Publisher/Date:
Le Franc Tireur (2022)
Product Type:
Scenario Pack
Country of Origin:
France
Contents:
10 scenarios on glossy color cardstock, 40-page "magazine," 1 sheet of 280 die-cut 1/2" counters (replacement counters for LFT historical module The Green Hell of Inor).
From the Cellar Pack 11 is the latest in the long-running series of scenario packs from Le Franc Tireur, featuring a double handful of scenarios and several other goodies.
The major non-scenario component of the product is a long article on defense in ASL, “A Player’s Guide to A SeLf Defense” [capitalization as in original] printed in the form of a stapled 40-page magazine that doubles as the front of the product. The long article is written by British ASLer Toby Pilling, who informs readers that he is one of the top five ASL players in the world, and has “plenty of advice to impart.” Leaving aside the issue of who the top ASL players in the world are, Pilling inadvertently raises an interesting question: are the very best ASL players the best people to write about ASL strategy and tactics for other players? Although one might think the answer is naturally yes, it turns out the issue is more complicated than that, because teaching people requires not just play knowledge but the ability to communicate that knowledge as well. This is something the chess world has experienced for many decades–although many of the best players often write chess books (sometimes using their name to make a quick buck), many of the best chess books are not written by the best players. For example, Bruce Pandolfini, widely considered to be one of the best chess teachers around for many decades, has only a masters rating; he is not a chess grandmaster. However, he does have a lot of chess skill and, more importantly, is great at communicating that skill to others. ASL is also a game that, despite the cursed dice, is highly dependent on skill, and the same principle holds true: although some of the top ASL players have written great articles about ASL, many of the best articles about ASL are not written by people at the very pinnacle of the game. Part of this comes down to communication skills, but there’s more to it than that. First, the very best ASL players often know almost instinctively what the best move to make is in a certain situation–and it’s not always easy to communicate to someone what comes instinctively. Second, any experienced ASLer writing about ASL finds it difficult to remember what a novice or journeyman ASLer knows or doesn’t know, or can grasp or can’t yet grasp. ASL writers don’t want to waste time explaining the obvious; they want to meet players at their level and help them advance. So it’s not always easy for any ASL writer, but those who can skip past the obvious and reveal the non-obvious have an advantage.
In any case, the long Pilling article is mostly tactical defensive tips regarding a variety of issues and situations, including bore sighting, HIP, entrenchments, and so forth. There’s little in the way of teaching broad ASL defensive principles and dynamics; the focus is more on specific nuts and bolts. Even some relatively inexperienced ASLers may find some of the tips rather obvious, but it’s a long article dealing with a number of topics, and novice and journeyman ASLers are likely to be able to pick up at least something to enhance their game.
The other goodie in FtC11 is a countersheet with 280 1/2″ counters. They are not actually for use with this product but are replacement countersheets generously supplied by Le Franc Tireur to replace one of the countersheets in their historical module The Green Hell of Inor that suffered from some production issues.
The scenarios of FtC11 are, as usual, a mixed bag, depicting actions from a variety of times and locations. The situations include France 1940 (French vs. Germans), the Soviet Union 1942 (Soviets vs. Germans [2 scenarios]) and 1943 (Soviets vs. Germans [2 scenarios]), Italy 1944 (Free French vs. Germans), the Netherlands 1944 (British vs. Germans and Americans vs. Germans), France 1944 (Americans vs. Germans) and 1945 (Free French vs. Germans). Lovers of the PTO will have to wait for another time.
The 10 scenarios are primarily small in size, easily tournament-suitable. There are 7 small scenarios, 1 medium-sized action, and 2 large scenarios. No scenarios use Night rules but one uses OBA and two use Air Support.
To play all the scenarios in the pack, the following geoboards and maps are required: 18, 43, 60, 62, 66, 69, 70, 85, and ASLSK boards q and z, as well as Bounding Fire Productions geoboard BFP R from Poland in Flames, Le Franc Tireur geoboard LFT1 from Le Franc Tireur No. 10, and the KGS map from Le Franc Tireur’s historical module Kampfgruppe Scherer. It should be noted that the cards for the scenarios requiring third party maps/boards do not make the effort to identify the products including those components.
Several of the scenarios seem interesting. FT313 (Sainte-Barbe on Fire) features a French attack in the winter of 1945 to reduce the Colmar Pocket, a major German bridgehead over the Rhine that the Free French had considerable difficulty in eliminating. This scenario uses the historical map from Kampfgruppe Scherer (though it does not tell players where the map comes from) to represent a patch of territory in France near Colmar. Two different French forces, aided by 4 AFVs, must control 10 of 13 city blocks defended by a scratch force of 11 German squads with an AT gun and a Jagdpanzer. FT306 (Stalin’s Orders) features an early East Front armor clash between Soviets and Germans. How will the KV-1s and T-34s fare against German Mark III and Mark IV panzers? Or against German dive bombers? Another “classic” East Front situation is portrayed in FT305 (Storming Kutrik), a late winter action that sees a massive Soviet assault of 37 1st-line and conscript squads, supported by 7 T-34s, on positions held by 20 squads of the Spanish Blue Division, with 3 Guns and 3 tanks in support. This scenarios uses “Division Azul” counters from Le Franc Tireur No. 10, although it looks as if players can substitute normal German counters for them.
As of this writing–July 2024–the scenarios have the following playings on ROAR:
Overall, From the Cellar #11 seems like an interesting pack.
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