Dan Best and I would get in two games over the weekend. Our first would be on Friday evening and would be scenario MM78 A Day at the Museum and our Saturday game would be TX-8 Hit and Run. Our first game would end much more quickly than either of us anticipated. We would complete only 1-1/2 turns before the Germans had to concede. And you might wonder what caused such an early exit....I know what you are thinking and you're right...the damn dice. Five boxcars in the span of 1-1/2 turns can be catastrophic to a small scenario. Throw in a batch of 11's which cause SS to ELR and you've got quite a mess on your hands. Dan's dice were simply horrid. My dice on the other hand were good with only a single boxcars...which did casualty reduce a 6-4-8. On the other side of the dice, Dan's SS would lose 1-1/2 squads to boxcars and the STUG would MALF its MA on the first smoke attempt. And that smoke is absolutely critical to the SS attack.
So we'll get back to the sad story of the actual game, but here's a bit about the scenario. This scenario was first released on Grumble Jones in December 2019. It was play tested over 2021 and released in the new ASL March Madness Grumble Jones Pack.
There are changes in the two versions, which were the result of the KC Club's play testing. They would move the start location of the 20L AA Gun, add an elite modifier for smoke generation and eliminate one of the STUG's.
The Illuminating Rounds guys recently played the scenario in this episode of their excellent YouTube site. It's Episode 63: Toby Piling Interview.
Their game also ended at the two turn mark as nearly all of the British were broken. Martin's SS had made good progress with the loss of a Berserk half squad. The real damage occurred (if memory serves) when Martin's Panzerschreck shot caused Dave's 9-2 to make an MC. He rolled a 12 and then a 6 - KIA'd. The bad news is that 3 squads were with the 9-2 and all would break. So the dreaded boxcars would once again unravel the scenario...this time for the British. But keep this in mind...Stacking....a cardinal rule of ASL is that you don't stack. Remember this theme as stacking would have a serious impact on Dan's SS as well.
In their post game analysis of the scenario, Martin and Dave did question the inclusion of the 20L AA gun which starts the game abandoned on the Utrechtsweg. As Martin suggested, it is included for historical sake.
It features prominently in a couple pictures taken after the conclusion of the battle as the Germans are sorting out the captured British Paratroopers.
It appears that one of the STUG's ran over the gun for some reason.
For game purposes, it provides the British with another opportunity to generate victory points, which they may well need at the end of the game.
Martin and Dave also questioned the victory conditions. They felt the victory conditions required a bit too much bookkeeping. Now, I would challenge that a bit as I don't think that they are really that burdensome. So let me make the case and explain them a bit more in detail.
The Germans can win the scenario immediately upon control of building I3 by turn 3. Dave would seem to have won the scenario by that method in their playing. Although, I think you could argue that Dave's concession came too early. The British would have been able to rout and potentially rally in time to exit the game. Other forces could still have delayed Martin and kept control of the I3 building long enough to deny the Germans the immediate victory. Just my opinion of course.
So if the Germans fail to take the I3 building by turn 3, the side with the most Victory Points is the winner. Both sides earn CVP normally. Then additionally, the British player earns a single point for each turn that he controls the I3 building. Additionally, the British earn Exit Points for all the units exiting the west edge. On the other side, the Germans earn points for MMC's (full and half-squads are counted separately) that end the game on or beyond Row H and double points if the Germans have MMC's on or west of Row L. So, I have to say that book keeping during play is not necessary. This is a short game and both players will know how long the British controlled the I3 building. And then at game end, you simply tally up the CVP for both sides and then tally the points for exited British and for German units having made to hex rows H or L. I don't believe that is overly complicated when compared to other scenarios that are based on CVP and EVP.
Having said all of this, I am very grateful to Martin and Dave for playing the scenario and showcasing it during their excellent episode which is must see viewing for Toby Piling's interview. If you are unfamiliar with their YouTube Channel, I highly recommend checking it out. So thank you Dave and Martin!
For our playing of the scenario, I would command the men of A Company, 2nd Battalion, South Stafforshire Regiment. My force would consist of 8 x 6-4-8's led by a 9-2, 8-1, and 8-0 with 2 x LMG's, and 2 x PIATS.
Dan would command the grenadiers of 9th SS Hohenstaufen, Engineer Battalion and STUG Abteilung 280. Any Google search will bring up a good collection of images of the 9th SS and STUGs on the Utrechtsweg. Dan's force would consist of 11 x 6-5-8's led by 2 x 9-1's, and an 8-1 with 2 x LMG's, a Panzerschreck and STUG.
Historically, the Germans were able to overwhelm the British and take many prisoners.
In this scenario, the British player is challenged with a bit of a conundrum. He has to hold the I3 building to prevent an immediate German win...but must also preserve his force for EVP. So the British player has to keep an eye on the time and how close the Germans are getting to rows H and L. Inflicting losses on the Germans is of course good, but a stand up fight in stone buildings can go either way and British losses are doubly hurtful as you give the Germans CVP and lose EVP at the same time.
On the other side of the street, the Germans have to consider the risk/reward associated with going for the immediate win. Casualties won't matter if they are successful...but if not...then they likely deliver too many CVP to the British score and possibly lose at game end.
In playtests, a British player apparently went for the exit with everyone after Turn 3 and still lost the game as the Germans doubled up their points after getting their units past the L row. So, our hope with this scenario was that it presented multiple ways to win and likewise give both players tactical dilemmas to work out.
And now for Dan's Pre-Game Comments:
"The SS thugs must attack and clear the museum building by turn 3 or have more VP at game end than the British. VP are a combination of CVP and EVP for the Brits and CVP and board location EVP for the Germans. Basically, this makes the Germans carefully consider their attack. They can attack hard and try to capture the building or attack cautiously and maintain advantage in VP totals. The plan is to attack hard. The infantry will attack through the building and try to get to the G row by turn 2. Then assault the museum under cover of smoke from the StuG. The StuG will use the road to get in smoke position. Hopefully the Germans can cross the open ground without too many CVP."
DASL boards compress the battlespace. This can be difficult to remember. The British for instance have a 4 hex range with 6 factors. This could a limiting factor in a regular hex size game, but in DASL, a four range is not a bad thing. The same applies to movement. You can cross these boards much faster. With CX you can reach the middle of the board from either edge and likewise nearly exit from the middle of the board. So the both players have to factor this into their thinking. The Germans have six turns to move across 15 hexes. And the British player has the final movement, so can hang out till the last turn to slow the Germans down and still exit. (BLOG NOTE: the 7-0 should be an 8-0...going to have talk to my editor...).
Hex F2 is burning on both levels. This creates a smoke problem for the British in Hex G3, but limits the approach to open road or woods. The E5 building is going to be German on Turn 1, but a unit in F5 can hit B5 and D5 just in case the Germans move in the open. Dan actually moved a stack through B5 and I missed it...even though I had planned to take that very shot. Stupid mistake on my part.
"Tommy...did you see those Jerries pass through B5?" "I sure did mate." "Why didn't you shoot them!?!" "I thought I only had a three range..." "You daft fool...we have a 4 range." Now the Jerries are right next to us with 21 factors and -1 leader. When we break...I'm blaming you!!!"
Turn 1 - Dan's half squad scouts run forward. My 9-2 KIA's the first one and lays a 1 factor fire lane. This fire lane would claim a second half-squad. Dan's STUG armored assaulted up the road with a 9-1. I would force a morale check. Everyone would break and one squad ELR'd...and split into two half-squads. A shot at the 8-1 stack would also result in breaking two squads. Defensive fire had been brutal with a squad KIA'd, and five squads broken along with a 9-1.
Dan's initial push had been stopped cold by good British rolls and terrible German morale check dice. glass jawed SS went down left and right.
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Turn 1 - British. I do some falling back and redeploying.
Turn 2- German - it begins badly. Dan's STUG attempts to make smoke and rolls a 12. Good grief...the dice were just killing this game. The half squad with the tank would attempt to move and the 9-2 would KIA them. The Germans in the E5 house pushed forward as did four half squads in the center. I would DM or pin all but one squad. The one squad would go into close combat in G4. I would get the ambush and KIA them. At this point, Dan gave the concession. The SS had lost 4-1/2 squads KIA'd and only a single 6-4-8 remained unbroken. The STUG's MA was still MALF'd and the British had 11 victory points at this stage of the game. The British could safely exit all the squads and win the game, so Dan offered the concession.
A final look at the battlefield. The flames had spread to G3 building and further spreading would render the building useless for the Germans to stage attacks from. Overall, the game had just gone about as badly for the SS as it could. Even the British sniper contributed by breaking a half squad. It just 1-1/2 turns it had become an untenable proposition for the Germans.
Sometimes in ASL...the momentum swings hard to your opponent and you just can't retrieve the situation. In this scenario, Dan's full court press to take the I3 building was repulsed with heavy losses. Had the SS taken the control of the building the losses wouldn't have been an issue, but with the building remaining in British hands through turn 3, the losses suffered by the SS were too great to overcome for the win.
Now, stacking does come up in both this game and Dave & Martin's game. Stacking is a benefit in street fighting if you can get the fire edge on your dug in opponent. Three SS squads with an LMG and -1 leader are tough to face, but firing at these same group when they are moving as a stack can be fatal to them. And that it what we saw in this game. The Germans stacks got hit hard and when everyone broke, the momentum of the German attack was lost. Similarly in Dave & Martin's game, the breaking of the primary British kill stack thoroughly sapped the strength of the British defense. So stacking is great when you are shooting...but less so when you are taking the hits.
In my own game style, I have adopted the strategy of keeping my stacks to single squads. This can be risky as your attack FP are not very high...but in defense, shooting low factor shots at 0 through -2 can be devastating to your opponent. And in Advancing Fire, you represent only a single squad for the return fire. I suppose like most things in ASL, you have to be judicious as to how you form up your troops for the ever changing situation on the battlefield.
And now for Dan's Post Game Comments:
"The plan did not work. Mostly due to horrid dice. The Germans rolled no less than 4 boxcars losing three HS and breaking the MA on the StuG (and having no smoke). They also lost three squads in open ground or CC. The Brits lost one HS (to boxcars). In small scenarios this kind of dice rolling is devastating. By the end of the German second movement the Brits had a 11 to 1 VP lead and the Germans were not in position to win by assaulting the building. The British also had set up very well with a screen of troops in the F row and troops in multiple levels of the museum. Well played by Grumble Jones who was also slowly pulling his forces back to preserve his forces for an end game exit. With this catastrophic German opening it was time to concede. Congrats to Grumble Jones on the win. It was not only bad dice that got the victory but good defensive play."
Dice...can't play with them...
can't play without them..
Our second game, which was played Saturday night would be TX-8 Hit and Run. Designed by Dan Preston, this scenario covers the counter-attacks of the German armor formations to slow down or halt the Russian advances during Operation Bagration. In this scenario, it is the German 24th Panzer Division acting as the mobile fire brigade. Our playing of this scenario would do a great job of showing just how effectively the Germans could operate in these open ground engagements where German fire and mobility superiority could be brought to bear decisively and blunt the Russian advance.
This would be my third scenario from this pack and I look forward to playing more in the future. If you don't have this pack, I recommend grabbing a copy.
Hit and Run is 2 German and 0 Russian wins on ROAR. After our playing, I can attest that this is a tough scenario for the Russian player.
The victory conditions require the Russian player to earn 90 CVP + EVP off the west board edge. Any German units remaining on the board at game end are counted as eliminated for CVP for the Russian player.
Both the Germans and the Russians have the option to enter some or all of their units during the game. Dan would hold his trucks off until Turn 2 and then send into the firestorm. As the Germans I would elect to place everything on the board. But I would try and stay near the board edges as my forces could exit off the north, south or west at any time.
This battlespace is made for German LL guns. The grain is the only hindrance to success.
As the defending Germans, I would command the men of the 24th Panzer Division. The Leaping Horsemen who would be destroyed at Stalingrad and then reconstituted to suffer through the death throes of the Third Reich as the East Front collapsed. My force would consist of 4 x 5-4-8's, and 4 x 4-6-7's led by a 9-2, 8-1 and 8-0 with an HMG, MMG, 3 x LMG's, a Panzerschreck, 3 x Panthers, 2 x Jagdpanzer IV's, and 3 x Half-Tracks with a 9-2 Armor Leader.
The story of the Leaping Horseman is fascinating one. The division's traced it's legacy back to the Cavalry and they would wear the yellow Waffenfarbe of the cavalry throughout the war.
Destroyed at Stalingrad, it would be reformed from the veteran cadre that were evacuated from Stalingrad. The division would see action on the Western Front before finishing the war on the Eastern Front. Like most armor units, it would find itself sent wherever the fighting was fiercest to confront Soviet breakthroughs. It's experience would be similar to that of the Grossdeutschland Division.
This scenario is aptly named Hit and Run and does an excellent job of putting the German player into a situation where you will have to confront superior Soviet numbers and have to cover a large area with limited forces. This is a fun challenge for the German player. The Soviet Player in this scenario probably faces the greater challenge as he will suffers serious body blows as he tried to move across the open ground of Boards 16 and 19. Watching Dan's boys suffer in this scenario shows just how hard and maybe unenjoyable this could be for the Russian player.
I am a big fan of Jason D. Mark's various books about the fighting at Stalingrad. His books are without peer in my opinion for the extreme level of detail they provide. This detail does tend to be mostly German, but nevertheless the brutality and futility of war come sharply into focus.
I highly recommend these books, but they are pricey and I wouldn't advise purchasing them in place of ASL content. Most ASL players that I know maintain a well stocked library relative to World War II.
As the attacking Russians, Dan would command the men of Koniev's 1st Ukrainian Front. This force would consist of 6 x 6-2-8's, 5 x 5-2-7's, and 10 x 4-4-7's led by a 9-1, 8-1, and 7-0 with an HMG, MMG, 3 x LMG's, 2 x ATR's, 3 x ISU-122's, 6 x T-34/85's, 5 x T-34/M43's, and 8 x Trucks with an 8-1 Armor Leader.
Ivan Koniev has always been one of my favorite Soviet Generals of the Second World War. He rose from a peasant upbringing to be a Marshal of the Soviet Union.
He was an effective leader and pushed his forces relentlessly westward. He would not obtain the universal fame given to Zhukov, but his 1st Ukrainian Front would challenge Zhukov for the recognition of being the first Soviet army to reach Berlin. Stalin appears to have encouraged the competition to temper Zhukov's growing popularity. He would relent when it became clear that Koniev had reached the city first. Stalin then gave the prize of Berlin to Zhukov and Koniev would move south of Berlin and take out his frustration (if he had any) against the Germans trapped in the Halbe Pocket.
Koniev's ruthless destruction of the German 9th Army even as it attempted to simply escape to the west would be a foreshadowing of his later actions as a leader in the Warsaw Pact. Koniev would be involved in the suppression of East Germany as well as the Czech and Hungarian uprisings. So...it would be difficult to paint him as a heroic figure (at least outside of the Soviet Union). But nonetheless, his performance in the Second World War deserves recognition.
And now for Dan's Pre-Game Comments:
"The Russians must exit and/or inflict CVP. The plan is to attack on board 16 on turn 1 and save the trucks for turn 2. The infantry will enter as riders and because of movement limitations most tanks will stay in motion. The Russians will then use the woods cluster between the boards to shield the vehicle herd from the most effective German tank fire. Most likely this will be behind the stone wall on board 16. Hopefully the Russians can get some APCR and return fire can knock out some Germans."
Dan set up for a Schwerpunkt across the north edge. this provided the most cover and was what I had expected. But I had a plan to utilize my OBA to push Dan's attack to the south and the open Killing ground of Board 19. I had three tanks covering the south. My 9-2 Armor Leader and his hull down Panther would be tasked with holding the north along with a Jagdpanzer IV. Would it be enough to take on 13 Soviet Tanks??
My 9-2 would be equal to the challenge and do better than I could have hoped for.
The Russians enter on Turn 1 with only half of their movement allowance. Dan was not happy with this SSR and I have to agree to some extent. Not sure why these restricted entries exist. It certainly hinders the Russian advance and the red line above shows the general limit of the Soviet 1st Turn movement phase for the armor. Dan would hold his trucks offboard on Turn 1. As the German, I benefitted hugely from this SSR as it gave me a turn to range in the approaching Russians and to get my ARTY in place.
Now keep in mind the SSR also allows the Russian Player to bring his units onto the board on any turn. But...this is a six turn scenario and it's an exit game for the Russians...sooo...not entering on Turn 1 could be limiting.
Dan moves up to the hedge line. I target his infantry from my level 1 9-2 with the HMG. I go on a rate tear and break a large number of squads. I also targeted Dan's leaders, the 9-1 would be wounded, the 8-1 would be killed and 7-0 would become a 6+1 during the course of the game.
I dropped my ARTY on target in the center of the grain field. My intent here was to drive the Russian armor into the sights of my two Panthers. I was hopeful that Dan would elect not to chance driving through the ARTY particularly with so many riders.
My best tank killing zone was on board 19. If Dan's Schwerpunkt came this way, I would have unrestricted visibility.
Russian losses on Turn 1- two tanks went down to my 9-2 Armor Leader in the hull down Panther and my 9-2 with the HMG had broken a large number of Russian squads.
Turn 2 Russian - Dan brings on his trucks and succeeds in running one through a huge gauntlet of fire to exit the board. Other trucks are less successful on the north road and so head south along with the bulk the tanks into the killing zone. Two more tanks would be knocked out by my Panthers. But Dan had elected not to go through the grain field of ARTY and was moving into my Kill Zone. But my Panther in this area would MALF his gun on the first shot. This was not what I had planned for...
The limit of the Soviet advance on Turn 2. At this stage, the Russians had lost four tanks and two trucks. So far my killing zone wasn't living up to expectations. And my Panther had 3 acquisitions on it and the Jagdpanzer IV had 4 acquisitions on it...YIKES!!!
Turn 2 German - I needed to make some adjustments. My Panther with the MALF'd MA started in reverse and successfully backed away as Russian shells bounced off it. Dan failed to get APCR on each of his attempts. My 9-2 Panther Ace moved his Panther south to add firepower to the killing zone. The northern Jadgpanzer IV would take his place hull down behind the wall. And I would send a half-track to move adjacent to broken Russians in the center house so that they would be forced to rout into the ARTY. Not my nicest moment, but it was effective as a Russian crew would be killed during the rout.
My central position allowed my tanks to move to cover either flank.
Turn 3 Russian - Dan sends his trucks cross country and they are all destroyed or immobilized. Two more tanks are knocked out and the 8-1 Armor Leader is lost. The killing zone was now in operation. The Russian tanks were getting hits, but were not able to penetrate the armor of the Panthers or the Jagdpanzer IV.
My MG-42's managed to take down most of the trucks and lay effective fire lanes.
A final look at the battlefield as Dan gave the concession and it was game over and a German victory. This game was one of those rare battles where things just went according to plan for the Germans. Everything came together. The 9-2 and HMG shut down much of the Russian infantry attack. And two Panthers succeeded in destroying 7 Russian tanks. The OBA worked as planned and funneled the Russian attack into the more open killing zone of Board 19. As the game ended, the Russians had exited a single truck for one point and were down to 69 points on the board and much of the infantry portion would not be able to exit by game end. The Germans had suffered no losses with the exception of the Panther with a MALF'd MA. The Jadgpanzer IV's had contributed nothing, but German machine gun and rifle fire had stopped all but one truck. The failure to get APCR rounds was a big issue as the Russian guns were unable to get penetrations against the German armor. It had been an understandably frustrating game for Dan's Russians. My thanks to Dan for a great weekend of ASL. I wish the games had been kinder to both sides. Luck was certainly on my side during both games.
My Panthers truly proved their worth in this game. I've not been lucky with my Panthers in recent games, so it was nice to see them perform well. Our dice in this game were fairly average for much of the game. I had good rolls on Turn 1 and saw poorer rolls on Turn 2, but with Panther 75LL guns rolling 8's would be a knocked Russian tank every time. And I did not create any burning wrecks, which kept my vision open. Russians always suffer from a smoke deficit and not getting any Russian Smoke worked to the advantage of the Germans in this scenario. I think this scenario has good replay potential. Keeping forces off the board on Turn 1 opens opportunities for both sides. The Russian player could force an early reaction and then launch a second attack with full movement on Turn 2 that could stress the German defense. And the Germans could hold off the half-tracks with squads to mop up broken Russian units in the backfield. So, I think the scenario has more to offer than just what Dan and I showcased in our playing.
And now for Dan's Post Game Comments:
"The plan did not work. The German 9-2 gunnery was too good with both tank and MG fire. By turn 4 the Russians had lost two leaders (with one wounded), 7 tanks, and all but one truck. Plus about 6 squads. The Germans had lost nothing. With only 70 EVP remaining the Germans could just exit and win. A good defensive set up by the Germans and good dice rolls were the undoing of the Russian attack. Well played by Grumble Jones!"
That's all for this AAR.
Dan and I will return next week for more over the top ASL action!!!
We will see you then!
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