Special Ops 7 - summer 2017

Featured articles cover Baptism By Fire (BCS), Angola! (IGS), Soviet play in Case Blue (OCS), BCS design concepts, analyzing OCS with hints and examples, deciding which OCS scenarios are right for you, pillboxes in ASL, and a preview of the upcoming PTO addition to ASL Starter Kit line.

Autumn For Barbarossa (AFB) is a Standard Combat Series (SCS) game covering the culmination of the initial German offensive toward Moscow in the fall of 1941. AFB features a small map area and a limited number of units, making it easily accessible for fast or competition play. The entire campaign finishes in 10 turns.

Play begins with the German offensive in full bloom. The German player attempts to rapidly seize as much of the map (in the form of Victory Point locations) as he can. Speed is essential; while he has several cities to reduce, he knows the clock is ticking before Hitler pulls the plug on his efforts. The commanders did not realize this was in the cards, but for design purposes we assume the player feels the pistol pointed at his head. The Germans have copious air and mechanized forces to accomplish their goals...for the moment. At some point determined by the "Hitler Roll", the German mechanized forces are taken off the map, their air support is cut in half, and the Red counteroffensive strikes in an attempt to turn things around.

The Soviet player stalls, withdraws, and conserves his forces while letting the German offensive expend itself. As the high tide passes, he prepares his rebuilt Red Army for the second half of the game: the Soviet effort to blunt the German gains and recoup their losses as best they can.

Components include one 16" x 28" map and a sheet of counters.