Sword & Fire Manila

About this expansion

Sword & Fire: Manila is a two-player Historical Advanced Squad Leader module covering the month-long American effort to seize Manila in 1945, with a listed play time of 2,400 minutes.

After more than two years of brutal Japanese occupation, American forces invaded Luzon in January 1945 and reached the outskirts of Manila the following month. The Japanese commander, Admiral Sanji Iwabuchi, prepared to defend the city to the death, turning its streets, buildings, courtyards, and gardens into a battlefield.

The Japanese defenders include veteran Marine and Army units alongside inexperienced Naval forces made up of sailors, aircraft crewmen, and conscripted laborers. Their equipment includes numerous machine guns and anti-aircraft guns ranging from 12.7mm to 120mm, creating a formidable defense as the attackers advance toward the ancient walls of Intramuros.

Sword and Fire: Manila brings Manila’s distinctive urban environment to the table with six map sheets depicting the city. The module includes rules for specialized terrain and detailed locations, from unusual building materials to historic fortifications.

• Twenty-five scenarios covering the struggle for Manila
• Five Campaign Games ranging from 6 to 15 Campaign Game Dates
• Multi-Material, Adobe, and Steel-Walled Buildings
• Stone Monuments, Bomb Craters, and detailed Intramuros features

Built by the Spanish in 1571 as a fortress town, Intramuros became Iwabuchi’s “Alamo” as Japanese defenses fell back toward the walled city. With its extensive scenario selection, campaign games, and terrain-specific rules, Sword & Fire: Manila presents a focused historical treatment of one of the Pacific War’s most intense urban battles.