Bit more traditional than my usual posts on here...
Operation (mini) Overlord - D-Day 2008Last Friday I finally got around to taking the 'D-Day' stuff to the club... But sadly my camera batteries died during the game!
The game was a fictional D-Day style British landing against German fortified positions on the French coast.
British Forces consisted of six waves with infantry and armour supported by naval artillery and air support. The Germans had a re-inforced Fortress battalion dug-in among various defences and another battalion on stand-by to make a quick march to the beaches.
Before the game even begun disaster struck the British forces. Their six DD Tanks sunk to the bottom of the channel in the rough swell (actually the guy bringing the Shermans couldnt make it!) but luckily a salvo of rockets from a passing landing craft took out several German Anti-Tank guns!
The view down the beach with 'Strongpoint Bimmler' in the foreground.
The view from the other end of the landing area with the trench network and bunkers on the beach front and the OP bunker in the fortified casino. The final British objective can be just seen at the back table edge, the artillery support bunkers of 'Vauxhall' would be the final D-Day objective. The game began with a salvo of naval gunfire that did little damage as the first waves of tanks came ashore. The assault was led by several Churchill's and a Centaur followed by the first groups of infantry. Things did not bode well, as one of the Churchill's was knocked-out by gunfire as it left its landing craft. It remained burning on the waters edge to welcome the following waves...
The first two waves creep up the beach under heavy fire...As more British troops came ashore, casualties begun to mount among the first wave as they led the attack on their first objective, the collection of trenches and bunkers along the beach. The British had decided to ignore Strongpoint Bimmler for the moment and directed everything against the seemingly easier option of the trenches in the dunes. However the Germans put up a ferocious fire from the defences and the situation became grave for the British as casualties in men and armour began to mount.
British forces force the beach while the Typhoon strafes various targets...As further waves landed the British were able to make their superior numbers tell and breached the German beach defences. However due to the large number of casualties they were unable to fully clear the beach defences and they now had to decided whether to push onto 'Vauxhall' and clear the town or re-direct the incoming Commandos from their assault on 'Bimmler' to help secure the defences in the dunes. As the British on the beach reformed to assault the town and 'Vauxhall' several more vehicles were knocked-out by mines and German fire. Despite this, some relief was to be had as the guns of 'Vauxhall' fell silent... The telephone cable between the Casino and the strongpoint had been cut by shrapnell and the Germans found themselves without artillery support.
Storming the defences at heavy cost...As the British forced their way into the town, led by a valiant Churchill Crocodile, the Commandos landed on the beach and began the long advance up the sand towards the untouched 'Bimmler' strongpoint. As the Crocodile began setting fire to the buildings in the town to flush out the defenders, its supporting infantry came under heavy fire. The Crocodile itself survived a massive amount of anti-tank fire and a point-blank duel with the German StuG III that had arrived with the re-inforcements! However German re-inforcements, flanked the town and much to the dismay of the British as they pushed into the town and towards 'Vauxhall', German troops began to filter back into the trenches on the beaches and re-tale the first British objective!
The French Commandos arrive to tackle 'Bimmler'...The end of the game now rested with the commandos and the Crocodile now heading cross-country towards 'Vauxhall' in a mad dash to take the area. As the commandos crossedf the open beach, artillery fire from 'Vauxhall' again began to fall after the telephone cable had been repaired. This was short-lived however, as a passing Typhoon, disgorged all its rockets into the artillery positions destroying the 150mm gun and killing all the crew. As the commandos prepared to assault 'Vauxhall', the sole remaining British tank, the Crocodile, began flaming the MG bunkers of 'Vauxhall'.
British troops try and force the town as one of the Churchills heads off to win a few medals...In a blaze of glory the commandos attacked 'Bimmler'. Their enginners destroyed on bunker with satchel charges and following the concussion of the explosion the rest of the men stormed into the defences and took the fortification in brutal hand-to-hand fighting. The German survivors fled the bunker complex and the exhausted and weary commandos took up position in the concrete defences of 'Bimmler'.
Here the game drew to a close due to time running out for us... But the situation was clear for us all to see. The British had captured 'Bimmler' and only one MG bunker on 'Vauxhall remained. The British had also cleared the Casino OP and the town but German troops had filtered back to the beach and remanned the defences. Due to the heavy casualties sustained by the British, they would be unable to clear the first objective that now still dominated the beach.
It was agreed that the game be declared a draw and the the follwoing British waves would be directed to another beach, while the troops here would consilidate their positions around 'Bimmler' and 'Vauxhall' and await relief by land forces from one of the other invasion beaches.
Was a great game, very exciting, made all the more fun by Thomas' luck with German gunfire being horrifically good early on and Cyril living up to his reputation of rolling exactly what he doesnt want... We lost count of how many of his vehicles ran over mines...
Great game to umpire and well worth the effort of taking all the scenery and figures down the club.
Von Valentine in Normandy...KG Valentine's first battle report.
This photo was taken just before the battle as Von Valentine briefed his battalion commanders...
Valentine walked over the cobbled courtyard of the stone farm he was using as his command post. The sun was just rising over the horizon. Smoke drifted accross from the recent British artillery barrage that had landed behind his main positions.
He stopped beside his command car and looked at his driver asleep in the front seat. Hans was only sixteen and had no place in the frontline. Valentine rapped on the window and Hans shot upright in the drivers seat.
"Move my command vehicle back to Divisional HQ Hans... I want you to lead all the trucks and SPWs back. We have no need for them here and if things go bad at least the division wont lose the vehicles as well as my men."
Hans looked at Von Valentine. He always looked so calm. He noticed the two battalion commanders arriving, both of them walked into the courtyard together to be met by Walter Krump, Valentine's second-in-command. The three men approached the command car and Valentine turned to met them. The four men exchanged greetings and shook hands warmly before Valentine ushered Hans and the command car out of the farm. The four men moved to the south corner of the farm and looked out over the terrain. As the sound of their vehicles moving grew fainter they could make out the sound of the enemies vehicles moving down the bottom of the ridge. A faint mist gave the day an eerie feel.
"Well... Are both battalions in position?"
Krump looked at Valentine. "Yes Colonel. Bachmann's battalion is in the village holding our centre. Klinemann's is deployed around the farm and the fields facing our right. As you requested just the recce company and the anti-tank company are on the left."
"Excellent... Lets see if we cant make Tommy bleed a little for this bit of ground. Gentleman... You have your orders, I will see you later today or in hell!"
The three men saluted and hurried out of the farm. Only Valentine and his radio operator remained.
It was June 1944... It was Valentine's DayAnd a picture of the 15 x 5 table we used...
It was a bleak outlook for the Germans first game. Outnumbered 3 -1 in infantry and 6 - 1 in armour my only hope was to try and blunt their initial attacks.
The British deployed with two battalions facing the villiage in the centre and then one on each flank supported by tanks. This deployment was to play into the only advantage the Germans had and allowed local actions to fought at far less superiority with the German only outnumbered 2 - 1.
German MG team above, and below the British deploy...
As it turned out the German deployment worked well. In the centre one of the battalions met the British centre attack head on. With two battalions closing quickly in the centre the Germans directed mortar fire, MG fire and supporting artillery onto the attackers. While both British flanks crept forward catiously the troops in the centre entered a hellish zone of enemy fire. Within minutes of the attack launching several British units had suffered serious casualties and the centre seemed to falter.
The Farm and Orchard that featured in the German defence. Below, the A/T company on the left flank which distracted the British for a long time.
As the British in the centre tried to fight their way into the village at heavy costs, the flanks advanced. On the German left the British infantry advanced slowly with the Churchill tanks in support. For much of the battle this flank would be occupied by getting past the German A/T company and this cautiousness left the British in the centre on a limb. However the British on the German right flank advanced more aggresively but facing the second German battalion and the lone Tiger tank they soon ran into problems and were forced into hiding as the Sherman tanks erupted, one after the other in flames.
"Forward... For King & Country!" Below; The Germans guns that caused heavy casualties.
As the British centre began to waver under losses, the battle reached a critical point. In a fusilade of accurate fire the Germans managed to break the British attack in the centre. Forcing all but the British OP team to flee back towards their start line. As the flanks tried to close in to help the bloodied centre a German company crossed the road and assaulted the British OP team still in the houses. By now, the two battalions in the centre had been reduced to a couple of understrength companies and would play little part in the battle other than providing some mortar fire.
The British advance about to hit the German lines... and below, British troops advance through the church.
As the British centre crumbled the German defence was nopw able to face the two flanking forces on very good odds. On the left the A/T company had been badly mauled but had held up the British long enough to destroy their centre. On the right the British began a determined advance, throwing everything at the Germans with MG and mortar support.
MG team and its Anit-tank defence hold out in the orchard... Below, an MG team surveys the ruins of the village after the battle.
As the battle reached crisis point on the right things seemed to turn for the British. The lone Tiger's luck ran out and it was knocked-out by the remaining Sherman and PIAT fire. But this had provided yet another distraction and casualties from German MGs, mortars and artillery fire would again prove critical. As the British on the left advanced into the outskirts of the village the right flank attack began to falter...
As the British on the left began to disengage and retreat, after inflicting heavy losses on the Germans, the British right flank finally entered the village. But the Churchills now found themselves surrounded by a/t weapons and were unwilling to enter the urban area and casualties on the infantry were beginning to mount.
At this critical moment, as German reserves rushed from the other flank, a German mortar round came down on the British command. The subsequent explosion killed the CO and the British began to withdrew.
At the end of the battle KG Valentine held their initial positions and had indeed advanced to capture the Church (the recce company hide for the whole game then drove about behind the British lines to capture the church). British losses were very heavy. Two battalions almost ceased to exist and the remaining two were very badly mauled. German losses though heavy were confined mainly to the support weapons with only on MG still in action at the end.
For their first action the new Germans performed well... Von Valentine led his men to a remarkable victory in a game that could have gone either way if it hadnt been for my consistently good dice rolls all game... The dice gods certainly returned in this game and left the British cursing bad luck from all three players. Despite this it was a cracking game... real knife edge stuff and the time just flew by. It was one of the best games of Rapid Fire and it has certainly injected some enthusiasm into WW2. Im looking forward to a re-match... and this time Victor will be bringing the rest of the boys!
The second outing for Kampfgruppe Valentine... This time the force was tasked to hold two bridges against a large British infantry attack. Was a bit of a non-starter for the British really... They had to cross open ground with me shelling them while having appaling dice rolls for their own artillery.
My dice rolls were stupidly high consistently (Must be that old Von Valentine magic showing through...) and within a few turns one of the four British battalions, was routed, soon followed by a second. The British didnt manage to get a single man accross the bridges and suffered horrific losses. As usual the casualties on the German side were once again mainly confined to the A/T company and Recce companies who were both wiped out... Again! I also lost a number of MGs but the two infantry battalions remained intact despite 50% losses to one of them.
I would have to say that the game was won by my 150mm gun that just kept raining death upon the poor unfortunate British infantry, well assited by my 105s and the battalion mortars.
So Von Valentine now makes it 2 out of 2...
The table at my mates house...
The German forces...
Support deployed in the fields...
The British force deployed...
The British Command begins arguing over who forgot the tea...
German troops dug-in around the stone bridge...
British Infantry advanced over open ground as German artillery falls among them!
Two German MG teams set up on a hill covering one of the bridges...
The OP team goes about its deadly work from the ruined farm...
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