It is yet another near miss... the third in this game... how lucky can one tank get...
Ukko feels that his men are badly exposed in their present location – the Russians could pop up from behind the corner of the building at any time now... To get at least some cover, he has concoted a plan... he throws a smoke hand grenade backwards, toward his own lines...
But then an unforeseen turn end interrupts his plan. The German jump-off-point in the residential building, disabled by the SMG men at the beginning of the game, disappears.
All smoke is likewise gone...
And as this is now the second Turn, Aksu's reinforcements arrive... a platoon of three T-34/85s!
The new arrivals immediately take the anti-tank gun under fire... the first shell causes two points of shock...
Another T-34/85 appears on the road...
The second shell is much better aimed and kills two gunners, causing a further two points of shock...
The gun crew are now almost pinned...
Ukko moves his men onto the road again...
But... (cue in Jaws main theme...)
The T-34 in the warehouse backs a bit and shoots the grenadiers with its mighty 76mm gun...
Luckily the result is just a single point of shock...
At this point Ukko is facing three Soviet platoons with his infantry platoon...
But we then remind him that there are renforcements on the way on the next Turn...
The T-34s shoot again, killing one more gunner and pinning the gun crew...
Ukko withdraws his men from the stone wall.
We continue the game a week later... Ukko plays his CoC die, bringing in the
Feuer Brigade...
Over the course of the war the Germans perfected a technique of having a unit of armor in standby reserve, to be deployed wherever most needed...
Here the Fire Brigade consists of one Tiger and two Panzer IV ausf Js...
Uninterested in being blown to bits by the German monster, the T-34 on this flank disappears behind the largest warehouse...
Have you noticed that although the ausf J was a very prevalent version of the Panzer IV, it is never mentioned in any later-war CoC campaigns?
The jump-off-point in the grey house destroyed, the second SMG section is now making its way towards the fighting when it is targeted by the Tiger...
Two of the men die, the rest getting two points of shock...
The Panzer IVs fire, the next shell slams into the lead T-34/85, destroying it...
The other Panzer IV takes out the second T-34/85... German tank gunnery is obviously first class – they've had lots of practice!
The squad targeted by the Tiger – or rather, what is left of it – runs out of view.
As the street is under Tiger 88 mm fire, Aksu moves his tank to the railway side of the buildings...
Ukko's men are again in a firefight with the Russians in the brick building.
The Tiger turns and now targets the men in the brick warhouse...
The Russians in the building back away from the window...
Meanwhile, the platoon leader's T-34 inches towards the corner of the building...
Aksu has turned his other T-34 onto the railway tracks...
Here he is temporarily in a defilade from the frightening tanks of the Fire Brigade...
Aksu cannot win this scenario if he stays put, he must advance! The T-34 roars as it speeds towards the enemy...
On the Soviet right flank, the platoon leader of the T-34/85 platoon arrives, parking his tank in partial cover, behind the smoking remains of the rest of his platoon...
The tank shoots at the Panzer IV but misses...
The Panzer IV drives over the PAK 40, deserted by its crew...
From here it will be possible to take the advancing T-34/76 under fire...
The platoon leader reverses, hoping to get out of sights of the Panzers, should they come around the corner.
Aksu must keep the pressure on on the right flank. Thus his two-man squad again advances towards the Germans. This should keep the German section where it is now...
Ukko drives his Tiger onto the railway tracks....
The 88mm gun barks...
.. the shell glancing off the front of the tank... the T-34's driver gets an point of shock and is unable to act...
The HJ boys are back, now hiding behind a stone wall...
Here they can target the two men who comprise Aksu's second squad.
It is the Russian's phase... The T-34 has one round of improved APCR ammunition for its gun... the tank commander orders the loader to load it up...
Fire! The APCR shot smashes into the front armor of the Tiger but is unable to defeat it... what remains of the shot bounces off...
The Tiger shoots back, hitting the vehicle squarely in the center and starting a fierce ammunition fire...
One of the Panzer IVs moves so that it is able to target the T-34/76 platoon leader's tank...
One of the Panzer IVs moves so that it is able to target the T-34/76 platoon leader's tank...
The Panzer takes a shot at the T-34 but misses its target...
The last T-34/85 tries to hit the Tiger, but it is another miss...
The Tiger's heavy turret turns...
But before Ukko has a chance to fire, The T-34/85 speeds away, trying to make it to the brick warehouse, out of sight of the German monster...
At this point this has become a tank battle, with the infantry not really relevant any more...
Ukko's second section has lost its leader, and they have four points of shock...
The only remaining Soviet tanks are the two platoon leaders' tanks...
The T-34/76 platoon leader sends a shell at the exposed Panzer IV...
The Panzer is hit, but there is no damage...
The Panzer then shoots back a Panzergranate 39, but that shell too bounces off its target in a shower of sparks... this is something like the forth time that this T-34 has gotten lucky...
The other Panzer now targets the T-34/85 platoon leader...
The ammunition of the tank explodes, sending the turret flying...
The white T-34 then fires another shell at the Panzer IV and this time there is a result...
The Panzer is now on fire...
On the Soviet right flank, the HJ boys have lost one of them, but are firing at the two-man Soviet section there...
The leader of the squad is knocked out, and the loss causes the Soviet Force Morale to fall low enough that the game is over...
Aksu's forces now consist of around ten infantrymen and one T-34 tank, so there is no point in continuing...
Ukko still has undeployed forces – a machinegun, some old Volksturm men, and one more grenadier section. But there aren't that many good places to deploy them.
The battle is over, the Germans have won.
It was nice to finally get to field these two Panzer IVs which I've had for years but never used in a game.
We really enjoyed playing this scenario! There are too few good Big Chain of Command scenarios out there. There's a lot of hardware here but it kind of works in the flow of the game as they are introduced piecemeal.
Our Königsberg 1945 campaign reports will start appearing here soon.
Some of our Chain of Command campaigns and games:
Rajajoki Station http://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=4857Fire in the Sky http://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=4055Fangs of the Wolf https://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=4954April 9th http://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=3636Citadel – The Breakthrough – Grossdeutschland Attack at Kursk http://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=1353 Other Games:
The Drive on Minsk;
http://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=815 Unternehmen Nordwind:
http://thewargamersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&p=30957 Our Clubs:
GeMiGaBoK:
http://www.the-ancients.com/gemigabok/ Stadin Strategit:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/474796192532203
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December 08, 2008, 03:51:47 PM
