Brigade Commander

Our second game was something rather different from the first, what with using 1:300th moderns instead of 15 mm ancients, and with a new rules set to boot in place of my usual Modern Spearhead. The rules are called "Brigade Commander",  and cover both WW2 as well as moderns; Aaron suggested I take a look at them, because he had heard they were fast play. 

Initial set up, from behind my right flank.

We have a great problem when we pay Modern Spearhead in that we seem to take over an hour a bound on average, so getting a game actually fininished is a real task. I'm not one for trying new rules out willy-nilly, but something clearly had to be done, so I took a stab - they are a ten buck downloadable pdf, so I wasn't going to exactly break the bank taking a look. A quick once-over gave me the impression that would indeed be fast, and they also had a couple of mechanisms that were rather similar to a homebrew set I made back in 1989/90, so that was another plus: one was having attachments one lower down the command chain represented as smaller bases tagging along with the big base (only my rules were a "Division commander" equivalent, so one level higher up the command chain). Another was having effectiveness of fire vary with relative technology as opposed to have fixed effects - this is exactly the way forward IMNSHO, so I don't understand why more rules writers don't adopt it. I am doing the same in my may-they-ever-see-the-day ancients set too.

On the other hand, some bits were really confusing - especially the unit displacement rule - when you first spot a defender, it gets moved randomly to a slightly different position.  We just couldn't get our head around that one - why should a defending unit hiding in cover be teleported outside of it when it is first seen? So we just ignored that one.  (Maybe we simply didn't understand it properly - our brains aren't what they were when we were younger...)

Being a plonker, I left my printed-out copy at work, naturally, but we could still access the electronic version to play -  internet to the rescue! We rolled up our forces pretty well much randomly, going "by the book". I had Aaron's Americans as "stretched", so his force would be smaller (but naturally, the tanks are way better - their 105s are vastly superior to my 100 mm guns); my Czechoslovakians infantry/MICVs had a miniscule advantage over his infantry in M113 APCs in that I could let off anti-tank fire at a greater distance - needless to say, I never got to use it...

Yankee mechanised company in front of a T-55 company.

I planked down some terrain - which was four of my terrain mats, giving a 1.2 by 1.2 m board (i.e. 4 foot a side) with forests made of carpet tiles thrown over the top; these last I snagged from Rhys when I was last back in NZ, since they were now surplus to his requirements.  We ignored any hedgerows, given the basic unit was a company, rather than a platoon as in MSH. We also ignored difficult fields, but that was more because we entirely forgot about the possibility of having them being difficult!  It was one of a number of things we forgot during the course of the day (e.g. I couldn't find any of my bridge models, so no rivers could be used).

Aaron's game objective turned out to be "hold area against enemy" - he chose a hill just on his side of the centre line that had a good view of a lot of the board to be the key location.  Mine objective to exit at least 1/4 of my companies off his baseline.  I got two extra companies in compensation for him being able to take a defensive stance, further inflating the numbers discrepancy (he had 6 companies on table at the start, plus one as reinforcements; while I had 8 plus 3, respectively). The recommended 'base size' of company is extremely hazy in the rules. They talk about 1", 2", and 3" bases sizes in a single passage...  Since there is at least a defined ground scale (1" = 100 yards), I took that into consideration when decreeing we would use three MSH bases to represent a standard company, with ranges being taken to and from the middle one; the flanking ones would be to make sure they occupied a realistic amount of space.

Turn 6. Aaron (top) has been forced to retreat numerous times.

I had some good initial luck with me being able to get a good march onto the table through a timely "scurry" where everybody got to move:  this would appear to be, relatively speaking, generally better for the more numerous side if it happens on the first time - normally you get only three company activations a turn, so usually a smaller force gets a smaller proportion of its units to move. The first few turns saw most of our more lethal artillery assets (of which I had more) exhausted; whether it was wise to do so initially or later I didn't know, give it was our first game. And since this was a first game, there were no doubt many things we stuffed up rulewise too...

Once we really started coming to grips with each other, I kept scoring 1s or 6s on my "shock" dice, forcing Aaron's units to fall back constatantly. In fact, it looked like he was running out of room to retreat at some points, with some of companies falling back even beyond his HQ. On the other hand, my poor tankguns meant I was never in a position to land any "kill" dice on him, and my few assaults didn't work out. On the few occasions Aaron was able to actually get some shots of with his M60A1s, he was able to rip up my guys handily. I forgot to bring my smoke markers, so that part of the visual spectacle was AWOL; in the above picture we are using little 5 mm-a side coloured cubes to represent unit status. This should be done with appropriate dust, smoke, and fire markers...

Goddam Yankees! The American's are Aaron's own figures.

Anyway, I was making quite a lot of ground, but was taking quite a lot of casualties in the process. Eventually however, I not only started taking too many casualties, but got some "firefight" activations that prevented me from actually doing anything useful just when Aaron seized the initiative with a freshly rallied tank company that went on a rampage down my right flank, smoking up two companies in front of them, then sweeping round my flank (see left) and taking out two more.  Ouch!

Things were really really really not looking good for the Czechoslovakians at this juncture...

The casualties (Aaron's sole company lost at top).  Not pretty...

Now technically, I did complete my objective - I did get 3 companies of Aaron's baseline. But since he not only held his hill, but had but a single company rendered hors de combat while doing so, while I had lost seven (!) in getting my three off table, it was clear who the real winner was!

So what did I make of the rules? Well, they were indeed fast play. Very fast. You get maybe 6 to 12 companies total, and they are digital: they are either alive, or dead.  So no fiddling about with 'casualities' or the like as platoons get whittled down. No 'morale' as such to speak of, either - combat results can force you to halt, or retreat, but only on a company by company basis. And this is all fine. I'm not sure I like the way artillery was handled - will have to investigate more. Likely we mishandled it...

There are lots of things I would tweak in terms of 'army list' design - I think not having lots of attachments is likely to be more of a wasted opportunity than a useful simplification, but further play-testing will be required. Even if I don't end up liking everything, there is a solid core here that is very much worth investigating. The fact that we could slap a game together, starting with generating an OOB on paper, to packing it away after the game, in something like 4 hours maximum, was quite the revalation. It would probably take me 2 days to do that with MSH...

Populares!

Finally, some gaming! A welcome opportunity to get down to Aaron's came about today, so I packed the car with some 1981 Czechs and my terrain mats, while Aaron got some ancients stuff organised. The moderns game I will comment on in my next post, for first up was a game of "To the Stongest", which I have played just twice before, but thoroughly enjoyed it.

Aaron has by now built up a very respectable collection of late Republican Romans indeed, plus a bunch of western European enemies and allies. So I thought a game featuring the noble and glorious Sertorius on one side (that would be me, you understand), versus the villainous and unnamed optimates (Aaron, naturally...) would go down well. Aaron proposed a points budget of just 130 points each to keep things simple, so we had to cut down a bit on the troops present - Sertorius wasn't rated as "brilliant" for example.  My army, having large numbers of Lusitanian caetrati (light infantry) was a bit bigger than his, due to his larger numbers of more expensive legionaries.

Deployment, viewed from the rear of my left flank.

We rolled terrain as per the rules, and I was pretty satisfied with what I got; the flanks were dominated by rocky hills and the like, just right for my light troops to lurk in. Note the mats making up the playing field - see Aaron's post on these for details.

My centre was anchored between theses hills, as I thought it would be weaker than his, and I wanted to work the flanks. I had a unit of heavy horse and a unit of light horse on each flank, plus a bunch of light troops. Sertorius took my right, while the left and the centre had a sub-general each.

My light horse on the extreme right, working the flank.

As it turned out, Aaron's horse was slightly meatier than mine, with three heavies and one light unit as opposed to my two of each. Still, I had a lot of light troops to support them, and I figured the terrain was with me, so I pressed forward on both flanks, while keeping my centre back.

On my right, I moved up quickly, aided by Sertorius being there in person, keeping the activation points coming. Combat didn't go quite so well, however, with no rapid breakthroughs. I attempted some outflanking manoeuvres here, but not mcuh came of it, as my heavy cavalry were struggling, and Aaron was able to manoeuvre his own heavy cavalry to advantge. Soon my heavy cavalry here had been removed from play, and Sertorius had to transfer to the light horse, leaving my grand plans for attack in this sector in tatters.

The flanks are fully engaged, but the centres have yet to meet.

On my left, I similarly moved forwards, but failed to make any headway with my shooting.  Our cavalry clashed, and it was a more bloody affair than of the other flank.

I was able to take out Aaron's sole light horse unit, but unfortunately lost not only my own in the process, but also my general in the aftermath, thus starving my forces here of leadership. Over the subsequent turns Aaron was able to take out my heavy horse as well, but his remaining horse unit was unwilling to try and force the issue with my lght infantry holding the heights, stimmying his advance.

The view from behind Aaron's centre. All figures are his.

Having been bested on the flanks, my remaining hope lay with the centre. As it happened, I was not as weak here as I had feared I would be. We both had solid line of legionaries. Aaron had a second reserve line of veteran legionaries, but they were few in number. My second line was of Spanish scutarii, and thus not as strong, individually, but they were much more numerous, and thus could potentially take more of a beating before folding. So I moved forwards my centre to meet his, and the main lines clashed. The initial voleys of thrwoing weapons were resisted stoutly by both sides, and thus our front lines settled down to sword play.

The breakthrough! That's my sub-general rolling up his line...

And here luck went my way. Aaron's units could hit me well enough, but I saved an awful lot of hits, while my return strikes often went unsaved by him. Further, his activations went AWOL at critical points, leaving him unable to rally units, and leaving them very vulnerable to subsequent attacks. On my right flank, the crappy terrain frustrated him in being able to move his cavalry across to influence the centre, and likewsie on my left, the crappy terrain frustrated him there too. Terrain in hindsight that had been very well-positioned by myself! My superior numbers in the centre eventually wore his down, and a line swap did little to stem the tide, for his veterans were too few in numbers to resist my weightier centre. Eventually the legion led by my sub-general routed their oppoistes, cracking his line open, and the proverbial fat lady started winding for her aria...

Technically not yet "game over", but irretrievable...

With his centre split and being rolled up, soon four more of his six original legions routed, with just his own center general's legion holding on - barely. And with the equivalent of five legions in front of it, the writing was not merely on the wall, but spelled out a hundred times all over the forum...

A corker of a game, with lots of interesting decision points; a bunch of realistic outcomes, (with no senior general on the Roman side, Sertorius won, as he was wont to do...), and nothing happend on the table that jarred my sense of historical accuracy. I'm liking this system more and more! I guess the next step is to see how well it plays outside the classical Mediterranean...

Aaron's take here.

Trapped in the bocage...

My final Spearhead game with Rhys was a meeting engagement using Keith's scenario generator system; 650 points a side.  In keeping with our Normandy theme this week, we set up a table with plenty of terrain, including lots of bocage-type heavy hedgerows.

The table from what would become Rhys' left corner.  The water course counted as just a stream, so was fordable by all.

Rhys's force was taken from a German Panzer Division (1st SS) list - 4 rather small battalions (10 to 12 stands apiece), graded Regular.  Two were of leg infantry, each of which had an 88 stand in support, along with a stand of 120 mm Mortars, and two were armoured, with Panzer IV Hs and their accompanying half-tracks cross-attached.  Rhys had two small batteries of off-table artillery; 2 stands of 105 mm howitzers, and 2 of 150 mm.

Rhys had been telling me about a game he had recently where he had maxed-out on British field artillery.  25-pdrs might have crap attack factors, but the British ability to mass their fire over and above what any other nationality can do in Keith's scenario system proved cost-effective in his game, and he recommended I give it a go.  Sure, I said, I'm game!

So my on-table force was also 4 battalions-strong, each slightly understrength, but not greatly so, and larger than Rhys'; they were taken from a British infantry division list (15th Scottish), except for the tanks which were an independent Armoured Regiment, of Churchill VIIs (from 6th Guards Brigade), and whose three companies were parcelled out to the three infantry battalions.  In support, I had a full 18 stands of 25-pdrs, along with their corresponding 9 forward observer elements: one for each battalion per infantry battalion.  Thus nearly 1/6 of my points allocation was spent on FOs, and another 1/6 on the artillery itself.

German advance orders in red; British in blue; positional objectives are in yellow. I don't think the central one on Rhys' side is actually a valid one, but we nothing else in the centre that looked even this noteworthy...  Excuse the cropped off table - I didn't aim the camera properly!

Rhys opted to group his two infantry battalions together, on my left; they were tasked with taking the hillocks there; his 88s would be deployed in overwatch positions to cover the infantry's advance.  One Panzer battalion would be a central holding force, while the other would advance down the road on my right.

My three battalions were almost identical, each 21 elements strong  including the FOs.  I determined to defend on my right, anchoring myself on the village by the stream; while I would concentrate my attack on my left, and then sweep around toward the centre after the 10th move with timed orders.

Rhys' Panzer IVs move down the lane toward the village on my right while my 6-pdr element gets off some telling shots.

On my right, I secured the near village and adopted defensive positions as Rhys' tanks moved down the road.  The tall hedgerows here really limited manoeuvre and visibility.  My 6-pdr element, that had unlimbered just in time as the lead tank of his column moved into view, got off a lucky shot, suppressing it (factor 5 vs 6 isn't the best...), halting his advance temporarily, and allowing me time to consolidate my position and start calling in artillery fire.

Here's the same confrontation viewed from Rhys' side of the board.  The forests are cut up brown-fibre doormats with flock on top - easy to make and rather effective, visually.

On my left, I advanced boldly, and since Rhys did much the same, we were soon in close contact.  My artillery fire over here wasn't initially very effective (although that would soon change), but the constant casualties it inflicted gave me the upper hand.  And my Churchills weren't suffering too much from his 88 batteries either, as they swept up my flank, past a developing fire fight between two woods, and onwards...

The view from Rhys's centre toward my left flank; his troops are bottom- to mid-right.  I had the advantage both in numbers and in fire support here...

In the centre, there was some exchange of fire between our tanks where visibility allowed, which went to my advantage, aided by the Churchill VII's formidable 8 Defence factor, and this tied up his central force, preventing it from aiding both his left and right flanks. On my left, my artillery dice suddenly started to roll hot (oooh look at that - 4 sixes !), and Rhys' casualties mounted alarmingly.  By turn 6, I had forced his first battalion there to check morale, which it failed, and the survivors started legging it toward their rear; they didn't survive the next turn however.

A bit of smoke won't help Rhys' batallion here - the lane to the left is littered with dead Panzer IVs (which we keep forgetting to provide wrecks for...)

On my right, Rhys' tanks were taking too many losses from a combination of artillery fire, PIATs from behind hedgerows, and AP shells; by turn 8 this battalion had also been forced to turn tail.  Since Rhys had only bagged a single victory objective - which he was about to lose, whereas I had not only already broken two battalions, taken 2 objectives, and was about to seize 2 more, the proverbial operatic fat lady was clearly in fill aria mode by this stage!  I'd only lost 8 elements in the process, and Rhys was just 1 stand off losing his 3rd battalion...

So what were the lessons learnt?  Well apart the the obvious ones we all know about 6s beatings 1s, the British fire concentration, although appearing a non-starter to the casual eye, proved its worth.  Individually, each gun isn't up to much, but the ability to keep a sustained massed barrage going at the crucial point of contact - assuming you don't dilute your attack too much - can be very much worth it.  I'm wondering if the ability to do this with heavier pieces than 25-pdrs would be too overwhelming.  Test-driving required!

The other thing I learned were some further inanities of the points system.  Apparently the WW2 points were developed by the Auckland club and thus pre-date Keith's involvement; and they really need reviewing.  For example, a Pz IV H has a +1 attack factor on a Sherman, and a longer range.  For this it pays a 20% premium in points (4 points), which seems a bit steep, but is perhaps arguable.  But a Churchill VII pays just 10% extra to get 2 extra defence factors over a Sherman (and 3 on the side armour!), albeit while losing some speed in the process, making it very good value in comparison:  there is no way 11 Shermans are as good as 10 Churchill VIIs, and even more obviously, there is now way 11 Panzer IV Hs are as good as 12  Churchill VIIs - indeed, 13 of them  aren't!  Likewise, a T-34/76 costs the same as a Sherman, despite moving faster, and having all other factors the same.  Even worse, a Panther costs more than an IS-2, despite the IS-2 apparently being better, or at worst, equal, in every respect, factor-wise!

Rhys' game account here.

Falaise Gap - Part V

For those interested in the specific details of the forces we used, they were as follows:

Player 1 (Allied):

A. South Alberta Regt. + Arygyll & Southern Highlanders (Canada); Morale: Regular
  1 x  BHQ (Rifle; Uncommanded; in and around St. Lambert: Maj. David Currie)                  
  4  x Rifles        
  3 x  Sherman
  1 x Firefly              

B.  10th Polish Dragoons; Morale: Regular 
  1 x  BHQ (1/2 t; in and around Chambois: Maj. R. Dowbór)
  1 x Brigade HQ (Sherman; may roll for 1/6 chance of air support per turn: Lt.Col. Władysław Zgorzelski)
  2 x Achilles 
  4 x Rifles (1/2 t)
  2 x Rifles (Carrier)
  2 x HMG (Carrier)
  1 x 3" Mortar (Carrier)
  1 x 6-pdr (Carrier)
  2 x Sherman
  1 x Firefly

C.  24th Polish Lancers; Morale: Regular
  1 x  BHQ (Sherman; near Chambois: Lt.Col. J. Kański)
  1 x Stuart
  2 x Achilles
  6 x Sherman
  3 x Firefly
  2 x Rifles (1/2 t)
  1 x Rifles (Carrier)

D. 2nd Battalion, 359th Infantry Regiment (US Army; Morale: Regular
  1 x BHQ (Rifle; Uncommanded; in and around Chambois: Major Leonard C. Dull)      
  2 x FO
  9 x Rifles
  2 x HMG
  1 x 81 mm Mortar
  1 x 57 mm AT (t)
  1 x M10
  3 x 105 mm (off-table, with FO)
  3 x 105 mm (off-table, with FO)
  3 x 105 mm (off-table, no FO)
  3 x 155 mm (off-table, no FO)

Player 2 (Allied):

A. 1st Polish Armour; Morale: Regular 
  1 x  BHQ (Sherman; Hill 262: Lt. Col. Alexander Stefanowicz)
  1 x Brigade HQ (Rifles; may roll for 1/6 chance of air support per turn: Lt. Col. Z. Szydłowski)
  1 x Stuart
  2 x Achilles
  6 x Sherman
  3 x Firefly
  4 x Rifles

B.  9th Polish Rifles; Morale: Regular 
  1 x  BHQ (Rifles; North slopes of Hill 262: Maj. M. Kochanowski)
  1 x FO
  2  x 5.5" (off-table)
  8 x Rifles
  1 x HMG (Carrier)
  1 x 3" Mortar (Carrier)
  1 x 6-pdr (Carrier)
  1 x Engineer (1/2 track)

C.  Podhale Rifles; Morale: Regular 
  1 x  BHQ (Rifles; around Mont Ormel: Lt.Col. K. Complak)
  1 x Carrier
  3 x 17-pdr (t)
  4 x Rifles
  1 x HMG (Carrier)
  1 x 3" Mortar (Carrier)
  1 x 6-pdr (Carrier)
  1 x Engineer (1/2 track)

D.  8th Polish Rifles; Morale: Regular 
  1 x  BHQ (Rifles; North slopes of Hill 262: Lt.Col. Aleksander Nowaczyński)
  1 x Carrier  
  1 x FO
  2  x 5.5" (off-table)
  3 x 17-pdr
  6 x Rifles
  1 x HMG (Carrier)
  1 x 3" Mortar (Carrier)
  1 x 6-pdr (Carrier)
  1 x Engineer (1/2 track)

E. 2nd Polish Armour; Morale: Regular 
  1 x  BHQ (Sherman; southern slopes of Hill 262, south of Chaudehard: Lt.Col. S. Koszustki)
  1 x Stuart
  2 x Rifles
  3 x HMG 
  6 x Sherman
  3 x Firefly

Player 3 (Axis):

A. 2nd SS Panzer Div.; Morale: Veteran  
  1 x BHQ (Panther; enters turn 1 east of Hill 262: SS-Obersturmbannführer Otto Weidinger)
  1 x Brigade HQ (1/2 t: SS-Oberführer Otto Baum)  
  2 x Panther
  2 x Pz IV H
  1 x Engineer (truck)
  4 x Rifles (1/2 t)
  2 x Rifles

B. 362nd Inf. Div. (?); Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (1/2 t; enters turn 2 east of Hill 262)
  1 x StuG IIIG
  1 x 20 mm SP AA
  1 x FO
  2 x 105 mm (off-table)
  6 x Rifles

C. 9th SS Panzer Div. (in part); Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Panther; enters turn 8 north of Chaudehard: SS-Obersturmbannführer Wilhelm Bittrich)
  1 x Brigade HQ (1/2 t: SS-Oberführer Friedrich-Wilhelm Bock)  
  1 x Panther
  2 x Tiger
  1 x Pz IV H
  2 x Rifles

D. 9th SS Panzer Div. (in part); Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Panther; enters turn 8 north of Chaudehard: SS-Obersturmbannführer Walter Harzer)
  1 x FO
  2 x 105 mm (off-table)
  1 x Panther
  1 x Pz IV H
  2 x Rifles (1/2 t)  
  2 x Rifles
  1 x 120 mm Mortar (t)

Player 4 (Axis):

A. 5th Regiment, 3rd Fjr. Div.; Morale: Veteran  
  1 x BHQ (Rifle; near Mimbeville: Oberstleutnant Karl-Heinz Becker)   
  1 x Brigade HQ (Rifle: Generalmajor Eugen Meindl)
  5 x Rifles
  1 x 120 mm Mortar (t)
  1 x 20 mm AA (t)
  1 x StuG IIIG

B. 8th Regiment, 3rd Fjr. Div.; Morale: Veteran     
  1 x BHQ (Rifle; south of Mimbeville: Oberstleutnant Ernst Liebach)   
  6 x Rifles
  1 x 81 mm Morta
  1 x Engineer
  1 x StuG IIIG

C. 9th Regiment, 3rd Fjr. Div.; Morale: Veteran  
  1 x BHQ (Rifle; Sourdevais: Major Kurt Stephani)
  1 x FO
  2 x 105 mm (t)    
  6 x Rifles
  1 x Engineer

D. 353rd Infantry Division; Morale: Regular
  1 x BHQ (Rifle; north of Mimbeville: Generalleutnant Paul Mahlmann) 
  1 x SMG
  6 x Rifles
  1 x Engineer
  1 x PaK 40 (t)
  1 x StuG IIIG
  1 x 20 mm AA (t)

Player 5 (Axis):

A. 2nd Panzer Div. + 10th SS Panzer Div.; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Panther; enters turn 1 west of St. Lambert: SS-Brigadeführer Heinz Harmel)
  1 x Brigade HQ (Rifles: Generalleutnant Heinrich Freiherr von Lüttwitz)
  1 x 234/1 AC
  1 x Tiger
  1 x Panther
  2 x Pz IV H
  2 x Rifles (1/2 t)  
  4 x Rifles
  1 x 251/2 SP 81 mm Mortar
  1 x Engineer
  1 x SP 20 mm AA
  1 x 88 mm AA (t)

B. 116th Panzer Div. + 12th SS Panzer Div.; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Panther; enters turn 1 west of Chambois: SS-Oberführer Kurt Meyer)
  1 x Brigade HQ (Rifles: General der Panzertruppe Gerhard Graf von Schwerin) 
  1 x 234/1 AC
  1 x Brigade HQ (Rifles)
  1 x Tiger
  2 x Panther
  2 x Pz IV H
  2 x Rifles (1/2 t)  
  4 x Rifles
  1 x GW1 SP 150 mm
  1 x Engineer
  1 x SP 20 mm AA

C. 84th Infantry Division; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Rifles; enters turn 2 southwest of St. Lambert)
  1 x Brigade HQ (Rifles) 
  6 x Rifles
  1 x 120 mm Motar (t)

D. 276th Infantry Division; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Rifles; enters turn 4 west of Chambois)
  1 x FO
  2 x 105 mm (off-table)
  6 x Rifles
  1 x 81 mm Motar

E. 277th Infantry Division; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Rifles; enters turn 6 west of St. Lambert)
  6 x Rifles
  1 x 81 mm Motar
  1 x StuG IIIG
  1 x PaK 40 (t)

F. 326th Infantry Division; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Rifles; enters turn 8 west of Chambois)
  6 x Rifles
  1 x Engineer
  1 x 20 mm AA (t)

G. 363rd Infantry Division; Morale: Regular   
  1 x BHQ (Rifles; enters turn 10 west of St. Lambert)
  1 x FO
  2 x 105 mm (off-table)
  6 x Rifles
  1 x PaK 40 (t)
  1 x 75 mm IG (t)

Falaise Gap - Part IV

To the west, things sounded like they were even more bloody, but I naturally had little idea what was going on, it being all of two meters away...  From what I could see, Peter had driven westwards hard with his first wave, and been mauled in the process, losing both the 2nd SS Panzers and the 362nd Infantry in the process, before his southbound force had even arrived on the table!  He almost broke Rhys' Podhale Rifles in the process, but there's a big difference between "almost" doing something and actually doing it... 

The veteran paratroopers assaulting from the other direction proved to be a big headache for Rhys - and he new this would be case, since they are his regular WW2 gaming force!  And once the 9th SS Panzers arrived just in time to replace the exhausted 353rd Infantry on their northern flank, they started pushing up the hill in real earnest.

Detail of elements of 9 SS Panzer Division supporting 3. Fjr-Division assaulting Mont Ormel. The brownish pipe cleaners are being used to represent light entrenchments (the Poles having dug in during the night).  The number of vacant positions attest to the intensity of the fighting in this sector of the table.

As it happened, the Germans just couldn't shift the Poles off the northern Hill 262, just as happened in real-life (in our game the 9th SS Panzers were  essentially destroyed in the attempt), but the Poles couldn't hang on to the southern portion of Mont Ormel either; again, mirroring the real life situation, and thus opening the way east for those elements that could make it.

The rest of the view of Mont Ormel shown above, at the end of turn 12.  No German forces remain to the left (northeast), while the 3rd Paratroopers have cleared a path straight up the centre of the shot, demonstrating yet again that when it comes to assaulting close terrain, "veteran"-rated infantry just can't be beat...

So after 5 1/2 hours of play, and 12 turns completed, we essentially had our result, and it was very close to what happened historically.  The Poles had fended off all assaults on Hill 262, but could not prevent a corridor being opened up for part of the 7th Army to slip through, south of Mont Ormel.  But while men may have gotten through, hardly any heavy equipment made it. A satisfying result to a good day's gaming!

In hindsight, the eastern end of the battlefield should have been rotated northwards, gaining an extra km there at the expense of a kilometre of unused terrain to the south.  And with more research, unit positions and strengths, etc., could have been tweaked, but it all went pretty well I thought. Here's Rhys thoughts on making up the scenario.