We played this scenario on March 14, 2009. I had a couple more players than originally planned, so I expanded the forces on each side so that the Allies had two leg infantry companies supported by two Sherman tanks each. The German side was expanded to a full company.
| Allied Forces | German Forces |
|---|---|
2 US Infantry Companies
1 CC (+1*)
1 HMG
1 Bazooka
1 FO for 81mm Mortar (OT)
3 Rifle Platoons
1 PC (+1*)
3 Rifle Squads
1 Sherman 75
3 Sherman 76
* Rallying only
|
Kampfgruppe "Knaust"
1 CC (+2)
2 HMG
1 FO for 81mm Mortar (OT)
1 Panzershreck
3 Rifle Platoons
1 PC (+2 first, +1 others)
3 Rifle Squads (1 with panzerfausts)
1 Panzer IV F2
1 StuG IV
|
Special rules:
- Vehicles: unlimited movement but could only fire their main gun once per initiative. Additional MG fire was possible, but only used 3 dice.
- Bogging Down: tanks would bog down on a roll of 4 or more if they entered a terrain feature and could unbog the next initative on a roll of 3 or more. Bogging down did not cause the player to loose initiative.
Setup
The allied forces deployed first, one company on either side of the dike road. The Sherman with the 75mm gun deployed on the road on top of the dike.
The Germans deployed second, mostly along the road that ran at a right angle to the dike. One platoon was deployed on the left flank across the dike while the rest took up positions in the fields on the right. The StuG faced off with the Sherman on top of the dike.
The Game
The Allies moved conservatively at first, and since their tanks kept getting bogged down in the fields, the advance was slow. I tried a risky gamble by moving two squads up under the cover of smoke to try to ambush the platoon gathering on the other side of a wood. The gamble failed and the squads were soon wiped out by the platoon once a tank reached the woods.
On the right the German platoons took up defensive positions around a farm house, but their shooting was poor and failed to do anything other than pin the advancing enemy. Soon the Allied company had dropped smoke and moved up a platoon to assault the field.
Meanwhile the StuG and Sherman had traded ineffective shots and I decided to risk the reactive fire and move the StuG up to support my infantry advance. Unfortunately the Sherman gunner was ready with another round in the breach and he knocked out the StuG when it reached the crossroads.
More tank combat was happening on the right side where the Panzer IV was firing at a Sherman in the woods. The Sherman was in a good position with plenty of cover and the Panzer was fighting a loosing battle. Soon the Panzer was knocked out as well.
On the left my platoon manged to make a fighting withdrawal under the cover of mortar fire, but two squads were lost. As the Shermans moved up, the Company Commander led a desperate close assault, but the Shermans were ready and the advance was pinned and the commander killed. The supporting Allied infantry counter-attacked, but were fought off. Facing overwhelming opposition, the remnants of the platoon did the sensible thing and surrendered.
Once the right flank collapsed, the rest of the German company was surrounded and soon surrendered as well. The Allies had cleared the road block with the loss of only one squad!