The other day, I received one of those emails that every wargamer loves to see. Multi-Man Publishing let me know that Decision at Elst was being charged to my card. Okay, that got my attention.

Then, just three days later, the shipping email arrived.

I’m not ashamed to admit it. I did a little happy dance right there in the middle of my wargame room. You know the one. That brief moment when you’re suddenly eight years old again and know a new game is headed your way.

Now the waiting begins. And somehow, once you get that shipping notification, checking the tracking number five times a day seems completely reasonable.

I’ve been waiting on Decision at Elst for a couple of years. I wanted a copy, but I wasn’t about to pay some of the crazy prices I was seeing from resellers. Come on, folks, it’s a wargame, not a briefcase full of national secrets.

What really excites me about this reprint, though, goes beyond finally getting a copy for myself. New players who want to get into the Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit system can finally get their hands on these games again. For the past couple of years, that hasn’t always been easy, especially without diving into the secondhand market and possibly taking out a small loan.

I already know several people who have ordered some of the newly available Starter Kit modules. Yes, Doug from Battlefield Banter, I’m talking about you!

I always have a great time gaming with Doug, and I’m really looking forward to getting some ASLSK on the table with him in the near future. Hopefully, these reprints mean a lot more players will be doing the same thing.

Most folks who know me already know that I love playing Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit. I also think the system is much easier to get into than a lot of people assume.

The problem is that people see the words Advanced Squad Leader and immediately start to freak out. I get it. ASL has a reputation for being a monster, but that doesn’t mean Starter Kit has to be.

The Starter Kit rulebook is less than 30 pages, and my biggest piece of advice is simple: take your time. Start with the first module and play it several times. Get comfortable with infantry movement, fire combat, morale checks, and the basic flow of the game before you start piling on more rules.

You don’t need to learn guns, armor, vehicles, the Japanese, and everything else on day one. Learn the basics, play some games, make some mistakes, and then add the next layer. Trust me, the cardboard soldiers won’t judge you. Well, maybe that broken squad hiding in the woods will, but he has his own problems.

There are also a ton of great resources available to help you learn. One that I highly recommend is Harsh Rules. He has an excellent series of videos that breaks down Starter Kit and walks you through how the system works. If you’re thinking about giving ASLSK a try, it’s a great place to start.

Watch the Harsh Rules ASL Starter Kit playlist on YouTube

Don’t let those three little letters, ASL, scare you away. Starter Kit was designed to give you a way into the system. Take it one step at a time, and before long you’ll wonder what you were so worried about.

A Cardboard Commander Public Service Announcement

Before I wrap this up, I feel like I need to make a little public service announcement.

If you’ve been thinking about picking up the Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit modules, I wouldn’t wait too long. These have been difficult to find for a while, and now that they’re available again, I have a feeling they’re going to move pretty quickly. You don’t want to be the person six months from now staring at an overpriced copy on the secondary market thinking, “Why didn’t I just buy it when Jerry told me to?”

Trust me, I’ve been there. It’s not a fun place.

So go grab the Starter Kits while you can get them at a reasonable price. Start with the first one, take your time learning the system, and then start adding the other modules as you’re ready for them.

👉 Order your ASL Starter Kits directly from Multi-Man Publishing:
https://mmpgamers.com/asl-starter-kit-c-2_8

And when you order yours, tell them Cardboard Commander sent you! They’ll probably have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, but it’ll make me happy.

For the record, this isn’t sponsored. Nobody is paying me to say any of this. I just really enjoy Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit, and I love seeing new people discover the system. I think if you give it a chance, you might find out why so many of us keep coming back to it.

So grab yourself a copy, punch some counters, set up a scenario, and let’s play!