@Matt Boehland and I took advantage of our singularly weird schedules and managed a double header last Tuesday. We put the flexibility of the ASL system to good use, ranging from the villages of Alsace during Operation Nordwind to the jungles of New Britain and Operation Dexterity.
Specifically, we played....
HF5 "Graveyard Shift"
In light of the 11-2 (pro-US) record going in, we gave the Germans the balance.
The Americans have a slightly tricky job, in that they need to capture three fairly disconnected locations (the Train Station, the cemetery, and building X9). However, they have plenty of tools with which to accomplish those tasks-- four Shermans and a smoke barrage, never mind machine guns and a pair of the ubiquitous 60mm M2 mortars.
The Germans are stretched pretty thin, particularly where anti-tank assets are concerned. Panzerfausts and a Panzerschreck can help keep the Shermans from coming too close, but one PaK 40 isn't really enough to prevent envelopment.
The German balance provision doesn't help in the AT department, but goes a long way towards offsetting the infantry disparity. An extra squad never hurts, but by bringing the squad total to 11, it allows the Germans to deploy a second squad right off the bat.
The Americans launched a two pronged attack-- the infantry in the North pressing towards the Train Station and building X9, with the tanks crossing South of the railroad to lay fire onto the cemetery.
The assault got off to a good start, with the GIs advancing swiftly East through hedgerows, orchards, and the odd building. One tank fired White Phosphorous into the train station as the rest of the platoon rumbled towards the cemetery.
Events soon started to favor the Germans though. In the train station, a defending half squad ambushed a squad and leader in CC and annihilated them in hand to hand fighting. On the Northern flank, the Americans were caught in the open by machine gun and rifle fire from buildings along the West side of Rue Principale and were forced back in disarray. The PaK 40, which had lain waiting near the cemetery for about a turn and a half finally revealed itself, shocking one Sherman and burning another in the space of a single phase.
With their forces scattered and broken, the Americans called off the attack.
Even with the balance, I think this one has the potential to be a bit pro-US. The ambush in the Train Station and the Americans' utter inability to pass a morale check were strong contributors to German victory.
J135 "Diversion"
This is a great (and quick!) introduction to Suicide Creek and the intricacies of fighting in and around pillboxes. On the one hand, the rule requiring that pillboxes be setup where they have LOS to the stream makes it somewhat tricky to make a properly overlapping defense. On the other hand, the existance of pillbox cellars mean that the Japanese can skulk between the pillbox and cellar, making it difficult for the Marines to root them out.
This time around, the Marines made quick work of the Japanese defense. I have only myself to blame, for failing to realize just how difficult it is to cross the stream even under the best of circumstances. Had I arranged matters so that every stream hex was subject to point blank fire, crossing would have been next to impossible.
As it was, I concentrated my defense in the Southwest corner of the map, the idea being that maybe I could run out the clock a bit by forcing the Marines to slog through the jungle a bit. It didn't work. The Marines crossed the stream on the East side of the map, then turned through the Kunai to engage.
Where in our previous game it seemed that the Americans couldn't pass a morale check, this time I couldn't make an ambush roll. The Marines worked their way from hex to hex, and soon there just weren't any Japanese left.
Overall, I think this is probably a much more balanced scenario than our playing made it out to be. I utterly failed to understand how to properly put together a defense, and Matt made me pay heavily for this mistake. If you're looking to give Suicide Creek a try for the first time, this is a good place to start.
Thank you,
@Matt Boehland, for two wonderful games!