Our Saturday Game - ASL Scenario AP94 Show of Force

After a two week break, Dan Best and I were back in the cardboard trenches of ASL and waging battle on the snow covered steppes of Russia! Dan and I are right at home on the Eastern Front and really enjoy scenarios set in that theater. Dan was just back from the Texas Team Tournament where he played a ton of quality ASL against a variety of great opponents. Work kept me desk bound for almost of all of June. As I write this, I'm feeling so worn out from a difficult month. My company's second quarter was the largest in its history and keeping product flowing from Thailand kept me very busy. But...our third quarter looks to be even bigger...so no rest for the weary. Maybe Dave Ginnard will give me some good tips on how to retire early. I'm really tired of this whole work thing!!!

Our scenario for the evening would be pulled from MMP's ASL Action Pack #10. I'm a big fan of the Action Packs. Price is always good, the scenarios and maps are also very good. Just a lot of value with these. So MMP...keep'em coming!

From this pack, we would pick Scenario AP94 Show of Force. This scenario is set in March 1943. As Hausser's SS Panzer Corps were busy retaking Kharkov, the grenadiers of the Grossdeutschland Division would be busy shoring up the flank north of Kharkov. This would be one of those little known actions of this Elite German formation. 

A quick look at ROAR showing this scenario with 45 Russian wins and 29 German wins. The ASL Archive has it with 6 German wins and 4 Russian Wins and one Draw.  Historically, the Grossdeutschland Division won this engagement with only minor losses. 

The scenario takes place with ground snow and a +1 LV Hindrance for the duration of the game. Not sure why the ROAR stats seem to show this as pro-Russian. Part of this may be the Victory Conditions. The German player wins as game end if there are no unbroken Russians in building locations within 4 hexes of road junction 70I6. That amounts to 15 locations. The Germans only have 7 squads and face 8-1/2 Russian Squads. So that may have something to do with the larger number of Russian Wins. 

After rolling for sides, I would be the attacker and command the Panzer Grenadiers of the Grossdeutschland Division. Yeah...I love me some GD action. Yes...I'm guilty of being a bit of a GD fanboy...so my apologies. But if you get the chance to command these boys in a scenario....you will definitely be glad. They are usually some tough hombres.

My initial force would arrive enter on Turn 1 and consist of 1 x Tiger I, 2 x PZ MKIV 2's and 2 x PZ MKIII N's. On Turn 2, I would get 6 x 4-6-8's, 2 x 2-4-8's let by a 9-1 and 8-1 with 2 x LMG's and a DC with 1 x PZ MKIII Flame Panzer, 3 x 251/1 Halftracks and 2 x 250/1 Halftracks. 

Not a terrible force, but a little light on the infantry at first glance. We'll see how things shake out during the game.

As the defending Russians, Dan would command elements of the 305th Rifle Division and 3rd Tank Corps of the 69th Army. The Russians were surging in the early months of 1943. They were fresh off victories at Stalingrad and had pushed the Germans back all along the Russian Front. Morale was high and the Russians were looking for payback.

Dan's force would consist of 2 x 5-2-7's, 4 x 4-4-7's 1 x 2-3-7, and 1 x 2-2-8 lead by a 9-1 and 8-0 with  an HMG, 2 x LMG's, and 2 x ATR's. For support they would have a T-34/76 and a 76L ARTY. On Turn 3, they would receive reinforcements consisting of 2 x 4-4-7's,  2 x T-34/76's and a T-70. Not too shabby!

And now for Dan's Pre-Game Comments:

"The strengths of the Russians are the ability to defend the village in depth and the ability to knock out most German AFVs.  The Tiger is the hardest to kill with its front armor difficult to kill even with the 76mm guns.  The Russians defense of the board 70 village will be based on the stone buildings.  G6 will be defended by the 9-1 with a 4-4-7 and HMG.  J5 will have the 8-0 and a 4-4-7 with LMG.  H3 will get the other 4-4-7 LMG and the 5-2-7 ATR combo will be in F4 and I7.  The last 4-4-7 will be in K7 with the 2-3-7 HS in H8.The 76mm ART will set up in E3 and the t-34 set up in J4 so the AT weapons are on each flank.  The Germans will be able to attack all sides of the village so the dummy counters will be on all flanks and hopefully absorb some attacks.  The German tanks are very vulnerable to street fighting and each squad will have several hexes with street fighting potential to defend.  Tanks moving in the streets will be dangerous. "

My Turn 1 forces were set for an envelopment attack. I didn't know where the Russian AT Gun was...but knew that I would reveal it...I just couldn't predict how awful that would be....Catastrophic as you shall see.

I had high hopes for my Tiger.

Dan's 76L ARTY revealed itself right away and started shooting at my MK III's as they moved on the right.

Much to my dismay...Dan would get a hit even with the +1 LV hindrance. My 1st tank would be shocked...and eventually would become an unconfirmed kill and then be destroyed. 1st Tank down.

 The remainder of my force came on without much fanfare.

Turn 2 --- my reinforcements came on. I would decide to go after Dan's AT Gun...don't me ask me why. I do dumb stuff...

And it would be a hard lesson...

Dan's ARTY would take down my second MK III and then fire on my third Flame MKIII. I sent two half-tracks to deal with it. A huge risk...

 My Tiger would manage to force out the first of the Russian infantry in my front.

Dan's ARTY was absolutely killing me. Dan was keeping rate of fire...was hitting and killing everything and then switched to my half-tracks. He hits and then a "12" DUD SHELL...WOOHOOO!!

I was celebrating the little things at this point!

Dan's 76L ARTY took down my Flame Panzer III. All three MK III's were destroyed and the gun was still firing.

Dan's ARTY was the absolute hero of this scenario. It would destroy 3 Tanks and 2 Half-Tracks...

 My attack in the center would meet with equal hardship. My Tiger I went forward to rain down death on the Russians...only to be destroyed by a street fighting 5-2-7.

Tiger was down...

OK...so at this point in the game, I was down three tanks. I had two MKIV's left and decided...what the heck...I'll just send him straight at the T-34.

Yes...I had become totally fatalistic. My MKIV got into position and survived two shots and then Dan went for Intensive Fire and yes...destroyed me...

In three turns...I had lost all but one tank and done next to nothing to the Russians.

I seriously contemplated conceding...but it was still early and I was pretty embarrassed by my play thus far in this game. I had to keep going...

So I did and my Grossdeutschland Grenadiers stepped up to the challenge!

Despite my losses...I was in the village and taking down victory locations. I had to take 15 or at least break the Russians in those locations. No easy task, but I put my head down and kept going.

Turn 3 - Dan's reinforcements arrived. Three more tanks to join Dan's other T-34. I had one MKIV left. Things looked very bleak for my Germans. But...we had KIA'd the ARTY gun crew in CC.

Well....while I was patting myself on the back...Dan's Tanks were rolling in to continue the butt-whipping that Dan's ARTY had started!!!

The fight in the village was tough for both of us. The +1 LV hindrance caused us to both miss our targets and/or do nothing to the infantry we fired at. We would have to get close and fight it out hand to hand.

As Dan's T-34's and single T-70 came at me...my Grenadiers went to work and started going after his armor.

I would successfully place the DC...but it would ultimately do nothing. 

Now...I was still in my fatalistic mode at this point. I really believed I had no chance of winning this game...so what the heck...might as well make it fun!!! So I sent a 2-4-8 dashing into the hex with the concealed Russian 9-1 and a 4-4-7 with the HMG. DOH!!! That was not a swift move...but wait...I rolled snakes on the MC and went fanatic and created a HERO...YEEHAWWW!!!!

The creation of my Hero really affected me and shook me out of my self-pity. I decided to try and take control of the game again...despite the odds. My MKIV set off to take down the T-34 on the left. In the process of defending itself against my infantry, it had MALF'd its MA. I had my chance!

My boys had a surge of optimism. We still had some fight!

On the far right, Dan's T-70 had rolled on and immediately destroyed another of my Half-tracks.  At this point in the game, I had one tank and one half-track left. Dan's force was still intact.

 After destroying my first tank of the game, my infantry went into CC all along the front. 

It had been a great turn for the Germans. A tank was taken down and I would win two of the 3 close combats. My Grenadiers were wresting control of the village away from Dan's Russians.

One of my destroyed half-tracks had produced a crew and this 1-2-7 attracted the attention of one of Dan's T-34's. It attempted an overrun, but my crew survived.

Back in the village, my boys would successfully immobilize the last T-34 in street fighting. Dan and I were both suffering armor losses to the infantry.

ASL can be a cruel mistress and even as I was enjoying a moment of success...the crack of a sniper's rifle brought me up sharp. My 9-1 would die and then I would roll a 12 for the Leader Loss MC for the half-squad. Just like that, I had been gut punched once again.

Dan's sniper would play a critical role in depriving the German attack of it's best leader. 

 Dan's T-70 would embark on its own odyssey as it went after my remaining MKIV.

I would sent my MKIV against Dan's 8-0 bastion. The Russian 8-0 was the last holdout position on my side of the road. I needed to take him down and use that location to assault the final Russian positions.

 Once again, I would launch my boys into multiple close combats.

All would end up in Melee. 

Dan's T-70 would escape from my Grenadiers and park itself behind my last remaining tank. I ignored it. My mission was the Russian infantry. I would take the risk. Dan would miss in Advancing Fire.

My HERO and his fanatic half-squad were locked in Melee with Dan's 9-1. We would roll the dice and kill each other. My Hero had given me a shot a winning this crazy scenario.

I would succeed in destroying Dan's immobilized T-34. His last T-34 would roll to the defense of his 8-0. I would street fight it and destroy it. Unbelievable...Dan and I were both down to one tank.

In Prep Fire, my MKIV would fire at the 8-0 stack and break him...I had ROF...turned my turret...and fired at the adjacent T-70. I hit it and killed it. Incredibly, my MK IV was the last tank standing.

My MKIV had done an awesome job. At my lowest moment in the game, it restored my confidence and redeemed an otherwise dismal performance.

On the final turn, my Grenadiers had taken 10 of the 15 locations from the Russians. I would send every available man at Dan's remaining 5 locations. Dan's boys would hold their positions and repel my last assault. With that Dan's Russians had the victory! A tip of the hat to Dan for a great game. His ARTY ensured the victory and defanged my attacking Germans. My Grenadiers very nearly took the game from Dan and I can only imagine how much different this scenario would have been, had I managed to keep my Tiger in action. Losing the armor battle so early, really hamstrung my attack.

Despite all the bad decisions and bad luck, these scenario ended up being a blast. Dan and I both enjoyed it and were both exhausted at game end. It had been a night of high quality ASL.

But...don't attack AT Guns when you don't have to...One of these days...I might actually learn to  stay focused on objectives.

And now for Dan's Post-Game Comments:

"Well the plan worked.  As predicted street fighting killed many tanks with each side losing tanks to street fighting infantry, including the Tiger.  Thanks to some good dice the 76mm killed all three Pz III tanks including a good shot on the flame tank.  Plus two half tracks.  The infantry battle went in favor of the Germans with several well fought close combats.  However, time ran out and the Germans had not cleared all the buildings.  In the end the Russian still have 5 unbroken units in victory buildings.  This scenario is a good east front street fight."

Well...that's it for now. I'm always a little sad when the game is over...but then I remember...I get to play again next Saturday!  Dan and I will be back on July 6th for a playing of A99 To Clear A Roadblock.

And a final thought. 4th of July is just around the corner and it's a time of year that I do my annual reflection of where my life is headed and where I might like it to go. Not sure exactly why this happens on 4th of July in particular, but it's usually the one time a year that I really take a vacation. I've been working since 1984 and in all of that time, I have never had a two week consecutive vacation. There are times, when I feel like I'm just watching my life evaporate as I sit in my cubicle 10 hours a day.

So on 4th of July, I take a moment to think about my life, my dreams and where I hope they will take me before this wonderful ride is over. 

The picture above is of the Appalachian Trail at McAfee Knob...perhaps the most iconic vista of the entire 2000+ mile trail.  I grew up in the Appalachian Mountains and they are where my heart lives. The mountains always bring me  happiness and a hopefulness for good things. 

So as we celebrate the 4th of July, I wish for all of you health, happiness and joy for this year and the years to follow. Let's all keep the great promise of America alive.