Paris is Burning #1, Cracking the Nut

Paris is Burning #1, Cracking the Nut

0951, May 18th, 1985. The Soviet Third Shock Army attacks the French 2nd Corps.  The French are stretched thin, but have effective anti-tank weapons with which to engage the Soviets.  Yes, the Soviet tanks can by pass the resistance, but doing so will playce the following echelons at risk.

We played this scenario twice, Chuck was the French 35th Regimant d'Infantry (of course) with close air support from a Super Etendard, while Aaron and I commanding one formation each of the Soviet Juggernaut.  In both games, I had the powerful infantry formation, the 77th Motor Rifle (BTR60-mechanized rifle platoons, with support from the awesome 2S6 Tanguska anti-aircraft vehicle).  Aaron commanded the polyglot 1st Tank in game one and the 8th Guard Tank in game two (a pure T-64 force, with limited artillery support).  This was also the first game using my variant artillery rules.  They seemed to work well.  I've tweaked them a little bit for next time.

The battle takes place on a single map, with the French holding two towns, one at a river crossing.  The Soviets enter and must either control both towns, or exit units from the board, or a combination of both.  In game one, Chuck held the river crossing in strength, leaving only two infantry platoons in the Southern town.  I entered first, threw my infantry into the Southern town and in a rolling tide of assaults, drove Chucks infantry out and killed them as they fled West out of the city.  We controlled the town and exited units easily.  Victory for the USSR!

In game 2, Chuck held the bridge with a small force (one Infantry, one APC and a truck), and massed everything else in the Southern town.  He used his artillery effectively to disrupt my dismounted infantry advance, and Aaron was plagued by two turns in which his Guards didn't activate at all.  I fought my way into the town and across the bridge, but unfortunately left wrecks on the bridge hex and the hex the bridge exited onto.  By the time Aaron's tanks got to the bridge and began pummeling the opposing bank with HE rounds, the finals grains of sand in the clock trickled away.  We didn't have enough time to get our units off the board.  Victory for France!

I sure wished there was some way to clear that fucking wreck off the bridge.  Fighting with vehicles in towns leaves a lot of damage.  Oh, and the Tanguska shot that poor Etendard to bits in both games.  Lethal.

The Untold Stories #5, Counterattack Countered

June 2nd, 1985. The Canadians are on the counterattack.  Aaron was the East Germans, I was the Canadians.

A very cool little battle.  Two battered Canadian formations (2nd Princess Patricia Canadian Light Infantry and Royal Canadian Dragoons) are attacking across a river.  One equally battered East German Regiment (29th Motor Rifle) is defending the bridge.  Two formations are rushing to its defense:  the massive 53rd Panzer Brigade, led by Hans Wolf himself, and the 116th Aufklarungs.

53rd Panzer is a big formation of T-72's that can activate twice per turn once a Canadian HQ is identified by a Pact recon asset (this never happened during our game).  The 116th is also a 2-activation unit, but it's a recon force without much hitting power.  It's on the map to spot for the 53rd and to call in artillery.

The Canadians have a few platoons of Leopard C1's, which have solid hitting power, but very weak armor (worse than a T-72), two platoons of infantry, a Lynx (recon) and a surprisingly strong little anti-tank asset:  a reduced platoon of M150 (M113 vehicle with a TOW missile launcher on the roof).  It is the only vehicle in the game that can fire through a smoke screen.

The terrain is flat, open fields with a few copses of trees and scattered villages.  Good anti-tank country.  Very exposed.  The East German reinforcements have to make their way over this ground while taking fire from the M150 and Canadian Dragoons.  These managed to kill Wolf and several T-72 units during their approach.  Off-board Canadian artillery also dropped mines onto one of the primary roads, diverting 53rd Panzer for a crucial turn or two.

On turn 6, the Canadians managed to storm across the bridge, into the East German positions before the reinforcements could arrive.

Assessment:  Fast, brutal, battle between weakened forces.  The East Germans have an extremely effective unit:  the 53rd Panzer Brigade.  The problem is that it has to cover a lot of open ground before it can get into the fight, and the unit it's reinforcing is quite weak.  The usual NATO dominance in terms of equipment and activations is significantly less in this battle than in others.  I want to play this again, switching sides.  It's an excellent battle, playable in an hour or so.

Eisenbach Gap #4: Maelstrom

May 19th, 1985.  Rear echelon forces from 3rd Shock Army are trying to break through a thin U.S. line.  Aaron was the U.S., Chuck and I played the Soviets.

I've solitaired this several times.  It uses the entire map from Eisenbach Gap and features a number of exciting formations:  on the Soviet side the stars is the ever popular 1st Tank and the the 69th Attack Helicopter Regiment.  The U.S. has two balanced formations and the armored Delta Dogs coming in as reinforcements on Turn 2.

Aaron was unfamiliar with the Line of Sight rules, so his initial set-up was flawed (he had his forward units on the "interior" of the hills where their line of sight was blocked).  1st Tank drove into the open center of the board, which looked like a fine decision at the outset, but the situation quickly turned ugly as Chuck's T-72's missed some activations and were cut to pieces.  I advanced through the forest on the right, hoping to cross the river with the aid of my Hinds.  We did manage to wipe out the infantry unit holding the bridge, but by the time we got to the river, Delta's tanks had mauled Chuck sufficiently that they could afford to roll east and catch us in a crossfire.  T-55's burned all along the river road, and those units that survived the crossing were unable to muster the courage to press on to victory.  Aaron won handily.

I always enjoy this battle.  It's big, and the Soviets look impressive on paper.  Pressing into the teeth of dug-in U.S. defenders isn't something to be taken lightly.  Even with the help of Helicopters, I've never seen the Soviets break through.  It's fun to try though.

Napoleon at Bay, January-March 1814

Played OSG's Napoleon at Bay with Aaron, Chuck and Kurt. Chuck and Kurt were the French.  Aaron was the Army of Silesia and I was the Army of Bohemia.  We played just about in real-time, over the course of several weeks in January-March 2013 (almost the 200th anniversary!).

Aaron and I didn't really coordinate, other than generally keeping an eye on one another, and agreeing that the lessons learned in Germany in 1813 should be adhered to (specifically the one about avoiding battles with the emperor, and advancing when he reveals himself to be SOMEWHERE ELSE).  The opening moves saw Blucher and the to-be-avoided-Napoleon sparring North of Vitry le Francois.  Aaron fended off a half-hearted attack by the emperor (who withdrew along the north bank of the Marne to Chalons-sur-Marne, before disappearing behind a cloud of vedettes).  Meanwhile, I plodded my way Westward, keeping south of the Aube, towards Troyes.  I tried to come to grips with Gerard, who managed to avoid destruction, slipping North over the river toward Sezanne.  The French army concentrated at Sezanne throughout February, grouped roughly in an arc between the Marne and Seine.  Napoleon didn't show himself as Aaron slowly crept West and North and I captured Troyes and pushed a large column under Barclay hard for  Nogent-sur-Seine.  Barclay crossed to the North bank of the Seine in mid-February, where he was discovered by French vedettes (I have to imagine to the Emperor's surprise, given his subsequent reaction).  Within a few days, Napoleon, Murat and the bulk of the French army was at Nogent-sur-Seine and battle was joined.  Barclay withdrew over the Seine (losing enough men to provide Napoleon with a critical victory), and burnt the bridge.

With the knowledge that the French concentration was in the South, Blucher shifted his supply to the North and surged Westward, capturing Reims and Soissons.  The French hovered around the Seine for a few days before resuming their central position screening Paris.  General Wrede's Corps from the Army of Bohemia captured Pont-sur-Yonne, but otherwise the Austrians stalled out, moving their center of operations West to Bray, covering the bridges over the Seine, and advancing with 80,000 men under Schwartzenberg to Sezanne.

Blucher, aware that Napoleon was marching North to confront him, nevertheless kept up his westward momentum, eventually closing on Paris from the Northeast and causing a panic (7+ strength points within 7 movement points of the city).  Napoleon struck Winzengerode, in the van of the Silesian column, on the 5th of March with the bulk of his army. Blucher made a forced-march to support his lieutenant and a pitched battle ensued that saw roughly 16,000 Prussian casualties in its opening rounds (French artillery was lethal, and Chuck committed the Imperial Guard on two attacks).  Aaron showed a lot of nerve, revealing Pitched Battle twice and taking a horrendously one-sided beating.  Fortunately for the Prussian cause, Blucher had a 3-2 advantage in overall numbers and he was able to absorb the losses without breaking.  The second French attack saw Blucher's patience rewarded (Chuck rolled a 6, the only number that could have resulted in a French loss).  With the Guard staked, Napoleon's "pitched" choice switched to a retreat plus a morale loss.  The battle was a critical one, and caused Paris to surrender.  Aaron's Prussians were victorious!  My Austrians could only shake their heads in consternation... they would be facing a resurgent Prussia soon, culminating in 1866.  Napoleon, however, was put on a ship to Elba.  Never to be heard from again (*coughwaterloo*).

This was my first time playing NaB, and it was every bit the treat I had expected.  The Army of Bohemia was perfectly frustrating to play:  large, dangerous but very unwieldy.  The Prussians were hell for the French.  I think that Napoleon has to bloody them right out of the gate, unless the Austrians expose themselves prematurely.  With all the reinforcements the Army of Silesia gets, it cannot be allowed to march unmolested for too long (whereas Schwartzenberg can be allowed to creep along for a while with only token resistance at the Seine bridges).  Chuck and Kurt had a strategy of slowly withdrawing westward, keeping between the Allies and Paris.  That's not a winning strategy.  The Allies have too much power, and can outflank any "line" the French try to establish.  The French have to challenge the Coalition lines of communication, and any force, regardless of size, that reveals itself.  Napoleon can whip any Allied army he meets, almost casually.  He'll need the critical victories to win.

The Campaigns system is a real work of art.  Can't wait to revisit it (though we're off to Leipzig next, returning to OSG's Library of Napoleonic Battles).