V9 JIG GREEN EAST: STORMING LE HAMEL

Michael R

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This is a large D-Day scenario that exists in two versions, according to the ASL Scenario Archive. One version comes with the War-Oboe Publications Monster Pack #1.1; the other version appears in an issue of VFFT as scenario V9. V9 is the version that Magnus and I played. I cannot tell if the versions are identical, however, V9 mentions "Taken from the War-Oboe Publications Monster Scenarios Pack".

The scenario depicts some of the British landing on Gold Beach; three boards’ worth (boards 22, 12, 40). About the only thing missing from this scenario is napalm and caves. The scenario has air support, wire, tetrahedrons, pillboxes, A-T ditches, heavy surf, light dust, OBA, NOBA, Sherman Crab, Churchill AVRE, Churchill Bridgelayer, Churchill Crocodile, mines and a seawall.

The victory conditions require the British to clear the Germans out of multi-story building 22G5 and any other eight multi-hex buildings. The VC actually state "multi-hex locations, but that makes no sense).

My experience with seaborne assaults has always been the defender not having enough fortifications to cover the beach well. Not so in this scenario. The Germans have 30 wired tetrahedrons, 12 pillboxes, 25 wire counters, 10 trenches and 12 A-T ditches (which are almost redundant considering no vehicle can cross the seawall until it is breached). The defending troops are of mixed quality: 12 first line, 6 second line and two conscript squads. They are well supplied with SW: 6 LMG, 2 MMG and 2 HMG. The heavy weapons are 2 81mm mortars and 3 75mm PaK 40 A-T guns. The A-T guns are frightening for the British because they can sink a LCVP in one hit. Wait—there is more. A four factor minefield exists in every beach hex adjacent to a hinterland hex. All the outer hex sides of buildings are fortified at all levels.

The map allows the German to set up some assets to enfilade the entire length of the beach. The setup instructions require at least 50% of all MMC and fortifications be within eight hexes of a beach hex. As Rommel said, you need everything near the beach anyway, so no issue there. The scenario forces the German to have no more than three tetrahedrons adjacent to each other, which gives some openings for the British LC.

After seeing all that, one would think the British would have at least thirty squads with which to attack; nope. They have only 20 elite squads (same number as the Germans) with decent leadership, 8 LMG, 2 MMG, 2 HMG, 4 DC, 4 FT, 6 PIAT and two light mortars. They load that stuff on nine LCVP that irritatingly have five MP. Five MP is irritating because 25% of five, FRU, is two MP. Every unload would cost two MP if the scenario didn’t have heavy surf. Since it does, the unload cost is 50%, FRU to three MP. Therefore, beached or fast aground, the LCVP will unload something only once per MPh.

The AFV part of the British OB is the most fun for the British player. The scenario gives two LCT(4) that the British player can fill with a personalized selection taken from the following: Sherman DD, Sherman Crab, Crocodile, AVRE, and Churchill Bridgelayer. The scenario card used VASL images; the PP was missing for the LCT(4), so I looked at the actual VASL counter to find the value of 330 PP. As usual, it is very important to read the LC notes in chapter H. The value of 330 applies to Americans all the time, and to British until July 1943. Starting in July 1943, the PP value increases to 540 PP for only the British. The difference is worth a Crocodile and a Sherman. Stuff that I did not remember before playing this scenario: the PP of a vehicle is based on its weight. Therefore, the Shermans use 60 PP and the various Churchills use 120PP.

It was my turn to attack, so I had the pleasure of filling out the LCT(4) to the maximum. In the first one, I had from front to back a Crocodile, an AVRE, two Crabs, an AVRE and another Crab. In the second one, I had an AVRE, a Crocodile, three Crabs and a Bridgelayer. I wanted smoke makers. The AVRE can do many things, but an important one in this scenario is that it can breach a seawall with its MA. The Crocodile, of course, has its powerful FT. I could see no useful difference between the Sherman DD and the Sherman Crab, so I took all Crabs because of the numerous mined hexes.

The LCT(4) have 5 MP, are double large targets, and they can sustain up to ten damage points. The scenario card shows incorrect information for this LC. Again, the heavy surf means that only one vehicle will unload during each MPh. As well, the unloaded vehicle will have used half+1 of its MP (+1 for starting). The Churchill type AFV will not go far from the LC during the turn that they unload.

One would like, of course, to land these wonderful vehicles ahead of the infantry. The scenario, however, forces the British to bring all the LC in on the same turn and then make for the beach post-haste. I inquired to the forums if maybe an LC could spend all MP to move one hex. The answer I received was "no". All I could do was sort of stagger their setup so they did not all land at the exact same time.

Here is an image of Magnus’ German setup. That is the most heavily fortified and defended beach on which I have ever tried to land troops.

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Here is an image of my LC load-outs to show the complete assets the British have to accomplish their mission.

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I recommend that one plays as if the British vehicles are waterproofed. Normally, this is specified in an SSR. By default, since no SSR mentions waterproofing, the vehicles are not waterproofed. With the heavy surf, however, the LCT(4) could be sucked off of the beach with its ramp down, thus immobilizing it in a shallow ocean hex. A non-waterproofed vehicle that enters a shallow ocean hex with heavy surf, even while unloading, is immobilized (G13.441). This could be catastrophic for the British; it actually occurred with one of my LCT(4) during our playing.

Here is a recap of our playing. During the run-in the Pak 40 guns had no trouble hitting landing craft and inflicting damage points. One LCVP was immobilized in the first turn. My air support was a total whiff when it first came on; all three planes missed their sighting TC while targeting the static defences. On the next turn, I had more success using the planes to target German units that tried to move quickly towards the beach. A German Pak 40 X’d itself out during an IF on turn two. My NOBA spent much of the game trying to silence the Pak 40 situated on the east end of the beach in a trench. At least it succeeded in hindering shots from the 75.

It may have been a mistake to do so, but I sent most of the LC towards board 22 because of its key victory building and because of the large number of multi-hex buildings on that board. On turn three, the LCT(4) reach the beach, although only one of them can unload a vehicle. Said vehicle, an AVRE, bogs when it touches the beach. Only one LCVP takes the chance of moving into a tetrahedron hex; it is not harmed. The rest manage to use the openings. Several LCVP land and unload some infantry, most of them onto wire. German fire (including a mortar rate tear with a spotter no less) eliminates about half of the five squads that landed in several locations. The LCT(4) in the centre with its ramp down is sucked back into the shallow ocean hex to make it permanently fast aground. This also happens to an LCVP. The other LCT(4) at the west end of the beach is destroyed (I have no notes about how; my guess is the heavy surf caused it to broach), but it is beached and the vehicles survive to unload on a later turn.

Here is the image at the end of British turn three.

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During German turn three, a Pak 40 sinks an LCVP in deep ocean. A second Pak 40 destroys the bogged AVRE. A British plane point attack versus the Pak 40 in the trench fails to bother the crew with two 12 FP attacks and a missed bomb drop. On the plus side for the British, the LCT(4) 20L weapons, combined with a plane attack take out the German 9-2 and a HMG team permanently. Two LCVP that beached on turn three, but could not unload, are taken off of the beach by the heavy surf in British turn four, thus delaying their infantry from landing. Infantry that landed in the previous turn assault move under the wire and then have the privilege of advancing into the 4FP minefield adjacent to the hinterland. A crocodile unloads from the LCT(4) in the middle and one unloads from the LCT(4) in the west as well. The west crocodile uses its FT to break a German unit adjacent to the beach. In German turn four, a HMG with an 8-1 leader in a pillbox at the east end of the beach has a rate tear to remove a lot of British infantry. Another immobile LCVP is sunk by a Pak 40. Even though it was immobile, the heavy surf was pushing it closer to the beach during every British advance phase.

During British turn five several units with FT land on the beach accompanied by leaders, including the 10-3. They take damage or die causing two wounded leaders to become FT operators. The center Crocodile bogs. The west Crocodile has no luck against adjacent Germans in pillboxes. Two nearby tanks bog. A British HS with a DC manages to get off the beach at the west end. It tries unsuccessfully to close combat the crew of a Pak 40.

During German turn five, more British infantry is eliminated. The British FT do a bit of damage to German units. An AVRE at the west end uses it MA to create a breach in the seawall. The western Pak 40 malfunctions. During British turn six the middle bogged Crocodile uses its MA to place smoke (at last). I remember thinking about smoke mortars during movement phases, but I did not have success. Two more tanks unload. More infantry unloads; more infantry dies. After the AFPh, I count up how much infantry remains on both sides. Counting both broken and good order German units gives 11.5 squad equivalents. Just under half are in good order and most of them are in the required victory building. The British have only 7 squad equivalents, of which only 1.5 have gotten through the mines. The rest are in mines, on the beach or in landing craft (still). I concede.

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I enjoyed playing this scenario, even though I thought it was a lost cause. It was quite an adventure. Scenario V9 does not have standard balance provisions; it has instead ABS bids. Even if the Germans give up all three levels of ABS, it won’t hurt them much. They would lose one leader, their ELR would change from 3 to 2 and they would lose the OBA (80mm module available starting on turn four). In our playing, I conceded before the OBA ever put down an FFE. ROAR showed only two playings before I added this one. Surprisingly, they were both British victories. I cannot imagine how they happened.

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=FC=Gorgon

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Thanks for the AAR, Mike. Great as usual. :)

Question: "4FP minefield" I thought 6FP was the smallest allowed AP minefield?

MikeS
 

The Purist

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:unsure: Mike,... I don't recall the British beaches being this difficult. This was close to a massacre.

How do you view this particular scenario for representing the historical 'action' of the day?
 

pj norton

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We played the whole Gold Beach scenario at Officefest decades ago and I drew Jig Green East. It was quite a fight and the Brits didn't do too bad if I remember corrrectly, I don't recall which side won(it doesn't matter.) I had a lot of fun as did the other 7 sectors. It was an amazing sight(I have pictures.) Sorry you're guys had such a tough go of it.
 
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JoeArthur

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Magnus must have had a really, really big smile on his face when he set up the Germans.

All that stuff makes the beach look like a death trap..........
 

hayman

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this particular scenario for representing the historical 'action' of the day?
IIRC Le Hamel was held by the Germans for most of the day, it was the hardest nut to crack on the shoreline for the Commonwealth forces on D-Day.
 

Michael R

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How do you view this particular scenario for representing the historical 'action' of the day?
I do not remember the details of the historical landings, except, of course, that the British were successful.
 
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