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Just played a couple turns of A Victory Denied since I had a few hours to myself, and was really pleased with how elegant the command system is. Chain-activating units via the chit-pulling mechanic really works well and adds an element of chaos to the game that makes it feel more... war-like? I guess? Definitely recommended.
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Nov 30, 2014 23:33
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StashAugustine posted:FITL is the most complicated of the COIN games. Do you have other people interested in the game or are you just gonna throw it out and see if someone likes it? I'd definitely recommend playing it solitaire once or twice to get a grasp on it. This for sure. I still play it solitaire and find myself missing a rule now and then, and I'm like 5+ games in.
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Dec 11, 2014 21:47
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Tevery Best posted:Fortunately I do. There's Lichtenstein, there's my brother, who's supposed to be bringing that big pretty box from the UK this Saturday afternoon, and we've got enough courageous friends with a propensity for kicking one another when they're down, and a few who can and like to play Twilight Struggle. Just pay super close attention to the wording of the rules. "a" vs "any", pay attention to where you're allowed to do things, pay attention to "ranger/troop/cube/guerilla" etc.
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Dec 11, 2014 21:55
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I want to play something similar to Totaler Krieg during my breaks at work - something heavy that I can spread out over a long time, but need to find something I can play on VASSAL and has the rules available online. I can't find any rules for TK online, so I'm looking for something else I guess!
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Dec 12, 2014 03:07
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Wow, I was really intimidated to get into TK, but the rules are written so well. I have a soft spot in my heart for wargames rules that lay out "okay read this, then this, then here's an intro scenario to get you going" (e.g. most GMT games). In the book it mentions "2 maps" - is the physical Europe map divided into two parts, or is it referring to TK/DS's maps?
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Dec 12, 2014 14:41
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blackmongoose posted:Each of the Europe and Pacific maps is composed of two different sheets, and the hexes are labeled according to which one they're on (so there's a Europe e0001 and w0001 and a Pacific e0001 and w0001). The split between the sheets is around Berlin on the Europe map and I think around Truk on the Pacific map. Thanks, that makes sense. Just ran through the Case White intro scenario, and this game is really a blast. It's only one turn, and really only one tiny battle, but with me having been playing ASLSK for the past few weeks, this is a really nice palate cleanser. Case White at the beginning...  ...and at the end.  Posen, Krakow, and Warsaw taken for the glorious Führer. My first play through ended in a failure, because I couldn't figure out what to do with Warsaw, but then re-read the EZOC rules and realized that I could move my one-step unit southwest from Koenigsburg to negate the Polish 0-1-2 EZOC, then move my two-step unit southwest and then southeast. Mission Accomplished. Krakow and Posen were very straightforward and basically just an exercise in carrying out the combat rules. Not sure anybody cares about an AAR for an intro scenario, but something about this game really strikes me  It's really what I've been looking for - the politics, the hugeness, the straightforward combat.Neat. edit-- quick question, during the Reserve Movement phase (5), I can re-move all my units right? Not just ones that didn't participate in combat? I might be mixing up my ASLSK rules in here some
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Dec 12, 2014 17:58
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Tevery Best posted:Why are wargames so much into naming Poznan "Posen"? Kraków is Krakow, not Krakau, Warszawa is Warsaw, not Warschau. Is that name that much more popular in the English-speaking world? The city is known as Posen in German. For a game like "Axis Empires", that would make sense I'm not sure if there's an official English translation. edit-- It makes as much sense as Gdańsk being translated as "Danzig"
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Dec 12, 2014 21:19
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I had a dream last night that I was a NATO symbol, though I don't remember which. I think I was a ski infantry symbol. That's what I get for reading TK/DS rules for 8 hours then coming home and clipping all my A Victory Denied counters.
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Dec 13, 2014 15:49
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SquadronROE posted:Made out like a bandit this year for Secret Santas, picked up 3 wargames. I've only played Warfighter so far. Awakening the Bear is really excellent.
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Dec 13, 2014 19:07
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Another quick TK question: Playing through Op. Barbarossa, beginning turn 2, and want to make sure I'm understanding the supply rules. The "2 free hex" allowance, cannot go through EZOCs, correct? In this area:  The Soviet 11th and 8th Inf. are cut off, correct? Or do support units not give off EZOCs (the Axis Air Force)? In which case, the 11th Inf. would be able to trace a line back to Minsk, but the 8th Inf. would be cut off by the Axis 16th Inf.'s EZOC. I would imagine it's the former, since it seems that "units" give off EZOCs, not just ground units. Also, for the combination phase, am I understanding right that I can combine any one-step units for any two-step units in my pool, as long as they fit the recipe guide? That's the gist I'm getting. Interesting game so far - it's looking like the Axis may lose the Bessarabia area the way things are going. Full map if anyone is interested: 
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Dec 15, 2014 23:17
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CNN Sports Ticker posted:I got Advanced Squad Leader for Christmas (we opened our presents early) but I inadvertently got only the rules rather than an actual playable version with counters and stuff. ASL:SK has its own stripped-down set of rules, but I guess you could play it using the original ASL tome. Another option is just playing it using VASSAL and any of the freely-available scenarios online. But... if you want to play real, full-blown ASL, you need the base game.
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Dec 18, 2014 13:50
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CNN Sports Ticker posted:I'm a little confused as to what actually is the base game in that case. Not the starter kit? All I've got at the moment is the entirety of the rules. You can buy any ASL module and play it with the rules, AFAIK. But, I'm not an ASL expert so I'll defer to someone else.
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Dec 18, 2014 14:33
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Tekopo posted:I'm actually hankering to play some Vassal USE/TK. I'd need to re-read the TK because the USE rules have poisoned my mind recently. TK at least has something for the allies/soviets to do while the other is having all the fun though. My brain isn't comprehending what USE is. I'd be down for TK if you want to do PBEM or PBDropbox or something. It's rare that I have many hours of free time to do live play though :\ edit-- Oh duh, Unconditional Surrender. I'd be up for either. Count Thrashula fucked around with this message at 17:43 on Dec 18, 2014 |
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Dec 18, 2014 17:16
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I would love a PBP AE. You could have people sign up for minor countries and play them if/when they come into play  I'm up for whatever though.
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Dec 18, 2014 21:41
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Taran_Wanderer posted:Alright folks, looks like we're doing an Axis Empires PBP. I'll take a look at the rulebook(s) and put up a thread tomorrow or on the weekend. PM me with your nation(s) of choice if you'd like to reserve a spot. Bonus points if someone thinks up a witty thread title.  I'm unreasonably excited about this. Just PM'd with my country of choice. I hope I get it, on account of I already speak Russian.
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Dec 18, 2014 23:12
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CNN Sports Ticker posted:How hard would it be for a total newbie to the game to participate? I'm relatively a newbie at this type of wargame as well. I'm hoping to play Totaler Krieg irl next year so it would be good to have a little experience. At the very least I'll be reading along. The game doesn't start until Sunday, so you can download VASSAL/the VASSAL module along with the rulebook/the playbook (both from GMT) and get up to speed within a couple days. The playbook has really good intro scenarios that ease you into the game. For instance, the first training scenario for Totaler Krieg (A.1) is Case White in Poland. It's very small, and it literally says "read these rules sections before playing, and read these rules sections as you play. This first scenario will teach you basic movement and combat." Then the second training scenario teacher a little more, then a little more, then you're advised to read a few sections that will bring you up to speed for a full game. It's certainly not a beginner board game or anything by any means, but with the way the playbook/rulebook are laid out, I personally found it a lot easier to learn than a lot of other games. I mean, I still beat my head against A Victory Denied which has like a 10-page rulebook, just because it's so vaguely written. The faction leaders (Me, Tekopo, BlackMongoose I think?) will be making the high-level decisions along with card choices and stuff, but actual unit movement and combat within the minor countries will be handled by the controlling person, if I understand correctly.
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Dec 19, 2014 22:09
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Tekopo I'm learning USE and it's a hell of a good game, I don't know why I waited so long - I think I was turned off by the lack of numbers on the counters maybe I was worried things would be too abstracted. It's a really nice solution for dealing with stacking, and keeps the focus on the strategy rather than unit density. I dunno, I like it. I wanted something that scratched the TK itch but didn't cost $120+ I think it's in the 40s on Amazon.What I'm saying it maybe in a week or so we'll get together on VASSAL!
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Dec 19, 2014 22:17
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Is there a big difference between Totaler Krieg (1999) and Axis Empires: Totaler Krieg (2011)? I can't tell if they are totally different games or not.
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Dec 23, 2014 04:50
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Panzeh posted:Axis Empires is something of a sequel and is somewhat different in a lot of ways. It's a significant revision. Gotcha. I was curious if the $11 TK was worth buying over the $100 AE:TK Meh guess I'll stick to vassal. I don't get how TK can cost over 100 and USE is only like 40.
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Dec 23, 2014 05:03
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Lichtenstein posted:Mark Herman is doing one, IIRC. Too early to have announced anything of note. Holy poo poo. Awesome.
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Dec 23, 2014 16:10
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Among other games, I got Reds! and Unconditional Surrender for Christmas. I've been playing through USE on VASSAL, so it'll be nice to actually get the counters on the table. Well... one half of the map at a time, until I get a bigger table.  Also got some Paypal money so I just put in an order for Fields of Fire. Since, you know, I enjoy banging my head against a wall over understanding rules. It just looks like such a good game engine 
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Dec 26, 2014 22:30
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Tekopo posted:Buy a 2mm corner cutter from Oregon Lamination. Does this size work for the small counters too like ASL/MMP games, and USE? Tekopo posted:EDIT: Also, where did you buy FoF from COOL CORN? A guy on the BGG market. It's the first edition, but he says he only played half of the first mission before giving up, so most counters aren't even punched, and I figure I can get the 2nd edition rules online so that hopefully they're at least readable by humans.
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Dec 26, 2014 22:54
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 What did I get myself into
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Dec 27, 2014 01:35
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I played another solo game the other night - it's really easy to explode NVA control in the pre-coup turn if you play your cards right. I really want to pick up AA/CL/ADP, but gently caress out of print prices CL I can find for around ~50 every now and then, that might be fun solo since it's the smallest of the bunch.
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Dec 29, 2014 16:13
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I'm up for whatever. I know COIN rules, ain't no thing.
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Dec 29, 2014 18:14
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I'm looking for a good hex/counter game that deals with the WW2 Pacific theater and also includes the naval/air aspects. Annnnnnd doesn't have cards. Empire of the Sun is THIS CLOSE to being exactly what I'm looking for, but the CDG aspect of it makes it not very soloable.
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Dec 29, 2014 22:56
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I got Reds! for Christmas and it is really good. It's a chit pull game that involves all of the factions (Siberian front, Southern front, the Islamic republics, the West, etc) and manages to make it a very straightforward game while still being strategic and unpredictable. Highly recommended.
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Dec 30, 2014 00:03
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Somebody put up an unpunched copy of Thunderbolt Apache Leader for $35 on BGG today and I snatched it up so fast I think my mouse caught fire. Can't wait to play that, I've been dying to try the Leader series for a while now.
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Dec 30, 2014 16:48
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I have a rounder coming to me on Monday, and will break it in with Unconditional Surrender, Fields of Fire, Reds!, and Thunderbolt Apache Leader. I'm unreasonably excited. I wish there were a place to get counter trays with overnight shipping... I'm sure I'll order some from GMT eventually but... eh, effort.
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Dec 31, 2014 20:56
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Hogge Wild posted:So what do you do with the clipped parts? Build pyramids to honour the victors or snort off hex maps? Chit dust is offered up as a burnt offering to the gods What the hell game is that agitprop counter from??
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Jan 1, 2015 18:43
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Now, I haven't played World in Flames, but I just read the following quote on BGG:quote:I had a friend [whose] wife filed for divorce and one of her claims was his games (and opponents) were more important to him. ...I have to play this now.
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Jan 2, 2015 15:57
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Panzeh posted:WiF is a bloated mess with a zillion expansions. Its main claim to fame is being better than A3R(it's A World at War now). Modern offerings provide better gameplay. That's interesting because I've been wanting to try Third Reich (classic). I didn't know AWaW was the reimplemention of that. Then again, USE is basically my #1 loved game at the moment so I guess I don't need another European theater strategy game. Also, I've been dabbling in Fields of Fire and its really not that bad after reading some tutorials. It's a shame the rules are a convoluted mess, because it's an amazing solitaire system. Same with Thunderbolt Apache Leader, which I also just got. But man, DVG makes awesome rule books. I just wish I could get the VASSAL module without paying $25 so I could play at work, ugh.
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Jan 5, 2015 05:44
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I used to think that my counter-clipping was a weird overly-groggy thing to do. After all, I just spent the past few evenings clipping all of the 900+ counters for Fields of Fire (which owns so much by the way. I'm thinking about doing an AAR/LP to show everyone what this game is about). But sometimes, someone comes along to put me to shame. I present: Sam. http://forums.gamesquad.com/showthread.php?92556-Sam-s-Master-Project-Thread-LOGISTICS-NIGHTMARE I especially would like to point out the scenario project. Holy poo poo.
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Jan 7, 2015 21:16
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That's cool to see. The guy I bought FOF from emailed me to ask if I wanted to play Up Front on VASSAL, which I've never played. It looks really cool, being a card-driven squad-based tactical game(?)... I think I'll give it a go.
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Jan 9, 2015 14:11
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There hasn't been an AAR/LP post in a while, so I wanted to make an one for Fields of Fire. I've been totally immersed in it for about a week now and am completely head over heels for it. Is it convoluted? Hell yeah. Does it have more of a learning cliff than a learning curve? Well, yes. But once you read the rules a couple times, and watch a few playthrough videos, everything starts to click, and this is hands down one of the most interesting and elegant solitaire games I've played. So, strap in, prepare for heartbreak, because this is: FIELDS OF FIRE -or- HOW TO COMPLETELY MISMANAGE A COMPANY OF OUR COUNTRY'S FINEST Who are we? We are a company in the 9th Infantry Regiment ("Manchus") during the Normandy invasion of WW2. The first mission of our Normandy campaign is an offensive on Trevieres, which will be our company's first battle with the German Army. The following mission takes place between June 8th and 10th. The mission lasts 10 turns, so that breaks down to about 5 turns = 1 day, so accounting for sleep time, 1 turn = ~3 hours, give or take. The campaign book gives the breakdown of our Company and the assets we have to work with, in addition to specific attachments that we get per mission. Aside from the attachments, these men will be with us for the entire campaign. CO HQ (Company Headquarters) - CAP Zachary Z. Sargent CO XO (Company Executive Officer) - 1LT Ross J. Whitman CO 1st SGT (Company First Seargent) - 1SG Jason L. Ashford In addition, the Company has a Jeep unit, a 60mm Mortar unit, and a .50cal Heavy Machine Gun unit. 1st PLT HQ (First Platoon HQ) - 2LT Steven C. Massey 2nd PLT HQ - 2LT Reginald V. Riordan 3rd PLT HQ - 2LT James L. Webb In addition, each Platoon has 3 squads (e.g. 1/1st, 2/1st, 3/1st in the 1st platoon). 1st and 2nd platoon each have a Light Machine Gun unit and a Bazooka unit. 3rd platoon has only a Bazooka unit. Finally, the Company has assigned to it for just this mission, an Artillery Forward Observer attachment (ARTY FO). Since there's a good chance that little of these makes sense, here is a visual depiction of the Order of Battle, awkwardly drawn by myself:  As far as experience goes, most everybody is "line" - that is to say, average experience. Unfortunately, due to various Army factors, the company was given a "green" CO HQ, CO XO, and all three PLT HQs. This will affect their ability to command. Now, each officer receives certain "assets" per campaign mission. This is a mix of communications equipment and pyrotechnics, with which to give signals to units across the battle area. You "key" certain pyro signals to certain commands - whatever you want them to be. Much like the real battle, an officer would have to say, "okay, when I throw a red smoke, everybody cease fire," or something to that effect. Same deal here. Here's a picture of the assets:  The CO HQ has a Batallion phone, to receive orders from BN HQ, a CO phone, to speak with his officers, and two Runners that he can send across the battlefield, if any of his officers get out of communication. The CO XO and CO 1st SGT both have CO phones, to send and receive orders. The Platoon HQ officers each have CO phones as well as phone line to lay down. As they move across the battlefield, they'll be dropping phone line to stay in touch with CO HQ. They also have a number of different pyrotechnic devices - Red/Green Star Parachutes and Star Clusters (RSP/RSC/GSP/GSC), High Concentrate Smoke (HC), White Phosphorous Smoke (WP), as colored Smokes (Purple/Yellow/Green/Red, PS/YS/GS/RS). The men know to respond to pyro signals in the following ways: - RSC/RSP/RS: Cease Fire - GSC/GSP/GS: Seek Cover - PS: Shift Fire Where are we?  Let's get into the mission at hand. Every mission is a grid of terrain cards, which will vary by mission. Some will be big, some will be small, some will be random, some won't. This first mission is a grid of 3 rows by 4 columns, with a 1-row staging area at the bottom. Each card has different attributes regarding its terrain, which I'll get into as it's required. There are markers on the board for "Line of Departure", "Line of Advance", "Left Boundary" and "Right Boundary". These form a box outside of which your men cannot go. That is NOT to say that there will be no enemy outside of that box. It is very probable that we will have to add terrain in order for new enemies to pop out, but can't move into that terrain. Per this mission's instructions, we are to clear the first two rows, clear the Attack Position (AP), and clear both Objectives on the 3rd row. I've selected as the Objectives, the Village and the Farm in the last row. Being able to get into a building will help me defend those positions after I take them. For the attack position, I've selected the Hedgerow - it's on a hill, which gives me uninterrupted line of sight (LOS) to almost the whole battlefield. So, if I park a mortar and/or a HMG up there, I can blast away anybody I need to. That's the plan, at least. What does "clearing" mean, in the context of this game? You'll notice "Potential Contact" markers on each card. Each time one of my men moves into a card with a PC marker, there is a chance that a random enemy unit will appear at a random location in sight of that card. 'A' has the most chance of appearing, with 'C' having the least chance. If there is no PC marker on a card, and no enemy unit on a card, it is considered clear. So, we have to explore and clean out the first row, second row, and the Village and Farm in the third row. If we do that, the mission is a success. If we don't within 10 turns, we fail. What's my plan? I plan to take the 1st Platoon up the left two column, and the 2nd Platoon up the right two columns. I want to bring in the 3rd Platoon behind them as support/sweeping. Along with 3rd Platoon, I want to bring my ARTY FO, mortar, and .50cal teams up to that hill, so that I can rain down death upon the Objectives, and take them. LET'S GET GOING ALREADY Each turn is played out in a series of phases. I'll walk through each phase and explain what I'm doing, and you get to watch the disappointment flow like water as I march my men into the jaws of death. TURN 1 3.1 Friendly HQ Phase - Does not occur on Turn 1. Normally, there would be a chance for a random event to happen that would give us either a bonus or a hindrance. Maybe we'll see that next turn. 3.3.1a BN HQ Activation - If the BN HQ were on the map, he would get 6 action points to do with what he wants. But, the BN HQ is not on the map, so he automatically activates the CO HQ. When a unit is activated, an Action card is drawn (see below), and the unit gets a number of action points equal to the number in the little Army helmet on the card. Since my CO HQ is Green, he gets -1. Since we have not made contact with the enemy, he gets +1. So, per the card I drew, he gets a net action point gain of 4 (modified by +0). Pretty good, but kind of useless on my first turn, since I'm just going to do a little scouting.  3.3.1b CO HQ Activation - So my CO HQ has 4 action points. I'm going to spend 1 to activate 1st Platoon, and 1 to activate 2nd Platoon. As a Green Officer, I can save a maximum of 3 actions per day. So I bank the last 2. I draw for the two Platoons - 1st PLT gets 2 action points, 2nd PLT gets 4. 3.3.1c PLT HQ Activation - Now I actually get to do some stuff. 1st PLT: I want to scout a little bit, so I spend 1 AP to order my 1/1st squad to move northeast to the Hedgerow. It's not as good for cover as the Farm, but has LOS to more of the central cards. I'm going with that. One a unit moves, he becomes exposed, so I place that marker on him. The terrain gives him a +2 defense, but being exposed gives him -2. Hope nothing bad happens. I bank the last action point, since I don't want to move any other units until I know the coast is clear. 2nd PLT: Same deal, I want to move one unit. I spent 1 AP to move 1/2nd squad north into that Hedgerow. Again, the unit is exposed due to moving. I bank the last 3 action points, in hopes that I can do a good amount of stuff next turn. Since only 2 PLTs were activated by the CO HQ, we move on to the next phase. Here's our moved and exposed men:  3.3.2b PLT Initiative - Any PLT HQ that was not activated gets to draw for action points anyway. Thing is, they use the smaller number (in the star) below the bigger number (in the helmet). So, they'll get to order people around either way, but they'll get MORE orders if it comes down the pipe from CO HQ. Makes sense. 3rd PLT: Drew 3 APs, which is pretty great for an initiative draw. Banked all 3, since 3rd PLT is my backup. 3.3.2c CO Staff Initiative - The CO XO and CO 1st SGT each get 1 AP per turn, they don't draw a card. I bank them. 3.3.2d General Initiative - This is how you get stuff done. You draw a card, and use the initiative (smaller) value, don't modify it, and use it to command ANYONE. Normally, CO HQ has to be within phone contact to activate the PLT HQs, and PLT HQs have to be on the SAME CARD as squads in order to command them. That creates a lot of difficult later on, if people get too scattered. But General Initiative can be used on anyone. So, I order 1/1st squad and 1/2nd squad each to search for cover. The number in the bottom middle of the card is how many action cards I draw to see if I find cover. The number in the bottom left is how many cover/microterrain elements can exist in a given card. If it's a building, that means I can do a further check to see if I get into a strong building. Anyway, this is what i'm looking for:  Even though I found it for each of my squads on the first card, I still draw all 4 for each, to keep the RNG working correctly. So, I found cover with both units, and put a +1 cover marker on them. So, they're still "exposed" in the sense that the enemy knows they're there, but they're found some shrubberies to hide behind to provide a little cover. I forgot to get a snapshot of it, but you'll see in a minute. 3.4.1 Enemy HQ Phase - Does not occur on Turn 1. Same deal as 3.1, but for the enemy. 3.4.2 Enemy Activity - No enemies on the board yet, so doesn't happen. 3.5 Mutual Capture Phase - No casualties or prisoners yet, so doesn't happen. 3.6 Mutual Vehicle - I didn't activate my Jeep, so there's no vehicle phase. 3.7.1 Update Fire Missions - There was no mortar/artillery activity, so doesn't happen. 3.7.1b Evaluate PC Markers - Yay something's happening! Now the fun starts. There are so many cool mechanics in this, here we go. We have two PCs to check, since I have friendly units on two cards with PC markers. They're both C. First, I check the player aid to see how many cards to draw for each.  Next, I randomly decide which PC to check first - but how to do we do that with no dice? With cards, of course! I have two PCs, so I want a number between 1-2. I draw a card, and at the bottom, look at the column labeled "2". That's my random number. I got a 2, so I'm going to eval the second (right) PC first.  To do this, sort of like how we checked for cover, I'm going to draw 4 cards (since we're at "No Contact" right now) and look for "Contact" at the top of one of them.  And there it is. So now, we find a random number from 1-10 to figure out what is going to attack us. 9. Let's see...  9 is a "LMG Nest". Let's see what exactly that is.  (I snapshotted this wrong) Well, it's a Light Machine Gun unit, in Foxholes, that is unspotted, and firing on us. Great. So next we pick another random 1-10 number to find out where it goes. 10. "Front right at max LOS". Okay, time to talk about LOS. A unit can always see into an adjacent card, no matter what. If the adjacent card has white borders, the unit can see through it, if not, it can't. So, the Marsh to our front-right has dark green borders, blocking LOS - that's our "max LOS". Hopefully that makes sense. So, we place our LMG unit north-east of us, under Foxholes, unspotted (marked with a PC ? marker), and firing on us.  Now we get to talk about combat a little. I'll get to the meat of it later, but you need to understand that this is not a tactical game per se. It's an operations game. Your squads are smart enough to know when to fire on the enemy. The enemy is smart enough to know when to fire on you. As soon as a squad spots another squad, they're going to open fire. The "PDF" marker shows the primary direction of fire that the unit is shooting in. Obviously, you can't cross another squad's PDF, or your units will be shot. The destination for the fire gets a VOF (volume of fire) marker, depending on what kind of fire is going into it: small arms, automatic fire, heavy fire, grenades, snipers, etc. So, since he sees me and has a machine gun (an automatic weapon), he has a PDF pointing at me, and puts an automatic VOF in my terrain card. I don't put anything toward/on him, since he's unspotted at this time. Not good. Alright, let's evaluate the other one. Since we're now at "CONTACT", we draw 3 cards instead of four. And, yes, I made contact. Draw for what it is annnnnd... a 3. gently caress. Incoming Mortar Strike. An enemy mortar spotter shows up, and all of a sudden, mortar shells are exploding in my terrain. So, I place an "Incoming!" marker in my terrain card (per the Enemy package listing). I draw a 10 and the German spotter gets placed at front left max LOS. Since the default cover for this mission (per the mission book) is "Trenches", I place him under Trenches, unspotted, with a PDF marker pointing toward me. I will say, I don't think the PDF is required here, since the spotter doesn't actually have any weapons and can't shoot me per se, but only calls for artillery fire on a certain terrain. But, it's a mnemonic to help me remember where to apply combat results, so I'm doing it.  Wow, two enemies and I can't see either one, and I'm getting fired on. This is turning out just as good as I hoped. 3.7.2 Combat Effects - this happens mutually, so it doesn't matter what order I resolve them in. I usually go top-to-bottom, left-to-right, but it doesn't really matter. I have two squads with VOF markers that I need to resolve, and no enemies with VOF markers. 1/1st Squad: +2 for the terrain (number in the upper left); +1 for cover; -2 for being exposed; -3 for the incoming mortar fire (I know it says -1 on the marker, but that's only for vehicles. For every else, you use the number on the Spotter's counter, which is -3). That gives us a net combat modifier (NCM) of -2. Not great. So, another stroke of brilliance, you draw a card and look on the left side for the NCM value you figured out.  It's a hit. A "pin" is just marked with a pin marker, but for a "hit" we have to go one step further and draw another card, looking at the hit results near the bottom.  Since this squad is "line" experience level, the result is "FC". In this game, units are just reduced by steps outright. They have various "limited action teams" they can become, so that they're limited in their use, but not always straight-up dead. The 1/1st Squad is a three step unit. "FC" means that I turn on of those steps into a Fire Team (useless except for really basic firing), and one of those steps into a Casualty (completely useless, just lies on the field). I flip the Squad over to it's 2-step side and add a Fire Team to the card. Then I reduce the 2-step squad into a 1-step Fire Team, and add a Casualty to the card. When a squad is reduced from 2-steps to 1, it becomes a Fire Team. So... now I have 2 Fire Teams and a Casualty on the card, thanks to the incoming mortar fire.  (I usually keep things stacked, but I separated it out to show better.) 1/2nd Squad: +2 for the terrain; +1 for cover; -2 for being exposed; -1 for automatic fire. That gives us a NCM of 0, which I can live with. I draw a card, and....... MISS. I think I actually let out a sigh of relief when I saw that. So, the enemy missed this round. But never fear, the enemy doesn't stop shooting! Another interesting thing about FOF is that PDFs and VOFs don't move or stop just because the destination unit moves away. When the enemy moves, you may not know about it, so you're still unloading ammo into that Hedgerow or whatever. They don't stop firing until you order them to Cease Fire, and they don't fire in a different direction until you order them to Shift Fire (that's a generalization, but if any exceptions come up I'll mention it). 3.8 Clean Up Phase - The only things we have to do are remove the "Exposed" markers, since my units are done running around. L And here is our map after turn 1. Not a whole lot happened, but at the same time, a lot of action happened.  If you guys enjoyed this, let me know and I'll keep it going. If not, I'll stop. Either way, just wanted to share the fun.
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Jan 9, 2015 23:20
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rchandra posted:Speaking of which, Gallic War has dropped off the list (was in the nebulous 2Q/3Q 2015).. Second-hand info from BGG says it got bumped for more testing. Yeah, they responded to my Facebook comment by saying this: quote:No big problem here, just quality control efforts. Volko and I decided Liberty or Death will be next in the COIN queue, to allow time for proper testing of Gallic War. To be fair, I am pretty excited for LOD, moreso than GW.
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Jan 11, 2015 18:09
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Just found out that the reprint of Empire of the Sun is going to include extra cards/player aids/rules for a solo play AI - separated in early/middle/late game rules for both sides, so you can play either side solo during any part of the game. I just went over to the P500 page so fast my mouse exploded.
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Jan 12, 2015 14:51
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You guys ready for some more fun??? I blurred out the background some so that hopefully it's a little easier on the eyes. FIELDS OF FIRE NORMANDY CAMPAIGN MISSION 1: TREVIERES TURN 2 When we last left our intrepid Company, things were looking dire for the expeditionary squads. Had they known what else lied in wait for them, the plans to take Trevieres would have been very different indeed. NOTE: I totally forgot to put Exposed markers on my moving units this turn. Whoops. But, since there was enough death and destruction this turn already, I'm not going to bother re-playing it and re-drawing all the combat. I'll just play it as it lies. 3.1 Friendly HQ Phase - Didn't draw an HQ marker, so nothing happens. 3.3.1b CO HQ Activation - Drew a 4, but since we're in Contact with the enemy now, we no longer get the +1 for No Contact, and only get the -1 for being a Green unit. Net APs is 3. I use one to activate 1st PLT, one to activate 2nd PLT, and bank the last one, bringing my Saved Points up to 3 (the maximum that a Green unit can save). 3.3.1c PLT HQ Activation 1st PLT (drew net 3 APs, have 1 saved) - I spent 2 APs to do a full platoon move into the Farm due north. This looked like a good defensible spot, and the incoming mortar fire next to it will be ending after this turn, so I'll have two adjacent cards to take on whatever shows up. Then I spent another AP to have the HQ unit search for cover... drew all the cards, and got no cover marker. I really don't want to lose my HQ, so I used my last (saved) point to "exhort", meaning I get to draw a single card extra on the previous action. I found cover! Now I get to draw again to see if it's normal +1 cover or a strong building +3 cover, since I'm in an urban area. Per the charts, in Normandy a 1 through 3 is Strong Building, 4 through 5 is normal cover. A 3! Strong Building! The HQ unit is in good shape now.  2nd PLT (drew net 3 APs, have 3 saved) - Again, I'm going to use 2 APs to do a full platoon move for the same reason. I'm heading NE to the Hedgerow/Bocage. I'll use my last drawn point to search for cover, which I didn't find. I'm not going to exhort this time because I have more pressing matters - whereas the ARTY spotter is leaving after this turn (he only gets two fire missions), the LMG nest isn't going anywhere, I need to focus on him. I'm going to spend 1 saved point to spot the unspotted LMG nest. I draw two cards and look for the crosshairs symbol. Got it! So now we open up from two adjacent cards, which happens automatically when units are seen by other units who aren't firing. The enemy gets a -1 VOF for automatic weapons, and since fire is coming from two different directions, the card gets a -1 Crossfire VOF. Awesome. But I think I can do better. I'm going to spend my 2nd saved point to attempt to concentrate fire with my LMG. Draw two cards... no crosshair. Shucks. I have one more saved point, I'm going to exhort. No crosshair. Shucks. Still an okay situation.  3.3.2b PLT HQ Initiative - 3rd PLT is the only one that didn't activate before, so I draw for initiative. He gets 1 net point, and I don't have anything I want to do with them, so I'm banking it. They have 3 saved APs now. 3.3.2c CO Staff Initiative - Again, nothing I want to do with them, so I bank their 1 AP each that they get. They're now up to 2 saved APs each. 3.3.2d General Initiative  I draw a straight-up 0. God drat it. SIGH. Hope things go well for me in the combat phase. 3.4.1 Enemy Higher HQ Phase  I DID draw an HQ marker this time, so now I draw a random #/10 and got a ... 9. Let's see what that is. "Counter Attack: Place a random PC Marker (? side up) on every US occupied card" uggggggghhhhhh seriously?! Are we in Normandy or loving Vietnam?! Okay, so, I already have PC markers in two of the cards that are occupied, so I don't think I add to them. I'm going to add two ? PC markers to the two occupied cards that don't have them.  3.4.2 Enemy Activity 1/MTR in Row 2, Col 1 - Mortar teams have special rules, and don't use the random draw tables that other units do. Their rule is, if they have fire missions left, they draw cards to see if it succeeds, and then they place it per the rules in the rule book. I draw a burst symbol, so I place another fire mission in the same spot as before. The unit is now down to 0 fire missions, so it is removed, the PDF from him is cleared, but the fire mission markers remain until they're resolved.  1/LMG TM in R2C4  The mission briefing lists the enemy's position as "deliberate", so I use the Deliberate Enemy table to see what he does. I go down the list until I find the situation he's in, and roll on that table. First one that applies is "under fire from a different direction that its own PDF". Draw a random #/4, and got a ... 4. "Shift Fire", so now the LMG decides to focus its fire on the card South of it, instead of SW of it. Not too bad. 3.7.1a Update Fire Missions - Simply remove "Incoming" markers, and flip over any "Pending Fire Mission" markers to their Incoming side. So now I still have an Incoming marker in R1C2. 3.7.1b Evaluate PC Markers - This is going to be a doozy. I have 4 markers to evaluate, 2 of which I don't even know the severity of. So, let's flip the PC markers. Going across the board, we now have C, B, B, C. We evaluate in alphabetical order, so we do the Bs first. And pull a random #/2 to determine which is resolved first. #2. Okay.  B #2 - Drew Contact. Drew a 2, then a 3. Incoming mortars, front at max LOS. Haha, okay, great. More mortars. I place an "Incoming" marker on my units, and a covered unspotted spotter in front of them. Placed a PDF to remind myself where the fire is coming from. B #1 - Drew Contact. Drew a 2, then a 10. Incoming mortars, right front at max LOS - for gently caress's sake. Well, I already have another unit with a PDF in that card, so I pick another direction. 8, left front at max LOS. Same deal as before - but since I already have an incoming marker, the two would be redundant, so I just leave the one that's there (in combat, I would only use the lower of the two VOFs, which is -4 vs -3). I do put the 2/MTR under cover and unspotted, with a PDF toward me. Okay, on to the Cs. Random #/2: 2. Doing 2nd C first. C #2 - Drew Contact, seriously?? Drew a 5, then a 9. Incoming mortars, right front at max LOS - I can't do that, since both mortar teams are on the board, so I redraw. 6. Sniper. SIGH. Okay then, Place a sniper at front right, which I have to draw another terrain card for. He's under cover, unspotted, and firing a special "Sniper" VOF at my units. Only one is targeted, which is the HQ (then would be the unit with the most steps, then random). C #1 - This isn't fun anymore. Drew Contact. Drew a 7, then an 8. LMG nest, left front at max LOS. Simple enough, LMG team in a foxhole, unspotted, and firing at me. We know the drill by now. Wow, we're in a doozy of a situation, so let's resolve all this combat. Here's where we are going into combat...  3.7.2 Combat Effects I'll start at the top with the German unit in R2C4 (German 1/LMG TM) - the net combat modifier is a 0 (+1 foxholes, +1 terrain, -1 automatic fire, -1 crossfire). Drew a "miss". I can't catch a break this game. Moving on to row 1, column 1, and each unit on that card. 1/WPNS(MG): +1 NCM, drew a "Pin" 1/WPNS(BAZ): +1 NCM, drew a "Pin" 1st PLT HQ: +4 NCM (thank god for the strong building), drew a "Miss" 2/1st PLT: +1, drew a "Miss" 3/1st PLT: +1, drew a "Miss" That could have gone a LOT worse. Row 1, Column 2. I just have 2 fire teams and a casualty here. Basically just checking to see if my fire teams die. Fire Team 1: -1 NCM (+2 terrain, +1 cover, -4 artillery), drew a "Hit", then an "A". Changing him to an Assault Team would actually be an improvement, so that doesn't happen. Fire Team 2: -1 NCM, "Hit", "P". Unit is changed to a "Paralyzed" unit, that can literally do nothing, but could attempt to Rally next turn. Hit units are automatically Pinned, so that's added as well. Row 1, Column 3. 1/2nd PLT: 0 NCM (+2 terrain, +1 cover, -3 mortars), "Pin" Dodged a bullet there. Row 1, Column 4. I should not have moved my whole PLT up there. Only the HQ gets the -3 Sniper VOF, the rest get the -1 automatic fire VOF. 2/WPNS(MG): +1 NCM, "Hit", "L" - reduce the unit by one step and add a Litter Team. MG team is eliminated! 2/WPNS(BAZ): +1 NCM, "Pin" 2nd PLT HQ: -1 NCM, "Pin" (PHEW) 2/2nd PLT: +1 NCM, "Pin" 3/2nd PLT: +1 NCM, "Miss" All things considered, not too bad. 3.8 Cleanup Phase This is normally when I would remove exposed markers, which is exactly when I realized I didn't use them. As I mentioned earlier, I'm just going to keep playing as it is, so that I wouldn't have wasted an hour playing our the turn  We have a hell of an uphill battle to fight here. I might just have to wait out the mortar fire before trying anything. Count Thrashula fucked around with this message at 17:25 on Jan 12, 2015 |
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Jan 12, 2015 17:15
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Panzeh posted:There are a lot of games about battles in the gallic wars but there are very few games about the wars themselves. We just need a good high-level strategic game about the time period. Unconditional Surrender! The Gallic Wars 58BC - 50BC Come on Sal Vasta, I know you have it in you... Right after you do US!:World War II in the Pacific sigh...
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Jan 13, 2015 00:28
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Jobbo_Fett posted:Hmmm, seems like USE is better for solitaire play, thanks for the recommendation. Now to track down a physical copy! USE is awesome for solitaire play, and can be found pretty cheap since it's still relatively new.
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Jan 13, 2015 14:42
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