ASL scenario replay: Clearing Kamienka

Note to readers: This post won't make a lick of sense to anyone who isn't familiar with the Advanced Squad Leader game system.

Greetings fellow ASL players!  After a several-year hiatus, an old familiar sound has returned to the Cariaga Hacienda: the merry clacking of dice tumbling through the tower. That's right! I'm plunging once again into a world of hours spent hunched over a game table arranging little squares of cardboard on a map while nimbly performing arithmetic calisthenics. In a word, ASL.

As usual, my nemesis, Dave Hauth, is the face across the table. And the game? Clearing Kamienka by Vic Provost. It looks like a barn-burner. A mostly infantry fight pitting elite Wehrmacht troops against sturdy Russian rifles in the early days of Barbarossa. 

Dave and I are both going to blog our experience as we go. We've a Gentleman's Agreement that neither of us will read his opponent's blog until given express permission to do so. 

You can read Dave's blog here.

Readers are encouraged to comment!  Speak your piece! Just be sure not to inadvertently reveal any information about Dave's plan to me or vice-versa. 

Thanks to Vic Provost for designing this great-looking scenario. And thanks to my old friend, Rodney Kinney for developing the VASL gaming engine which I've used to capture images. 

Well, here we go. Barbarossa, July 1941. German units are pouring across the frontier, swallowing up whole armies of Russians.

According to the arcane meta-game rules that Dave and I have developed over decades of gaming together, I have choice of sides for this engagement. I choose the Reds. They have a strong defensive position, plenty of cover, and the potential to set up some lethal ambushes for Germans advancing across soft terrain. (Besides, I'm something of a leftist.)

The German force I'm facing is awesome. Assault engineers with all their toys, great leadership, big ordnance, elite troops , a platoon of assault guns --that's quite a bit.

Both sides receive reinforcements at different points in the game.

The Victory Conditions state that the Germans must control at least 24 building locations east of hexrow P. A quick tally off the map reveals that there are 30 such locations in total. Therefore, in order to win, I must retain 7 building locations east of hexrow P. By SSR, any locations that are rubbled or ablaze count as German-controlled, and given that the German OB includes a 150mm howitzer, it is not unlikely that we will see some rubbling and fire-setting in this game.

So, taking all this into consideration, here's what I came up with...

Clearing Kamienka set up. Acquisition markers indicate bore-sighted locations.

As you can see, I've set up in strength to defend the walled building complex on board 43. My reasoning? If the German is going to win, he is almost compelled to control all the building locations in that complex. He can't bypass it, and if he must commit to attacking it, I want him to completely commit to that attack, rather than cause mischief with lesser attacks on my flanks. The approaches to the board 43 building complex are all soft cover (grain, brush, open ground), and I've got everything trained on them.

My turn 1 reinforcements, which arrive on the western half of the northern board edge, will hustle into the buildings on board 42 to await the Germans when they overwhelm the board 43 defenders. (And they will overwhelm them.)

Organizationally, I've divided my on board forces into three groups. Facing west, we have: center, left flank and right flank.

Center

Central defense

Pretty straightforward here. A light mortar is out in front with a dummy stack. The hidden half-squad in O7.1 will act as spotter for the mortar to avoid all those grain hex hindrances. The Commissar will direct the fire of the MMG in O7, looking to lay firelanes to hinder Germans advancing through the grain. The same goes for the 447 with LMG in the 08 ground location, while the HIP 9-1 leader and 248 manning the heavy will save their hidden status until they get a good clean shot at a leader, or a torch-wielding engineer, or maybe at the big howitzer. Once they give up their HIP status, they'll move to the ground floor post haste. The upper level will be a death trap once the Germans know they're up there. The 10-0 commissar waits with the reserves behind the building complex to provide back up support.

Left flank

I've placed 7 of my 12 allotted dummy counters in this area to make it appear stronger than it is. There are only 2 actual units over here: the 76* howitzer, which is set to subject enfilading fire on Germans approaching the board 43 building cluster through the grain, and a 447 with LMG that is there to protect the gun from infantry. If the Germans push for the P2 woods cluster, the units in 43O7 will fire to interdict.

Right flank

Counting on those reinforcements. The 447 with the ATR is hidden.

On the right flank I've placed the AT gun and the big mortar, plus some supporting infantry. The 447 with the ATR gets HIP status, completing my HIP allotment for the scenario. These units will be bolstered on Turn 1 by the reinforcing infantry and they'll need it. If the German is going to win the scenario, he will have to invest the buildings on board 42, and to get to them, he'll have to smash this force. But he can do it.

The commissar and MMG in 43L10 can offer some crossfire support if the German approaches this position through the grain, as can the 447 with LMG in 43N9.

Summa

I've aimed to put as much fire as I can onto the two big grain fields on either board that represent the most direct approach to the victory buildings.

The German force is intimidating. But we Reds are a wiley bunch. If I can avoid his hay-makers and nick him repeatedly, I can whittle him down so that he doesn't have enough at the end of the scenario to succeed in his final push.

At your leisure, Herr Hauth. Russian set up as seen by German player.

Dave and I will play some time after Christmas. I'll post an AAR when we're done. Wish me luck, comrades!

Update: Alas and alack! Dave and I got around to playing this game two days after Christmas. Our playing revealed it to be strongly unbalanced in favor of the Russian. Dave fired smoke with his big howitzer and two of his tank destroyers, but it wasn't enough. The Germans advanced into murderous fire. As strong as is the German order of battle, it's not enough to overcome the strength of the Russian position. I think, with a few adjustments, this could be a tight scenario and a lot of fun to play for both sides. My considered recommendation for balancing this game are these:

1. Remove the radio and 80mm Mtr OBA from the German OBA and replace it with a guaranteed Smoke FFE which occurs during the turn 1 German Prep Fire phase in a hex designated by the German player prior to all setup.
2. Allow the Stugs, AA gun, and 150mm howitzer to set up on either board, within the German setup area. Remove the unarmored half-tracks from the German OB.
3. Disallow Russian bore-sighting.

If anybody wants to try the scenario with my suggestions, let me know and we'll play it sometime. I'll even give choice of sides.

ASL scenario setup: Valhalla Bound

Note to readers: This post won't make a lick of sense to anyone who isn't familiar with the Advanced Squad Leader game system.

Hard for me to believe that I haven't played Advanced Squad Leader in almost a year.  This is by far the longest stretch I've endured without dropping dice into a dice tower since I started playing Squad Leader 30 some years ago.  There are reasons for this hiatus, but perhaps I'll leave those for a later post.

Anyway, a rainy Saturday in fall in Portland, Oregon, got me to reminiscing on the game.  Rainy fall Saturdays will do that.  So, I got out an old copy of the ASL annual of '92 and, just for grins, threw together a setup for an old, favorite:  Valhalla Bound.

I've played this old chestnut a half dozen times, I suppose.  It's a nail-biter. 

As far as developing a setup, Valhalla Bound no doubt seems an odd scenario choice.  After all, as anyone who has played it will tell you, the real test of this scenario comes when the German's reinforcing Panthers crash into the Russian armor long about Turn 3 or 4.  The initial German forces, a couple platoons of infantry, supported by half-tracks and an armored car, are little more than a screening force.

But that initial force has three important objectives.  As I see it, they are:

1. Slow the Russian advance for a crucial turn or two, buying your reinforcing Panthers time to gain position.
2. Disrupt the Russian infantry.
3. At all costs, prevent the Russians from forcing the paved road.

So, with an eye toward achieving said objectives, I submit the following.

The setup.

When I approach a setup, I have a look at the given order of battle and try to organize it into functioning groups with specific purposes.  In this case, I've divided my forces into three groups which I informally name Team Tank Trap, Team Fire Base, and Team Kamikaze.

• Team Tank Trap consists of the PSW 234/4, the 8-1 leader, and two and a half squads.  They're tasked with guarding the road from Y10 to CC7.  The PSW is in Z10, HIP by SSR, and set up to open fire when a tank advancing down the road turns to face the infantry in Z9 and W6.  Hopefully the little armored car can score a side or rear hit.  At the very least, it will unsettle the advancing Russians.  Hex Z10 is a great hex for the armored car.  Russian infantry are unlikely to enter the hex and inadvertently discover the armored car and anyway they'll have to approach the position from one of two open hexes regardless.  (Credit to Dave Hauth for first discovering this position.) Meanwhile, the hidden squad and panzerschreck-toting half squad will threaten any armor that tries to skirt through the woods.  The 8-1 and his squad will hold off the Russian infantry. 

The setup, up close.

• Team Fire Base consists of the 9-1, both half-tracks, and a full platoon of machine-gun toting stormtroopers.  This group is here to blaze away at Russian infantry.  If the Red Army tanks approach aggressively, these troops will rely on panzerfausts to keep them off.  The half-tracks can also provide cover for a fall back across the Y1-Z1 road.  (An optimistic scenario.)
  
  
• Team Kamikaze consists of a half-squad, the hero possessing a panzerschreck, and the 7-0 possessing the demolition charge.  This group sets up hidden in hex W5.  Hopefully, this team will find itself with a plethora of targets when it reveals itself.  Hex W5 is an orchard hex where there is no backblast penalty for firing 'fausts or the 'schreck.  If circumstances allow, they will reveal themselves progressively.  That is, the half squad might reveal itself to fire a 'faust.  Then later in the same turn, perhaps when a Red Army tank seeks to overrun the half squad, the hero, assisted by the 7-0 leader fire the 'schreck. None of this team will likely survive beyond the turn in which it is discovered.  Hence, the name.

Ivan sees this.

The Russian wave will wash over the initial German force.  But if they've achieved their three objectives by the time the Panthers engage, they've earned their places in Valhalla.  Survivors can harass the Russians from behind, but there won't be many.  The Valkyrie maidens will be busy.

ASL scenario replay: Return to Sender

Note to readers: This post won't make a lick of sense to anyone who isn't familiar with the Advanced Squad Leader game system.

Greetings fellow ASL players!  Thanksgiving weekend would be lacking without a day-long gaming session, would it not?  So I spent a busy day today, raking leaves and running errands for my beloved wife that I might have all day tomorrow to game with ol' Dave Hauth.

Dave and I are set to play the Armies of Oblivion scenario, Return to Sender.  This scenario represents actions that took place in Serbia, in late 1944, when the Bulgarians left the Axis and sided with the Allies, turning on their hitherto comrades.  This action has elite Germans defending a hill from a horde of Bulgarian troops supported by armor they had seized from the Germans.

Dave has the part of the Bulgarians; I'm the Germans.  I'll lay out my plans today, then tell how it all turned out in a future post. 

Here's to the Fatherland!

Dave see this

Return to Sender, designed by Brian Martuzas, features Germans with big Flak guns defending a hill from an onslaught of Bulgarians.  The Bulgarians outnumber the Germans by better than 2 to 1, are supported by two platoons of Pz IV tanks, three armored half-tracks, air support, and a module of 100mm artillery.   The Germans are 548 squads (designated as SS units by SSR), 2 light Flak guns, and 3 big 88L Flak guns.  The Bulgarians enter from the east (board 11).  All German units, apart from the big Flak guns must set up on board 18 and the western half of board 11.  The 88L Flak guns must set up on board 50, the westernmost board.

The Victory conditions are straightforward:  at game end the Bulgarians must control all level 3 and level 4 hill hexes.

Bulgarian advantages are unopposed armor, high mobility (there are 6 trucks to transport infantry) and 30 squads.  The scenario length (10 turns) also works to the Bulgarian advantage, but I suspect the issue will be decided one way or the other long before turn 10.

German advantages are the big Flak guns, which will have no problem cutting through the armor of those requisitioned panzers, and the huge disparity in troop quality between Germans and Bulgarians.

German setup

Note:  Acquisition markers indicate bore-sighted locations.

As the German, I think my biggest advantage is the difference in infantry quality.  My elite Germans will tear up those poor Bulgarians, tanks or no tanks.  The Bulgarians have two platoons of shaky troops for each one of their 5 leaders.

My defense is devised with an eye to exacting a toll on Bulgarian infantry and not worrying over much about the 2 panzer platoons.  The three 88L Flak guns are positioned with good lines of sight across the battlefield, and I'll trust them to make life difficult for marauding armor.

My first order of business, in constructing this setup, was to place my Flak guns, both big and small.  Here's what I did.

Flak gun placement

The big guns are set up with good fields of fire all across the approach to the hill.  By SSR, the Germans must use Red TH Numbers, but even so, this looks like it could be a turkey shoot.  Dave will have to make good use of blind hexes as he moves his tanks forward.

But, of course, given the quality of his infantry, he will need to use his panzers aggressively.  A difficult quandary, methinks.  We'll see how he handles it.

The small Flak guns are set to whack Bulgarian infantry making their way across the low board 11 hills.  Not an inviting prospect for the Bulgarians.  And with such poor troop quality, broken units will be slow to rally.  Dave's leaders will, I predict, have their hands full rallying, probably for the entire game.

Next, I placed Roadblocks.

Roadblocks

These placements are pretty straightforward.  The roadblock in E3 and that in Q6 are simply there to channel tank movement toward the center of the board and into the sites of the big Flak guns.  The Roadblock in Y1 is part of a tank trap I hope to create in that area.

At this point in the setup, I organize and place my infantry.  I've got 14 squads and three leaders with good support weapons and foxholes for fortification.  The Bulgarians enter from off-board, so my allotted 16 concealment markers can all be used for dummies.

I divided the infantry between the leaders, 4 squads per leader.  The remaining 2 squads are setup in ambush positions and fulfill my allotted HIP assignments. 

Upper-right sector:  Tank trap

The 8-1 leader directs the MMG and squad and will be looking to punish Bulgarian infantry.  So too with the two 548s with the LMGs.  The tank trap, such as it is involves the 548 with the DC and the hidden squad in Z0.  I put 3 dummy counters in G4 to appear as a squad with machine-gun.

Upper left sector

The remainder of my dummy counters go in this sector to keep Dave guessing. I predict that he will attack down one flank or the other, so I set this area up to appear strong.  Or at least to appear as if it might be strong. Dave is pretty cagey when it comes to these things though, so I don't expect the ruse will last very long.

Middle-right sector

The 9-1 directs the HMG, supported by the light mortars.  Everyone is holed up in Foxholes and ready to beat feet back to the victory hill if the assault comes too strong.  Of course, if things go wrong, these troops will be quickly isolated and destroyed.  C'est la guerre, mon frere.

Lower left sector

If Dave attacks on my left flank, I'm prepared to give ground generously.  The upper left sector is empty deception (apart from a few bore-sighted locations, of course).  But he'll meet resistance when he gets to this point in his advance.

If the attack falls on the right flank, these troops will head for the victory hill to await the final assault.

Victory hill

If the game does last long enough to produce a final Bulgarian assault on the victory hill, I like my chances. The Bulgarian armor will have trouble providing close range support due to the woods and crag hexes that hinder their movement.  The Bulgarian infantry will have to get up close with perhaps as many as two full platoons of elite Germans.

Before ever having rolled the dice, it looks to me like this scenario presents a pretty tough row for the Bulgarians to hoe.  I've told Dave as much.   We'll know soon enough, I suppose.

Update:  What a disappointment!  As I feared, this scenario is utterly lop-sided in favor of the Germans.  The 88L Flak guns commanded the approaches to Board 50 and the Bulgarian infantry "perished like straw in a great fire," as Professor Tolkien put it.  Bummer!

I wonder... is there anyone anywhere who has won this scenario as the Bulgarians?

ASL scenario replay: Raus' Sour Krauts (Pt. II)

Note to readers: This post won't make a lick of sense to anyone who isn't familiar with the Advanced Squad Leader game system.

Greetings fellow ASL players!

Dave Hauth and I played the Vincent Maresca scenario, Raus' Sour Krauts.  I found this scenario on Tim Hundsdorfer's ASL web site. 

You can read the battle prelude here.

Here's how it turned out. 

Splat!  A thorough blunting of the Soviet advance.  A Red Army disaster.

The game lasted through the first two shots of the German Turn 1 Prep Fire Phase at which point Dave had had enough.  I can't say I blame him.  He was down two T34s and a squad.  Another squad was broken.  And his third T34 was bogged within the sites of my smokin' hot 75L ATG.

Here's how it looked.

Weep, Mother Russia

Since the folly of a central attack is now clearly demonstrated, I speculate on 2 alternatives that might have more success.

Roundin' the bend

Option 1:  Flank

Enter your armor, with its full complement of riders (I'd recommend elite troops for the job), on either the extreme east or extreme west flank.  Gather your tanks in the blinds of woods and orchards, staying out of LOS of the top of the hill, as much as possible.

Set up the 1st line infantry so as to harass the Germans and keep them from moving toward the point of attack.  The light mortar and the MMG set up on the elevated road, with a leader just behind it to rally broken troops.  

On Turn 2, the tanks break out and go for the hill.  At this point, I think, it would be okay to be a little reckless.  Swarm the Germans and engage them at close range so that your Turn 3 reinforcements can charge directly across the bridges and straight into the fight.

Guns a-blazin'

Option 2:  The direct approach

Of course, there is always another option.  The clench-your-teeth-and-run-the-bridges option.  Send one tank platoon across each bridge.  At the end of Turn 1, you can be engaging Germans at ranges of 2 to 4 hexes.

It might work.  The Germans can't kill everything.  (Can they?)  And let's not underestimate the psychological effect of audacity.

Expect casualties.  But if you can tie up the Germans, your Turn 3 reinforcements might arrive just in time to turn the tide.

Conclusion

After this playing, Dave is convinced that the Russians are faced with an impossible task.  I agree that the Germans might be too strong.  After all, I completely blunted his initial wave with a single ATG.  (But, then again, he did enter his T34s directly into the sites of my gun.)

It's a bummer when a game goes this badly, but it does happen.

One nit:  The unarmored half-tracks seem superfluous.  There isn't enough time to tow guns around the map.  On the other hand, if there were an SSR that required the Germans to set up the ATG in tow behind the half-tracks, that would add an urgent twist to the German set up.  And it might help with play balance, as well.

I'd like to say thanks to Vincent Maresca for taking the time to design this scenario.  I don't know Vincent personally, but maybe I'll have the honor at a tourney one day. 

Gotta love this game.

ASL scenario replay: Raus' Sour Krauts (Pt. I)

Note to readers: This post won't make a lick of sense to anyone who isn't familiar with the Advanced Squad Leader game system.

Greetings fellow ASL players!

Dave Hauth and I are scheduled to play the Vincent Maresca scenario, Raus' Sour Krauts.  I found this scenario on Tim Hundsdorfer's ASL web site. I loves me some Kursk scenarios, so I talked Dave into giving it a try.

This engagement is part of a Soviet counteroffensive in the last stages of Kursk.  Dave chose the Russians, so I get to set up.  I'll lay out my plans today, then blog over the weekend to relate how it all turned out. 

Wish me luck!

Yay!  A new Kursk scenario!  Of the great battles of World War II, Kursk and Stalingrad are the two that are best represented in the Advanced Squad Leader game system.

One of the most attractive aspects of Raus' Sour Krauts (apart from it being a Kursk scenario) is the Victory Conditions.  They're very clear.  Whichever side controls the most level 3 hill hexes (there are a total of 25) wins the scenario.  These kinds of Victory Conditions make it easy to gauge one's progress over the course of the game and, therefore, make it easier to calculate what constitutes acceptable risk for any particular move.

In this scenario, I'm the Germans.  My forces must keep a superior foe off the hill.  The Russians have infantry superiority and are at least equal to the Germans in armor.  But the scenario is only 6.5 turns.  Time is on the German side.

The German at-start force consists of 2 ATG, a panzer, 2 platoons of 1st line infantry, some fortifications and a couple unarmored half-tracks.  This force must absorb the shock of the initial Russian wave. 

It's a sad duty, I'm afraid.  The on-board Germans will be overwhelmed.  They're outnumbered 2 to 1.  But they must buy precious time for the stronger German force that arrives on Turn 2, and which will be ascending the hill from the south. 

The Russians have a highly-mobile armored force.  Their initial wave includes a platoon of T34s and a platoon of T50 light tanks.  The German ATGs and the Panzer must blunt this force as it approaches from the north.

Above all, I must guard against the Russians storming across the stream in the center of the map.  That is the most direct route to the hill and the most attractive to the Reds, given the time constraints placed on them.

Pretty straight-forward, methinks.

The key to the German defense is the ordnance.  The tubes.  The big caliber weapons. If I can place my ordnance in mutually-supporting positions with good fields of fire, the rest of the setup will fall into place.

So, here's what I came up with. 

Mutually-supporting ordnance

The 50L ATG in 58S10 is set to open up on tanks that may emerge from the stream and come down the Q-R road in the middle.  The Panzer in 58J8 guards 13Y7 bridge and can set up a nasty crossfire with the 50L.  The big ATG in 58O5 can provide support to both the 50L and the Panzer, and can also overwatch the western flank (especially the bridge in 13K6), should the Russian choose to attack from that side.

Now that the ordnance is placed, it's a matter of setting up the infantry.  I have six squads, three machineguns and three leaders, so that makes it easy.  Each leader gets two squads and a support weapon.  The two lesser leaders are assigned guard duty over the ATGs, while the 9-1 with the MMG takes overwatch position on the hill.

The western half of the map looks like this.

Western defenses

The 8-1 and his squads guard the western approach to the hill.  If the attack comes this way, they'll look to pick off tank riders, and fall back up the hill.  If the attack doesn't come this way, they'll fall back up the hill as well.  The only question, I suppose, is whether or not they'll be falling back under fire.

The 7-0 and his two squads are placed to guard the 50L ATG from Russian infantry.  Corporal Braun has orders to stand and hold at all costs.  If the Russians bypass them, these guys will fire to interdict as the Russians charge up the hill.

The half-tracks, it would seem, are for towing around the German ATG, but this scenario is so short (6.5 turns) that it is hard to imagine towing guns around.  Nonetheless, I have placed one of them in location with the 50L ATG.  I placed the other half-track out on the west flank as a deception.  Hopefully, Dave will see it there and guess (incorrectly) that there is an ATG in its vicinity.

Eastern defenses

On the eastern half of the map, there's not much to tell.  The 9-1 and MMG provide over-watch across the entire board.  Targets of choice are enemy leaders, of course.  The Panzer will stand and die in place, if the Russians attack this way.  If they do not, the Panzer will attempt to get to the top of the hill for the final fight.  Foxholes are prepared for the German reinforcements.  The relief infantry can advance into the foxholes rather than onto a completely bald hill.

Final setup

This setup is heavily weighted to guard the center.  Arguably, it neglects the two flanks.  But any flanking attack means the final assault on the hill will be at an oblique angle, allowing me to concentrate my forces.

Besides, if the Russians try to flank, time may buy me what my on-board forces cannot.  The clock is ticking, Ivan!  Can you hear that rumbling on the far side of the hill?  That is the Tiger, Ivan.  He is coming.  He is hungry.

Dave sees this.

Let us see what we shall see...

To be continued...