Putin Strikes

Started by besilarius, January 10, 2016, 08:48:43 AM

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Crossroads

#75
Quote from: Crossroads on November 02, 2017, 02:24:40 PM
The follow-up games seem to finally be nearing becoming general availability. From their newsletter:

QuotePutin's Northern War and If Dragons Fight Update

We had hoped to have photos and possibly an unboxing video of the press samples for Putin's Northern War and If Dragons Fight, but unfortunately the printer now says they won't be here until the first week in November. We will send out an update once they arrive with photos of the gaming goodness.

These games are finally out from the printer. Here's a shot of Putin's Northern War.



Eternal optimist that I am, I am hoping the rules would work better in these maps, which cover a smaller area in a 50% zoom-in mode compared to Putin Strikes.

Also, and maybe it is just me, it bothered me a bit with Putin Strikes how resilient any city garrisons were. That model should be a better match for Finland's total defence concept.

Not long to wait anymore, I hope!
Campaign Series Legion | CS: Vietnam 1948-1967 | CS: Middle East 1948-1985

CS: Vietnam DAR: LZ Albany as NVA (South Vietnam 11/17/65)  
CS: Middle East AARs: High Water Mark (Syria 10/12/73) Me vs Berto | Riptide (Libya 8/6/85) Me vs Berto | The Crossroads (West Bank 6/5/67)  Me vs Berto

Boardgame AARs: AH D-Day | MMP PanzerBlitz2 Carentan | OSS Putin's Northern War | GMT Next War: Poland | LnL Against the Odds DIY

Crossroads

Struggle for Finland finally shipping, according to OSS newsletter  :bd:

Will be interesting how the system works on this smaller scale, half-a-week turns, 20km hexes, with mostly just Finland on the map.

I was not fully sold on Putin Strikes, and how the "Big And Dumb Armies Simulation System (BADASS)" rules worked there, especially as Cities as objectives were garrisoned in a simplistic rule I particularly did not like. This could be better as here it would make more sense.
Campaign Series Legion | CS: Vietnam 1948-1967 | CS: Middle East 1948-1985

CS: Vietnam DAR: LZ Albany as NVA (South Vietnam 11/17/65)  
CS: Middle East AARs: High Water Mark (Syria 10/12/73) Me vs Berto | Riptide (Libya 8/6/85) Me vs Berto | The Crossroads (West Bank 6/5/67)  Me vs Berto

Boardgame AARs: AH D-Day | MMP PanzerBlitz2 Carentan | OSS Putin's Northern War | GMT Next War: Poland | LnL Against the Odds DIY

ArizonaTank

Any idea how this system compares to GMT's Next War series?
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Crossroads

#78
Quote from: ArizonaTank on February 20, 2018, 01:22:02 AM
Any idea how this system compares to GMT's Next War series?

The "BADASS" rules are simpler, Putin Strikes rulebook is 12 pages, and while I don't have any Next War series titles (yet), I've read their rulebooks a while ago. Next War rulebook with Standard rules is a 20 pager, and with Advanced rules double that, so that tells a lot.

There's the good in BADASS playing mechanism, the pet peeve is the VP calculation basics which is based on ownership of cities, so territorial conquest is the key to your victory. At the same time, I dislike the City Garrison base rule in BADASS, where each city has a "garrison" that is quite powerful. That don't feel right at all with Putin Strikes, but then again, it is the one thing that doesn't work for me, so you can make a house rule that these "garrisons" (I don't like the concept in modern war) have half or even one third of the strength they do. Then you'd need to actually defend a city with an actual fighting formation. As it is now, you get bogged down basically taking almost any city.

So, I believe Ty Bomba created BADASS with a design principle of making the rules as simple as possible, but not any simpler than that, but he might have gone a step too far on the process. It could use with some tiny tweaks here, imho.

That said, interesting to see how BADASS works in Putin's Northern War, with its smaller scale, and Finnish "total defence" concept actually not that dissimilar to having a defending force in all build up areas.

Campaign Series Legion | CS: Vietnam 1948-1967 | CS: Middle East 1948-1985

CS: Vietnam DAR: LZ Albany as NVA (South Vietnam 11/17/65)  
CS: Middle East AARs: High Water Mark (Syria 10/12/73) Me vs Berto | Riptide (Libya 8/6/85) Me vs Berto | The Crossroads (West Bank 6/5/67)  Me vs Berto

Boardgame AARs: AH D-Day | MMP PanzerBlitz2 Carentan | OSS Putin's Northern War | GMT Next War: Poland | LnL Against the Odds DIY

bayonetbrant

I think the BADASS concept is less that the city has a true "garrison" than it is "the locals will firmly resist the occupation of the city by an outside force" and so you can't really move your unit into the city until you've really brought it to heel.
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Crossroads

Quote from: bayonetbrant on February 20, 2018, 06:04:30 AM
I think the BADASS concept is less that the city has a true "garrison" than it is "the locals will firmly resist the occupation of the city by an outside force" and so you can't really move your unit into the city until you've really brought it to heel.

True, and I put "garrisons" to quotation marks as well. As said, i just don't like it myself, I don't buy the concept that the locals would "resist" the contemporary mech formations, from one city to the next one, rinse and repeat.

I mean, resist with what? Unless they are trained (to a certain extent at least) and equipped (to a certain extent at least) to do so. Conscription that was common still in the Cold War era doesn't much exist anymore.

Just my personal view to "garrisons", I am sure this is an item where YMMV  :)
Campaign Series Legion | CS: Vietnam 1948-1967 | CS: Middle East 1948-1985

CS: Vietnam DAR: LZ Albany as NVA (South Vietnam 11/17/65)  
CS: Middle East AARs: High Water Mark (Syria 10/12/73) Me vs Berto | Riptide (Libya 8/6/85) Me vs Berto | The Crossroads (West Bank 6/5/67)  Me vs Berto

Boardgame AARs: AH D-Day | MMP PanzerBlitz2 Carentan | OSS Putin's Northern War | GMT Next War: Poland | LnL Against the Odds DIY