And just like that...January 2021 came to an end. It has been a good January for ASL games if not the results of those games. I managed to play 11 games in January, which is a record January. Sadly for me, I've only won one of those games and one other is still in progress. Naturally, ASL isn't about winning or losing, it's about playing great games. I've played some fun games and despite this latest losing streak, I've enjoyed the games. My ongoing frustration with my dice rolling continues. Complaining doesn't make it better, but my biggest concern is that often I lose confidence in my games that I will get results when I take actions. So much of ASL hinges on your opponent rolling poorly. You need him to miss that NMC or Pin Check. Your success depends on it to a large extent. And conversely, when your opponent makes his morale checks...rolls that snakes that eliminates a key part of your attack or defense, it can change the course of the game. The two games that Dan and I played this week illustrate this point beautifully.
And yes...you are right...I CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!!!!
One of the tragedies of ASL is the accumulation of ASL stuff that one never plays. Example...Festung Budapest...couldn't wait to get it and haven't played a single scenario...don't even ask about Dinant or a slew of Lone Canuck packs that I have yet to play.
And for both Dan and I, Kampfgruppe Peiper has languished on our respective shelves unplayed. Since 1993, this historical CG has waited patiently for me to actually play a scenario from it.
Well that day finally came on Wednesday after 28 years...good grief...and I think MMP is slow.
The scenario I picked would be KGP4 Chapelle Ste. Anne. For the Wednesday evening game, I like to pick smaller scenarios and this is definitely a small scenario. There are only 7 squads total for both sides. So...any mistakes and you might just be done in this game.
Chapelle Ste. Anne is designed by Philippe and Charles Kibler. It deals with the fighting near the Chapelle Ste. Anne as Kampfgruppe Peiper tried to reopen the road between Stoumont and LaGleize. A small American blocking force would face off against a platoon of Panzergrenadiers. ROAR has this scenario with 45 German and 47 American wins. The ASL Archive has it with 3 German and 4 American wins.
Even today, the woods surrounding Chapelle Ste. Anne are formidable.
I assume most ASL players are very familiar with Peiper and his role in the Battle of the Bulge. Peiper's force was a spearhead of the German drive to the Meuse. With 5000 men and a strong Panzer force, much was rightfully expected of him.
Despite driving deep into US lines, his force was ultimately unable to accomplish its campaign objectives and by Christmas, Peiper and his 800 remaining troops found themselves fugitives as they retreated back to German lines.
Atrocities against civilians and American soldiers would be the enduring legacy of Kampfgruppe Peiper and these actions would galvanize American resistance to the Germans during the battle.
Such great military potential...was squandered and ultimately lost and with it, any hope of reaching the Meuse.
Peiper and his men were products of the no quarter war fought in the Ukraine. The Ardennes was not the Ukraine.
Peiper would be receive the death penalty for the actions of his men at Malmedy. Ultimately, that penalty would be commuted and Peiper would spend 12 years in prison. He would live an ordinary life working for Volkswagen and Porsche before moving to France, where he would be murdered in 1976.
One should have no doubts about Peiper's role as a prominent Nazi. He was close to Himmler, his wife was friendly with Heydrich's wife and he was a favorite of the Nazi leadership. He was aware of the effort to kill Jews. And prior to joining a combat unit, provided reports directly to Himmler's office regarding the elimination of Jews. Peiper's death in 1976 was the long overdue dispensing of justice that rightfully should have occurred 30 years earlier.
Nazi propaganda was and sometimes still is a powerful tool. Much of Peiper's standing was a fabrication of such propaganda and something discerning ASL players should be wary of.
After rolling for sides, I would be the attacking Germans and command the men of the 2nd SS Panzer-Grenadier Regiment. My force would consist of 3 x 6-5-8's led by a 9-1 with an LMG and four Half-Tracks.
As the defending Americans, Dan would command the men of the 2nd Battalion, 119th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry Division. Check this link for some interesting information.
Dan's force would consist of 3 x 6-6-7's, a 6-6-6 and 2 x 3-4-7's led by an 8-1 with an MMG, a BAZ 45, a DC, a roadblock, and 5 AT Mines.
Dan would also be able to HIP one squad equivalent. Once again...HIP would hurt me badly in a game.
This scenario plays on a small portion of the KGP1 map. The woods force close encounters of the worst kind. I hate having to move up adjacent to concealed Americans 6-6-7 troops. Not one of my favorite things to do. The Germans would win at game end if there were no good order Americans within 2 hexes of Hex P54.
And now for Dan's Pre-Game Comments:
"The Americans must defend the roadblock and Chapelle against a platoon of infantry in half tracks. The plan will be to put 2 factors of AT mines in the clearing on the paved road and 3 factors on the unpaved road. Then the 8-1, 6-6-7 with MMG will set up at the roadblock. Two hexes to the north will be the 6-6-6 and two hexes to the south the 6-6-7. One HS with the BAZ will set up adjacent to the roadblock to hit any halftracks it can. The other HS will be in the Chapelle with the DC. The dummy counters will be out front. Hopefully the German attacks can be broken by the high American firepower."
My attack plan was pretty straight forward. I sent the CMG half-track on the northern road and had the inherent half-squad and HMG jump out. My other three half-tracks and squads all moved on the southern road. My grenadiers jumped out and prepared to move through the woods towards the Chapelle Ste. Anne. Nothing fancy.
Turn 1 would be my favorite turn of this scenario...cause nothing happened!!!
"Helmut...do you see anything..." "Dieter...all I see are question marks...it's very disconcerting..."
Turn 2 - the battle begins. I see some mines on the paved road and manage to bypass that...my turn to bypass some mines. I also make contact with Dan's first squad as I tried to move towards the Chapelle.
As my part of Turn 2 ended, I was in ok shape, but had a broken squad and one of my half-tracks was in the sights of a bazooka team.
Turn 3 - German - I decide it's time to lose the game...not really...but yes really... So here's what happened...I saw Bigfoot and ran after him...I mean c'mon what are the odds of seeing Bigfoot in the Ardennes!?! OK...I'll tell you what really happened....I'm not proud of it...but it's somewhat...ok...a little bit of the truth. So, I managed to get by Dan's 6-6-7 squad after they broke in Final Protective Fire. I thought...WOW...ok, here's a chance to eliminate this squad and get into the Chapelle Ste. Anne with my 9-1, Squad and LMG. Yeah that would be sweet!
Fun...who said this was going to be fun. Dan had a 3-4-7 with a DC HIP in the Chapalle. Sacrilegious Mr. Best...just say'ng...that shalt not kill cardboard pieces from the sanctuary!!! It's just not cricket old boy!
NOOOOO!!!! So yeah...Dan tosses the DC and breaks my 9-1 and a squad and pins my LMG squad. Meanwhile his MMG at the roadblock breaks my half-squad. Dan also pinned the dude that threw the DC...but now for the bad news...I have to rout first. And I can't...so my 9-1, 6-5-8 and 3-4-8 all throw up their hands and Dan promptly rejects their surrender and guns them down. Game over...I conceded. In one rout phase I lost my 9-1, and 1-1/2 of my three squads. Oh and I had lost a half-track to the Bazooka...one to a mine and one immobilized by a mine. Yeah...I was done.
I hate this game...
So a look at the devastation. I was down to a single half-track, a squad and 2 half-squads. Dan had lost nothing...his broken squad was able to rout away after my boys were gunned down. So my plan of eliminating a 6-6-7 and occupying the Chapelle Ste. Anne was no more.
A last look at what was a very short game! We were done in about an hour. The loss of my leader and half my force left me without the manpower to overcome Dan's force. It was as about as bad a defeat as you can experience in 2-1/2 turns. My congrats to Dan on yet another total victory! 2021 has been good to Mr. Best! Oh and note to readers...it took longer to blog this game than to play it!!
And now for Dan's Post-Game Comments:
"The plan worked. The German vehicles were kept at bay by the mines and BAZ. The German infantry closed and then were broke by point blank fire including the throwing of the DC. The German leader was lost in route and the Germans were out of steam. This is a small scenario and any loss is a big impact. The rejection of the surrender of the German leader and two HS was a hard blow. My thanks to Grumble Jones for my intro playing of KGP."
Ok...on to Round 2 and my next disaster...er...I mean game...yeah game!!!
Our Saturday game would be ASL Scenario 144 - The Professionals. This scenario first appeared the 91 Annual. I had a memory of playing it, but apparently never recorded it. Designed by Rex Martin, this scenario depicts the efforts of the Germans to seize bridges along their axis of advance into Yugoslavia. In the case of this scenario, the contested bridge would be in Pirot, Yugoslavia. As the scenario title hints at, this is a battle between professional German soldiers vs. untried and green Yugoslav troops.
Dan would be the attacking Germans and command the men of the 15th Panzer Regiment and 23rd Infantry Regiment. This force would consist of 8 x 4-6-7's, led by a 9-1 and 8-0 with 4 x LMG's, 4 x MKIV's and 2 x Halftracks. Dan would win the game at the end of any player turn in which a German squad equivalent and AFV with functioning MA was across the bridge.
As the defending Yugoslavs, I could command the men of the Vardar Tactical Training College. This force would consist of 10 x 4-3-7's, and 2-2-8's led by a 9-2 and 8-1 with an MMG, LMG and 2 x 47 AT Guns. My ELR would be 2...and when you average 9 -10 on your MC's...well that leads to disruption....MY FAVORITE...after being Pinned & CX'd.
The Yugoslavs set up on Board 6 and everything is HIP, which is nice and of course plays extremely well with Cardboard VIA SKYPE, since I can have everything on the board and Dan can't see them. The Yugoslavs are handicapped by poor range, poor morale and the 47's are pretty ineffective vs. the German tanks. On the plus side, the Yugoslavs get Molotovs, which is very nice. After a month of butt-whippings...I really had very little confidence that I could win this one. Sometimes, you really do know.
ROAR has this scenario with 58 German wins and 50 Yugoslav wins. The ASL Archive shows it with 3 German and 3 Yugoslav wins.
And now for Dan' s Pre-Game Comments:
"The Germans must attack past the large building (6N4) on board 6 to cross the bridge with one squad and one tank. The plan will be for the two halftracks each with a squad and HS will attack the building from the North while the main attack with 5 squads, four LMG and the two leaders all supported by the four tanks will approach the bridge and building east of the walled areas of board 6. This approach is narrow and can be blocked by the Yugoslavian forces however the low ELR will make them vulnerable to disruption and easy to break through. Hopefully the tanks can fend off the AT guns and one can go for exit while the rest attack the building and smoke the defenders."
Turn 1 - German - Dan has to enter everything through the I1 road hex. My defense was built around using the height advantage and stone construction of the chateau to focus my infantry defense and protect the bridge. My secondary force spread out along the stone wall along the east edge, which is where I anticipated Dan's main force to come through.
Staying hidden would be my most important capability.
Dan would send two half-tracks each with a squad and half-squad around my north flank. The rest of the Germans came straight ahead to hit me from the south and up into the "chute" where my boys were patiently waiting for them.
Turn 2 - German - I had stayed HIP and revealed no one. Dan would armor assault right next to a 2-3-7. I hesitated to go for a Molotov at this juncture. In retrospect...I held my fire for too long. Dan would advance into the position and force me to reveal a concealed unit. In close combat I would win ambush and infiltrate out.
My boys peered cautiously from their hiding positions...it was almost time to start rolling dice...
At the end of German Turn 2 only one of my units was in view and they were concealed behind the wall. This is the best part of any ASL game...where your defense is still intact and you still might win this game.
Turn 3- it's on like donkey kong as Dan comes right at me. In the north, his half-tracks drop off their squads. My 9-2 opens up and breaks and reduces a squad when Dan rolls a 12. This broken half-squad would not reenter the battle. Dan was now operating with 7 squads with six of those with the tanks. Speaking of the tanks, they thundered into the battle. I would spring my trap and get my first Molotov. Are you sitting down...I rolled snake eyes and scratched the first tank. I would knock Dan's infantry back with other surprise shooting. A second MKVI would plow past and this time I would roll a 12 on the Molotov and casualty reduce and break the remaining boys and set a flame in my wooded hideout. The first AT Gun would open up and successfully shock the second MKIV. The German attack stalled at this point.
So let's talk dice rolls. For the two games in this AAR, Dan would roll 3 Snake Eyes and 2 Boxcars. I would roll 2 Snake Eyes and 6 Boxcars. I would MALF my MMG on its first shot and MALF my AT Gun along the way.
Losing the AT Gun to a bounding fire shot was tough. I didn't even get a chance to intensive fire and break the gun myself!!!
In my part of Turn 3 - I would go after the shocked tank and fail to take it out in close combat. I suck at close combat.
Turn 4 - German - ok this is where the wheels came off my bus. Dan would move forward and send a tank right up to my AT Gun. I would fail to hit and not get rate. Dan would bounding fire and roll snakes. No more gun. The chute was no open to the bridge. My boys had ELR'd and disrupted. It's tough being a Yugoslav 4-3-7...although I will say 7 morale green troops ain't too bad when you think about it.
Incredibly, my 2-3-7 that had been the first unit revealed was still alive. But things were not looking good elsewhere on the battlefield. Dan's half-tracks had done their job and were keeping me from moving to shore up things in the south. One of my biggest tactical errors was not moving someone across the bridge. That was a big gaff on my part.
The battle for the Chateau began in earnest. Dan needed to knock out the AT gun and MMG in the Chateau.
Dan's shocked tank went to unconfirmed kill to destroyed. Dan was down to two tanks. He needed one of those to cross the bridge and my second AT Gun would finally open up...but not get any penetrations.
In the north, I would succeed in Molotoving both halftracks, but his grenadiers would get into the chateau. Meanwhile, his MKIV would smoke my main position, which had two squads at level 2 and the AT Gun and MMG on ground level.
Dan's third MKIV would be the hero unit of the game. It had run the chute gauntlet successfully, destroyed one AT Gun and now had smoked my most important position overlooking the bridge. These were game winning accomplishments. The smoke pretty much decided the game.
Yep..I couldn't see s@#%.
Dan continued to move his grenadiers into position. His fourth MKIV had already moved onto the bridge and would reach the other side with no problem. All he needed now was a squad. His 8-0 and a squad made a run for it...but a normal morale check would break the squad. I was still alive. In the Chateau, Dan was moving to get into close combat with me. UGH!!!
Close Combat began...I was in such deep doodoo...
MELEE...oh boy...
I sent boys to reinforce the Melee and still couldn't win it even with my 9-2.
Dan's tank and infantry cross the bridge.
A final look at the battle. The smoked-in Chateau was the scene of hand to hand carnage, but the Germans had crossed the bridge and won the game on Turn 6. Dan had won a tough game. Both sides were mauled in this one, but the Germans had just enough gas in the tank to get the win. The Yugoslavs despite their weaknesses put up a good fight. A little more production from my AT Guns and a few less morale disruptions and the Yugoslavs might have held on for the win. My congrats to Dan on the sweep this week!
Dan's boys would continue their advance into Yugoslavia.
And now for Dan's Post-Game Comments:
"The plan worked. But it was a near run thing. One tank was lost to MOL and another to the AT gun. But a critical hit on the gun eliminated the blocking gun. The infantry disrupted and were eliminated. The German infantry were able to assault the building with the placement of smoke and get into melee with the AT gun and MMG. This allowed units to cross the bridge for victory. Grumble Jones correctly guessed my attack axis and put up an excellent defense. But the combination of good rolls by me and some very high rolls melted his units away. Also the smoke factors covered the crossing of the bridge. My thanks to Grumble Jones for another great game!"
That's all for now. Next week will be ASL filled with games on Monday with Dave Mareske, Wednesday with Dan, Friday with Scott in St. Louis and Saturday with Dan!
So see you next Sunday for the latest ASL happenings...good and bad!!!
See you then!
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