As you may have figured out, I am getting a lot of ASL in this week without being at DonCon. (Tactical Hint: Send your wife and daughter to visit her parents for 10 days.) :-)
Ken Daughety and I played Mayhem in Manila last night. I had the honorable Japanese while Ken took the capitalist, imperialist scumbags (US).
To win, the American needed twice as many good-order squad equivalents in either of two buildings as the Japanese has. And the American wins immediately whenever that happens. Thus, the Japanese cannot wait until DFPh to fire at a stack that moved individually into the building. As a matter of fact, the Americans could in theory overstack the heck out of a hex for the win. And that was one of my fears during setup.
The Japanese have a 10-1, a 9-1, 5 squads, 4 crews, a HMG, MMG, LMG, Mtr, 3 x DC and 2 AA guns with 12 FP IFE. They also have 2 fortified building locations. It played on 4 DASL halfboards.
The US has 4 leaders (10-2, 9-1, 8-0 and 7-0), 8 6-6-6s, 4 3-4-7s, 1 .50cal HMG, 2 x MMG, 2 FTs and 2 DCs plus a Sherman and a 105mm HMC. The whole scenario is 4.5 turns, which is what gives the Japanese a chance.
I setup the one AA gun that could start in a building in the backside of the front building. I expected to have a 24 FP (+3) shot into whatever hex the US moved into. I fortified its location and one in the back building. (So far, my setup was completely wrong.) I HIPped a HS with the Mtr on the roof of a building 7 hexes from my stronghold and another HS with a DC on level 1 of a row house. My 25LL AA gun I put in open ground covering the area where boards a and b joined and a 4-4-8 with a LMG in a wooden building across the street from the objective.
The US came on strong and stacked. I held fire until I had some good shots. His 10-2 led stack of MGs headed for level two of a building and I nailed that hex with WP. The scum passed their MCs. A stack slipped into the downstairs below my HIP DC HS. Tossed the DC down the stairs and broke all of them, as well as my HS. My 25LL AA malfunctioned on its second shot. My units in the stronghold repeatedly broke GIs as they tried to get into position to use their FTs, but I could not get any kills on them. One DC hero blasted a FT, but again the squad routed away. Even through turn 4, I thought I had the game under control despite the American twice scoring KIAs with ordinance (Bazooka hits, snakeyes! Crap, random selection gets both units. MMG crew dies and 9-1 wounds and dies. Later, Sherman finally hits. Snakeyes! Double crap, HMG crew dies, wounds 10-1. I attack a US stack and cause a 2MC. One HS goes berserk, just what the American needs.)
By turn 5a (the last player turn), the American has 2 broken leader and 5 broken squads. (A LOS was blocked on turn 4 when I tried to drop WP on a broken leader and 3 squads.) Critical error on my part. Suddenly, the broken scum, who had earlier run so quickly from my heroic forces, decide they want to fight. All but one squad rally. The Sherman gets his smoke mortar to work, smoking one hex. WP is still in another hex from turn 4. The berserk HS charges and strips concealment as I am forced to TPBF at him at 8 (+6). FTs and DCs move up. I pin the 10-2 led stack with first fire, but the DC and Advancing Fire breaks the squad in the WP hex. A tossed DC from another hex, breaks a GI squad. The other hex sees my squad reduced to a pinned HS and wounded leader. I gack my mortar shot against several squads in the open. I now have 2 HSs, a crew and a wounded leader left in the building. 2.5 US squads and a leader advance into CC against my wounded 10-0 and pinned HS. Because of the berserk HS, the close combat must be H-2-H. 19:3 odd. US rolls boxcars, but need a 13 to eliminate me. #(&$(@#$!!! (Ancient Japanese curse upon the imperialist scum.) I need to eliminate 1.5 squads. I roll a "6", which does nothing. US wins with 3 squads to my 1 squad equivalent. Darn! A loss on the last DR.
In retrospect, my setup sucked. I should have made both front locations fortified with the 12.7 AA gun having some field of fire to the approaches to the building instead of looking for shots as the Americans enter the hex. I was too worried about the rear building. It is probably too tough to get a squad to, but potentially a lone squad or HS could slip through into the building if it was vacant.
My forward units took their toll, but I did not get any damage from either AA gun. Also, I should have moved the DC into the hex most likely to have the US advance into. Then I could have blown all of us up with it during the last CC. Boy, that would have ticked the Americans off.
Ken did an exceptional job of whittling me down a little at a time without getting discouraged as forturnes went against his squads. He had some very good rolls at key points. But he also rolled some awful MCs. This game could easily have gone either way at several stages. It is a tense, fun scenario. Probably a lot like most of the other 1000+ scenarios. But could be boring for some. :-)
Chuck