Multi-Man Publishing, the current license holders for the Advanced Squad Leader tactical warfare system, have long engaged in charitable efforts, with their annual convention, Winter Offensive, supporting the World War II Foundation. In conjunction with the 80th anniversary of Market Garden, MMP have teamed up with the Arnhem ASL Tournament (September 12-15, 2024) to release ASL Arnhem 2024, a four scenario pack whose proceeds benefit the Airborne Museum at Hartenstein and its annex in Arnhem, the Airborne Museum at the Bridge.
It’s a tidy shrink-wrapped package, just four scenarios back-printed on two pieces of standard scenario cardstock, with a glossy cardstock coversheet featuring art by Nicolás Eskubi, and an equally nominal price of $10. As might be expected, the four scenarios all take place in and around Arnhem, pitting the “Red Devils” of the British 1st Airborne Division against German forces of varying quality from September 17 through 21, 1944. In keeping with the association with the Arnhem ASL Tournament, all four scenarios have a “tournament” feel to them: moderate length with a decent but not overwhelming number of counters on each side, intended to be played in fairly tight quarters—if European ASL tournaments are anything like their American counterparts!—in the span of five to six hours by players who don’t dilly-dally.
Two of the scenarios are by MMP’s Brian Youse, and two by Jens Thomander. The longest and largest, AR1 Broken Column, comes in at 8.5 turns and covers most of three half-maps which might be pushing “tournament”-length, while the shortest and smallest, AR3 Bricks in Flames and AR4 The Overlook, come in at 5.5 turns and play out on roughly three-quarters of a single board. Vehicles and guns feature in three of the four, with AR2 Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing being the sole infantry-only affair.
My picks of the scenarios have to be AR3 and AR4 by Jens Thomander, if only because they each feature French B1-bis tanks pressed into German service. One simply cannot get enough Char-Bs in one’s gaming diet!
Quite a few boards and overlays come into play on the cards, so while counter-wise only Beyond Valor, For King and Country, and Croix de Guerre (for the aforementioned AFVs) are needed, a full eight maps (20, 38, 42, 62, 67, 70, 84, and l as in Lima) are needed, plus assorted Brush, Building, Woods, Open Ground, and Orchard overlays. So, certainly one for aficionados with access to a full range of maps, including, unfortunately, an ASL Starter Kit map, l. (I know they’re fully interchangeable with standard ASL maps and that many players of the One True Game™ own a full set of boards from the junior partner, but I’m not a fan of full ASL products requiring their usage, even though most people, myself included, are playing via VASL these days anyway. Consider me old fashioned.)
ASL Arnhem 2024 is a nice pack of scenarios at a pittance of a price benefitting a worthy cause. And if it feels a bit steep, postage-wise, to just grab ASL Arnhem 2024 by itself, then do what I did and pick up the latest issue of Special Operations, complete with four ASL scenarios and a small HASL map, to help lower the per item postage while you’re at it…