Few Rare Men, A

St. Homme Crossroads, south of THULIN, BELGIUM, 23 May 1940: The Germans reacted quickly to the enemy threat. The commander of the Infantry Regiment 469, Oberst von Tschüdi, ordered his 1st Battalion to enter Thulin and eliminate all French resistance there. Following their orders, German soldiers swept toward the village. Men of the I/469, supported by the 105mm guns of the 2nd Battalion, Artillery Regiment 59 attacked from the west. Meanwhile, the Aufklarung Abteilung 269 moved on Thulin from the northern flank of the village. This would be no walkover. Groups of French defenders were engaged in the nearby village of Le Quéniau and at the St. Homme crossroads, to the south of Thulin. In a show of what could be achieved by a small but resolute group of French soldiers, the defenders of Thulin stopped the Germans in their tracks. The weight of enemy manpower and materiel soon was brought to bear on Pucinelli’s brave men. The defenders were overwhelmed in the village and Pucinelli, injured, was captured at his command post. All resistance in Thulin did not end with Pucinelli’s demise. A small group of die-hards destroyed all of their equipment and arms before a few groups of men slipped away. Despite the heroic defense, by 1100 hours the HQ of the 269 Regiment reported to division HQ that Thulin had fallen and hundreds of prisoners were in the bag. This small engagement would be but a footnote in the Battle of France 1940.

It is high time you leap into the saddle of your Gnome et Rhône AX2 motorcycle and race off to the front where your brothers-in-arms are awaiting the orders tucked into your knapsack. What, you don't own a Gnome et Rhône AX2 motorcycle, circa 1938 production model and used by French troops during the 1940 battles? Not to fear, you'll be freshly equipped with your very own ride, finished in stunning green-brown, albeit in a cardboard edition! That's 800cc of motive power—although a little slower than the BMW R75 the generic 'motorcycle' counters are designed around—good enough to get you where your orders tell you to go.

Welcome to A FEW RARE MEN, a new pack built around the CH 6/2 scenario designs of ultra-creative British ASLer Phil Nobo. The theme is the Battle of France 1940, with actions spilling into Belgium and everything has been remastered, twweaked, new art, new layout, new geomorphic board. And the board is inspired by the design of yet another GEO BOARD CONTEST winner, a win-win really since it's all about bringing the work of your fellow ASLers to the fore and no publisher has featured more designers than CH ... not even close.