The OBA play aid that came with Action Pack 1 was later included in the 2nd Edition ASL Rulebook.

Long out of print--and never to be reprinted--Action Pack 1 goes for astronomical prices on E-bay as the maps are highly sought after (the scenarios can now be downloaded for free from MMP's Web site at http://www.multimanpublishing.com/downloads/ap1.zip).  However, the maps will soon be available again (in cardstock format) in an upcoming themed action pack, Few Returned.

Action Pack 2 has a good mix of scenarios, including the classics AP11 (Swamp Cats) and AP12 (Cream of the Crop); AP14 (Ace in the Hole) and AP15 (Broken Bamboo) are also quite good.

ASLers thought that they would see new Action Packs frequently from MMP, but they were mistaken--from 1999 to 2006 no new Action Packs were printed.  In 2007, though, another Action Pack appeared and the series picked up again after that.

This was not one of MMP's best products.  Not only did it contain only scenarios, but most of the scenarios weren't stellar and don't receive very much play.  Among the better scenarios in A GI's Dozen are U3 (The Factory) and U7 (Han-Sur-Neid).

A GI's Dozen is rumored not to have sold particularly well--there are suggestions, ultimately unprovable, that this was because many people copied the scenarios from friends instead of buying their own copy of the scenario pack.  Almost a decade later, MMP produced another similar set of scenarios, Turning the Tide.

The scenarios, designed by Mark Pitcavage, all depict Italian troops.   Nine of the twelve scenarios feature Eastern Front action as soldiers from the Italian 8th Army try to break out from Soviet encirclement in December 1942-January 1943.  Three of the scenarios feature German vs. Italian firefights as the Germans attempt to capture Rome on September 8-9, 1943, after the Italians signed an armistice with the Allies.  The combination of standard meat and potatoes ASL fare (the Eastern Front) and novelty (Italian troops) may be attractive to a wide variety of ASLers.

The Italian troops depicted in many of the scenarios are not the "typical" Italians of ASL scenarios, primarily because many of the scenarios feature troops from the elite Alpini (mountain) divisions, the best troops in the Italian Army.  In fact, in one scenario, a scenario featuring troops from two of the most elite battalions in the army, all Italian units are Fanatic!  However, other Italian troops are tired, hungry, cold, and demoralized.

Many of the scenarios assume a certain amount of experience on the part of players.  One scenario uses Night Rules (for only two turns, however); two scenarios have OBA; one scenario has Air Support; one scenario features Extreme Winter and Deep Snow.  The three Rome 1943 scenarios each feature one or more SSRs that depict the confused and uncoordinated nature of the Italian response to the sudden German attempt to take their capital.  In one scenario, Italian troops must take a 1PTC in order to fire on approaching German troops, until the Germans make an aggressive move.  In another scenario, the Germans can arrange a cease-fire during the scenario, causing most actions to stop  for several turns!  And in the third scenario, the Germans can get on the Italian radio network and issue a hoax order to retreat, causing Italian troops to temporarily abandon their defensive positions.  In this scenario, too, the Italians get reinforced randomly from among the many military units in Rome who were fighting the Germans without benefit of higher command or coordination.

In terms of size, most of the scenarios sit on the high side of medium or the low side of large.  About half of the scenarios fit this bill; the rest are a mix of small and medium sized scenarios.  Several seem well suited for tournament play, including AP22 (Ghost Riders) and AP23 (Agony at Arnautovo).  The shortest scenario, AP18 (Village of the Damned) is just 4 1/2 turns long and has a very Schwerpunktian feel to it.

Many of the scenarios feature interesting or intriguing tactical situations.  In AP17 (The Valley of Death), masses of Italian troops must charge up hills against Soviet defenders.  AP21 (Red Don) turns the tables, as Soviet troops must rush across a frozen river, braving enemy fire, to assault an Italian position.  In AP19 (Winter of their Discontent), the Soviets are on the attack, but prior to the game, the Italian/German player must purchase forces for a counterattack, paying for the forces with VP.  AP20 (Victory is Life) may see both sides attacking and defending at the same time, as an Italian force tries to break through Soviet lines to rescue a headquarters staff before the Soviets can destroy it.  AP23 (Agony at Arnautovo) features a Soviet attack, followed by an initiative shift and an Italian counterattack, giving both players the opportunity to attack and defend in the same scenario.  AP24 (Tridentina Avanti!) allows the Italian player to detach part of his order of battle and send it around the Soviet flank - but at varying costs in time depending on how large a flanking move is made.

Since its release, AP19 (Winter of their Discontent) and AP23 (Agony at Arnautovo) seem to be among the more popular and balanced scenarios in the pack, although the small and quick-playing AP18 (Village of the Damned) remains the single most often played scenario.  

Note that this product was designed by the owner of this Web site, so this commentary should be taken as descriptive only rather than as a review.

The theme for the Action Pack is, as its title suggests, the Summer 1944 Battle for Normandy following the D-Day invasions.  Because of this, the new mapboards were designed with such scenarios in mind.  Two of them, 54 and 55, are obviously designed to represent hedgerow country, as the are dominated by orchards and fields enclosed by hedges.  It is still not quite what actual bocage country looked like, but it comes closer than any previous official ASL map.  

Board 54 is flat, with only a single two-story house to add any elevation.  It features very rural terrain, with only a few buildings, but large numbers of hedges and orchards.   Board 55 is a bit more varied; the usual orchards and hedges are accompanied by three small, low-lying hills, a gully, and a major sunken road (bordered by hedges to add some rules-searching).  The third board, Board 53, is the only board of the three that is likely to see widespread use outside of a Normandy situation.  It features a decent sized stone village, complete with a few narrow roads, a church and cemetery, and a few rowhouses.  It is likely to be greeted with happiness by scenario designers tired of the using the existing village boards over and over again.

Boards 54 and 55 are unusual in that they are the first ASL geomorphic mapboards designed to be geomorphic alongside the middle of Row Q (i.e., either board's half-boards can seamlessly meet alongside Row Q with either of the other board's half-boards).  This adds a bit of additional flexibility to the boards.

All of the boards, as is now standard for official ASL products, are printed in the unmounted-on-cardstock, computer-graphics-based style that debuted in the ASL Starter Kits.

A dozen scenarios (AP29-AP40, arranged chronologically) accompany the maps.  All are set in Normandy within the date range June 6, 1944, through August 20, 1944.  Most were designed by British ASLer Ian Daglish, with the remaining ones designed by MMP regulars.  Aside from the Germans, nationalities making an appearance include the United States (8 scenarios), the British (3 scenarios) and Polish (1 scenario).  Every scenario uses at least one of the new maps.

The scenarios have a decent mix of small, medium, and large actions, though few of the scenarios are particularly large or meaty.  Many of them feature a relatively small number of infantry units and a large number of AFVs.   Pretty much all the scenarios are light on SSRs and few of them use complicated rules--no scenarios have Air Support, only one scenario is a Night action, and only one scenario has OBA (and even there it is not mandatory).  As a result, Normandy 1944 might possibly have been a well suited product for novice ASL players.  What makes it somewhat less so is the emphasis on AFVs, which appear in every single scenario, often in large numbers.  And, of course, Bocage is in play in every single scenario as well.

Among the scenarios, several stand out.  AP29 (Raff's Dilemma), assuming it proves to be balanced, could be a tournament staple, as it is just the right size (early results suggest perhaps a German advantage).   AP30 (Not Apt to Drag Feet), one of many awkwardly named scenarios in the pack, is probably the meatiest scenario of the bunch, pitting 24 American squads and 9 AFVs in an attack against 18 German squads supported by 1 Gun and 6 AFVs.  AP32 (Second Crack at Caumont) is a good knock down, drag out village fight; as of April 2009 it was one of the most popular and most balanced scenarios in the pack.  AP34 (Bocage Blockage) and AP32 (Second Crack of Caumont) are both scenarios that are proving to be popular and balanced.

The only immediately dubious scenario is AP38 (Infiltrators), which looks too small and too gamey to be very much fun.

In addition to its "normal" content, Normandy 1944 includes some "special" content in the form of 4 replacement pages for the ASL Rulebook.  The inclusion of these pages pretty much makes purchase of this product mandatory for all ASLers who wish to have current rules.  The pages provide clarifications and examples to the Chapter B rules on Wall Advantage.  The inside cover of Normandy 1944 also includes 7 pieces of official ASL errata (which presumably will also be printed in the next ASL Journal issue printed).  The most important piece of errata is a retraction of the Bridge TEM errata issued in ASL Journal 7, which proved to be very controversial.  As a result, that rules change no longer exists and units on bridges once more suffer normal FFNAM/FFMO only, with no additional -1 TEM merely for being on a bridge.

As with its predecessor, Few Returned, Normandy 1944's thematic focus means that it will offer less to people who are not interested in the theme.  People who do not like playing with Bocage Rules won't get much out of these scenarios.  On the other hand, even for such picky people, the 3 additional maps are attractive and useful additions to the system.  For those for whom Normandy is more attractive, the Action Pack offers a variety of interesting actions and scenarios.

Overall, it seems like a well done product.

Veteran ASLer Jim Stahler, with lots of time on his hands, apparently, decided to finish the conversion process in a series of two scenario packs, the first of which is Turning the Tide.  Turning the Tide features 20 scenarios, all set in the period 1939-1943 (its sequel will contain the remaining unconverted scenarios, all set from late 1943 to 1945).  Two of the smaller scenarios were released earlier by MMP as freely downloadable scenarios; they appear here again.

Because these are all conversions of old SL-series scenarios, they typically use early mapboards.  For a couple of scenarios, Stahler swapped out one or more original boards for newer ones.  The ancient origin of these scenarios is noticeable in other ways, as well.  Almost 3/4 of the scenarios, for example, are 9 turns long or more, which makes them dinosaurs in modern ASL terms.

The scenarios are a varied mix, situation-wise, and include 3 set in Poland 1939, 1 in Norway 1940, 4 in France/Low Countries 1940, 2 in Greece 1941, 9 in the Soviet Union (1941-43) and one in Sicily 1943.  Size-wise, they are not so varied.  Five of the scenarios are small or medium-sized, with the remaining 15 ranging from large to quite large.

Many of the scenarios involve some of the more complex ASL rules.  OBA is present in 5 scenarios, Night Rules are in effect in 3 scenarios, 3 scenarios use Air Drops, and Air Support makes an appearance in 3 scenarios as well.  One scenario, U18 (Assault on a Queen), has an entire page of SSRs for the Dutch Royal Family.

As is sometimes the case with the older SL and ASL scenarios, the historical accuracy of a few of the scenarios may leave something to be desired.  In Assault on a Queen, the entire scenario is counterfactual.  Among the other scenarios, it is often the East Front scenarios that may be the most suspect.  U27 (A Winter Melee) takes place near Okorovovo, a town that seems to exist only in wargaming, not in the real world.  U28 (Sowchos 79) features generic Soviet units, while U31 (The Front in Flames) features men from the "57th Army" squaring off against the "XI Corps."

What some of the scenarios do offer are interesting (and sometimes meaty) tactical situations that players can sink their teeth into over the course of a long day.  U14 (Sacrifice of Polish Armor) features some very early war tin cans firing at each other; U19 (Hasty Pudding) is an even bigger early war armor action (featuring British and German tans).  U23 (Rehearsal for Crete) is a 5-board (!) monster featuring 32 Allied squads and a few guns and AFVs defending against a German air/glider landing with 35 squads.  U25 (Breakout from Borisov) is an equally large 1941 East Front action featuring 24 German squads and 13 AFVs squaring off against 54 Soviet squads and 12 AFVs.  U27 (A Winter Melee) is a wild and wooly scenario featuring groups of Soviet partisans, cavalry and paratroopers surrounding a group of 12 German squads and 3 halftracks.

Although one might wish that the energy spent converting these old SL scenarios was instead expended creating brand-new scenarios designed for ASL from the ground up, this is an inexpensive pack that offers a wealth of scenarios and situations.  Older ASLers may like the nostalgia aspect, while newer ASLers will just be glad to see some inexpensive official ASL scenarios made available to them.  With that, it's hard to complain.

The release of new mapboards in Action Packs 4 & 5 (and, to a lesser degree, in the ASLSKs) has provided a welcome relief to many ASLers, who have played on some of the older boards far too many times.  None of the boards in AP5 offer any truly novel additions to the ASL map milieu, but they will still be welcomed by scenario designers.  The artwork is crisp and the colors vivid. 

Maps 56 and 57 are very similar, both offering light village terrain surrounded by open ground, orchards, and fields.  They can be combined together to create a somewhat larger town, which is a nice addition, although the buildings still seem more widely spaced than was the case for most European towns.  Board 58 is a large hill with two Level 3 peaks and a modicum of vegetation and a few gullies. 

Half of the scenarios are large in size, and the other half medium or small.  Some of the scenarios seem well suited for tournament play, including AP41 (The Meatgrinder), AP52 (Into Vienna Woods), AP50 (Panzergeist), and perhaps AP42 (Frontiers and Pioneers).  That last scenario also features the behemoth Soviet T-35 tank.  A few months after its release, Meatgrinder led the pack in terms of playings.

There are no Night scenarios.  Two scenarios feature both Air Support and OBA, while two other scenarios have OBA alone.

Most of the scenarios are straight up Soviets vs. Germans, although one scenario features Romanians and another features Czech paratroopers (during the 1944 Slovak Uprising).  A third features Yugoslav partisans, although they are (reasonably justifiably) represented as Soviet troops (these units having been trained and partially equipped by the Soviets by this time).  In AP49 (Retrained and Rearmed), the units of the 2nd Czech Airborne Brigade seem to be represented as Axis Minor troops, even though they were trained and armed by the Soviet Union.

Several of the scenarios stand out as interesting in one way or another.  AP42 (Frontiers and Pioneers) gives both sides toys to play with.  The Germans get 2 flamethrowers while the Soviets get that T-35.  AP43 (Escape from Encirclement) is unusual is that it is played with the equivalent of two lengthwise boards, with a mass of Soviets trying to get across the narrow width.  The greatly outnumbered Germans nevertheless have machineguns, mortars, and artillery to stop them.  With crossing open ground a major feature of the scenario, it has something of the look of a shooting gallery for the Germans, and the scenario is likely to be dicey, even if balanced in outcomes.  AP47 (Insult to Injury) is a 1943 heavy metal combined arms action that will likely attract the attention of armor enthusiasts.

Overall, AP5 looks like a very solid release, with a number of interesting scenarios.

Initially, MMP printed only a limited print run of 1,000 copies, which is far fewer than the typical ASL product sells (although they said they had printed a greater number of the maps, which they would later sell individually to people who wanted to keep their system complete but did not have an opportunity to purchase the WOBP).  However, within weeks they changed their minds and did another print run of WOBP (of an unknown amount), announcing that they would continue to donate $2 from each sale to the ALS Foundation.  Briefly, then, this was an ASL collector's item.

Desperation Morale is not a fan of such mini-packs overall, but this may be a mild exception, insofar as it has a charitable aim, which makes the relatively spare offering more palatable.  The price is cheap (although shipping adds to it), but one doesn't get much, either.

The mini-pack includes one geomorphic map, Board 59, which is a mix of terrain.  In the middle of the board os a small hamlet, bisected by a stream that also bisects the board.  One one side of the hamlet are some orchards, a low hill, and some grainfields; on the other side are several orchards and grainfields.  It doesn't add anything new to the ASL map collection, but it is not a bad map.  The graphics are crisp.  It is interesting to note, though, the differences in map artwork between this map and the boards in Doomed Battalions, 3rd Edition, which was released at the same time.  The latter has weird, squished-bug orchard symbols, while they are "normal" in WOBP.  The WOBP map also has thin outlines around its hills; these are not present in the Doomed Battalions maps.  So even the "new style" ASL mapboards will not have a consistent style, after all (though released at the same time, the DB maps were actually created earlier and by a different artist than the WOBP map).

The two scenarios are, irritatingly, printed on the back sides of the front and back matter of the product.  One of them, WO1 (French Toast and Bacon) is a tiny 1944 action that pits 4 German squads and 6 tanks against 8 U.S. half squads, a tank destroyer, and two AT guns.  The American player also has an "offboard howitzer," which functions as if it were a Gun six hexes off the map edge.  The other scenario, WO2 (Failure to Communicate), looks more interesting.  It is a 1940 French-German action that features a German attack with 14 squads and 5 tanks against defenders consisting of 10 squads, 4 AFVs, and 2 guns. 

Most hard core ASLers will probably purchase this product no matter what the scenarios are, simply in order to get the needed mapboards. 

And new ground is precisely what is broken in AP6.  Of course, the hook to any Action Pack is that it is not only a scenario pack but also delivers new official geomorphic mapboards to the eager clutches of ASLers.  AP6, however, does not merely deliver new geomorphic mapboards, but actually introduces a different kind of geomorphic mapboard.  It only took the ASL system a quarter century to realize that there could be more than one style of geomorphic mapboard.  Actually, the main wunderkind behind AP6, Gary Fortenberry, has said that he proposed the idea to Avalon Hill years ago, but the notion was shot down.  Luckily, MMP proved more receptive.

So what are these new geomorphic maps like?  Well, they are not radically different from the older ones; in fact, they are designed to mate with them.  However, they mate with them in a different way.  The long side of each of the new geomorphic maps (at 16") is designed to mate with the short side of two old-style geomorphic maps side by side (8" each).  Alternatively, the short side of the new geomorphic maps (at 11") can mate with half of a long side of one of the old geomorphic maps (at 22").  Confused?  We'll explain.  Well, we don't have time to explain, so we'll sum up:  these maps link up long side (of whichever type of map) to two short sides (of the other type of map).  Look at the darn pictures.

So not only do these maps bring new geography to ASL, they allow allow more flexibility in terrain configuration.  In AP6, only one of the boards really takes advantage of this opportunity, but presumably future boards will continue to do so.  Board 3a/b is a river board, or more accurately, a river bend board.  This means that linked up with one of the existing river boards, it allows a river to make a 90-degree turn (and it turns again, so with three boards one could even have a dogleg).  Less imaginatively, Board 1a/b is a hamlet board surrounded by lots of open ground, while Board 2a/b is a real Mulligan stew of a board, with a long thin hill, a long gully, a building cluster, a small hill and a small valley, and various clusters of orchards, fields, hedges, woods and walls.   It's pretty "busy."

The map artwork, by the way, is crisp, clean, and attractive.

Note that all of these boards come in an "a" version and a "b" version.  The "b" version is on the reverse side of each "a" version.  The only difference between an "a" and a "b" version is that the short board-edge woods hexes on version "a" are slid over a bit on version "b" so that there are never any of those odd little half-woods hexes that crop up in the single-sided old style geomorphic mapboards (which, originating as a series of mounted mapboards, never had a second side, though they could have benefited from the same treatment). 

The decision to create these second, offset sides is an interesting one.  Clearly, ASL players have been living with half-woods hexes for a quarter century (with apparently little complaint), and printing double-sided maps would obviously add to the cost of printing.  This seems to have bumped up the price of AP6 a tad.  Its list price as $36, which can be compared to the AP5 list price of $30.  AP5 also contains an additional scenario card, but that would not be much of an additional expense.  It seems then that, unless MMP ate some additional cost, the backprinting may have added about $5 to the sticker price of AP6.  Whether or not removing woods half-hexes is worth an additional cost is probably an issue on which people might legitimately disagree.  However, even at $36, AP6 still seems reasonably priced, so there is probably not too much to complain about.  If anybody complains, it is probably more likely that subset of the ASL audience that likes to make copies of ASL maps (either to laminate and/or to magnify).  Such people will now have to copy both versions of the map!  Such is life.

Since being revived by AP 3: Few Returned, the Action Pack series has been themed (as opposed to Action Packs 1 & 2, which had essentially random scenarios).  AP6 does technically have a theme, though a pretty weak one.  The original concept behind AP6 was that it would have 10 scenarios, each set during a different year (with conflicts like the Spanish Civil War and the Sino-Japanese War holding the fort until World War II proper begins).  In the end, it did not quite work out that way, as one of the scenarios for some reason proved to be unsuitable and was replaced with a substitute scenario that duplicated another year.  As a result, there is no 1941 scenario but rather two 1942 scenarios.  Aside from this, however, the pattern runs true, with the result that there is an interesting variety of scenarios that runs from the beginning of the Spanish Civil War all the way to the last weeks of World War II inside Germany's own borders.

Thematically, then, the 10 AP6 scenarios feature actions set in Spain 1936, China (1937, 1938, 1939), France 1940, Malaya 1942, the Philippines 1942, the Soviet Union 1943, Belgium 1944, and Germany 1945.   This means the combatants are varied, too, including Spanish loyalists (actually mostly ex-German communists!), Spanish nationalists (ironically mostly Moroccans!), Chinese, Japanese, German, French, British, American, Filipino, and Soviet troops.  What is especially nice is that five of the scenarios feature the Japanese, who have been quite neglected in official ASL products recently, and three of those also feature the Chinese, who are the most neglected major nationality of all.  It is also nice to see the Filipino and early war Americans make an appearance, as well as to see an addition to the extremely small number of official Spanish Civil War scenarios.

All 10 of the scenarios in AP6 are designed by one person:  Gary Fortenberry (the only other time this happened in an Action Pack was with AP3).  Gary Fortenberry was the publisher in the early 1990s of one of the early ASL newsletters, ASLUG, which published two dozen well-received scenarios, most designed by Fortenberry, before abruptly folding.  Fortenberry was then subsequently briefly employed by Avalon Hill to manage its ASL line of products.  After this stint, Fortenberry dropped off the ASL map (so to speak), preferring, it was said, the collectible card game Magic: the Gathering.  However, in the late 2000s, Fortenberry began to re-emerge on the ASL scene, both as a player and designer.  With AP6, Fortenberry joined forces with two other veterans of Avalon Hill:  former Avalon Hill luminary Bob McNamara is credited with historical research and map design, while ASL icon Charlie Kibler was involved both with the map design and the (attractive) map art.    Interestingly, many of the credited playtesters for AP6 are well-known as skilled ASL players with many tournament wins, including Bob Bendis, Guy Chaney, Gary Mei, Mike McGrath, and J.R. Tracy among them.  Great ASL players are not necessarily great playtesters (or vice versa), but let's just say it don't hurt much. 

Though the AP6 packaging describes the scenarios as having been developed "with tournament players in mind," most of the scenarios are too large for convenient tournament play.   Three of the scenarios are medium-sized and would probably be fine in a tournament, but the remaining seven are large in size (and many in length as well) and could not easily be used in a tournament (though, of course, they would be fine for casual play).

The scenarios are fairly SSR heavy and some of the Victory Conditions are also complicated.  Two scenarios use OBA, two scenarios have Air Support, and one scenario has rice paddies (in-season). 

Many of the scenarios depict interesting situations.  AP53 (Far from Home), the Spanish Civil War scenario, is a nice meaty scenario that starts small and grows larger, with plenty of thin-skinned tanks just waiting to be killed.  AP54 (800 Heroes) depicts the battle for the Sihang Warehouse in Shanghai, a situation that has been scenario-ized several times already, but because of its size, the scenario could end up being a popular tournament scenario, if it proves to be balanced.

AP56 (Quagmire), another Sino-Japanese scenario, is a very meaty scenario with a lot of twists to it.  Played on a large map area, it features 5 groups of Chinese defenders, four of which set up in separate areas, along with some rare Chinese artillery pieces.  There are 32 Chinese squads in all, most of them 1st line squads.  The Japanese attackers are divided into 5 main groups (and a "support group" with various guns and mortars), which also must set up or enter in separate areas.  The combination of all of this will result in a battlefield that really consists of a number of separate battles all being fought simultaneously, which doesn't happen as much in ASL as perhaps it should.  This is an all infantry scenario (even the artillery gets pulled by horses), which means that it should play quickly for its size.  However, non-veteran players might be put off somewhat by the presence of rice paddies and three fighter-bombers. 

Armor aficionados do get their own day in the sun, though.   AP57 (Kleckerweise) depicts a French attack in 1940 down a long stretch of mapboard, hoping to capture a hill at the far end of the map.  They have 18 squads, 8 tanks, and assorted toys to help them do it.  The Germans start with a scratch force but after a few turns begin to get substantial reinforcements flowing into the battlefield, including 10 AFVs.  AP60 (Nishne, Nyet!) takes players to a more late war, heavy metal realm.  The Germans are on the attack in this scenario, with 22 squads, a variety of toys, good leadership, and 15 AFVs (including 6 Tigers), one of which will sport a fancy 9-2 armor leader.  The defending Soviets have 15 squads, 6 (mostly crappy) tanks, and three artillery pieces.  The victory conditions are more complicated than a polygamist family reunion. 

The third big AFV-centric scenario is AP61 (Desobry Defiant), which depicts a classic Battle of the Bulge holding action:  a scratch force of American engineers and AFVs must delay an attacking German Panzer formation as long as it can.  Here the stalwart red white and blue boys have 11 squad equivalents (of different types), a .50 caliber MG, 80mm OBA, DCs, AT mines, an AT gun, and odds and ends.  Oh, and AFVs, including some Shermans, a Priest, an armored car, and two tank destroyers (three of which have Gyrostabilizers).  They come with a 9-2 armor leader and an 8-1 armor leader (they still have that new tank smell on them).   Trying to get around, past or through these folks are 18 German squads (from 2nd line to elite), with light toys of their own, as well as 100mm OBA, plus an armored force led by its own 8-1 armor leader consisting of Mk IVs, Panthers, StuGs, and a bevy of halftracks (including one sporting a 75mm gun). 

One of the quickest playing scenarios, though, is AP59 (Taking Heads), a delaying action set in the Philippines in early 1942.  A dozen 4-4-7 Filipino squads, bolstered by a .50 cal, 2 MMGs, 2 halftracks sporting 75mm guns, and a light AT gun, must hold off a force of 16 Japanese squads (mostly elite), who have a few LMG, a 20L ATR, a DC, and 3 knee mortars.  With an ELR of 2 and only three (not so great) leaders, the Americans are brittle, but the Japanese have to cross open ground (and even then will tend to be at a TEM disadvantage) and can be vulnerable to the firepower of the American/Filipino toys.  Essentially the Japanese have whittle down the Americans and maintain their advance while not getting too far behind in CVP.  If they can do so, the end game will feature a very fragile US/Filipino force trying to defend a bevy of VP buildings from the last Japanese push.  However, the edge probably goes to the US/Filipino side on this one.

The one other thing that AP6 features is a page providing "Australian Balancing System" information for each of the 10 scenarios in the pack.  The ABS system (guess where it came from) is a bidding system that rewards good analysis of scenario balance.  Essentially, each scenario has a set of 3 successively greater balance provisions for each side, and players secretly bid for a side and handicap level (either none, or one of the three provisions for that side).  If players each bid on a different side, they get their side of choice, plus the handicap provision (which will reward the other side).  If they pick the same side, the higher bidding player gets that side (but must play with the provision), while the other player gets the other side and no provision.  If they bid identically, essentially a DR determines who plays what side.  Many ASLers like the ABS, but it is also somewhat controversial, in that it tends to reward experienced players at the expense of inferior players.  As a result, if a strong player and a weaker player are matched up, use of the ABS can easily give the stronger player an additional edge.  As a result, it should only be used with caution between players of potentially different skill levels (especially if the more experienced player has previously played the scenario in question).  However, since in AP6 use of the ABS is totally optional, its inclusion can only be considered a plus.

Could AP6 have been better?  In a couple of ways, perhaps.  Some of the map designs could have been a bit bolder, to better take advantage of the new board type, while the scenario mix could have been somewhat better suited for the tournament field that the designer allegedly initially had in mind.  Some of the victory conditions are also rather involved. 

However, the product as is seems very strong.  It adds mapboards to the system that are not only new maps but open up new terrain configurations and possibilities as well.  It features a variety of actions from the mid 1930s to the end of World War II, featuring a host of nationalities.  A number of the SSRs are fairly innovative and help to create good scenario situations.  Early reports suggest that most of the scenarios seem relatively well balanced.  All in all, it is really quite a solid product and should be on most ASLers' purchase lists.

Because is a very interactive game with healthy real-world and virtual communities, SASL has remained a niche product in the ASL world.  However, those ASLers who play it enjoy SASL considerably and have developed a variety of missions, campaign games, expansions and variants for it.  Some SASL missions have also appeared in third party products (such as Onslaught to Orsha from Heat of Battle).

The 2nd edition of SASL, in addition to some rules changes, was expanded to include rules and charts for all nationalities in ASL except for the Axis Minors (which are included in Armies of Oblivion) and the Finns (which will appear in Hakkaa Päälle). 

Over the years, many players created their own homegrown software programs designed to help them with ASL.  However, other than VASL (Virtual ASL), which became a worldwide phenomenon, none of them were popular or widely distributed.

MMP liked the Provence Pack, but for some reason decided not to print and sell it but instead just offer it as a download from the MMP Web site (the official reason is that MMP "had no way to fit it in the schedule").  While the price certainly cannot be beat--free is always appreciated--this decision had the strange effect of making the Provence Pack a "forgotten" ASL product. 

The Provence Pack also holds the honor of having the only full-color scenario cards in any official ASL products.  It can be downloaded at http://www.multimanpublishing.com/downloads/pp.zip.

The first such product to be released was a Japanese-language 1st Edition ASL Rulebook.  Other ASL products have been sold in Japan with translated rules, but these appear to have been done by the retailer or distributor rather than authorized by Avalon Hill or MMP.  MMP has made French (http://www.cote1664.net/article.php3?id_article=74), Spanish (http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/9823  and  http://http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/15126), and Japanese (http://www.multimanpublishing.com/downloads/ASLSK1_jpn.pdf) language rules for the ASL Starter Kit available, but as downloads rather than as printed products, marketed and sold in those countries. 

Some players have created their own homegrown translations of the rules as well.

Additional information about non-English ASL products (and images of such products) is requested.