the Axis Minor forces (Hungary, Rumania, etc.) as well as a revamped
Finnish counterset.
Finally, MMP are working on bringing the ASLRB back
into print, as well as a new "Introductory ASL" pack and a CD-ROM
edition of the ASLRB (see [11.15]).
[2.38]
PARTS
TAHGC sold all parts and components for their games
separately, in case you needed replacement boards or additional countersheets. Of special note are the boards not provided
with ASL: Boards 1-9 and 12-15. Boards 1-8 and 12-15 are from SL/COI/COD/GI,
as explained above (see [2.1]). Boards
9-11 were originally "rogue" boards for original SL; they were not
"official" and were very crudely painted. They were subsequently redone for ASL and are now very attractive
(Board 9 was released in Doomed Battalions, Board 10 was released in Partisan!
and
Board 11 in The Last Hurrah).
While a full parts service for older products is not
yet available, MMP have made it possible to order extra boards separately. See the MMP website
www.advancedsquadleader.com under "Products" for more information.
Also, for newer products with part errors (e.g.,
missing or damaged components) it is possible to arrange for replacements
directly from the printer. See the MMP
FAQ at http://www.advancedsquadleader.com/
for details.
[2.4]
THIRD-PARTY PRODUCTS
These cover a variety of formats and subjects. Magazines ("fanzines") are the
most common, but historical modules and special scenario packs are not
unknown. They are usually of low price
and frequently the physical quality matches the price, but certain third-party
publishers are known for their very high-quality components. Availability comes and goes, so an
up-to-date list is difficult to maintain.
One source of information on third-party products is Patrik Manlig's WWW
page dedicated to this topic, which can be located at
http://www.update.uu.se/~pman/aslmenu.html
Patrik's list is somewhat old however. A more up-to-date list is at
http:/freespace.virgin.net/pete.phillipps/3rdparty.htm.
Also check the ASL Crossroads (see [4.4]) for web
links to the various
third-party publisher web pages.
[3.0]
WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY ASL?
The *absolutely best way* to learn how to play ASL is
to find someone who already knows how to play, and get them to teach you. You will probably lose in the beginning,
maybe quite often, but eventually you will start using the tricks you've
learned on your opponents and
you'll find yourself winning more often. Start with simpler, infantry-only, scenarios
and work your way up to guns and armor, concentrating on learning the game
instead of worrying about winning.
Unfortunately nearby opponents are not always
available. Fortunately there are other
options; the most common alternatives are Play by (E-)Mail and Solitaire.
The rapid turnaround time of PBEM means that you can
quickly ask rules questions of your opponent; the next best thing to
"being there". Solitaire play can be useful but is not much help if
you hit a rule that you just don't understand.
One of the important functions of the
ASLML is being able to quickly answer rules questions
of people new to the game. As a further
note to solitaire play, while the Solitaire module is a good way to brush up on
unfamiliar rules, it's probably not as good in learning the rules for the first
time, since (a) it
assumes you already know them (including the more
advanced rules) and (b) it uses some sub-systems (e.g., Command Control) not
found in the regular ASL rules. For *learning*
purposes, you're probably better off playing a normal scenario solitaire.
It's helpful if you can get hold of the
"Programmed Instructions" for learning ASL as originally printed in
the 90 Annual. See [2.11] for more
details.
Finally, if you have an opportunity to go to an ASL
game convention, take it! Meeting other
people that you don't play regularly will expose you to many different styles
of play (and rules interpretations) that will *always* be a learning experience
(as well as being a darn good time).
Don't be worried that you're not "good enough" to play in a
tournament -- just go for the ride and do your best. You'll be guaranteed to have a blast! More info on tournaments
can be found in Section [7.0].
[3.1]
Learning Scenarios
Some scenarios are better than others for learning
particular rules sections. Below is a
list compiled from the opinions of many people on the ASLML:
No guarantee that these scenarios are balanced or fun,
just that some people think they serve as good introductions to certain parts
of the rules.
Scenarios are identified by their ID, their name and
the module in which they can be found.
Note that some of the modules are not official TAHGC publications. Some scenarios have had both
"amateur" and "official" publication; some have been seen
in several amateur
publications.
If an "official" version exists, that will be the source
cited; otherwise the most recent publication will be cited.
Note that virtually all of the scenarios included in
"Classic ASL" are considered good for learning purposes.
ASL 101: BASIC INFANTRY
1
Fighting Withdrawal BV
11
Defiance On Hill 30
Para
A The
Guards Counterattack Classic ASL
T1 Gavin
Take Classic ASL
G35 Going
To Church General 31.2
RB6 Turned
Away RB
A80
Commando Schenke
Annual '95w
AP8 A
Bloody Harvest AP #1
D1
Guryev's Headquarters SoF
ASL 103: VEHICLES
T2 The Puma Prowls Classic ASL
35
Blazin' Chariots WoA
A44
Blocking Action At Lipki
Annual '92
23 Under
The Noel Trees Yanks
F The
Paw Of The Tiger Classic ASL
A51 Clash
Along The Psel Annual '93a
ASL 104: CAVALRY
90 Pride And Joy DB
SP? Over Open Sights Schwerpunkt #3
ASL 112: OBA
D The
Hedgehog Of Piepsk Classic ASL
E Hill
621 Classic ASL
A59 Death
At Carentan Annual '93a
T7 Hill
253.5 General 27.3
ASLUG20 The
Butcher's Bill ASLUG ?
L
Hitdorf On The Rhine
General 25.2
ASL 123: NIGHT
61
Shoestring Ridge CoB
H Escape
From Velikye Luki Classic ASL
20 Taking
The Left Tit Yanks
TOT8
Nightmare
Time On Target 1
A19 Cat
And Mouse Annual '90
BB2
Throwing Down The Gauntlet
Backblast 1
DA11
Sicilian Midnight
Annual '93a
TOT18 The
Aller Waltz Time On Target
2
40 Fort
McGregor WoA
ASL 125: DESERT
35
Blazin' Chariots WoA
37
Khamsin WoA
38 Escape
From Derna WoA
41 A
Bridgehead Too Wet WoA
CH49 High
Danger Critical Hit 4
ASL 126: PTO
A60
Totsugeki!
Annual '93a
67
Cibik's Ridge GH
A53 Smith
& Weston Annual '93a
A58 Munda
Mash Annual '93a
63 The
Eastern Gate CoB
60 On The
Kokoda Trail CoB
A42
Commando Hunt
Annual '92
CH28
Children Of The Kunai
Critical Hit! 3
A83 Last
Of Their Strength Annual '95w
ASL 191: BEACH LANDINGS
A55 The
Cat has Jumped Annual '93a
73 Hell
or High Water GH
A79 Mike
Red Annual '95w
ASL 291: CAVES
BB1 Taming
Tulagi Backblast 1
72 Sea of
Tranquility GH
[4.0]
WHAT ELECTRONIC RESOURCES ARE AVAILABLE FOR ASL?
[4.1]
ASL Internet Mailing List (ASLML)
The advanced-sl mailing list allows discussion of
TAHGC's Advanced Squad Leader game series.
As of October 1998 there are over 900 subscribers to advanced-sl from
all the "corners" of the world.
To subscribe to advanced-sl, send mail to
majordomo@list.pitt.edu. In the body of
the message type the following:
subscribe advanced-sl
To unsubscribe, send:
unsubscribe advanced-sl
A digest version of the list exists. To subscribe to it, use the above
directions, but instead you must subscribe to advanced-sl-digest.
A WWW interface to the ASLML now exists. You can browse recent messages, even post
new messages, without actually subscribing.
See http://gs105.sp.cs.cmu.edu/~mhb/aslml/
for the full details.
Etiquette:
Aside from the basic rules of "netiquette" (don't flame people
in public, etc.) there are some ASLML specific things you should know that will
make your stay a happy one.
1) NRBH.
This stands for "No Rulebook Handy". It is very tempting to jump in and answer a
rules question with an answer that you "know" to be correct. Unfortunately, it's easy to be wrong. It's generally preferred that a rules
question be answered with a reference to the
relevant rule (you don't normally need to actually
quote the rule). If you must answer when you are NRBH, please have the courtesy
to flag your message appropriately.
2) Reality arguments.
In discussing rules and other things on the ASLML as
well as in private, one thing almost always come up: reality arguments are arguments like "How come a tank isn't
harder to hit from the side when it's moving than from the front? After all, if you're seeing the
front, it ought to be moving straight towards
you!"
There is a widespread feeling that this is not a good
argument, and people may be upset or dismiss you out of hand. There are reasons for this -- perhaps not
good enough to excuse bad behaviour, but good reasons nonetheless.
So, what are these reasons. One is that "reality" is different to different
people. There are always (and I mean
*always*) counter-arguments that are equally valid. In the above case, what if the tank is actually zig-zagging? Another reason is that we don't *know* what
the rules are trying to simulate in many cases. OBA have a harder time hitting targets that
are concealed than targets that are hidden. This is, of course, totally
unrealistic. However, the reason for
this is that the player has total information while the cardboard person
actually calling in OBA doesn't. To
limit the effects of the player's omniscience, this is made harder.
That takes us to the next good reason: it has to work in the game. While some
reality "fixes" might seem perfectly reasonable on their own, they
may not be in tune with the rest of the rules.
A recent suggestion was to add a more severe modifier to buttoned-up AFVs.
While this might seem perfectly OK on it's own, the
net effect was that it made blind charges over 500m of open ground against
stationary enemy AFVs a good tactic.
Not quite the intended result.
That's sometimes how the game mechanics work out; they're more closely
integrated than you might think, and while they might seem unreal in isolation
it is the final result that matters.
Of course, the final reason is the most convincing
one: it's a game.
While *based on* reality, it *isn't* reality. When playing competitively or when there is
disagreement, whatever the rules say is what goes. While discussing the rules on the list you are talking to
strangers, many of whom do not give any weight whatsoever to reality
arguments.
Don't expect to convince them because of your brilliant reality
arguments -- they have most probably heard it before, and weren't convinced
then.
Reality arguments are fine when playing for fun or
when playing against your friends. They
are outside the bounds of the ASLML as reality is *not* a generally agreed-to
basis for arguments. That means they
are most likely to provoke some irritated or dismissive responses and no
consensus whatsoever.
3) FAQs and Grognards.
The ASLML has been in existence since 1991 and a good
number of people have been on the list for years. It's likely that they've seen FAQ's come up many times over the
years, and it's sometimes easy for them to forget their manners when replying
to an honest question posted by a
newbie.
Everyone is encouraged to relax and cut each other a little slack. Before posting your question to the ASLML,
please make sure to check that (a) you've tried finding the answer in the ASLRB
and (b) you've checked to see that it isn't answered in this FAQ.
4) The Signal To Noise Problem
A good metaphor for the list is 600 people talking at
once in a big auditorium. It's likely
that you don't care about 80% of the conversations going on, and you wish those
noisy 80% would just be quiet.
Unfortunately, the guy next to you has his OWN 80% to worry about, and
chances are that he couldn't care less about the stuff you really want to talk
about. This is just the way it is on a
mailing list; everybody has his own favorite subjects and they usually don't
overlap.
Again, being reasonable and cutting each other some slack is the best
answer. If you really can't stand
someone or some subject, consider using a mail utility with a killfile feature;
you'll be able to filter out the offending noise and your life will get less
stressful.
5) Virus Alerts
The vast majority of virus alerts are hoaxes. Do everyone a favour and don't pass them on
to the ASLML; you're just wasting your time and making yourself look foolish in
the process. Furthermore, even the
*genuine* virus alerts are a waste of time, since anyone at all concerned will
already know how to deal with them.
While you think you may be just being "neighbourly" by passing
on these alerts, all you are really achieving is to annoy a great many people.
Just don't do it, OK?
Back-issues:
It is possible to get back-issues of the ASLML in digest form from the
Pitt archive:
You would send majordomo@list.pitt.edu Majordomo
commands "index" and "get", i.e.:
index advanced-sl-digest
get listname filename
The "index" command tells you what the
archive filenames are and the "get" command gets that particular
archive.
For additional information see the Majordomo
documentation under the Postmaster's home web page at
http://www.pitt.edu/~postman. You may
wish to look at the "Archive Tips" and "Digest Tips" as
well as the "Majordomo Mailing list subscriber document".
A real life example from Tom Huntington:
"I sent mail to:
majordomo@list.pitt.edu
Subject:
index
advanced-sl-digest
Message:
index
advanced-sl-digest
Majordomo mailed me this response, and it came back
*really quickly*:
>>>> index advanced-sl-digest
.:
total 72880
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 23386 Feb 27 1996 v01.n001
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 26970 Feb 27 1996 v01.n002
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 21784 Feb 27 1996 v01.n003
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 64177 Feb 29 1996 v01.n004
...
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 76221 Jul 15 20:55 v01.n499
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 77264 Jul 16 11:49 v01.n500
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom staff 72572 Jul 17 01:50 v01.n501
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 71866 Jul 17 17:07 v01.n502
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 73952 Jul 18 13:08 v01.n503
-rw-rw---- 1 majordom
staff 76057 Jul 19 22:49 v01.n504
From here, I picked out the digest I was interested in
(in this case,
I'd missed #469).
So then I sent mail to:
majordomo@list.pitt.edu
Subject:
get
advanced-sl-digest v01.n469
Message:
get
advanced-sl-digest v01.n469
And it works!"
[4.2]
The ASL Digest
Before the introduction of the ASLML the only
available electronic ASL forum was the ASL Digest. The Digest has a long history and the original issues can still
be found today in the various ASL archives. Recently the ASL Digest was
resurrected by Tim Hundsdorfer, who
maintained it for a ten-issue stint during 1996. The ASL Digest's current editor is Terry
Ford.
The ASL Digest should not be confused with the
ASLML-Digest Mode. The ASL Digest is an
amateur electronic ASL newsletter which is sent out approximately once a
month. The content of the Digest
includes original scenarios, articles, discussions, product reviews, and
editorials. Historical discussions and
game tactics/strategies are also included.
Current and recent issues can be found on Jeff Shields' ASL homepage (http://www.vims.edu/~jeff/asl.htm).
Submissions are strongly encouraged from players of
all abilities and experience. To make a
submission or to subscribe to the Digest send e-mail to Terry Ford at
TFord48157@aol.com.
[4.3]
The Expanded ASL Index
One section of the ASLRB that just cries for an update
is the old index. As more and more
chapters are added to the rulebook, the index falls further behind the
times. The Expanded Index was a project
started back in 1994, attempting to update the index to cover chapters E
through S.
Calling on the on-line community, Tom Huntington has been collecting
missing bits from the index for quite a while now.
After this much time, the index has grown to more than
twice the size of the original.
ASLML-members continue to write in suggestions. Just about every time
Tom gets into the rulebook, he finds something that should be added or reworded. And, bless Avalon Hill's heart, new modules
continue to come out. A new version of
the Expanded Index is released about twice a year, with the latest corrections
and additions shuffled into the works.
Alert readers are always encouraged to suggest changes or additions to
the index. To date, Tom has limited the
index contents to reflect only official ASL products.
Many formatted versions of the index exist out on
different web sites.
Tom only offers the ASCII format of the index, and if
you can't find it on the web he'll happily e-mail you a copy of the latest
version. And, best of all, the index is
free. So long as you distribute it in
its entirety, it can continue to spread across the globe bearing the
good news of where to look up information on such
esoteric topics as "Elite troops".
Any questions about the index, whether you want to add
an entry or just want a copy, can be sent to Tom Huntington at:
thh@cccc.cc.colorado.edu
[4.4]
WWW & FTP
The most comprehensive list of WWW, FTP and other
sites of interest to internet-capable ASL players can be found at Jacques
Cuneo's ASL Crossroads site: http://tigertank.com/aslcrossroads/.
[4.5]
CompuServe
There are two CompuServe forums of interest. The first is Avalon Hill's "home"
forum for their boardgames line (they have a different forum for their computer
games). This is Section 2 of the BCRPUB
forum. Any and all discussion of TAHGC
games are encouraged here.
The second is the PBMGAMES forum, Section 10 (Other
Board Wargames). This is where the Ladder matches are played out in public
postings. It's also where the general gossip, rules discussions etc. take
place. (This is mostly a matter of history, since the PBMGAMES forum has been
around a lot longer than the BCRPUB forum.)
If you want to join the CIS Ladder, post a message to Gary Milks
[73770,3177].
[4.6]
VASL
VASL is a standalone computer application for playing
ASL. It is a virtual representation of the ASL system components, including
geomorphic boards, HASL maps, overlays, and the complete counterset, with Guns
and vehicles for all nationalities. The
interface is mouse-based, with
players clicking and dragging stacks on the
screen. It is designed for head-to-head
play by two humans who already own the boardgame. There is no computer player and the rules are not implemented in
any way. It can be used as an aid for
email play or for live simultaneous play over an internet server.
VASL runs on Windows 95 or 3.1, OS/2, Macintosh
PowerPC, UNIX, and any other system that supports the Java Runtime
Environment. The software is free,
available at http://vasl.thegamers.net.
An online user's guide is also available at this site.
[4.7]
GAPs
A GAP is a Game Assistance Program. The function of a GAP is not to *replace*
the boardgame, but rather to help the player in keeping track of the many
rules, dice rolls, etc. required during the play of a typical scenario. A GAP does *not* provide a computerised
opponent,
nor does it make ownership of the boardgame
unnecessary. There are several
different GAPs available for ASL play:
1) The TAHGC "official" GAP.
Originally released for the Apple ][, now only
available in MS-DOS format. This
software is fairly simplistic, and does not offer very much in the way of
"fancy features". It's
designed purely to assist in normal FtF play.
Within these limitations, the software is functional and reasonably
straight-forward to use. The only
problem I am aware of with it is that in some circumstances it gives you a
result without telling you what the intervening dice rolls leading to that
result were.
2) The Zundel GAP.
MS-DOS.
Shareware. Optimised for PBEM
play. E-mail to contact Steve
Zundel: zundel@us.ibm.com. Latest update includes all nationalities and
is optimized for MS Windows. (Ver 4)
Has all OOB's for the nations now represented.
3) ASLAP.
Windows-based.
Freeware.
What it does:
ASLAP looks after your dicing, works out the results of your dicing,
keeps track of snipers, OBA, interrogation, weather, PF, THH, Battlefield
Integrity etc. It also helps with
SASL. Has a PbeM interface to assist in
PBeM, has a Unit Track to keep track of your
units. Has
complete access to TH, TK, IFT, IIFT, IIFT CTC interactive tables etc.
What else? Has
Quickmenus to all conceivable tables where you can automate things like
Spreading Fire, Bog, Spotting, Barrage, HoB, Leader Creation, Glider Landing
etc etc.
You can download it from: http://www.pitt.edu/~pferraro/aslap.html
4) SALSA
SALSA! is a SASL Assistant written by Robert Delwood (delwood@isomedia.com)
intended to simplify play by reducing excessive chart referencing and speeding
up die rolling routines. It is not intended
to be a computer replacement system for ASL nor automate the logic. It is meant to encourage SASL and to make
play easier, quicker and, hence, more enjoyable. It does not compete with any other ASL product currently
available and is the only product dedicated solely to SASL. It is available for both Macintosh and
Windows.
SALSA! http://www.isomedia.com/homes/delwood/SALSA.html
[4.8]
Other Software
DYO: A program
that will lead a user through the Chapter H DYO rules, plus generate random
scenarios and solitaire missions. This
program was written by Tim Kitchen and is now in Version 3.0. The program includes all data from the
Chapter H DYO charts (yes, every vehicle
and gun!), and makes designing DYO scenarios a joy
instead of rocket science. The program
performs all calculations like equivalent infantry, support weapons, leader
generation, etc., and supports all nationalities released to date. This software is for Windows 3.1 or
Windows 95, and is available for $25 from the
following address:
Tim Kitchen
9228 Fetlock
Dr.
Mechanicsville, VA 23116
U.S.A.
Phone:
(804) 550-3911
e-mail:
kitchent@erols.com
[5.0]
HOW DO I PLAY BY E-MAIL?
Basically, you trust the other guy to roll the dice
for you.
Frequency of Mailings:
Most people play at about the same pace -- about 3 or
4 mailings between the players per week.
Life often intervenes to create delays in a game, but most games take
only 2 or 3 months to complete.
However, sometimes you've got to just be patient with your opponent's
schedule
and let the poor guy take his wife out to the movies
instead of working on his Prep Fire, for crying out loud.
Things you and your opponent should agree on before a
game:
* Free LOS Checks
The rules specifically state that you cannot check LOS
during a game without firing a unit.
You are supposed to check all of the important LOS's BEFORE the
game. Many people ignore this rule and
play with "Free" LOS checks
since you can't possibly check ALL of the important
LOS's before the game and it's really frustrating to
discover that your 8(-2) attack against his 10-3 is blocked by just *that* much. Of course, some people LIKE that kind of
tension, so you should be clear on whether LOS checks are free or not in your
game.
* IFT or IIFT
See [11.12] for some discussion on the merits or
otherwise of the IIFT. Regardless, you
should be clear with your opponent about which table you're using.
* ASL Ladder Points
Both players should agree on whether the game is going
to be played for ASL Ladder points (see [5.1]).
* General style
How frequent the mailings should be or anything else
that seems appropriate. If you're going
to Tahiti for a month, it'd be good to let your opponent know before you start
the game.
How to start a game:
This is a sort of quick-n-dirty explanation of the On
My Honor PBEM rules. Once you've
decided on the scenario and the Things to Get Straight that are listed above,
here's how the first few mailings will go.
* Pre-Game
If you're using non-free LOS checks, do them now. I've also noticed that it really helps to
spend a lot of time before the game just looking at the board and trying to
envision how the game is going to progress.
Good players probably can do this in a short amount of time, but I need
to take HOURS. Just a suggestion. Look at possible attack routes. Look at whether broken units will find safe
havens to rout to. Try to look at the
game from your opponent's perspective.
* First Mailing
Defender sends his initial setup, showing only the
topmost counter in a stack (rule A2.9) since enemy stacks cannot be inspected
prior to play. The first mailing would
look like
4K1 8-1, 3 counters underneath
4M5L1 MMG, 1 counter underneath
(etc.)
Note that "4M5L1" means the Level 1 location
of building hex 4M5.
People write this in different ways -- you might see
it as 4M5(1), 4M5/1 or something.
If one side doesn't have any units that start the game
on the board, all of the other side's units will be able to start Concealed,
with? counters on top of the stack. It
works both ways, too -- the side that enters the board will be able to have all
of his units enter with
Concealed status (A12.12). So the first mailing in this situation will look like
4K1 ?, 2 counters underneath (sometimes written
as ?(2))
4L5 ?, 5 counters underneath (or ?(5) )
(etc.)
* Second Mailing
The Attacker sends his initial setup, following the
rules for mailing 1. He also sends the
location of his Sniper counter – read A14.2 CAREFULLY to see the restrictions
on the Sniper setup; somehow it seems to be a rule that fools people. The Attacker then starts his first
turn. For a big help on just WHAT to do
WHEN, follow the Advanced Sequence of Play that is printed on the Chapter D
divider [or the new Revised Advanced Sequence of Play that comes with the
Chapter N divider in CdG.]
Formats for Turns
People use different formats for recording their
turns. Some people are pretty free-form
and use a lot of words:
"Rally
Phase -- OK, let's try to have Cpt. Wetzelberge rally those
broken squads
in R5. They are all DM, so that's a +4
DRM, and
Wetzelberg's
leadership gives a -2 DRM, so ...."
Others are more terse:
"RPh
1) 9-2 in R5
rallies units there
1a)
dm468 DR = 5,2 result = no rally
1b)
dm248 DR = 2,1 result = rallies ...."
Others use a kind of grid format:
----------------
PBEM EVENT
SHEET
----------------
!Phase !E# !
Action !Rg!FP
!DRM!DR !Result
!------!---!-------------------------!--!---!---!----!------
!RPh1b
!1 !Wind !
! ! !1,6 !No Effect
! !
! !
! ! ! !
! !2
!228 in S8L2 Self-Rally ! ! !
+5!4,2 !Remove DM
! !
! ! !
! ! !
Feel free to use whatever format you like. Note the Wind Change DR in the above PBEM
event sheet. You should always check
for wind change, even in a scenario where the wind doesn't seem to matter. The reason is that most scenarios have units
that can create Infantry Smoke, and the placement of infantry smoke is affected
if the wind suddenly kicks up into a Mild Breeze. Believe me, it can happen and have a big effect on the game -- it
happened to me once! The attacker does
his actions in the rally phase and moves on to Prep Fire and Movement
phases. When he fires and gets a result
on the IFT, he applies it to the defenders if he knows what they are:
PFPh
1) 8-1 and
467 with MMG in K4 fire at 10-3 and 468 in L6
1a) Firepower
is 9, resolve on the 8 column. DRM is -1
(leadership)
+2
(wooden
building) = +1 DR = 5,3 result = PTC
1b) PTC vs
10-3 DR = 3,3 result = passed
1c) PTC vs
468 DR = 1,6 result = passed
If he's firing at Concealed units that he doesn't know
the identities of, he'd just say something like
1b) You'll have to resolve the PTC against the
concealed units.
While it may seem strange to let your opponent do the
dice rolling for YOUR units, it really helps speed the game along. If he's going to cheat, he's going to get
you no matter who rolls those morale checks, so it's not worth worrying
about. Weird events happen in ASL all
the time, and the bad luck that hurts you now will hopefully turn into good
luck later on (although not necessarily in the same game ...). If you really suspect that your opponent is
cheating, you'd have to come up with some pretty convincing evidence to prove
it, and even then you might be wrong.
Try to cool off and give the guy the benefit of the doubt -- maybe the
dice will get hot in YOUR favor next turn.
Ultimately, the best thing to do with an opponent who is just
too darn lucky in your opinion is to not play the guy
any more. Nuff said.
The attacker then moves on to the Movement phase. He will send something in the same mailing
that looks like this:
MPh
1) 8-1, 467 in L4 move
1a) Declare
Double Time -- place CX counter
1b) L5
(1 MF)
1c) L6 (3 MF)
1d) L7 (5 MF)
1e) L8 (6 MF)
2) 9-2, 467, 467 with HMG in K2 move
2a) K3
(Bypassing K3-K2 hexside, 1 MF)
2b) K4
(3 MF)
2c) K5 (4 MF)
2d)
Enter the Foxhole in K5 (5 MF)
Note the cumulative MF expended is listed in
parentheses. Some people prefer to
write the per-hex movement cost instead of a cumulative total.
Third (and other) Mailing(s)
When the Defender gets the attacker's mailing that
contains the attacker's initial setup, he places his own Sniper counter onboard
before he goes on to read the Attacker's Turn 1 Rally Phase. He'll notify the attacker of his sniper
placement in his next mailing. The defender
then reads the mailing up to the MPh. He then reads the above MPh one line at a
time and will see if he wants to First Fire at the moving units. He may then send the attacker something like
First Fire
1) When the
8-1 and 467 enter L7 , the units in J3 open up
1a) Firepower
is 6 (HMG) + 2 (LMG) + 12 (three 447's) = 18
DRM = -3
(leadership) -2 (FFNAM/FFMO) = -5
Obviously, that 8-1 and the 467 are in deep
trouble. Since their imminent demise
might change the attacker's plans for his second move above, the Defender
should probably stop reading the attacker's mailing and send him a message
telling him about the devastating first fire that just happened and ask him if
he should continue reading the movement orders. It slows the game down a little, but not as much as it would if
you had to send one mailing for each unit that moved.
Sometimes the attacker NEEDS to do a little probing
before he decides what to do with the rest of his units in the MPh. He would
then send a Search Mailing where just one or a few units move and try to draw
fire or discover where the enemy is lurking.
The Defender will respond to
each search mailing saying whether or not he first
fired at the probing units. This slows
the game down some, but it doesn't happen very often and is a very necessary
part of the game.
Sometimes the attacker will try to save time by
prefacing his movement orders with something like "Here's my moves --
please stop reading and mail me if you fire and adversely affect one of my
units." The attacker is saying
that he doesn't want to be informed about the defender's first fire shots that
have no effect. Or else the attacker may
not care what happens in first fire and just say "Do these moves no matter
what happens." Basically, the idea
is to save time by communicating to the defender what you want to be informed
about when you move. Most people
appreciate it when the defender stops reading the movement orders and lets them
know about the results of each attack.
This kind of back-and-forth exchange continues until the attacker has
moved all of his units. The Defender
then does a mailing for his DFPh where he follows the same kind of firing
guidelines as for the attacker's PFPh.
The Attacker then sends a mailing containing his AFPh
and RPh, advance phase, and CCPh actions.
(Although he may want to see the results of the Defender's RtPh actions
before planning his APh actions.) He
can even usually specify the actions his side will take during the
Defender's upcoming Rally Phase. The Defender then responds with his own CCPh
actions and in the same mailing moves on to the Rally, Prep Fire, and Movement
Phases of his first turn.
It probably looks like a mess, but it's really not
that hard at all. Email is so fast that it doesn't slow the game down to send
extra mailings to your opponent if you have a question or want to go slowly at
a certain point. The best way to PBEM
is to try to recreate the feel of a FTF game -- you should try to allow both
players to make the same decisions that they would be able to make if they were
in the same room. Once you get the hang
of it, you'll be moving the game along as far as possible with each mailing.
Concealment File Format
When you do your initial setup and have concealed
units, it can save time if you send your opponent a Concealment file for each
concealed stack. That way, if he fires
on a concealed stack and gets a result, he doesn't have to mail you and ask for
the contents of that stack; he can just open the file and see for himself. Again, you're trusting the guy to not open
the file without having a reason. These
files are also useful for determining if there's a real unit under a ? stack for various purposes. In that case, all the opponent needs is to
verify that the stack isn't a Dummy stack. With these two purposes in mind, a
concealment file for a stack consisting of a ? counter (with ID of
"x") with 3 counters underneath might look like this:
--------------------------
(top of file)
Contents of
?(x)
(skip 30
lines)
Real unit =
4-6-7
(skip 30
lines)
Contents =
8-1, MMG, 4-6-7
--------------------------
You skip 30 lines twice because you don't want your
opponent to accidentally open the file and see what's in the stack.
During a game, units may gain concealment, but it's
kind of pointless to send new concealment files for these units – your opponent
should be able to remember what the unit under the ? counter is. An exception to this is when several
concealed units come together to form a stack and then separate ("the old
switcheroo".) In that case, you're
not sure st who is where and it might be good to have concealment files for
those stacks. [Another way to do a
concealment
file is to 'grep' on the hex you need to know the
contents of. Doesn't work with paper
though :-)]
Showing the Game Status
It's possible for either player to screw up and not
have a completely correct map set up at home.
In order to keep both players' maps "synchronized", it's good
to periodically send a description of what your map looks like. Some people do this at the end of each
player or
game turn; others wait until they feel the need to be
sure they've got it all straight. All
it takes is a listing of what you see on your map:
German unit
dispositions:
K7 Sniper
L4 8-1, 467, MMG, 467, broken 247
Z4L1 ?, 4 counters underneath
W5 Foxhole, 9-2, HMG, 467
Russian unit
dispositions
W3 Sniper
M4 10-0, broken 447, broken 628, broken 628
(all DM)
T8 447 w/MMG
Note that "447 w/MMG" is another way of
saying that the 447 possesses the MMG.
Note too the "(all DM)" for hex M4 can be easier than specifying
a DM counter on top of each of the broken units. Also, some people will write "b447" or
"dm447" for a broken or DM 447, and "cx447" for a CX 447,
or "bz447" for a Berzerk 447, or "f447" for a Fanatic 447,
etc. To each his own, but it's in your
interest to be clear when you convey this information to your opponent.
By the way, in PBEM it's customary for Snipers to have
the "1" side of
the counter face the ID number of the hex.
Unit ID's -- Some people list units as 4-4-7, others
use 447. No big
deal. Others
like to specify WHICH 447, as in 447(a), LMG(b), 9-2
(Wetzelberger), etc.
The game plays just as well with either system.
It's just a matter of taste.
It has been noted that VASL can be used effectively
for PBEM play.
See Section [4.8] for more information on VASL.
[5.1]
Ladders
The Internet ASL Ladder is open to basically any
participant in the ASL Mailing list.
The Internet ASL Ladder is something like an on-going
tournament. Each member of the ladder starts with 1000 points. Every time you play a game against another
ladder member for "ladder points", the winner is awarded a number of
points based on the ranking of his opponent.
There's a formula whereby all this is figured, but it boils down to
this: you get more points for beating a
higher ranking member of the ladder than yourself, and fewer for beating
someone below you on the food chain. In
addition, every participant in a ladder game gets two points as an incentive to
participate. The game can be FTF (face-to-face),
PBEM, PBM, or play-by-Morse-Code if you like.
For more details, see the ASLML Ladder website at
http://www.msen.com/~sdennis/asl/ladder.html.
Other online services run their own Ladder; they all
tend to operate in the same way. Check
out each individual service for more information.
[6.0]
I DOWNLOADED THESE STRANGE FILES; WHAT DO I DO WITH THEM?
[6.1]
Compressed files: ZIP, ARC, Z, TAR, etc.
Utilities to uncompressed these compressed formats are
available at most, if not all, major freeware and shareware sites on the
internet. Hunt around, they're easy to find.
DOS/WINDOWS:
The most common software for the DOS/Windows platform is PKUnzip. There are also many Windows programs (e.g.,
WinZIP) to do the same thing. Many of
these programs will also work in multiple formats. For Z and TAR programs, there are DOS versions of the UNIX utilities
that will uncompress them. Some of the
newer versions of Windows utilities (e.g., WinZIP) will also work with .Z and
other formats.
Patrik Manlig has a collection of various DOS
archivers at his
website: http://www.update.uu.se/~pman/aslarchive.html.
MACINTOSH: For
the Mac, StuffIt Expander can deal with .z, .tar, .arc, and .zip archives, and
it can be downloaded from the Web (free) at
http://www.aladdinsys.com/expander/index.html.
OS/2: Similar
situation to DOS/Windows. (Of course,
you can always use the DOS versions if you can't find a native OS/2 program to
do the job.) The GNU freeware ZIP and
UNZIP programs will handle ZIP files just fine, and there are numerous PM
applications similar to the Windows
programs.
Again, most of the UNIX utilities are available in native OS/2 format.
UNIX: There
are UNIX versions of UNZIP, and of course .Z and .TAR files are native to UNIX
anyway.
[6.2]
.ps
PS files are "PostScript" files. PostScript is a printer control
language; if you send a file with PS information to a
PS-compatible
printer, you will get a nice printout. (For DOS, just type "COPY
FILE.PS LPT1" for example.)
Unfortunately, a lot of people don't have PS printers
(they tend to be
much more expensive than "normal" printers),
so the PS file has to be
converted before it can be used. There are many converters around,
the most common is GhostScript. GhostScript is free for non-commercial
use and is available for all major software platforms. With GhostScript
you can display the document on your PC and print it
to whatever printer
you have available.
Check it out!
Information on Ghostscript can be found on-line at:
http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/index.html
[6.3]
.pdf
PDF stands for Portable Document Format and was
developed by, and proprietary to, Adobe.
(They're also commonly referred to as "Acrobat" files.) Reading a PDF file is easy for most major platforms;
Adobe make free readers available for DOS, Windows, Macintosh, OS/2 and various
versions of UNIX. Check out http://www.adobe.com for more information.
A common PDF problem is trying to read a newer file
with an older version of the Reader.
Make sure you have the current version (v4.0 at the time of writing) -
remember, it's always free for the download.
[7.0]
WHAT AND WHERE ARE THE ASL TOURNAMENTS?
Upcoming tournaments in all parts of the world are
almost always advertised on the ASLML, but you can also check the following
sites:
[7.1]
North America
Check out the following web page for information on
the many tournaments in this part of the world: http://www.systems.caltech.edu/EE/Groups/communications/erimli/tourney.htm.
You can also check the Tournaments page at MMP's
website (http://www.advancedsquadleader.com/).
[7.2] Europe
There is a list of European tournaments kept at www.advancedsquadleader.com. You might also check the UK-oriented
"View From The Trenches" website at http:/freespace.virgin.net/pete.phillipps,
and for gaming conventions in general (i.e., not just
ASL) see
[7.3] Australia
Australia currently has four major ASL tournaments:
CanCon:
Canberra's national gaming convention is held every Australia Day long
weekend (i.e., the weekend closest to 26 January). The ASL tournament at CanCon is probably Australia's largest
regular ASL event, drawing players from all over the country.
ANZACON:
Melbourne's Army Group South holds a tournament over the ANZAC Day
weekend. ANZAC Day is 25 April.
SAGA: The SAGA
gaming convention in Sydney has a regular ASL event. It's held in June (Queen's
Birthday weekend) every year.
Octobear:
Sydney's Paddington Bears tournament.
Held in early October (funnily enough) every year at the Paddington RSL
Club in Sydney.
For more information and contact details for these
events, check out the Paddington Bears WWW page:
http://www.ozemail.com.au/~mmjm/index.html.
[8.0]
WHAT WAS THE ASL RECORD, AND WHAT IS ROAR?
The Record was a win-loss database of nearly every ASL
scenario ever published. It was a
statistical tool to give ASL players the means to determine which scenarios are
more likely to be balanced matches, and which are more likely to be unbalanced
dogs.
It is important to note that as with any other
statistical tool, if the numbers are not large enough than the statistics have
no meaning. If only five or six
win-loss results are recorded for a particular scenario, that number is too
small to be useful. So a record of 5-0 for
a particular side in a particular scenario really doesn't tell you anything. Treat any information on scenarios with less
than, say, thirty recorded results as being *highly questionable*.
In addition to this problem, note that the Record does
not record who was the more experienced player; it does not track rotten dice
results or one player simply having an off-day; it does not track whether any scenario
balancing was in effect. In short, each
scenario has a great
number of variables attached to it.
In 1997 the Record seemed to die due to the
disappearance of the maintainer, so a new service was created to replace it:
ROAR. ROAR is an online database meant
to provide the same functions as the Record provided, and more besides. Since it is online, new records are added
"on the fly" and thus up-to-date results can
be checked at any time.
Various reports (most balanced, most recently played,
etc.) are available for inspection. All
players are encouraged to submit their game results to ROAR; the larger the
database, the more useful it is.
ROAR is maintained by JR VanMechelen
(jrv@netreach.net) and can be found on the WWW at http://www.netreach.net/~jrv.
[8.1] I know the scenario name, but not where to
find it?
ROAR can be used to find the answer to the question
"what module/annual/magazine was scenario such-and-such published
in?" This information is available
for most if not all of the scenarios indexed in ROAR.
Scenarios from the "General" can be
particularly difficult to track down.
Here is a complete list:
(* denotes scenario reprinted in "ASL Classic")
Conversions of original SL scenarios (see also
"Tournament scenarios")
* A The Guards Counterattack 22:6
* B The Tractor Works 22:6
* C The Streets of Stalingrad 22:6
* D The Hedgehog of Piepsk 23:2
* E Hill 621 23:2
* F The Paw of the Tiger 23:5
* G Hube's Pocket 23:5
* H Escape from Velikiye Luki 24:1
* I Buckholz Station 24:4
* J The Bitche Salient 24:4
K The Cannes
Strongpoint 25:2
L Hitdorf on
the Rhine 25:2
M First Crisis
at AG North 25:3
N Soliders of
Destruction 25:6
O The St. Goar
Assault 26:1
P The Road to
Wiltz 26:1
Q Land
Leviathans 26:2
R Burzevo 28:3
S The
Whirlwind 28:4
T
Pavlov's House 29:6
U Chance d'Une
Affaire 30:5
V
Auld Lang Syne 31:3
W The Defense
of Luga 32.3
"New" Scenarios (some are actually
"official" versions of scenarios originally published in an
"amateur" format)
G1
Timoshenko's Attack 23:3
G2 Last Act in
Lorraine 23:6
G3 The
Forgotten Front 23:6
G4 First
Action 24:3
G5 Six Came
Back 24:3
G6 Rocket's
Red Glare 24:6
G7 Bring Up
the Guns 25:3
G8 Recon in
Force 25:5
G9 Sunday of
the Dead 25:6
G10 Grab at
Gribovo 26:2
G11 Pegasus
Bridge 26:5
G12 Avalanche!
27:1
G13 A View
From the Top 27:5
G14
Tiger, Tiger 28:3
G15
Bone of Contention 28:4
G16 Alligator
Creek 28:5
G17
Hakkaa Paalle 29:2
G18
Goya 29:2
G19 A Tough
Nut to Crack 29:3
G20 Camp
Nibeiwa 29:3
G21 Cat's Kill
29:4
G22 A Day by
the Shore 29:4
G23 Habbaniya
Heights 29:5
G24 Mountain
Comes to Mohammed 29:5
G25 The
T-Patchers 30:1
G26 Parker's
Crossroads 30:1
G27 Vaagso
Venture 30:2
G28 Ramsey's
Charge 30:3
G29
Shoot-N-Scoot 30:4
G30 Morgan's
Stand 30:4
G31 Point of
the Sword 30:6
G32 A Helping
Hand 30:6
G33 The
Awakening of Spring 31:1
G34 The
Liberators 31:1
G35 Going to
Church 31:2
G36 Hill of
Death 31:2
G37 Forth
Bridge 31:3
G38 Castello Fatato 31:4
G39 A Desperate Affair 31:4
G40 Will to
Fight...Eradicated 31:5
G41 Jabo! 31:5
G42 The
Youth's First Blood 31:6
G43 Kangaroo
Hop 31:6
G44 Abandon
Ship! 32:2
G45 Halha
River Bridge 32:2
G46 Triumph
Atop Taraldsvikfjell 32.3
DASL A To the
Last Man 24:1
DASL B The
Kiwis Attack 29:6
DASL C Smoke
the Kents 30:5
HASL A Ghosts
in the Rubble 27:1
3000 Assault
on Roundtop 22:5
Tournament
Scenarios (includes some SL reprints)
* T1 Gavin Take 24:2
* T2 The Puma Prowls 24:2
* T3 Ranger Stronghold 24:2
* T4 Shklov's Labors Lost 24:2
* T5 The Pouppeville Exit 27:2
* T6 The Dead of Winter 27:2
T7 Hill 253.5
27:3
T8 Aachen's
Pall 27:3
T9 The
Niscemi-Biscari Highway 28:1
T10 Devil's
Hill 28:1
T11 The
Attempt to Relieve Peiper 28:2
T12 Hunters
from the Sky 28:2
T13 Commando
Raid at Dieppe 28:6
T14 Gambit
28:6
T15 The
Akrotiri Peninsula 29:1
T16 Strayer's
Strays 29:1
[9.0]
WHAT IS AREA?
AREA is an International "Ratings System"
for players, originally established by TAHGC, now maintained independently.
For more details, see
http://elwood.pionet.net/~shangri/russ/Areapg.htm.
[10.0]
ARE ALL THE Q&A COLLECTED IN ONE PLACE?
Yes, they are in several formats.
The most common and easily accessible collection is
the comprehensive one printed in the '96 ASL Annual. This list is separated into "Clarifications" and
"Errata". It includes all the
relevant Q&A's that have been printed in the General and previous editions
of the Annual. It is very convenient to
keep a photocopy of the Q&A list in your ASLRB for use during play. Some people keep their own copy in electronic
format and split them into different pages when they print it out for each
Chapter of the ASLRB.
The other most common collection is the
"unofficial" list. This combines
all of the information from the Annual list, plus includes many Q&A that
have not (yet) been published in an official TAHGC publication. These are the Q's that have been answered by
TAHGC in
private correspondence, and have been posted to the
ASLML for the information of all players.
These include the "MacSez", wherein someone asked Bob
Macnamara (one of ASL's prime developers) a question and received his
off-the-cuff opinion.
"MacSez's" are respected by
most and usually settle a question, but they're
definitely unofficial answers.
A note on "official" vs.
"unofficial" Q&A. It is generally regarded that
"official" Q&A are to be considered extensions of the ASLRB itself,
that is, what they say goes. A lot of
people don't always agree with the answers that are given, and disregard them
in their home games, but in tournaments, you should expect that all official
Q&A are "in play".
"Unofficial" Q&A are a different
beast. TAHGC has been known to answer
some Q's in private and then provide a different answer in the "official"
version. Hence, all
"unofficial" Q&A (even a "MacSez") must be treated with
caution. It would not be unreasonable
to expect that your opponent may disregard an "unofficial" Q&A in
tournament play. Nevertheless, many of
the "unofficial" Q&A are quite important and make a lot of sense
(and end up becoming "official" eventually anyway). Simple rule when dealing with
"unofficial" Q&A: Caveat
Emptor.
Patrik Manlig also has a pretty large collection of
errata for many things ASL (most of them for the "amateur" products)
on his WWW pages:
http://www.update.uu.se/~pman/errata.html.
Another source for an "unofficial"
compilation is Scott Romanowski (smr@world.std.com). It includes all the official Q&A, plus all the MMP compilations
posted to the ASLML, plus many other third-party publishers. It's available on the BAASL server(walden.ne.mediaone.net/baasl)
and other places, including e-mail from Scott.
It's in MS Word format.
[10.1]
Can I send Q's to MMP via e-mail?
Yes you can!
MMP have set up a mailing address to send Q's to. These Q's are not answered individually,
rather, they are answered in a collection of Q&A's that are posted to the
ASLML on a regular basis. While still "unofficial" (see above) until
published, they're the next
best thing.
As a general rule, however, to prevent the Q&A
address from being flooded with pointless questions, it is a strong
recommendation that all Q's be sent to the ASLML first for general
discussion. You may find that your Q has
a very simple and unambiguous answer.
Only send those Q on the e-mail address when there is no
"obvious" answer available,
The e-mail address is asl_qa@multimanpub.com. Questions should be formatted to elicit a
YES/NO response. The official MMP web-page
(http://www.advancedsquadleader.com/)
has a browser-based form to make submitting Q&A easier.
[11.0]
WHAT ARE THE COMMON ASL QUESTIONS?
[11.1]
RULES PHILOSOPHY
"Why are the rules the way they are?" This section attempts to demystify some of
the more-commonly-queried rules decisions.
[11.11] Why do the US Marines have ML 8?
The short "official" answer is, apparently,
they have to be that tough to survive fighting the Japanese, especially when
making Beach Assaults. During playtest,
ML7 Marines often broke and died for failure to rout from the beach, which did
not seem correct to the designers.
Many people feel that this is unfair to the regular US
infantry (whose "Elite" troops only have a ML of 7). Too bad; deal with it. It's a game thing (and a source of a great
(and greatly humorous) rivalry between the Marines and the Paratroopers/Rangers
on the ASLML).
[11.12] IFT vs. IIFT
The IIFT (Incremental Infantry Fire Table) is a
variant introduced in the '89 Annual (reprinted in ASL Classic, see [2.34]),
that allows for every extra FP factor (or in some cases, 1/2 FP factor) to get
you a new column; i.e., so that a 5 FP attack is slightly better than a 4 FP
attack.
Some people feel that this makes the game more
"realistic" since you don't have to be fussy about how you organise
your FGs, and throwing in that extra MG in the attack will always be
useful. Other people feel that the
extra FP factors make it more likely that troops will
have concealment stripped (since the most common
"extra" result when using the IIFT is a PTC).
It's possible to argue mathematically that the effect
on concealment loss is minimal,
affecting less than 5% of games. Try it
for yourself; play a game and make a note of how many times the use of the IIFT
altered a game result; most people find that such altered results
are rare. In
reality, this is all irrelevant; IFT vs. IIFT is a stylistic thing, you either
like it or you don't.
Regardless, the IIFT is an *official* variant from
TAHGC. It's available for anyone who wants
to use it. If you don't want to use it in
your game, then all you have to do is say "no thanks", just like when
using any other official game variant (e.g., Battlefield
Integrity).
It's not worth abusing anyone over.
Incidentally, Ole Boe has made a variation of the IIFT
that uses "CTC" results (Conditional Task Checks). A CTC is a PTC *only if* the target is not
concealed; hence, the argument that the IIFT "strips concealment" is
nullified. This version is *not*
"official", but
again, it's available if you want to use it.
[11.13] Where did the squad FP values come from?
Guesswork, mostly.
High FP factors combined with short range tends to indicate a dependance
on fully automatic weapons (SMGs, etc.).
The US squads are assumed to have at least one inherent BAR, hence their
extra FP at long range. What it all
boils down to though is that the
original factors were designed for the basic SL game,
and John Hill just fudged the numbers until they "felt right". Everything else in ASL is designed around
those numbers. Don't lose any sleep
over it.
[11.14] How can I tell if a scenario is balanced?
Experience, mostly.
The more you know about the game the better idea you will have about the
capabilities of the forces involved.
What makes a "balanced" game, anyway? Ideally if two players of equal skill level
play a scenario, then they should have an equal chance with winning from either
side. In practice this won't happen all
that often. Even two equal players can
have "off" days, and the vagaries of the dice will guarantee that no
scenario will play exactly the same way twice.
Nevertheless, there are some scenarios (e.g.,
"The Agony Of Doom") that one side simply cannot lose, no matter what
happens. You will get to know these
scenarios as you become a more prolific (and proficient) ASL player. There are plenty of other scenarios that always
provide a good match; the "unbalanced dogs" sink to the bottom fairly
quickly. Don't sweat it; just
concentrate on using your skills to the utmost (and having a good time while
doing so). Ultimately, would you rather
play a fun unbalanced scenario or an un-fun balanced
one?
Finally, note that ROAR (see [8.0]) is a tool that can
be of some use (when used carefully!) in determining Scenario balance.
[11.15] Why isn't there an electronic ASLRB?
A lot of people think it would be great to have the
ASLRB available on CD-ROM. MMP agree;
they are working on such a product, to be published
in 2000 or 2001.
[11.16] What is the Australian Balance System?
The ABS is an alternate method of providing balance
(and a side-bidding system) for a scenario.
The standard ASLRB method of scenario balance involves a single option
for each side in a scenario. (This method
is described in A26.5.) The ABS (so
named because it was invented by an Australian ASL player, Dave Longworth, and
tested at Australian tournaments) uses a three-tiered system of balance for
each side. The higher the level of
balance for a side, the more that side gives up. Official scenarios published by TAHGC do not use the ABS, but you
will often see "amateur" scenarios make use of it. It is especially popular at tournaments, and
sometimes you will see official scenarios have ABS "retrofitted" to
them for more variety.
[11.17] Why can't I declare H-T-H Melee in non-Deluxe scenarios?
H-T-H CC (J2.31) is a Deluxe ASL rule that permits a
deadlier form of CC. It may at first
seem peculiar that this rule is only allowed when playing on the extra-large
Deluxe hexes, but the reason is surprisingly prosaic: no counters to designate
H-T-H Melee (as opposed to "normal" Melee) were available until RB
was released. It was a permitted option
for DASL because the hexes are large enough to separate the units involved in
Melee (thus presumably making it easier to designate which units are in H-T-H
Melee).
As noted above, RB added H-T-H Melee counters to the
system, and it is a standard option in that module; subsequently, it was an
option also granted to Japanese units (G1.64) (and appropriate markers were made
available in CoB). These are specific
exemptions, however, and
the normal case remain that H-T-H Melee is an option
available only for DASL scenarios.
(Note: The updated Chapter A rules pages supplied in
DB give Gurkha troops the same H-T-H options as Japanese.)
[11.2]
SPECIFIC ASL RULES
While the ASLRB generally hangs together surprisingly
well, certainrules sections have become (in)famous for defying logic or common understanding. This part of the FAQ attempts to clarify
some of these more obscure rules.
[11.201] How does a Human Wave work?
Ever since the ASLRB was first published, the rules on
Human Waves were something of a mystery to many players; they depended on
important concepts that were only vaguely described, and seemed to leave many holes
open. Fortunately, this situation has
now been resolved with the
publication of DB: the updated Chapter A pages
supplied in that module provide completely rewritten Human Wave (A25.23) rules
that, while a little mechanical in operation, are nevertheless unambiguous.
So what's with the red and white HW counters? It isn't explicitly stated in the ASLRB what
the different colours signify. The red
HW counters are used while the HW is moving; when the MPh is over, the red
counters should be replaced by the white ones, to show that although they're no
longer in a Wave, they still get the ML benefit (and the Lax penalty). Since these are standard colour-coded (red
printing on white background) these are removed at the end of the CCPh, like Pin,
TI, etc.
The Japanese Banzai counters work in the same way; the
red counters are used while the banzai unit(s) are moving, and then flipped to
their white side when their MPh is over, and finally removed at the end of the
turn.
[11.202] How does Bocage work?
Bocage is weird terrain in many ways. Most of it is straight-forward (TEM,
movement restrictions, etc.) but where many people become lost is in the
interaction of Bocage and LOS. Closely
tied in with this is the application of the Wall Advantage rules to Bocage.
When a unit is in non-open Ground behind a Bocage
hexside, it can theoretically Prep Fire at opposing units through the Bocage
and then become immune to Defensive Fire by claiming the TEM of the non-Open Ground
terrain in its hex and dropping out of enemy LOS. This seems patently unfair and against the spirit of several
rules (reciprocal LOS, "no free lunch", etc.) to some, but others
have noted that Bocage was tremendously good defensive terrain and the
designers may indeed have intended the rule to play as it seems to read. Indeed, recent Q&A ('97 Annual) confirms
this.
The important thing to note is *when* a unit can claim
WA. The simplest way to interpret the
rule is that you always have WA vs. An adjacent hedge/wall/bocage hexside
unless there is something to prevent this.
Note that you can claim WA even when there are no adjacent enemy
units forcing you to make the claim. The usual reasons for not having WA are:
you're not Good Order; you're claiming a different in-hex TEM instead; or the
adjacent enemy units claimed WA first.
With Bocage, if you don't have WA, you don't have LOS to a non-adjacent
enemy unit
through the Bocage.
Hence, if you lose WA, you can suddenly drop out of LOS. Note, however, that once WA is lost, it may
not be easy to claim it again.
Especially note that you can't exactly claim/drop WA "at
will"; once you voluntarily drop it, it stays dropped for the rest
of the player turn.
You must also decide whether a unit will keep or drop WA *before* any
attacks are declared against that unit.
Finally, note that Bocage makes it easy to keep and
gain Concealment; a unit can move, rally, recover weapons, etc. Behind Bocage
and not lose concealment, and a unit behind Bocage can almost always gain
Concealment automatically.
Hence, ASL combat involving Bocage should become a
"cat and mouse" affair, with units on both sides revealing themselves
and then concealing themselves with frightening speed, and units never being quite
sure what lies in wait a couple of hexes away.
[11.203] CX and leader movement bonus
See the 96 Annual.
It has an excellent article on this very subject.
[11.204]
Moving vs. Motion etc.
Again, see the 96 Annual.
[11.205] Assault move and laying SMOKE
Yes, you can roll for SMOKE grenades as part of
Assault Movement. A unit is Assault
Moving if (a) it declares that it is doing so before expending any MF and (b)
it moves no more than one location while expending less than it's normal full
allocation of MF. Within those restrictions,
you can do anything and still be Assault Moving – SMOKE grenades, DC placement,
SW recovery, etc. Note that (of course)
you can't declare CX and Assault Movement at the same time.
[11.206] Area Target Type vs. Area Fire
These are easy terms to confuse, but they are separate
concepts and actually refer to different things.
Area Target Type is an Ordnance TH procedure. MTRs always fire with ATT, and any weapon
attempting to lay SMOKE must also use the ATT. Otherwise, use of ATT (as
opposed to Vehicle Target Type or Infantry Target Type) is optional. Use of ATT consumes all of a unit's available
ROF [EXC: MTR fire], and, if a hit is secured, the normal FP of the attack is
halved. The advantages of ATT are that
it's often easier to obtain a hit, at the penalty of reduced attack
effectiveness. ATT is also the only way to gain acquisition against a concealed
target.
Area Fire refers to any circumstance that causes your
normal FP to be halved, e.g., firing at a concealed unit, firing in the AFPh,
firing at long range are all examples of Area Fire. Ordnance is affected by Area Fire differently; it must add +2 to
the TH DR, but if it hits, it
attacks at normal strength *for the chosen Target
Type*. Note that this means that *if*
you are using the Area Target Type vs. a concealed target, you will have a +2
TH DRM *and* attack at half strength.
[11.207] Do mortars get ROF with SMOKE?
Yes they do.
MTRs are the only weapon type that can maintain ROF when using the Area
Target Type. Since the ATT is always
used when firing SMOKE, MTRs may fire SMOKE and keep ROF.
As a point of trivia, this was not the original
intention behind the SMOKE rules.
However, so many people were playing it this way that TAHGC felt that it
would be counter-productive to issue errata to stop the tactic. Hence, MTRs are valuable SMOKE-producers in
the game.
[11.208] Infantry Target Type CHs
Scoring an Infantry Target CH is great fun. You get to double your FP and reverse the
protective TEM, making it very easy to cause damage to your opponent's
forces. However, it is easy to play
this rule incorrectly. When firing at
the Infantry Target Type, you score a
CH if your modified DR < half of your modified TH
#.
Note the distinction between "modified DR"
and "modified TH #". Usually
the only thing that will modify the TH # is range, as modified for short or
long gun barrels, etc. On the other
hand, there are many DRMs that can apply -- TEM being the most common. You must remember to
add the DRMs to the DR, *not* to the TH #.
E.G.: A gun
Prep Fires at an infantry target in a wooden building at a range of three
hexes. No modifiers apply at that range
to change the TH #, so it remains at "8". Thus, a CH will occur if the modified DR is < 4. What modifiers apply to the DR? In this example, only the
TEM for the building, +2. Hence it is not possible to score a CH, since the lowest possible
DR is "4". [EXC: if you roll an original "2", you
may still score a CH if a subsequent dr is < half the modified TH
number. Thus, in this example, an
original DR of "2" follwed by a
subsequent dr of "3" or less will be a CH.]
Now let us assume that the gun in the above example
keeps ROF. The second shot will now
qualify for a -1 acquisition DRM, hence the total DRM is now +1, making a CH
automatic on a DR of "2".
If the gun keeps ROF again, it now has a -2
acquisition DRM.
Therefore the total DRM are 0 and a CH will occur on a
DR of <= "3".
Note that none of the modifiers in these examples
altered the basic TH # in any way -- they only applied to the DR. A lot of people make the mistake of
modifying the TH # according to the DRM -- e.g., if the total DRM were +2, they
would subtract that from the TH # and think
they get a CH if they roll < "3" (if the
basic TH # were 8). In fact, as the
first example above shows, even rolling a "2" is only a *possible* CH
when the total DRM is +2.
Finally, remember that a CH will usually only affect a
single target in the location (determined by Random Selection). Other targets in the location are only
affected by a normal hit. Also, the
chance to Rubble or Burn a location is not affected by scoring a CH.
[11.209] Building vs. Location vs. Hex Control
The important thing to remember here is that
*different* requirements apply to the different forms of Control. You may succeed in controlling a *building*
but that does *not* automatically give you control of the *Locations* in that
building. The reverse is usually also
true. E.G., suppose an enemy squad is
in a building that you want to control.
You fire at it and break it, and then move in with a squad of your
own. You do not yet control the
*building*, because the presence of the enemy unit -- even if broken -- is
sufficient to deny
you control.
However, you do now control the *hex* that YOUR squad moved into (and
also the *location* -- remember that a single building hex may have several
locations).
Always read the scenario VC carefully. If you have to control a *building*, then
you must completely clear the enemy units out of that building, and have one of
your armed Good Order MMCs enter the building to win. If on the other hand you need to control only a
particular *hex* of a building, then it doesn't matter
how many other units may be elsewhere in that building -- if your units are the
only ones in that hex, that's good enough.
Note that the updated Chapter A pages supplied in DB
have substantially rewritten (for clarity) rules on controlling Buildings, Hexes
and Locations.
[11.210] Why do the concealment markers have a morale level printed
on them?
The usual application of the Dummy ML level of 7 is
when an "unbroken" vehicle (see A12.1) enters a hex containing a a
concealed unit (without using VBM). You
must pass a PAATC to remain concealed.
If the stack being attacked is a dummy stack, then it uses the Dummy ML
of
7 to see if they pass the PAATC. The Dummy ML is also used when dummy stacks
undergo a Bombardment MC.
[11.211] Do I have to declare it when I roll my opponent's SAN?
A short answer: yes, according to unofficial Q&A
from MMP.
More generally, this is a tricky one. With most rules in the ASLRB, if you forget
to apply them, too bad, what's done is done.
You don't have to point out that your opponent has kept ROF with his MG,
for example; if he doesn't notice it, that's his fault for not being observant
enough. SAN can be interpreted slightly
differently, however. The relevant rule
does
not say that SAN is an *optional* attack; the
implication is that if the SAN is rolled, a SAN attack *must* take place, and
any player who notices this should point it out.
Not everyone follows this interpretation, though. In practice, it becomes a personal style of
play. It's a "gentlemanly"
thing to do; some opponents may admire you for it, others may think you're a schmuck. Play it in whatever way makes you
comfortable; discuss it with your opponent before the game starts if you think
it might become a source of contention.
More generally, this question could be categorised as
"what make good ASL ethics?"
Not all players have the same feelings on these topics, and some players
even play differently depending on whether they're playing in a friendly game
or are trying to win a tournament. If
your opponent's style of play makes you uncomfortable, talk to him about it and
see if you can come to an agreement. It
*is* just a game after all, and the primary purpose of playing ASL is to have
fun!
[11.212] Can a leader direct fire when he can't use his DRM?
Generally, no.
There are some specific exceptions (e.g., a leader may direct the fire
of a FT to prevent cowering, even though his DRM cannot affect the outcome) but
such exceptions are clearly marked in the ASLRB. Said exceptions aside, "directing fire" and
"applying
leadership DRM" are synonymous for all purposes.
[11.213] What does "momentarily reveal" mean?
Rule A12.14 discusses the concept of "momentarily
revealing" a concealed unit to strip concealment from an enemy unit. The concept is that you must prove to your
opponent that you have a real unit that can see the enemy unit. There is some dispute amongst ASL players
however as to what defines that "proof".
Reading the rule literally indicates that you must
remove the unit's concealment marker, allowing your opponent to see the real
unit, and then replace the concealment marker.
Some players think that it's sufficient to show just enough of the
counter to prove that it's
genuine, without revealing the actual strength factors
involved. Still others feel that a statement to the effect of "I have a
real unit in this stack" is sufficient.
Again, this boils down to a style of play, or once
again one of those "ethical" questions. As with all such questions, the solution is best worked out
between you and your opponent; there is no "official" or "right"
way to do it.
[11.214] Can I dm a weapon and still move?
No. The rules
are not crystal-clear on this matter, so it is understandable that some people
may play this incorrectly, but "using" a weapon is sufficient to mark
it with a "Prep Fire" counter, and dismantling (or reassembling) is a
form of use. Similarly, you could not
deliberately malfunction a weapon (which requires a fire action) and then move.
[11.215]
OBA confuses me! How can it be made simpler?
I'm glad you asked!
What you need to do is buy the ASL Action Pack #1; in addition to the
scenarios and new boards that it contains, it features an "OBA
flowchart" that covers in detail all the steps required to implement
OBA. (It also includes several very
important
Rules Q&A concerning OBA.) The chart helps to explain the complex OBA procedure,
and after a little bit of practice you should find that the necessary steps are
easily implemented (and in the correct sequence too).
There are a couple of different flowcharts available
for free download from ftp sites, but it is the FAQ editor's opinion that the
"official" chart is more comprehensive, more accurate and easier to
use than the "free" alternatives that he has seen. Note the errata to the chart,
however (see '97 Annual).
[11.216] What is that thing on Board 8?
Assuming you mean the object in hexes V6-W6, it's a
castle (a little one). It is generally
assumed to be of stone construction and two levels (0 and 1) since it is a
multi-hex building with no explicit stairwell.
Board 8 (and also boards 6 and 7) are somewhat notorious
for featuring buildings of indeterminate
construction. If an SSR doesn't specify
the building types, rule B23.3 comes into effect.
[11.217] The centre dots on my board aren't in the centre of the
hexes! What do
I do?
Rule A6.1 specifies that LOS is (usually) measured
from the centre of one hex to the centre of another. It doesn't actually refer to the centre dots at all. So the "correct" thing to do is to
ignore the dot when it's obviously off-centre and use the "true"
centre of the hex
(which can be easily found by pencilling in a couple
of intersecting lines).
In practice many people just follow the centre dots
regardless. It's a style-of-play thing; as long as both you and your opponent agree
on whatever method you want to use, it doesn't matter how you do it.
Note that in PBM and PBEM play, you will not have any
idea what the boards your opponent is using look like. Unfortunately, not all boards are created
equal, and a clear LOS on your set of boards may be blocked on your
opponent's. In such cases it is
probably best to resolve the situation by dr, as per A6.1. Calling for third opinions is unlikely to be
useful, since these will involve a different set of boards again.
[11.218] The rules say I can HIP my foxholes. Does that mean the
units in the foxhole are HIP also?
Generally, no.
The relevant rule is A12.33, and it's pretty specific that it's *only*
the Fortification that is HIP. (There
is of course an exception: Pillboxes
(B30.7).) Note that a HIP fortification
loses its HIP status very easily; if you place HIP units in a HIP foxhole, for
example, the enemy units will see the foxhole quite easily, which can
compromise the "surprise" value of the HIP units IN the foxhole. (They're not revealed, but your opponent can
guess the foxhole is there for a reason.)
Note that at Night (E1.16) or in certain Pacific terrain types (G.2)
hidden fortifications are more difficult to reveal, and thus placing HIP units
in such locations can have greater tactical value.
[11.219] Can I remove CX by declaring TI?
A4.51 (Counter Exhaustion) is phrased a little poorly
in the sentence that describes how CX status is removed. Many people interpret the last clause of the
sentence that begins "A unit's CX counter is removed ..." as being
immediately effective, i.e., if you become TI in the turn that you declare CX,
you will immediately lose the CX counter. (A way of doing this would be to
declare a Search attempt (A12.152) even when you know there is nothing to
find.) However, recent unofficial
Q&A from MMP has clarified that *every* clause in this sentence after
"... in its next Player Turn ..." is only applicable to that
condition (i.e., the *only* way to lose CX status in the same turn that you
incur it is to break).
[11.220] What is "VBM Sleaze"?
An extremely common (and valuable) tactic that a
surprising number of players have never heard of or used. Once it's been used against you though, you
never forget it!
A7.212 says that if an enemy unit [EXC: unarmoured
vehicles] is in the same Location as you are, you cannot fire at any enemy unit
*not* in your Location - NO MATTER HOW INVULNERABLE THE ENEMY UNIT IN YOUR LOCATION
MIGHT BE. The "AFV Sleaze" is
to so place AFVs in bypass of
your defensive locations to prevent your infantry from
firing at infantry units moving up behind the AFV. It can be extremely frustrating to see lots of juicy infantry
targets go strolling by and the presence of a single tank parked outside your
window completely
negates your ability to do anything about them. (Note that the AFV need not be literally
"parked" - it can be Motion and still have the same effect.)
So what makes it a "sleaze"? Because you didn't think of it first, mainly. It's a perfectly legitimate tactic under the
rules. Is it "realistic"? Maybe, maybe not, but that's hardly relevant
- we're playing ASL here, remember (see [4.1] for a discussion of "reality
arguments" and their ultimate pointlessness).
Note that the "sleaze" is not necessarily
all good news for the AFV owner. If you
can set up your defense properly, the enemy may need a lot of AFVs to
completely negate your defense. AFVs in
bypass of a location are vulnerable to Street Fighting. And an AFV that's pinning
your troops in the "Sleaze" is not running
around in your rear areas, cutting off Rout paths and firing at your units.
Finally, note important Q&A from the '92 Annual
that says units in upper levels of buildings can only be
"Sleaze-freezed" if the AFV is OT and/or CE - and of course an AFV in
such a position is particularly vulnerable to fire from your "frozen"
units.
[11.221] When is CC
"simultaneous"?
Despite what it says in A11.1, Close Combat is, in
practice, *never* simultaneous - and awareness of this is essential to gaining
a clearer understanding of the CC "Infiltration" rules.
The rules cite several examples of "unusual"
situations where CC is not simultaneous: Ambush, CC vs. vehicles and Prisoners
attacking their Guards. However, the
important case here is "Infiltration" (A11.22) where either or both
sides roll a "2" or a "12". It is a common
misconception that whichever side rolls a
"2" "goes first".
(Or a "12" means that side "goes last".) THIS IS NOT THE CASE.
The truth of the matter is that (barring Ambush etc.)
the ATTACKER always rolls his CC dice first (A11.12), which means that his CC results
always apply, *even if* the DEFENDER rolls a "2". The reverse is NOT true; if the ATTACKER
rolls a "2", he may eliminate the
DEFENDER (or withdraw) without the latter even getting
a chance to roll at all.
In other words, despite the "usual"
"simultaneous" nature of CC, the ATTACKER always has a slight edge in
CC, and the DEFENDER should not make his CC DR until the ATTACKER's DR has been
seen. (This is even more important if
the ATTACKER rolls a "12", since the option to withdraw must be taken
before the DEFENDER makes a CC attack.)
Note that either side rolling a "2" in CC
may result in Field Promotion (A18.12) which in turn may change the odds of the
CC (in which case the odds must be recalculated). If the ATTACKER has still rolled low enough though, a
newly-generated Leader may end up dying with his DEFENDER squad just the same
-- effectively giving the ATTACKER "free" CVP! (Although it's likely that the DEFENDER's DR
of "2" will also eliminate the ATTACKER's units.)
EX: a German ATTACKER 4-6-7 and a Russian DEFENDER
4-4-7 are in normal CC. Neither side is
Pinned or otherwise restricted. The
odds, therefore, are 1:1 for each side.
The German player rolls his CC dice first, and rolls a "3",
sufficient to eliminate the Russian unit *even
if* the Russian player rolls a "2" and
generates a Leader (which would retroactively change the German odds to
1:2). If the Russian player rolls a
"12", the German squad may Withdraw even though it has already rolled
its CC attack. Of course, if the
Russian player rolls a "4" or
less, the German squad is eliminated also.
If the German player rolls a "4" and the
Russian player rolls a "2", the Russian must check for Field
Promotion. If no leader is generated, the
Russian unit is still eliminated and therefore may not withdraw (despite having
rolled a "2"). If a leader
*is* generated, the odds change to 1:2 for the German, and a "4"
becomes only a Casualty Reduction. The
Russian player must use Random Selection to see which DEFENDER unit suffers the
CR and only the *survivors* have the option of withdrawing. Of course, with a DR of "2", the
Russian has eliminated the German squad regardless.
[11.222] Is "No Quarter" always
applied to both sides when in effect?
Not at all.
One side may have "No Quarter" in effect for them while not at
all for the other side. There are
certainly situations where NQ may *automatically* be in effect for both sides
(e.g., RB; late-war Japanese) but if not so specified NQ is always optional for
each side.
[11.223] Must I use my MGs when making a
SFF attack?
A8.3 says that *if* the MGs are used they are treated
as Sustained Fire etc. This is not
always desirable, so it would be good if you had the choice to not use
them. Many people think that there *is*
no choice, but they're mistaken: they only read the first half of the sentence
("... it must use all usable MG/IFE in its possession ...") while
ignoring the second half ("... or forfeit their use for the remainder of
the Player Turn ...").
EX (1): you have a squad with a MG that has already
First Fired (i.e., the MG has lost ROF).
An enemy unit sidles up within normal range. The squad can SFF its inherent FP; *if* it decides to use the MG
as well, the MG is subject to Sustained Fire penalties. If it *doesn't* use the MG, it can't later
change its mind and decide to use it after all later in the MPh/DFPh.
EX (2): As above, except the MG still has ROF. The only difference is that the player now
has a choice between using the MG alone (at normal FP, no penalties), or using
SFF from the squad; if the latter, whether or not the squad decides to use the
MG as well, it still loses any remaining ROF and is marked with Final Fire etc.
EX (3): As above, except the possessing unit is a HS
or Crew. The only difference is that
the MG FP and the inherent FP can't be used together. The HS could First Fire
its inherent and SFF the MG if it wants; or the other way around; or just continue
to only use its inherent, or only use the MG.
The overall exception is FPF (A8.31), where all usable
MG/IFE weapons *must* be used (as Sustained Fire, since the possessing unit is
already marked with Final Fire) regardless of their prior status.
So what difference does this all make? Only that it means if you want to Final
Fire, you can't Final Fire your MG and then later on Final Fire your inherent
(or vice versa); Final Fire means what it says: do it now, or don't do it at
all. Barring FPF, there will be no
second chances.
[11.224] OVRs confuse me! How
can it be made simpler?
I'm glad you asked!
What you need to do is buy the ASL Action Pack #2; in addition to the
scenarios and new boards that it contains, it features an "OVR
flowchart" that covers in detail all the steps required to implement an
OVR. The chart helps to explain the
complex OVR procedure (particularly the target's Defensive Fire options), and
after a little bit of practice you should find that the necessary steps are
easily implemented (and in the correct sequence too).
[11.3]
PRACTICAL MATTERS
[11.31] The Rulebook
By the time you have acquired all the modules, you
will need additional binders. This is
especially true if you use ring protectors or other methods to protect the
pages -- HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! The FAQ author recommends the use of plastic page
protectors (his ASLRB
is currently split into three folders).
[11.32] Counter storage
There are probably as many ways of storing your
thousands of ASL counters as there are players of ASL. There is certainly no absolute "best"
way; it really is a matter of personal taste (combined with some other
practical considerations -- how much space you have, do you want your ASL gear
to be portable, etc.)
Common solutions include:
Counter trays.
These are made in various sizes by TAHGC and other wargaming
companies. They are not generally
preferred for ASL since they usually are not big enough to hold a good number
of counters, meaning that you need so many of them that they can become
impractical
to use. However,
if space and portability is not much of an issue for you, they will certainly
do the job. They also work fine in combination
with other solutions.
Ziplok envelopes.
The advantage of these is that they're pretty easy to pack and label,
and come in all shapes and sizes, so they can be quite convenient. Sorting can however be a bit of a bear since
you need so many of them.
Spare parts drawers.
Available from hardware stores, these are usually small cabinets with a
number of pull-out trays in them for storing odds and ends. These are best used when you have no need or
desire to make your ASL set portable, as such cabinets usually have no way of
securing the drawers, meaning they'll fall out and scatter the counters every
where if they're knocked about. Still,
they can be very convenient and functional, although sometimes a little
pricy. You'll probably need several of
them.
Fishing Tackle boxes.
In the US, they're called "Plano", after a popular manufacturer
of them. In other parts of the world,
Plano can be hard to come by, but other brands of fishing tackle boxes are not
(unless you live in the middle of a desert, I suppose). The preferred boxes are clear plastic
(flexible, not brittle) and have many small compartments. They seal tight but can carry many hundred
of counters, so you don't need that many of them. Their only real
disadvantage is that they tend to be pricier than
other alternatives.
[11.33] Overlays
(i) How do I keep them in place on the board?
A common solution is to use plastic page protectors
(like the ones you protect your ASLRB pages with) and store them alphabetically
in a ring folder. Small overlays can be
kept in the plastic pages used to store card collections. When actually using overlays, there are many
solutions.
Many people recommend rubber cement, which will stick to the boards but
peel off harmlessly when no longer needed.
Don't confuse this with normal glue!
Other solutions include clear plexiglass overlays to
hold the overlays in place (also helps to protect the boards). "Blue Tak" (that's the Australian
product name; there are equivalents in most countries), the blue sticky stuff
used to hang posters on the wall, will work fine in
small amounts, but note that it has a tendency to
leave a stain where it has been applied.
Some people like to use draftsman's tape -- a type of clear adhesive
tape that's designed to peel off easily without damaging the material
underneath.
(ii) Where can I find a particular overlay?
The following is a complete list of official product
overlays (at time of publication).
NOTE: many third-party products also come with overlays.
* West Of Alamein
"D1-D6", "E1", "H1-H6", "S1-S8",
"SD1-SD8", "W1-W4", "X1-X5".
* Code Of Bushido
"1-5",
"B1-B5", "G1-G5", "M1-M5", "O1-O5",
"RP1-RP5", "Wd1-Wd5", "X6".
* Gung Ho
"Be1-Be7", "Ef1-Ef3", "OC1-OC4",
"P1-P5".
* Croix de Guerre
"OG1-OG5", "St1-St3", "X7-X18"
* SL Overlays (came with GI: Anvil of Victory)
"A-O". Hardly ever
used anymore. (In fact, I know of no
TAHGC-
published ASL
scenario that uses them, even the updated versions of
old GI-level
scenarios.)
* '95 Annual
Deluxe
Mapboard overlays "dx1-dx9"- they were undersized, and
replaced by
an insert from the General magazine (Vol. 30 #3) later
that year.
* Doomed Battalions
"RR1-RR14", "X19-X24", "OW1".
* Action Pack #2
"6", "Hi1-Hi7", "X25-X29".
[11.34] Scenarios
Obtaining photocopy services is cheap and easy for
most people nowadays, so the usual recommendation is that you copy your
scenario cards and store them in plastic page protectors in a ring folder.
(Yes, you can end up carrying a lot of folders
around!) Note that this saves you from
cutting up or pulling apart those magazines.
If you photocopy the original scenario cards, you can then store the
scenarios in numerical order, currently impossible with the bizarre TAHGC
scheme
used in most of the modules.
[11.35] Good mail-order stores
Many people in the US (and in other countries) swear
by Boulder Games, who always sell at a substantial discount. You can contact them via e-mail at
BoulderG@aol.com, or view their web page at http://www.bakkster.com/boulderg.htm.
MMP are making all currently available
"official" ASL products available for sale via their web page – see http://www.advancedsquadleader.com/.
[11.36] Where are the errata pages?
TAHGC have published several replacement pages for the
ASLRB over the years. The errata pages
can be identified by a superscript (indicating the year of publication) next to
the page number. Text that has been changed
by the errata is marked with a black dot in the margin.
Unfortunately, most of the new pages are only
available by buying the various modules.
Here is the current list:
87 Errata pages:
These were sent free to people who sent in their coupon from the
original printing of the ASLRB. The
free offer is no longer available (current printings of the ASLRB should have
the 87 pages already included). Now
out-of-print as a separate product, MMP
have made these pages available for download from
their website.
Page Nos.: A7/8, A13/14, A15/16, A27/28, A29/30, B7/8,
B19/20, B25/26.
89 Errata pages:
See 87 pages, above, for details of how to get these pages if you don't
already have them.
Page Nos.: C1/2, C3/4, C5/6. C7/8, C11/12, D9/10, D13/14,
D17/18.
90 Errata page:
Supplied in the CoB module.
Page
No.: E25/26.
91 Errata pages:
Supplied in the GH module.
Page Nos.: B29/30, D1/2.
92 Errata pages:
Supplied in the CdG module.
Page Nos.: A17/18, A29/30, B31/32, F1/2.
96 Errata Pages:
Supplied in the KGP II HASL module.
These pages replace all but a couple of the Chapter P pages originally
provided in the KGP I module.
98 Errata Pages:
Supplied in the DB module.
Page Nos.: A39/40, A41/42, A43/44, A45/46, B31/32,
B33/34.
99 Errata Pages: Supplied in AP2. Note that these differ from the pages provided
in DB in only trivial ways.
Page Nos.: B31/32, B33/34.
[11.37] I'm missing pages from Chapter N
Chapter N is "armory", i.e., reproductions
of the countersheets from the official modules. Not all modules have Chapter N pages included in the module the
countersheets come with. Many of the
earlier modules did not get Chapter N pages until later releases (for example,
the Chapter N page for "Paratrooper" were not provided until
"Yanks" was released). Moreover,
there have never been official Chapter N pages provided for any HASL module,
and there are no Chapter N pages for DB either.
It is generally recommended that you make photocopies
of the back and front of your HASL and DB countersheets before punching out the
counters if this is of concern to you.
Comments from MMP make it seem unlikely that any future products will
update Chapter N.
END OF ASL FAQ
----------------------------------------------------------------
Bruce
Probst
bprobst@ibm.net
Melbourne,
Australia MSTie #72759
"Pants!
Pants! Sing the praises of
pants!"
MST3K-OZ Newsletter
http://www.fortunecity.com/lavendar/pimlico/131/oz.html
ASL FAQ http://www.tne.net.au/njh/ASL/FAQ/FAQ.html