Early last Friday Tim McClelland brought out his Amis for a practice game before our tournament at Legions on Dec 17. We rolled No Retreat and I won the defender die.
Tim’s list was 99th US Infantry:
tims-list
My list was an infantry unit from 12. Volksgrenadiers:
bulgegerman1735
I grouped one panzershrek with the 2iC to get an eighth platoon and deployed the sturm platoon (with the other shrek added); the pioniers, the NW32 rockets and held the PaK40s in ambush.
The pioniers went down first with wire placed in front of the town buildings. Tim’s objective was in the second building from the left and the “puffs” on some of the pionier stands showed they were flamethrowers. The mid point of the board is the far front edge of the church. My troops and ambush all had to be placed behind that line.
The site for the spotter for the rockets was obligatory…top of the church steeple! The sturm platoon was to the right. Rockets were to the rear in a wood, guarding the objective I placed.
Tim deployed all his forces for the attack. His right was weighted with the infantry. The mobile security section for the TDs , Chaffees, and the Recon unit were to the left. The TDs shown at bottom left were held for deployment. We played on an 8-foot board so the back of the table was free storage for our crap.
TURN ONE opened with the infantry doubling on my left…Tim reasoned my pioniers only had rifles and wouldn’t do much damage as only three could effectively fire (where the hell are all the MG34s when you need them?). The recon and security section moved at normal speed ahead on my right. Tim had rolled for two P47s and my Focke-Wulf Fw 190s were nowhere to be seen.
Between the planes and the mortar barrage both German infantry platoons were pinned, but no casualties were taken.
Baier’s rolling good! The JgdPanzer V’s arrive on the first turn! They take quick shots at the Recon platoon who evade with no damage. Six shots from the pioniers get two hits on the jogging Yanks and kill a bazooka team. (At TRAINED troops in the open…all I need is a 3 or better…)
Maybe the 30cm rockets will do better…the spotter in the steeple does his magic and the heavy shells fall into an infantry concentration. Infantry, mortars and anti-tank guns are under the barrage. When the smoke clears, two infantry stands including the platoon leader and one mortar team are obliterated. (I took the heavy rockets because of the 1+ Fire Power. I figured that if Tim missed his save it was an automatic loss).
TURN TWO. The infantry and AT guns unpin. The AT guns fail to dig in. A lone Thunderbolt heads for the Germans, but a flight of 190’s chase him away. (I rolled a SIX!). In the center, the I&R platoon tries to lift Gone-to-Ground on the sturm platoon but fail.
The mortars target the pioniers again and pin them. All hell breaks lose as the Amis unload across their front with tank fire, machine gun concentrations and rifle volleys! Baier again rolls well and after all the many hits are rolled for only a single pionier stand is lost. Field telephone reports from the observer claimed that he took a shot through the helmet that creased his scalp and the bullets hitting the bell in the tower were killing his hearing…
My luck continues (yes, sometimes I do roll well!) and two platoons arrive from reserves. The AA platoon deploys on my right, hopefully keeping the light recon troops back. The Schutzen platoon goes left to shore up the pioniers. The Jagdpanthers miss, rolling 2’s. The sturm platoon’s MGs get three hits on the I&R platoon with no effect. Tim’s saves were all good.
The 30cm rockets attempt to fire but only one responds (Superheavy rockets may fire if they roll their skill level if not fully re-loaded). The barrage hits the I&R jeeps but does no damage other than deafening some of the passengers. Tim again saves them all. The Schutzen platoon storm-troops but the Jagdpanzers fail.
TURN THREE. Two P47s fly over but the 190s again appear to drive them away. (Wow!! ANOTHER 6!). The shell-shocked jeeps remain pinned and Tim’s dice woes continue with the mortars failing to range in and the recon again missing their skill check to remove gone-to-ground. Once again all the Ami units fire and get the same effect–one dead stand for the sturm platoon. The combat engineers charge over the wire and all six cross (they re-roll their skill check to cross). Three hits from defensive fire do nothing and the GIs kill two stands. The assault ends with no Germans able to respond so the Americans consolidate on the position.
In the German turn the last unit arrives near the center and moves forward. The AA guns appear to have misplaced their shovels in the baggage train so do not dig in.
The PaK40s enter the party and knock out a Chaffee and bail one of the M20s.
The pionier flamethrower sneaks up on the Amis who assaulted the town and fry two. The sturm platoon kills a bazooka and the Engineers pass their morale check. The rockets were too busy re-loading to shoot.
The Jgdpanthers storm-troop and, in a more normal roll for me, BOTH bog as they try to enter the woods.
TURN FOUR. The shaken engineers fail to dig in and the hapless mortars again miss. Mulligan must be sleeping again! “Wait, Kelly, wait. Will you listen to me a second? Will ya listen to me! It’s not me, I tell ya, it’s not me! I – I can’t tell one shell from another, they all look alike! They all look alike. If was me, if I could tell, would I be here? WOULD I BE HERE?! I wouldn’t be here, Kelly!”
The I&R platoon spots the enemy but to no avail…six hits are dodged by the defenders. One is a near miss when the fire-power roll fails. The deafened spotter in the steeple has no more worldly problems after a 57mm HE shell detonates on the bottom lip of the church bell, sending a large piece of bronze into his back.
In the midst of the chaos one of the rifle platoons charge over the wire toward the objective. Five out of six stands cross but withering defensive fire throws them back with six hits, killing one.
The German pioniers unpin and the remaining flamethrower kills two stands from the riflemen in the street.
The German rifle and MG shots ring out and get 9 hits on the GIs huddled in the street. Two more stands fall and the platoon commander dies. The engineers take a casualty, too, but make their morale roll again. Things are looking grim for the Americans…at least the Jagdpanthers are still stuck in the trees.
TURN FIVE: The low growl of the big Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp engine of the approaching P47 is drowned out by the two diving FW190s who again intercept the air threat.
Mulligan’s mortars miss again. The Chaffees kill two defenders, wounding the sturm platoon commander who moves to better cover. The HMGs get two hits on the pioniers and Tim gets a chance when I roll snake-eyes for saves but can’t roll his firepower. The I&R MGs account for one more sturm stand and the AT guns kill another pionier, which make their morale test and stay on the field.
Once more into the breach! The last intact infantry platoon charges into the depleted defenders who only manage two defensive fire hits but kill one. Tim whiffs on the combat roll and the German counter-attack kills four, pushing him back from the objective.
A second charge goes in from the other platoon, but seven hits from defensive fire kill three and halt the attack like it ran into a brick wall.
The pioniers, reduced to the command team, have had enough and retire. (Failed the sole survivor test). The Schutzen platoon gets three hits on the platoon that assaulted first last move and kills two and the PaK40s get another.
Big rockets fall into the tank platoon but Tim rolls off sure death and bails one. One of the JgdPz Vs frees himself but misses his target. The half-strength sturm platoon kills one of the second assaulting platoon and forces a morale check which Tim passes.
TURN SIX AND END. The last infantry platoon capable of charging fails to unpin, so the Germans hold the objective.
Thanks for the game, Tim. The dice FINALLY went my way. When one side is rolling good and the other rolling below average it sure helps.