This is not so much an AAR as it is a report on how easy it is to forget rules with no one there to check you. I’ve got a month where I can play a LOT of PG, so I’m getting better and better. On this scenario, I quickly decided, for better or worse, to secure the first town by using the woods as needed, and by running in from the roads before the entering squads nearby could react. I was counting on some initiative and got it, but to quote the Three Amigos, “I really didn’t expect the first part of the plan to work.”

You see, even after 2 years of playing this game system, it being my only large-scale chit format wargame to date, I still have trouble “seeing” hills and terrain, and when I play face-to-face, this is readily apparent. My best friend and opponent quickly gave up the large woods when he realized I owned them and instead used offboards to weaken my moving vehicles; the trade off?: I completely devastated his assaulting troops coming from the east, but he got lucky with his arty and took out in one double-six roll my M16!! This immediately turned the tide a little to say the least, although for the time being the first town was mine. I had hoped and was rewarded that he chose to bring most of his troops from that 40 meter high hilltown as I didn’t want to assault it. The mistake I then made explains the issues solo play creates. I ran my 3 trucks with limbered guns through to be in range of the rapidly-moving wagontrain, but forgot that assaulting loaded trucks is automatic elimination! As a good friend should, he offered to let me move them back, but I don’t care about “winning”. I care about the play and fun of the fellowship, so I demanded to leave them there—it taught me many things.

The trucks are then gone, and I also broke a rule about leaving an assault which neither one of us caught. I had moved my m4’s into an assault alone (like an idiot) and then tried to remove them. I gave him the parting shot, but then moved them a full allowance instead of the one hex they are allowed. I would have never caught this playing solo, and he only caught the rule a turn later or so. He plays LOTS of wargames, most recently Downtown, London’s Burning and Tobruk all in the past month, and just forgot some of the PG rules.

He won the day by wearing me down, but the point here is that there are a lot of little rules that I just miss because I solo so much. My best friend is getting a camera for his computer so we can skype and play more often! In the meantime, I’m absolutely taking credit for playing the scenario, because I fought in those hills for 5 hours before we closed it out! I love this game!