Posted on 25 February 2010 at 14:49:43 GMT Greetings
I played the German defenders for this recreation of the left flank of 43 Wessex Division's assault of 10 July 1944. We used BKC I but will probably switch to BKC II for the next scenario.
The table was a 6' x 4' played lengthways with the British startline (FUP) on the north table edge and the Germans in depth with the village of Etterville almost half way down the east edge and the fortified farm of Les Duanes higher up on the west edge. The village of Maltot was represented at the southern end of the table as were the eastern flanks of Hill 112.
The defence was more or less historical in deployment - a weak SS panzergrenadier battalion well dug in in Horsehoe Wood, Les Duanes and Chateau le Fontaine (the command post and centre of defence for the SS battalion) in the north west, about half of the other panzergrenadier battalion (a rifle and a the heavy company) holding Etterville with its other two companies holding the line of the Etterville road and forming outopsts on the flanks of Hill 112 - these ended up under the command of regimental HQ. A pionier company was in reserve dug in at Maltot and a 7.5cm PAK platoon was dug in along the Etterville road to give it a field of fire north. A company of StuGs were parcelled out as required and a single Werfer battery was on call.
The Allied deployment was preceded by concentrations of 5.5 inch and 7.2 inch fire that did no damage at all and 5 Dorsets kicked off on the east and 4 Dorsets on the west with the Brigade CO having the MG company and AT battery on the east flank (as it turned out he would have been better in the centre). Each battalion had a squadron of Churchills and two troops of Crocodiles with it as well as an FAO calling on their 25pdrs. 7 Hampshires formed the brigade reserve and were not, in the event, called forward for Phase 2 - the attack on Maltot.
The early turns saw both British battalions suppressed by werfer fire and 4 Dorsets, despite easily eliminating the defenders of Horseshoe Wood, milled around failing command rolls seemingly endlessly. We all thought that the Brigadier (and the Divisional commander) would doubtless replace its commander.
5 Dorsets - with a bit of assistance from Brigade HQ - managed better and after a hard fight took their initial objectives (Les Duanes and the chateau) although they had to use their accompanying Churchills and Crocodiles to do so. 5 Dorsets eventually reached the Etterville road below Hill 112 but the game ended with them suffering Churchill and infantry losses from roving StuGs on the flanks of the hill.
4 Dorsets finally stopped milling and moved out (slowly at 10cm per move) toward Etterville, massively behind time, and the game ended as they exchanged fire with the defenders 500yds from the village edge and suffered heavily from mortar and infantry gun fire.
One aspect of the game was an ongoing duel between Churchills and the PAK 40 platoon - eventually the PAK was eliminated by a British FAO called down a concentration on it at the same time as lots of Churchills fired on it. The PAK didn't KO a single Churchill but it certainly focussed attention.
The game was run at 30 minutes to a turn and we ended on about turn 13 or about 11.30 am of the morning of 10 July. The German reserves off table were not needed (quite) so are likely to be deployable in the next scenario when 129 Brigade tries to take Hill 112 - also at 0500 on 10 July 1944.
Regards
Edward |