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This article was published in the '90 ASL
Annual. Since this magazine is no longer in print, MMP is providing this
article to our valued customers free of charge. This article is copyrighted by
Avalon Hill Games, a Hasbro affiliate, and is for the sole use of MMP and Avalon Hill
customers. This article may not be copied or sold. Website designers may link
to this article but may not copy the article for publication on their website. Whereas
this article appeared approximately 9 years ago, it is dated in some places due to the
appearance of subsequent modules and rules updates. To update the article, footnotes
have been made in the appropriate spots.
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| In the beginning, there was SQUAD LEADER. Fourteen years ago I was a
playtester for the original game, way back in 1976. After reading the rules for the
first scenario, I thought that this was too complex a game system, and that it would never
catch on. I admit I was wrong. It did catch on - and in a big way. SQUAD
LEADER went on to be one of the most popular and successful titles in the
history of wargaming. Part of the reason for this success lies in the "Programmed
Instruction" format of the rules, which made the system accessible for most
wargamers. The novice SL player could absorb the large mass of detail in 12
scenario-sized bits. Then along came CROSS OF IRON,
CRESCENDO OF DOOM and GI:
ANVIL OF VICTORY, which expanded and refined the original game system. All
the gamettes continued the Programmed Instruction format of the rules, giving players a
total of 47 small, bite-sized chunks which, when all taken together, added up to a nearly
indigestible feast. While ideal for learning an innovative new game system, the
Programmed Instruction format is less than ideal for reference when you have to search the
rulebook hunting for that elusive rule. Out of SQUAD LEADER there arose ADVANCED
SQUAD LEADER, with its comprehensive rulebook designed as a reference to all the
updated rules in the ASL system. With its use of color, cross-references
and superb glossary/index, it is the best reference that I have seen, of any type.
However, the problem with the reference format is that it made it difficult to learn ASL;
in fact, it is a lot like taking a drink of water from a fire hose running at full
blast. Luckily, most of the ASL rules deal with specific terrain, units,
weapons and circumstances that don't appear in many scenarios. It is possible to
master the system by just reading the rules needed for the next scenario, and playing the
scenarios in order of difficulty. This is the approach that this article will
take: how to learn to play ASL (in only eight easy lessons). |
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This article makes use of the first five scenarios from the
original SQUAD LEADER as updated in The GENERAL (Vol. 22, No. 6 and Vol.
23, No. 2), the ten scenarios published in BEYOND VALOR
and the eight scenarios found in PARATROOPER.
The PARA scenarios require the counters and Board 24 that come with that module,
plus Boards 1-4 (which were included in SL). These four boards are also
required for the five updated scenarios, along with the counters from BEYOND VALOR.
The first ASL module itself contains all the counters and boards needed for its
ten scenarios (except for Board 8, originally in GI, which is required for two of
the scenarios). And, of course, you must have the ASL Rulebook at hand. I
recommend this Programmed Instruction approach to anyone seeking to move from SL
to ASL, whether they have played just SQUAD LEADER or kept up with the
system all the way through GI. Even if learning ASL from scratch,
it is a useful method – although I'd heartily recommend first approaching the system
by reading Chapter K (the "Squad Leader Training Manual" found in PARATROOPER)
which I authored1. Veteran SLers be warned:
even though ASL evolved out of SL, and despite a strong family
resemblance, there are major alterations and innovations throughout. Everyone
meeting the ASL system is in for a lot of surprises, so read every rule
carefully.
Lesson 1:
The Basic Infantry System |
