Round 1: Goch Ya!

A scenario that I´ve played before, and was deeply insulted by  my (former:-) good buddy Martin Kristensen when he as the Germans with his Stugs took out both my 75mm Churchills with frontal shots! (And my 9-2 leader killed in an 2-1 CC). So this game was to stop the reoccuring nightmares I was suffering from.

I played against Stephen Burleighs Germans as the British.

My plan of advancing behind a smokescreen was quickly changed to an armoured advance behind a few smoke mortar rounds. I managed to get the majority of my infantry to the antitank ditch and by the end of my second turn, my two bridges where down and the infantry ready to take on the Germans. The majority of my forces attacked Dereks right flank and started to break German squads, while my 2 squad diversionary attack on his left quickly deteriorated.

By turn 4 I had secured 4 out of the needed 6 buildings and sent one of the Churchills crews on a DC-mission. One Stug went home due to MA Disabled, and the German 8-1 leader had to go alle the way to the church i order to establish a German counterattack. This attack was mercilessly cut down and the british was able to secure more than the needed 6 buildings.

Thanks to Stephen for helping me to some sound night sleeping again.

Round 2: The good Shepherd.

I played the British against Toby Pillings Germans.

I opted for a two-pronged attack hoping to take the 4 buildings on the flanks. My left flank consisted of the onboard-infantry (minus a 7-0 leader and a squad) plus two Shermans, while the right flank was made up of the reinforcing infantry, a Sherman, the wasp and the 7-0 for rally duties.

Toby had placed his forces way back (with a strong left) deploying a lot, and only keeping nuisance units forward.

I moved my units forward spread out receiving only light fire. I lost one of the left flank Shermans to a halfsquad that just wouldn´t budge.

When I got to the front wooden building on my left, I made a big mistake of advancing three-squad stack and a leader into the building.... BOOM! The front of the bilding had been mined, but luckily nobody was hurt. Coming this far Toby responded by sending forward more troops, and the attack was wavering.  I sent the Wasp to reinforce the left and get the attack going. This seemed to be doing the trick, as more and more Germans were DM´ ed. Meanwhile the front stonebuilding on the right was cleared.

Two buildings down two more to go. Things were more or less going according to plan and I started humming the old psalm “Bringing in the sheep”. But...

Then the right flank Sherman gagged its gun, a Sniper found my 9-2 leader and the Wasp wasp lost to twice missing NMC´s to a conscript squad!  So..

Although I managed to clear the second of the left flank buildings, I was stopped cold ond the right flank holding on to the one building cleared. So the game ended with a melee in a fourth building.

Close but no deal. (Damn you Red Baron! :-)

Thanks to Toby for a very good game. We will take that pint in october at the Intensive Fire.

 3: Twilight of the Reich

Another game I hadn´t played before as with the Good Shepherd.

I was defending the Fatherland against Michael Hastrup´s Russian horde. Actually Michael and I go way back. We started playing Squad Leader in the early eighties and he is also the guy responsible for bringing me into the ASL herd.

I decicded for a setup aruond the central string of woods hexes giving some protection to the Jagdpanther´s rear. The Infantry protecting the aproaches to the position, and of course the conscripts in the the more precarious positions. The HMG along with a squad and the 8-1 leader was setup adjacent to the Jagdpanther to protcect aganist those pesky 447´s who had stolen a truckload of Panzerfausts.

Turn 1 saw Michael comming on to the board readying his troops for the inevitable encircling of the position. Turn 2 prep fire luckily did little harm (A halfsquad broken and a conscript squad lost its concealment). This squad really proved itself by knocking out a ISU-152 and keeping 2 russian squads and a leader in melee for 2 turns. And a sneaky LOS from the Jagdpanther proved the end for a T-34.

The turn 2 reinforcing Jagdpanthers (2) moved onboard to take on two of the encircling T-34´s. They both succeded in their motion attemps! Argh!

Turn 3 saw the Russins swarming the position and the germans breaking right and left. A t-34 mowed into a woodshex pointing its gun at the Jagdpanthers a.. rear. Allthough it turned around and on a intensive fire shot took out the bas.... it soon became a  blaze thanks to a German manufactured Panzerfaust in the hands of a Russian 447.

On my turn 3 I took out another T-34 with one of the reinforcing Jagdpanthers. (Another yard of hedge and it would have been safe) The other was to positioning itself within 5 hexes of 44J1 (victory condition) but of course it bogged crossing a sandhex!

Turn 4 saw Michael finishing of the rest of the original position and moving his remaing 447´s forward to give some Panzerfausts back to the Germans.

I now needed to move my Jagdpanthers and luckily the bogged one rolled snakeyes on its bogcheck giving it ample movepoints to get within 5 hexes o 44J1. The other Jagdpanther made it as well. But with only 1½ squad for protection.

And now the Russians came swarming. I only fired at he 447´s but two managed to get adjacent. Luckily the remaining ISU-152 gagged its gun while trying to do some bounding fire.

In the advance Fire Phase the Russinas only had one Panzerfaust and it missed. That apparently did break their hearts since none of them had the guts to go CC thus making it a German win.

Thanks to Michael for a very fun and exiting game.

Round 4: The Rats of Hamich

“Aha” said I when Klas bid G2 giving me the right to battleharden 4 Yank squads. This giving me among other things two fanatic 667´s, one to man a 12,7HMG and the other operating a flamethrower. Victory was almost certain! But..Anyone heard of Murphy´s Law?

I was playing against Klas Erik Rydberg a very competent Swedish player. Whereas I was never nowhere near to give him anything that could put even the smallest wrinkle on his forehead.

I will spare you the details of my ignomious defeat, suffice to say that when brought in my “heavy guys” (the 12,7HMG and the MMG along with 2 squads with 8 and 7 morale directed by a 9-2 leader) the first shot gagged the 12,7HMG. And in the following defensive fire Klas gave them a MC which they all 3 failed. So! “The Big Push” that should have started on turn 3 with lots of squads and a massive firepower ended in turn, ah yes... turn 3 with lots of broken squads all around and a burning Sherman.

Sorry Klas. I will do better next time.

Round 5: Final Embrace

This game found me playing the German defender against Peter Rogneholt´s oncoming Commandos with armoured support.

As I hadn´t played this scenario before I opted for a board 41 defense, because I thought that a forward defense would give Peter too good cover. Thus I gave him the 12 building locations (he needed 18 to win) on board 42 more or less for free. But I figured that with almost all the Germans on board 42 I would have better interlocking positions and better cover than him.

So I placed one of my two 75mm At guns along with a HIP hallfsquad with a PSK on the extreme left flank to guard against flanking manouvers. The other was positioned to fire down Main Street and able to bring fire on the front buildings. I placed the first Panther on the board 41 hill level 2 and the second on my right flank. But for some odd reason I had placed it in a building behind a wall. You can´t have both Lars! Furtherore it could only move forward to leave its position. A squad with HMG directed by he 9-2 leader went to the stone building (level2) on the extreme right.

Turn 1 and 2 saw Peter smoking right and left while he was securing the Victory buildings on board 42.

On turn 3 the real fighting erupted. He offered me lots of halfsquads as tagets, but only guys with a LMTR or leaders were fired upon. And of course should a Sherman present itself! Which a lone Sherman on my extreme left did. The HIP halfsquad there had done its duty. One of Peter´s  Fireflies tried for a gun duel with one of my Panthers. But Rolling Boxcars is never a good tactic. I allowed him to drive away as the tagets were numerous. It later rolled 6 on the Repair dr! In the city the first Commando units had forced their way into the first building, forcing a melee there. 2 more building locations to him. But also the first squads began feeling the German “Need for Heat” from the flametrower!

In my turn 3 I extricated my odd placed Panther for a better position. In this move it even tried for a point blank shot against a Sherman which had penetrated the woods hexes on the east edge of board 42. But Damn hard those Point Blank shots!

On turn 4 Peter´s Commandos pushed on securing 2 more building locations. But  one more Sherman went up in flames, and the remaining Fireflie ended its move in a bad position (Smoke hex) prone to a CC-atack from a SS-squad. I think this more or less had exhausted Peter´s Commandos. Or exhausted Peter because he threw in the towel at this time and gave me the victory. Also it was 2 o´clock in the morning.

Thanks to you Peter for a very intense game.

Round 6: The Road to St. Lo

(Or the other side of Murphy´s  Law)

In this last game I was to play the German attacker against Daniel Kalman´s Americans defending a level 2 hill. Funny but I rarely play de Luxe Game scenarios and this weekend I got to play the two possible. This one I hadn´t played before either.

When I moved the first of my infantry units in they were fired upon by a Yank Squad entrenched on the road on his left flank, but no effect. And for somme odd reason I (all by myself!) figured that a squad marked with a Final Fire couldn´t fire its support weapon i.e. a Bazooka, so I started rumbling down the road with my first Mark IV. And suprise! A bazooka grenade (luckily) wissed past me. I halted in the hex containing the squad with the Bazooka breaking him with machine gun fire and then moved a hex further. Then the next Mark IV Started rumbling down the road to park itself on top of the now broken squad when a Hip halfsquad appeared with yes! A Bazooka. But it rolled 11 on the to hit DR thus X-ing it. Then a second HIP halfsquad appeared with a Bazooka but this time rolling boxcars for the same result! The the third Mark IV parked itself behind the two others and the rest of the infantry moved forward without any mishaps.

Daniel now had to move his last Bazooka armed unit from his right towards his left flank. Two other squads advanced trying to take out the lead tank in CC. The tank was only able to strip their concealment with its machine guns but that should give an excelent point blank shot for the MA, barring boxcars! Despite being morale 6 units they passed their PATC but was unable to roll the needed 5 or less in CC.

On my turn two I broke the two squads with triple point blank fire, broke the last Bazooka armed squad and managed to get two heroes. So with no LATW´s avaliable and allready 3 squads down I was more or less “King of the Hill” even before I got to it, so David threw in the towel. I must admit I felt a bit sad winning like this Daniel being such a nice guy.

Thanks to Michael, Jes, Bo and Bjarne for a very well organized tournament and congratulations to Bjarne for bringing the old “Dannebroge” to the top. Well done! For the rest of you guys, hope to see you all next year.

All the best

Klys