Dad's Army: Father's Day Card

Bless the kids, they got me this! (see below, a Dad's Army Father's Day card, fantastic, or perhaps I am just easily pleased!):

Naturally with an exemplar example of pointing: 

Maybe I should make some 28mm Home Guard after all, BEF first though?

Advanced Squad Leader (ASL) Start Kit #2 has arrived!

Even though I am only seven pages through the twelve pages of ASL SK#1 rules, I decided that I really needed the indirect and artillery rules from the second starter kit too to do "infantry attacks" properly, so I was lucky enough to find it through Board Game Geek (see below, the prized parcel has arrived): 

The simplified ASL rules have now grown to twenty pages (and some interesting new nationalities in the mix), admittedly a lot of repeats from the first set, so not at all bad from teh learning perspective!

Not sure I will rush forwards for the ASL Starter Kit #3 as it seems a very expensive and "hard find for what it is! The alternative rout is the "Full ASL manual" (about the same price), but without counters. That would mean joining the ASL Modules hunt on eBay and the likes, something I don't think my wallet could afford! 

Donald Featherstone's Wargaming Newsletter - Weblink

https://www.fourcats.co.uk/mags/

A shout out of thanks to Phil Sabin for spotting this treasure trove! Many happy hours reading here!

Note to Self: ASL Resource Link(s) and Third Time Lucky [Updated]?

Superb ASL Resource Link:

https://www.desperationmorale.com/

I know, it is like Groundhog Day, or a scratched record (again and again). Yes, I am going in again. Wish me luck or pass me the bottle of Jack Daniels, and yes I mix it with coke and ice. The ASL Starter Kit #1 is my way in (again). I have also ordered ASL Starter Kit #2 as well, because "you do need indirect fire" in WWII infantry combat. I was also looking (too much looking) at ASL Starter Kit #3, which brings in tanks, but the prices were/are just too crazy. ASL, sigh, like an attractive mysterious woman, perplexing. It seems so right until you start dating! It is not that the "sound of" the rules doesn't feel right - even "good" (when [or rather if] you managed to cram them all into your head), but it is that there seems so much to learn and options (edge cases) to remember, so you are left with the feeling of "have I missed something"! Which - is frustrating, but in the end for ASL - is that a bad thing, if it gets you there? 

Footnote: I have a theory. A lot of the ASL rules seem to stem from misuse of Squad Leader rules or dissatisfaction with unintended game effects. In the same way that the follow on versions of DBA (or its more complex cousins DBM, DBMM etc) were aimed at stopping "competition gamers" distorting the historical principle of the game, winning in "unhistorical" ways. Trying to maintain the historical realism and avoiding clever mathematical twists that inevitably snag rules.

Please see Bob Corderey's Blog Home Page (Wargaming Miscellany) - The First Rule and The Spirit of the Game on https://wargamingmiscellany.blogspot.com/ - top right hand side! I also want to run ASL with miniatures, 1:1 (they are company sized battles). Does that make me "mad and bad"? Because otherwise you forget what you are trying to model in the real world. I have a friend who invested heavily in 2mm blocks of troops and literally said it makes you stop trying to "wibble" when you realise the number of men you are trying to control!

Update I: Found this interesting blog/website as it describes ASL SK#1 - Simple Equation Scenario 3 was thinking of transferring to the tabletop (spoiler alert the attack was bounced and ran out of turns):

https://www.stallardhonour.com/a-journey-into-advanced-squad-leader/

Update II: Board Game Geek tutorial support (thanks to "John Y", see comments):

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/157922/an-aslsk-tutorial-part-1

The Internet is a rabbit hole of ASL resources!

WW2 US Infantry Company OrBat

Great reference point for US Infantry Company OoB:  

• https://www.battleorder.org/post/usa-rifleco-1944
• https://www.battleorder.org/

Useful for these game systems: 

• Chain of Command
• Command Decision
• Spearhead
• SL
• ASL
• Crossfire

Perhaps?

Lex Fridman interview - Ray Kurzweil: Singularity, Superintelligence, and Immortality

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykY69lSpDdo

A heady mix of topics! Advised to watch and listen without alcohol!

Note to Self: Source David M. Glantz - WWII Reports, Free PDF

https://discover.dtic.mil/results/?q=glantz#gsc.tab=0&gsc.q=glantz&gsc.sort=date

Col (Ret) David M Glantz is an impressive author on military matters, in particular the WWII Eastern Front.