Happy New Year ! - 2010

Happy New Year to All!!

After a year of not posting anything on this blog I have decided to write something again! The reason for the dearth of blog posts was just plain laziness on my part as well as the new facebook page that Philboardgamers got this year where it seems to be easier to post things and get feedback quicker.

One of the new year resolutions I made for 2010 will be to write more regularly. Expect to find this blog to get filled up more this year as I narrate, opine, comment on the wargames I will get to play this year.

While 2008 was the year I was introduced into the board wargaming hobby, 2009 was the year I went crazy and bought and played a number of games. While I don't exactly remember exactly all the games I bought and played this year (you can check my boardgamegeek profile to see all the games I have and played), I will just highlight some of the more memorable events for this year:

1. Wargame Meet is now a regular gaming event. It is held every 2nd saturday of the month. Its still a small gathering with attendees averaging from 10-15 people. We were able to get some interest from the Euro/Amerigames crowd as they discovered the wonders of multiplayer card driven games such as Here I Stand and Napoleonic Wars, block games such as Hellenes, Hammer of the Scots and Crusader Rex and traditional hex and counter games such as ASL Starter Kit.

2. Philboardgamers Facebook Page was put up this year to help spread the word to anyone interested in the Philippines about the presence of a board wargame group that meets regularly to play. So far, we are close to a thousand members but only a handful are active. Some have expressed interest in attending and we hope to see them attend an upcoming gaming event.

3. The presence of ASL Guru, Jeff Coyle, in the country has the few ASL enthusiasts happy as he patiently teaches us the rules and tactics to become better players. We get bitch slapped by Jeff in almost every game but its still fun. ASL has become my most played wargame as there is also a regular ASL group that plays every Saturday at Mark's house. I have to admit that I like this game a lot despite the complexity of the rules. It has so many scenarios and covers all sorts of weapons, troops, terrain, situation and can be played 2 or more players, campaign style (which we have to do before Jeff leaves the country). I have also won 1 more game of ASL as well!!

3.1 A number of VASL games were played this year contributing to ASL being the most played wargame for me this year. In order to avoid the traffic jams, long travel times and at the same time be at the comfort of one's house and have games neatly saved in electronic file, the ASL enthusiasts played ASL online using VASL software with the help of Skype for communication. Hopefully VASL games will be played regularly every week while a continuous VASSAL game (for the other wargames) will be running for a few months.

4. Mark's wargame sale throughout the year gave the rest of us the chance to get some rare or out of print games without the trouble of shipping and customs. Mark has been a long time avid gamer since the 70s as much as a collector. I was able to get around 7-10 game from him alone this year. Some of the notable games sold in my opinion were The Longest Day, Caesar at Alesia, Dune and Caesar's Legions

Well, that will be all for now. I'll update this page once more as 2010 unfolds and more games are purchased and played. Until then, have a good day!

Vlad

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!!

All is still quiet in the front as there have not been any wargaming events save for the usual attendance at the monthly Open Gaming Meet. I guess everyone (Including me) is quite busy with the holiday activities and if any wargaming has occurred, it probably happened in smaller private gatherings. Mark H., the main organizer and ring leader of our wargaming events, is still quite busy with his current project at work and will continue to be so in the next few months. So, I expect things will still be at status quo until Mark has more free time from work.

In the meantime, this blog will be more of a personal rambling of my recent experiences, acquisitions and gaming...

Last December, I wrote an email to the guys of the 2 Half Squads Podcast and they read my email on air in the latest episode (link to their show on the right). Wow!! I felt a bit embarrassed that they read my mail, being a shy person. I haven't had such a deluge of visitors since Mark H. posted a link of the blog on consimworld.

Thank you 2 Half Squads and thank you to the international listeners for dropping by and browsing the blog! I hope you enjoyed the articles!

I also bought books to read last December for better appreciation and understanding of the battles and wars, I bought the following:

1. In the Name of Rome (Adrian Goldsworthy) - A book on the best Roman generals who ever lived detailing their campaigns and how they went about it. I am at the latter part of the book and will probably write a short review after completion.

2. Barbarossa (Alan Clark) - A book on the Russian Campaign. Next on my reading list. In fact, I'm starting to read it and at page 10 already.

3. Atlas of Military History - Well, I wouldn't probably read this from cover to cover since its more of a reference material. I previously bought another Atlas from the same publication focusing on WWII which I covered on my earlier blog. This particular atlas has wonderful maps and explanations of the important battles and wars throughout the history of man. A minor disappointment is the various spelling errors in the book but I can overlook that and still enjoy browsing this book.

Recent game acquisitions:

1. Downtown - I figured I should collect this game since its out of print already and had some great reviews.

2. Habit of Victory - Latest and last game published by OSG since its closing.

3. The Seven Days of 1809 - I decided to pick this up as well but it hasn't arrived yet.

4. Commands and Colors: Ancients Dice - I bought extra wooden dice from Valley Games to speed up gameplay. Its better than the black plastic dice from the original game.

5. 36 D6 opaque blue and white dice (Chessex) - I have a couple of games which require a bucket of d6s and so I bought this.

My wish list hasn't changed from the previous blog last October and I would like to add one more to the list:

1. Fields of Fire - At first it didn't catch my attention but the recent pictures of the game and positive reviews at boardgamegeek made me take a closer look. I also don't have any solitaire games and would like a few that I could play and include in my collection.

Games I played and/or Observed the past few months

1. Combat Commander: Europe - At last I got to play this one. My friend Dennis and I have rescheduled playing this game many times last year and finally got to sit late December and finish the first scenario, with my victory! We were able to play last Saturday again but was not able to finish the second scenario of the game.

2. Commands and Colors: Ancients - Aside from Combat Commander, Dennis and I played this light ancients card driven game. I've played this once before but haven't used terrain. We picked the Crimissos River scenario which now has river and hills. I lost this one though.

3. Twilight Struggle - Yes you can say it was CDG galore last December. Dennis and I played on a different day and he won this game with the Russians.

I may write more about my opinions of CDG in a future blog post.

4. Crusader Rex - I also wanted to get my block games on the table. I played this game finally with new found gamer friend - Thomas. I was soundly beaten. I feel that the game is somewhat unbalanced but am willing to try again (my opinion in detail in this link).

5. Storm Over Stalingrad - I watched Mark and Jeff play this game in the December Open Gaming Meet. Its an area movement game with cards providing random events for both sides. It seems like an enjoyable game with easy rules and nice components. Yeah, I may get this game this year.

In the pipeline... I have some games that I feel should get to the table a few more times and a game series I have been interested in trying out.

1. Great Battles of Alexander - I have always wanted to try out the "Great Battles" series. A new wargamer, Tristan, has provided me with the rulebook, which I am currently reading.

2. FAB: The Bulge - I've only played this once and would like to try it out again. Dennis is interested in playing this game.

3. Hammer of the Scots - As mentioned above, I would like to get my block games played but due to the missing pieces of this game, I have to wait until my order of the spare parts arrive.

4. Fire in the Sky - Dennis has agreed to play this one as well. This is well at the back of the list of games in the pipeline

I guess this will be all for now. I shall continue to write articles on my opinions and experiences in wargaming. Hopefully, we will all have another good year of gaming ahead of us!

Sincerely,

Vlad

Updates and Musings

Greetings!

All is quiet in the Front as there have been no wargame meets in the past 2 months nor any weekday wargames played. Everyone is busy with other things in life such as work, family, etc. Without my dose of wargames, I have been playing Euros and RPGs more often lately. Fun as they are, I do miss the military strategy and replaying of history on tabletop that wargames offer.

In the meantime, I continued building up my collection. The recent major sales promos from GMT and Noble Knight and the going away sale of OSG have prompted me to buy some games. From GMT, I was able to get the 50% off due to buying a P500 game (Twilight Struggle) and was able to budget to get 2 games which were:

1. The Burning Blue – I was looking for something different from GMT and thought of getting this game. The good reviews of Downtown (and that a friend of mine already had Downtown) also helped me decide to pick up this title. It was a tough choice between this or the new East Front Series Game called Barbarosa: Kiev to Rostov. I just may get the East Front game using the 20% off promo though.

2. The Napoleonic Wars – I kept hearing good reviews about this game from podcasts as well as seen people at the local Open Gaming Meet have a good time playing it. I also think I can get some of the gamers in the local gaming scene to play it. It’s also my first multi-commander strategic card driven game. I am currently reading the rules of this game with the hopes of getting it on the table next year.

As a background, I thought of getting SPQR Deluxe Edition. However, I thought that I can satisfy my ancients wargaming crave with Commands and Colors: Ancients and its expansions anyway. Also, I recently found out someone got SPQR from the local gaming group and I think I can try it out with him.

With the closing of OSG, I went over to their site to check out the Napoleonic wargames for sale. Everything was 50% off! I asked and surfed around for opinions on what to get and thought about it for a few days since I was unfamiliar with OSG’s games and wanted to give it a try before its games became unavailable. To my surprise, I came back again and found that the games I have been eyeing were sold out! I was a bit pissed at myself for missing the chance to get the 50% discount. I went to Noble Knight instead to pick up the last copy of The Habit of Victory after much thought since the discount wasn’t that deep. It was a good thing the site had a sale of its own and after some of OSG’s other popular titles sold at Noble Knight (The Sun of Austerlitz, Napoleon at Bay and Napoleon at the Crossroads) were snatched up, I decided to get the last copy of The Habit of Victory from Noble Knight (Yes, the game display disappeared after I bought it!).

I have also been busy re-visiting some of the games I haven’t played yet. I decided to brush up on the popular block games Hammer of the Scots and Crusader Rex since the rules are “simple” enough that I can get the other gamers to try it out. Unfortunately, my Hammer of the Scots game is missing a block and this made the game unplayable. I will be reordering blocks and sticker labels soon for both block games replacement and spare. I have been trying to convince people to play Crusader Rex in the meantime.

Aside from the games I bought I have been eyeing some other games for purchase. These were:

1. Barbarosa: Kiev to Rostov
2. Here I Stand (Still in P500)
3. Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit 2 and 3
4. Advanced Squad Leader full rules with binder
5. Storm Over Stalingrad
8. Rommel in the Desert
9. Issue 251 of Strategy and Tactics magazine – w/ Operation Cobra
10. B-29 Superfortress

My Pre-orders from GMT:

1. Bataan
2. The Battle for Normandy
3. Hellenes
4. Sword of Rome

As the saying goes “So many games... So little time”

I recently bought a book called “Collins Atlas of World War II” by John Keegan for better appreciation of the 2nd world war. I really liked this book because it gave a great overview of the many well known and important battles and operations that occurred during the war complete with the position of the units and its movement on various types of full-colored maps very much like a wargame. Aside from the battles, the book touched on other issues like the economic production of the countries, casualties, political boundaries, etc. that gave a better understanding of the whole picture of the War. My only minor complaint is that the paperback edition didn't spread out well specifically the maps that took up 2 pages that got split in the spine of the book made it hard to see what was there. Overall, I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the 2nd World War.

Well, thats all for now. I’ll be updating the blog once in a while when something worthwhile to write about occurs. Take care everyone!

Wargame Meet - September 13, 2008

A Wargame Meet was hosted by Jaime at his place at Wilson St., San Juan last September 13, 2008. In attendance were the host - Jaime, Mark (below), Jeff (shown above), Allen (at the bottom) , Adrian, Nabs and Adam.

Though several games were available, the ones that got to be played were Afrika, an operations-level game about Rommel’s African Campaign

... and Iwo Jima: Rage against the Marines, a magazine game about the Battle for Iwo Jima.

In spite of the low turn out, an engaging time was had by all, particularly by those who tried out Iwo Jima: they pronounced the game a good introduction for non-wargamers into the high art and subtle science of historical wargaming.

article written by: Adrian Martinez

Thanks to Adrian for contributing the short writeup on the wargame meet. Special thanks must also go to Jaime for the wonderful pictures and hosting the event. I wasn't there that day due to a wedding I had to attend (and no it wasn't my wedding!). I personally would have preferred to be playing. The turn out that day was only normal for a wargame meet. The fact that we had a woman (Nabs) in a wargame meet is probably a first in club history!

I would have liked to play Afrika since I'm in a Normandy - African Campaign mode lately and eager to try out games with those historical scenarios. I have gone through the rules of the game with Mark one night and will hopefuly have a full game soon.

I recently bought and received the same Operations magazine that has the Iwo Jima game as well as a special ASL scenario.

I'll read through the rules and run a game by myself to try it out and perhaps play it on our next Open Gaming Meet.

Wargame Meet Pictures

Here are the pictures of the previous wargame meets!

Meets are usually held on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Here we have Jeff and Benjie playing ASL on a Friday night last August 1...



There are also special days when we go out of town to escape the city and enjoy the fresh air of the country side... indoors. You wouldn't know it from the picture (maybe except through the wallpaper behind Mark) but this picture was taken in the mountains of Tanay, Rizal last August 16, 2008.



Here is another wargame meet in Makati at Steve's place last August 23. Most of the games played this day were light wargames.

Manoeuvre



Commands and Colors: Ancients



Gladiator



Up Front



Titan

ASL Session - August 29, 2008

S16 Legio Patria Nostra Radicofani, Italy, 18 June 1944. Free French vs. German

Benjie and I played this scenario just two days ago. Starter Kit #2 rules were in effect. This was a new ASL experience for me as guns were now in play. Guns meant the heavy guns such as anti-tank (AT), anti aircraft guns (AA), mortars - those kinds of guns. Yup, it was good times with bigger toys! I usually took on the defense while I strived to improve my ASL defensive game. The Germans again defend the town while the Free French tried to take 4 or more multi-hex buildings. Although the Germans had fewer and lower quality troops, they did have 1 AT gun and 1 AA gun. The Free French had more and better quality troops and 1 mortar.

Setup: Benjie sets up first by placing a squad right in the center of the map on one of the victory condition buildings on the hill (in blue + sign) . I setup next on the southern part of the map. My guns were hidden in the buildings marked with a red X while my troops, indicated by the maroon X, holed up in the other marked buildings. Benjie doesn't get to see my guns until I fire or change firing arc, or facing of the gun in layman's term.

Benjie sets up the rest of the Free French on the northern part of town.

... Unknown to him, I had my AT gun facing his troops positioned up north, which I expect are rushing down town while my AA gun was facing his troops in the house on the hill ready to blast those fools!!



Turn 1 - The Free French assault moved and then took cover inside the one hex buildings during the advance phase to avoid getting shot. Benjie fired his mortar but with no effect. He abandoned it to have more bodies on the field and greater mobility.

I didn't take any defensive first fire during movement so I can blast away at my defensive fire phase. Luckily for him, Benjie moved his troops on the hill backward one hex where my AA gun did not have line of sight (LOS) and my troops stationed at the back can't fire either because of no LOS. My squad at the opposite hill tried to pin him but to no effect.

All the while, Benjie was tempting and taunting me to reveal the position of my AA gun!!

I let loose during defensive fire with my AT gun (revealing it in effect) and managed to repulse one squad and pin a few others in the single hex buildings on the western side.

During my turn I didn't move any of my units and just prep fired away and tried to force his troops back but with little effect. I had to reveal my AA gun's position as it swiveled to change firing arc to have a better shot at the troops rushing forward in the eastern side of town.

Turn 2 - 5 - Benjie inched closer to the other buildings firing as a group when possible to suppress my defenders as his French troops advanced. Eventually I had to give up the multi-hex buildings on the east and withdrew a squad with a light machine gun to the south hill inside the multi hex building. The other two squads that I assigned to defend that area were DMed, reduced in quality and never recovered for the rest of the game. He captured my AA gun and took another multi-hex building but not before I blew up a squad or two with it!

In the western part of the map, he was able to get his troops in melee with mine in the multi-hex building I occupied but did not take control yet as mine were still in good order to fight and defend.

In the center, he retook the multi-hex building on the hill and continuously pounded at my troops as a fire group. My AT gun was able to cut down another squad or two before it jammed and broke down completely. I also had a strong fire group there and was able to prevent more squads from taking part in the assault on the west building.

Turn 6 -With a bunch of his troops in the east, Benjie made a dash with a squad and a leader into another multi-hex building near the south hill. I may have prep fired all my guys the previous round and thus was not able to defend that spot. I was caught by surprise at that move!

Benjie now had 4 buildings and 1 still under contest!

I assaulted the building with every available troop I had that could reach it and was able to flush him out in melee combat!

Benjie now had 3 buildings and 1 still under contest

The moment of truth came and all eyes were on the melee combat in the building in the west. It went up to the last dice roll...

My troops held out, which means Benjie did not have control of the building...

I just won my first ever ASL game!! YAHOO!!!

Thanks also to Mark for the advice on the final assault. Benjie received the Croix de Guerre for teaching me the ropes of starter kit 2 and for a very enjoyable game!



Just some other post game thoughts... I think I'm getting used to the game and have a better grasp on defense. I was able to keep the defenders in better shape than my previous games and had only a few DMed guys at the end of the game. The AA and especially the AT guns made an impact on the game and balanced out the scenario somewhat. The guns ain't as flexible as the soldiers that can fire at any direction without adjusting. One just has to keep the flanks of these guns defended because of the limitation in its firing arc or facing rules. I think ASL captures this situation well. When used properly, it proved quite strong especially the AT gun.

ASL Session August 9, 2008

S29 No Monumental Affair

This scenario is found in Operations Magazine #52. Le Muy, France, August 1944 (see red box in map below. Click to enlarge). The Americans’ mission is to take the town by controlling any 5 or more multi-hex buildings and one critical multi-hex building at the south end of the map. The Germans only have to defend and keep the Americans from reaching their goals for 6.5 turns. ASLSK Rules were in effect. I was playing the German defenders while Jeff played the American attackers.

There was some confusion about the historical accuracy of the scenario description. Further research from Wikipedia reveals that this was a separate operation held in southern France (Operation: Dragoon) as opposed to the Normandy, Northern France landings (Operation: Overlord) and had its own D-day count set at August 15, 1944. Full article on can be found here.

Setup: I spread out my brave defenders armed with light and medium machine guns on several buildings from east to west while my two heavy machine guns positioned at the back on the buildings located on the hill. Jeff placed the bulk of the American troops in the east taking cover in the woods. A smaller force was positioned in the west with less cover except for a few buildings and orchards. (Click map to enlarge)

Turn 1 – Americans move first, so Jeff moved his forces in the east using the woods as cover. I let loose with my machine guns during the defensive fire and was able to hold the GIs back for this turn. The American forces in the west also advance but under less cover. My machine guns and troops let loose and Jeff’s forces got suppressed.

Turn 2 – Jeff had a good rally phase and many of his troops recovered especially in the eastern part of town. They form a fire group and pin down my German defenders as his troops move to the nearby buildings on the hills just outside the woods and slowly approaching the defenders.

Meanwhile, the American troops in the west were in worse condition. They were not able to rally and were further pinned down by my troops. Taking advantage of the situation, I sent one squad forward to keep the pressure on the desperate troops forcing them back to the northern map edge at Jeff’s rout phase.

Turn 3 – Jeff’s eastern assault is now in full swing as he forms firegroups to pin down my defenders in the buildings. He advances his troops further and now surrounds my defenders on the hill and the nearby building on the ground. My defenders are now DMed and had to pull back during the rout phase.

On the western part of town, Jeff’s forces were able to rally back and beat back the squad I sent to pressure it. Sensing the danger on the eastern part of town, I moved my troops from the west to the east through the road and taking cover in some of the buildings.

Turn 4 – He keeps the pressure of the attack and my broken troops had to pull back once more to a safer location. His troops now run across the town taking more buildings than I would have liked. His forces are now positioned at the surrounding buildings right across the last objective building he has to take.

In the west, Jeff fought back hard and beat back my defenders and possibly eliminating one squad along the way. With fewer defenders, the western part of town becomes a stroll in the park for him.

At the end of the turn, he takes 5 out of the six buildings needed. All that is left is the last critical hex building in the south where the remainder of my forces are holed up.

Turn 5 – Jeff brought his forces to bear and fired everything he had. He advanced and took the building while my remaining defenders withdrew to the back of the building but not in good order any longer. Jeff took control of the building as well as 2 more buildings in the western part of town. My defenders threw a last ditch attempt to flush out the Americans but alas were too weak to make a difference.

Victory goes to Jeff in this game! While I get the Iron Cross for trying

I’ve been playing ASLSK regularly for a few months now and am slowly learning the rules and tactics. Jeff did advise me a lot during the game and showed me how he would have placed the defenders in town. Luck played a factor as well as I made a lot of poor rolls while Jeff’s rolls were a lot better in this game. Overall, it was satisfying game of squad level combat.