BA: Hold the Line

Been a bit busy lately but last week and tonight I finally got a couple of games in vs Kent. Tonight we decided to shake things up a bit and play a modified FoW Hold the Line scenario and, although we were making it up as we went, it worked really well.

I ran my Free French:

• Vet 1st Lt
• 3x vet squads
• 1x tough fighter vets (Goumiers)
• MMG, Mortar, 105mm howitzer, 75mm Sherman, Greyhound and half track.

Kent ran his SS/FJ mix but swapped his MkIII (he usually runs it as an early war version) for his stug for extra fire power- so lost his flamethrower and panzershrek

• Vet 1st lt
• 4x Vet Squads (2x 8 man, 2x 10 men) with a sprinkling of assault rifles. 
• mortar, 105 recoiless gun, MMG, stug, 222 AC

Since it was my idea Kent got to decide to attack or defend and chose to attack. As with hold the line we played lengthwise.

Rules:

• 1/2 defenders on table, rest in reserve. 
• Each turn roll 1 die for each reserve unit, on a 6 the unit arrives. Next turn it is on a 5+, the following turn a 4+ etc.
• 2 objectives placed by the attacker at least 12" from the table centreline. The defender could then move one objective up to 6".
• To win the attacker had to have one uncontested objective at the end of a turn, otherwise the defender won.
• The defender deployed then the attacked could place all his force on the table at least 24" from the centreline, but could also use flanking forces if they wished. 

That was it really.

I chose 2x rifle squads on table, the 105mm, MMG and mortar.

The table from the Free French lines.The objectives are just in front of the hill and in the right rear corner of the area of scrub/copse on the left. One squad and the MMG are on the hill, the other squad is in the hedge row at the top of the wooded area.

And from the German perspective.

Germans advance towards the ruined house.

The stug advances, covering some infantry on the German left flank, the rest of the German force is heading towards the copse.

Turn 2 the Sherman arrives and misses the stug in the distance. The two red markers are to represent dead mortarmen- Kent's mortar took out mine, and his was taken out by a direct hit from the 105mm howitzer (the first of 4 units it claimed!)

 Return fire fro the stug immobilised the Sherman at the start of turn 3 but in return the 105mm ranged in with its first round and blew up the stug!

On the French left flank the German infantry mass and overcome my squad

 Turn 4: With the US squad destroyed the Germans stream though the copse towards the objective which was now undefended - luckily my reserves finally arrive.

The 222 hits the French half track.

Free infantry prepare to assault the advancing Germans.

Outnumbered the French inflict 3 casualties but are wiped out. Still, it may slow the Germans down a bit.

 The Goumiers now arrive and, supported by the Greyhound, advance.

The smoke represents where the 105 has just destroyed a squad of Germans, its 4th 6 to range in in a row. So far it has accounted for: the 105, the stug and now a squad of infantry!

Goumiers and SS trade blows at the end of turn 6. I'm just hanging on but Kent has lost half his units. Alas we rolled and got a turn 7.

The goumiers get shredded by SMG and assault rifle fire and my last squad on the hill desperately try to run over to contest but are out of range.

 End of turn 7, Kent survives a break test and so wins the game!

A real nail biter, and the mission worked really well. My artillery was MVP knocking out 3 squads/units, the mortar claimed another kill of the 5 German squads/units knocked out.

We are going to swap roles on the same table over the holidays and see how it goes, only tweak at this stage is to allow the defenders to start dug in.

Craig