BraveDave
Member
J53 – Setting the Stage
At the time of playing this scenario against Rich Domovic on 2/6/06, ROAR had it 26 to 25 German. Rich anticipated a dice fest as the only realistic way of the German winning this scenario was to occupy the three multi-hex victory buildings at 44BB8, 44BB10 and 44S7. Since the German has only five turns, I kind of agreed with him. He had 12 concealment counters setup in the 44J9 and 33I9 woods areas. I didn’t think he would leave that many units away from the victory buildings. Therefore, I decided to try and run 45CVP off the edge of the board by sending all my troops through these areas. I was wrong. Besides me, the only dummies in the area were the three in the 33I9 woods. Luckily, I was able to break both squads and leader in the area without even so much as breaking a unit myself. By the end of turn 2 when he uncovered two more squads in building 44S7 and another in 33R6 and another in 44BB8, I figured he had 2 or 3 more in 44BB8, since it was the closest to the German entry area and would be the most heavily defended. This changed my strategy from exiting to capturing the buildings at 44S7, 33R6 and 33O8. As I figured, 44BB8 was heavily fortified and would have cost me dearly in time and men to capture with a frontal attack. Since I had bypassed 44S7 before changing my strategy, I could attack it from the rear with little concern for fortifications that would normally be setup in front of the building. The other two buildings were defended by only one squad in 33R6.
As a strategy, I think going for the exits is good. It forces the Russian player to expose his HIP units and move them to me. Rich conceded after turn 3, so I had some time to get the VP off if I had wanted to go that route. Had he delayed me any longer at the woods area, I might not have had that choice. His DRs were not that good, but I don’t think it would have made a difference given the mass of troops and tanks I concentrated on him at the woods. Once this delaying group had been destroyed, that mass could now be concentrated on the next objective.
Rich chose the 50cal HMG instead of the 80mm OBA and put it in building 44BB8. A good choice I thought, but the los from that building is very restricted to the other side of the boards. I was able to avoid it most of the time and it did limited damage. This would probably have been the case for the OBA, but with its blast area, it might have been more effective. He needed to bunch me up in the woods so that my units would become more exposed to his fire from the HMG.
Rich’s comments:
An interesting scenario, Dave’s attack against my setup had a high probability of success. My hope was that my left flank would delay until his turn three and then my four KV tanks would prevent him taking the back buildings (along with a hip second floor squad and reinforcements streaming back from my heavily fortified right flank). Mobility for the Russians doesn’t exist as each important area is separated by open ground/grain hexes and easy prey for marauding German tanks.
Unfortunately for me, my left flank (82mm MTR/228, 458/Mtr, 458/ATR and 7-0/DC) in a network of four trenches was easily overrun by my defensive turn two. The small Mtr malf’d after one rate, the 82mm missed a stack in DFF, then missed a stack in Prep, missed the intensive fire Prep shot and then the crew broke, falling to surrounding tanks. The Atr was overrun by a Stug, survived, and then missed two Atr same-hex shots. Finally the 7-0/DC missed placing the DC on the Stug and for all intents and purposes the fat lady was singing.
Dave’s comments detail what came next, I resigned on turn three with both the back buildings and the central complex sure to fall in game turn four.
I guessed that the Russian right would be the point of attack and put five (of ten) squads, a 9-2/HMG/228 plus my 45LL gun, plus 5 wires, a 8 AP mine and a 1 AT mine (in the VC building hexes).
Overkill, next time I would keep the fortifications, defend the wire/buildings with four 458 squads/DC and shift the 9-2/HMG/228 to the center building (where even if he smokes it, the 9-2 led stack shoots +1 shots at moving infantry). I would also move the 8-1/458/MMG to the back buildings. I would discard the 82mm and take the extra 45LL, which would defend the back buildings, the other 45LL in one of the central woods hexes, guarding the “backdoor” of my right wire/VC building complex. The HIP squad would stay in the back building along with his new 8-1/MMG/458 friends. The other three 458’s/Atr/Atr/Lmg HIP in the central buildings. The trenches disappear replaced by mines around the central and back buildings. Dummies spread around the left flank.
I still would worry that a “student body right (Russian left)” would be hard to stop.
At the time of playing this scenario against Rich Domovic on 2/6/06, ROAR had it 26 to 25 German. Rich anticipated a dice fest as the only realistic way of the German winning this scenario was to occupy the three multi-hex victory buildings at 44BB8, 44BB10 and 44S7. Since the German has only five turns, I kind of agreed with him. He had 12 concealment counters setup in the 44J9 and 33I9 woods areas. I didn’t think he would leave that many units away from the victory buildings. Therefore, I decided to try and run 45CVP off the edge of the board by sending all my troops through these areas. I was wrong. Besides me, the only dummies in the area were the three in the 33I9 woods. Luckily, I was able to break both squads and leader in the area without even so much as breaking a unit myself. By the end of turn 2 when he uncovered two more squads in building 44S7 and another in 33R6 and another in 44BB8, I figured he had 2 or 3 more in 44BB8, since it was the closest to the German entry area and would be the most heavily defended. This changed my strategy from exiting to capturing the buildings at 44S7, 33R6 and 33O8. As I figured, 44BB8 was heavily fortified and would have cost me dearly in time and men to capture with a frontal attack. Since I had bypassed 44S7 before changing my strategy, I could attack it from the rear with little concern for fortifications that would normally be setup in front of the building. The other two buildings were defended by only one squad in 33R6.
As a strategy, I think going for the exits is good. It forces the Russian player to expose his HIP units and move them to me. Rich conceded after turn 3, so I had some time to get the VP off if I had wanted to go that route. Had he delayed me any longer at the woods area, I might not have had that choice. His DRs were not that good, but I don’t think it would have made a difference given the mass of troops and tanks I concentrated on him at the woods. Once this delaying group had been destroyed, that mass could now be concentrated on the next objective.
Rich chose the 50cal HMG instead of the 80mm OBA and put it in building 44BB8. A good choice I thought, but the los from that building is very restricted to the other side of the boards. I was able to avoid it most of the time and it did limited damage. This would probably have been the case for the OBA, but with its blast area, it might have been more effective. He needed to bunch me up in the woods so that my units would become more exposed to his fire from the HMG.
Rich’s comments:
An interesting scenario, Dave’s attack against my setup had a high probability of success. My hope was that my left flank would delay until his turn three and then my four KV tanks would prevent him taking the back buildings (along with a hip second floor squad and reinforcements streaming back from my heavily fortified right flank). Mobility for the Russians doesn’t exist as each important area is separated by open ground/grain hexes and easy prey for marauding German tanks.
Unfortunately for me, my left flank (82mm MTR/228, 458/Mtr, 458/ATR and 7-0/DC) in a network of four trenches was easily overrun by my defensive turn two. The small Mtr malf’d after one rate, the 82mm missed a stack in DFF, then missed a stack in Prep, missed the intensive fire Prep shot and then the crew broke, falling to surrounding tanks. The Atr was overrun by a Stug, survived, and then missed two Atr same-hex shots. Finally the 7-0/DC missed placing the DC on the Stug and for all intents and purposes the fat lady was singing.
Dave’s comments detail what came next, I resigned on turn three with both the back buildings and the central complex sure to fall in game turn four.
I guessed that the Russian right would be the point of attack and put five (of ten) squads, a 9-2/HMG/228 plus my 45LL gun, plus 5 wires, a 8 AP mine and a 1 AT mine (in the VC building hexes).
Overkill, next time I would keep the fortifications, defend the wire/buildings with four 458 squads/DC and shift the 9-2/HMG/228 to the center building (where even if he smokes it, the 9-2 led stack shoots +1 shots at moving infantry). I would also move the 8-1/458/MMG to the back buildings. I would discard the 82mm and take the extra 45LL, which would defend the back buildings, the other 45LL in one of the central woods hexes, guarding the “backdoor” of my right wire/VC building complex. The HIP squad would stay in the back building along with his new 8-1/MMG/458 friends. The other three 458’s/Atr/Atr/Lmg HIP in the central buildings. The trenches disappear replaced by mines around the central and back buildings. Dummies spread around the left flank.
I still would worry that a “student body right (Russian left)” would be hard to stop.