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6th Royal Scots Fusiliers in action, 26th June 1944, during Operation Epsom, clearing the village of St Manvieu Norrey with the strain of battle obvious on their faces

One of the games arranged this month was an IABSM scenario produced as a free PDF download by Rich Clarke the author and co-partner of Too Fat Lardies during the early incarnation of the rule set and easily converted to the latest version of the rules.

Ian brought along his 15mm collection of WWII Normandy troops and Bob and myself took command of the British and German forces respectively.

The scenario along with others is available to download from the Lardies Yahoo Group, which is well worth joining if you are interested in what I and many of the chaps in the DWG would consider one of the best WWII Company level rule sets available.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Toofatlardies/info

The map below lays out the terrain for the game which sees a British infantry company of three platoons supported with a Vickers HMG section and a troop of Shermans tasked with taking Hill 203 at Belle Vue Farm. Their attack is preceded by a good old "stonk" (pre-bombardment) provided by the Royal Artillery.

The German troops defending this sector are a two platoon Panzer Grenadier company from the Hitlerjugend 12th SS Panzer Division supported with a machine gun section, anti-tank platoon and some off table on call 105mm howitzers

The German defenders are able to set up in the hedges in front of the British deployment line marked on the map all the way back to Hill 203.

Historical Background

On June 6th, 1944, as part of the largest amphibious operation the world had ever witnessed, the British 50th Infantry Division - the Northumbrian - was given the task of assaulting Gold Beach. A seasoned unit and veteran of the North African campaign, the 50th stormed ashore, and by day’s end had achieved nearly all of their initial objectives.

But that was two weeks ago, and Allied forces have suffered one setback after another since then. The Germans have successfully contained the invaders within the beachhead area, having repulsed every attempt to break out.

But the dawn of a new day brings with it another attempt to break the entrapment. The next big push - Operation Epsom - is about to begin, but before it can commence, the Allies need to be able to see “Over the Hill.”
 

View from the British jump off line with German 'blinds' dotted about the table ahead

British Briefing

It is June 20th, 1944, and you are Captain Roger Roughshaft of the Cheshires, fighting your way through the dense bocage and orchards of Normandy in the face of stiff Jerry resistance.

Ahead of you lies Hill 203, a mere pimple on the face of the French “campagne”, but now of some import. Ferme Belle Vue apparently commands striking views across into the enemy rear, so you and your men must risk life and limb to capture it.

Hill 203 is only accessible by one road, and the bocage means that your supporting armour will be restricted to it. From what your chums have told you, the hill is defended by enemy infantry and AT guns – and they should know, most of ‘em got shot up trying to capture it afore you!

You have persuaded HQ to give you a bit of preliminary bombardment before the show starts. You may allocate three stonks to the table before starting off.
 

The view from the German held Belle Vue Farm atop Hill 203

German Briefing

It is June 1944, and the Allies have invaded Normandy, set on destroying the great dream of a united Europe. In the Reich all energies are being trained on throwing this enemy back into the Channel in order that the great liberating crusade against bolshevism can continue in the east.

You are Hauptsturmfuhrer Wim van Hemker, commanding a company of the newly raised 12th SS Panzer Division, Hitlerjugend. Two years fighting in the east with Nordland has made you a tough soldier, and you worry for the young volunteers that surround you. Two weeks fighting around Caen has seen you slow down the Allied advance to a snail’s pace, and cause losses that you are sure they cannot endure for long.

Now your Company, reduced to two platoons, is responsible for holding the critical Hill 203. Little more than a ridge, this formerly  insignificant piece of French farmland is now of strategic importance and must be held at all costs. Thus far you have repelled three Tommy attacks. The bocage country in which you are operating limits Tommy armour to a single track that runs up the hill, you will hold firm against any fresh attacks.

Your men are in good spirits, the fresh influx of volunteers have found their feet thanks to the experienced cadre within the group. You may call upon a battery of four 105mm artillery pieces if you require support; Hauptmann von Englers of the 328th Artillery Regiment has been allocated to you to act as a spotter if needed. All artillery will be called in through him. You have no vehicles, all have been withdrawn due to allied air activity.
 

British artillery fire starts to search out suspected German positions, with hits and shocks recorded on blinds near the farm

The Game

With the German positions marked up a amid plenty of dummy positions, the British artillery stonk announced the start of the British attack and needless to say the bulk of fire was directed to the commanding heights of Hill 203 where the German anti-tank gun platoon with its Pak 40 and Panzershreck teams set up in the nearby hedgerows took early shocks and a casualty from the British fire.

The farm with its commanding view of the fields below came in for a good battering from the British guns

Fields close to the farm didn't escape a thorough 'going over' by the 25 lbrs 

The action began with the usual 'cat and mouse' manoeuvring as the opposing blinds attempted to get to the best positions whilst doing their best to spot any likely opposition and get their fire in first.
 

British blinds indicate a move to infiltrate the left flank of the German positions

The British advance quickly developed and the blinds movement soon indicated a successful infiltration down the left flank of the German positions, using the cover offered by the thick bocage hedgerows that allowed them to build up a strong position to base an attack from once the enemy were spotted.

It was now a question of who would get the drop on who by being able to open up from an advantageous position.
 

Spotted from the hill a British section breaks cover to sprint to the opposite hedge-row, covered by the other sections

As the ranges between opposing blinds dropped rapidly the first dummies were identified and removed from the table, but inevitably others revealed opposing troops and the first units on to the table started to appear.
 

Meanwhile the British advance closes in on Ferme Valle

One such are that revealed a Panzergrenadier platoon in occupation was the forward farm at Ferme Valle where the flanking infiltration ha rapidly unhinged the German position but unable to relocate in time the German commander soon realised he had Sherman tanks knocking at the front gate only to find his position suddenly raked from a different direction as Vickers heavy machine-guns opened up from his left flank devastating his command in one fell swoop.
 

The Battle for Ferme Valle erupts in a hail of Vickers machine-gun fire as German troops are spotted in the vicinity

It is a tribute to the determination of the SS soldiers that the defence didn't collapse in the first fusillade of British fire, but their return fire when it came was feeble due to the shock and casualties sustained with the only real success being a solid Panzerfaust strike to the lead Sherman which began to burn fiercely with no survivors as its ammunition started to 'cook off'.

The tankers revenge was soon in coming as their 75mm HE shells ripped the farm house to pieces killing SS men at the windows and setting the farm house alight with the SS Commander dead among it shattered rafters and smashed walls.
 

The German defenders are are caught by the rapid flanking move by the British heavy weapons teams

As the British tanks and heavy machine guns pour it on to the farm house other British infantry fire from across the road

The battle for Ferme Valle was over as soon as it started and the surviving SS soldiers attempted to fall back across the field and nearby dried up pond to its rear, but they were not to get very far as British troops and tanks moved in to mop up cutting down any of the SS who showed the slightest resistance.
 

The German return fire when it comes is limited due to the shock and casualties sustained but they manage to inflict a few casualties and knock out a Sherman that burns on the road by the farm

The battle is over at Ferme Valle and German survivors attempt to escape across the muddy pond to their rear

As the battle lower down the valley erupted, another one commenced soon after as the defenders on the top of Hill 203 started to identify British troops movements to their left with a request sent of to the supporting guns for a mission among the hedgerows to their front.

Despite successive calls for support, the guns were unforthcoming and so the German defenders were forced to resort to other options.
 

With the battle for the first objective over the British troops move in to mop up and cut down the retreating Germans

The decision to open up with the weapons close at hand was made more easy with the sight of British troops pushing out across the large open field to the their left, supported by carriers.
 

Meanwhile the British flank advance on Hill 203 is caught in open ground by a hail of machine gun fire and anti-tank shells

As the British troops made a dash for the cover of the next bocage hedge line the carriers were struck by Pak and Panzerschreck shells rapidly reducing two of them to burning wrecks as the troops on foot were subjected to raking fire from the infantry and MG42's set up close to Belle Vue Farm.
 

SS Panzergrenadiers vainly attempt to get back too the hill top but are cut down by following British infantry

The German attack was damaging, effectively knocking out two sections of British infantry, but leaving the other two able to close in on the hedges lining the left flank of the German position, now threatened by the other unopposed British platoon, supporting heavy machine guns and tanks advance to their right front along the road.
 

The remaining SS troops prepare to sell themselves dearly as the British advance develops around them

We stopped the game there, but as the German commander, I rather felt the position was becoming untenable leaving the remaining German troops with two options, to either sell themselves dearly atop their hill or to try and cause casualties whilst relinquishing control. Either way was not a good German result.

Any counterattack on the weakened British platoon at best supported by the German artillery when or if it came would likely leave the rest in such a parlous state as to be in a poor condition to resist the follow up British troops with tanks.

This is the first time I had played this particular scenario and I have to say it gave a very good game, posing questions for both sides.

On reflection I might have put my AT assets further forward to try and ambush the tanks early and to have kept my infantry platoons in closer support of one another rather than the spread out in defence in depth as I used in this game. The first fire coming off of a blind on spotted enemy troops can, as we see, be battle turning and the German troops, very often not moving, are at an advantage to getting the drop on their British counterparts.

Bob made very good use of his blinds to rapidly advance through weakly held German areas and thus set up his troops in very advantageous positions when the inevitable spots allowed both sides to open fire.

Thanks to Ian for pulling the game together and to Bob for a very fun fight among the hedgerows.

Carojon

 
 
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Inspired by reading the Cinderella Campaign and the dash across France in Sept 1944 plus the table I set up Friday to try out my new buildings, I thought that a Breakthrough scenario would be spiffing good fun. I also haven't had a lot of Shermans out in years. Playing solo I could take my time, enjoy a glass of port and not worry about comments about play balance.

So two platoons of Grenadiers with a platoon of three PaK 40s and a platoon of three StuGs are holding the town as a rear guard. For the German company HQ I opted for two MG42 teams. Each platoon also had two panzerfausts.

The attackers get a company HQ plus five platoons. So I took an armoured squadron HQ, three troops of tanks and two platoons of infantry mounted in carriers and trucks.

Both sides also rolled well for air support, which gave my FW 190 and Spitfire a chance to see some table action for the first time since I bought them ten or twelve years ago!

The Canadians deployed into two elements: Squadron HQ, 1 Troop and a platoon of infantry in 15 cwt trucks advanced up the road past the farm. The other two troops and a platoon of infantry in carriers advanced through the fields on the left. The Germans put some infantry in the hedges and trees in front of the town. An MG42 was positioned in a  building to cover each flank of the town. One PaK40 was in the trees covering the Canadian left, but the second was back closer to the town to shoot down the road and the third was dug in near the bridge. The StuGs were held in reserve. In hindsight I should have deployed the infantry in the houses and put the StuGs forward to engage the allied armour right away.

The Canadian plan was to use a rapid advance to get to the bridge before the twelfth turn of the "blank/special" card, which designated the end of the game (or in my version the pioneers blow the bridge) and try not to get bogged down in firefights. The scenario specified "Armoured Bonus Move" card really helped with that, especially in the early turns.

Opening moves. Squadron HQ spots German infantry lining the hedge and deploy into the field, hosing the poor landsers with HE and .30 cal. fire. 1 Troop roars past along the road spraying the German flank.

A FW 190 strafes the road, stopping the allied advance.

More air power overhead. A Spitfire buzzes the Germans.

A PaK 40 reveals itself, brewing up the lead Sherman. 

The PaK 40 in the woods in front of the town also opens fire, getting a few ineffective hits.

Using an "Armoured Bonus Move" card a troop of Shermans rush forward. Infantry in their carriers swing to the left. But the PaK 40 card comes up first and brews up the troop leader.

Meanwhile, demonstrating how fire and maneuver works. A section from the right platoon clears the first line of trenches taking six POWs .

1 Troop roars forward with another "Armoured Bonus Move" card, overrunning the second trench line. The Germans hunkered down and tried assaulting the tanks without effect. Once the Canadian infantry came up, the combination was able to eliminate the trench line.

The troop leader is positioned just short of crushing the dug in PaK 40. But he got stunned by a shot from a StuG in the town and delayed crushing the gun. But I didn't let the gun fire, having a tank on the edge of the gun pit and all.

Middle troop of Shermans breaks into the German position, flanking the right hand platoon. Fire from both troops shattered the Germans and destroyed the Pak 40.

Canadians deploy from their carriers on the flank of the town, end running the German defense.

Shermans then overrun the shocked Germans at the tree line avenging their dead troop leader. Only three Grenadiers  make it back to town.

Flanking platoon sends out its PIAT team to hunt StuGs.

On the Canadian right, there is a traffic jam, with a mass of tanks and one narrow road, down which high velocity 75mm AP shells are screaming. 

The StuGs deployed at the crossroads, firing down each street at advancing Canadian armour. Canadian and German armour spend a few turns banging away at each other.

With the German position crumbling, I decided they should try and save what they could. One StuG followed by a truck towing the last PaK 40 try escaping over the bridge. A Spitfire swoops low, 20mm cannon chattering, pinning the truck in place.

The left hand Canadian platoon dash to the river and engage Germans on the bridge, knocking out the truck with rifle fire. Gun crew dismount as a half section of infantry.


The surviving German infantry had retreated to the central house and spent a few turns having their shock rallied off by the surviving German Big Men. The tank duel was going badly. Shermans are at both ends of the street and getting a mobility kill on the StuG in the picture, causing the crew to bail out. The Canadian Squadron commander and one of his troop tanks advance up the street. The surviving Germans fired off their remaining panzerfausts, causing minor damage and then ran for the bridge.

The last StuG was heavily damaged in a shoot out with a Firefly and tried retreating to the bridge but got brewed up trying to squeeze by the disabled truck and PaK 40.

A German MG42 team had relocated to the green house, firing on the Canadians near the bridge. Seeing this two Shermans poured fire into the lower floor setting the house on fire.

Here you can see the end as Shermans roll up each street, squeezing past the knocked out StuG to round up the fleeing Germans.
 

The Squadron commander advanced his tank to the bridge, machine gunning the fleeing Germans. Those who survived surrendered.

Aftermath

The Germans were utterly destroyed (except for one damaged StuG) and the Canadians still had five turns of the special card to secure the bridge. The Canadians lost eleven KIA plus three tanks brewed up (so 26 total dead) and took thirteen POWs including two Big Men.

Playing solo I could also play this out to it's bitter end, pausing Saturday night for bed and then resuming action on Sunday. I also "live Tweeted " this game which was an interesting way to record events as they unfolded, taking and tweeting an awful lot of pictures with commentary. But it would be annoying if I hadn't been playing solo. I did garner some "retweets " and likes from strangers, which is all very odd. But Twitter is rather ephemeral and strange.

James Mantos

 
 
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Mike Whitaker reports an amusingly lucky shot in a recent club-night game of IABSM:

Last night's club game...in the Italy '44 campaign.

The Germans are attacking (for once) in the pouring rain:

  • one range bracket worse for spot/autospot
  • -2 to hit for AFVs
  • one range bracket worse outside 18" for all infantry fire

The German Elefant was the first thing to deploy. The British in the villa lucked out on a spot roll, so the 17pdr took a shot from across the table.

Hit by one pip, then rolled 7 hits on 12 dice vs 4 saves on 14 dice...boom!

Mike then adds:

I should add that despite that, the British lost. Without the Germans even deploying their StuG's.

Gary Martin played the Germans:

It was a good game and I learnt a couple of important lessons.

The Bridge was the objective so the expectation was that one of the two British platoons would be around there and the small wood next to it.

The second platoon almost certainly in and around the farm complex. We also perceived the 17pdr platoon would be in the wood on the plateau.

This meant they would only have a few bits and pieces and maybe the Churchill defending the area around the ploughed field and small wood in the foreground of the first pic.

Using this as our planning assumption we decided to set up a base of fire into the wood opposite the farm (just out of view on the right, north edge of first photo), consisting of two MMG and the Elefant. However they would remain on the Blind initially to soak up some spotting of the enemy and do some of our own to establish their positions. Previous experience had seen our opponent tend to shoot at everything that moved so we were hopeful this would reveal themselves quickly.

The first error I made was to over think the pre-game stonk. Initially we considered dumping it on the plateau , however I was concerned they would recover from it before it became an issue, instead we brought it down on the ploughed field to little effect.

To the right and left of this base we advanced two dummy Blinds with two key objectives: confirm the defences around the bridge and its small wood; and strength of enemy near the ploughed field and its wood.

We intended the ploughed field and wood to be our main route of advance to put further pressure on farm and unhinge the flank of the plateau all be it we agreed to change this to the Bridge and wood should the brits have left this lightly defended.

Obviously we were wary of the impact the 17pdrs could have on our StuGs, but felt confident that the Elefant, concealed in the wood, in driving rain, the other end of the table would be ok!!!!

So spotting efforts were ineffective initially. The Brits immediately deployed an MMG in the small wood by ploughed field which shot up a section from a zug following up the dummy. Then the impossible: an unlikely spotting roll revealed our base of fire.

The Brits deployed a 17pdr and fired. First shot, unlikely hit: 14 Armour dice v 12 Strike dice and we lost by three knocking the Elefant out. Not happy!!!

However fire from the MMGs on farm and from the deployed zug caused damage and the right flank dummy Blind successfully spotted nothing in the wood, causing us to move reserve zug and StuG Blinds onto the right following up the dummy toward the bridge and wood. Xmas arrived early and cheered us after the loss of the Elefant.

The dummy moving toward the apparently empty wood near the bridge was the first confusion in my head as I thought that you spot the terrain piece. If successful you reveal any hidden Blinds. If they occupy a piece of the terrain not visible (in this case further than 4” into the wood) then a Blind was placed indicating that something was around but not clear.

So it was a bit of a surprise (well two actually) when the dummy Blind entered the wood and bumped into a 2-man PIAT team at the back of the wood. The second surprise was that the bridge was only defended by a 2-man PIAT team.

The dummy was removed and we immediately deployed the following zug Blind into close combat destroying the PIAT and effectively capturing the objective. The StuG Blind moved up behind the wood keeping it out of sight ready to attack the plateau.

In the centre the platoon in the farm was being steadily depleted by the base of fire and a barrage from four medium mortars. The British MMG was destroyed.

Again confused over the status of this small wood I quickly moved up the final zug Blind to the edge. Here I was spotted and as I deployed the zug into the wood it bumped into the second platoon arranged shoulder to shoulder at the rear and a big close combat took place. Our zug was devastated and pushed back Suppressed, effectively out of the game. However the British platoon had also taken a battering and was Suppressed.

A bit of further fire from our first zug reduced the platoon further, making it pretty much ineffective. The game was called shortly after. Time was short and the British had nothing with which to make any attempt to threaten the bridge.

Good scenario, chastened by the couple of mistakes I made. Looking forward to the campaign finale.

Mike Whitaker, Gary Martin

 
 
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A recent quick solo game: a Soviet assault on a German defended village.

Two platoons of German regulars (plus two MMGs)  in the village and low hills either side, backed up by a lone Tiger I.

The Soviets: three infantry platoons plus a depleted mixed T-34/76 & /85 tank company. The Soviets also get a couple of pre-game stonks.

Lessons Learned:

  • MMGs are lethal against infantry at Close Range (as designed)
  • The attackers were desperately in need of more support, either a couple of SU-85/100s to take on the Tiger, freeing up the T-34s to support the infantry or some mortars to suppress the MMGs.
  • Smoke! Oh, for a 2" mortar!


Custom Rules:

  • Infantry fire with a height advantage gets an extra dice - maybe causing the MMGs to be too powerful.
  • Vehicles are either moving or stationary, with one Action to stop. Firing at a moving vehicle or more difficult and fire from a moving vehicle gets a -4 on the Direct Fire table.
  • Changed the direct fire HE rules to something that was suggested on the forum as the originals seem odd.
  • Changed the ground scale to 10m = 20mm because of the small playing area.


Thoughts:

  • IABSM is great for a solo game as using 'cards' for to generate the turn sequence is easy to follow!
  • Perhaps next time add a couple of SU-100s or use a Stug rather than the Tiger I which seriously over-matched the T-34s.

James Tree

 
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This is a small battle we modelled taken from the book Летом сорок первого (Summer of the Forty First) by Giorgi Sviridov using IABSM rules.

It's the morning of Sunday 22 June 1941, near the ferry station of modern day’s Niemirow. A Soviet border guard detachment has fallen back in disarray after being attacked by superior numbers of German infantry with machinegun and mortar support, and losing its political officer.

The survivors have withdrawn to an old workshop recently used as a barracks, without communications and without orders, effectively surrounded on all sides by the fast-moving Germans. This was to be a last stand for these poor soldiers. Their opponents were a German company held back and ordered to neutralize this small pocket of resistance. The Germans have the numbers, the firepower and the support.

The Soviet commanding officer and the Maxim MMG were began the game strongly, but peaked too soon: very early and very unfortunately, the Soviet commanding officer was incapacitated and the MMG ran short of ammo.

Great planning from the German side by my good friend Mick Harney. Mick used his firepower to suppress Soviet attempts to see what was going on whilst a third of his force took the difficult route across the river into my blind spot to achieve surprise, suppress even more, and then move to capture the building.

Unfortunately, we did not manage to finish the game due to time restrictions and a slow start (me explaining the game mechanics to Mick) but IABSM worked really well in my opinion and we really enjoyed it.

We were so preoccupied and really into the game presentation and the history around the event that I did not take enough pictures of the game table, but below you'll find a few. 

‎Ioannis Pavlidis‎ 

 
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Played the first scenario from the "Bashynya or Bust!" 1944 Operation Bagration campaign tonight at the SLW.

Very odd game with the Soviet Blinds, Rapid Deployment and Armoured Bonus cards repeatedly coming up. The Germans had to wait almost 4 turns before getting some forces on table.

Subsequently it was hard for the Germans, but it got worse as Ian was on fire tonight: bringing in his air cover three times in a row, Pinning what forces we had on table!

Ian’s Soviet tankers were also on the ball and we lost most of our forces trying to reach the bridge. Cracking game, just a bit one sided in the way Lady Luck played out!

 

Desmondo Darkin

 
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Whilst sorting and rationalising all the files on my computer, I found these five photographs from one or two of the first IABSM games that I ever ran.

I say "one or two" because I think that these shots are actually from two games: a scenario called "Close Encounters of the First Kind" that appeared in Wargames Illustrated before it went all Battlefront; and another game called "Pont Neuf".

Highlights of these photographs are the white cardboard roads and the hedges made out of green ring binders...which I made the secretaries at work order specially so that I could borrow a few and use them like this! Well, everyone's collection of terrain has to start somewhere!

Robert Avery

 
 
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The club normally meets on Sunday afternoons, but over the Festive Season, we didn't meet up on either Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve. However, we did have a Thursday afternoon session on the 28th. I offered to put on and umpire a big game of I Ain't Been Shot Mum for two players a side. This would be a 1944 game, with the British forces pushing forwards into the Low Countries after the Liberation of France as part of the advance towards the Rhine.

What I wanted to do was put on a game with a lot of tanks but also have plenty of obstacles to aid the weaker side (in this case weak was relative). The field was laid out on four tables, creating a long battlefield with plenty of cover and dead ground. Here it is, seen from behind the German position.

The Scenario

The scenario was as follows: after the end of the Battle of Normandy, Allied forces are pushing eastwards into the Low Countries. German resistance is stronger than expected but patchy in places. Defence in many cases depends on ad hoc formations made up from whatever troops are available to counter the advance of the Allied armour. This scenario is one such encounter.

A British tank squadron and a company of motorised infantry have been tasked with taking a river crossing.

An ad hoc German Kampfgruppe is opposing the British advance.

The German force was:

A weakened Kompanie of Panzergrenadiers (veterans):

  • Company HQ (with 3 Panzerschrecks) and a L3 Big Man (2 x SdKfz 251)
  • Two Zugs, each with a L2 Big Man
  • One section of 4 x MG42

An improvised Rifle Kompanie (poor regulars):

  • HQ of two tripod MG42, 2 x Panzerschrecks, a L2 Big Man and a L1 Big Man
  • A rifle Zug with a L1 Big Man
  • A Zug of Panzerknackers (two MG42 teams, four riflemen, eight Panzerfaust shooters) and a L2 Big Man

An ad hoc Panzer Kompanie:

  • HQ: one Tiger I with a L3 Big Man (veteran crew)
  • One Panzer IVH (average crew)
  • Zug 1:  3 x Panther G L2 BM (average crews)
  • Zug 2:  4 x Panzer IVH L2 BM (green crews)

An Anti-tank Zug:

  • 3 x Stug III (average crews)

The British force was:

A squadron of Cromwell IV and Sherman Vc tanks (all average crews)

  • An HQ of three Cromwells (one with 95mm CS howitzer) and a Sherman Firefly with L3 Big Man
  • Four troops, each with three Cromwells and a Sherman Firefly, each with a L2 Big Man

A company of motorised infantry (the infantry are dismounted from their vehicles) all good regulars:

  • A Company HQ of one 8 man rifle section with a L3 and a L1 Big Man (in a halftrack)
  • Three rifle platoons, each with a L2 Big Man
  • A carrier section: four carriers with Vickers MMGs (can be mounted or dismounted)
  • A flamethrower section (four teams in a halftrack)

For this scenario, the following conditions were applied:

  • The Germans may defend in depth on both sides of the road. The Germans must defend a river crossing at their end of the table.
  • Some of their tanks have been recycled from battle-damaged vehicles and the German deck includes the Vehicle Breakdown chip. When this is drawn, roll 1D6 for each tank that has already been deployed (don’t roll for tanks under Blinds). Only roll once for each tank.
  • Any tank that rolls a 1 is broken down and will be immobilised for the rest of the game, but can continue to fire. Any shock against an immobilised vehicle will be doubled.
  • Any tank that rolls a 2 will suffer a failure of the turret traverse and will only be able to fire in a 90 degree forward arc.
  • The Panzerknacker Zug is split into two sections, each with an MG42, two riflemen and four men with Panzerfausts. Once the Fausts have been fired, these troops revert to being ordinary riflemen.
  • The Germans have four pieces of field earthworks and one small pillbox.
  • The Germans can deploy hidden or under Blinds, They have no dummy Blinds.
  • The British will deploy under Blinds and have two dummy Blinds.
  • The 95mm CS howitzer fires smoke shells only, as do the 2” mortars in the British platoons.
  • The British are to advance along the road, which is hemmed in by trees on both sides to take the two bridges over a river defended by a German force. Only the larger bridge can support the weight of tanks, but smaller vehicles can cross both bridges. The terrain is undulating and visibility is broken up by the trees and hedges. The ground suits the defenders and is not prime tank country.
  • Intelligence reports that the bridges are well-defended.
  • I allowed the Germans to deploy up to halfway  along the length of the table, with the British being limited to a deployment zone that was one quarter of the table deep.

The Game

The Germans chose to deploy with everything hidden in their deployment zone. I didn't know where they had placed their units, but I assumed that the pillbox would play a role. The British deployed under blinds on both sides of the road but pretty soon they had had a number of elements spotted.

The 2" mortar of this platoon quickly started to lay down smoke to prevent the defenders from firing on them. On the British right, more tanks and infantry advanced towards a hill, spotting some German defenders, Panzerknackers and MG42 teams from the weak Landser Kompanie. These were quickly eliminated by mass machine gun fire from the tanks (well, the Cromwells actually, the Sherman Firefly tanks not having hull MGs) and the Vickers-armed Carriers. The power of the machine guns was pretty much devastating.

The Germans were unwilling to show their hand at all and most of their troops remained unspotted and hidden, holding their fire and pretty much inviting the British to advance. The British managed to discover a Zug of Stug III tank destroyers behind a hedge.

Despite massed fire from the two British left flank tank troops, these Stug IIIs remained unharmed and soon caused havoc on the single Cromwell troop in front of them. The infantry platoon was also suffering from accurate fire from a tripod-mounted MG42 in an earthwork. The British advance appeared to be stalled on the right.

On the British left, the tanks were pretty much stuck in a traffic down in the unsuitable ground on this side of the road.

The platoon supporting these tanks, cleared away the German infantry screen  opposing them and started spotting more Germans. These were a tougher prospect than the Landsers: hull-down PZKfw IVs and the Tiger.

On the German left, the remaining tanks were revealed (a poor photo, unfortunately):

And the Germans also revealed a previously unseen Zug of Panzergrenadiers covering the central lake and road junction.

A different view of the German Panzerfront, a daunting sight for the British tanks.

At this point, the  clock was ticking and there was little time left to reach a conclusion. However, it didn't look too healthy from the point of view of a British tanker. Regretfully perhaps, the British commanders decided that discretion was the better part of valour. One tank troop was a set of burning wrecks and one infantry platoon had taken a lot of casualties from machine gun fire. The Germans remained in a solid defensive posture, with the only casualties being from the screen of Panzerknackers and MG42 teams.

Aftermath

So, an interesting game, the Germans playing a canny waiting game and the British being unwilling to advance too far into the unknown, even declining to use the Allied Armour Bonus chip whenever it emerged from the bag. Discussing this afterwards, the consensus was that after the attritional horrors of the Normandy campaign, the British regulars tended towards self-preservation rather than Tally Ho-style heroics. We agreed that once the location of the German tanks was known, the appeal of advancing towards those long 75mm guns (not forgetting the 88mm on the Tiger) was limited, to put it mildly, especially as they were adequately protected by those unharmed and fresh veteran Panzergrenadiers.

Carole Flint

 
 
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View from the German end of the table

The scenario was taken from the Sea Lion examples, and represented the first serious counter attack against the German invasion forces. A British force from 42nd Division was to hit the extended German front at Boreham Street near Heathfield, attempting to break through and thus divide the German invaders stretched along the coast.

On the British side, Major Standish Chappleton (Mark) had overall control, and his armour consisted of  a total of 9 AFVs – a mix of A13's, A10's, A10CS and some Vickers Vib's. Capt Corky Caldwell (John) commanded the infantry with 3 full platoons of regulars, although only two had reached the start line at  H hour.  Hauptman Harald Kamp (Robert) was in charge of the German defenders, with two full platoons plus HQ and a third platoon on it's way allegedly. The German infantry were supported by 4 MG's,  two PaK35's with a couple of 75mm IG's drafted in to help.  Both sides expected air support and off table mortar support was promised the Germans. The gallant infantry of the 39th Regt were also expecting a small Panzer detachment to help out at some point.

The British decided to attack on a broad front instead of concentrating, whilst the Germans elected for a very forward defence line, placing their infantry under cover of hedges well outside the village. Their HQ Command plus MG's were placed in buildings on the edge of the village, giving their FOO a good view of the terrain and a superb field of fire for the MG's.  The four ATG's were placed carefully to cover both flanks as well as any possible thrust straight down the road.

In the event, whilst the British light tanks gallantly did their job and probed forward to the NE of the village – taking heavy casualties as they advanced – only 1 Vickers actually penetrated the defence line, knocking out a gun as it did so. The two A10's stood off and sprayed their MG fire wherever possible, whilst a thrust down the road by the A13's was quickly defeated by accurate ATG fire.

1st Platoon suffer. 2nd Platoon are the neighbouring Blind.

Meanwhile the infantry advance NW of the village was turning into a disaster. They advanced in close order for some reason, with both platoons alongside each other and the sections closed up. This offered a superb target for the German MG's, plus a later mortar barrage and even a Stuka attack; quite naturally the result was carnage. Not a single section was left combat worthy as the survivors flattened themselves into a cornfield as best they could.  The two supporting A10 CS's managed a couple of rounds of HE with encouraging results, but gradually came under rapid and accurate ATG fire which knocked pieces of A10 all over the countryside. The surviving tank was not put off by this however and gallantly pressed on.

However the gallant German defenders were also slowly taking casualties, with two guns knocked out as well as infantry casualties, and the Germans slowly gave ground in a controlled withdrawal under fire back towards the village.

The German defensive line

One recce tank bursts through, but note the  german atr teams, bottom left

Finally, when the third British infantry arrived and made their advance, sadly they were also bunched together and were also hit by damaging German fire.  The British support mortars were hit and damaged, the promised air support had now materialised and the British CIC wisely decided that the chances of winkling the Germans out of a heavily defended village were slim to zero and broke off the attack. The Germans had held the line and the British attempt at a breakthrough had failed.

Overall, a superb defence by the Germans, but a disappointing attack by a potentially dangerous British force.

Trader Dave

 
 
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Played a training game tonight with Mr T.

Forces were from the main rules, but the terrain made up from parts of my last game. Mr T was the British, attacking to liberate the village and eliminate any defenders on the way. Ultimately his armour was to use the main road to move off table. 

Nice little game that saw some quite amazing sequences of cards come up for the British. I lost the village and in the end redeployed north in the hope of delaying the Allies, only to lose another platoon , leaving my flank up in the air. We are fighting this again in a week, swapping sides.

Highlight was the pre game stonks that put six shock on two of my infantry Blinds, six on my tank killer team and killed my FOO!

Desmondo Darkin

 
 
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For this game at The Source, the Centurions wargame club welcomed guest gamemaster, Mike Whitaker (co-host of the Meeples and Miniatures Podcast) who ran a demo game of the Too Fat Lardies rules, "I Ain't Been Shot Mum".

A company of infantry with armor support on each side provided an afternoon of great entertainment. We'll be playing these rules again.

War Artisan

Umpire's Report

The first of the two games I played in Minneapolis, organised by Jeff Knudsen for the Centurions group. Actually, it should come as no surprise to regulars to know that I didn't play it, but umpired it, having stuck the rulebook, blinds, markers, cards and microdice in my suitcase :D

The scenario pitted an American company in defence against a German attack, in some far flung corner of the Ardennes in winter '44. Snowy table, sadly, unavailable, (barring Photoshop trickery!).

Fitz (aided by Elliot and N (argh, blanking on names)) took the Germans, and Jeff and... hrm, I should have taken notes!... the Americans. The latter deployed two platoons across an obvious defensive hedge/wall/building line, holding a third in reserve back at the village. The Germans advanced across a wide front down both roads, one side with a platoon backed with a pair of StugIIIs, the other four PzIVs, while two full platoons pushed through the woods and downslope. Their pre-game stonk hit the obvious targets (farm and chateau), and caused a fair amount of shock.

The Americans retaliated with some 105mm battery fire, which blew a track off one of the Panzers and somewhat discomfited the other. The Axis advance took a fair amount of fire from the defensive line, but the key breakthrough came when, under MG, tank and mortar fire, one of the American sections in the farm was pinned, and a somewhat unintentional and lucky close assault drove them out.

The Germans then consolidated their attack, by which time frantic requests for support from the Americans had turned up a troop of Shermans including a '76, as well as revealing two 50cals on tripods and a pair of 57mm AT guns on a hill in back of the defensive line.

Cue derisory German comments about the efficacy of 57mms.

Cue a brewed up StuG.

The second StuG got brewed by the Shermans not long after, leaving an interesting position in which the Germans had hold of their initial objective, but the Americans were falling back to their command HQ, under cover from the Shermans, 57mms, and 50cals. It would have been interesting to see what happened next.

Much positive feedback - most of the group hadn't played IABSM before, and I think they enjoyed both the mechanics and the feel of the system.

Thanks again to Jeff and the Centurions, and The Source Comics and Games shop for hosting the game.

Mike Whitaker

 
 
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Extracts from the Operation Compass scenario pack:

The Italians invaded Egypt on 13th September 1940. Their main problem was the narrow coastal strip. A good road ran the length of Libya, but this stopped at the border with Egypt some five miles west of Sollum.

From that point, troops would have to advance down a narrow track along the narrow coastal strip, or advance along the plateau at the top of the escarpment with their right flank wide open to the south. The escarpment could only be traversed at two places: at Sollum, where the escarpment actually meets the coast with a small trail joining the two; or through the Halfaya Pass some five miles further into Egypt. Both the Sollum trail and the Halfaya Pass made excellent bottlenecks for any defensive action from the British.

1st “23rd March” Blackshirt Division and 1st Libyan Division would advance along the coastal track and attack Sollum. Opposing them at the border was part of the Support Group, under command of Lt. Colonel J. Moubray of 3rd Coldstream Guards, consisting of: 3rd Coldstream Guards; the 25-pounder guns of C and later F Batteries RHA; one company from 1st KRRC; and a company of machine-guns from 1st Royal Northumberland Fusiliers.

The above is the background to my last game of 2017: the third scenario from the Operation Compass scenario pack, #03: The Invasion of Egypt. 

View from the Italian end of the table

I would play the British attempting to do as much damage to the invading Italians as possible before being forced to retreat through sheer weight on numbers. Bevan would play the Italians: unenviable targets in potentially the biggest duck-shoot ever. The table was big: 8ft long by 5ft wide, and devoid of anything of interest except a few hills and lots and lots of folds and creases in the very rough ground.

The Forces

The British

Lt. Colonel Moubray had a small but perfectly formed force. Up front, hiding behind the ridge line on the (his) left of the road closest to the Italians, he had a couple of A9 Cruisers borrowed from 1RTR. Behind them on the next ridge back was a platoon of Guardsmen and one of the Northumberland's MMG teams.

Then, at the back of the table, near the small outcropping to the right of the road, he had placed his two 25lbs of Royal Horse Artillery and another MMG. Behind them, his reserve consisted of another platoon of Coldstreams. 

A tiny force compared to what he could see coming at them down the desert strip, but well-prepared, mostly elite troops keen to give the Italians another bloody nose.

“You are Captain, the Honourable Michael Brodrick of 3rd Battalion, the Coldstream Guards. It is September 1940, and the Italians have finally begun their invasion of Egypt, what, what?
Two days ago, you watched in amazement as a huge column of Italians - motorcyclists in front, followed by infantry in trucks, followed by those tin cans they call tanks - streamed across the border in almost a parade ground formation. By your reckoning, five divisions-worth! And in front of them? Why, just you and your boys, supported by some gunners and grease monkeys from 1RTR. A sticky wicket, if ever there was one!
Luckily, the Eyeties have to keep to a narrow strip of land near the coast - no good in the desert these foreigners: takes an Englishman to do the business, eh? - so can’t project their force properly around your flanks. Means as well that you can punish them as they come forward, eh? What?
Right, orders are not to lose any guns or any tanks, but to delay and do as much damage as possible to our pizza-loving chums. Pisa-loving chums as well, eh? Hah! Hah!
Alright, Sergeant-Major, carry on: let’s show them what for, eh? Middle stump, please...fire!”
— British Briefing

The Italians

Captain Porcini, in charge of the Italians column had the opposite problem: he had loads and loads of men, but they were all of mediocre quality and he could only bring them onto the table in the order in which they were marching.

That meant that most of his infantry (four platoons worth) was up front, and his tanks and artillery (a platoon of four AT guns, a platoon of four field guns, and a platoon of four tankettes) were at the back and would therefore be last to get involved in any action.

Not knowing what was waiting for him either, all he could do was get onto the table and re-act to circumstances. Bevan and I both agreed afterwards that this one of those scenarios that you play a lot better the second time!

“Avanti! Avanti! On to Cairo!
You are Captain Pietro Porcini of 23rd March Blackshirts Division. It is 13th September 1940, and you currently have the honour of leading Il Duce’s invasion of Egypt.
For months you felt nothing but frustration as you twiddled your thumbs in a variety of desolate holes many miles from civilisation. You got used to a numbing boredom alleviated only by the occasional harassing attack from the enemy. Finally, however, the moment has come, and you will lead the way to victory.
You are currently advancing down the rough track that forms the only “road” into Egypt along the coastal strip. You got off to a slow start this morning as your men became entangled with a column of Libyan colonial infantry, but a few swift kicks up the backside soon got things moving again.
The English have been firing artillery at you since dawn, but other than that all you have seen of them is the odd dust cloud on the horizon.
If the invasion is to succeed, you must keep your vanguard column moving. In front of you is another seemingly endless expanse of rough, dirt terrain. Keep moving forward and disperse any enemy you encounter en route.”
— Italian Briefing

The Game

As it happens, getting their column onto the table unmolested proved to be no problem to the Italians, as the British Blinds card proved to be incredibly elusive for the first few turns.  Before the Brits had a chance to anything, the Italians had six units onto the table, and had deployed a platoon of infantry and anti-tank guns  to counter the two British tanks that they had spotted lurking behind the first hill. Faced with four AT guns and having no HE, quite sensibly the tanks withdrew below the crest of the hill to await developments.

The Italians continued to flood onto the table

Finally the British finished their tea and decided it was time to act. Despite the dust they had kicked up, the tanks had spotted the main Italian deployment point, so the RHA opened fire. Useless! Their initial ranging shots proved so far off the mark that it was doubtful the Italians had even noticed any shellfire heading their way!

A different story elsewhere, however. A quick bit of spotting revealed the lead Italian Blind to be a small platoon of motorcyclisti and the order was given  to the nearest Northumberland MMG to open fire. A huge roll of 22 effectively annihilated the lead squad of motorcyclists: ouch!

Meanwhile, the A9s had decided to get into the act. No HE, but their AT rounds would work nicely against the two lorries that had been spotted just next to the motorcyclists. Two solid hits and both were aflame, with stunned Italian infantry leaping out of them in all directions.

As anticipated, it was turning out to be a duck shoot: it was just a question of whether the Italians could organise themselves to do anything about it. Not that that would be easy for them: only two Big Men for the whole force, and a force of only two Actions at that.A good run of the cards, however, meant that an Italian platoon shook itself out and headed up the slope to the ridge behind which lurked the two British Cruiser tanks. With their thin armour, they could be vulnerable to an infantry attack!

Unfortunately for the Italians, the RHA chose that moment to get their eyes in, and shells landed all around the Italian infantrymen, pinning them to the ground.

Most of the Italian column was still under Blinds, so next time the Italian Blinds card came up, Bevan decided to get everything onto the table...and I mean everything. Each remaining Blind shot forward as far as it could and then deployed. Time to bring those numbers to bear...

As I think you can see in the pictures above, the Italians had now developed a plan. The tankettes, anti-tank guns and as much infantry as was around would head for the ridgelines near the British tanks and attempt to drive down that side of the table, presumably outflanking their enemy as they went.

Meanwhile, the Italian field guns would set up and soften up the enemy troops on the ridgelines, with their flanks protected by the remains of the motorcyclists and now-lorry-less infantry.

With Capitano Porcini booting more backsides, and despite the best efforts of the RHA, it wasn't long before the Italians managed to get up onto the ridgeline, and into a position where they could look and shoot down on the British tanks.

The British A9s promptly retreated over the next ridgeline, well aware how vulnerable their flanks were. The British also set their second platoon moving to reinforce the ridgeline: the advantages of having a reserve!

This was a good thing, as the Italian guns had finally set up and found their range. The first platoon of Coldstreams began taking fire: only one death, but being Pinned wasn't going to help them stop the Italian column.

Worse, one of their tanks was hit by an Italian anti-tank gun as it reversed over the ridgeline and prompt brewed up. A catastrophe! Below are the picture of that phase of the battle:

Meanwhile, the rest of the British had been hitting the Italian guns with everything they could, recognising that they were actually the only really dangerous bit of the Italian column. It had taken some doing, but finally the Italian guns had been neutralised.

This was good as, just in time, it meant the two 25pdrs were now free to engage the Italians on the hilltop. They'd better make it quick, however, as things were getting distinctly sticky over there.

Now the RHA had not been shooting very well all game: obviously suffering in the desert heat. If they didn't hit the Italians soon, then it would be too late: the anti-tank guns would take out the remaining A9, and then the tankettes and infantry could swarm forward and perhaps overwhelm the British line.

Fortunately, they chose this moment to get their act together, and the top of the ridge disappeared in a cloud of smoke and dust:

That was enough for the Italians. 

This turn they were Pinned on the ridgetop, and the British had an Artillery card, an Artillery bonus card, and their CinC with the guns to make sure they stayed that way...and down blow, there was so much Shock being suffered that it would have taken a legion of Big Men to sort it out, not the mere two available.

With regret, the Italians began to turn back. The coastal road was effectively blocked for now.

Aftermath and Analysis

Well that had been quite an unusual game of IABSM: rather than a more usual attacker/defender scenario or similar, that had been a duck-shoot and attacker scenario, with victory dependent on whether enough damage could be done to the Italians before they got their act together, and it was quite a close run thing.

Yes, the troops along the road had been comprehensively malleted, and were going nowhere until a lot of Shock had been removed, but on the other hand, the Italian ridgeline force had got itself into a position where a successful attack on the rather small British line did look possible. Thank heavens for the RHA!

Here are a couple of pictures of the final position:

Captain Hindsight

As mentioned before, both Bevan and I agreed that this was a scenario that one would play better the second time. Between us we sketched out what we thought the Italian plan should be:

  • pause as far from the Brits as possible
  • deploy the artillery and machine guns on the large hill on the Italian baseline
  • send forward the motorcyclisti to spot the enemy
  • give them a good pounding with the guns before sending the column forward.

Not historically accurate (our game was much more in tune with what actually happened), but stood a good chance of working.

Our battle had been a great and very interesting game of IABSM: all we now needed was the chance to play it again!

Robert Avery

 
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The Introduction

Big IABSM tomorrow with some of the guys from the SLW. Scenario is a Canadian attack, driving to the objective of the main rail line from Caen.

The Canadians will have Kangaroos to transport one company, tank support, artillery with a pre-game stonk, and a few little surprises as additional support.

The Germans will be made up of a reinforced company, with elements of other units grouped as a Kampfgruppe. The problem will be how they decide to deploy. The table is 12 foot by 6 ft, with the Canadians fighting up the length of the table. 

This is by far the biggest game we have attempted with IABSM. My hope is the size of the table will give the Germans depth to deploy , and give the Canadians a lot to think about. The key will be their plan of attack. 

Here is the table set up. 20mm figures etc to be added tomorrow.

The Game

The Big IABSM game was a cracker! Five players slugged it out over the Caen countryside, with the Canadians pushing slowly but surely through the German defences, towards the railway line. The OOBs were as follows:

Canadians

1 x rifle company of three platoons
1 x rifle platoon in Kangeroo carriers
1 x recce troop
2 x Sherman troops
1 x battery of 25pdr off-table artillery support
3 x pre-game stonks

The Germans

1 x rifle company of three platoons
2 x Tiger tanks
2 x Panther tanks
2 x STuGs
1 x recce adhoc formation with a section of infantry
1 x 120mm mortar battery off-table and FOB.

The forces were not too different, but:

  • Allied artillery was far more reliable and easier to get.
  • The Germans had no idea the point of attack, and had to spread their forces thinly, and hold reserves to plug the gaps.

The Plans

The Canadian plan was a two pronged attack, probing for the enemy, and when found, massed firepower deployed against it.

The Germans split the defence in two, dividing the commands, separated by the main road. The infantry company was deployed in a line across the table with pockets of armour further back. The ad hoc Kampfgruppe was held in the rear as a last gasp force to be thrown in if things got nasty.

The Canadian stonks were a huge success (or so it seemed to the Canadians!) with a host of damage done to any forces in the radius of the shells. Rolling three successive sixes also meant three key buildings were also set alight, denying the church, a key farmhouse for defence. Crucially the FOB had lost the church steeple!!

The Action

The Canadian assault went in and made good progress on the right flank, driving halfway up table before getting bogged down in a firefight with the first line, eventually breaching it, but with heavy losses on both sides.

In the centre, the recce unit initially did well and infantry moved in, again halted at the main line of defence, which they never overcame.

On the left, the advance was slow, and the Kangaroo-mounted platoon were ambushed, taking heavy losses. But what of all the Canadian armour? The armour was on the Blind cards, and turn after turn this card failed to come up. They were also out of spotting range, so never auto-spotted, so they just sat there, unable to influence the battle, much to the frustration of the Allied player.

We agreed that despite the Canadian losses, they had in-fact breached the main line and were close to breaking out. The Tigers were still hidden, and the ad hoc unit available, but they were on the wrong side of the table, and with eight Allied tanks still on table, the chances were getting slimmer of preventing the Canadians from winning the game.

Highlights

The Daimler AC engaging a Panther and inflicting enough shock to drive it off!
The Kangeroo troop being ambushed. Three of the four vehicles were ablaze in minutes.

Hopefully this gives you a flavour of the game.

Desmondo Darkin

 
 
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On 8th September 1939, German Gebirgsjaegers moving along the Carpathian mountain range bumped into a unit of Polish Border Protection Corps mountain troops near the Dukla Pass. After a short battle, the Poles withdrew, leaving the pass open for the Gebirgsjaeger to continue their advance.

That was the background to scenario #39: The Dukla Pass, taken from my just-published scenario booklet, The September War, Part 2: another thirty of so scenarios for IABSM covering the German invasion of Poland in September 1939.

The game would involve both sides wrestling for control of two objectives, with victory going to side that controlled both objectives on any appearance of the Tea Break card.

The town of Dukla, from the Polish side. Note the two objectives.

Each side would start with a certain number of troops on the table, with more due as time goes by. The Poles are outnumbered overall, but get their troops onto the table faster than the Germans, so must use that advantage to try and defeat their enemy in detail rather than facing them all at once.

The Forces

The Poles have two understrength infantry platoons, a unit of mounted scouts, two medium machine guns and two mountain guns. 

I call the Polish platoons understrength, as they only have two squads of infantry instead of the paper-strength three, but those Polish squads are 12-men strong each, making them hard to whittle down.

The Germans have two strong platoons of infantry: each having three eight-man squads, two MMGs and a light mortar. They also have a weaker platoon with only two infantry squads; a platoon of mounted scouts; and a couple of GB mountain guns. All in all, a very tidy force, provided they could get all their troops onto the table.

Game One

I would play the Poles in both games. In the first game, my plan was to storm the left hand objective with my mounted scouts, then hang on grimly whilst the main part of my force took the other.

Accordingly, my first moves were to get the scouts onto the table as fast as possible.

Unfortunately, it seems like my enemy has the same idea, with a Blind suddenly appearing from the hills to the left, followed up by other two Blinds coming up fast from his baseline.

The cards didn't fall my way either, allowing the Germans to occupy the house and barn next to the objective marker before my mounted scouts could even get there. Worse, the rapidly deploying Germans also managed to get a unit near enough to the other objective to count it as "taken", so unless I did something very drastic very fast, this was going to be a very short game indeed.

Fortunately, my scouts knew what was expected of them, so spurred their mounts forward into combat!

Hit in the flank, the first squad of German scouts were bounced out of the hut they had just occupied, losing three of their number in the process. Unfortunately I also lost two men, and was now facing the whole German scout platoon plus a squad of Gebirgsjaeger infantry that had now arrived.

The result was a foregone conclusion and, despite their valiant efforts, the first squad of Polish mounted scouts was soon bounced back and down to zero Actions.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the field, the Germans had managed to get a squad of infantry into the copse of trees holding the other objective marker. I sent in one of my two infantry squads (the other was still off table) to try and shift them, but quickly came under fire from more Germans in the village itself.

Dukla:  twinned with Stalingrad (look at the fountain!)

Although I could probably shift the German squad given time, time was what I did not have, as if the Tea Break card came up, that was it: game over with both objectives in enemy hands. Time for more drastic measures: back to the mounted scouts!

In went the second squad of scouts, desperate to shift the Nazis from the objective by the hut.

An epic charge, with my scouts outnumbered two to one and facing infantry in buildings. The first round of fighting was, unbelievably, a draw, but then numbers began to tell, and soon the second squad of scouts was also reeling backwards and out of any further fighting.

It was then only a matter of time before the Tea Break card appeared and the game declared over and a resounding Polish defeat.

Intermission and a Stewards Inquiry

As the above had only taken about ninety minutes to play, we had plenty of time for a second game. As we cleared all the figures from the table, we discussed the game, with me remarking how extraordinary it was that the Germans managed to get so many of their Blinds onto the table, given the fairly crippling rules about their deployment.

A pause and awkward silence from the other side.

A hastily convened Stewards Inquiry then discovered that the Germans had accidentally fielded at least one platoon too many at the start of the game, giving them the opportunity to take both objectives almost immediately with the plethora of troops therefore available to them.

Ah well, no harm done (can you hear my teeth grinding together?) and lucky we have time for another game!

Game Two

In the second game, I decided to deploy my two infantry platoons first, with my scouts and MMGs the units that I would have to  wait for. One platoon would head for each objective: surely enough to hold out until my reinforcements arrived, particularly as the Germans would only be dripped onto the table this time round.

Blind Six in the picture above is my infantry platoon, with two Dummy Blinds to try and scare the Germans off. Blind Seven is the other infantry platoon, Blind Three my mountain guns.

Unfortunately, the Germans had also come up with a cunning plan: they sent the one infantry platoon they had at their disposal (!) straight for the  objective by the church as well.

Here I made a tactical error. Although my men got up to the objective first, I only sent one squad into the hut to hold it, keeping the other back to (presumably!) offer fire support.

All that this meant was that when the full platoon of Gebirgsjaeger arrived at the hut and stormed it, numbers were thirty German mountain troops versus twelve Polish Border troops.

So I had lost that objective already, and a squad of infantry I could ill afford to lose!

On the other side of the battlefield, however, I had my second platoon of infantry, my machine guns and my CinC (plus FOO) happily positioned in the wood surrounding the objective. Not much to shoot at, though, as the Germans (what little there were  of them) were all on the other side of the village. If only I had some artillery...

The next phase of the game involved me dropping round after round onto his men by the objective, quite happy to wear him down.

In addition to the pin markers and growing number of empty German bases caused by my artillery, you can see in the picture above that the Germans have managed to get their mounted troops into the churchyard. This was starting to put some pressure on my squad at the top of the picture  and, additionally, although I was quite enjoying the stalemate, I wasn't actually getting very far towards winning the game, and those German reinforcements would arrive eventually.

Fortunately, my Blinds card came up, giving me the opportunity to bring on my mounted scouts...and what an opportunity it was.

sorry about the blurry picture: I was getting all excited!

Thundering onto the table under a Blind, the scouts smashed straight into the rear of the German troops lining the hedge in the churchyard. These were annihilated for no loss to my scouts, and even when the other squad moved up to shield the flight of their comrades, I only lost two men.

However, moving his scouts into a position to shoot at my scouts meant that he exposed himself to fire from my squad in the house, and suddenly the Germans had lost their entire unit of mounted scouts for the loss of only two Polish horsemen. The rest of the scouts moved around the church, preparing to make a quick break for the nearby objective should the opportunity arise.

The Germans did then manage to get one platoon of reinforcements onto the table, but we had unfortunately run out of time. One objective was hedl by both sides, so we declared a draw, but the advantage was definitely to the Poles.

Aftermath

A couple of great games of IABSM and a very good testing of the Dukla Pass scenario. We called "honours even" on the day as a whole, which suited both of us nicely (can you still hear my teeth grinding!)

Also goes to show that you can have a great WW2 game without any vehicles and, in my case, giving me anything with a horse is bound to lead to a charge or three!

Robert Avery

 
 
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With the launch of the second half of The September War, my scenario pack for Poland 1939, I thought it was time to do some last minute play-testing. The scenario chosen was #58: Jablon.

It's late September 1939. The surprise Soviet invasion has shattered the Polish border troops left in the east of the country. All looks lost, so any remaining Polish formations have been ordered to break for the nearest border with a neutral country so the fight can continue at a later date. Soviet columns drive deep into Poland hunting out the fleeing Poles. Isolated Polish units engage and block these Soviet columns wherever they can, trying to hold them off for long enough for the bulk of their comrades to escape.

One such encounter took place on 28th September, with a contingent of mixed Polish troops (border troops, dismounted cavalry, naval infantry) trying to hold the advancing Soviets at bay in and near the village of Jablon.

The game premise was simple: the Poles would start the game by placing an objective marker anywhere in or around the big farmhouse opposite the church. If the Soviets managed to capture and hold the objective marker on any appearance of the Tea Break card, then they win the battle. The Poles, however, are trying to slip away under cover of darkness, which would fall sometime after the sixth appearance of the Tea Break card. If the Poles still hold the objective on any appearance of the Tea Break card after darkness has fallen, then they win the game.

The Soviets would start the game advancing towards Jablon. Looking at the picture, above, Soviet Blinds would start the game as far onto the table as the far side of the Polikarpov's flight stand base. The Soviets had a company of infantry and a company of T-26 light tanks (well, nine) at their disposal. The Soviet platoons were three squads of ten men each, with a Level I Big Man in charge. They  had only a couple of MMGs and three light mortars as support: the column had outstripped its other assets. There was also a small chance the Polikarpov would intervene.

For their part, the Poles began the game with their support weapons and a platoon of infantry on table under Blinds, with a further two platoons of infantry arriving when the Blinds card and dice allowed! The Polish platoons were all fairly battered two-squad platoons. Their support consisted of four somewhat ancient 75mm guns and a couple of tchankas.

Not knowing exactly where the Poles were, the Soviets decided on a double-pronged attack. One platoon of tanks and an infantry platoon would go up each side of the battlefield, aiming to swing round and hit the large farmhouse from the side. The third infantry platoon would augment the right hand thrust (Blinds #3, #5 and #6 in the picture above). Finally, the MMGs and Company HQ mortars would lay down fire from a central position. 

Not phased by the sea of red thundering towards him, Dave, playing the Poles, began to spot from his hidden Blinds. As he was spotting into open ground, before long he had a very good idea of what he was facing. Amusingly, this also meant that the chips were stacked very much against him...and, yes, I was using my blue French poker chips for the Poles.

As the Russians got closer, the Polish guns and machine guns opened fire from their concealed positions. The big farmhouse held a tchanka and a field gun. The hedge line in front (i.e. towards the Soviets) held the other tchanka and another gun. Finally there were two more guns dug-in towards the rear of the table, but still able to direct fire into the oncoming Red Army horde.

but how did they get the horses up the stairs?

time was ticking on: the poles had received reinforcements

The Soviet light tanks opened up as well, and this exchange of fire between the T-26s and Polish support weapons would take up the next phase of the game: the Russians edging their infantry forward whenever they could. As the climax of the game approached, honours stood fairly even: one T-26 each side had bailed, and the Polish tchanka crew and gun crew by the church had been so battered that any survivors had abandoned their weapons and fled.

The Climax

The Soviet approach phase actually took longer than the simple paragraph, above, implies: about 45 minutes of playing time and around four appearances of the Tea Break card. It was getting late and the Poles still looked pretty comfortable. Then came the very rapid climax of the game.

Up came the Soviet Human Wave chip, formerly known as the Uraaaaaaaaagh! chip. This was too good an opportunity to miss, and Bevan, playing the Soviet infantry, hurled a platoon at the Polish positions in the farmhouse. The extra charge bonus that the chip gave him meant that the whole platoon went in okay, but another squad from the other Soviet infantry platoon came up short, giving rise to the first of quite a few "if only's".

A huge Close Combat broke out between the charging Soviets and the troops in that section of the farmhouse. If you look closely at the above picture, you can just see the barrel of the Polish artillery pieces in the middle window: it couldn't fire, but its crew grabbed their weapons and piled in, giving the Poles about 15 men with which to fend off the 29 Soviets, many of whom were puffing and panting after their long run in.

In the event, this first round of melee was a draw: with each side losing five men. This could have been disastrous for the Poles, but they had a second squad on the other side of the building, and the tchanka crew from upstairs along with a couple of Big Men including the company commander,who joined in for the re-match.

Desperate to hold on to the objective marker, the Poles fought like lions: this time sending the Soviet platoon, or what was left of it, fleeing backwards, completely mullered. It would take no further part in the game.

This victory was at a high cost, however. Both Polish Big Men were killed, and an anti-tank rifle team that had been doing sterling work against the enemy T-26s. In all, the Poles were left with one squad of infantry, the tchanka (four crew left), and the artillery piece (four crew left)...all of whom were carrying quite a bit of Shock.

The Soviets, however, had plenty of men left, and moved their next infantry platoon, still at full strength, up into position to charge into the farmhouse on their next activation. With them they had their Big Man, and Commissar Dushkin to make sure they understood the, er, seriousness of the situation!

All the Soviets needed was the opportunity to go in, and the objective was surely theirs.

Unfortunately, and here's another "if only", the Gods of the chip bag had other plans. Despite the huge number of Soviet chips in the bag, the first three  out of the bag were:

The three remaining Polish guns fired into the Russian infantry platoon as it lined up to start its charge, effectively annihilating one squad. Dave began to relax slightly.

Big mistake.

The next chip out of the bag was the Soviet Heroic Commander chip: and in went the infantry again!

Unfortunately, the dice were with the Poles, and only the front Soviet squad made it into Close Combat, so despite the heroic efforts of Commissar Dushkin (with the flag) and the Big Man (both of whom survived), the Soviets were pushed back again.

At that point, dusk fell, meaning that the next appearance of the Tea Break chip would end the game, with victory going to whoever held the objective marker in the farmhouse. The Poles still had two platoons under Blinds, but the surviving Soviet platoon was just as big as those two combined, and there were still seven T-26s in action.

But it was not to be.

I picked up the full chip bag, plunged my hand inside, and drew out...the Tea Break chip.

Night had fallen and, under cover of its all enveloping darkness, the remaining and victorious Poles slipped away.

Aftermath

Well that was a game and a half!

For those who say that IABSM is a slow game, we completed the above in about 2½ hours, and even if night hadn't fallen with such a thump, would probably have fought out the remaining action in a maximum of another hour or so.

I had thought that the Soviets would walk all over the Poles, but all that open ground and the lack of support weapons with which to suppress their opponents really made a difference.

On the Polish side, they effectively fought the battle with only two thirds of their force, so although they didn't have much left in the farmhouse, they could have reinforced the troops in their with ease.

A great game, and one that is definitely passed as ready for inclusion in The September War, Part II.

Robert Avery

 
 
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This game was part of the 2nd Mech Corps attempt to capture Budapest before the end of 1944. Axis forces are a hodgepodge of small units. It was also a chance to use my recently painted Hungarian toys.

We decided to call it at this stage. The Russians were running out of infantry: 30 out of 64 men down along with two COs. Really weak to begin with. The T34s were strong on the right so might have able to hold their own against the Billnitzer Group. But having an IS2 taken out by the Turan was a surprise.

Hungarian Police were barely touched: only 3 KIA. The Grenadiers were down 16 men and had no COs left. Both Nashorns gone.

Neither FO was able to do much in this game.

Mark Luther

 
 
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It's 0715 on 15 May 1940, and KG Klink, attached to the 7th Panzer Division, is on the move.  The 7th Panzer Division has broken through the French front line and is on the road to Flavion, with reconnaissance elements pushing both north and south of the city in search of a way to by-pass the city, or at least find an undefended back door. 

North of Flavion, recce elements of KG Klink have discovered a ford over the River Moiste near a small farming hamlet; led by KG Klink's Reconnaissance Company Commander, 1st Lieutenant Wehner, the Germans quickly push across the river and secure a small bridgehead on the western bank, before sending for reinforcements.  Colonel Klink, the Kampfgruppe Commander, immediately broke off a detachment of infantry and armor to reinforce Lt Wehner at the ford.  But time is of the essence; French forces under Captain Cognac have spied the German bridgehead and are already forming up for a counterattack.

I am playing this game, the sixth of KG Klink's campaign during the Fall of France in 1940, with my eight-year old son, with me commanding the Germans and the boy commanding the French.  We are playing the games in 10mm, a mix of Pendraken and Minifigs UK troops and equipment, on a 6' x 4' table, using Too Fat Lardies' "I Ain't Been Shot Mum," modified a bit to suit our tastes. 

The scenario is "Cognac and Moiste Cabbage," written by Robert Avery and published in the Lardies' Christmas 2005 Special.  On a side note, Mr. Avery is now pasting my IABSM battle reports on the Vis Lardica website (https://www.vislardica.com/); I am happy for the extra exposure, and proud to be considered a contributor.

Overview, north is up, with the German baseline at right (east) and the French at left (west).  The River Moiste is at center, running north to south, and the key ford is at center right, where the dirt road intersects with the river.  The ground is flat, rolling fields, with heavy stands of trees at far right, bottom center, left, top left, and far left. 

Cabbage fields abound, providing no significant cover or concealment nor real impediment to movement, but there is a stone wall (the sideways 'V' at center left/bottom) that halts movement and is only barely passable to tracked vehicles; similarly, there is a wooden fence running along the northern side of the main, east-west running road.  The fence itself is not the problem, it's the drainage ditch running just below, invisible to the naked eye ;) , the fence. 

At top left is The Farm, consisting of a residence, an outbuilding, and a barn.  At center is the tollkeeper's house, and at top center right is Mademoiselle Chevelle's home.

A close up of the objective, the ford (center), with the tollkeeper's home at bottom left and Mlle Chevelle's home at top right.  You get a good look at some of the cabbage fields and the wooden fence running on the north side of the main road.

The objective of the game is possession of the ford, with possession being defined as having troops on the enemy's side of the river at the conclusion of the fight.  The Germans start the game in defensive positions, with guidance being to set up a significant amount of their forces on the western (French) side of the river.  The French begin the game at The Farm, in the northwest (top left), which is their marshalling area for the counterattack.

The Forces Involved

The opposing forces, with Germans on right and French on left.  Each side will begin the game with a main force on the table, then each side will receive two separate sets of reinforcements as the game goes on.

The Germans 

The entire German force

Here is what the Germans have on the table at the beginning of the game. 

Looking at the picture of the initial German force, top right:

  • At bottom center is the onsite commander, 1st Lt Wehner, Recon Company Commander and holder of the Iron Cross, 2nd Class.
  • At top right is Lt Wehner's 1st Motorcycle Platoon (already dismounted).  They are led by SSgt Gradl, holder of the Iron Cross 2nd Class.  He has three squads:

1st Squad - SSgt Sachs
2nd Squad - Cpl Rein, a replacement squad leader.
3rd Squad - Cpl Wilhelm

  • At top center are two squads of the Assault Engineer Platoon:

1st Squad - Sgt Barkstrom
2nd Squad - Sgt Hafl

  • And center left is a Schwerer Platoon consisting of:

an MG-34 team under LCpl Steinkamp
and two Pak-36 37mm anti-tank guns under Sgt Kallenbach

German Reinforcements

On the fourth draw of the "Turn Card" the Germans will receive reinforcements from the KG's Panzer Company, specifically, two Pz IVCs from 4th Panzer Platoon:

Sgt Graebner's tank, holder of the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, with four tank kills

Sgt Kapp's tank

And on turn 10 the infantry arrive, the Schutzen Company's 2nd Grenadier Platoon under 1st Lieutenant Ost, with three squads:

1st Squad - Sgt Lutz
2nd Squad - Lipniki
3rd Squad - Sgt Axthelm

They are riding in trucks and accompanied by a section of two 80mm mortars under LCpl Vigerte, seeing his first action of the war.

The French

Here are the French, under Captain Cognac:

This monstrosity is the force the French start the fight with on the table.  I must admit I'm a bit nervous, looking at the force arrayed against me. 

At top centre right is Capt Cognac's command stand. 

At top left are two platoons of infantry, each consisting of a platoon commander and three squads. 

At bottom left is a weapons platoon of two machine guns and an 81mm mortar (the scenario says it's supposed to be a 60mm mortar; I don't have a 60mm mortar for the French, so I resolved to use an 81mm mortar but treat it like a 60mm mortar, but, in the event, I forgot, and ended up treating like an 81mm mortar). 

At centre are two Somua S35s, with a single H39 to their right.  At bottom centre/right is a 75mm field gun being towed by a horse team; it's supposed to be towed by a truck in the scenario, but I've got horses so they're using horses (no difference in capability on the table, and wouldn't matter anyway as they came straight off Blinds into firing position during the game).

At turn 8 the French receive this beast as reinforcement.  Please note this is a different Char B than I used in the last fight.  Why am I telling you this?  Just pointing out how goof I am; I actually have three Char Bs, but only two S35s and three H-35/39s.  And my British early war tanks are even more limited.  To be honest, I never really thought I'd be playing early WWII games, it was something that hadn't really interested me before I started the KG Klink saga.

And in Turn 12 the French receive another platoon of infantry as reinforcements.

And in Turn 12 the French receive another platoon of infantry as reinforcements.

The Game Begins

Below is  an overview of the map, north is up, this time with Blinds on the table.  The German Blinds are at centre bottom and top centre, while the French Blinds are all at top left, in and around the farm and intersection.

Yes, the playing cards as Blinds are ugly, but I'm having a hard time coming up with an alternative as these are so simple, cheap, and effective (for play purposes, not aesthetics), and there are so many variations as to make a prettier solution tough.  What I mean is, each game is different and has different forces.  I'm playing with an 8-year old, so I'm trying to keep things as straightforward as possible.  So I can buy pack after pack of playing cards and write directly on them what the card is: i.e., 1st Rifle Platoon (PC and 3 Squads), Weapons Plt (2 MGs and 1 Mortar), Field Gun, Char B, etc...  But I can't see doing that with something that is better looking but much more expensive.

I know a lot of guys make pretty Blinds and just label them as "Blind #1," then they have a roster on the side to show what troops Blind #1 is.  Again, I'm trying to keep things simple for the boy, I don't want any confusion as to where he puts the Blinds, what he does with them (because he thinks it's a certain unit), or what troops go on the table when the Blind gets lifted.  And printing off new blinds each game doesn't work either; I'm a cheapskate, and printer ink gets damn expensive!  So, I apologize for the ugliness of the playing cards, but I don't see another way right now.  

I am all ears if someone out there has an idea for prettier Blinds that I can write the exact unit on AND change to meet the unique needs of every single game. 

The Germans have four Blinds (out of a total of seven, three real, four dummy) in the south and three Blinds in the north.

And the French mass in the northwest, with a total of eleven Blinds (if I recall correctly), three of which were dummies.

And the game is afoot!  The French Blinds start pushing east towards the ford (top center), approaching the unseen German forces at top left and top right.  I would later verbally and physically abuse the boy for being so timid with his Blinds and not pushing forward stronger to seize the river crossing.  We both have seen everything about each other's forces, the only secret is their location, so he knows exactly how little I have and how much he has, and he knows what to do (you'll see him establish a base of fire and begin pushing his manoeuvre elements forward, just not as aggressively as I expected).
 

The French Blind at the Farm's residence (bottom centre), quite unbelievably, have spotted movement across the river, in the treeline to the northeast (top centre left).  Whatever could it be?

It's my damn Weapons Platoon, dammit!  Two ATGs (the infamous "doorknockers," at top left and centre), and the MG-34 (bottom right).  Sorry for the blurry photo, I'm just aggravated that he spotted these guys, immobile in the treeline, so quickly.  This is not good at all...

Wow, what a fight!!!  At the same time, I feel terrible, my boy is shellshocked!  Just kidding; he was a bit on Sunday, when we played, but's it's Monday and he's already over it.  But man, that was rough!  We talked about him being a bit more aggressive; his comment was 'being the attacker is kind of hard.'  I couldn't help but laugh; he gets it.  It's not fun having to move up and expose yourself to enemy fire in order to accomplish your mission, but it's gotta be done, and he's showing a pretty good grasp of fire and maneuver between elements. 

We also talked about small unit leadership, working to make sure your leaders are in the right spot at the right time to help your attack or defense succeed.  I really didn't like his positioning of his CO on his far right, for a supporting effort (we talked about unity of effort and focus of effort, too), and late getting to the main effort (Somua, H39, and 2nd Platoon pushing up the road).  I thought he did a good job with his supporting fires; I wouldn't have fired the mortars on the German tanks, I would have kept them on the north treeline and pounded the German Weapons Platoon into oblivion, then shifted fire to the south treeline to pound the Motorcycle Platoon.  Having said that, what he did worked; the MGs, mortar (for a moment), and field gun did a good job overall in keeping the German Weapons Platoon in check, until the shifted the field gun to firing at the German tanks, too.  Shifting the mortar and the field gun to the German tanks kept them out of the fight, but was probably too much, and let the German MG and one ATG back into the fight, as well. 

Having said all that, I should have just kept my damn Company commander up there with the Weapons Platoon, and I had some bad luck with the tanks not activating much, and then one running away.  And I would have been in more trouble if the boy would have pushed sooner in the center; we talked about the art of trying to time up the assault with appropriate suppression by supporting fires.  It turns out he had the idea down, he just didn't foresee how long it was going to take his assault troops to get to the objective once the Germans were sufficiently beat up.

But it still all came down to that crazy close combat at the toll keeper's house; I was certain I was going to lose that fight, and by all accounts, I should have.  I figured I was going to have to throw in the towel; my tanks cover the withdrawal, holding the French at the ford while Weapons Platoon falls back in the north and the Motorcycle Platoon has to drop all its gear and swim the river to escape.  But somehow I won; the French moved up with a PC and three squads in good order.  I had a PC, a suppressed squad (-2 in close combat), and a 'men down' squad (-3 in close combat).  The first round of combat was atrocious for the boy, and it didn't get any better.

In the first round he had a squad match up against each of mine, and then the PCs faced off.  I went -2 and -3 but managed to tie both squad vs squad fights, and then my PC beat his PC in a straight up roll!  The two French squads fell back, suppressed, and their PC went down.  Their 3rd Squad charged my PC and put him out, but then I beat a suppressed French squad in an even-up roll off, and I beat his fresh squad despite being -2.  Then I finished off his last squad in an even-up roll off (both sides were suppressed).  Incredible!

Casualties:

German: ~25 casualties, one PaK-36 ATG destroyed
French: ~60 casualties, one 75mm field piece destroyed, two Somua S35 tanks destroyed

Character casualties:

  • Cpl Rein, 2nd Squad, 1st Motorcycle Platoon, Recon Company, KIA
  • SSgt Gradle, Commander, 1st Motorcycle Platoon, Recon Company, WIA - out for campaign
  • Sgt Hafl, 2nd Squad, Engineer Platoon, Recon Company, WIA - out for campaign
  • Sgt Kallenbach, ATG Section, Schwere Platoon, Schutzen Company, WIA - ambulatory
  • Sgt Barkstrom, 1st Squad, Engineer Platoon, Recon Company, WIA - ambulatory

Awards:

  • SSgt Gradle, Commander, 1st Motorcycle Platoon, Recon Company, was awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class, for leading the defense of the Toll Keeper's House at the ford of the River Moiste.
  • Sgt Hafl, 2nd Squad, Engineer Platoon, Recon Company, was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class, for the defense of the Toll Keeper's House at the ford of the River Moiste.
  • Sgt Barkstrom, 1st Squad, Engineer Platoon, Recon Company, was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class, for the defense of the Toll Keeper's House at the ford of the River Moiste.
  • Sgt Kallenbach, ATG Section, Schwere Platoon, Schutzen Company, was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class, for destroying two enemy tanks in the defense at the ford of the River Moiste.


*Lt Wehner did not report Sgt Kapp for withdrawing his tank from the fight; Sgt Graebner told the Lieutenant he would take care of the matter.

The rules are working like a champ; the boy finally complained about the Tea Break card ("maybe we ought to take out the Tea Break card..."), but I talked to him about friction, not being able to do everything you want, when you want, and he was okay.  Our 'blinds move at end of turn' house rule worked; my only complaint there, as I mentioned above, is the ugliness of my blinds, and my only answer so far is to move to get the blinds off the table as quickly as possible. 

My only other complaint is how long the games take; I don't want to sound like a whiner, but you have to keep in mind I play a LOT of skirmish games and small, platoon-level games where I can play three games in as many hours.  Our game last week took about 3 1/2 hours and this one took about 4 1/2 hours.  So I'm not complaining that they are inordinately long games, it's just that I can only take playing so many long games in a row before I get aggravated and move back to playing my small, quick games for awhile.

Having said that, we're having a lot of fun and I really want to keep this going so I can close out KG Klink's "Fall of France" episode and move on to whatever is next.    

Anyway, hopefully we've given you an entertaining battle report to enjoy, some food for thought regarding the rules, and some food for thought regarding the future of KG Klink (and go ahead and toss your thoughts my way, please).  Thanks for reading, hope you liked it.

Jack

 
 
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This was the second game of two that we played on the same afternoon. Both very fast, but not very bloody.

We used the same terrain as for the previous encounter, but with enough differences to ensure that we couldn't use all the weak/strong points that we'd found in the last game.

The Germans begin the game by deploying their artillery, more to scare their opponents than anything else.

Everything else, for both sides, is hidden under Blinds.

As soon as the game begins, the British think that they could gain the most advantage by combining their force and attacking a single point.

Although this meant that the British could advance quickly in three spearheads, it didn't actually work as a tactic, as their armoured vehicles were easily picked off.

As a result of their losses, the British did not advance beyond the wire, so the result was total victory for the Germans.

Burt Minorrot

 
 
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It's 1600 on 14 May 1940, and KG Klink, attached to the 7th Panzer Division, is on the move.  Earlier this morning KG Klink attacked and destroyed a strongpoint manned by the French 5th Infantry Division.  Having broken through 7th Panzer Division is on the road to Flavion.  However, an hour ago, 7th Panzer reconnaissance elements on the march came under fire from the (fictional) French village of Riqueville.  7th Panzer continued west around the village, and KG Klink immediately received a FragO to stand detached to reduce yet another French strongpoint. 

Colonel Klink decided to lead the assault himself, composed of the better part of his Grenadier Company, two platoons of tanks, a portion of the Kampfgruppe's Reconnaissance Platoon, and a section of 80mm mortars.  Aerial reconnaissance stated the French force as a couple platoons of infantry with perhaps a couple crew-served weapons, with maybe a single tank in support.  Ordinarily a single tank in support wouldn't be something for Colonel Klink to be too concerned about, but when that tank is a Char B, with it's extraordinarily heavy armor...

Regarding rules, I'm messing around again. Years ago, when my father was still alive, he'd come over pretty much every weekend and we'd play wargames (sadly, this was before I created a blog to record all my wargaming efforts).  In any case, we primarily played three games: Force on Force, Bag the Hun, and I Ain't Been Shot Mum (IABSM).  So it's been awhile, but I've had a hankering for some larger, reinforced-company level games that are a bit grittier that what I normally play, so I decided to give IABSM another try. 

I did change some things up, vastly simplifying the shooting and morale mechanics, but I've kept the 'guts' of the game as written: platoon and 'Big Man' activation randomized by cards and further randomized by the 'Tea Break,' starting the game on 'blinds' and having to be spotted, and variable (diced-for) movement.  I say guts; others may have differing opinions, but to me, those items are what set the IABSM rules apart from others. 

This desire to play a larger game and try out IABSM again also happened to coincide with my eight year-old boy telling me "it's been a long time Daddy, we should have another battle."  I happily acquiesced ;)

The Battlefield

Overview. North is DOWN, with the Germans entering the table at left (east) and the French defending the right (west) half of the table, including the village, at top right (southwest). 

The north is covered with crop fields and bushes which provide neither cover nor concealment, and while the bushes across the entirety of the table might look a bit bocage-ey, they're just bushes.  At far left is The Chateau, which has The Orchard just above it.  At centre top left is The Farm (with a wood fence running around it and north *down* through the fields), and at centre/centre right is The Granary.

The figures that will be used are 10mm: a mix of Pendraken and Minifigs.  Basically it breaks out to most of the infantry are Minifigs and most of the vehicles are Pendraken.

The Germans

At left in the photo below is the Kampfgruppe Commander, Colonel Klink, proud owner of the Iron Cross 2nd Class for his actions in Poland.  At top is the German infantry company: top centre left is the company commander, Captain Freitag (Iron Cross 2nd Class).  He has three of his four platoons available.

I thought about adding all of the Iron Cross holders as "Big Men," but I didn't. I only did the KG Commander, the Company Commander, and each Platoon Commander, which is how I treated the French as well.

The Infantry

1st Platoon Commander: 1st Lieutenant Klugmann, Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class

  • 1st Squad, 1st Platoon: SSgt Aust
  • 2nd Squad, 1st Platoon: Sgt Kamphaus
  • 3rd Squad, 1st Platoon: Sgt Lehmkuhl


3rd Platoon Commander: SSgt Janke, Iron Cross 2nd Class

  • 1st Squad, 3rd Platoon: Sgt Hauer, Iron Cross 2nd Class*
  • 2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon: Sgt Nader
  • 3rd Squad, 3rd Platoon: Cpl Arndt, Wound Badge


4th Platoon Commander: SSgt Mader, Iron Cross 2nd Class, Tank Killer Badge

  • 1st Squad, 4th Platoon: Sgt Imhofe, Iron Cross 2nd Class*
  • 2nd Squad, 4th Platoon: Sgt Kandler
  • 3rd Squad, 4th Platoon: Cpl Rishel, Replacement Squad Leader


Two vehicles of the Reconnaissance Platoon:

  • SdKfz 221: Platoon Commander, 2nd Lieutenant Weidner, 1 Tank Kill
  • SdKfz 221: Cpl Edst, replacement vehicle commander


Three vehicles from 2nd Tank Platoon:

  • Pz III: Platoon Commander: 1st Lieutenant Loeb, Iron Cross 2nd Class, 2 Wound Badges, 4 Tank Kills
  • Pz III: SSgt Grossman
  • Pz III: Sgt Mayer, 1 Tank Kill

Two vehicles from 4th Tank Platoon:

  • Pz IV: Platoon Commander: SSgt Mangold, 2 Tank Kills
  • Pz IV: Cpl Ed st, Replacement vehicle commander

Mortars

  • A mortar section under Sgt Osswald, who has been incredibly unreliable in the past. Sgt Osswald is the forward observer on a motorcycle
  • Two 80mm mortars and crews

The French

The French are commanded by Major Renaut (left) and have:

  • Two rifle platoons of three squads each (Lieutenants Renoir and Gagne, respectively)
  • A weapons section of a single machine gun and a 25mm anti-tank gun (I gave them bonus MG fire and a bonus ATG fire)
  • A single Char B commanded by Sgt Guillaume.

Opening Moves

Overview, looking north to south, Germans on the left (east) and French on the right (west), everyone on Blinds. 

The French have a Blind for each rifle platoon, weapons platoon, the Char B, and four dummy Blinds. 

The Germans have a Blind for all three rifle platoons, both tank platoons, the recon platoon, and the weapons platoon (mortars), plus three dummy Blinds.

Looking east to west from behind the Germans.  I'm playing the Germans.

I've got my infantry on the left, intend on getting my mortars set up around the chateau (bottom left), got Recon and Panzer IVs on the road, Pz IIIs at bottom right.

Looking west to east from behind the French: the boy is playing the French, so I had no idea at the time, but it turns out he put the tank at bottom left with two dummy Blinds, two dummy Blinds in the centre, and then the two rifle platoons and the MG/ATG at bottom right.

The Germans move first, pushing their blinds west and trying to spot the dastardly French.
 

A French Blind creeps up to the Granary (centre, with the ville at bottom center/right) and peers east (top)...

The Action Begins

Intermission

For those not familiar with IABSM, when you start the game every unit is on 'Blinds,' which we are using poker cards for, and you draw cards to move Blinds/units/dummy Blinds.  At the beginning of the game you only have three cards in the activation deck: Allied Blinds, Axis Blinds, and Tea Break.  But as units get spotted and/or the owning player decides he needs to get them on the table, cards for the units and their leaders (or "Big Men," as the Lardies call them) go into the action deck.

So right now the deck has the following cards:

  • German 1st Rifle Platoon activation
  • German 1st Rifle Platoon Commander
  • German 4th Rifle Platoon activation
  • German 4th Rifle Platoon Commander
  • German Rifle Company Commander
  • German Weapons Platoon activation
  • German Recon Platoon activation
  • German Recon Platoon Commander
  • German 2nd Tank Platoon activation
  • German 2nd Tank Platoon commander
  • Axis Blinds
  • French 1st Tank Platoon activation
  • French 2nd Rifle Platoon activation
  • French 2nd Rifle Platoon Commander
  • French Company Commander
  • French Weapons Platoon activation
  • French MG Bonus Fire
  • French ATG Fire
  • Allied Blinds
  • Tea Break

When the Tea Break card pops out the turn is over and the deck gets re-shuffled.  So we've had a number of turns since we added troops to the table (and their cards to the deck) where the Blinds haven't gotten to do anything, and it's really frustrating and doesn't make a lot of sense, and, as I recall, was part of the reason I gave up on the rules. 

If you're not familiar, it is supposed to be a huge bonus to still have troops on Blinds.  These are your guys that have yet to be detected by the enemy, so they can't be shot at and they don't have to deal with terrain when they're moving.  But I think the fix is simple, and can't believe it didn't occur to me earlier: there are some set actions units that did not activate are allowed to undertake as part of the end-of turn sequence.  Frankly, I just ignore these as I figure if the unit(s) didn't get to activate, well, that's the whole point of friction in rules.  But I feel like Blinds not being able to activate doesn't make sense, so I think the answer is to allow Blinds to activate automatically as part of the end of turn sequence.  I'll try it out next game and let you know.

Back to the Action

Captain Freitag (left) has managed to get the understrength 1st Platoon back into fighting shape, though SSgt Mader's 4th Platoon is beat up (top center), while Sgt Osswald, the mortar FO, has managed to get into position in the Farm (far right).

*yeah, that's right, the mortars have yet to speak this game.  Don't misunderstand, I'm not complaining.  I was complaining about Blinds not activating because it's supposed to be a big advantage to be on Blinds, but it doesn't bother me at all that units actually on the table don't activate, that's the point of friction!

I hope my commentary isn't ruining the narrative: it probably would have been better if I'd simply typed something like "the mortar section got their tubes set up and began cracking open ammo crates, only to discover the rounds were supplied without the fuses!  Sgt Osswald quickly dispatched a team back to the rear to find some fuses for their 80mm HE rounds."

Aftermath

Man, what a fight!  I was a bit worried about the disparity in size between the attacking German force and the defending French force; my experience is that most wargame rules struggle with games that have substantial differences in the size of the opposing forces.  But the friction/fog of war brought about by the use of the cards meant that the fight was extraordinarily tense and the outcome hung in the balance until the very end.  The fight was very enjoyable for both of us and we will definitely play again, the only change being our house rule of allowing Blinds to activate at the end of the turn if their cards don't come out.

KG Klink accomplished its mission of taking the village, but it was a real meat grinder.  Here are the casualties for the battle:

German

  • 55 KIA/WIA/MIA (including the rifle company commander, a platoon commander, and two squad leaders!)
  • One Pz III knocked out
  • One Sdkfz 221 knocked out

French

  • 40 KIA/WIA/MIA
  • 20 Captured
  • One Char B destroyed
  • One 25mm ATG destroyed

Character casualties

  • Sgt Hauer, Leader, 1st Squad, 4th Platoon, Grenadier Company, holder of the Iron Cross 2nd Class, was killed in action.
  • Captain Freitag, Grenadier Company Commander, was severely wounded, ending his campaign in France.
  • SSgt Mader, Leader, 4th Platoon, Grenadier Company, was severely wounded, ending his campaign in France.
  • SSgt Aust, Leader, 1st Squad, 1st Platoon, Grenadier Company, was severely wounded, ending his campaign in France.
  • SSgt Grossman, Vehicle Commander, 2nd Platoon, Panzer Company, was wounded but is able to return to action immediately.

With Captain Freitag out for the duration of the campaign in France, the Grenadier Company needs an interim commander.  Col Klink was going to push Lt Klugmann into the spot, but had second thoughts following the action at Riqueville.  Following his platoon being shot to pieces and his commander being severely wounded right next to him, Lt Klugmann had fallen into a funk, and so the 2nd Platoon commander, Lt Tausch, was given the company.

Colonel Klink never showed up; I guess his vehicle broke down on the way to the battlefield, or maybe he went to the rear to help find those 80mm mortar fuzes.  For the mortars that never fired...which reminds the good Colonel, something needs to be done about that slacker, Sgt Osswald.

In terms of heroics, two members of KG Klink were recognized for their personal bravery on the field of battle:

  • 1st Lieutenant Loeb, commander of the 2nd Platoon, KG Klink's Panzer Company, holder of the Iron Cross 2nd Class and two Wound Badges, was awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class for heroism in leading his tank platoon through heavy fire against a qualitatively superior enemy dominating a key crossroads adjacent KG Klink's objective.  Lt Loeb maneuvered his platoon in a flanking maneuver, then personally pushed his vehicle nose to nose with enemy tank, blasting the enemy tank to destruction at point blank range (his crew members were also decorated).  This kill was Lt Loeb's fifth tank kill of the war.
  • Cpl Edst, Vehicle Commander, Reconnaissance Platoon, was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class for bravery.  When his platoon commander engaged at point blank range by enemy infantry, Cpl Edst placed his vehicle in the line of fire, eliminating the threat.  When his platoon commander's vehicle was destroyed by enemy anti-tank fire, Cpl Esdst pushed his vehicle forward to cover his platoon commander's evacuation.  Cpl Edst then engaged an enemy tank with auto-cannon fire in order to distract it from maneuvers by friendly panzers to outflank the enemy tank, engaged an enemy strongpoint in a building in the village to relieve pressure on KG Klink's pinned infantry company, and then Cpl Edst fought off a charging enemy officer attempting to disable his vehicle in close combat.

Hope you had as much fun as we did!

Jack