Ambush Alley Games

We designed Ambush Alley! with modern urban combat in mind. Additionally, we wanted a game that captured the feel of modern conflicts at a squad level, but was still fast and simple to play. Finally, we wanted a rule-set that could support games played on a smallish table – not everyone has room for a 4’x8’ table in their house (or apartment, or dorm room, etc.)

With those basic parameters in mind, we sat down one evening and put together a shopping list of things we wanted to see in a game and, just as importantly, things we didn’t. That list looked something like this:

 We wanted to see: 

• Rewards for solid, tactical play
• Universal mechanics
• Squad Level, but capable of handling Company level engagements.
• Rules detailed enough to feel realistic without becoming cumbersome.
• Morale rules that covered results other than Stand Fast or Run Away!
• Scenario driven game-play
• Fog/Friction of War effects
• Easy adaptability to other settings and conflicts

 We didn’t want to see:

• Cumbersome charts and tables
• Action points
• Point driven “Army Lists”
• Rules that made the game feel like a math test
• Rules that made the game feel like a cartoon
• An I Go/You Go turn sequence
• An inordinate numbers of die rolls
• An inordinate number of modifiers
• Chits littering up the playing area

That list was in the back of our mind as we worked on the rules.

We spent a lot of time discussing the “feel” we wanted for the game – and stealing a smoke and occasional bottle of beer out on the porch. Quite a bit of research went into the game, and we wanted scenarios to “play out” according to what we’d read about skirmishes on the modern, mostly Iraqi, battlefield.

Two major points became apparent from our reading:

• Whatever the situation might be on the political or popular opinion front, First World military forces have an overwhelming advantage over insurgents on the battlefield. The training and group cohesion of a squad of professional soldiers are far more effective force multipliers than any high-tech ironmongery. They tend to retain the initiative unless faced by an overwhelming volume of insurgent fire. 

• Urban battlefields are a landscape of unrestrained chaos. What seems like a relatively simple operation can quickly become a nightmare due to Fog of War. An overpowering mechanized advantage might be lost due to one wrong turn and a sewage filled ditch.

We did our best to capture those impressions in the Ambush Alley! rule-set, while still keeping the game a game. While it’s true that Insurgents are unlikely to defeat a Regular force in a toe-to-toe shoot-out, scenario driven games guarantee that they do have a chance to obtain victory none-the-less.

If you’re interested in contributing to the future development of this game through suggestions, constructive criticism, and the occasional sarcastic post, please join the Battle Builders Yahoo group. Not only can you discuss the rules there, you’ll also get to see some nice terrain (some of which has absolutely nothing to do with Ambush Alley!) and game pictures contributed by the authors and group members.

You can find the group at: http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/BattleBuilders 

You can also contact the authors directly at: dscarpenter@gmail.com

Thanks for your interest in Ambush Alley! We hope it brings you as many hours of enjoyment playing it as we’ve had designing it!

 -Shawn & Robby Carpenter 

Game Scope

Originally, we intended Ambush Alley! to provide players with a rule-set capable of addressing conflicts ranging from fierce urban battles between regulars troops and armed insurgents to stand-up battles between regular forces and everything in between.

 

In the process of designing the game, we came to the realization that trying to shoehorn several operational styles and tactical problems into a single rule-set would entail compromises that would rob games of the flavor we were striving for.  As a result, we’ve decided to limit the scope of Ambush Alley! to urban counter-insurgency operations.

 

Expansions to the game will follow to expand on other areas of combat, including Regular vs. Regular and mixed type engagements. In the meantime, we hope you’ll find Ambush Alley! and its frenetic street-fights a unique and enjoyable gaming experience!

 

A Note on Scale

Ambush Alley! is intended to be played with 15mm figures. Ground scale and time scale are undefined. We understand that this will drive some of you to apoplexy, but there you have it! As with many things in the game, we opted for weapon and movement ranges that “felt” and looked right on the table rather than resorting to actual scale conversions. Since movement and fire are fairly abstract, we decided to avoid delving into the whole issue of time scale, as well. It seemed to us to have little to offer the game save unnecessary confusion.

 

A Note on Table Sizes

As mentioned earlier, Ambush Alley! was purposefully designed for play on a smallish table. Scenarios will indicate the ideal table size on which they should be played, but you’ll find that we rarely ask for more than a 4’x4’ table and often require only a 2’x2’ surface.

 

Feel free to play Ambush Alley! on larger tables, but don’t feel compelled to! Give the scenarios on smaller tables that start with forces already in contact a try – we suspect the fast, tense first turns will make a convert of many players who’ve felt they needed acres of space for pre-contact maneuver in the past . . .

 

A Note on the Miniatures

In the examples of play, you’ll see examples of miniatures from several different companies, namely:

 

Peter Pig: http://www.peterpig.co.uk

Cannon Fodder Miniatures: http://canfodmins.com/

 

We’ve found miniatures and service from both companies to be outstanding and encourage you to consider their products for use in your Ambush Alley! games.

 Figures in Ambush Alley! are independently based. We find that US pennies make perfect bases for 15mm figures. If you wish to use some other basing material, feel free – bases should be roughly half an inch, either square or in diameter.  

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