So what scenarios have you played Recently?

[A Lost Canadian]

Been playing a lot of scenarios recently.

Lost BFP101 Panzer Spirit as the Russians. This is a fun, if insane, fight. I attacked on the right but not aggressively enough, giving the Germans time to pick apart my tanks. by turn 5 I had take most of the houses on the right but at such great cost that I could not take more. My suggestion is that the Russians need to be even more aggresive. One group fo T-34s need to dash across the open ground turn 1 and vbm as many houses on the right as they can and then the second set of T-34s should armoured assault as much infantry as they can get across. Ideally the Russian tanks want to get in an tight with the german infantry (who are PF free and thus harder for the Marder's to train their sights on them.

Also if an experienced player is playing the Germans vs an inexperienced I recommend removing the 50L as balance. I found it gave the Germans that much more of a balance. That 3 rate mean it can really go on a run and do a lot of damage.

Also lost ASL 33 The Cossacks are Coming as the Partisan (Armies of Oblivion version). A fun, wacky fight. Partisan doesn't have a chance in this one. If they set up across the hills as I did the Croatians can form an blob hooking south through the woods and pick the Partisans apart. If the Partisan's set up in the woods in the south they have to hold onto a very narrow band of road that would be easy to push them away from.

I think the best solution for the Partisan may be to set up entirely on hill 621 and push into the coming Cossacks with their whole force. It'll take the Croatians a few turns to get there and by then ideally the Cossacks may have been taken down.

This is not to say don't play this scenario. Cavalry is fun. It is a good way to learn how to try to get the best out of weak forces. But it is not a fair fight.

 

[Spencer Armstrong]

This is a fun, if insane, fight.

I'd say "fun, because insane, fight."

 

[buser333]

I say take the opposite approach and put the bare minimum force (about 1/3) in the north to slow the Cossacks and make the Croatians really work for their gains. With many conscripts and a 2 ELR they should have a tough time. In any case, great scenario.

 

[JRKrejsa]

Orlik and the Uhlans SP48 (Sounds like a band I would have seen at a bar in my youth.) Poland, '39. The Poles have to hold onto a portion of the board 42 village. Their assailants are a large German force, driving half of the Czech Republic's yearly output of tanks. The Poles have 4 guns, and 2 regular TKS, and one TKS with a 20mm.
I set up my Poles in depth, giving away all the buildings on 42 on the far side of the big grainfield. I set a few squads on the board 44 /42 seam. My opponent saw this and aimed a sledgehammer at the board 42 village, with a small force to occupy the buildings I left uncovered. Some of my guns did well, one 02/26 broke on it's first shot, and never got fixed. My infantry, (actually cavalry, but the horses went to lunch during the scenario), did well. One squad took out a Pz38 in CC, and buildings J1 and K5 changed hands several times.
My east flank colapsed, But I was able to hold at the D5 building for long enough to slow the Germans. On the last half turn, the battle came down to several melees. I held out in the end, with the Germans taking 12 of the 13 required buildings.

Fun, early war, tin can scenario.

 

[Eagle4ty]

Recently finished off RO6 THE PLAYING FIELD. In my estimation this is the best RO scenario in the bunch and I was fortunate enough to have the contest against a very good player and good friend. The situation takes place in Dec 42 with the Germans defending Halls 8 & 8a against a Guards counterattack to take these structures. No vehicles in this one but the Soviets get a 120mm OBA & the Germans have two 81mm on-board mortars. The Germans however are hamstrung with ammo shortage but have a few force multiplies in wire, mines and fortified building locations to supplant their defense, and the Russkies have to overcome some poor terrain to attack through. RS would give me the brown fellas, no balance in effect.

Early in the game a real DF sewer move I made, and paid for exorbitantly, had me reeling and I thought the game was almost a forgone conclusion-German Victory. However, I was quite fortunate to get down a few very opportune OBA strikes taking out a critical asset and preventing lateral re-positioning of his forces to threatened areas in any real strength. This allowed me to get into & clear Hall 8a & threaten Hall 8 from the western flank as well. A real Stalingrad in your face struggle ensued with both sides seemingly ahead and then behind with regularity throughout the scenario. The culmination of our contest came down to me having to eliminate or tie up in melee all of his G.O. elements in Hall 8 for an immediate victory as I couldn't quite get enough units in the edifice to win on VPs at game end. Two locations in the final CCPh decided the matter. In the 1st CC I had a -5 Ambush drm vs his +1 and easilly eliminated him. The 2nd one was against a concealed German defender that chose not to attack where I only had 1:1 odds against him along with a 1:1 against an unconcealed unit in the same location. Going HtH I was fortunate enough to roll a 3 eliminating the concealed guy and remained in melee with the other unconcealed unit, an instant win at the end of the last CCPh of the game. A great and memorable classic Stalingrad fight against a class opponent. Highly recommended. (fairly even on ROAR as well).

 

[Neal]

Finished American Devil (SK) last week. Started Decision at Elst (SK CG). Once done with Elst buddy and I will be moving back to ASL. We've been working our way back into the system after being away for a LONG time.

That being said, American Devil (Japanese vs. US regular army) was a great scenario. BAck and forth PTO battle with a little bit of everything, at least from the SK ruleset. Japanese won getting an incredibly low odds hit and kill on my Sherman (rolled two 3s in a row) with his last remaining tin can AFV. That gave him 6 VPs and put him over the top near the end.

 

[Houlie]

Completed OTO3 Shumilino from the new OTO2 module as the defending Germans against Randy Shurtz’s attacking Russians. 16 Russian squads + 7 AFV against 10 German squads + 3 guns (75L, 75*, 81) + 2 x reinforcing StuGs and 4 x 467s on turn 3. Add to the defense an assortment of wire, mines, trenches/FH and one bunker. The Russians must capture >=16 (of 26 buildings) of between hexrows N-X. Russians enter from the north and/or either the east or west.

The Germans build their defense expecting a northern and eastern entry as the western approach had a lot of open ground. The German needs to know the board well and choose where they will make their stand. This is a scenario that requires careful defensive planning and use of fortifications. I felt losing troops for defense of buildings that would most likely fall will lead to a Russian victory. So, for me it was the western side of the north-south road and any troops in the front defensive belt would conduct a fighting withdrawal.

The Russians thrust from the north and east and made steady early progress. I made a point to conserve troops as best I could, conceding buildings as the Russians advanced. The arriving German turn three reinforcements from the south would allow troops in the southern half of the defensive perimeter to slide to the north where pressure was mounting with Russians on three sides (the Matildas were on the western side of the German village defense). Fortunately, the reinforcements took no casualties and made it to the village in Turn 4. The two StuGs rolled up to the left of the village to confront the Matildas there and one StuG proceeded to malf its MA. The two 40L Matildas and a T70 to the south of the village were dispatched in the next couple turns.

The mid to end game saw a steady push by the Russians with significant pressure in the north. The Russians had seen that the southern-western side of the village would be difficult to take (due to the arriving reinforcements). As a result, forces began to shift to the north. It was here that my dice continued to nick the attackers. Some timely snakes and a decent amount of other low rolls CR’d and broke the attackers. A timely SAN took out an 8-1 directing a crew/HMG which had been a constant pain. Finally, three Russian units advance into CC in a critical foxhole spot in the northern edge of the village – a 467/lmg vs. 2 x 527, 227 rolls a 1,1 vs. the 527, 227, creating a newly minted German 8-1. The Russians roll high. At that point, with troop losses high and inadequate manpower to wrest the required VC buildings, the Russians called off the attack.

Wow. A challenging defense for the Germans. The Russians had a solid attack, but my dice were very kind with more snakes over the course of this game than I can remember in a long while. The scenario gives one a good feel for the desperation of the German defenders against the Bagration offensive. A wonderful design as things look grim for the Germans against the mass of armor and firepower, but the turn 3 “cavalry” really puts things back on an even footing. A solid, recommended scenario that is very playable. Many thanks to Randy for a very well-played game despite my radioactive dice.

Looking forward to digging into some of the other OTO2 scenarios. I encourage you if you are on the fence about this module to stimulate the economy and pick-up a copy. It's typical quality you have come to expect from the BFP crew. Well done!

Here’s a pic of the final map.

 

[Mister T]

Looking at the pic of Shumilino, i was surprised that it does not correspond to my rememberings. Checking the old RBF-15, i saw that the central map has been changed. This is not an issue for me at it creates some novelty and may offer an opportunity for the designer to provide a better map for the featured situation. MMP may take some inspiration from this approach when it updates old horses.

 

[cifdale]

Since the Chicago tournament was cancelled due to Covid -19 my opponent and I decided to play 6 scenarios from the Chicago playlist for our own little tourny. So far I have won RPT 167 Meatchoppers with Knives as the U.N., RPT 162 Armor at Kumchon as the NKPA, and FT 253 Axis and Allies as the Axis. My opponent has won RPT 166 We are Friends (he was the CPVA), and T7 Hill 253.5 (he was the Germans). We have started DB140 Beasts at Baruth, hope to finish it next week. If he wins this one I am going to press him to play a deciding game of either RPT 8 Well Taught or Z19 The Trap at Targul Frumos.

 

[Michael R]

I had the Germans in BFP101 PANZER SPIRIT against Bruno L'Archeveque's Russians. I had two Marders, the AT gun and a dummy tank covering the Russian approach along with the infantry of course. One Marder hid, the other covered a Marder. Bruno attacked from the Russian right with several armoured assaulting units and some tanks and infantry moving through the grain. The SSR extra rate of armour leader helped the Germans win this. My dice were hot. One Marder with an AL got APCR twice to kill two T34. The AT gun got a CH against another T34. Another Marder shocked a T34 with AP. The AT gun also used its high rate to break up the infantry. Seven Russian tanks were dead before the end of the second turn. A lot of Russian infantry were broken. Bruno conceded.

 

[Spencer Armstrong]

I had the Germans in BFP101 PANZER SPIRIT against Bruno L'Archeveque's Russians. I had two Marders, the AT gun and a dummy tank covering the Russian approach along with the infantry of course. One Marder hid, the other covered a Marder. Bruno attacked from the Russian right with several armoured assaulting units and some tanks and infantry moving through the grain. The SSR extra rate of armour leader helped the Germans win this. My dice were hot. One Marder with an AL got APCR twice to kill two T34. The AT gun got a CH against another T34. Another Marder shocked a T34 with AP. The AT gun also used its high rate to break up the infantry. Seven Russian tanks were dead before the end of the second turn. A lot of Russian infantry were broken. Bruno conceded.

This is very similar to how my playing went. If the German Guns run hot, the Russians have a tough road. Just the nature of a smallish, Gun vs. Armor situation.

 

[WuWei]

We started the rematch of RB7 The Red House, this time with me playing the German defender. My plan relied on a 2nd level killstack in the Red House. Of course, with a NVR of 2, I needed some starshells for this plan to work. It turns out those are in really short supply. In my 1st turn, I tried 7 (seven!) times to get one. A single 4 was the lowest roll (of course it was in a stack without a leader), the rest was 5s and 6s, so it kept dark. In the 2nd turn, I got at least two starshells up, although they were all on the South side of the map, while the Russian main thrust is in the North. Stalingrad by night is no fun for the Germans.

 

[Spencer Armstrong]

Recent completions:

Lost Panzerpioniere! in COVID tourney bracket finals to Robert Schaaf. A bounding fire swarm of IVJs went after a fairly isolated Sherman as my first move and ran into a buzzsaw. Three turret hits and three 7 TK rolls thanks to ROF and successful IF put me down three tanks on turn 1. I admit, I failed the PMC pretty badly. That, coupled with a sub-optimal attack from me ended this one pretty early. Robert's defense was solid and I never got back on my feet. Good scenario, hope to play it again.

Won 231 In Front of the Storm vs Steve Anderson. I think I stayed in initial positions a turn too long, but on that turn everything worked and that was a huge turn. It was enough to overcome the fact that my 45L 37L (oops, thanks, Mister T) gun kept rate no more than twice all game and bounced every shell off the French tanks. I really like this scenario, want a crack at the French.

Won FrF99 Boy Soliders vs Andy Beaton. This ended last night. Nothing worked for me the first couple turns. Gun crew boxcar'd first MC after missing a few shots, everybody who moved broke, every shot missed...and then it all flipped in turn 3 and Andy's 7 squads were...where are they? Final blows came in early turn 4 when he rolled a couple 3's and both were followed by 1 sniper roll, absolutely handing me the second victory building. I will never like the sniper rule, even when it helps me. Board 6 remains weird. Scenario is interesting. I don't think I'd want the Russians.

 

[Mister T]

Won 231 In Front of the Storm vs Steve Anderson. I think I stayed in initial positions a turn too long, but on that turn everything worked and that was a huge turn. It was enough to overcome the fact that my 45L gun kept rate no more than twice all game and bounced every shell off the French tanks. I really like this scenario, want a crack at the French.

Smuggled across the soviet border? Ribbentropp-Molotov pact? You're a very resourceful man

 

[Spencer Armstrong]

Smuggled across the soviet border? Ribbentropp-Molotov pact? You're a very resourceful man

LOL. Yeah. 37L doorknocker of course. I knew today's coffee was insufficient to the task.

 

[Jacometti]

Recent completions:

Won FrF99 Boy Soliders vs Andy Beaton. This ended last night. Nothing worked for me the first couple turns. Gun crew boxcar'd first MC after missing a few shots, everybody who moved broke, every shot missed...and then it all flipped in turn 3 and Andy's 7 squads were...where are they? Final blows came in early turn 4 when he rolled a couple 3's and both were followed by 1 sniper roll, absolutely handing me the second victory building. I will never like the sniper rule, even when it helps me. Board 6 remains weird. Scenario is interesting. I don't think I'd want the Russians.

Boy Soldiers is pretty much unwinnable as the Russians.....

 

[Spencer Armstrong]

Boy Soldiers is pretty much unwinnable as the Russians.....

I was feeling sortof that way but 16-10 on ROAR (didn't look till we'd played it) seems like some have managed it. I wonder if too many German players have failed PMCs in the face of losing conscripts. But, honestly, with no disruption and +2 broken ML, they're the hardest conscripts ever. They actually bounce back. You start with a lot of them and they're not useless after the first break like conscripts so often are.

 

[Houlie]

Played FT271 The Lock of Colmar with local Twin Cities ASL regular and friend Curtis Brooks on VASL. This is a nifty tourney-sized scenario featuring one of the KWASL boards as the high ground bordering the board 71 town. Free French bolstered by 5 x Shermans with a platoon of Yanks hanging on in the depths of the village occupying a VC building against an assortment of Germans with about ten squads plus a Panther and StuG. VC is Allies must score >=4 VP with each multi-hex building worth a point and one rubble building on the “mountain top” worth 1 VP.

All five Shermans came "over the mountain" with the plan plan for a couple tanks to drop smoke on the German positions near the closest VC building to the entry area. One Sherman was quickly destroyed by a long range StuG shot, but it then preceded to malf its MA on its next shot and remained so for the remainder of the game. A couple other Shermans with riders focused on capturing the rubble hex to secure the 1VP there (and did a turn or two later). The Free French got on board with no real damage and were battling for the first VC building which took until nearly the end of the game to fully capture thanks to stumbling into a 247 in the advance phase. In the final turn, I had three of the required four VC buildings in hand.

In the last turn, one final CC needed to eliminate one wounded 8-0 to wrest control of the building. I hustled every available unit I had to max out the odds (12-1) and negate any withdrawal possibility. The Allies were able to accomplish that for the victory.

An extremely tight end game that had me very nervous with 1.5 turns to go. A bad CC DR, whiff shots, sniper, etc., could have easily provided a different outcome. Curtis played a very good game, but the Allies were up to the task. The on-board, at start American force played very conservative and succeeded in pinning down precious German squads in the village center. The Panther was kept occupied by the Shermans and a couple pesky ‘zook-toting HS that perished, albeit heroically. We both really liked the scenario and it provided some interesting choices and a tight endgame.

 

[Michael R]

Played J32 PANZER GRAVEYARD as the Germans against Bruno. Conceded after three turns. I had taken too many casualties to increase 13 buildings taken to 20.

 

[Paul John]

Nate Stapf and I played FtF Death from Above, which we both picked first at Nor'Easter and couldn't believe our opponents rejected it!
Loads of fun, with planes trying to take off and cavalry and horse-drawn guns. It's a bit tough on the attacking Russians for sure with a 6-3 ROAR last look and my Axis forces pulled it off as well. Nate missed taking out two planes on the runways by one. He won the center, but was too weakened to pull off a flank and with 3 planes in the air, it looked like a long shot to get the two on the ground, so he let it go.

This is a fun one nonetheless. A number of ways for the Russians to make it work, but they may need the balance.