Dispatches from the Front: Sitrep (FOW): The battle for Klotzsche

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Monday, February 4, 2013

Sitrep (FOW): The battle for Klotzsche

Panzer brigade 150 is back in action

This time the full Kompanie was in play. Their opponents was a Canadian rifle company captained by Matthias. Matthias is a long time British player and after years of the British struggling to take on better German lists he was keen for pay back. For the game he opted to bring Canadian rifle infantry company. Slightly worrying, was the addition of a platoon of crocodiles, flame thrower tanks. They were particularly good against infantry and virtual immune to the available German anti tank weapons.

The mission rolled was Surrounded with the Panzer Brigade surrounded by the Rifle company. The Brigade deployed first, each Fallschimerjaeger platoon took an objective a piece. The Pioneers deployed on the middle. ready to reinforce whichever side was threatened. The mortars deployed on the edge covering both objectives. To push the Rifles to deploy in a particular table half the brigade's Stugs and M8's deployed facing the opposite direction. They were mobile enough to re-deploy if needed and would hopefully make the Rifles think twice about facing off against them. The Paks opted for immediate ambush since they were the slowest element in the army and need to get into a good firing position since they were unlikely to be going any where once deployed.

Crocodiles lead from the front

In response the Rifles deployed just the mortar platoon against the Brigade armour with everything else attacking from the opposite direction. The Crocodiles and the recce went in the centre with a Rifle platoon on either flank. The Anti tank platoon deployed at the rear in a forest to cover the advance. The Paks did an immediate ambushed right in front British advance. The recce moves saw the brigade M8's move to the threatened front while the British recce platoon pushed forward stopping in front of the Paks platoon.

initial deployment

British turn one was uneventful. The Germans were in concealed and gone to ground making spotting them difficult. The Air support tried to attack the Stugs but could not see through their disguise and while it tried to find a target the M8's shot down the both planes. The mortars did not move and stayed stationary for the whole game. The British infantry in transports opted to drive into cover to wait for the Paks to be dealt with.. The Germans retaliated, two command jeeps and a Kommandoe team went after the isolated British mortar platoon. The rest of the force moved up to block the British advance. The Paks opened fire on the Rifle platoon, destroying a transport and inflicting some casualties. The Heavy mortars fired on the Crocodiles with no effect.

Crocodiles begin to drive on to the objectives

The Crocodiles and recce platoon pushed forward and between them they destroyed the Pak platoon. The Air support was again shot down by the M8's. The Kommandoe team was recognized and destroyed by the mortars who then destroyed the Jeep teams sent to attack them. With the Paks gone the Germans brought up their Stug platoon, which failed to make any impression on the Rifle platoon hiding in a village. The M8's opted to move around the forest to threaten the other Rifle platoon.

Canadian Armour makes short work of the defending anti-tank guns

With the Pak threat removed, the Rifle platoon under pressure from the M8's opted moved forward. The recce platoon and the Crocodiles advanced and started to engage the Fallschrismerjaeger protecting the nearest objective, burning a few teams along the way. The Air support hit the Stugs, that had fired and given away their identity. The attack left two Stugs burning, one bailed out and just one effective assault gun. Taking heavy loss the german launched their counter attack. The pioneers supported by the company commander and the second in command were the biggest remaining threat to the Crocodiles and were in assault range. The assault went in but was halted by murderous defensive fire which gunned down six of the seven teams hit and stranded the platoon in front of the flame throwing tanks. The bailed out Stug failed to unpin. While the lone Stug and the M8's hammered the Rifle platoon destroying another transport and eliminating a few more teams.

Pioneers assault is destoryed

With the counter attack stopped in its tracks the Crocodiles destroyed the pioneers and the company command then pushed on to threaten an objective supported by the recce platoon and damaged rifle platoon. The defenders fell back trying to lure the Crocodiles into assault range of the few remaining anti tank teams. The bailed Stug still would not unpin, leaving the sole assault gun to engage the recce teams with no effect.

Sensing a break through the British anti platoon broke cover and moved forward. While the platoon that had been pinned in the village by the lone assault gun pushed forward to swarm the defenders. The Crocodiles put the bailed out Stug out of its misery and forced the other tank to flee. The defenders poured fire into the Rifle platoon and forced a morale check which it passed. The recce platoon was recued to a single effective vehicle but both platoons stayed in play. The defending heavy Mortars claimed a Crocodile, a little to late. Another desperate counter attack was attempted on the Crocodiles but tank terror stopped the attackers.

German Stugs are destroyed by Crocodiles

The final turn saw the Crocodiles destroyed the failed assault platoon reducing the defenders to below have strength and without a command team they broke and fled the battle field.