...and we're back

Been a while. Joe and I have had some scheduling problems, but finished the first CG date of ABTF CG II a few weeks ago. (We actually finished the first 3 turns of the second day this past weekend, more on that in a near future post).


Joe and his Germans took several blocks on the morning of the 19th. Most of them expected, one not expected. Here's the block control situation at the end of the day.

The Germans moved through the Eastern part of block R with no real opposition, but took some shots from squads in the foxhole line at the western edge. Several of those squads were wiped out by artillery while trying to get back to block L. They hung in one turn too long (a common mistake for troops under my command).

the Germans eliminated all opposition remaining in block K. I was able to get a few walking wounded squads out, along with a flamethrower toting half squad.

I expected to lose a few squads doing damage in and around the schoolhouse (we did take out a Pz IV and a Tiger(!), but was disappointed to lose two quality leaders in there. Should have gotten at least one out.




The Germans attacking from the West were hitting block I hard. The Brits mostly fell back before the onslaught into the SE corner of the block, huddling in the ground floor and cellar locations to protect from the 120+ artillery that was pounding away.

The arty is a double edged sword. The elite troops in the buildings mostly shrugged it off, and even got a few HOB results creating heroes and fanatic squads. At the same time, the falling shells actually helped protect them, with German troops unable to get too close.

Realizing that the block I attack was bogged down, Joe saw a target of opportunity in the lightly defended block G. He turned his 10-2 stack to the north and wiped out the two British squads who thought they were going to have to wait for the afternoon to see action. The Brits certainly did not want to lose block G. Ouch.

In the end, the Germans lost quite bit in the way of armor, but did their job in causing casualties.

The Germans won the casualty count by a slight margin 83-81. The Brits lost 21 -1/2 elite squads (7 coming back as walking wounded. Another 7 1/2 walking wounded squads were lost. The worst of it though, were the losses among the Brit leadership. We lost 3(!) 9-2s, 3 9-1s, and 4 8-1s.

When the afternoon comes, we'll have a smaller force, but less ground to defend. Just starting to get interesting.

...and we're back

With a total blast of an ASLOK behind us, at long last it looks like we'll be getting the ABTF CGII underway tomorrow.

As I've been telling people that I'm about to start on this CG with the Brits (by my choice), I've received a few incredulous looks. "YOU chose the Brits?" "That's a total dog!"

Well, it may be. I know that CGIII is largely considered a dog (something like 16-2 on ROAR). But, there are no recorded playings of CGII on ROAR, and I can not find an AAR or mention of CGII anywhere on the web.

CGII, obviously, is the second half of CGIII, at the start of the German counter attack. The Brits will have fifty-some high quality squads on map. The units are a mix of paras, glider troops, engineers, and commandos. They will have very good leadership from Col Frost and his staff. They are equipped with Gammon Bombs (similar to ATMM) for combating the German tanks and SPGs.

The drawbacks are many. Some of the British squads and a few of their leaders start the campaign as "walking wounded". The British will suffer from an ammo shortage which will increase in severity as the CG dates go by. There is no British Armor to speak of. And the biggest drawback of all: no infantry reinforcements.

All this means that taking the British side will require VERY disciplined play (not my strong suit). It will be all about force preservation, and making every shot count. I'll try to use dummies to play a 'three card monty' and keep Joe guessing. With some big German ARTY likely to be falling It will even more important than usual to maintain concealment, and keep our heads down in the stone buildings.

If this is a dog, then we probably won't stay at it very long. But the idea of this CG really appeals to me. There's something about the desperate barely-hanging-on defense that I find dramatic and intense.

I guess we'll find out soon enough.