Designing a monster scenario.

Honza

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If you were given the task of designing a monster scenario then what battle would you choose? What type of terrain and OOB would it have?

My preference is to do one based on the Operation Spring Awakening. I'd choose a HASL map (possibly the Riley's Road map) and have an OOB which features many German heavy tanks on the assault plus infantry in HT. The Russian would be a semi dug in defence with Guns and a counter attacking force of AFV. Mud or 'light Mud' (SSR) would be in effect plus it may be snowing.
 

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Mtsensk 6th Oct 1941 would be my choice. 3rd, 4th Panzer Div and Grossdeutschland running into ... ahem ... some difficulties on the road to Moscow. Between Dmitry Lelyushenko's 1st Guards Special Rifle Corps and Mikhail Katukov's 4th Tank Brigade (honoured as 1st Guards Tank Brigade due to it's performance in this battle) they got a bloody nose. Though the Germans renewed their advance afterwards, they had such a shock that one result was the establishment of a special commission to examine the causes. It gave the German's a taste of the future.

As an aside Katukov is the Soviet commander that I judge to be the best of WW2. He eventually commanded the 1st Guards Tank Army (a corps sized unit) from Jan '43 until the end of the war.

4th Tank/1st Guards Tank Brigade might need to have Russian Vehicle note M disregarded as post Mtsensk it drove it's vehicles to another somewhat distant part of the Moscow front without the usual spate of breakdowns. Definitely no Russian Early War Doctrine for these boys either!
 

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I envision a monster scenario as a geoboard configuration (6+ sounds right) and feel HASL are their own beast (but I see their parallel to a monster scenario). My personal interest is East Front and I like the challenge of trying to fight with crap forces (not super hero stuff) so maybe something from the first 3-6 months of Barbarossa or the AGS area with the Axis Minors trying to attack.
 

chris_olden

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If you were given the task of designing a monster scenario then what battle would you choose? What type of terrain and OOB would it have?
Hmmmm...
I’ll get back to you after the caffeine has taken effect.
 

M.Koch

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Most of the scenarios out there WOULD be monsters, they´re only downsized to make them playable ASL wise...
On topic, i would do something on the Ostfront wit geo boards.
 

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Even though Zoltan will vehemently disagree :)- I do not generally set out to design a monster scenario. I design to a battle I wish to design, and the size is fit by the battle I want to portray in ASL, not the other way round.

so some are only a single 1/2 board - others are quite large. and still others fall somewhere in between.

KRL, jon H
 

Honza

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Jon have you had any of your scenarios published?
 

Honza

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Me non at all. The only thing I have designed is the Iwo CG which is still ongoing.
 

Michael Dorosh

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Mtsensk 6th Oct 1941 would be my choice. 3rd, 4th Panzer Div and Grossdeutschland running into ... ahem ... some difficulties on the road to Moscow. Between Dmitry Lelyushenko's 1st Guards Special Rifle Corps and Mikhail Katukov's 4th Tank Brigade (honoured as 1st Guards Tank Brigade due to it's performance in this battle) they got a bloody nose. Though the Germans renewed their advance afterwards, they had such a shock that one result was the establishment of a special commission to examine the causes. It gave the German's a taste of the future.

As an aside Katukov is the Soviet commander that I judge to be the best of WW2. He eventually commanded the 1st Guards Tank Army (a corps sized unit) from Jan '43 until the end of the war.

4th Tank/1st Guards Tank Brigade might need to have Russian Vehicle note M disregarded as post Mtsensk it drove it's vehicles to another somewhat distant part of the Moscow front without the usual spate of breakdowns. Definitely no Russian Early War Doctrine for these boys either!
TCS has the definitive treatment of this (GD '41). Monsters are fine, but three divisions facing off against a corps of Russians would be unplayable unless you're thinking of a specific part of this action.
 

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TCS has the definitive treatment of this (GD '41). Monsters are fine, but three divisions facing off against a corps of Russians would be unplayable unless you're thinking of a specific part of this action.
I have it. I'm more interested in the actions of 4th Tank Brigade rather than the whole of 1st Guards Special Rifle Corps.
 

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I have it. I'm more interested in the actions of 4th Tank Brigade rather than the whole of 1st Guards Special Rifle Corps.
with some decent and/or cogent research materials - one could easily break that down into a linked scen CG or a 6-10 scneario "scen pack" to portray the various key actions of the battle area during the operation. Seems like a "do-able" goal if one is so inclined :). Heck , sounds interesting just exploring it as an option, if nothing else, to learn more of the 4th Tank Brigade in action itself.

:D
 

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with some decent and/or cogent research materials - one could easily break that down into a linked scen CG or a 6-10 scneario "scen pack" to portray the various key actions of the battle area during the operation. Seems like a "do-able" goal if one is so inclined :). Heck , sounds interesting just exploring it as an option, if nothing else, to learn more of the 4th Tank Brigade in action itself.

:D
I have something on back burner like this. I have a draft HASL map of a hill with a few scenarios with a bunch of geoboard scenarios as part of the larger battle. I saw Board 77 and might drop the HASL map as kinda similar. South of Kursk where Soviet armor corps was trying to grab some terrain while Gmen “distracted” up north.
 

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with some decent and/or cogent research materials - one could easily break that down into a linked scen CG or a 6-10 scneario "scen pack" to portray the various key actions of the battle area during the operation. Seems like a "do-able" goal if one is so inclined :). Heck , sounds interesting just exploring it as an option, if nothing else, to learn more of the 4th Tank Brigade in action itself.

:D
I guess a single Monster Scenario might not be the best choice, so sorry to the OP for that. As the 4th TB was handled quite adroitly by Katukov, using terrain and judicious use of assets to inflict casualties, in what were in effect a series of delaying actions and short counterstrokes, a linked series of 2-4 scenarios. something like the recent Journal Nuremberg or LFT's Lunéville CG is looking more like the way to go.

There has been at least 1 scenario dealing with Mtsensk, but it was fairly thin gruel
A few years ago I read a decent outline of 4th TB's actions which described actions quite unlike earlier Soviet Barbarossa patterns. Now if I can remember where I read that ... old age :mad:.

Of course if you want a big Barbarossa single scenario then any one of the Dubno-Brody clashes or one of the actions in the Alytus (Lithuania) area should provide some massive clashes.
 

Michael Dorosh

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Mtsensk would be perfect for a meta-campaign. These were common in the Combat Mission community but I've only seen fleeting references to ASL guys doing it. Basically you have an operational layer where formations are maneuvered around, and the tactical engagements it generates are played out using the smaller squad-based game. Requires huge investment of time so getting people together is tricky - with VASL, would be very doable.

The Mtsensk situation is a very interesting one. A map maker and I set out to recreate it in Combat Mission, when a third party software designer was proposing an operational-level interface. I have a wartime Soviet terrain map which covers the GD '41 map area - if you are interested in a copy and don't already have it, let me know and I can send it to you. The map guy - someone in Finland - took the time to recreate the entire area in CM, with separate 2km x 2km 3D terrain maps. I can send you those also if you want to poke around. You can still find CM:BB, which is required to view them, for fairly cheap.
 
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