Squad Leader Scenarios

Squad Leader was a game system depicting tactical combat in the Second World War. The game, as well as the three follow on gamettes, was notable for its open-endedness, a trend in tactical board wargaming beginning from the late 1960s, and at least as early as far as Avalon Hill was concerned with PanzerBlitz. The use of geomorphic mapboards and counters representing small tactical entities gave the game great flexibility and the ability to represent a wide array of units and situations.

These situations were formulated for the player in the form of Scenarios. The original Squad Leader game came with 12 of these scenarios pre-made, and "official" scenarios, numbered in sequence, followed on in the three sequels, or "gamettes". There were also many "official" scenarios (that is to say, scenarios published by Avalon Hill) in The General Magazine or sold as special releases (such as the so-called Rogue Scenarios).

cenario Format

Each scenario of the original four game releases was printed on an 8-1/2" x 11" cardstock with the following elements in place:

* Scenario number
* Illustrative graphic
* Historical overview
* Board configuration and orientation
* Listing of rules sections introduced
* Victory Conditions
* Turn Record Chart
* Countermix and historical identity of scenario forces
* Scenario Special Rules
* Variations
* Historical Aftermath

cenario Number

The "official" scenarios were numbered as followsSquad Leader - 1 through 12

Cross of Iron - 13 through 20

Crescendo of Doom - 21 through 32

GI: Anvil of Victory - 33 through 47

Illustrative Graphic

These were simply an illustration evocative of the events portrayed in the scenario, usually a black and white artist's interpretation of an actual Second World War photograph. Rodger MacGowan did the artwork for the original SL, COI and COD scenarios and Charles Kibler took over with GI: Anvil of Victory (and continued to do the artwork for Advanced Squad Leader scenarios as well).

Historical Overview

A short one-paragraph description of the overall military situation, placing the scenario in context, possibly introducing one or two of the personalities portrayed on the map. Prefaced by the actual location (usually the nearest town or city) and date of the action.

Board Configuration and Orientation

A graphic representation of which boards to use (or which portions of boards), how to orient them to each other, which direction was considered "north" (important for outlining setup, entry and exit areas), and placement of terrain overlays (if any).

Listing of Rules Sections Introduced

The four Squad Leader games used Programmed Instruction to teach the game system; each official scenario released directly with the games listed the rules sections introduced with each scenario.

Victory Conditions

Squad Leader used very imaginative sets of victory conditions, some of which were often quite complicated. Conditions were set under which each player might consider the game to have been won, or in some cases, conditions which would indicate the scenario had been played to a draw. The Victory Conditions were modelled as closely as possible to real life military objectives, as well as the historical situation being modelled. Therefore a scenario based on a deliberate assault on a village might specify occupation at game end of particular buildings on a particular map to be indicative of victory in that scenario. A scenario based on a withdrawal might specify that a certain number of units had to be exited from the map in order to achieve a victory in a scenario, with the opposing player required to stop such exiting in order to achieve victory.

Turn Record Chart

In most cases, fixed time limits existed for scenarios, and one side (Axis or Allied) was required to set up first and/or move first. The turn record chart also listed turns on which scheduled reinforcements would (or might) arrive.

Countermix and Historical Identity of Scenario Forces

Each scenario in the official game releases was based on an actual historical event (with the exception of Scenario 26 which was based on a hypothetical operation). As such, historical names were provided to the forces of each side (sometimes vaguely, as in "elements of the 62nd Army") and other times very specifically down to the company or event platoon level.

Countermixes were specified for both players in concrete terms, with number of units being specified as well as where they were to set up (or enter, if arriving after game start as reinforcements).

cenario Special Rules

Scenario Special Rules (or SSRs) provided even more flexibility to scenario designers in achieving a historical feel to their situations. All manner of rule modifications could be specified here in order to achieve particular effects on gameplay.

Variations

Suggestions on minor alterations to force mixes, victory conditions, turn length or other game conditions were suggested here as a guide to providing assistance to one side or another in a scenario, for example if balancing a scenario between players of unequal skill, or if the scenario was felt to be "unbalanced" (biased) towards one side.

Historical Aftermath

A one paragraph recount of the actual historical outcome of the situation being depicted.

cenario Listing - Official Scenarios (Games and Gamettes)

Released in	Number	Title	Allies	Axis	Date
SL	Scenario 1	The Guards Counterattack			6 October 1942
SL	Scenario 2	The Tractor Works			6 October 1942
SL	Scenario 3	The Streets of Stalingrad			6 October 1942
SL	Scenario 4	The Hedgehog of Piepsk			14 November 1941
SL	Scenario 5	Hill 621			1 July 1944
SL	Scenario 6	Escape From Velikiye Luki			12 January 1943
SL	Scenario 7	Buchholz Station			16 December 1944
SL	Scenario 8	The Bitche Salient			14 January 1945
SL	Scenario 9	The Cannes Strongpoint			23 August 1944
SL	Scenario 10	Hitdorf on the Rhine			6 April 1945
SL	Scenario 10	The St. Goar Assault			24 March 1945
SL	Scenario 12	The Road to Wiltz			17 December 1944
COI	Scenario 13	The Capture of Balta			3 August 1941
COI	Scenario 14	The Paw of the Tiger			12 January 1943
COI	Scenario 15	Hube's Pocket			6 April 1944
COI	Scenario 16	Sowchos 79			8 December 1942
COI	Scenario 17	Debacle at Korosten			30 August 1941
COI	Scenario 18	The Defense of Luga			19 July 1941
COI	Scenario 19	A Winter Melee			17 February 1942
COI	Scenario 20	Breakout From Borisov			2 July 1941
COD	Scenario 21	Battle for the Warta Line			6 September 1939
COD	Scenario 22	The Borders are Burning			30 November 1939
COD	Scenario 23	Silent Death			9 December 1939
COD	Scenario 24	Action at Balberkamp			22 April 1940
COD	Scenario 25	Resistance at Chabrehez
COD	Scenario 26	Assault on a Queen
COD	Scenario 27	The Dinant Bridgehead
COD	Scenario 28	Counterstroke at Stonne
COD	Scenario 29	In Rommel's Wake
COD	Scenario 30	Ad Hoc at Beaurains
COD	Scenario 31	Chateau de Quesnoy
COD	Scenario 32	Rehearsal for Crete
	Scenario 33	A Belated Christmas
	Scenario 34	Climax at Nijmegen Bridge
	Scenario 35	The French Decide to Fight
	Scenario 36	Weissenhof Crossroads
	Scenario 37	Medal of Honor
	Scenario 38	The Factory
	Scenario 39	Sweep For Bordj Toum Bridge
	Scenario 40	The Dornot Watermark
	Scenario 41	Swatting at Tigers
	Scenario 42	Bridgehead on the Rhine
	Scenario 43	Action at Kommerscheidt
	Scenario 44	Prelude to Breakout
	Scenario 45	Hide and Seek
	Scenario 46	Operation Varsity
	Scenario 47	Encircling the Ruhr

cenario Listing - Other Official Scenarios (Avalon Hill)

Avalon Hill released Series 100, consisting of ten new scenarios for Cross of Iron, in 1979. The scenarios were designed by Courtney Allen (SL playtester and designer of Storm Over Arnhem).

Scenario 101	Blocking Action at Lipki
Scenario 102	Slamming of the Door
Scenario 103	Bald Hill
Scenario 104	The Penetration of Rostov
Scenario 105	Night Battleat Noromatyevka
Scenario 106	Beachhead at Ozereyka Bay
Scenario 107	Disaster On The Dneiper Loop
Scenario 108	Block Busting in Bokruisk
Scenario 109	Counterattack On The Vistula
Scenario 110	The Agony of Doom

Avalon Hill released Series 200 with 10 new scenarios for Crescendo of Doom.

Scenario 201	Sacrifice Of Polish Armor
Scenario 202	Under Cover Of Darkness
Scenario 203	Bitter Defense At Otta
Scenario 204	Chance D'une Affaire
Scenario 205	Last Defense Line
Scenario 206	Fighting At The World's Edge
Scenario 207	The French Perimeter
Scenario 208	Road To Kozani Pass
Scenario 209	The Akroiri Peninsula Defense
Scenario 210	Commando Raid At Dieppe

The Rogue Scenarios Series 200, so called because they used boards 9, 10 and 11 which were not "official" boards of the series at that time, was released with scenarios R211 to R223 and utilized rules up to and including Crescendo of Doom. Some of the scenarios in this set also caused consternation in that multiple copies of several boards were necessary if one wanted to play Scenario R220, which combined Scenarios R218 and R219 into one large scenario played in three parts - a foreshadowing of the later Campaign Games in Historical ASL. These scenarios (and one other) featured Canadian units, which had not been done up to this point in "official" printed SL scenarios.

Scenario R211	Auld Lang Syne
Scenario R212	On The Road To Andalsnes
Scenario R213	Traverse Right...FIRE!
Scenario R214	The Front In Flames
Scenario R215	Hasty Pudding
Scenario R216	A Small Town In Germany
Scenario R217	The Whirlwind
Scenario R218	Operation Switchback
Scenario R219	Scheldt Fortress South
Scenario R220	Clearing the Breskens Pocket
Scenario R221	Vitality I
Scenario R222	Infatuate II
Scenario R223	Night Drop

Avalon Hill finally released Series 300 with additional scenarios for GI: Anvil of Victory.

Scenario 301	The Clearing
Scenario 302	Stand Fast
Scenario 303	Thrust and Parry
Scenario 304	Riposte
Scenario 305	The Duel
Scenario 306	The Rag Tag Circus
Scenario 307	Point D'Appui
Scenario 308	Han-Sur-Neid
Scenario 309	The Roer Bridgehead
Scenario 310	Trial by Combat

Over the years, Avalon Hill also released some scenarios in The General Magazine.

Released in	Number	Title
The General 15-6	Scenario A	Burzevo
The General 15-6	Scenario B	Hill 253.5
The General 15-6	Scenario C	The Burkin Bridgehead
The General 15-6	Scenario D	Delaying Action
The General 17-2	Scenario E	The Niscemi-Biscari Highway
The General 17-2	Scenario F	The Pouppeville Exit
The General 17-2	Scenario G	Devil's Hill
The General 17-2	Scenario H	The Attempt to Relieve Peiper
The General 17-2	Scenario I	Hunters from the Sky
The General 18-2	Scenario J	Semper Paratus
The General 18-3	Scenario K	Fast Heinz
The General 18-4	Scenario L	The Long Road
The General 18-5	Scenario M	The Dead of Winter
The General 19-5	Scenario TS1	First Crisis at Army Group North
The General 19-5	Scenario TS2	Pavlov's House
The General 19-5	Scenario TS3	Land Leviathans
The General 19-5	Scenario TS4	Soldiers of Destruction
The General 19-6	Scenario N	Faugh A'Ballagh!
The General 20-2	Scenario 1000	Operation Marston
The General 20-4	Scenario O	Strayer's Strays
The General 20-6	Scenario SSTK 1a	Death's Head at Lusho
The General 20-6	Scenario SSTK 1b	Death's Head at Lusho
The General 21-2	Scenario P	Aachen's Pall
The General 21-3	Scenario Q	Gambit
The General 21-4	Scenario 2000	Operation Hubertus

"The Wargamer Magazine" also released scenarios 81-90, and a further pack with scenarios numbered 91-100 in 1982.

Scenario 81	A Bridge Too Near
Scenario 82	To Lose A Battle
Scenario 83	The Final Attempt
Scenario 84	Le Paradis
Scenario 85	The Far Bank
Scenario 86	Raid on Vaagso
Scenario 87	The Bruneval Raid
Scenario 88	The Backwater of War
Scenario 89	Cherkasskoye
Scenario 90	The Bridge at Kanev
Scenario 91	Assault At Wadelincourt
Scenario 92	Patton's End Run
Scenario 93	Cassino Station
Scenario 94	Hill 112
Scenario 95	The Attempt To Exploit
Scenario 96	Scratch Force
Scenario 97	The Breaking Wave
Scenario 98	Night Assault
Scenario 99	Cooperative Venture
Scenario 100	A Day At The Races

The final "official" scenarios issued by Avalon Hill for the original Squad Leader game were in the first two issues of the ASL Annual.

Released in	Number	Title
ASL Annual '89	Scenario A1	On the Borderline
ASL Annual '89	Scenario A2	Sbeitla Probe
ASL Annual '89	Scenario A3	Regalbuto Ridge
ASL Annual '90	Scenario A4	King's Castle
ASL Annual '90	Scenario A5	The Professionals
ASL Annual '90	Scenario A6	A Meeting of Patrols

Additionally, a mini-campaign game based on fictional British Commando raids appeared in ASL Annual '92, featuring 13 "missions".

The majority of official Squad Leader scenarios printed by Avalon Hill were later redone for Advanced Squad Leader and released in either The General Magazine or in the ASL Annuals. The ASL Journal has also continued the tradition of releasing redone SL scenarios for ASL but has indicated no intention to support the original SL game system with new scenarios. Multi-Man Publishing has also issued scenario packs with redone SL scenarios, notably "GI's Dozen" which had several scenarios from both GI: Anvil of Victory and the Series 300 set redone to ASL standards, and even some scenarios available only through free download at the MMP Website, which redid some of the Rogue 200 series scenarios.