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ASL Starter Kit 1 Solitaire Rules

Q: How do you process the bot’s stacks in descending order of firepower during the PFPh?

Processing the bot's stacks in descending order of firepower during the PFPh involves calculating available firepower for each stack, including doubling for point-blank ranges, and incorporating all present units' firepower, even those concealed. The stack with the highest resultant firepower is processed first, evaluating its shooting options against enemy units and proceeding with attacks or adjustments, like forming fire groups if the direct shot isn't feasible. Remaining stacks are sequentially processed using similar steps to ensure strategic firepower utilization .

Q: In what situations will a bot choose to break an SW during the DFPh, and why is this strategic?

A bot will choose to include an SW in fire groups (FG) during DFPh only if its use will shift the attack to a higher column on the Infantry Fire Table (IFT). This is strategic because it maximizes the combat impact of the attack while minimizing the risk of SW breakdown. If including the SW does not result in a stronger outcome, it will be used separately to target a different enemy, maintaining its operational readiness and preserving fire effectiveness for potential future scenarios .

Q: What is the protocol for handling malfunctioned weapons in the bot's possession?

The bot's protocol for handling malfunctioned weapons is to intentionally destroy them. This applies to any malfunctioned and previously captured weapons, reflecting a strategy of preventing potential recovery and use by the opposing player .

Q: How do bots prioritize objectives when moving toward an opponent’s controlled building?

Bots prioritize objectives by choosing the nearest building that either remains unoccupied or is controlled by the opponent, converting it into a primary target for occupation or attack. This strategy involves determining proximity and potential for control or contesting victory conditions, specifically targeting unoccupied, uncontrolled buildings, or those actively under opponent control, aligning with the game's ultimate objective control dynamics .

Q: How is randomness incorporated in the entry of German units during various turns?

Randomness is incorporated in the entry of German units through the use of a dice roll (DR) method to determine entry points. For instance, the German units' entry area during the first turn may be selected by a DR centered on hex L0, allowing entry within 2 hexes. Throughout subsequent turns, similar DR mechanisms centered on specific hexes further dictate entry possibilities, effectively incorporating variability and unpredictability in unit positioning, enhancing strategic dynamism .

Q: Why might a unit decide to fire rather than skulk despite not meeting the card's firepower requirements?

A unit might decide to fire rather than skulk despite not meeting the firepower requirements if no adjacent hex offers lower exposure than its current position. For instance, in a scenario where it's occupying a stone building and an open ground is under consideration, if all adjacent hexes provide equal or more exposure, remaining and firing can be a better choice to attempt disrupting enemy actions or preventing immediate threats .

Q: How do leaders impact fire actions in both PFPh and DFPh phases?

Leaders can aid in fire actions by contributing to firepower, typically in either the PFPh or DFPh phases, but only if all other units in their hex are involved in firing. During PFPh, leaders help coordinate and enhance firepower contributions to achieve more effective shots. In DFPh, leaders assist similarly, but their contribution is contingent on the scenario and proximity to achieve effective overall firepower coordination .

Q: In what cases would the bot decide to skulk instead of firing during the MPh?

The bot decides to skulk during the MPh if remaining in its current position poses a higher exposure to enemy fire and a valid skulk hex is safer. For instance, if a stone building provides exposure from enemy shots, and an adjacent hex provides less or no exposure, like an open ground hex with lower firepower threat, it chooses to skulk. However, if no safer hexes exist or moving would incur a firing cost without sufficient movement factors (MF), the unit may choose to fire instead. Units also avoid skulking if it would lead to becoming CX .

Q: Why would the bot destroy malfunctioned weapons in its possession, and what impact does this have?

The bot destroys malfunctioned weapons in its possession to prevent them from being repaired and reused by the player, denying a potential tactical advantage to the opponent. This action has significant implications on resource management and battlefield strategy, as it forces the player to consider alternative plans without relying on potential recovery or repair of those assets, thereby maintaining tactical edge and signaling control over battlefield conditions .

Q: How does the bot determine the most economic shot during the PFPh and what considerations are involved?

During the PFPh, the bot determines the most economic shot by examining the board and evaluating valid shots against player units. If a valid shot is available, it chooses the target offering the most economic use of firepower, considering factors such as the doubling of firepower for point-blank range when adjacent and the inclusion of Concealed units' firepower. If multiple targets are available, further card draws and evaluation of firepower and target type are used to narrow down the choice, sometimes requiring random selection (RS) to finalize the decision .

This document provides rules for playing Advanced Squad Leader (ASL) solitaire against an automated opponent using provided cards and units. Key terms are defined, such as how the automated opponent ("bot") evaluates exposure of hexes and line of sight. Rules cover how the bot makes shots and movement decisions based on concepts like normalized firepower, most economic shots, and objective locations. Stacks of units are ordered by firepower for bot resolution. The goal is to allow solo ASL practice and learning without pressure of an in-person opponent.

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100% found this document useful (3 votes)

527 views43 pages

ASL Starter Kit 1 Solitaire Rules

Uploaded by

Luigi Guerriero

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Available Formats

Download as ODT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Terms And Concepts
Introduction
Cards
Setup
Playing a Player Turn
Bot Movement and Actions
Full ASL Rules
Appendix

ASL Starter Kit 1 – Solitaire Rules v1.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 1

Introduction
These rules along with the provided cards allow a player to enjoy a game of Advanced Squad
Leader against an automated opponent. The automated opponent may be used to simulate a human
player's actions playing either side of a traditional ASL scenario intended for 2 players.

The intent is to make this a fun way for experienced players to enjoy a match when no opponent is
easily available and for newer players to learn and practice the ASL system without the pressure of
playing a face to face opponent and without much additional rules overhead.

1. Terms And Concepts

This section contains a list of terms and concepts which are used throughout the rules. They are
defined here in some detail and are then simply referred to by name or acronym in the rest of the
rules.

Bot
Quick shorthand referring to the side played by the automated opponent.

Exposure of Hexes
Bot units can sometimes, particularly when a skulk is called for, be instructed to move/advance
towards the least exposed hex. The primary consideration is the TEM of the hex and higher TEM
equates to less exposure. (EX: A stone building is less exposed than a wood building) Enemy LOS
and the amount of FP the enemy can bring to bear on the hex also plays a part and serves as a
tiebreaker. (EX: A stone building out of the LOS of all enemy units is less exposed than a stone
building hex which an enemy has LOS to and is in normal range of).

The exposure of various hexes can be calculated and compared by checking the Normalized
Firepower of all shots that can be made towards the hex (with no firegrouping and assuming that all
units in the other hex fire) and summing them together.

LOS Checks
You will often need to know if LOS between two hexes is clear or blocked while evaluating shots
for the bot or when planning movement paths for the bot. All of these LOS checks are freely made
by the player on the bot's behalf. The bot is assumed to have perfect knowledge of the nuances of
the board.

In contrast, the player should play strictly by the rules regarding LOS checks when he is acting on
behalf of his own units. The player must declare his shots and moves before making any LOS
checks that arise as a consequence of his actions.

Designer's Note: This rule really lets you get a lot of ASL map practice in quickly and perhaps
makes playing solo even better than playing a 2 player game for learning purposes. In a 2 player
game, you would not be permitted to freely make all of the map checks you will be required to do
while playing against the bot. While evaluating bot moves and shots, you will quickly be checking
LOS with thread for units all over the map, and of course you will be trying to internalize and
remember that information for use when it is time for your own units to act both in the current
game, and in future when you play the same scenario against a real opponent. Until you become a
very experienced player and learn the nuances of the various maps, the bot will definitely punish

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 2

you a few times during your movement when you move a group of units to a hex that you thought
was safe, only to find that a clear shot was deviously present.

Most Economic Shot

You will often, particularly during your own MPh and during the bot's PFPh, be asked to make the
Most Economic Shot for the bot. A card will direct you to make a shot having a strength of a certain
minimum FP. You must then evaluate the possibilities and attempt to meet those requirements with
as few MMC/SW as possible and exceeding the indicated value by as little as possible.

During the bot's PFPh, SW and their owning MMC are considered indivisible if there is only one
target available to them.

Ex: The player is moving a unit and it has just entered a wood building using non assault
movement. The card draw informs us that the bot wishes to make a 1FP shot. The TEM of the
building is +2 but there is a -1 penalty for FFNAM for total modifiers of +1. Since the 1FP on the
card is a normalized value (see Normalized Firepower), we would need firepower of 2 to meet that
requirement. The player checks the units which can fire on the moving unit and finds a 447 squad
and a 227 HS which can fire. The bot fires the 227 at 2(+1) rather than the full squad since it meets
the requirements more economically.

Ex2: The player is moving a unit and it has just entered a stone building using assault movement.
The card draw informs us that the bot wishes to make a 6FP shot. The TEM of the building is +3
and there is no FFMO/FFNAM for total modifiers of +3. Since the 6FP on the card is a normalized
value, we would need firepower of 16 to meet that requirement. The player checks the units which
can fire on the moving unit and finds a stack of three 447 squads and a neighboring 447 which can
form a firegroup and all units have LOS to the moving unit. The stack of three 447s however also
has a 9-2 leader in the same hex and two of the 447s coupled with the 9-2 would also be the
equivalent of a 16 shot. The bot will choose this option as being more economic since it only uses 2
MMC rather than four.

Normalized Firepower (NFP )

The bot will usually make decisions based on firepower values coming from either a card, its own
units or the enemy units. These firepower values are always expressed in terms of Normalized
Firepower. Normalized Firepower allows one to evaluate the strength of a shot or of a unit's forces
by removing modifiers such as TEM, hindrances, leadership bonuses from the equation and
factoring everything into a single number.

To obtain the Normalized Firepower value of a shot that is under evaluation, compute the FP
exerted by the unit and all modifiers which would apply to the shot and then shift the FP value up
on the IFT for each negative modifier and down on the IFT for each positive modifier, obtaining a
single number. A shot of X Normalized Firepower is equivalent to a shot on the X column of the
IFT, with 0 TEM and no other modifiers added to the shot.

Ex: If a bot unit has a shot with 8FP at enemies who are in a stone building, it would be a 8(+3) shot
in the PFPh. Shifting the 8FP down 3 columns on the IFT yields a Normalized Firepower value of
2. If the enemies were in an adjacent stone building hex, the Normalized Firepower would be 6 – a
16 FP shot with 3 shifts to the left on the IFT.

Ex2: If during the MPh, the bot has a 8FP shot against enemies who are moving, without assault
movement, into a stone building hex, the normalized firepower would be 4. The basic shot is 8 (+2)

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 3

[+3 TEM; -1 FFNAM]. Shifting 2 columns to the left on the IFT from 8 yields 4. If a -1 leader were
directing the fire, then the Normalized Firepower would be 6.

Objective
Bot units are usually instructed to move towards an Objective or skulk at an objective. For most
scenarios, this refers to victory locations on the map which may be a single hex or a collection of
hexes such as a multi-hex building. An Objective may be held by either the bot or the enemy. Once
the bot or player captures an objective hex, it continues to be treated as an Objective.

The scenario special rules in the Appendix usually contain guidelines on how to handle objectives
for the bot.

Ordering Stacks/Units by Firepower

In most phases of the game, you will be asked to rank the bot's stacks in either ascending or
descending firepower order. Simply count the FP of all MMC in the hex, including SW (even FT
and DC). Do not take into account limitations related to MMC and manning of SW. EX: A 346 half
squad with a 4-10 MMG would be considered as being a 7FP stack for the purposes of ranking the
stacks.

Designer's Note: The idea is to quickly determine a resolution order that is close to the order which
a human player would use.

A single unit having firepower of X is considered to be higher than a stack of multiple units having
the same total firepower.

Ties between single units can be broken by examining the range and, if needed morale values of the
counter. (EX: A 447 ranks above a 426).

Ties can be broken by checking if the stack is adjacent to other units and including the firepower of
the adjacent units. EX: a 447 and a leader ranks below a 447 adjacent to a 426. In the Prep Fire
phase, the 447 would act first and may possibly form a FG with the 426.

Ties can be further broken by checking for the the presence of leaders. (EX: A 447 and an 8-0 ranks
above a 447 alone).

Designer's Note: Experienced ASL players usually order their shots from strongest to weakest and
make their moves from weakest units to strongest units. Ordering stacks by firepower allows the bot
to emulate this behavior without requiring complex rules. If you mistakenly, process one stack out
of order and only realize it after the fact, there is no need to try to correct the error.

Player Winning/Losing The Scenario

At any moment in an ASL scenario there is almost always one player who holds the victory (a few
rare scenarios have the possibility of a draw) and would win the game if it ended immediately. If
these rules refer to the player who is winning/losing, examine the victory conditions and game
situation and decide who would win if the game ended right away.

Processing Stacks

When running the bot, you will be instructed to select a stack and then to process it. All units in a
stack will have an action performed for it before you move onto the next group of units.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 4

Scenario Specific Rule (SSR)
A rule in effect for the current scenario only.

Random Selection (RS)

Random selection is often used as a tie breaker when the solo system leads to 2 or more possibilities
for hexes/movement paths/units which are all valid. The standard ASL Random Selection procedure
involves rolling a dr for each possibility and then choosing the highest one, but you may use any
method you prefer, as long as it is quick.

Designer's Note: I use evens/odds on a dr to make a choice between 2 possibilities and a single dr
where each number indicates a different choice if I have 3-6 possibilities.

Skulk
A defensive maneuver in which a bot's unit will assault move out of it's original hex during the MPh
to a new hex having one of the following characteristics:
• out of LOS of all enemy units or
• less exposed to enemy fire (See Hex Exposure)
The new hex may have a TEM lower than the original hex or may even be Open Ground.

Valid Shot
A shot which, taking the possibility of cowering into account, has the potential of achieving at least
a PTC on the player's units. (EX: A 1(+3) shot would not be a Valid Shot for a squad acting alone,
but would be if the squad was being aided by a leader). In a given phase, if a bot unit/stack/FG does
not have a valid shot, then do not take any shots with those units.

2. Cards
The heart of the solo system is the deck of cards used to determine bot actions. There are 3 values
listed on each card.

The deck of 40 cards should be sufficient to last a half turn, but if the cards are exhausted in the
middle of a Player Turn, simply shuffle the discards and continue with a new deck.

Discards are returned to the deck and the full deck is reshuffled at the start of every Player Turn.

Firepower

The Firepower value is used to decide many aspects of the bot's behavior. It will determine whether
units in a stack will fire and/or move during the PFPh and whether fire groups or leader bonuses
will be used.

During the player's movement phase the firepower value will be used to determine whether the bot
holds fire or shoots when the player expends MP and how strong the shot will be.

In other phases it determines whether units in a hex all fire at the same target, choose different
targets or form firegroups with units in neighboring hexes.

Target Type

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 5

When a bot unit is evaluating whether to shoot at a target but there is more than one choice
available, after using the Firepower value to obtain a target, the Target Type entry of a card is used
to obtain a single target for the bot's fire.

Each card provides 2 target types. The first target type is applied first. If there are still more than
one possibility, then the 2nd target type can be used to narrow the choices down further. If a single
target has not been determined, then use RS to choose from the remaining possibilities.

The Target Types appearing on the cards are:

Most FP: The bot should fire on the hex containing the most FP
Leader: The bot should fire on a hex containing a leader. Choose the hex containing the best leader
if there is a tie.
Closest: The bot should fire at the closest target
Most Exposed: The bot should fire on the hex having the least TEM and hindrance modifiers

Move

During the bot's movement phase, a card is usually drawn before the bot will move to a new hex
and the Move value on the card will be used to test adjacent hexes to determine if the bot will move
there or if the bot will stop moving.

The Move value is comprised of 2 parts:

• A normalized firepower value ranging from 6 to 16 which is treated in a similar manner to

the Firepower entry which was described earlier. When the bot is evaluating a hex for the
next portion of its move, if the player's units can exert the firepower listed in the Move value
or higher, then the bot may decide to not move to that hex. A value of 6 means that the bot is
being very cautious for its next hex, a value of 16 means that the bot is being more
adventurous and will tke risks.

• A shot count of either 1 or 2+. This indicates the number of player shots required to make
the bot eliminate the hex from consideration. A value of 1 means that any player shot to the
hex which is high enough can cancel the move to that hex. A value of 2+ means that the
player must have more than one shot of the indicated strength available to make the bot
ignore the hex when moving. A draw of a 2+ card means the bot is willing to test if your
defense is thinly held, where one key unit is attempting to hold off many attackers single-
handedly.

3 Setup
Obtaining a random but reasonable set-up for the bot is often dependent on the characteristics of the
scenario being played. The sections that follow contain some guidelines for a basic set-up procedure
for typical scenarios involving attack/defense of victory hexes/buildings.

The Appendix of this document will contain specific set-up instructions for some scenarios which
do not fall into this pattern.

3.1 Defender Setup

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 6

The following rules will allow you to perform a setup where all of a defenders starting units are
permitted to setup within a region specified in the scenario instructions. If the defender's units are
divided into more than one group, each with their own set-up region then you will need to repeat
this process for each group of units.
You will need a number of counters which can be used as dummies. Concealment counters for the
bot's nation are ideal, but if using ASL Starter Kits, you may also use units belonging to the nation
not appearing in the scenario as dummies.

1. Separate the bot's starting units into MMC, leaders and SW. Count the number of MMC. Set
aside a group of dummy counters equal to the number of MMC divided by 2 (FRU).
2. Count the number of MMC plus dummy counters and prepare a second set of that many
dummy counters.
3. Place the MMC and the smaller set of dummy counters into an opaque cup.
4. Using the second set of dummies, place a dummy counter on the map in each hex which can
be considered a good setup hex for the defender in this scenario until there are no dummies
left.
5. Choose a hex and replace the dummy counter on the map with a counter drawn from the
cup. If you drew a dummy counter from the cup, then nothing gets placed on map. If a unit
was placed, and there are adjacent dummy counters on the map, your next draw must be one
of those. Continue performing this step until all units have been placed on map.
6. Assign SW, starting with the SW having the highest FP and working down, to the highest
quality squads, one per MMC. Use RS if necessary.
7. Place leaders having negative modifiers with the highest quality squads. The best leaders
should be matched with the best MGs. Use RS if necessary. Begin with the best such leaders
and work down to the worst.
8. Place the leaders without negative modifiers adjacent to as many MMC as possible, in the
least exposed hexes which provide cover. MMC already adjacent to or in the same hex as a
leader should be ignored for the purposes of this placement. Use RS if necessary. Begin with
the best such leaders and work down to the worst.
9. Finally, place any remaining leaders in hexes with units such that they are adjacent to as
many MMC as possible. Use RS if necessary. Begin with the best such leaders and work
down to the worst.

3.2 Attacker Setup

The following rules will allow you to perform a setup where all of a attacker's starting units are
permitted to setup within a region specified in the scenario instructions. If the attacker's units are
divided into more than one group, each with their own set-up region then you will need to repeat
this process for each group of units.

You will need a number of counters which can be used as dummies. Concealment counters for the
bot's nation are ideal, but if using ASL Starter Kits, you may also use units belonging to the nation
not appearing in the scenario as dummies.

1. Separate the bot's starting units into MMC, leaders and SW. Count the number of MMC. Set
aside a group of dummy counters equal to the number of MMC.
2. Count the number of MMC plus dummy counters and prepare a second set of that many

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 7

dummy counters.
3. Place the MMC and the first set of dummy counters into an opaque cup.
4. Using the second set of dummies, place two dummy counters on the map in each hex which
can be considered a good setup hex for the attacker in this scenario until there are no
dummies left.
5. Choose a hex and replace one of the dummy counters in that hex with a counter drawn from
the cup. If you drew a dummy counter from the cup, then nothing gets placed on map. If a
unit was placed, and there is another dummy counter in the hex or there are adjacent dummy
counters on the map, your next draw must be one of those. Continue performing this step
until all units have been placed on map.
6. Assign SW, starting with the highest FP working down, to the highest quality squads, one
per MMC. Use RS if necessary.
7. Place leaders having negative modifiers with the highest quality squads. The best leaders
should be matched with the best MGs. Use RS if necessary. Begin with the best such leaders
and work down to the worst.
8. Place the leaders without negative modifiers adjacent to as many MMC as possible, in the
least exposed hexes which provide cover. MMC already adjacent to or in the same hex as a
leader should be ignored for the purposes of this placement. Use RS if necessary. Begin with
the best such leaders and work down to the worst.
9. Finally, place any remaining leaders in hexes with units such that they are adjacent to as
many MMC as possible. Use RS if necessary. Begin with the best such leaders and work
down to the worst.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 8

4. Playing a Player Turn
4.1 RPh

The bot will attempt to recover any unpossessed SW in the same hex as any of it's units.

The bot will transfer MGs from HS to full squads if possible.

The bot will self-rally a single MMC, which does not have a leader in his hex, and which has the
greatest chance on rallying.

Broken units belonging to the bot will keep their DM markers if in Open Ground and in
normal/long range of a player unit which has LOS to it.

The placement of reinforcements that will be entering play this turn is postponed until the bot's
MPh.

4.2 PFPh

Process the bot's stacks in descending order according to firepower. When determining the
firepower potential of a unit/stack for PFPh, take the doubling of FP for Point Blank fire into
account if the bot's units are adjacent to player units. Include the firepower of Concealed units when
evaluating the stack.

For each stack:

1. Examine the board and determine whether the bot's stack has a valid shot at any of the
player's units.

2. Unless there is a target adjacent to the bot stack, draw a card and look at the Firepower
value.

3. Determine if it is possible to make an attack having that Normalized Firepower on any of the
potential targets using some or all of the units in that hex. Go to Step 5 if it is.

The bot will always fire at adjacent targets.

4. If it is not possible to make a valid attack on any of the player's units in LOS, due to
insufficient firepower, the bot will attempt to form a FG with any adjacent units in an
attempt to meet the Firepower requirements set by the card.

5. If there is a Valid Shot, determine the Most Economic Shot and resolve it, marking the firing
units with a Prep Fire marker. The other units in the hex will move in the bot's MPh. If there
are multiple targets that can be selected, draw a new card and look at the Target Type value
to narrow the choices down. If there is still more than one target, use RS to decide.

In the PFPh only, if only one target is available to a stack, SW and the unit possessing them
are considered indivisible. Either they both will fire or they both will move. If more than one
target is available it is possible, when evaluating the most economic shots, that SW and the

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 9

MMC's firepower will shoot at different targets.

6. If the shot is still not possible to form, then all units in the hex will move, or skulk if
currently occupying an objective, during the MPh.

If the bot's stack is currently occupying an objective and:

• there is no valid hex to skulk to, determined by checking the Exposure of Hexes OR
• the only player units in LOS are those which project no firepower (ex: broken units
or leaders)

then the unit/stack will not skulk and all units in the stack will fire at one target. If there is
more than one possible target, use a card draw and then RS, if needed, to determine the
actual target.

A unit manning a SW in excess of its PP will never drop the SW in order to skulk.

A unit which has less that 2MF available to it will not skulk and will fire instead regardless
of the Firepower value of the card that was drawn.

Units will not skulk if they will become CX in the process.

Process one stack before continuing on to the next.

The bot will intentionally destroy any captured, malfunctioned weapons which it possesses.

Ex: A 747 is currently occupying an objective hex and during the Prep Fire phase draws a card
whose Firepower value is >= 8. The 747 cannot obtain that amount of fire since no other friendly
units are adjacent and it would normally be marked to move. Since it occupies an objective hex, we
need to determine whether it would have a skulk move to a hex which is safer. In its current hex, a
stone building, it is exposed to fire from 2 hexes where the players' units would have a 8(+3) and a
4 (+2) shot – 2 and 1 NFP respectively. Adding those 2 numbers together, we determine that the
units current level of exposure is 3 NFP. Next, we check all hexes adjacent to the bot's unit to try to
find the best skulking destination. Ideally, this would be a hex out of LOS of all of the players' units
but that is not possible here. The only hex which is not exposed to fire from those 2 units is an open
ground hex to which a 237 half squad would have a 2(0) shot – 2NFP. The bot judges that the open
ground hex is less exposed than it's current hex and will skulk there in the MPh. If the 237 were a
447 full squad instead, then the bot would decide that no adjacent hexes are safer than its current
hex and it would shoot in the PFPh in spite of not meeting the Firepower requirements of the card
which was drawn.

Designer's Note: You may wish to mark units/stacks that have been selected to move in the MPh in
some way to avoid the stack from mistakenly being processed twice. I turn the counters 45 degrees.
If there are many stacks on the board, don't be too obsessed or spend a great deal of time on getting
the FP order perfect. Just do your best to process the stacks, more or less, from strongest to weakest.

Leader Actions

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 10

Leaders will aid fire in the PFPh if:
• all MMCs and SWs in the hex are firing together at the same target. A leader will add
his bonus in this case, even if it is not necessary to meet the cards Firepower
requirement.
• the inclusion of a leader to a shot has been chosen over the addition of a MMC when
determining the most economic shot.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 11

4.3 MPh

4.3.1 Bot's MPh

Process the bot's stacks in ascending order according to firepower. Within each stack, process the
individual units, also, according to firepower.

If the stack contains a leader and begins its MPh out of LOS of all player units, then the bot will
process the stack as a whole and move the group together. If, when processing a move for a stack,
the bot wishes to enter a hex which would be overstacked, due to the size of the stack, then the
weakest MMC/SW will drop out of the stack at that point to allow the leader and other MMC to
continue moving.

Leaders, whether stacked with other units or not, will either move to aid a broken MMC within
6MF or will move normally, if there is none that needs aid. Wounded leaders whose leadership
modifier has fallen to 0 or lower, will only move to aid broken units within 3MF and will not make
normal moves. Leaders will only move to aid a broken unit if the move can be made without
incurring both FFMO and FFNAM. Leaders starting the MPh in a hex containing a broken unit will
not move.

Otherwise, a leader, unless wounded, will move with the last MMC in a stack to be processed.
Leaders alone in a hex will move after all other units, including MMC who have postponed their
move.

MMC with DC or FT will always move last among MMC.

A moving unit will drop any SW in excess of its PP and that of any accompanying leader. (EXC: If
a bot unit enters from offboard carrying such a weapon, it will never voluntarily drop it.)

Designer's Note: For the most part, the exception only comes into play for the Russian MMG.

Process one stack before continuing on to the next.

For each moving unit/stack:

1. If the bot's unit/stack is currently occupying an objective and if at least one of the
player's units is in LOS, then the unit/stack will simply perform a Skulk move, assault
moving into the hex which is the least exposed to fire from the player's units (see Exposure
Of Hexes). After performing a skulk, make a note of the original hex, such that the
unit/stack can return to it in the APh. Use RS to select between multiple choices which have
the same exposure. Among choices having the same exposure, if one or more are adjacent to
an ongoing Melee the bot will give priority to those choices.

Designer's Note: I simply rotate the counters, so that they point towards the original hex.

If none of the player's unit's is in LOS or if a skulk is not possible due to the current hex
being the least exposed, then the bot's unit/stack will remain in the objective without
moving.

If the stack skulked, process the next stack returning to step 1.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 12

2. If the stack did not skulk, examine the hexes adjacent to the moving units' current position
and choose 1-4 candidate hexes for the next portion of its move. There are normally only 2
or 3 possible candidate hexes depending on the direction in which the unit is approaching its
objective.

Candidate hexes must be contiguous.

Candidate hexes cannot be occupied by any player units.

A candidate hex may not be adjacent to the hex the unit/stack last vacated in this MPh.

Candidate hexes must reduce or maintain the distance between the unit and the closest
objective. The actual objectives being used for this rule may change several times as the full
move is processed.

Ex: In Clearing Colleville, a US MMC in hex L7 is 2 hexes away from hexes K6 and M6,
which are both occupied by German units and are both Objectives. The candidate hexes for
the unit's next move would be K7, L6 and M7. The bot moves to K7 and now hex K6, alone
is the closest objective. The only candidate for the next portion of the move is J6. L6 is
adjacent to the last hex occupied by the unit and is also not contiguous with J6.

3. Order the candidate hexes in terms of priority using the following criteria, in order:

◦ DC placement if adjacent to player's units

◦ lowest hex stacking. This criteria should be ignored if the candidate hex being evaluated
is a building or a hex adjacent to an objective.
◦ least distance to at least one of the closest objectives
◦ safe move; no fire from the player's units is possible
◦ lowest movement cost
◦ best TEM/cover if not Open Ground, including smoke
◦ adjacent to least number of hexes containing Player units
◦ If Open ground, closest to unoccupied or friendly hex having positive TEM or providing
cover which could be used for routing should the unit break
◦ Lowest amount of residual fire
◦ Random Selection

On the last turn of the game, if the bot needs to gain control of objectives to avoid losing the game,
the bot will aim for objectives other than the closest one, as needed, in an attempt to get its units
into or adjacent to the minimum number of objectives needed to avoid the loss.

On the last turn of the game, if the bot needs to gain control of objectives to avoid losing the game,
candidate hexes whose cost would make it impossible for the unit/stack to end its MPh adjacent to
an objective should not be considered.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 13

Ex:

The 346 in hex N8 is preparing to move. It is 2 hexes from the objective in N6, so it may not
make any move which increases the distance between it and the closest objective after its
move. The candidate hexes are M8, N7 and O8. N7 is the highest priority candidate because
it reduces the distance to the closest objective to 1. M8 would be next because O8 already
has a friendly unit in it. Even if the wounded 8-0 were not present M8 would still rank
higher because it costs less to move there than O8.

4. If the unit/stack is able to move into the highest ranked candidate without being fired upon
in that new hex, pay the movement cost and make the move immediately.

If the unit/stack still has MF to spend, return to step 2 and repeat the process for the next hex
to be moved to.

Continue resolving moves until the unit/stack exhausts its movement allowance or decides to
stop moving.

If the unit/stack is out of MF or has MF but cannot move to any new hexes, but is out of
LOS of all the players units (even broken units or units in Melee), then the unit/stack will
CX and try to continue moving. Unlike the human player, when the bot CXes it receives the
+2MF movement bonus even though it did not declare CX at the start of its move. Do not
apply a CX counter if the bot does not end up expending more than its normal movement
allowance (ie. If all of the candidates for the next move are rejected).

5. If the bot could be fired upon in its first candidate hex, draw a card and examine the Move
value.

6. Evaluate the candidate hexes in their priority order, one by one, until one of them is
accepted or all of them have been rejected. Use the following procedure to evaluate the
hexes:

If the 2nd portion of the Move value is “1 Shot”, check whether you would have at
least one shot at the unit in the new hex with at least the normalized firepower
indicated in the 1st portion of the Move value.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 14

If the 2nd portion of the Move value is “2+ Shots”, check whether you would have at
least two shots at the unit in the new hex having at least the normalized firepower
indicated in the 1st portion of the Move value.

Do not attempt to form multi-hex firegroups for your units when making these
checks. Only evaluate the contents of single hexes occupied by your units.

If this is the first hex which the bot's unit/stack is moving to this MPh, then you must
assume that it is using Assault Movement and not apply FFNAM when evaluating
the hex during this movement check, nor in any defensive fire shot you make while it
is in that hex during its move. Afterwards, the bot may continue its move normally
even though Assault Move was assumed for all purposes during the first hex of its
move.

If the hex contains a residual fire marker, then the shot that would be produced by the
residual may be used to meet requirements of a card and can be used to help
eliminate a candidate hex from consideration.

If you can meet the card's requirements, then the bot rejects that hex and the same
check must be performed on the next hex in the priority list. If you cannot meet the
card's requirement, then the bot pays the movement cost and moves to that hex.

If the unit/stack still has MF to spend, return to step 2 and repeat the process for the
next hex to be moved to.

Continue resolving moves until the unit/stack exhausts its movement allowance or
decides to stop.

If the unit/stack is out of MF or has MF but cannot move to any new hexes, but is out
of LOS of all the players units (even broken units), then the unit/stack will CX and
continue moving. When the bot CXes it receives the +2MF movement bonus even
though it did not declare CX at the start of its move.

Designer's Note: Whether the bot's units perform a de-facto assault move or not is usually
determined when resolving the 2nd hex of the move. The player, however, should not know in
advance what the 2nd hex of the bot's move will be. Giving the bot a free “Assault Move” on its first
hex entered was a good way to maintain the mystery of the bot's future intentions regarding the unit
and also gives a very small advantage to the bot. The player will sometimes be torn between taking
a FFMO shot in Open Ground right on the first hex entered or waiting to see if the bot will move a
2nd hex in the open allowing the player to pick up the extra modifier for FFNAM as well.

7. If none of the candidate hexes have been accepted and the unit has moved at least one hex, then
the bot's unit/stack ends its move in its current hex.

If none of the candidate hexes have been accepted and the unit has not moved at all, then the unit
will postpone its move until later in the turn after all other units, except solitary leaders, have
completed their moves. It can try again using a different card. If it fails to move at least one hex in
its second attempt then it will not move. The unit/stack may fire on the players' units as if it were
the Prep Fire phase. Concealed and Suspect unit/stacks will simply stay put and will not fire.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 15

Designer's Note: This corresponds fairly closely to the Opportunity Fire option from full ASL rules.

On the last turn, if the bot needs to gain control of objectives to avoid losing the game, a
movement card draw which would normally cause a unit/stack to stop moving for the turn, may be
ignored. Move the bot's unit/stack into its first choice to continue its move.

A unit/stack moving towards an unoccupied objective will stop once the hex is reached, even if it
has MF remaining.

A unit/stack moving towards an objective occupied by at least one player unit able to exert
firepower, will stop once it is adjacent even if it has MF remaining. If the objective is occupied by
units exerting no firepower (Ex: units in Melee, broken units, leaders) then the unit/stack attempts
to continue moving.

A unit/stack which moves adjacent to a player unit which is not in an objective will attempt to
continue moving.

On the last turn, the bot will CX, if necessary, to move adjacent to Objectives which must be
captured to win the game.

Leaders will observe the above rules and will normally move with the last MMC to leave the
original hex, unless:

• there is a broken unit without a leader within 6 MF or within 3MF if the leader is
wounded

• the leader can move to the broken unit, or adjacent to the woods/building the broken
unit will rout to later in the Player Turn, without exposing itself to any hypothetical
shots from the player having both FFNAM and FFMO modifiers

If both of the above are true, then the leader will move to help the broken unit rather than making a
normal move. You may use the same procedure as described above, but replace the normal
Objective hexes with a new objective hex consistent with the goal of ending the turn in the same
hex with the broken unit, preferably in a building/woods hex.

Lone leaders not aiding broken units, will move in the same way as a MMC. If the leader is stacked
with MMC which have all Prep Fired, it will not move, except to aid broken units.

A leader moving with MMC will stop once all of the accompanying MMC are pinned or broken. If
a leader is moving with a group of MMC, the leader and MMC will continue moving as long as
possible even if some units are forced to stop their movement due to being broken/pinned.

If a bot's unit having a smoke exponent:

• is fired upon by the player in an Open Ground hex

• and has at least 1MF remaining

then it will spend 1MF and make a smoke grenade check before the resolution of the player's shot.
The unit's move will end, after the player's shot, if it rolls a 6 on the smoke grenade check. Each
unit may only make one such try each MPh. The unit will not CX simply to gain extra MF to use for

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 16

a smoke grenade check.

If a bot unit occupies an Open Ground hex and:

• it has already moved at least one hex
• all of the candidate hexes for the next portion of the move are also Open Ground
• no candidate hexes have been eliminated due to lack of MF (ie. All hexes moving
forward are also Open Ground)

then the bot may shift the firepower portion of the Move value up by one column when determining
whether it continues moving.

Designer's Note: This is intended to help the bot from initiating a move where several Open Ground
hexes have to be traversed to reach cover or an objective and then stopping after only moving one
hex.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 17

Ex:

In this example, US Objectives are considered to be any stone building having at least one German
unit in it.

The 346 in L7 is beginning its move. It is 2 hexes away from the objective in M6, and can never
make any move which increases the distance between it and the closest objective (whether it
remains M6 or changes to a completely different hex as the unit moves).

Candidates for its first hex are M7, L6, K7 and M8. The first two reduce the distance to 1 hex, and
the last two options maintain the current distance of 2 hexes.

The candidates are ranked as follows:

L6 is the first choice because it moves closer and there are no other friendly units present.
M7 is the second choice because of the DMed unit which is present. The bot tries to avoid stacking
as much as possible, even during moves, except in buildings.
K7 and M8 both maintain the distance, are both open ground, both have no other friendly units
present and are both adjacent to equivalent cover. We would use RS to choose which of these hexes
would be checked first.

The player draws a card for the bot and the Move value on the card reads “16/1 Shot”.
Evaluating L6, the player pretends that the 346 moves there and then checks to see if he would be
able to get one 16 NFP shot against it. It is normal ground and the shot would receive a -1 for
FFMO if there are no hindrances, but not the bonus for FFNAM since this is the first hex the bot's
unit is moving to. 16 NFP is the equivalent of 12(-1) or 16(0) if there is a +1 hindrance between the
firing unit and L6. The player's best shot to L6 is a 12(+1) from K4. The orchard in K5 even
prevents FFMO from applying. That does not meet requirements and the bot accepts L6 as its first
hex, pays 1MF and moves to L6.

The player now has the option of firing at the 346 while it is in L6, but must assume that the HS is
using AM if he does so.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 18

Assuming the half squad survives any fire in Good Order it attempts to continue its move. It is now
adjacent to an Objective and would normally end its move here. If the German unit in M6 were
broken or in melee, the 346 would attempt to continue its move. Any candidate hexes must also be
adjacent to an objective. L5 is the only candidate.

The player draws a card for the bot and this time the Move value is “12/2 Shots”. The player has
a 12(0) from K4 and a 4(-2) from N5 which are both 8 NFP. The player can't meet requirements
here either and the bot is brave and now moves to L5 for a total of 2MF.

If the player shoots at the unit now, he may apply the FFNAM bonus.

Continuing on, the bot is still adjacent to an objective, but now has some more possibilities. The
candidate hexes would now be K5, L4 and M5. K5 and L4 are moving away from the original
objective but are moving adjacent to a new Objective in K4.

The priority order of the candidates would be:

K5 due to the orchard
L4 adjacent to only one German occupied hex
L5 adjacent to two German occupied hexes

The player draws a card and its Move entry reads “6 / 2+ Shots”. Evaluating the possibilities.
K5: K4 has a devastating 20(-1) and the 467 in N5 has a 4(-1) both of which are 6NFP or greater.
L4: Even worse. K4 has a 20(-2) and N5 has a 4(-2)
L5: N5 has a 8(-2), M5 has a 4(-2) and K4 has a 12(-2)

Since none of the candidates are accepted, the HS ends its move here with one MF unused.

4.3.2 Player's MPh

When the player is moving his units in LOS and within normal/extended range of the bot's units, the
bot may decide to shoot at the moving units.

1. Whenever the player moves a unit into a hex where defensive fire could theoretically
occur, draw a card and examine the Firepower Value.

2. Examine whether a shot exists that meets the FP requirement and if so, determine the
most economic shot and resolve it, remembering to place a residual firepower marker in the
hex afterwards, if applicable.

The bot will only fire once per hex entered by the players moving units.

If a moving unit is pinned or broken by residual fire, then do not draw a card for further fire.

The bot will choose to First Fire a MMC/SW rather than Subsequent First Fire or Final Protective
Fire if there is a choice. The bot will not Subsequent First Fire a MG, unless the manning MMC has
already First Fired. The bot will Subsequent First Fire if it is more economical than First Fire, but
will use Final Protective Fire only as a last resort.

The bot will choose to fire SW having possibility of ROF before IFP, even if using the SW is not the
Most Economical shot.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 19

If one or many SW maintain ROF, they will keep ROF and forgo placing residual if the SW were
firing alone without IFP. If the SW were firing together with IFP, then they will place residual fire
and forgo their ROF.

To avoid the increased chance of breakdown. MGs will only be fired in SFF if their addition would
result in a higher column of the IFT being used.

Leaders with a 0 or negative Leadership Modifier will always aid Final Protective Fire.

The bot will fire the MMC/SW farthest away from the moving unit if there is a choice.

Leader Actions

Leaders will aid defensive fire in the player's MPh only if:
• all other units in the hex are firing together at the same target or
• the last unmarked MMC in the hex is First Firing or
• the last MMC not marked with a Final Fire marker is Final Firing or
• the inclusion of a leader to a shot has been chosen over the addition of a MMC when
determining the most economic shot.

4.3.3 Offboard Entry

If the bot has reinforcements due to enter on the current turn, the procedure changes as follows:

1. As long as there are still reinforcements left to enter play, before conducting the normal
MPh procedure for the next unit, determine randomly whether the next move will be for a
unit already on the map or for a reinforcement unit.

2. If an on-map unit is moving, perform the procedure in the previous section. If a

reinforcement is entering play determine the hexes on which the reinforcements will enter
the map. This is only done once for each group of reinforcements on a given turn.

If the reinforcements are entering on the short side of the board, roll a DR and subtract 2 to
obtain a map edge hex. (EX: In Retaking Vierville, the US receives its reinforcements on
hexes V0-V10 of map y. I roll a 6 and the entrance area is centered around hex V4).

If the reinforcements are entering on the long side of a map, choose a hex roughly in the
middle of the map side to correspond to a DR of 7. DRs of 2-6 will correspond to the 5
hexes above that hex. DRs of 8-12 will correspond to the 5 hexes below that hex. (EX: In
Retaking Vierville Germans are receiving reinforcements from the east. I center the possible
selections around hex N10 and roll a 4 resulting in hex K10).

Once a hex is determined, place a marker there as a reminder. Reinforcements may enter on
any map-edge hex within 2 hexes of the one which was selected.

3. To select the unit(s) which enter play, place all the reinforcements into an opaque cup and
draw a counter.
◦ If a MMC is drawn, it enters play alone.
◦ If a SW is drawn, retrieve a squad from the cup and both the squad and SW enter play.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 20

◦ If a leader is drawn and it is not the last counter, draw an MMC. The leader and MMC
enter play together.
◦ If a leader is drawn and it is the first counter pulled from the cup, then the leader enters
play stacked with up to 3 MMC and 3 SW.

You will need to keep track of the number of MMC and SW left in the cup. If the last MMC
is drawn, pull out the last SW and automatically assign it to the MMC.

Similarly, leaders will never enter play alone, so you will need to monitor the contents of the
cup and, if needed, automatically assign leaders to the final MMC that get drawn.

If two SMC or two SW are drawn consecutively, the draws are ignored and are returned to
the cup after the SMC/MMC, SW/MMC or SMC/SW/MMC stack is composed.

4. Resolve the unit/stack's move normally.

4.4 DFPh

For each stack:

1. Examine the board and determine whether the bot's stack has a valid shot at any player's
units.
2. Draw a card and look at the Firepower value.
3. Determine if it is possible to make an attack on any of the potential targets using some or all
of the units in that hex.
4. If it is not possible to make a valid attack on any of the player's units in LOS, due to
insufficient firepower, the bot will attempt to form a FG with any adjacent units.
5. If there is a Valid Shot, determine the Most Economic Shot and resolve it, marking the firing
units with a Final Fire marker. The other units in the hex will fire on another target. If there
are no further targets that haven't already been fired at, then all units will fire at the current
target. If multiple targets can be selected, draw a new card and look at the Target Type value
to narrow the choices down. If there is still more than one target, use RS to decide.
6. If a shot meeting the FP requirements of the card is still not possible to form, then all units
in the stack will select one target and will fire at it.

If the player has successfully placed a DC, then the bot will target the placing units, if possible,
until they are pinned or broken in an effort to prevent the DCs from firing. In this case it will not be
necessary to draw a Target Type card.

Unlike the PFPh, it is possible for units in a stack to fire at different targets in the DFPh. To avoid
needless SW breakdown, the bot will only include SW in a FG if it results in a higher column on the
IFT being used. The excluded SW, may then, fire on a different target, if possible.

Process one stack before continuing on to the next.

The bot will intentionally destroy any captured, malfunctioned weapons which it possesses.

Leader Actions

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 21

Leaders will aid fire in the DFPh only if:
• all other units in the hex are firing together at the same target
• the last MMC in the hex not marked with a Final Fire counter is shooting
• the inclusion of a leader to a shot has been chosen over the addition of a MMC when
determining the most economic shot.

4.5 AFPh

The bot's behavior in the AFPh is identical to the DFPh.

EXC: Shots to hexes in which all units will be eliminated for failure to rout in the upcoming RTPh
are not Valid Shots. Those hexes should be ignored in the AFPh only.

4.8 RtPh

The bot will never risk interdiction.

If not forced to rout broken units currently occupying a building/woods hex will remain in their
current hex unless it is the player's turn and he has Good Order units at a distance of 2 hexes. In the
player's turn, the bot attempts to end its rout at least 2 hexes away from the nearest Good Order
player units, so that they could not be ADJACENT to them when the player advances his units.

If given a choice between routing towards Woods/Wooden Building/Stone Building the bot will
choose the terrain with the highest TEM.

Leaders will always rout with broken units that start their rout in the same hex as the leader. If there
is a choice of leaders, pick the one with the best Leadership Modifier / Morale.

The bot will use Rout continuation, if possible, after entering a building/woods hex in an attempt to
rout:
• out of normal range of the player's units OR
• out of LOS of the player's units OR
• into higher TEM

If the broken unit is currently in an Objective it will attempt to stay in the same building/hex or
limit it's rout to other hexes of the same victory building.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 22

4.6 APh

The bot will transfer MGs from HS to full squads if possible.

Process the bot's advances as follows:

1. For each bot stack adjacent to a player stack which is not in melee, determine if the bot
will advance into CC. If there is a choice, the bot will advance into the CC where it
would have the highest odds attack for its own units. RS if there is a tie.

Calculate the Ambush modifiers for both sides

On the CCT, locate the Kill numbers for both sides assuming that all units on each
side are attacking all units on the other side. Adjust the Kill Numbers up/down for
any applicable modifiers.

Subtract the Player's modified To Kill number from the bot's modified To Kill
number and use the following chart:

Bot TK – Advance ?
Player TK

-3 or less N
-2 If bot has advantage of 2+
factors in Ambush roll and is
losing the scenario
-1 If bot has advantage of 1
factor in Ambush roll and is
losing the scenario
0 and up Y

2. For each bot stack adjacent to a player stack which is in melee, reinforce the melee if it
would improve the odds of winning and if the bot would use the 1:1 column or better in
the ensuing CCPh. If so, add units to the melee until the stacking limit is reached.

Designer's Note: The bot will not reinforce a lost cause, hence the minimum 1:1 requirement.

3. Unbroken leaders will advance into a hex containing broken units if no broken or good
order leader already present.

4. Units/Stacks which skulked in the MPh should return to their original hexes. If their
original hex is ADJACENT to a player unit, go to step 5 instead.

5. Units 2 hexes away from the player's units will decide if they will advance adjacent as
follows:

▪ Calculate the largest Point Blank shot that you would be able to take against the bot's
units in the next PFPh if they moved adjacent to you. Convert the value to NFP.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 23

▪ For each MMC, in the bot's stack, draw a card.

▪ If the Firepower value is greater than or equal to the value of your calculated shot,
then the MMC advances, otherwise the MMC does not advance.

▪ A leader with a negative leadership modifier will accompany any MMC that
advance.
▪ A leader with a 0 or positive leadership modifier will only advance adjacent to a
players unit/stack. If all of the bot's MMC advance adjacent.

EX: The bot has two 467s and a 9-1 considering a move adjacent to your 747 in a stone building.
You would have a 12 (+3) shot in the next PFPh which is 4NFP. You would draw a card for each bot
unit and examine the Firepower value. On values of 4 or more the 467 will advance adjacent, on
values of 1 or 2, the 467 will stay at a 2 hex distance. The 9-1 will advance adjacent if at least one
of the squads advances adjacent.

6. The bot will advance remaining unpinned units into the hexes which:
• are closer, or same distance to the nearest objective if the bot is losing the
scenario
• offer the best cover
• are closer to a enemy held victory location if the bot is losing the scenario
• are in LOS and normal/extended range to the highest number of the player's
stacks

The bot will avoid stacking of more than one MMC unit in a single hex except in a building.

Avoid ending the APh with more than one Good Order leader in the same hex.

The bot will not advance into an Open Ground hex to which a player's Good Order unit has LOS
and is within normal/extended range unless
• the bot's unit is currently in an Open Ground hex
• the bot is losing the game

The bot will not advance out of an objective hex leaving it empty if the player has a unit within 6
hexes.

A leader which starts its APh in a hex with a broken unit will not advance.

Leaders will advance into hexes containing broken units.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 24

4.7 CCPh

The bot will group leaders with the highest FP MMC, one leader per MMC. Start with the best
leader assigned to the best MMC and continue until all leaders are grouped with a MMC.

If the bot has overall odds of 2:1 with no unfavorable modifiers, then it will attempt a single attack
on all of the player's units. Otherwise, the bot will perform smaller attacks, attempting to get as
many 2:1's as possible. If a single 2:1 is not possible, then the bot makes the highest odds attack it is
able to.

On the last turn, if the CC/Melee is occurring in an objective which the bot must capture or hold to
avoid losing, the bot will perform sufficient attacks to have a chance at eliminating all of the
players' units.

At the end of the CCPh, the bot always checks all of its units for Concealment gain in its own
Player turns.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 25

5. Full ASL Rules

The following section contains preliminary versions of some rules in full-ASL. The Appendix
contains some set-ups for scenarios found in Beyond Valor and these rules will be useful if one of
those scenarios is played.

5.1 Suspects

Suspect counters are the main method by which the bot simulates a set-up in which all or a portion
of the bot's OOB is able to set-up under concealment. Often, the bot, especially if defending, will
start the scenario with all or a portion of his OOB represented by Suspect markers. As play
progresses the Suspects will be replaced by real units, via counter pulls from a cup, until eventually
there are no Suspects left.

The scenario setup will instruct you as to where to place Suspect counters during set-up. A single
Concealment counter for the nationality in question can be treated as a Suspect and there is no
possibility of confusing these markers with actual units under a normal Concealment marker.

The scenario instructions will also tell you how many FP each Suspect marker is assumed to have.
You use this firepower value, as usual, when checking to see if the units in that hex will fire on your
units. When checking for bot defensive fire, units already on the map are checked before Suspects
are checked.

Suspects will never fire during PFPh or DFPh, even at ADJACENT units, but may fire during the
player's MPh.

If it is determined that a Suspect will fire, before resolving the shot, the Suspect must be removed
from the map and be resolved into actual units. The scenario instructions will tell you how many
counters to draw from the Suspects cup when resolving a Suspect marker. Once the actual markers
are on board, determine how many of them will perform the shot and place the non-shooting units
under a Concealment marker.

Suspects will sometimes be instructed to move normally during their own MPh. The scenario
instructions will list how many MF each Suspect possesses. If a Suspect marker ever moves in such
a manner as to normally lose Concealment, then the Suspect will be removed and resolved in that
hex. After being resolved, the actual units making up the Suspect may continue their move with
whatever MF they have remaining, if any. Suspects may use CX.

Suspect counters will move after all other units.

If there are enough Suspects on board to make choosing the next unit to treat by RS impractical,
you may process them in some other order (ex: farthest from the action first).

Suspect units may stack when moving/skulking and if the player fires on a stack of Suspect
counters, there will be no bonus for fire into an overstacked hex given. If a Suspect counter or
group of Suspects is resolved such that the hex is overstacked with actual units, the bot will attempt
to move units in its MPh/APh/RTPh to eliminate the overstacking as soon as possible.

Fire by the human player's units versus a Suspect marker is treated as fire versus a Concealed target.
Should the shots achieve a result, the Suspect marker is resolved into actual units before the result is

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 26

applied to the units.

Suspects may enter an enemy occupied hex in the APh with the goal of initiating CC or reinforcing
a Melee.

5.2 Concealed Bot Units

When checking for bot Defensive Fire, bot units not under Concealment, should always be verified
before checking bot units under Concealment, unless the unconcealed units would be performing
Final Protective fire.

In the RPh, bot units will not attempt to recover weapons if they would lose concealment by doing
so.

Concealed units will never fire during the DFPh, even at ADJACENT units, but may fire during the
player's MPh. They may also fire during their PFPh, but to account for their reluctance to lose
Concealment, shift the Firepower value on the card drawn for the stack containing the Concealed
units up by one column.

Concealed units that did not shoot at an ADJACENT enemy during the PFPh will not move in the
MPh. They will attempt to hold ? Until the APh and will possibly attempt to enter CC.

Add an example here

If a stack contains both concealed and unconcealed units when a Firepower card is drawn for them,
attempt to meet the requirements of the card using only the unconcealed units before considering a
concealed unit joining in.

Concealed units may enter an enemy occupied hex in the APh with the goal of initiating CC or
reinforcing a Melee.

5.3 Bot Sniper Placement

If the player begins with units on the board, the bot will place his sniper in an empty hex adjacent to
the player's highest ranked leader. If this is not a valid starting location for the sniper (within 6
hexes of 6 target hexes), find the closest hex to that one which is a valid starting location and place
the sniper there.

If the player begins with no units on the board, the bot will place his sniper in the middle of the
map.

5.4 Fire Discipline Due To Enemy Snipers

If the player has a SAN of 6 or 7, then the bot will deliberately avoid making low odds shots.

If the player SAN is 6 then the bot will never take a shot <= 1 NFP. If a 1NFP Firepower card is
drawn, treat it as though it were a 2 NFP card instead.

If the player SAN is 7 then the bot will never take a shot <= 2 NFP. If a 1 or 2 NFP Firepower card
is drawn, treat it as though it were a 4 NFP card instead.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 27

5.5 Overstacking

The bot will never move/advance/rout into a hex which would be overstacked. [EXC: When
skulking, it is permitted to advance into an overstacked hex provided it is out of LOS of all player
unit]
[EXC: It is permitted to rout to hex which would be overstacked provided there is a leader in that
hex and the hex is out of LOS of all player units.]

If a bot stack begins its PFPh in a hex which is overstacked a number if units will automatically get
move orders such that the hex will no longer be overstacked at the end of the MPh [EXC: If there is
an enemy unit ADJACENT to the overstacked hex, then the bot will automatically fire.]

5.6 HIP

The following rule is in effect whenever the bot is defending and has been allocated HIP units by
the scenario.

If the bot still has HIP units which have not yet been placed on the board and if the player moves a
unit or stack in his own MPh such that:

• No card is drawn either because the move is out of LOS of all bot units or all bot units
which could have fired on the moving unit are prevented from firing through already being
marked with First/Final Fire.

• The moving unit would be subject to FFNAM/FFMO if a hypothetical HIP unit were placed
on board in a legal setup hex which has LOS to the moving units.

Make a dr for each hex entered by the moving units.

If the dr is a 6, then there is a possibility of HIP units being placed on board.

From the cup being used to resolve Suspect units, remove one MMC, and one SW/Leader as
permitted by the scenario, and form a stack with those units. If there is a choice between units,
choose the best/highest quality. If no SW or Leader is left in the cup, then the HIP stack will not
contain a SW/Leader.

Place the units under Concealment in the farthest legal set-up hex which would still be able to fire
on the player's units with a -2 modifier.

Units placed on board will form as large an attack on the moving unit as possible. If a leader was
placed, it will direct the attack. If a MG was placed and the attack is along a road, then the MG will
automatically attempt to place a firelane.

Subtract the number of HIP units from the bot's allotment for the scenario. If the HIP units which
were just placed complete the bot's allotment for the given scenario, then this rule is no longer in
effect for the rest of the game.

5.7 Firelanes

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 28

When a bot MG fires during the Player's MPh and the Line Of Fire is along a Road/Path and if it
would be possible to place a Firelane along that Road/Path which includes the target, the MG will
sacrifice its ROF to place a firelane marker if the Firepower value on the card drawn is > the
residual firepower value on the potential firelane marker.

5.8 MOL

The bot will attempt to use MOL if a success would result in an attack on a higher column. If the
bot's stack has a single squad with a MG, you must make the calculation carefully, since a
successful MOL check will prevent the squad from firing its MG. move as a stack

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 29

Appendix

A. Solo SSR for Scenarios

A.1 Retaking Vierville

A 1.1 US Bot Setup

To allow a US bot to setup for the Retaking Vierville scenario, perform the following steps.

1. Place the 4 US MMC into an opaque cup.

2. Choose from among the following hexes if they don't already have a MMV present (N3, N4,
M5, L5). Draw a counter from the cup and place the unit there.
3. Repeat until all 4 MMC are placed.
4. Perform a RS to determine which of the 4 hexes the 8-1 leader starts in.

A 1.2 German Bot Setup

Use the normal Offboard Entry procedure.

For German units entering play on the West edge, select the entry area by making a DR centered on
L0. Roll for this entry area at the beginning of the MPh on Turn 1. The German units may enter
within 2 hexes of this entry hex.

For German units entering play on the East edge, select the entry area by making a DR centered on
N10. Make a new DR at the beginning of the MPh in each of turns 1 through 3. The German units
may enter within 2 hexes of this entry hex.

On turn 1, use a different opaque cup to track the units entering on each map edge.

A 1.3 Objectives

The 4 buildings on which victory depends are all considered to be objectives by the bot. When
moving, the bot will choose the nearest of the following:

• unoccupied and uncontrolled victory building

• player controlled victory building

A.2 War Of The Rats

A 2.1 Russian Bot Setup

Place 1 dummy in each of the hexes facing the German front line. Place the remaining dummies in
any hex which is in a victory building.

A 2.2 Russian Bot Objectives

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 30

Each of the original hexes occupied by all bot units are considered Objective hexes by the unit
occupying them until such time that:

• The unit is forced to rout away from the original starting hex
• One of the three victory buildings has changed hands and is now controlled by the
German player

This is intended to make the Russian bot try to maintain his original defensive line as long as
possible.

A 2.3 German Bot Setup

Place 2 dummies in each of the stone building hexes facing the Russian front line. Follow the
normal bot set-up procedure.

A 2.4 German Bot Objectives

The closest of:

hex in an unoccupied Russian controlled VP building
hex in a VP building containing a Russian unit

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 31

A.3 Simple Equation

A 3.1 German Bot Setup

Place 1 dummy each in the following hexes, for a total of 24 dummy counters:

On map y: I2, J1, K2, P1

On map z: FF1, FF2, FF3, EE2, CC2, BB2, BB1, AA2, Z1, X2, X1, W3, W2, V2, V1, U3, S3, R3,
R2, R1

Follow the normal bot set-up procedure.

A 3.2 German Bot Objectives

Each of the original hexes occupied by all bot units are considered Objective hexes by the unit
occupying them until such time that:

• The unit is forced to rout away from the original starting hex
• The bot's units advance to a new building hex in the APh.

The bot will never move out of a building hex during a MPh (EXC: A skulk and return), but will
advance to adjacent building hexes in the APh if the new hex offers LOS to more of the player's
stacks, as per the normal APh rules.

This is intended to make the German bot try to maintain his original defensive line as long as
possible.

If, during the MPh, a bot unit has no player unit in LOS and there is no player unit within 4 hexes,
then it will attempt to move towards the nearest enemy unit, but it will never enter an Open Ground
hex in LOS and in Normal/Extended range of a player's Good Order unit which could fire upon it.

Designer's Note: This is intended to allow the Bot to re-position defensive units which are out of
play, in the event that the player is only attacking a portion of the map.

A 3.3 German Fortified Buildings

Whenever US fire on a building hex results in a NMC, that entire building will be considered a
fortified building for the rest of the scenario and units therein will obtain an additional +1 TEM.
The original shot result will be changed to a PTC. The Germans may fortify 2 buildings this way.

Designer's Note: This rule can be a little difficult to remember in the heat of the action, so it might
be a good idea to place a reminder of some sort close to the board.

A 3.4 US Bot Setup

Make a dr and refer to the following chart for the overall US bot strategy:

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 32

dr Strategy
1-2 Right Flank Attack
3-4 Two Flank Attack
5 Left Flank Attack
6 Full Front Attack

According to the Strategy chosen, place 2 dummies in each of the indicated hexes for a total of 30
dummy counters:

Right Flank Attack: J7, K8, L7, L8, M7, M8, N7, N8, O7, O8, P7, P8, Q7, Q8
Two Flank Attack: A7, A8, B7, B8, C7, C8, D7, N7, N8, O7, O8, P7, P8, Q7, Q8
Left Flank Attack: A7, A8, B7, B8, C7, C8, D7, D8, E7, E8, F7, F8, G7, G8, H7
Full Front Attack: A7, B7, C7, D7, E7, F7, G7, H7, I7, J7, K7, L7, N7, O7, P7

The FT is assigned to the 337.

Use RS to assign the two MMG.

A 3.5 US Bot Objectives

When moving, bot units will consider the closest of the following to be their objective:
• The nearest German occupied building on board Y
• Nearest German controlled building hex on board X

Contrary to the normal rules, when a US bot unit takes control of a unoccupied building location on
either map, it attempts to continue moving rather than stop.

A 3.6 US Bot Knowledge Of German Fortified Buildings

The German player selects his fortified buildings before beginning the US bot's set-up. The bot is
assumed to know about them in advance and the extra +1 TEM should be taken into account when
making decisions for the bot units considering fire attacks against those buildings.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 33

A.4 Welcome Back

A.4.1 US Bot Setup

Place 12 dummies on the board as follows: 2xC5, F5, I8, L7, P6, R7, V6, Z7, Z8, CC6, EE8

Place the 8 US MMC as well as 4 dummies into a cup.

Follow the standard bot set-up procedure to place MMCs on the map.

Once the MMCs are placed:

Place the 10-2 leader and the HMG in the same hex as the 667 squad
Assign the MMGs to the two 666 squads
Assign the 8-1 leader to the MMG farthest from the HMG
Assign the 8-0 leadr to the other MMG.

A.4.2 US Bot Objectives

The first time a bot stack/unit is ordered to move, it will redeploy towards the closest hex numbered
<= 3. It may CX if all movement expended and it has not yet reached its objective even if in sight of
German units. Once a unit/stack has successfully redeployed it may use remaining MF will
thereafter follow the normal movement rules below.

Once a bot stack/unit has successfully moved back to a hex numbered <=3, it will then move
towards the German unit closest to exiting when ordered to move.

A.4.3 German Bot Setup

Roll on the following table for the German bot's strategy and place markers on the indicated entry
areas for the selected attacking strategy.

dr Strategy Entry Areas

1-2 2 Flank Attack F10, BB10
3-4 Left Flank Attack F10
5 Right Flank Attack BB10
6 Full Front Attack Q10, F10, BB10

Perform a DR for each entry area to possibly reposition it left or right. A DR of 7 corresponds to it's
original position; a DR < 7 will move it to the left; a DR > 7 will move it to the right. German units
may enter play within 2 hexes of the marker's final positions.

Place all German units into a cup and during the first MPh, use the standard offboard entry
procedure to bring the German units into play. You will have to keep track of the SMC and SW and
MMC remaining in the cup to make sure that SW and SMC all enter play assigned to a MMC.

A.4.4 German Bot Objectives

When ordered to move, the bot will try to move to the closest hex on the west map edge on/between

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 34

the I1 and Y1 road hexes.

A5. Clearing Colleville

A 5.1 US Bot Setup

Place 1 dummy in T0 and U3.

Place 2 dummies in T5, T10, U5 and U6

Follow the normal bot set-up procedure.

A 5.2 US Bot Objectives

All building hexes, occupied by at least one German unit and within 3 hexes of M5 is a US bot
Objective.

A 5.3 US Bot Reinforcement Entry

At the beginning of the MPh of US turn 1:

Make a DR and place a marker on the indicated map-edge hex
2-7: N10
8: O10
9: P10
10: Q10
11: R10
12: S10

US reinforcements may enter from offboard within 2 hexes of the marker, but not east of N10.

At the beginning of the MPh of US turn 2:

Make a DR and place a marker on the indicated map-edge hex
2-7: J10
8: K10
9: L10
10: M10
11: N10
12: O10

US reinforcements may enter from offboard within 2 hexes of the marker, but not east of J10.

Use the normal bot offboard entry procedure.

A.5.4 German Bot Setup

Roll on the following table for the German bot's strategy and place dummy markers on the indicated
hexes.

dr Strategy Dummy Markers

1 Basic Village Defense J3, K4, K6, L3, L7, M4, M6, N5, N6, O6, P5, P6

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 35

2-4 West Side Interdiction K4, K6, L3, L7, M4, M6, N5, N6, O6, P5, P6, Q6
5-6 West Side Enfilade K6, L7, M4, M6, N5, N6, O6, P1, P5, P6, Q6, R7

Follow the normal bot set-up procedure.

A 5.5 German Bot Objectives

All building hexes within 3 hexes of M5 are German bot Objectives. German reinforcements and
on-map units which are not on an objective will move towards the closest objective, occupied or
not, if not instructed to fire.

A 5.6 German Bot Reinforcement Entry

At the beginning of the MPh of German turn 2, make a DR centered on hex M1.
German reinforcements may enter from offboard within 2 hexes of the marker.

A.6 Released From The East

A 6.1 German Bot Setup

Randomly select one of the following defensive strategies:

1. Defend All Objectives

Place 1 dummy in each of the following hexes:

U4, S5, S3, R3, R2, P3, P8, M9, M7, L7, L6, K9, F5, E5, D6, D4, D3, D2

2. Defend L6 and D3 Objectives

Place 1 dummy in each of the following hexes:

O5, N3, M9, M7, M6, M5, L8, L7, K9, J8, G9, F8, E9, D6, D4, D3, D2, C7

3. Defend L6 and R2 Objectives

Place 1 dummy in each of the following hexes:
V8, S9, S5, S3, R3, R2, R1, P8, P3, O8, N3, M9, M7 M6, L7, L6, J8, J5

Follow the normal bot set-up procedure.

A 6.2 German Bot Objectives

If the German side is winning:

During the PFPh/MPh. the starting hexes occupied by all bot units are considered Objective
hexes by the unit occupying them unless:

• The unit has no LOS to any enemy units AND

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 36

• There are no enemies within 6 hexes OR
• One of the three victory buildings has changed hands and is now
controlled by the Russian player

If this situation occurs, the hex occupied by the closest Russian unit becomes its objective.

The Russian reserve which enters on Turn 3 is assumed to be in LOS and with 6 hexes of
any German defenders in the D3 building for purposes of this rule.

If the German side is losing:

For each unit/stack, the objective to use when moving is the closest of:
hex in an unoccupied Russian controlled VP building
hex in a VP building containing a Russian unit

This is intended to make the German bot hold the buildings he originally chose to defend, but also
counterattack once it becomes clear that the Russian player is attempting to bypass those defenses.

A 6.3 Russian Bot Setup

1. Place all Russian units into an opaque cup.

2. At the beginning of the Russian MPh on turn 1, generate an entry area by making a DR centered
on hex V10. This will be referred to as area A. The Russian units may enter within 2 hexes of this
entry hex.
3. Generate a second entry area by making a DR centered on hex L10. This will be referred to as
area B. The Russian units may enter within 2 hexes of this entry hex.

4. Make a dr, to determine if the next unit(s) to enter play will enter the board at area A or B or will
be saved as part of the reserve:

1-2: Area A
3-4: Area B
5-6: Reserve

If 5 MMC have already been chosen for the Reserve, it is no longer an option. Simply make a RS
between Areas A and B instead.

5. Draw unit(s) from the cup using the normal Offboard Entry procedure to form a MMC,
SW/MMC, Leader/MMC, Leader/SW/MMC stack.

6. Resolve the move for that stack. On turn 1 only, units entering in Area A will move towards the
R2 building and units entering in Area B will move towards the L6 building, regardless of which
building is physically closer to the unit/stack.

Continue performing steps 1-6 until all units have entered play or have been chosen for the Reserve.

Now determine if the reserve will be used. If the Reserve contains no leader OR the number of
Russian MMCs chosen for the reserve is less than the number of German units closer to the D3
building than the L3 building, then the Russians will not use the reserve. Return the units to the cup
and continue, entering those units in Area A or B instead.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 37

If the reserve is being used, at the beginning of the Russian MPh on turn 3, generate an entry area
on the east edge by making a DR-2 and obtaining a hex between A0-A10. The Russian units may
enter within 2 hexes of this entry hex.

A 6.4 Russian Bot Objectives

On turns 2+, for each unit/stack, the objective to use when moving is the closest of:
hex in an unoccupied German controlled VP building
hex in a VP building containing a German unit

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 38

A.7 Commando Schenke

A 7.1 Russian Bot Setup

1. Perform a dr. On a 1-3 replace the 8-0 leader in the Russian OOB with a 9-0 commissar.
If the commissar appears, place him in hex X4 underneath a Concealment marker.

2. Place one Russian Suspect marker in each of the following hexes:

P3, P5, P7, P8, Q3, Q6, R1, R7, R7, S5, T7, U3, U8, V4, V5

3. Peform a dr
1. On a 1-3, prepare a cup having 7 Russian counters and 7 non-Russian counters.
2. On a 4-6, prepare a cup having 12 Russian counters and 2 non-Russian counters.

4. Select hexes containing Suspects one at a time and draw a counter from the cup. If the
counter is Russian, the Suspect remains on map. If the counter is non-Russian, the Suspect is
removed from the map.

5. Place 3 Russian Suspect markers in each of the following hexes:

W4, W5, X5

6. Place all units of the Russian OOB into a draw cup along with 11 ? (dummy) counters.

A.7.2 Russian Suspects

If the dr in A7.1 was 1-3, then

Each Suspect represents 8FP with normal range of 4 and normal movement of 4MF.
When composing a stack from a Suspect, draw 3 counters from the cup

If the dr in A7.1 was 4-6, then

Each Suspect represents 4FP with normal range of 4 and normal movement of 4MF.
When composing a stack from a Suspect, draw 2 counters from the cup

When required to remove a Suspect counter and compose the actual units in the hex, draw the
required number of counters from the cup. If there are not that many counters left in the cup, then
draw as many as possible.

Discard any dummy ? Counters which were drawn

SW which were drawn must be possessed by a MMC. If no MMC were drawn, pull a 447 from the
cup to give the SW to. If both a 447s and 527s were drawn, give the SW to the 447.

Leaders may not appear in a hex alone. If a leader was drawn and all other chits were dummies,
return the leader to the cup. No units appear on board for that Suspect counter.

When there are only 3 MMC left in the cup, even while in the process of resolving a Suspect, they,
along with any SW and leaders left in the cup, are automatically placed in the building 1X4 if there
are still unresolved Suspects present in that building. Use RS to distribute the assets among the

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 39

unresolved Suspects. After this is done,remove all unresolved Suspects from the map.

All units which appear on map after being resolved from a Suspect counter will initially appear
beneath a Concealment counter.

You must monitor the cup to make sure there are never more SW present than MMC. Select a SW
automatically if the count of MMC is ever equal to the count of MMC. You must also verify that a
SMC is never the last infantry unit left in the cup. If there is ever a single MMC left in the cup,
select a SMC automatically until there are none left.

A 7.3 Russian Bot Objectives

At the end of the bot's MPh, make a dr to select an overall strategy:

On a roll of 1-3: The bot will treat the original set-up hexes/buildings as Objectives and will
attempt to hold those positions as long as possible. Suspects will attempt to skulk during the MPh.

On a roll of 4-6: The bot will attempt to move units towards victory building 1X4. All bot unit's
marked to move, including all Suspects will treat the closest hex of building 1X4 as a move
objective.

Bot units in building 1X4 will never voluntarily leave the building.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 40

A.8 The Czerniakow Bridgehead

A 7.1 Russian Bot Setup

1. Set-up on Board 23.

1. Place one Russian ? marker (25 total) in each of the following hexes:
D4, D6, D7, E4, F4, F6, G6, H5, J8, L9, M8, N9, O10, Q9, R8, V6, W6, X6, Y6,
Z6, AA7(+Wall Ad), CC7, CC8, DD7, EE7

2. Prepare a draw cup having 15 x 447 units and 10? (of any nationality).

3. Select hexes containing ? markers one at a time and draw a counter from the cup.
If the counter is a ? the marker is removed from the map. If the counter is a 447 place
it on the map. If a 447 is placed and there is at least one ? adjacent to that location,
the next hex selection must be one of the adjacent ?'s.

4. Assign the 2 LMGs to units with LOS along a road, preferably crossing a bridge.

5. Assign the 8-1 leader to one of the 2 LMGs.

6. The other 2 leaders are placed normally.

2. Set-up Suspects on Board 20

1. Place one Russian Suspect marker (?) in each of the following hexes:
B4, C3, F1, F5, G1, H4, I7, J1, J7, L1, L6, M3, O5, P2, P9, Q2, S9, T2, T3,
V2, W1, X6, Z4, Z7, AA1, AA6, BB9, DD2, EE5, FF1

2. Prepare a draw cup of 15 Russian counters and 15 German counters. Select hexes
having a Suspect marker one at a time and draw a counter. If a Russian counter is
drawn, the suspect stays on the map. If a German counter is drawn, then the Suspect
is removed.

3. Prepare a Suspect Resolution cup having 12 X 337, 9-1, 8-1, 8-0, 2LMG and 3
Russian ?s. This cup will be used when a Suspect marker must be resolved and when
HIP units are due to be placed.

A.7.2 Russian Suspects

Each Suspect represents 3FP with normal range of 3 and normal movement of 6MF.
When composing a stack from a Suspect, draw 1 counter from the cup

Discard any dummy ? Counters which were drawn

SW which were drawn must be possessed by a MMC. If no MMC were drawn, pull a 337 from the

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 41

cup to give the SW to.

Leaders may not appear in a hex alone. If a leader was drawn make a 2nd draw to pull either a MMC
or SW. If a SW is pulled for the 2nd draw then automatically pull a 337 to form a SMC/SW/MMC
stack.

All units which appear on map after being resolved from a Suspect counter will initially appear
beneath a Concealment counter.

A.7.3 Russian HIP

Whenever the player is

• moving a unit/stack in Open Ground
• There is no residual fire in the Moving unit/stack's hex
• is not eligible to be fired against by any on-map bot unit even before the usual card
draw (ie. No Good Order bot unit has LOS to the moving unit or those that do are
marked Final Fire or marked First Fire and can't shoot due to range considerations or
have a shot that is < 1 NFP)
• could be fired on by a theoretical unit placed in a legal, currently unoccupied, set-up
Location in non-Open Ground on Board 20 or 8 within 6 hexes of the moving units.

make a DR.

The the colored die = 6 and the white die is <= the number of MF spent by that stack/unit thus far,
then the Russian bot will place HIP units on board.

When this happens:

Remove the strongest leader from the cup if any remain.

Remove a LMG from the cup if any remain.
Remove a 337 from the cup.

Place the resulting stack in the farthest legal set-up location on board 20 which
has a shot on the player's moving units with both FFMO/FFNAM
is in normal range of the LMG is one was selected
is in normal range of the MMC if no LMG was selected

MMC and SW will immediately fire on the player's stack/unit with leader direction if
possible. NOTE: A just revealed LMG will not attempt to place a firelane. The partisans
suffer from Ammunition Shortage.

The bot may perform this HIP procedure two times during the course of the game.

It is acceptable for the game to complete without the bot fully using it's HIP allotment. Those units
will be used to resolve Suspects in the normal fashion.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 42

A 7.4 Russian Bot Objectives

The bot will never cross the canal on board 23.

If the Russian bot is currently winning the scenario:

Bot stacks generally prefer to treat their current hexes as victory positions and will try to
hold and will try to position themselves between the German units and board 8. Such units
which receive Move orders will skulk if possible. Russian units which are not in front of the
German advance will move normally.

Bot stacks which are out of play will try to move towards closest enemy unit east of the
canal. Stop in cover if LOS to enemy and in normal range.

Squads and SW which are in range and have LOS to a bridge exit or capable of fire along a
road should not voluntarily move away from those positions if German units are expected to
use that bridge/road in upcoming turns.

Suspects will not perform normal moves during the MPh until activated/resolved.
Suspects will not perform advances in the APh except to possibly advance into CC or to
reinforce a melee.

At the end of the Russian bot's MPh, the Suspect farthest away from the closest German unit
will perform a Redeploy action.

To Redeploy perform the following steps:

1. Identify the Suspect which is farthest from any German unit.

2. Identify the German unit closest to board 8 and place a marker on the same
hexrow but 6 hexes to the East (ie. Towards board 8).
3. Make a DR and move the marker as if it were a Sniper marker
(ie colored die = direction and white die = number of hexes)
4. Move the suspect to the destination hex. If Open Ground or a hex which
already contains a Suspect, adjust the placement so that the Suspect is in
cover in an empty hex. If a choice, choose the hex with LOS and/or closest to
a German unit. If placed on Board 8, it must be on the West side of the river.

If the German player is currently winning the scenario:

On the first PFPh following the turn in which the German has obtianed a winning game,
resolve all Suspects remaining on the board, placing the units under concealment markers.
Resolve the suspects closest to the German units on Board 8 first.

When given a move order, the Russian bot will move towards the closest enemy unit on
Board 8.

Even if, subsequently, the Russian player regains a winning game, the Russian units will
continue to move towards the closest enemy unit on Board 8.

(c) Peter Kossits 2016 43

Common questions