Battle of Grozny (1994–95) - "Welcome to Hell" Batrep

[Lord Raglan]

Battle of Grozny (1994–95) - "Welcome to Hell" Batrep



At around 15:00 hours on the 31st December 1994, the 131st Motorized Rifle Brigade entered the Chechen capital of Gronzy. The attack had so far gone surprisingly well with very little resistance encountered.

By mid-afternoon, the first battalion of the 131st MRB occupied the train station, unaware of the 81st MRR's situation and separated from the second battalion which reached the freight station further to the west, and from the third battalion on the outskirts of the city. The unit parked its tanks and armored personnel carriers around the station and awaited further orders. Somewhere within that period of time, a Russian communications officer heard the words "Welcome to Hell," on his headset. Shortly after, Chechen fighters, hiding in the depot buildings, the post office, and the five-story building surrounding the station, opened devastating automatic and anti-tank weapons fire. The surviving Russian soldiers took cover inside the station, which the Chechens soon set ablaze. Russian commanding officer Colonel Ivan Savin radioed for help and artillery fire, which never came.



Most distress calls from the 131st went unanswered. The second and third battalions of the brigade responded to the call for help, but were blasted at close quarters before even reaching the station. Both battalions were ordered to stay away from the Presidential Palace; this only added more to the trouble as the armored columns tried cutting down alleyways, only to be further cut down by ambushes. When a small element of the 503rd Motor Rifle Regiment finally received their orders to move in during the early hours of the day, they immediately came under friendly fire from the other Russian forces already bogged down under heavy fire; they fought each other for six hours (there were more such incidents reported, some of them actually prepared by the Chechens). The 8th Corps reached the city center from the north but was unable to save the units that had fallen into the trap because of stiff resistance. No reinforcements ever reached the railway station.



At nightfall, Colonel Savin decided to evacuate the wounded via the only working armored personnel carrier available. After loading 40 wounded soldiers on board, the APC moved in the wrong direction (toward the center of the city). It turned around and was ambushed by Chechen anti-tank gunners; only 13 soldiers survived to be taken prisoner. On January 2, Colonel Savin and his remaining officers abandoned the railway station. They found some abandoned armored personnel carriers and attempted to escape the area, but were attacked by Chechen fighters and Savin died on the street from shrapnel wounds beside his wrecked vehicle. By January 3, the 131st Brigade had lost nearly 789 men killed (further 75 were captured, and only 160 reached safety), including almost all of its officers. In addition, 20 of 26 tanks and 102 of 120 other armored vehicles were lost as well. The entire Maikop Brigade of over 1,000 men had been wiped out in sixty hours.







Buildings by Task Force Terrain

[Marine0846]

Love the battle table.
Will we see more photos with figures on the table?
I hope we will, am sure the pics will be great.

[Ockman]

Amazing terrain and storytelling!

Your posts are the best!

[Romark]

Wow!
Table looks terrific,as previously mentioned the story telling was great,very apocalyptic in nature,like Stalingrad or the fall of Berlin.

[Lord Raglan]

I was hoping to post the batrep last night with loads more pics, however, the family got in the way. It is written already, so hopefully I can post this evening.

[Ragnar]

Awesome; following.   

[Dr. Zombie]

Wow!
What a table!

[Lowtardog]

Fantastic mind you we need an unbiased report from Rob too 

[Dentatus]

I'm loving that terrain.   

More please. With miniatures.

[Lord Raglan]

Scenario overview

For this game we were using the "Surrounded" scenario from the Bolt Action rule-book with modified rules for modern wargaming.

Step up
The Russian player set-ups half of his force within a 24 inch radius around the centre of the table. The rest of his force start in reserve. 

The Chechens do not have any forces on the table at the start of the game, however, the player must nominate half of the force to come in as the first wave of attackers. All other units in the force are left in reserve.

Objective
Both sides must attempt to destroy the other force whilst preserving their own units.

First turn
The attacker must bring on his first wave of attackers.

Special rules
Confused Fight - as per the rule book
Hidden set-up - as per the rule book 

Game length
6 turns

Russian initial deployment

[Lord Raglan]

As Chechen forces descend on the Russian held position, Platoon Commander Stepanov disperses his men across two adjacent ruined buildings with the BTR left guarding the street.





The Chechens advance in cover or using the sewer system to gain the element of surprise.

[Lord Raglan]

In a bold move, the Chechen commander orders his only T-55 down the main street to engage the Russian APC, while his infantry begin to swarm the Russian position.

[Lord Raglan]

Russian reinforcements arrive from the south, breaking right and left towards the Russian held position in the centre.



The Chechen Wolf Packs attempt to take the high ground, commanding good fire arcs down into the Russian position.

[Lord Raglan]

Intense firefights were now erupting across the combat zone with Russian units taking cover where ever possible.

[Lord Raglan]

More Chechens units moved towards the main killing ground, including a number of  Chechen Wolf Packs schooled in art of guerilla warfare and hungry for Russian blood.



Chechen sniper teams also used stealth to infiltrate the battlefield, keeping Russian heads down with well aimed shots.