AAR - Russe! Drown In The Wolga! - VotG2

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Walt and I have been playing Stalingrad scenarios. This time he decided to take me to the river.

https://youtu.be/oJZLZ6CM6NQ

Russe! Drown In The Wolga! has a small Russian force defending the piers, while waiting for reinforcements to arrive by boat. VC are German control of the piers. If the Russians lose control, no boat can land there. So there is a lot of pier pressure.

Walt had played this against Bob the week before. He wouldn’t tell me how the game went, but said that he would like to switch sides and take the Germans.

A million years ago, I had done a scenario based on this same action, which was published in OAF. The historical map was not available at the time, but both designs have a lot of similarities – LV, Russian INF gun with no crew, boats, Ammo Shortage that can be alleviated by the reinforcements, crossdressing cabaret singers.

The Germans have two MMGs and a HMG that have to set up at Level 2 in three different buildings. But after a couple turns, there is a +1 LV hindrance, and the last turn it becomes a +2 LV hindrance.

The initial Russian force is so weak – a couple conscripts and bunch of HSs are the bulk of the troops. The rock of my defense was a LMG/628 in stone rubble on the left. The center was a couple dummy stacks, the conscripts, the MMGs, and the Commissar. The right was all dummies. The INF gun was back by the pier.

Walt did a bunch of deploying followed by cautious movement. I did pop out one HS to break a HS of his, but the rest of my force stayed concealed. I debated about shooting the 628, as several units moved adjacent, but since they were in different hexes, I decided to hold my fire and hope to get Ambush in CC.

This did not work out well, as I did not get Ambush, and quickly died in CC, without taking out any Germans. Some rock. More like a cracked pebble.

R1, the lead conscript doesn’t like all the rifles pointed at him, and slinks back a hex. He can still be shot at, but by only one stack. So it’s a wise move.

But that one stack rolls low, and the conscripts break. Can things get any worse??? This is ASL – OF COURSE they can! I had slinked him into the hex with the HIP conscript. Who also breaks.

G2, the German 10-2, along with some HSs to act as sniper bait, moves into the location with the HMG. With my left flank pretty much gone, one of Walt’s HS scouts makes it to almost within sight of the river. My heroic dummies on the right do their job, as Walt is afraid to move into their hexes. He advances in, which eliminates a couple dummy stacks, and puts him in the middle of my few remaining defenders. The conscripts are back in action, thanks to my kinder, gentler Commissar, who decided not to shoot anybody today.

R2, I go after the intrepid scout HS with a 328. If I can Ambush and kill it, I can withdraw into a victory building that covers some open ground hexes. But things do not go according to plan, and we end up in Melee.

G3, and the fearsome 10-2/ HMG combo rolls a 10 in Prep.

It’s off to the races on my left, and Walt takes two warehouses overlooking the river. I had fired the INF gun at the charging squads, but missed. My poor conscripts break one German squad, but then end up in CC.

Now a curious thing happens. Instead of doing an impression of dead roaches, with their little legs sticking up in the air, they survive, and kill a German squad!

R3, and the first boat is due to arrive! LV also arrives.

Fearing the Awesome Might of the 10-2/ HMG, I use my last Smoke round from the INF gun to smoke his hex.

The first boat, which I believe was from the Circle Line, with stops in Manhattan, Staten Island, and Central Stalingrad, arrives. I had forgotten (but Walt remembered) that fire against boats is halved.

It soooo doesn’t matter. His 9-1 and one squad fire and roll snakes. Glug, glug, glug.

“I guess he shouldn’tve oughter
But he drowned her in the water
And then a flounder downed her
That’s why they never found her...”


Okay, so no reinforcements this turn. It’s okay. Really. We can handle it.

Those of you who have been following my AARs might have noticed that there seem to be a lot of critical twos and twelves. I can’t explain it. Like spontaneous combustion, Kardashian spin-offs, and dandruff, it just happens.

An ill-advised retro move by a HS with an MMG ends badly, as they break from a shot I thought was blocked.

In CC, my Heroic conscripts nail another German squad, plus a 7-0, at the cost of a HS.

G4, Walt Prep Fires his Smoked 10-2. He rolls a 10.

The conscripts finally go down in CC, but they have held up a chunk of Walt’s force for a couple turns, while taking out several units.

R4, the other boats enter. Walt, not realizing that his guyz will soon be prisoners trudging eastward, ruins his chances of free cigarettes by rolling another snakes and obliterating another boat.

“But I was told that this was just a three hour tour!!!”

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Someone should write a book on boat insurance rates during the Stalingrad battle. They could call it “Stalin’s Actuaries” or “Red Flo – A Progressive Look At Soviet Insurance.”

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The afflicted boat wuz the first to enter, the one most to the left, and the most expendable. I lost a 458. The other boats all had leaders and kewl support weapons and cases of 76 mm ammo and vodka.

Walt fires his 10-2/HMG Kill Stack at a boat, and rolls a 12. Major ‘Bug-Eyes’ Brummann has rolled 10, 10, 10 and 12 on his last four rolls.

The rest of the boats are unloaded safely. The 628s with their DCs unload to the right to support the INF gun.

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Besides bringing much-needed ammo and vodka, the reinforcements bring a 10-3. Walt gets a shot at him on the docks. He passes, as 10-3s are wont to do. The 458 with him goes Fanatic. So, in the event of a NMC, this squad will now have a morale of 12. “Dmitri, drink this. It will make you bulletproof!!!”

The snipers finally wake up. Walt’s kills the 8+1 Commissar. Mine kills his 9-1, which makes all of his grief-stricken men go to pieces. They are effectively out of the game after that, with the sniper chasing them.

Thing go badly for me on the right. A couple squads are broken, and are eliminated for failure to rout. The HS with the INF gun goes down in CC.

The 10-3 actually goes on Rally duty – I don’t have many troops left. Walt initiates a CC on the left with his 8-0, but nothing happens.

At this point, Walt has control of 4 of the 5 buildings (he needs 4 to win), and is in CC for the last one. But neither one of us has many troops left.

End game, things pick up for me. I self rally a squad under DM. I decide to charge an empty warehouse with the Fanatic 458, which goes amazingly well, and I reoccupy it. +2 LV hindrance helps. I throw more guyz into the CC with the German 8-0 stack, but then roll a 12, which allows them to withdraw and keep possession of the building. But it doesn’t matter. I have chased/ killed everyone out the two right warehouses, so the game ends with the Soviets controlling three warehouses/ piers, as well as the vital vodka supply.

Fun, tight game. Gut feeling is that it is pro-German, as the initial Russian force is so weak. A timely sniper and a German 10-2 that couldn’t shoot straight helped the cause.

After the game, Walt opened up about his playing with Bob. The German sniper (SAN 3) went on a tear, and killed the 10-3 and another leader before they could get off the boats. This wrecked the Russian chances.

About 60/40 pro German on ROAR.

Read the rules carefully for this one. The warehouses look like they have a playable 1st level, but they don’t.

Pic from end is below.

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Next post – Which is better for your children - home schooling, or sending them to a strict boarding school in Zurich???
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=FC=Gorgon

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My brain hurt after the "pier pressure" pun but the "Red-flo: A Progressive Look at Soviet Insurance" made up for it. Great AAR as usual. :)
 
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