| Another Unbalanced, Unplaytested, Unworthy Mess | ||||||||||||||
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This was a super extended, 9-session playout with me playing the defending Australians & Dutch. I had the AFVs in this, way-to-long, one-sided conflict simulation, which did the Allies no good, but at least kept the armored vehicle counters out of the Treadasaur's lethal mits. He served his usual penance with a SNLF infantry-heavy force that unfortunately kicked the stew out of my guys, in spite of the poor sets of leaders that we both drew. I say that this one is unsuitable for anything but solitaire play, as I think that it is virtually impossible for the Allies to do more than be a doormat for the invading Japanese. It doesn't look to me like this scenario was play-tested at all. The historic outcome is pretty much guaranteed by the end of turn 16. We played with the FOW and excess initiative rules, plus these two house rules: 1) Road Movement for Mechanized & Foot Units All FOOT & MECHANIZED units may move on roads at the rate of 1/2 a Movement Point (MP) per road hex, just like MOTORIZED units, and 2) Standardized Movement for Mechanized Units All mechanized units may move through clear hexes at a movement cost of only 1 movement point (MP) per hex, instead of 1 1/2. Add one to this cost if moving up, across, or down slopes hexes. Anytime I don't have to keep track of how many 2/3 of a move per hex, is a good time. Who thought that this was a good idea in the first place? Oh, and did I mention that I hate very long (40 turns) jungle scenarios, where units wander around aimlessly, nearly at will? The Aussies and Dutch took a terrific pounding throughout this unpleasant game and were only able to eliminate a handful of the Emperor's steps. The Allies slowly gave unground, as position after position collapsed, and their morale fell through the floor. Some units took 16 turns to recover their morale, after only a few turns of combat. Nipponese close assaults were all successful, but the delays caused by the need to overcome the defenders again and again, did slow the Japanese wave down a lot. It took all 40 turns to exit all the required Sons of Nippon. Our final step losses were: 42 for the Allies and 5 for the Japanese. A victory for the Emperor's scrambling soldier-sailors! I lost count of the number of enemy platoons that exited. By the end, I was happy to see this poorly-designed scenario in the rear view mirror. Wish that I had not picked the stronger-looking Allied side in this bashing. Going 9 innings with this mix of units is not for the faint of heart. We agreed that, at best, this howling dog deserves a rating of 2, and the recommendation that it is really only worth playing as a solitaire game. |
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| 1 Comment |
Sorry you didn't enjoy the scenario Carlos and had such a lopsided experience. I did playtest this and had a closer result though still a Japanese victory. Nikon Silk was my first design and I learned from it.