AAR: Ancient Feud (119)

SITREP

For centuries Transylvania had been fought over by Hungarians and Romanians. The “Vienna Award” of 1940 had placed a large portion of the region under Hungarian rule at the expense of the Romanians. Having switched sides to join the Allies, the Romanians now saw their chance to recover this territory. After some initial setbacks, and now bolstered by Russian support, the Romanians went on the offensive to clear Transylvania of Hungarian opposition. An ad hoc armored detachment struck at the town of Apahida where the 2nd Hungarian Army was defending the Aranyos River line. Hungarian armored forces then counterattacked in an effort to contain the Romanian advance.

The Players

Neal – Hungarians – Defending:
25th Infantry Division / 10th Assault Artillery Battalion

Scott – Romanians – Attacking:
Armored Group Nicolescu / Matel

After Action Report

Location:
Aphadia, east of Cluj, Transylvania

Date:
11 October 1944

ROAR Balance	Archive Balance
Hungary 40	Hungary 7
Romania 25	Romania 3

Download the VASL .vsav setup file.
Download the VASL .vlog replay file.

Neal (Defending)

Advantages

• Stone buildings defense for days.
• Concealment and hidden setup let me play peekaboo with Romanian armor.
• I only needed to hold three of twelve buildings to win.????

Disadvantages

• Red To-Hit numbers: an exercise in ballistic futility.
• My anti-tank guns were positioned more for dramatic effect than utility.
• I had to manage a sprawling front with fragile Axis Minor morale.

I went into this one with a healthy amount of dread. The counter mix was bound to make me cross-eyed once the forces began mixing and getting close. Axis Minor and Hungarian counters look almost identical, especially when all mixed together. My eyeballs were not disappointed.

Anyway, this scenario, set on the ancient soil of Transylvania, gave me enough to work with to feel confident from the outset. The map was a puzzle, and the VCs were a gift. Twelve multi-hex stone buildings dotting Board 49, with the Romanians needing to take ten. That meant I didn’t have to hold them all. I just needed to hold a critical three. And so, my mind went immediately to layered defense, fallback lines, and where I could sacrifice with minimal cost. The “Alamo” gambit.

The first thing I did was draw a mental line down the map and divide it into zones. The left flank (my left) was a forlorn hope: one or two buildings that looked tempting to an attacker but weren’t critical to hold. I threw a couple of half-squads and a dummy stack there, with a 50mm mortar and crew as window dressing. Their job? Decoy, delay, make noise, force Scott to commit more than he wanted to what was ultimately dead real estate. If they lived, great. If not, better them than my center.

The center was my heartland…five buildings set back just enough from the front line that I could build a serious firebase without being overexposed. Here went the 9-1 leader (“Goose,” I have a penchant for naming leaders after movie characters, this one from Mad Max), the HMG, and a pair of first-line squads. Goose had a real “old sergeant” energy, holding things together while the rest of the army threatened to collapse into confusion. That core had interlocking fields of fire and overlapping arcs that would catch any frontal assault in a crossfire. A MMG with another squad held a second anchor point nearby, ready to respond to any flanking attempt.

Now, about those two 40L anti-tank guns. I’ll say this now so nobody else makes the same mistake: don’t put them on the hill. It looked smart on paper, and I think that’s why the hill overlays are there, but it just didn’t work for me. But when Scott’s armor began to roll, every potential shot was a 20-hex Hail Mary. Add in red to-hit numbers and axis minor gunnery, and you get wishful thinking instead of tactical effect. I popped them too early, too. A more disciplined hand might have waited for closer shots or even moved one down into the town proper. As it stood, they became mortar bait…good only for drawing enemy fire.

When Scott’s attack began, I didn’t immediately fire. I wanted him to commit. You break concealment too early and the enemy knows where to aim (see the 40L guns above). So, I let him probe. He brought the Panzer IVs and Stugs down the main road in an armored assault. I admired the style, even as I set up crossfires. My HMG punished him for that move, and his infantry paid the price. Morale checks went south fast, and with No Quarter in play, many of his squads simply went berserk. Literally.

The armored cars and TACAM R-2s were more annoying than dangerous. The armored car, in particular, just parked at range and sprayed eight FP attacks every phase. It was a harassment unit par excellence. I tried, and failed, several times to kill it—one of my Zrínyi missed a beautiful point-blank shot, and I think I spent more effort than was warranted chasing that thing.

The middle saw the heaviest fighting. Twice Scott tried to break through. He laid smoke (when his dice allowed it), brought armor up in support, and even flanked with halftracks full of squads. But each time, my defenders repelled the assault. The building density made fire lanes powerful, and the overlapping arcs of fire from concealed units in stone buildings created a murderbox. His infantry, once broken, had nowhere to go. I kept the pressure up and stayed concealed whenever I could. A half squad with a line of sight to a likely entry hex is worth more than a dozen visible units.

When the halftrack-mounted reinforcements came in, I was forced to adjust. He sent them hard right (my left) and began circling around. I responded by pulling my best squads out of reserve and reinforcing the Alamo…the central five buildings I intended to hold at all costs. It was a risk, but the right move. With his pressure mounting on the flanks, I needed that inner fortress shored up.

The armor clash in the town center was one for the books. My Zrínyi took out a Panzer IVH with a lucky rear shot. One of my 40L (Turan I) reinforcements tried to swarm a Stug and failed, mainly because I forgot to use bounding fire. (Mental note: don’t plan on a maneuver unless you also remember how to execute it!) Still, I managed to take out one more Panzer IVH and at least keep the others occupied. The Zrínyi’s lack of a turret was limiting, but its 105mm HE shell did the trick when it connected.

The turning point was when he sent armor into my kill zones. A 40L took a shot at a crossing Panzer IVH. Snake eyes! The to-kill was basically automatic. Then the next one…a four to hit…BOOM! But then, betrayal: a dud round. ASL giveth and ASL taketh away. 🤬

By turn five, I’d pulled all surviving units into the Alamo. I had broken squads rallying, concealed stacks waiting, and Goose calmly chain-smoking while commanding overlapping fire zones. Even though some buildings were lost, I held six by the start of turn seven…and Scott would’ve needed four more to win. That was a bridge too far, especially given the fires, wrecks, and wrecked morale now littering the board.

When he conceded, I felt relief more than triumph. This wasn’t a blowout. It was a grind…a meat grinder where every broken squad and every malfunctioned gun increased my stress. My defense worked because I didn’t overextend, didn’t panic, and focused on the objective. The scenario may look even at a glance, but it’s all about discipline, both in setup and in play. If you’re the Hungarians and you can avoid going berserk yourself, you can ride the enemy’s chaos to victory.

My eyeballs are thankful this scenario is over, but next time, those AT guns are going street-level. And “Goose” gets a promotion.

Scott (Attacking)

Advantages

• Stugs were absolute beasts—mobile bunkers with fangs.
• German-manufactured equipment gave me black TH#s.
• Flexible entry points let me probe multiple flanks.

Disadvantages

• Ten buildings. That’s a lot of urban chewing to do in seven turns.
• No quarter meant no prisoners, no easy gains.
• Smoke? Dice said “nah.” Panzerfausts? Dice said “hell no.”

This was supposed to be my revenge tour in Transylvania. The scenario looked manageable on the surface—ten stone buildings to take, a decent armored complement, and some black-to-hit-numbered guns thanks to Germany’s finest engineering. But as every ASL player learns sooner or later, what looks manageable on paper turns into a nightmare in the rubble-strewn streets of reality. It didn’t help that I came into this with what could only charitably be called “a plan.” And as we all know, ASL “plans” go out the window after the first die roll!

The Romanians had the toys. Two Stugs, Panzer IVs, armored cars, five halftracks with squads and leaders, and a pair of 47mm anti-tank guns I could tow wherever I pleased—so long as I could figure out where “pleased” was. The Hungarians, meanwhile, had red to-hit numbers and Axis Minor morale, which should have given me an edge. But Neal played smart. His setup was focused, his fallback position was airtight, and the terrain favored the defender heavily. This wasn’t a game of armor spearheads and sweeping movement. This was urban trench warfare, one hex at a time.

I opened the game with what I told myself was a “probing assault” but was really just a frontal shove down the main road. Panzer IVs in an armored assault, infantry right behind. I even split a platoon off to go up the left flank, hoping to probe for weakness. But Neal had set up a fortress in the middle, anchored by a heavy machine gun and a 9-1 leader we later nicknamed “Goose.” I don’t know what training Goose received, but I imagine it was somewhere between “Sniper School” and “Warlock College,” because that man made my life hell.

Any attempt to move up the center was punished—badly. Fire lanes, residual FP, open ground, and terrible dice combined to grind my attack to a halt. Smoke was supposed to help me. My Stugs had smoke 8, my Panzer IVs had smoke 6 or 7. In theory, that’s a respectable toolbox. But the ASL gods weren’t having it. My smoke grenades were duds, and when they did deploy, they did so one hex short or one phase late. Twice I tried a serious push into the center and got cut down before I even reached the front building. Berserk counters became a recurring theme. And thanks to No Quarter, broken squads either went berserk or got wiped. There was no surrender here—only escalation.

The flanks offered more promise. On my right, I brought in five squads in halftracks on Turn 2, with plans to outflank Neal’s position. That move at least drew out some of his better defenders and forced him to reallocate, which I counted as a win. But it took two full turns just to get them into position. By then, I’d lost precious time. And time, in ASL, is more valuable than men. You can always rally a broken squad. You can’t reclaim a lost phase.

My armor played a supporting role—sometimes competent, sometimes tragic. The Stugs were strong but limited by terrain. I used one to probe the left flank, another to pressure the center, but I was always wary of his hidden anti-tank guns. Even if they were just 40L with red TH#, they made me nervous. And for good reason. One took out a Panzer IV in a single roll—snake eyes to hit, automatic kill. Another shot should’ve taken a second vehicle, but the dice gifted Neal a dud. That kind of emotional whiplash is ASL in a nutshell: glory one moment, cosmic betrayal the next.

I tried bounding fire swarms with the 40Ls that came in later, intending to gang up on a zrenyi stuck in bypass. The plan was solid, but I forgot to actually take the shots. Three of the five tanks never fired during their movement. That was on me. ASL punishes those who don’t follow through.

Later in the game, I shifted focus again to the right, hoping to break his fortress from the side. It worked—barely. I captured a few buildings and got a slight foothold. On the left, my efforts were even more chaotic. I tried a desperate dash across open ground to take one of the outlying stone buildings, made it, and then watched those squads melt under fire. I sent a Techam flanking left, hoping to bag a retreating Hungarian tank. I got it in my sights… and rolled high. Then the gun malfunctioned. Typical.

Morale checks were my Achilles heel. My squads couldn’t pass them, even with Romanian morale +1 against Hungarians. I rolled eights like it was a compulsion. Battle Hardens turned into Berserks. ELR failure was rampant. And while I did rally some units, most of my recovery efforts were too late to make a difference. I needed leaders in three places at once and usually had them in the wrong one.

By Turn 5, the board looked like a World War I battlefield. Fires raged. Wrecks littered the roads. Units were routing, hiding, or standing in open ground hoping not to die. I’d taken five buildings by then—maybe six—but I needed four more. The Alamo, Neal’s central block of five buildings, was still mostly untouched. Goose was alive and spitting fire. And I had broken leaders, smoked tanks, and barely enough squads left to mount another push.

Turn 6 was the end. I tried one last thrust. More berserks. More mortars. My best move—charging a Hungarian bypassed AFV with a Panzer IV—ended with me driving into the firing arc of an anti-tank gun I hadn’t seen. BOOM! Another flaming wreck. Another building out of reach. My left was shattered. My right had stalled. My center was a traffic jam of desperation and smoke.

There’s no shame in conceding when the math’s against you. I counted my remaining squads, counted the buildings, and realized there simply wasn’t a path. I’d need to take three more in one turn, through stone, smoke, and MG fire, with a battered force. That’s not a tactical puzzle—that’s a fantasy.

Neal played it right. He didn’t try to defend everything. He built a stronghold, delayed me on the fringes, and counterpunched with armor at just the right times. My attack was aggressive, sometimes reckless, occasionally brilliant, but ultimately inconsistent. I didn’t adapt quickly enough. I didn’t capitalize when I had windows. And ASL, unforgiving mistress that she is, made sure every mistake cost me dearly.

Would I play the Romanians again? Absolutely. I love their weird mix of German gear and Axis Minor guts. But next time, I bring a plan. Next time, I don’t try to drive down Main Street like I’m in a parade. And next time… I’m putting Goose on the elimination list from Turn 1.

Debriefing

Historically, this battle represented the unraveling of the Axis alliance in Eastern Europe. By October 1944, Romania had defected to the Allies, and Hungary was desperately trying to hold back both Soviet advances and Romanian territorial ambitions.

Neal’s Hungarian defense, anchored by the 25th Infantry Division and the 10th Assault Artillery Battalion, was a case of terrain exploitation. Recognizing that holding every stone building was not necessary, he focused his forces on a defensible core, using concealment, fire lanes, and well-placed machine guns to grind down Scott’s assaults. His early decision to abandon the flanks in favor of a well-fortified “Alamo” paid off in the long run. Though his 40L anti-tank guns underperformed (understatement), and his Zrínyi II Assault Guns often found themselves awkwardly positioned, Neal’s ability to maintain pressure and conserve strength where it mattered most turned the tide.

Scott’s Romanian offensive, representing Armored Group Nicolescu and Matel, was bold and, at times, unlucky. His armor-heavy force was daunting on paper, especially with two Stugs and multiple well-timed thrusts…particularly his right-flank maneuver with halftracks…forced Neal to adjust, but none could deliver the breakthrough he hoped for. Poor dice and forgotten shots stymied Scott’s use of smoke and bounding fire, and while he eventually gained footholds in the village, it was too little, too late.

The scenario itself proved to be a long, grueling affair…over 650 die rolls! Neal ultimately emerged victorious, having successfully held the critical ground while bleeding the Romanian attack dry. Scott’s offensive faltered because of a perfect storm of stiff resistance, unfortunate rolls, and perhaps too many tactical hats worn at once.

Academy Out!

GET TO THE CHOPPA…!!!

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