Sunday, May 5, 2019

Our Saturday Game - ASL Scenario A67 - Monte Castello



For our Saturday game - Dan Best and I dug into the ASL Annual 93b for something a little bit different. Our selection from this old annual would be scenario A67 - Monte Castello. It's been a lot of fun to revisit some of the old scenarios from the old Journals. With so much new content coming out each year, we often forget how much older content is still out there...and yet to be played.  Neither Dan or I had played this particular scenario before. So it would be new to both of us. 




A67 - deals with the battles for control of Monte Castello. This scenario would also include a lot of interesting elements. There are caves, a pillbox, a misty fog that covers the battlefield for fully half the game and of course Brazilians. So we hit the jackpot, when looking for something out of the ordinary. 

A quick look at ROAR shows this scenario with 8 German and 8 Brazilian wins. The ASL Archive has one Brazilian. But at 8 and 8 this scenario would appear to be well  balanced, which is accomplishment given the challenges faced by both players in this scenario.

The Victory Conditions require the Brazilians to control 7 lever 3/4 Hill Hexes and the single German pillbox. Victory is immediate, so the  German player has to stay on his toes and keep the Brazilians from racking up level 3/4 hill hexes.

A Brazilian map of the area around Monte Castello. The Brazilians would fight closely alongside the US 10th Mountain Division throughout out their campaign in Italy. 

Monte Castello would be fairly representative of a thousand mountaintop Italian villages that the Allies had to fight hard to wrest from German control. For the Germans, villages like Monte Castello were ready-made defensive positions with which to hinder the Allied advance up the spine of Italy. 

The scenario has the Brazilians entering from the south board edge on Turn 1. The Germans are holed up on the hills of Board 15. This scenario predates the new boards in the Forgotten War, which I imagine would be even better suited for this type of scenario.

The orchards are out of season, but the there is a fog that covers the battlefield from level 4 on down at the start of the game.

This fog would begin to burn off as the battle unfolds and so on Turn 2, the fog would cover levels 3 and below and then 2 and below, 1 and below and then be gone by about Turn 6. This thick fog allows the Brazilians to move up to the mountain without much risk of being spotted, let alone fired upon.

Both Dan and I would take advantage of the fog as the game progressed.




After rolling for sides, Dan would be the defending Germans. By December 1944, the German Army in Italy had been fighting in the Italian mountains for well over a year. They were seasoned veterans and had become experts in the Fabian tactics required to hold off the larger Allied forces pressing them ever northward. Dan would command elements of 1044 Infantry Regiment, of the 232nd Infantry Division. The 232nd was formed by veterans who were convalescing from wounds received on the Russian Front. The division would be classified as a static division. The division's veterans lacked their early war enthusiasm, but as Wehrmacht veterans fulfilled their duties nonetheless. 

Dan's force would consist o 9 x 4-4-7's, 2 x 2-2-8's, led by an 8-1 and 2 x 8-0's with an HMG, 2 x LMG's and a 50 MTR for support. They would have 2 x Trenches, 1 x Pillbox and 4 x Caves from which to deal death on any attacking force. With the heavy fog, Dan's Germans would not get many opportunities for long range shooting. This would be an up close and personal fight and the HIP cave positions would prove to be invaluable to the defending German grenadiers.

As the scenario attacker, I would have the honor of commanding men of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force of "FEB". This force of nearly 25,000 men would fight hard alongside their Allied counterparts in the Mediterranean Theater. The Brazilians would be more commonly referred to as the Smoking Cobras.

The FEB would arrive in Italy beginning in 1944 and participate in the campaign until it ended in 1945. The Brazilians would achieve successes at Massarosa, Camaiore, Mount Prano, Monte Acuto, San Quirico, Gallanico, Barga, Monte Castello, La Serra, Castelnuovo di Vergato, Soprassasso, Montese, Paravento, Zocca, Marano sul Panaro, Collecchio and Fornovo di Taro.




Perhaps the greatest moment would come at Collecchio, when the FEB became the first Allied unit to capture a German  division in its entirety during the Italian Campaign, with the surrender of the German 148th Infantry Division.

So, I was really looking forward to leading the Smoking Cobras into this fight. 

My force would consist of 16 x 5-4-6's, and 3 x 2-3-6's led by a 9-1, 8-0, and 2 x 7-0's with 2 x MMG's, 1 x 60 MTR, 4 x Bazookas and 2 x 81* MTR Halftracks for support. 

Not a lot heavy firepower support, but plenty of infantry for what I was expecting would be a close up and personal fight with Dan's grenadiers.




And now for Dan's Pre-Game Commentary:

"The German advantages in this scenario are defensive terrain, caves and the ability to concentrate the defense on one side of the board 15 hill.  The cliffs on the hill make approaches limited to J3, K3 and M4 or the attacker needs to circle around behind the hill.  The German plan will be to set up the 12 dummy counters out front on the lower slopes of the hill and the second hill mass in 15F3.  Then build a strong defense around the main hill with the fortifications.  I will deploy one squad and set up in the crag in K6 and L5.  The Pillbox will be in N4 with a trench in N5.  The other trench will be in L3 with a crew and the MTR.  The first cave will be in M3 looking across the slope of the hill with a LMG to lay a fire lane.  The second will be in K4 looking down hill also with a LMG to have a crossing fire lane at K2.  J4 will have a supporting cave with a squad.  P5 will have the final cave with a squad to keep that flank protected.  Backup by the 8-0 and crew in the trench in N5.  Two squads and 8-0 will set up in the stone building at G5 and H5 both at 2nd level to protect the area between the hills and counterattack.  A final squad will be in M4 to protect the approach.  This protects all entry onto the hill mass and allows for defending on the hill as the fog clears.  The caves set up HIP and can wait until the attackers move adjacent for maximum firepower.  Hopefully we will roll gusts and the fog will blow off faster than the 5 turns it will take."


With the heavy fog shrouding the valley floor, I decided to move as rapidly forward towards the mountain as I could. I had deployed one additional squad and so would send 5 x 2-3-6's on the right to storm the hill and take the three victory hex locations in that area. I was banking on Dan having most of his dummy stacks in this area. 

My half-tracks and leader stacks would armor assault up the road and then swing to the left to join with the heavy weapons platoon and remaining units which would form my Schwerpunkt.

I have circled Dan's pillbox and cave locations. Keep in mind, I had no idea where any of these things were at the time. 

 Turn 1 - pretty uneventful. Neither of us could see each other...so my boys moved ahead unmolested.

 Turn 1 - German - nothing...all quiet on the Monte Castello front.




"Hans...der Nebel ist zu dick. Ich kann nichts sehen."





A look at the Scenario Aid card as we kept track of the fog density at it diminished turn after turn. By Turn 5 it would be at Level 0.
My boys would have two objectives with A on the left and B on the right. 



By Turn 3 my boys were moving into action. My half-squads would ascend the hill positions on the right and find that they were unmanned. On the left, I would be a bit less lucky. The German 50 MTR had a bore sighted location and I naturally walked right through it. Fortunately, the rounds missed. But on the far left, my flanking move would run smack into a 4-4-7 in a cave.  I  had discovered the first of 4 caves. 


Over the next three frames, you will see that the German sniper was very active and causing me no small amount of grief. His first shot would DM a squad near the center. His next shot would DM my Mortar squad and his third would stun one of my half-tracks. Quite the Sniper hat trick!!!

The circles show that my 9-1 squad had jumped on top of the cave with the 4-4-7. One of the good things about caves is that you can kinda go by them....so I did...

The other circle show my 7-0 with three squads ready to have a go at the 2-2-8 with the mortar. Little did I know the mortal danger they faced....




In Dan's Prep-Fire...he revealed two caves and my boys were in real trouble. Everyone in the 7-0 stack and two squads ELR'd. Not good.


On the right, Dan's 4-4-7 in the cave jumped out and went CC against my half-track. This unit would be Dan's hero unit of the game. They would deal some damage to my forces. But you'll note that Dan never went for a Panzerfaust the entire game. In truth, it never occurred to either of us. Shocking really...I ran my half-tracks right up to Dan's forces thinking it was 1941 or something. And Dan never considered using one either. Very strange. I think the mist affected us both!!!



And now we reach a moment in the game of ASL that is quite hard for any player...my 7-0 and his three broken squads...could not rout...were forced to surrender. But then Dan's Grenadiers rejected their surrender and they were all killed in place...(EDIT: dialogue since posting the blog indicates that Dan and I may have gotten this wrong. We both believed that the Fog was not the same as smoke and therefore could not protect DM squads from interdiction. So, indeed we may be incorrect on how we played this point. 5/6/09.)

And I could only blame myself for having put a stack of three squads in that vulnerable place...I had simply forgotten that Dan's caves were an unseen threat. It was the low point for me in the game.  Dan's line of caves was beautifully situated and made the approach death for anyone coming from that approach. 

Back on the left, Dan's 4-4-7 had destroyed my halftrack in close combat. But now they were shrouded in smoke from the burning wreck and the fog. So, with that shield I made the decision to send two squads climbing up the cliff to take on the pillbox. The 4-4-7 would take shots at my boys...but to no avail.

"Keep climbing boys...keep climbing.."


It would take two turns for my boys to scale level and level 3 and 4 to reach the pillbox, which would be gained in the second of my Advance Phases. The good news was that only the 4-4-7 below me could see the squads. My 9-1 would continue around the German flank to make an attack from that direction.

"Hurry boys...but don't fall..."


I secured the hill on the right and sent my 8-0 south to rally my mortar squad.

My 7-0 on the left had both MMG's ready to roll!



The battle after my part of Turn 4.  I had taken 4 hexes total - 3 on the right flank and one with a 2-3-6 and a Hero who were sitting on top of a cave looking down the dreaded "cave line" of the German defense. My final halftrack had moved around the Germans on the left to support my 9-1's attack.

No point of truth...I never fired my 81mm Mortars on either of my halftracks. I had originally envisioned my halftracks firing WP on the German positions from the safety of the valley...but the fog made that a non-starter. So my halftracks with their 4 factor MG were quite useful in letting my boys armor assault across the hills.

On Dan's part of Turn 4 - he sent his heroic 4-4-7 on the left into CC with one of my MMG squads. They would stay in Melee for the duration of the game. Now My climbing boys show in the pillbox hex at this point, but they are actually still climbing the cliff face. Dan would be forced to send a couple of his squads out of their caves and this would prove to be dangerous to them.

Turn 5 - I would move my half-squads from the hill on the right to draw fire and to make a move towards the German cave line position. It would not go well for me as the Germans in the hillside house knocked them down...leaving everyone broken except for a single pinned squad. At this point, I realized I had made yet another potentially fatal mistake. With everyone broken on the right, Dan's boys in the house could easily reclaim that hill. UGH!!!

Dan's grenadiers on the right were waiting for their part of Turn 5 to advance and reclaim the hill.


In the southwest, my 8-0 had rallied the mortar squad and then found a broken German 4-4-7 that had routed after being nailed leaving a cave. Time for some payback...

"Get that camera out of here..."


Turn 5 - my movements on the right had met disaster, but on the left, I had managed to move my 9-1 stack and halftrack into position. My climbing squads had complete their climb and went into CC with the broken German squad in the pillbox and the Heroic 8-1 that was with them. 







"Senta a Pua!!!"


As my boys took down the pillbox, my Hero and 2-3-6 advanced into another cave hex and gained yet another victory location. So at that point, I had taken control of 7 hexes and the German pillbox...resulting in an immediate Brazilian victory. The Smoking Cobras had won! Holy cow...I was stunned.  My climbing squads had sealed the victory. As always, my thanks to Dan for an awesome game.


Monte Castello was Brazilian!!!





And now for Dan's Post-Game Commentary:

"The plan worked well...except for the cliff climbing Brazilians.  Five attacking squads and been broken and another 5 had been eliminated.  I had also destroyed one halftrack in CC.  The Germans in the building were about to counterattack to recapture the F3 hill when the climbing squads attacked the pillbox and captured it in CC.  That was also hex number 7 captured, resulting in an immediate victory for the Brazilians on Turn 5.  I was caught totally off guard by the climbing tactic and have never played a game where that rule was used.  I tried to shoot at the climbers but I had little that could see them.  Well played by Grumble Jones!  With a risky attack paying off handsomely.  This scenario is great fun and well worth learning a few new rules about fog and caves, not to mention climbing. "



Well that's a wrap on the Smoking Cobras.

Dan and I will be back next Saturday for a playing of 
Scenario MM54 - Lump Holds the Line.


See you next Saturday!



2 comments:

  1. Climbing success, holy cow!!; I had tried that tactic in a game in the Dinant PT and met with disaster; many falling and dying. Now I see who the master climber is and its not Clint Eastwood in The Eiger Sanction, its Grumble Jones in ASL. Great work and as usual great AAR.

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    Replies
    1. Well...even a blind squirrel finds a nut...so I was extremely lucky. I rolled an 8 and managed to keep from falling.

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