Grumble Jones July Scenario - GJ072 - Ambush at Hill 70

The Grumble Jones July scenario is set on Boards 82 and 83 and takes place in the Artic realm of the Soviet Kola Peninsula. The inspiration for this month's scenario comes from a familiar book series. Osprey's Combat Series has been a frequent source for generating scenarios. This series continues to expand with some interesting titles slated for 2019 release. Soooo....expect to see more scenarios born from the pages of these outstanding books.

The particular action I chose for the scenario involves the fighting to secure Hill 70 near Motovskiy Bay. This is a particularly interesting battle as the Russians landed a Naval Brigade to take Hill 70. Meanwhile, the  German forces consisted of Mountain Troops. A very unique combination of forces in a very bleak terrain. The rocky shores of the Arctic don't provide much cover. 

These terrain seemed very well suited to the new boards in The Forgotten War Module. I did struggle a bit to put the boards together to make Hill 70, which was a rounded feature. After going through all of the boards, I simply couldn't come up with an accurate representation of the hill. So...did my best to combine boards 82 and 83 to make the scenario work. 

The next challenge centered around the ambush that took place on May 4th. Historically, the Germans had grabbed some Hill 70 real estate, which the Russians were eager to retake. During this time, a group of Germans had managed to get into positions, which would enfilade the Russian counter-attack. For the ambush to work, I had to make sure the Germans were set up HIP and in the Soviet backfield where they could actually effect an ambush. Hopefully the SSR mechanic I elected to go with will simulate this ambush.

The ambush as depicted in the book. Osprey has really done a fine job with this series of books. They provide actions which are well suited to ASL scenarios. So you other scenario designers out there, be sure to get these and make some really good scenarios!

As always these monthly "Basement Quality" Scenarios are offered for fun only and as a thank you to the readers of this blog.

Remember to open pictures in a new window in order to maximize the size. 

And as always, these scenarios can be downloaded from The ASL Scenario Archive 

(just search on Grumble Jones).