Rommel's Rules
While Rommel's rules are mainly aimed at the operational and strategic level, they do have some validity in the tactical ASL environment. My annotations are enclosed in [brackets]. Ignore my comments or clip them out if you find them obvious or unnecess
ary. I've also thought about taking the "rules" of chess strategy and applying them to ASL. Some are pretty cogent like (1) develop your pieces early, (2) control the center, (3) don't move too many pawns in the opening, (4) when ahead make even exchang
es. Of course the SSR and the VCs make some of this irrelevant. However, Rommel's rules may be a useful start to developing our own "praxis."
Rommel, E. 1953. The Rommel Papers, (ed. Liddell Hart, B.H.), Harcourt, Brace, and Co., New York. 545 pp. (pages 199-201).
"In motorised warfare, material attrition and the destruction of the organic cohesion of the opposing army must be the immediate aim of all planning. Tactically, the battle of attrition is fought with the highest possible degree of mobility. The followi
ng points require particular attention:
(a) The main endeavor should be to concentrate one's own forces in space and time, while at the same time seeking to split the enemy forces spatially and destroy them at different times."
-
[Concentration of force, the Schwerpunkt, was the hallmark
of the German offensive tactics. I suspect that most of the
good players attack in force, and have a Schwerpunkt for the
attack. This also translates into don't make piecemeal
attacks.]
"(b) Supply lines are particularly sensitive, since all petrol and ammunition, indespensable requirements for the battle, must pass along them. Hence, everything possible must be done to protect one's own supply lines and upset, or better still, cut the
enemy's. Operations in the enemy's supply area will lead immediately to his breaking off the battle elsewhere, since, as I have indicated supplies are the fundamental premise of the battle and must be given priority of protection."
-
[While supply lines aren't really represented in ASL, lines
of communication (for advance, rout, etc.) are important.
Once the enemy is in your rear area, you've usually had it.]
"(c) The armour is the core of the motorised army. Everything turns on it, and other formations are mere auxiliaries. The war of attrition against the enemy armour must therefore be waged as far as possible by the tank destruction units. One's own armo
ur should only be used to deal the final blow."
-
[Again, the Germans developed an "offensive" role for their
anti-tank guns. Rommel refers to these tactics as the "sword
and shield," where the sword was the armor and the shield
was the anti-tank screen that was deployed _right_ up front.
Of course with guns like the 88L you can understand their
forward deployment to blunt the enemy tank threat.]
"(d) Reconnaissance reports must reach the commander in the shortest possible time; he must take his decisions immediately and put them into effect as fast as he can. Speed of reaction decides the battle. Commanders of motorised forces must therefore o
perate as near as possible to their troops, and must have the closest possible signal communication with them."
-
[I guess the analog of this is to take advantage of all of
the information available during play. Count concealment
counters, remember stack strengths, use Searching, etc., but
also react to the information in a way that gives you the
edge. Also be sure that your 10-3 sees action. He
shouldn't be back rallying the conscripts when the elite
squads with the HMG need some direction. Rommel was famous
for being up front, directing the action. Some might have
called this micromanagement, but it worked well.]
"(e) Speed of movement and the organisational cohesion of one's own forces are decisive factors and require particular attention. Any sign of dislocation must be dealt with as quickly as possible by reorganisation."
-
[Don't let your attack falter by not supplying enough
leaders to the main effort. They speed up the squads with
the big support weapons, and they keep rallying those stacks
of broken units when you're attacking. Watch your flanks
and your diversions.]
"(f) Concealment of intentions is of the utmost importance in order to provide surprise for one's own operations and thus make it possible to exploit the time taken by the enemy command to react. Deception measures of all kinds should be encouraged if on
ly to make the enemy commander uncertain and cause him to hesitate and hold back."
-
[Rommel was a master of deception, and his British opponents
were uncertain or hesitant enough to keep giving Rommel the
initiative. Don't telegraph your intentions right away,
unless necessary. A little fog of war can go a long way to
winning the game.]
"(g) Once the enemy has been thoroughly beaten up, success can be exploited by attempting to overrun and destroy major parts of his disorganised formations. Here again, speed is everything. The enemy must never be allowed time to reorganise. Lightning
regrouping for the pursuit and reorganisation of supplies for the pursuing forces are essential."
-
[Exploit weaknesses with quick action. This is where a
little aggressive play with those tanks can make a win into
a glorious victory! The trick is knowing when the time is
right, and in knowing your own strength.]
"Bold decisions give the best promise of success. But one must differentiate between strategical or tactical boldness and a military gamble. A bold operation is one in which success is not a certainty but which in case of failure leaves one with suffici
ent forces in hand to cope with whatever situation may arise. A gamble, on the other hand, is an operation which can lead either to victory or to the complete destruction of one's forces... If you know the battle is lost, then a gamble may be worthwhile.
..."