Poland 1939 - The Dash for Lwow: A Bolt Action Battle Report

[Maniacus]

The following After Action Report is from a game of Bolt Action played this fall at our gaming group's "Casual Con 2014" gathering.  

For this game we had the fun opportunity to play with Lead Adventure member Nostromo, from Blitzkrieg Laboratory, and he provided his awesome German mountain troops and Polish "Black Brigade" figures for this game.

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POLAND 1939 – THE DASH FOR LWOW

SITUATION:  
Retreating from the crumbling Western Front in Poland, September, 1939 - the famed Polish 10th Mechanized Division, known as the Black Brigade for their black leather long coats and black berets, falls back toward the city of Lwow. In their way stands the tough German 1st Mountain Division. Both forces are low on equipment, supplies, ammunition and fuel, though the 1st Mountain Division is expecting reinforcements soon.  

Setup:  
This game is based around the “Envelopment” scenario in the Bolt Action rulebook.  The defenders (Germans) set up in their lengthwise deployment zone with some units being able to deploy up to the table’s centerline.  The defender may put some units into reserve.  The attacker (Polish) enters from the board edge in the first turn.

Victory Conditions:  
The Polish players receive 1 victory point (VP) for each German unit destroyed.  They receive 2 VP for each unit that breaks through and ends the game within 12” of the German board edge.  They earn 3 VP for each unit that gets off the German board edge.
The German players earn 2 VP for each Polish unit destroyed.

Game Length:  
This scenario uses random game length.  At the end of the Turn Six, a D6 is rolled and on a 4+ one additional turn is played.


A pre-game overview of the battlefield, with the German board edge on the left and the Polish board edge on the right.


German forces deploy behind a row of buildings, ready to move up and establish defensive positions in front of the main roadway that the Poles must cross.


The first Polish units begin moving onto the battlefield from their board edge.


On the right flank, a rifle squad and mortar team quickly move up the road but soon encounter a German road block.  They are followed by a pair of Polish tankettes.


On the Polish left flank, several rifle squads and a light howitzer begin advancing through the cemetery while a Panzer II moves up to occupy the main road.  




the German defenders, having moved into positions within the shelled buildings, open up on the advancing Poles and the two sides exchange heavy fire.








With the Poles also making a strong push up the center, a German unit rushes forward to plug a gap in that sector.

[Maniacus]

PART 2

On the right flank, a Polish mortar team drops smoke to mask the advance of the tankettes. Bursts of machine gun fire cause the Germans in the buildings to duck back behind their cover.


Another Polish mortar team repeatedly drops rounds onto the unlucky rifle squad holding the German center.  As the mortal zeroes in, the pin markers pile up.


Unbeknownst to the tankette crews, they have driven right into the crosshairs of one of the Panzer IIs.


The Panzer crew gets down close to the action to verity the actual line of sight from their autocannon.  


Seeing that the German unit in the center is heavily pinned under mortar fire, the Poles seize the moment and launch their assault en masse at the weakened middle of the enemy’s line.


 

Several Polish units provide covering fire to support the coordinated assault.




The tankettes roll forward and provide additional from their machine guns and autocannons.




A Panzer II advances to unleash a torrent of fire on an exposed Polish unit in the middle roadway, leaving only two survivors.   Nearby Poles attempt to rush the tank from the cover of the cemetery but lose their nerve and fail their order to move out from behind their cover.

[Maniacus]

PART 3

An anti-tank rifle team scores a direct hit on the side of the Panzer II, but the round fails to penetrate the armor.


While on the Polish right flank another anti-tank rifle team takes up an elevated position with a commanding field of fire.


A pair of tankettes roll forward in support of the infantry advance.


With the Germans suddenly back on their heels, the Poles begin reaching the enemy’s defensive positions and launch a series of bloody but successful close combat assaults.  Here a German anti-tank gun crew is overrun.


The two sides clash amongst the ruins.


Germans make last-ditch redeployments in their lines in a bid to slow the Polish wave.


A tankette uses its speed to break past the German line and maneuver for a shot at the rear of a Panzer II.


After a series of bloody but victorious close assaults, the Poles consolidate their positions.










As the battle winds down, the Poles find themselves victorious on the battlefield






THE RESULTS:

After Turn 6 was completed a D6 was rolled to determine if the game would continue for one more turn, but the result indicated that it concluded with Turn 6.

Although each side earned several Victory Points for destroying enemy units, the successful Polish advance deep into the German deployment zone pushed the Poles over the edge and delivered them a clear victory.  

Having succeeded in breaking through the German lines, the Polish path to the city of Lwow is now clear.

[Marine0846]

I like the look of you game.
You don't see many Poles vs Germans games.
Very well done.

[von Lucky]

Lovely set of photos, accompanying text. Thanks for sharing.

And I agree, good to see some WWII Poles on the table.