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| Company Command Stand |
Right - to the action! So this game was a small airborne company (-) with their company 60mm mortars, and 2 platoons of airborne riflemen squaring off against a reinforced "Kampfgruppe" of 2 small platoons of German infantry, an MG platoon, and an 81mm Mortar section! As an added surprise, ze Germans have a Tiger I as a reinforcement.
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| Mortars! |
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| Germans! |
I played down the narrow side of the table to give the Germans some semblance of depth, but as it turns out, they may not need it...
Turn 1 a US platoon crosses the line of departure. The US have 4 orders and 4 hero dice! Impressive since the Germans only have 1 each... As the US attempts to keep the movement going, the Germans use a hero dice and open up with the MG platoon - 2 x MG42s on tripods and 8 fire dice later with telling results. The US platoon in the open is knocked out as they make their Received Fire Checks to try and get into cover. Every team hit is knocked out. The US platoon fails its morale check and its curtains for them....
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| The MG42s tear through the paratrooper ranks! |
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| Unbelievable! All the Received Fire Checks are KOs... |
The company commander, in pure disbelief, is rallied and smacked by his RTO and he gets back into the ballgame. The second platoon on the right opens fire at the German MG positions. The Germans have only 1 order die and aren't keen on using it so the US player goes for broke! After suppressing the woodline MGs, the US platoon rushes for the woods to their front, crossing a huge linear danger area and gambling away all of their orders to get to the safety of the wood copse.
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| The paratroopers' shooting is dead on and they give the MGs a rough time. Time to go for broke and the paratroopers burst from the treeline! Note the attempt to smoke and cover the advance - the mortars missed the target! |
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| The paratroopers reach the woods and fan out using their last orders to reorient the platoon. |
That's part 1 of the battle so far. I think I'm playing the hidden platoons stuff all wrong but I can see where it would be kind of cool - something akin to the Flames of War ambush rule. It's a subtlety and I like it. Too bad I forgot about it when the US player was moving on the German left.
Oh there's another interesting twist, too. The US quality is "elite" since they are 101st Airborne and the Germans are "Regular" since they are garrison troops in Normandy.
So far the Germans have busted their reserve roll and it's on to turn 2! Stay tuned! Can the "screaming eagles" pull off this attack?
Fun game looking forward to the next report. The rules seem interesting too.
ReplyDeleteIts been fun so far David. I like the tension that builds up and the feeling that your moves can be gambles, since you dont know how aggressively the enemy will or can react. Well if you play solo you do but there is management of all the things you can do in a turn and its appreciated.
DeleteGood stuff, Steve, I'm looking forward to part two. And you're not the only one, I've ruined plenty of paint jobs with poor washes...
ReplyDeleteV/R,
Jack
Thanks Jack. Yeah i screwed the pooch on these guys. They looked pretty good, too. Im not sure if i have the gumption to go back and highlight them again.
DeleteI wouldn't sweat it man, they look good from here. Me? I rarely go back to units. But several times now I've sold a unit, then bought the same dudes in fresh lead and gave it another go. Ridiculous, right?
DeleteV/R,
Jack
I hear you. But I even painted the chicken beaks too...(we used to call them the screaming chickens but I couldn't call them that in a blog post...)
DeleteBeen there man. I used to have this MASSIVE EPIC 40k collection in high school (oh yeah. You know what I wasn't doing on Friday nights). I basically threw all of it away, only to buy everything back new later on in life. It's not ridiculous. I guess we go through these stages in our gaming "careers."
But point taken. They'll stay drab!
Gawd DANG! a wiped out platoon on turn 1! lol sheesh. But a pair of MG42's laying in wait will eat up troops strolling in across open ground. Looking forward to part 2, and let me know if I can help at all :D
ReplyDeleteCheers, Brandon. If any one could lose an infantry platoon platoon on turn 1, i could!!!
DeleteIm coming up with a list of questions but so far i think ive got small enough forces on each side that its been manageable.
Im not sure if im doing the hidden /reveal stuff right.
Also, what happens when the CC is wiped out? I know there are 2 chit draws but is he replaced? I was reading the rules on my phone so i didnt find it but i could have sworn that's addressed somewhere.
Excellent report. I really like the sound of these rules too.
ReplyDeleteYou may like them Darren. Took me a few games and back and forths with the author to settle some questions, but i know you are keen on both Command/Control and resource management in wargames and these rules serve up a healthy slice of both.
DeleteVery aggressive action by the US after that first setback. Endorsed.
ReplyDeleteMichael i needed a big win after the first turn... the paras shooting and moving really lifted my spirits... these rules do give you some flexibility in how far you can or should keep going. Somply put they give you just enough rooe...
DeleteWow, bad luck losing the first platoon on turn 1. Looking forward to the conclusion. I just finished a big battle with these rules too, so I am looking forward to seeing what you think of them.
ReplyDeleteHey Dale. Conclusion posted hopefully today sometime. I like the rules so far. Ive played 4 games of HOF and i have enjoyed them. The rules some novel concepts in them and tie together features i like in other games. Ill keep them on my shelf :)
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