SP204 Yankee Pride - AAR

[von Marwitz]

SP204 Yankee Pride - AAR




This scenario looked quite interesting with regard to the terrain, the tactical situation, and the units at hand on both sides. As per December 2020, ROAR had it with 42 American wins against 44 German wins at an Excitement Rating of 6.64, which is pretty good. I seem to recall that I might have played this before - or was at least planning to do so, however, it was not in my lists nor did I find any files documenting that. So I decided to give it a(nother ?) shot. I had the attacking Americans in this game.


Situation at Start of US Turn 1 - Game Start:



The Americans need to fulfil two of three VC: Control 60AA3. Clear the VC area in the board 60 town from GO German MMC. No GO, non-encircled German MMC(s) in Buildings on board 41.

My opponent chose an up-front defence on the board 41 and guarded the Crestline of the Hill on board 60 from Buildings. The VC-Hex of 60AA3 was left unoccupied, probably in the assumption that there would be enough time to send back someone there later and probably with the intention of having the German Panthers enter in that area in German Turn 3.

It is extremely challenging to root out Morale 8 Concealed Troops from Stone Buildings to begin with, but the Ground Snow made even moving uphill into such a Building very difficult: 4MF + 1MF extra due to 'Ground Snow'. This meant, no one would get up there without being CX unless accompanied by a Leader. By setup-restrictions, the tanks had to be placed in the hexes as can be seen, though one had the choice which tank to place into which hex and how to align them. They have good SMOKE making capabilities, inclusive of a sM8. By SSR, the Americans get 2x BAZ45 with WP6, which is nice to have - firing WP with a BAZ means that you don't have to care about TEM, which basically means, if you have WP6, then you hit with it (which has to be done at the start of the PFPh, of course, before non-SMOKE shots).

As always in 'Schwerpunkt' scenarios, the attacker has no time to lose. Once the Panthers are onboard, then it is no fun to be a Sherman. Only one of the Shermans has APCR:5 for its 76L Gun, while the others have the normal 75 Guns or a 105 Gun. For that reason, my plan for at least two tanks was to reach 60BB2 and 60Z3 in American Turn 3 before the 'big cats' made their appearance. One Sherman would keep overwatch in 41R8 to keep the Germans on that flank honest and to discourage counter-attacks. My planned tank-movement for US Turn 1 is shown in the above picture with green arrows. To get the tanks forward free from German interference, I had to blast hexes 41X6 and 41X7. Furthermore, SMOKING 41Y5 would be very important to prepare the planned armored and Infantry movement.

The plan for the German Prep Fire is shown with red arrows. As noted, the M4(105) would smoke Y5, having one chance with S7 and another one with WP9. I opted for setting up bis US stacks in the open to alleviate the German Concealment in 41X6 and 41X7 by Point Blank bonus. This would give me a Leader-directed 26FP@+2 attack and a 24FP@+2 attack not counting the possibility of ROF with a decent chance to break both German defending units with an average roll of 7 yielding 3MC's. If things would go awry against the odds, the two BAZ45s would each have a 58% chance to hit the units in there for another 8FP@+0 attack, provided they had at least been unconcealed by the initial 'big attacks'. Then, the tanks could fire and try for sM's if against more odds all this would be screwed up. With these thoughts I justified the risky US up-front counter-setup. On the northern flank, two US squads would try a leader-directed 12FP@+2 vs. one of the unconcealed German squads in a building on the hill crest.

The intended movement for the German Infantry is shown with blue arrows. Hopefully protected by SMOKE in Y5, the 666 in W3 would CX and Dash through X3 up into Y4 for 6MF, which would later go into CC with the German unit in Y5. Then the 7-0 with 346 would CX to move Z4, bypassing uphill in Z3, messing up Rout paths for the hopefully broken Germans in X7. Unimpeded by the hopefully broken Germans in X7, the 666 in 41W9 would CX to Dash through X8 uphill into Y8, cutting off routpaths from there for the Germans in X6 and X7. In case that 666 would be shot up and forced away, teh 346 from 41W9 would act as a backup to prevent routs from X7 by moving to 41Y9. Finally, the 666 in 41W5 would Assault Move into X5, protected by SMOKE in Y5, again tearing up Rout paths of the German forward defence. Likely, the Germans in X7 and X6 would die for failure to rout or be forced to surrender. The 666 from Y4 would advance into CC with Y5, the 666 form Y8 into CC with Y7, maybe getting ambushed but otherwise probably at beneficial odds. Meanwhile the two killer-stacks would advance up into X6 and X7 to start ADJACENT to any surviving Germans or in a position to blast them, with the added benefit of being able to cut part of the route from the board 60 hill towards the VC building in 60AA3. One Leader with a 666+HMG would advance back to V5 and later move up into the upper level (techically Level 2), from which they would be able to fire into any direction with good fields of fire.

I was quite content with this plan, which was now to be enacted...


Situation at End of American Turn 1:



The US Prep Fire began EXACTLY as planned: The M4(105) placed a fat +3 SMOKE into 41Y5. Har, har!!

Unfortunately, the elaborate plan from now on unravelled EXACTLY as NOT planned. [sigh!] Well, at least it worked for the duration of a single DR... Both the 26FP and the 24FP Fire Groups rolled 6,5, which meant no ROF but still caused 1MCs on the German Defenders, which both shrugged off. All right, I gots the BAZ45's, no? I X'ed the first one with a 6,5 and the other one missed by one.

Gulp! All of a sudden, my exposed American big stacks were looking at the prospect of a 16FP@+0 return fire attack each. Shouts by the US sergeants down in the street were getting lively by the instant, while the eyes of the six US squads with 1xHMG, 2xMMG, and (one remaining) BAZ45 widened in alarm...

Can't get worse than that. You think... In a desperate attempt to draw away some of the fire of the German 548+LMG in X7, I CX'ed and Dashed my 666 from W9 towards Y9. The 548 did fire its LMG, broke the 666 - and kept ROF. Then I realized that the now broken 666 had LOS to the Germans high back in 60T4 and would have to surrender!

The 8-1 US sergeants down in the street were frantically calling for 'the cavalry', meeting the glum faces of the US tankers not at all happy to have to do something in the face of Prussian Good Order Germans with their PFs, ATMMs, and seemingly all evil contraptions in creation. But what did it help? The Sherman in 41T4 moved onto the Bridge, stopped, attempted its sM8 onto X7 - miss. Oh, the horrors! It revved back and out of the way up hill to 41T2 braving an extra icy (by SSR) Bog Check to overlook from there any shambles that might be left. The next Sherman from T5 ground onto the Bridge, stopped, attempted its sM8 - and hit X6. Thank gawd... It then tried MG's for a sneaky LOS to X7 - no no avail. The Sherman from 41S6 moved up to 41R8 passing a Bog Check to keep overwatch there. The 666 from 41W5 Assault Moved to X5 as planned, and the guys from W3 Dashed as a stack without need to CX to X4 as well.

My plan and my timetable had been ripped to shreds and the DFPh of the Germans was just beginning: X6 fired 16FP flat into the hapless throngs of G.I.s below, miraculously 'only' breaking two squads, one of which would have to drop the HMG, and the leader while one squad rolled Snakes on its MC to become Berserk - and unable to advance up into CC... The second stack was somewhat blunted by the successful sM Smoke, and I counted myself very lucky to have only one additional US squad broken.

At this point, I felt that I had lost the game. Now the Germans could fall back house by house with their path to the rear open. My tanks would not get to 60BB2 and 60Z3 first, but the Panthers instead. It would cost me time to rally all the brokies, which could conviently be re-DM'ed in 41V5, where I felt I had to rout them nevertheless because this would be the only spot my remaining GO 8-1 had a chance to rally all of them in the upcoming Rally Phase.

But as I don't like to end a game which has just started, I carried on. So I advanced (becoming CX) a 666 from W7 into X7, from X5 into X6 and (not CX) Y4 into Y5. My Americans in X7 and Y5 were ambushed but the Germans infiltrated away. In X6 a Melee ensued.

Damn! It had been such a good plan...


To be continued in a subsequent post.

von Marwitz

 

[Paul S NJ]

Interesting defender setup! I think I set up a couple half squads and maybe a squad/lmg around the FF2 complex and the rest back to defend board 60. Giving the US player point blank shots takes some guts. Look forward to your aar!
Paul

 

[von Marwitz]

Situation at End of German Turn 1:



Not too much happened in German Turn 1. The Germans fell back just a bit on board 41, shuffled his units around a bit on board 60 to generate Concealment and, of course, re-DM'ed my Americans in 41V7, which could now Rout to a more tranquil spot in V6. The Melee in X6 continued.


Situation at End of American Turn 2:



In my US Turn 2 I was still preoccupied with licking my wounds. My Infantry Assault Moved forward where it could and I pulled the tanks across the frozen stream. In the 41R6-R5 area, my troops traded shots with the Germans on the board 60 hill inconclusively, me being painfully aware that I was too weak to push forward there. But I was content to keep my opponent occupied who would now have had a fine opportunity to move some guys towards 60AA3, especially after the CMG of my tankin 41R6 had malfunctioned. I advanced into CC from Y5 to Z4, but once again my 666 was Ambushed and the Germans infiltrated away. My Berserkers had charged into 41X6, found no one there and went on to reinforce the Melee in X6, only to be killed off by the German 548 there, so the Melee went on...


Situation at the End of German Turn 2:



In German Turn 2 my American brokies in 41V5 finally recovered their spirits again, so in my upcoming Turn, I would have some more people at hand to move around. On Board 60, the Germans kept up the cat & mouse game of shuffling around to restore all Concealment that I might have managed to strip. Maybe a bit too confident, a German 8-1, 548+LMG combo moved from 41Z6 to 41Z7, were it was shot up by my Americans. However, the German confidence seemed after all not too illfounded, as only the Leader broke and routed out of LOS, while the 548+LMG rolled Snakes to become Fanatice and to generate a Hero with the net effect that my G.I.s would once more have a menacing defender in their path. The Melee in X6 went on and on...


Situation at the End of American Turn 3:



In my American Turn 3, basically the remainders of my force were up and running and I had to make it count. During Prep Fire, my 666+MMG in 41V7 managed to break the German squad in 60W2, which I was very happy about, because with that gatekeeper of of commission, I would be able to rush forward there. Well, provided if I somehow could neutralize the German Fanatics and the Hero. Prep Fire from the ADJACENT CX 667+MMG proved ineffective, so my anxiety grew - uprooting Fanatics from Stone Buildings is difficult business. I felt, what wasn't done by the fire of a 667+MMG would much less be done by that of a single 667 from X7.

So instead, during movement, the 667 from 41X7 attempted to lob an Infantry Smoke Grenade into Z7 - and they managed that feat! Now the way was as open as it would ever be. I moved infantry next to the German brokie in 60W2, CX'ed a 8-1 with 666+BAZ45 forward to 60Y2 all the way from 41V6, while the other infantry moved with the second 8-1 to pick up the HMG still lying in the street in W8.

I was acutely aware of the imminent arrival of the German Panthers, so I frantically attempted to get closer to the 60AA3 Victory Hex. The enforced delay of Turn 1 now showed its bad effects because I could not reach the (relative) safey of the walled enclosure near that building. Yet, I felt I had to get uphill on board 60. My M4A1(76)w had the slim prospect of APCR:5 which could be dangerous even for a Panther. And if a Panther moved uphill, he might get bogged, so that I might Deliberately Immobilize him. Furthermore I felt that I had to block off the path from the board 60 town to 60AA3, despite this putting me into dangerous waters with regard to the LATW capabilities of the Germans. To make things even worse, by M4A3(75)w did Bog when moving uphill on the icy road ending up overstacked with my other tank. Spendid! Whatever, the M4(105) followed into that direction and turned about to threaten the German Fanatics up in Z7.

To my relief, the Hero and the Fanatic 548+LMG did not fire at all of these units, determining that firing out of Infantry Smoke @+3 would not be good enough. Subsequently it did shoot up my ADJACENT 667+MMG

In the board 60 town, my opponent probably by mistake had left the crestline of the hill unguarded. I jumped at the opportunity and charged forward with the one squad and two HS I had there, the 7-0 Leader moving a bit forward to receive anyone who would limp back broken. This push had the nice side effect of forcing the broken German squad in W2 to surrender later.

From Y5 I sent forward a 'volunteer' 346 to bump-scout the still concealed and elusive 548+PSK in 41Z3, which it did but got pasted for the effort and broke.

My charge in the 60S2 area was followed up by an audacious advance - becoming CX - by everyone into the buildings on Level 1 of the hill. This provided some sort of protection against German infantry approaching my tanks from that direction and at least required some Germans to consider my units with regard to the victory area around 60U5. My 8-1 in W8 with the freshly recoverd HMG and HS just advanced up into X7, which gave the Leader a chance to rally the just shot up 667+MMG.

As I advanced into CC in 41Z3, the German squad was at long last not concealed anymore and did not manage yet another Ambush and Infiltration - I had him in Melee.

While I did manage to push forward quite significantly, the reached positions were mostly not very good and some outright precarious. Yet I had to make up for some lost time earlier. With quite some foreboding my dough-boys heard the noise of German tank engines approaching...


To be continued in a subsequent post...

von Marwitz

 

[von Marwitz]

Situation at End of German Turn 3:



During German Turn 3, my 8-1 succeeded in rallying the DM 667+MMG in X7, which made this location a powerful US firebase.

I can't remember exactly, if my opponent decided to stand tight in 41Z7 with his Fanatic 548+LMG or if he had moved back to 41AA7. In any case I did manage to break the squad which was the sole remaining backbone of the German defence there. In turn, the Germans broke a US HS in 60R2.

Now enter the Panthers... They came on in 60GG5. The first one moved up the hill in 60AA5 avoiding the extra SSR'ed +1 Bog Modifier for using a road uphill/downhill and braved the Bog Check trundling on to stop in 60Y4 right in the face of my two overstacked tanks, the crews of which were biting their lips in anxiety. First, my M4A1(76)w tried for APCR but found that they had left these at the Ammo Dump.

The Gunner Barnes had told the Radioman McKee to stow the rounds, but because some freshly minted 90-day wonder Lieutenant had ordered the latter to distribute some manuals at once, McKee was still busy when the order to move out arrived. This would not have been half as bad as they were supposed to be at the end of the column but since the dog of the company commander... Hm. I guess you aren't really interested in that, are you?

Well, no APCR. As no shot was fired and anything else would have been a ridiculous gamble, the tank opted for Motion Attempt instead and made it, though failing to pop the sM in the process. This was because McKee had put the smoke grenades into an empty box of K-rations, but Barnes took the box with that contained real K-rations, and... Ok, ok - I shut up.

The Panther fired an missed the now moving tank by one. Phew, too close for comfort. And much to the chagrin of the M4A3(75)w's crew in the hex which cursed the authors of the rulebook for including some fancy thing about the chance of hitting the other overstacked vehicles when missing the target by one. The menacing AP round missed the second tank by one as well. But it sat there as a big sitting duck bogged and with the Panthers AQ on it at PB range...

The second Panther moved uphill towards 60BB2, but - oh joy - it bogged in the attempt in CC4 where it couldn't affect anyone for the moment. This might, just might open up an opportunity for the G.I.s to somehow reach 60AA3 with Infantry next turn to grab Control of it. Aware of the danger, two German 238 HS moved closer on the reverse slope of Hill 513 to prevent that from happening.

Still, the German Infantry in the board 60 town made no attempt to move towards 60AA3.

For sure, Lady Luck was shining on the Americans this Turn...


Situation at the End of American Turn 4:



In my American Turn 4, my biggest problem was how to get some of my Infantry into 60AA3 without being blown to Kingdom Come. In a little sideshow, the German Leader on Hill 517 had Battle Hardened and become Heroic to be later wounded by the American Sniper. He had rallied the Fanatics who now had their firepower at the ready to cover one approach to the Victory hex, while the Panthers covered the others.

But first things first. During US Prep Fire nothing much happened. Well, no, because this would do injustice on the brave crew of the Bogged Sherman in 60X2 in the beads of the Panther. The crew had realized that any attempt of starting up would only result in blowing up. So in an attempt to elude their fate, they attempted to fire SMOKE vs. the Panther - but didn't have it. This was because... No, I won't digress. They attempted WP but didn't have it. They attempted Deliberate Immobilization in the vain hope of pulling this off and forcing the German tank crew to bail out. They astonishingly succeeded with the former but failed with the latter, which would tragically become their last failure of all.

Meanwhile, the M4A1(76)w craftily sucurried out of harm's way of both Panthers, while still reaching a position next to 60AA3 and contrieving to pop their sM to hinder all fire of the German infantry to this area. This was just fabulous! It allowed me to gain Control of the building and even to get a Concealed BAZ45 into position within the walled enclosure next to it. With what halfsquads I had, which were luckily Concealed, I built a 'wall of bodies that would make it difficult for the remaining German infantry to reach 60AA3 or to cut westward through the woods towards some buidings. Meanwhile a powerful US force had reached the buildings of Level 2 on Hill 517, discouraging any German effort into that direction. I was fearful now, that the Germans would think of making a run towards 41DD4, where it would have been very difficult for me to root them out.

Now to the board 60 town. My shot up HS in R2 had routed back to 41T9 last turn and its buddies in 60S3 had taken the message and pulled back as well. They neglected to inform the 666 in 60T2, though, which boldly moved and advanced up to 6U3. This was not at all prudent because 4 German squads, a 9-1, 8-0, and an MMG were in the area...

Down south in 41Z3, my 666 had had enough of Melee and put an end to it with Snakes, generating a 7-0 and infiltrating to Z4. The German thorn in my back was at last torn out.


Situation at the End of German Turn 4:



In German Turn 4, my audacious 666 in 60U4 was shot up and routed back to V3, the outlook being grim. That's what you get for heroics...

The German Fanatics and Heroic Wounded leader on Hill 517 AM'ed forward as well as a HS. My tank could not harm them, with my halfsquads I kept Concealment to maintain the 'wall of bodies' and was lucky enough not be shot up. Much to my relief, the Germans in 41CC7 did not double back to 41DD4.

The German Panther in 60CC2 managed to unbog, but to my surprise did not move forward any further. Maybe it was impressed by my Concealed BAZ45, but in any case, it gave me a respite and kept my tank in 60AA2 safe.

Also, the town garrison on board 60 stayed put, which I couldn't understand because it was obvious that the Americans would never clear 7 hexes of Americans there, so the units would have been free for a counter-attack towards the south or towards 60AA3. Eventually, the riddle was solved because it turned out that my opponent had gotten the VC wrong believing that I needed to fulfill all three and not only two of the Victory Conditons.

With the current outlook, I was getting more confident of actually being able to pull off a victory now. Still, nothing was safe as the Germans had the option to strike back towards buildings on board 41 or to blast the Americans out of 60AA3 and move a German units in while holding the 60U5 victory area.


Situation at the End of American Turn 5:



In my American Turn 5, the seemingly doomed broken 666 in 60V3 self rallied and had realized its folly. The rest of my force was in good order except for the M4(105) which had its MA malfed for a while and which I did not dare to repair yet.

The 666 from 60V3 was broken and CR'ed in the attempt to Dash back to 60T2. Yet, the remaining HS would be able to rout back to safety in 41T9. A 666 plus 7-0 hastened to 41DD4 to end the danger of Germans doubling back there. Just to make sure, I put another 666+MMG into 41BB7 to close the backdoor securely. I moved the rest of my infantry to block the German Heroic Leader and the Fanatics, and to cover the approaches to 60AA3 for Infantry from the East. An extra concealed HS made it up ADJAENT to the 60AA3 Victory Building.

As my opponent had realized his error about the VC, we both knew that his push from the board 60 town towards 60AA3 supported by both Panthers would be coming right now...

To be continued in a subsequent post.

von Marwitz

 

[bendizoid]

Situation at End of German Turn 3:

View attachment 15723

During German Turn 3, my 8-1 succeeded in rallying the DM 667+MMG in X7, which made this location a powerful US firebase.

I can't remember exactly, if my opponent decided to stand tight in 41Z7 with his Fanatic 548+LMG or if he had moved back to 41AA7. In any case I did manage to break the squad which was the sole remaining backbone of the German defence there. In turn, the Germans broke a US HS in 60R2.

Now enter the Panthers... They came on in 60GG5. The first one moved up the hill in 60AA5 avoiding the extra SSR'ed +1 Bog Modifier for using a road uphill/downhill and braved the Bog Check trundling on to stop in 60Y4 right in the face of my two overstacked tanks, the crews of which were biting their lips in anxiety. First, my M4A1(76)w tried for APCR but found that they had left these at the Ammo Dump.

The Gunner Barnes had told the Radioman McKee to stow the rounds, but because some freshly minted 90-day wonder Lieutenant had ordered the latter to distribute some manuals at once, McKee was still busy when the order to move out arrived. This would not have been half as bad as they were supposed to be at the end of the column but since the dog of the company commander... Hm. I guess you aren't really interested in that, are you?

Well, no APCR. As no shot was fired and anything else would have been a ridiculous gamble, the tank opted for Motion Attempt instead and made it, though failing to pop the sM in the process. This was because McKee had put the smoke grenades into an empty box of K-rations, but Barnes took the box with that contained real K-rations, and... Ok, ok - I shut up.

The Panther fired an missed the now moving tank by one. Phew, too close for comfort. And much to the chagrin of the M4A3(75)w's crew in the hex which cursed the authors of the rulebook for including some fancy thing about the chance of hitting the other overstacked vehicles when missing the target by one. The menacing AP round missed the second tank by one as well. But it sat there as a big sitting duck bogged and with the Panthers AQ on it at PB range...

The second Panther moved uphill towards 60BB2, but - oh joy - it bogged in the attempt in CC4 where it couldn't affect anyone for the moment. This might, just might open up an opportunity for the G.I.s to somehow reach 60AA3 with Infantry next turn to grab Control of it. Aware of the danger, two German 238 HS moved closer on the reverse slope of Hill 513 to prevent that from happening.

Still, the German Infantry in the board 60 town made no attempt to move towards 60AA3.

For sure, Lady Luck was shining on the Americans this Turn...


Situation at the End of American Turn 4:

View attachment 15724

In my American Turn 4, my biggest problem was how to get some of my Infantry into 60AA3 without being blown to Kingdom Come. In a little sideshow, the German Leader on Hill 517 had Battle Hardened and become Heroic to be later wounded by the American Sniper. He had rallied the Fanatics who now had their firepower at the ready to cover one approach to the Victory hex, while the Panthers covered the others.

But first things first. During US Prep Fire nothing much happened. Well, no, because this would do injustice on the brave crew of the Bogged Sherman in 60X2 in the beads of the Panther. The crew had realized that any attempt of starting up would only result in blowing up. So in an attempt to elude their fate, they attempted to fire SMOKE vs. the Panther - but didn't have it. This was because... No, I won't digress. They attempted WP but didn't have it. They attempted Deliberate Immobilization in the vain hope of pulling this off and forcing the German tank crew to bail out. They astonishingly succeeded with the former but failed with the latter, which would tragically become their last failure of all.

Meanwhile, the M4A1(76)w craftily sucurried out of harm's way of both Panthers, while still reaching a position next to 60AA3 and contrieving to pop their sM to hinder all fire of the German infantry to this area. This was just fabulous! It allowed me to gain Control of the building and even to get a Concealed BAZ45 into position within the walled enclosure next to it. With what halfsquads I had, which were luckily Concealed, I built a 'wall of bodies that would make it difficult for the remaining German infantry to reach 60AA3 or to cut westward through the woods towards some buidings. Meanwhile a powerful US force had reached the buildings of Level 2 on Hill 517, discouraging any German effort into that direction. I was fearful now, that the Germans would think of making a run towards 41DD4, where it would have been very difficult for me to root them out.

Now to the board 60 town. My shot up HS in R2 had routed back to 41T9 last turn and its buddies in 60S3 had taken the message and pulled back as well. They neglected to inform the 666 in 60T2, though, which boldly moved and advanced up to 6U3. This was not at all prudent because 4 German squads, a 9-1, 8-0, and an MMG were in the area...

Down south in 41Z3, my 666 had had enough of Melee and put an end to it with Snakes, generating a 7-0 and infiltrating to Z4. The German thorn in my back was at last torn out.


Situation at the End of German Turn 4:

View attachment 15725

In German Turn 4, my audacious 666 in 60U4 was shot up and routed back to V3, the outlook being grim. That's what you get for heroics...

The German Fanatics and Heroic Wounded leader on Hill 517 AM'ed forward as well as a HS. My tank could not harm them, with my halfsquads I kept Concealment to maintain the 'wall of bodies' and was lucky enough not be shot up. Much to my relief, the Germans in 41CC7 did not double back to 41DD4.

The German Panther in 60CC2 managed to unbog, but to my surprise did not move forward any further. Maybe it was impressed by my Concealed BAZ45, but in any case, it gave me a respite and kept my tank in 60AA2 safe.

Also, the town garrison on board 60 stayed put, which I couldn't understand because it was obvious that the Americans would never clear 7 hexes of Americans there, so the units would have been free for a counter-attack towards the south or towards 60AA3. Eventually, the riddle was solved because it turned out that my opponent had gotten the VC wrong believing that I needed to fulfill all three and not only two of the Victory Conditons.

With the current outlook, I was getting more confident of actually being able to pull off a victory now. Still, nothing was safe as the Germans had the option to strike back towards buildings on board 41 or to blast the Americans out of 60AA3 and move a German units in while holding the 60U5 victory area.


Situation at the End of American Turn 5:

View attachment 15726

In my American Turn 5, the seemingly doomed broken 666 in 60V3 self rallied and had realized its folly. The rest of my force was in good order except for the M4(105) which had its MA malfed for a while and which I did not dare to repair yet.

The 666 from 60V3 was broken and CR'ed in the attempt to Dash back to 60T2. Yet, the remaining HS would be able to rout back to safety in 41T9. A 666 plus 7-0 hastened to 41DD4 to end the danger of Germans doubling back there. Just to make sure, I put another 666+MMG into 41BB7 to close the backdoor securely. I moved the rest of my infantry to block the German Heroic Leader and the Fanatics, and to cover the approaches to 60AA3 for Infantry from the East. An extra concealed HS made it up ADJAENT to the 60AA3 Victory Building.

As my opponent had realized his error about the VC, we both knew that his push from the board 60 town towards 60AA3 supported by both Panthers would be coming right now...

To be continued in a subsequent post.

von Marwitz

Even a leader gets CXed if they advance for 4 or more MFs . Thanks for the ARR.

 

[von Marwitz]

Even a leader gets CXed if they advance for 4 or more MFs . Thanks for the ARR.

Yes, I know. But if the unit he is with is carrying some heavy stuff, he still makes a difference. If you advance into terrain which makes you CX, you can only carry so much PP with you. And the extra PP by the leader and the extra MF he provides can lower the effective PP reduction which might otherwise have made that advance impossible altogether.

von Marwitz

 

[bendizoid]

Yeah, it’s a good idea to reread the VC at least once during the game. Just to make sure.

 

[von Marwitz]

Situation during the MPh of German Turn 5 - Game End:



With only two more Movement Phases to go (the Germans moving last), my opponent now had to act.

I had not routed back my brokies in 60T2 knowing that the Germans could not afford the time to shoot at them, nor that they would likely rally in time to make a difference. So I left them in place to inhibit the German movement in a possible attempt of reaching 41R9, the approaches of which were covered by two US halfsquads and partly by the Sherman in R8 and the 667+MMG in V7.

During German Prep Fire, the immobilized Panther - after having blazed my bogged Sherman with a CH before, repeated the feat by killing my HS and the Prisoners outright in the Victory Building 60AA3. This was dangerous, as it opened the 'backdoor' for a German rush from the board 60 town. The Heroic German Leader and his Fanatics tried to assist from the other direction in wreaking havoc but luckily rolled too high to have any effect.

The attack towards 41R9 came in the form of the German 9-1 with a 468+MMG. However, the terrain gobbled up MF's and my opponent did not venture out into the open.

Next up was the push towards 60AA3. First, the Panther moved up to BB3. I held the fire with my BAZ45, thinking I might try an underbelly hit if it would attempt cross the wall to Overrun me. It stopped, however. With no immediate danger - if a Panther pulling up right into your face is not considered an 'immediate danger', my BAZ45 halfsquad kept its head down to await the actions of the two 238 German halfsquads on the reverse slope of Hill 517. First, the HS with Prisoners moved from CC9 down to 41DD9, which my onlooking G.I.s did not quite understand. Corporal Braddock in 41DD4 balked at them not to think but to shoot which they did, breaking the Germans. Then a 468 from the board 60 town ran towards the now empty building, but now it paid off that I had kept my Sherman in overwatch in 41R8 for the entire game: A HE-shell of its 75mm Gun blasted it in Bypass of 60W4, broke it thus frustrating its progress. The next 468 was even more dangerous, as it would be able to advance into 60AA3, provided, it would not be stopped on the way. The MGs of my overwatch Sherman in 41R8 could not stop them and the 468 did reach the walled enclosure of Z3, even gaining Wall Advantage there.

At this point I was anxious that the Germans might snatch away the 60AA3 building again which which would then be supported by two flanking Panthers and difficult to wrest again from German control with the scant infantry I had there or could get there in my last MPh. I had only to opportunties to stop the 468 in Z3 then and there: The ADJACENT CX 346 HS, for which the success of a 6FP@+2 shot vs. a Morale 8 squad was doubtful. And a 6FP@+1 attack from my 667+MMG on overwatch in 41V5.

The MMG and squad opened up and broke the 468, which I would now be able to force to rout away by dropping Concealment in Z2. Phew, that was close...

At this point, my opponent conceded. I think I would not have given up yet, because the Germans could have moved the two remaining squads in the board 60 town to positions from which to assault 60AA3 in their last Turn. With a bit of luck, the Panther in 60BB3 could have broken the BAZ45 halfsquad, killed my Sherman in 60AA2 during AFPh, and moved into the Victory Building in the last German Turn. The Fanatics in 41AA10 could have reached 60AA2. And finally, had the 9-1 with 468+MMG Advanced to R1 he might have survived American Fire and then Assault Moved in the last German turn to R0 to advance into CC with my 346 in 41R9 for one of those glorious 'last CC roll' endings. This would have included numerous vagaries to be successful, but we know what exactly those vagaries can do in ASL.


Review:

When I gacked up my initial attacks 'grand style' and got pasted in return, I would not have bet a dollar that I would win this scenario in the end.

The US has tremendous Firepower and excellent Smoke capabilities, but the seemingly ubiquituous 5MF movements uphill into buildings with ground snow presented a severe impediment to getting anywhere. Despite their numbers and Firepower, I do not think that the Americans can manage to both fulfil the '60U5 Area'-condition and the 'Board 41'-condition. So it is going to be one of these two with the 60AA3 building.

To fulfil the 'Board 41'-condition is very difficult. The Germans can fallback, set up in the 41FF2 compound, forcing the Americans to divide their force and to move into a corner of the playing area. From the board 60 town, the Germans attempt a counterattack to 41R9 if the Americans do not guard the area sufficiently, which will tie down some of his forces. The German Panthers could enter in 41GG5 or one Panther could simply move somewhere into the backfield of board 41, be Abandoned by its Crew, which could then become a 'GO non-encircled MMC in a building'.

If the Americans go for the '60U5 Area' condition, they need to allocate their Schwerpunkt into that direction, making it virtually impossible to fulfil the 'Board 41' condition with the remainder. Some sneaky German unit might move into the backfield in Stone TEM and then screw up US Rout paths or Rally Locations. Furthermore, if the German units on board 41 are not really challenged, then they could move to etablish a firm hold, soon to be reinforced by a Panther or two around the VC building of 60AA3. The advantage is, that the area to care for is more confined than the buildings of an entire half-board.

With regard to the '60AA3' condition, it surely ain't a bad idea to put some German unit into the building at start to prevent the Americans from 'just grabbing' it. While the Americans will have a tough time getting there in any case, the Germans have at least the option to be there from the start.

From my American perspective, I always felt an intense anxiety that things must not go wrong because this would lose me time which I did not have. I can only make guesses about the German perspective, but I would think that the German player would be deeply concerned to hold and be in too many places with too few units after initial losses.

Over both sides looms the threat of bogging when changing elevation, especially on roads.

Altogether, I think that the VC provide an interesting an precarious balance of options, each with its drawbacks and advantages.

After our playing, the ROAR numbers are almost even with 43 American victories against 44 German ones.
Maybe this suggests to give this scenario a try.


Bonus:

After having played this, I'd be interested to see how others would tackle the scenario. To encourage others to satiate my curiosity (and maybe to write up another AAR here), I will provide a VASL setup file (for VASL v6.6.1 as of 18. Dec. 2020 and cleared of VC/SSR as not to infringe copyright, which can be downloaded after logging into the ASL-Scenario Website under this link here which can otherwise be found there at the following place in the Archive's scenario description:





von Marwitz

 

[Michael R]

I've won this playing both sides. As the American against a rusty returning player, I went for the two board 60 VC. As the German, I only remember that I garrisoned the 41FF3 building with a couple of half-squads to make the board 41 VC difficult for the Americans.

 

[wrongway149]

This would have included numerous vagaries to be successful, but we know what exactly those vagaries can do in ASL.

ASL, I love you-- let me count the ways.

Review:

When I gacked up my initial attacks 'grand style' and got pasted in return, I would not have bet a dollar that I would win this scenario in the end.

My favorite of Napoleon's military maxims: "Endurance is the first virtue of the soldier. Courage is merely the second" (In fact, I think someone used that in a scenario title. )

The US has tremendous Firepower and excellent Smoke capabilities, but the seemingly ubiquituous 5MF movements uphill into buildings with ground snow presented a severe impediment to getting anywhere. Despite their numbers and Firepower, I do not think that the Americans can manage to both fulfil the '60U5 Area'-condition and the 'Board 41'-condition. So it is going to be one of these two with the 60AA3 building.

Just remember - sometimes the 'alternative' victory condition is in there more to keep the defense honest --and thus the game more fluid.

Over both sides looms the threat of bogging when changing elevation, especially on roads.

Altogether, I think that the VC provide an interesting an precarious balance of options, each with its drawbacks and advantages.

After our playing, the ROAR numbers are almost even with 43 American victories against 44 German ones.
Maybe this suggests to give this scenario a try.

Overall, ASL allows us to do way more things with our AFVS than actual tank commanders could realistically accomplish in a short time frame under challenging conditions. I try to put some appropriate flavor to reflect that via added risk, without taking too much away from the player.

Bonus:

After having played this, I'd be interested to see how others would tackle the scenario. To encourage others to satiate my curiosity (and maybe to write up another AAR here), I will provide a VASL setup file (for VASL v6.6.1 as of 18. Dec. 2020 and cleared of VC/SSR as not to infringe copyright, which can be downloaded after logging into the ASL-Scenario Website under this link here which can otherwise be found there at the following place in the Archive's scenario description:

View attachment 15729



von Marwitz

Thanks for the great AAR, and glad you enjoyed the scenario!!

 

[von Marwitz]

Thanks for the great AAR, and glad you enjoyed the scenario!!

I may as well return the compliment as I have enjoyed playing numerous of your scenario designs.

Cheers,
von Marwitz