Advanced Squad Leader

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Advanced Squad Leader (ASL) is a tactical level counter based wargame set during the Second World War (a recent expansion also adds support for the Korean War). Although great fun (if tactical WWII combat is what your into) it is preposterously complex. How complex? The 'Pocket Edition' of the rulebook is 3/4 of an inch thick. The full version takes up most of a 2 inch 3 ring binder.

There is a simplified version available (ASL:SK), however, it is still very complex. Don't expect to be able to just sit down with your friends and play.

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A Deeper Dive

ASL is a tactical level WWII board wargame. With a complete ASL set, it is possible to re-create any combat action of WWII, at a squad, gun, tank level.

The above is true. ASL is NOT a game you break out with some neophytes and try to play. Down that path lies madness. The rules ARE long and complex and likely the best way to learn to play is to acquire a mentor, likely some old neckbeard (or Grognard as they prefer to be called) who's been playing the game since the 90s. And there are ASL game cons. I recommend avoiding the SKs (starter kits) unless you wanna just get a small taste. Ultimately, if you get the bug, SK rules are a subset/simplified version of the real deal, so the time spent SKing might of been better spent being a Man!

HOWEVER

While ASL is a vast steaming pile of rules, counters, boards and whatnot, one can dip their toes in without succumbing to the full breadth of the insanity. Here is how:

Rules

The rule book is organized into lettered Chapters (A, B, C, ...). At a bare minimum one should acquire the rule book. See below how to be a cheapo and still play ASL. BUT you will need the rules.

One does not need to read the entirety of the rules to play. Merely 1.5 chapters will suffice.

Chapter A

The meat and potatoes of infantry combat with a couple of toys thrown in (flamethrowers and demolition charges!). This chapter outlines the basics of the game and should be absorbed. It weighs in at 58 pages, so yeah, now you know. In this Chapter you get the how-to of how the Game flows, how to move and shoot (Infantry), how to check Morale, etc.

Chapter B

Most of the basic terrain types and their effects on game play are in here. Along with many Fortifications (foxholes, wire, mines, pillboxes...). Chapter B comes in at a lean 44 pages, but, it's not necessary to read it all. One can merely read the rules for the Terrain types present in the Scenario being played. More below. And GRATS!, you can now play some of the scenarios in the game. Ones with only infantry and light weapons.

Chapter C

In this Chapter is all the rules for Guns. Whether they shoot at things from on the board or from off board (radio called in Artillery) it's in here. Much different than infantry combat, one first needs to score a hit, then rolls for the effect of the hit. 23 pages of Gun goodness.

Chapter D

Vehicles (TANKS!) All the rules for Vehicles. How they move how they fight, how you destroy them. Starts a theme throughout the rest of the rules where previous rules are expanded upon to create the new rules. (i.e. Tanks are basically Guns that can move. All of the Chapter C Gun rules apply to Guns in Tanks.) 25 pages of rules to please even the Emprah! DOUBLE GRATS you've read enough rules to play a majority of the Scenarios, minus Pacific Theater ones.

Chapter E

Miscellaneous rules including Night Fighting, Gliders and Para trooping, Boats, etc. COMPLETELY OPTIONAL

Chapter F

Desert Fighting. Weird desert terrain (what little there is), dust clouds. COMPLETELY OPTIONAL

Chapter G

The Pacific. Pacific terrain (Jungle replaces woods, same boards), Japanese (yes they can Banzai charge!), tunnels and landing craft with beaches to land on. COMPLETELY OPTIONAL If one has no desire to play Pacific battles, don't read this chapter.

Scenarios

The meat of the game is around Scenarios. The first step to playing is to pick a Scenario. There are thousands in existence. A Scenario is one page that outlines:

• A brief bit of historical background to the scenario
• The victory conditions. Very Important
• The boards to be used and how to arrange them
• The forces each side gets and where they can setup
• Some Scenario Special rules, because why not make an already complicated game, more complicated
• A short note on how things turned out historically

Victory conditions are usually about what one expects, take these buildings or that hilltop, or kill more enemy troops than you lose, or drive through them and exit some number of units off the board, etc.. For the most part scenarios are balanced and one can always reference the reported win/loss ratio for a given scenario online. Crazy ASLers!

Game Play

Each Squad represents 10 or so soldiers. Each Leader, 1 man. Each Vehicle/Gun, 1 Vehicle/Gun. The boards have a hex grid, each hex is roughly 40 meters across. Each turn is 2 minutes. Generally each side will get between 6-16 Squads, a few Leaders, and perhaps a few tanks and or Guns.

Each scenario has a turn limit. Usually between 6-12. Each turn is divided into 2 turn half's. In one turn half one player is the Attacker the other the Defender, then for the next turn half they flip.

When you're the Attacker you get to move, shoot, jump into close combat and many more things.

When you're the Defender you can mostly do all the things the Attacker can, except move.

One of the more interesting game elements is as the Attacking player moves, the Defending player can shoot with his eligible units at the moving unit. Thus running around in the open in front of un-fired enemy machine guns is a sure way to die. Moving slow and taking advantage of terrain is key. However, most scenarios, because they have a turn limit, almost demand some unsafe actions. Herein lies some of the fun of ASL. How fast does one move in? Suppress that machine gun nest? Out flank it? Horde charge it?

The game is d6 based and most rolls use 2d6. Roll Low!. Unlike many other games, low rolls in ASL win the day. High rolls fuck you up (broken guns, duds, soldiers dying from wounds, etc.)

Gear

The primary game components are now produced and sold by MMP who took over after Avalon Hill went out of business.

The good news is, unlike certain companies psychotic desire to put players on a never ending treadmill of purchases, MMP ASL modules are complete packages. The purchase of one generally includes a dozen or so Scenarios, a few Boards, and the complete counter-set for one (or more) Nationalities. So one can even skip some modules. Don't like the French, don't buy the module.

Price wise the modules go for $100-$200 depending on size. All told there's maybe a dozen core modules. So one, if so inclined could get into almost all of the ASL goodness for $1-2K.

Also, there's a large third part industry selling Scenario packs, alternative counter sets (better art work mainly) and all kinds of additional paraphernalia. COMPLETELY OPTIONAL

The bad news is MMP re-publishes modules in a completely haphazard manner, seems to have but a couple of modules in stock at any point in time and their product run is slower than old people fucking. So if you want straight-from-the-horses-mouth modules from MMP and are looking to get 'em all, expect a long wait. Like decades. I shit you not.

Alternatively, there's the after market. EBay, FB Groups, other sites. Comes in 2 flavors.

There are fucktards who've sat on a module and never opened it. New In Shrink! Generally expect to pay at least original retail, if not more. A few modules, due to rarity or demand, go for prices the might make Forge World blush. Then there are opened, punched, used offerings. Generally cheaper but given the sheer number of counters in any given module, it hard to determine if you got the whole thing.

Another option is to keep an eye out for collections for sale. Due to disgust or Death, occasionally a Complete or Partial collection comes up for sale. While the former type is probably priced more or less correctly, the latter is often being sold by someone with little to no idea of the value of this pile of rules, counters and boards. An unscrupulous ASLer could get a nice set at a steal price, of course depriving some poor widow of multiple hundreds or thousands of <local currency>. But who am I to judge.

VASL. Lovely VASL. VASSAL is a computer program that allows for the playing of board games over the internet. VASL is the VASSAL module for ASL. Within this module is almost EVERY counter and board in the ASL universe. FOR FREE. You cheap fuck. With VASL and the Rules, one can play. Voila.

And if yer really destitute, but know someone with the ring bound rules, and someone with access to a business grade scanner, you can just toss the entire ruleset into the hopper, push SCAN and BINGO! Grats! You now have a LARGE (~750MB) PDF of the rules. Or so I'm told.

The Good

ASL is the ultimate in WWII tactical combat if that's your thing. Some of the things that happen during a game are truly awe inspiring.

Ex. Squad with a LMG and a Leader shoots uphill at a broken squad. They get a goodish roll and retain Rate Of Fire on the LMG (meaning they can shoot it again). The first shot though doesn't affect the target squad. So they shoot the LMG again (Since it retained Rate). Shot triggers enemy Sniper AND target Squad Rolls Snake Eyes on its Morale Check giving it a Heat of Battle roll. They Battle Harden, Rally, level up and Create a Hero. Oh, and the Sniper check, resulted in the Leader with the squad that shot at them taking a Head Shot (KIA).

The Rules - While long and tedious, there are few if no holes in them. So That_guy is fucked. And good. Fuck him.

The Bad

Rules Rules RULES RULES. Ridiculous amounts of time can be spent digging around in the rules.

Panzers of Fury?!?! - ASL has some sleazy tactics too.

http://www.ths85.net/zekesaslparadise/sleaze.html

Conclusion

If WW2 Tactical Combat is your thing, here it is. Anything (ANYTHING) that happened can be done. You can spend years playing this, and never run out of new things to try. Expense wise, it's a fixed cost, so not so bad.

Of course, as previously stated, you don't break out ASL and teach your new co-workers how to play.

Either you're an ASLer, or you are not.