GCACW All Green Alike

Really quick writeup for a game of Stonewall Jackson's Way II.  Played an alternate first Manassas scenario where the USA moves quicker - and boy did they move.

Start of scenario, the Union have to cross the river and take the spaces marked with tile spacers.

End of first day and the game.  USA had a large run of activations before the CSA allowing them to attack twice at the top left of the CSA line and breakthrough.  They then got to attack again before the CSA moved to take the second one to the left.  CSA got to move once after that and moved to where the third battle star is - USA got another couple of initiative and bounced the CSA out of there as well.  Off to the far left the USA forces made it to that spot you see on the RR keeping Stonewall from getting anywhere near the VC locations.  Called it a game at that point.  Decisive Union victory.

ASL scenario BFP22: Speed Over Caution

Played Bounding Fire Productions scenario 22 titled Speed Over Caution today.  It takes place on board 6 with overlays to get rid of the manor house and uses BFP's light bocage rules.  Basically making them half height, 1.5MF to cross, and no blind hex behind them.

Tycho had a plan for the US so I took the defending Germans.  The highlight for the Germans are two Panther tanks, two Shrecks, and an HMG.  The last useful item is a roadblock.

On the US side the draw is six tanks, three with Gyros, one with a 76L, and an 8-1 armor leader.  In addition they had 2 Bazookas and 2MMG.  The troop ratio was 11.5 squads to 8 and 3 leaders to 2.

Sorry Tycho, couldn't resist...

A look at the game start.  US troops have to control the buildings in the Yellow area OR get 20cvp off the board where the US star is at the bottom.

The first US tank enters the board, fired on by a Faust which misses, the tank was not one with a Gyro so the Panther shot at him and brewed him up as shown.

First one down.

Second one comes on board, this time the 76L armed Sherman.  Fires and misses, Panther takes an IF shot and rolls 11...

He then fires his MGs and causes a stun and DMs the riders on the tank to boot.

Third Tank Comes on board and suffers a BIG STUN result from entering the Bore Sighted HMG location (and more hot dice for me).

Two US Tanks down.

Another Sherman suffers another little stun result from the HMG position.

That HMG is on a roll...

Situation at the end of the US half of turn 1.

The Panther fixes his MA on the first try and destroys the 76L armed Sherman.  At this Tycho wisely thought it was over...

Keep playing, you still have a chance, my luck has to turn sometime...

End of German turn 1.  The CX squad next to the Panther fired on a squad I had moved into the Panther's hex for some hairbrained reason I don't remember.  It deserved the fate it got.  The squad with the LMG was trying to get the Wall Advantage HS with the Baz to fire at him so the Panther could scoot on by, no luck so the Squad cut him off from heading for the Panther instead (after they fired at each other to no effect in Defensive and Advancing Fire).  At the top of the map the squad in the foxhole broke and ran so another squad jumped in.

The US tanks and a Bazooka fired 7 times at the Malfed Panther (not taking chances after it fixed the MA immediately last time...).  Ricochets all around...

End of US Turn 2.  One squad made the AATC, jumped on the Panther and killed it. 

End of German turn 2 and End of Game.  First off, I rolled GUSTS for the weahter so all the smoke was gone (and just read that it may have only been reduced).  The remaining Panther Jumped in CC the US 9-1, MMG, and Squad in G3 and only managed to pin them.  He then tried is nuggywerfer in CC and failed the roll.  On the plus side the US squads did not manage to kill him.  Down below the Shreck carrying HS captured the US Baz HS.  Up North the US squad that snuck past the front line was broken by point blank fire from J1.  He ran upstairs when a German squad moved in back of him to prevent routing away.  At this point Tycho called it and we stopped the game.  With only one tank left getting of the board for the CVP win was impossible and taking the 5 victory buildings would require extreme luck - which had been going my way till now.

This scenario really was decided the instant the Panther's MA was repaired and it took out the last two full functional Shermans.  The two on the road were recalled due to HMG fire so I let them go, Tycho did try desperation kill shots on the Panther but they missed.    This is the third scenario in a row that was pretty much decided on the first turn or two.  Although in this case I think it was REALLY extreme luck on my part and bad math on Tycho's part (he thought woods was quarter mp to enter rather than half - no insult, I can't keep track of all the things I get wrong) but with TWO tanks taken out by HMG fire and recalled that really hurts.  Finally the MA repair was a killer - if it had not Malfed the US would have stayed out of LOS of the thing and smoked it, as it was it came back and ripped the offensive apart all by itself.

ASL 24: The Mad Minute (Yanks 2 version)

Played the new version of ASL scenario 24 "The Mad Minute".  The original was known as a badly balanced scenario highly pro-German.  This new one had the following changes to help the US.  First the number of buildings the Germans had to take was upped to 22 (from 18 I think).  Second is the Germans do not get to setup on board (the board they setup on was removed and they have to enter on turn 1, BIG difference there since they could not fire smoke or anything in prep).  Third was the US M10 tank destroyers get to US HIP like a GUN.  I played the US in this one and Tycho played the Germans, I'll give my thoughts on this one after the replay.

Setup for start of game.  The Germans come in from the top (as shown).  The buildings they have to capture are the bottom map.  Finally the Germans have to have 3 or more mobile AFV at game end to win in addition to the buildings, they start the game with 9 tanks.

First Kill!  The Germans start onto the board with a Panther and an M10 skulking the in brush gets a side shot and hits.  The M10 did manage to keep concealment (just like a gun) but I removed it for the picture.

One Panther Down.

End of German turn 1.  The Germans move on board, all but the other M10 on the other side of the board open fire.  By the end of this player turn the Germans are down 3 tanks, 6 left.  The US infantry also open up with MMG and HMG fire from level 2 buildings, not as much carnage as I hoped but a good bit none the less.  The gun on the far left malfed on an IF shot.

End of US turn 1.  The M10 tried to fire at one of the Panthers with APCR and rolled a 7, none available.  He switched to regular rounds and fired at a PZIV killing it (and setting it ablaze).  He then fired IF at the PZIV adjacent and only managed to Shock it.   In return fire a Panther knocked it out.  A 60mm mortar (on the left) managed to Immob another PZIV (Germans now down to 4 Tanks, one of which is Shocked).  The Malfed gun was repaired!  It opens up on the Immobilized PZIV but scores no hits.

So turn 1 ends with 3 destroyed PZIVs, a Panther gone, and one PZIV shocked.

 

But Also a dead M10.

Photo said it was an M10, looks more like a Sherman.

 

End of German turn 2.  Germans move out, the US 9-2 kill stack (HMG and MMG) DM some riders and the tank moves on.  The Guns in the middle (in a building) fire like crazy and both make IF shots (side shot at a Panther, had to try!), one Malfs and the other boxcars and goes poof!

End of US turn 2.  The 9-2 kill stack Stuns a German Halftrack and breaks the riders.  The previously shocked PZIV lives and breaks his gun.  A US squad in the middle building and the now gun-less crew jump the Panther next to them.  They do not manage to knock out the Panther but the Panther's close defense weapon does not hurt them either.

End of German turn 3 (and the game).  The German player moves forward, the US troops focus on taking out German infantry and manage to break or Pin a number of them, the US 57L takes a long shot at a PZIV moving across the board but the LOS is not clear!  Rolled a 1,2 to hit too...  At this point the German player counts up the 5 turns left in the game, the fact there is only 3 Squad Equivalents near the objectives, and that they have 22 buildings to capture in 5 turns with roughly the entire US Infantry force still kicking and concedes the game.

My guess is that the new scenario is balanced BUT it is very much a guessing game.  If the Germans enters where the US tank defenses are lighter they have a good chance of winning, if they choose the side where the defense are stronger (like this one) then they have a good chance of losing.  IMO this happens a good bit with scenarios featuring guns and ASL maps and their goodly amount of LOS blocking terrain.  Compound that with the need to get side shots in order to kill Panthers (or get lucky with the APCR roll, and needing a 6 or less means it can be nothing but luck).  At any rate it was a heck of a lot more fun since the last time I played this scenario (the old version) where I was beaten soundly in no time.  I was a noob with Armor back then (and I'm not claiming to be any genius now mind you) that made it even worse. 

Next week we are giving BFP 22 Speed Over Caution a try, so many scenarios to play and I'm not getting younger.  Tank goodness for VASL!

No Retreat: The Russian Front game end

Finished up the No Retreat: The Russian Front game Lawrence and I have been playing.  Made it to turn 12 (March-April of 43) with a resounding Russian victory.

The circles say it all, Russians needed 16 VP in order to win and had 17. 

I was unable to shift to a defensive mindset, kept trying to setup hedgehogs and should have setup a linear defense.  Lesson for next game!  In particular I gave up the two hexes that are circled and could have fought for them, they were just the latest in a line of VP spaces however.  Up at Smolensk is an example, the Russians had overwhelming strength but a couple of cards and the brittle nature of Russian units kept them out. 

I'm really hooked on this game, and ready to play it again.  We have played it four times now with three German wins to one Russian.  Now that the Russian early strategy is more or less ingrained in our brains the German strategy for when and how to switch to a more conservative game is next to master. 

The game is medium complexity, with 20 or so units on each side - but that means placement for each unit is crucial.  Card play adds a nice bit of chaos to the game, enough so that it usually cancels out but means you can't just count up odds and feel safe with any line of attack or defense.  This is not a card driven game, it is what some call card enhanced, the cards are "extra" things you can do and are not directly needed to activate units to move or fight.  Some cards allow an extra movement points, others allow units to be brought on as replacements for free, others allow combat bonuses, and finally there are some that cancel the last card played.  You may have the "Auto-victory" combat card but your opponent may have a card to cancel that one...

J148: Last Minute War

Played this scenario with Tycho on November 5th,  Just a quick couple of notes on a QUICK game...

The situation, the Slovakian army enters from the bottom of the map.  In 6 turns they must clear all Hungarians out of the area between the two lines OR take 11 of the buildings within 3 hexes of P5.  Slovaks come in from off board.  My Slovaks enter the map bunched together to make use of cover and leadership and...

Hungarian Artillery falls upon them with deadly accuracy and effect.

Hungarian machine guns mow them down...

Situation at end of Slovak turn 1.  It is getting ugly fast.  A 70mm harassing barrage put a hurting on those green troops - who promptly disrupted.

And the end of turn 3 where I conceded.  Three turns left to take all the buildings are clean out the Hungarians, just wasn't going to happen. I should not have bunched up but without the leaders these guys have 3mp and would take 3 turns just to REACH the top board.  So I'm calling this one an un-balanced dog but since there are a number of Slovak wins in this one I must be missing something...

And thus endeth my tale of woe...

ASL 184 Death at Carentan

Played ASL 184: Death at Carentan with Robert on the 21st and 28th of October this year - yup, a little late on the replay!  This is an excellent scenario and I plan on playing it again some time.  Both sides get a chance to attack and defend with the main US force entering on turn 2 and the Germans on turn 3.  Our game was full of back and forth fighting.  The US wins if they hold 5 points worth of buildings at scenario end.  One building is worth 3vp and the others listed are worth 1vp.

Situation at start, the US get a smoke mission to start the game, the VP buildings are the 2 hex one (3vp) the one above the German Sniper (1vp), and the ones closest to the 2 hex building (1vp each).  The smoke goes off without a hitch (pre-reg and SSR says it has to be smoke).  The US 9-2 moves next to the O6vp building and since the smoke is too thick to see through nobody loses concealment.  Stepping in for CC the building is taken.

Next the 9-2 and a squad move to Q6 by jumping over the Hedgerow to take the R5vp space.  I suspect there is a squad there but instead...

A German MMG in R5 has a field day with point blank fire...

Turn 2 Ooops!  Things are not off to a good start as the 9-2 and squad jump over the hedgerow adjacent to a previously hidden MMG (thought that was in the middle building).  9-2 is wounded and squad broken.

End of US Turn 3.  The defenders in the 3vp building are nearly done, German rout phase next turn will finish them off.  The 9-2 and squad rout to O6 and the reinforcements head for the vp building up north.

End of German turn 3.  German reinforcements stream on board causing havoc in the US lines (I remember failing LOTS of MCs and Rally attempts and and inordinate number of casualty reductions on boxcars). 

End of German turn 4.  During the US turn they managed to take the R5vp building after being repulsed in the north.  The US now has 5vp but has to keep it till game end.

End of US turn 5.  The Germans are repulsed and the 92 (now effectively an 8-1) hold the R5vp building.

End of German turn 5.  The Germans move to r6 and are shot at with a 12+1 shot, NE!  They fire back 8+2 and break the squad and leader in R5 who are eliminated for FTR...   Germans are winning again.

End of German turn 6.  The US managed to get a half squad and leader into P2 and the Melee is ongoing still.

End of US turn 7.  Germans are once again blasted away from being adjacent to O6 - this happened multiple times during the game...  Arty also falls just where it is needed but the Germans managed to make every MC it caused...  (100mm too)  Can't whine too much since the leader directing it may a rally attempt while broken and it fell on the DM stack at the top right and kept them out of action till now.  Taking the P2 building means the US is winning...

German movement phase turn 7.  Germans move to retake the P2vp space, US fires and causes a juicy MC, German MC is a 2, hero creation and battle hardening...

Building P2 is retaken!  Germans once again winning!

End of US turn 8. The US move to retake R5 and manage to take the building.  Last half turn of the game is coming up and the US has 5vp.  Germans have to take any one building back to win.  Also note that a German MC in N4 results in ANOTHER battle hardening and hero creation...

German half of turn 8 and end of game.  The Germans shrug off multiple 2-2, 4-2, and 1-2 shots to get adjacent to R5 and O6.  They jump into CC in both.  O6 results in an ambush for the Germans but they do not kill off the US troops there.  R5 results in no ambush but the US troops are eliminated and the Germans win the game...

In reality the Germans did the R5 CC first but I then went and rolled the other CC just to see how it would go - so the game would have ended being decided by the last CC DR if it had been done the other way round.  Despite my whining the dice were average, the Germans could not keep a guy near O6 till the last turn - up till then every attempt ended up with Broken Germans being forced to route away.  The arty landed JUST where it was needed to the last turn of the game and I only drew one red chit early on. 

Final verdict, this scenario is a gem, it features a lot of tough decisions for each player and appears balanced - though if I had not done that bonehead move with the 9-2 early on it might have gone differently since the extra -1 would really have come in handy.