More Stalingrad this weekend

We'll be slugging it out again this weekend. we may or may not be able to finish the 9/17 CG day....in either case, continuing AAR to follow early next week.

VotG CGII Drive to the Volga AAR Sept 17th part II

We plowed on through the end of turn 3 this weekend. Things are reaching critical mass.

The most interesting and savage fighting continues to be in the south, where the smoke has now cleared. The Russians have started to form a new line in the U46 building. The Germans have moved forward and are driving a wedge along the southern edge of the map, but at a very high cost.

The Germans have a few kill stacks, StuGs hammering away, but it has been a slow grind as the Russians give ground grudgingly. The Germans have already lost nearly 60 CVP of infantry in three turns.

During a H-T-H melee in the theatre, the Russians slipped a few squads in behind the Germans after a German boxcar infiltration roll. They don't pose a very large threat, but they will have to be dealt with, damaging the already desperate German schedule.

The Germans lost radio contact on the module in the above photo, or else the spotting round would be a FFE. It is critical to get contact and convert it in the next turn.

The 467 at the left of the photo is in a hex with a burning StuG killed by a MOL-P. I think that is the first result the Russians have had with one in the campaign.

A few blocks up the Russians are retaking ground in and around the Nail Factory. Although you can't see them in the photo, there are good order German squads in each ground level location of the K40 building. They have to stand up!!!

The Russians have collapsed "the knob" where the Germans had a major MG position. More captured MG's. I've lost count of how many German MG's have been captured.

Further north, the Germans are pulling back across Communisticheskya St, as the Russians have them locally over matched.

In the extreme north, the German reinforcements are taking back some ground. We got a StuG in behind the Russian infantry in an attempt to encircle and block rout paths. Unsupported however, the Russians were able to isolate and kill it in CC. (Joe never fails a PAATC. Never!!)

Things are getting to a point where the Germans have to make a breakthrough and drink from the Volga very soon, or give it up. If we can drive the wedge through in south, we have hope to continue. If the Russians hold, we may have to give it up, as the losses have been staggering.

Hoping to get back at it this weekend.

More VotG this weekend....

On Saturday, it'll be back to smokey Stalingrad for more of the 9/17 CG day.

Week Off

No ASL this week, as Joe had family stuff to attend. So, I spent my empty Saturday signing up for LibraryThing. It's an interesting social networking site which centers around the books that you own.

You catalog your books (very easy to do), then you can see who else owns many of the same books you do. You can use it contact other people who are as bizarre and obsessive as you are (er....maybe not such a good idea), or you can just see what else they have in their book collections. Once you find some people with similar interests in reading materials, the book recommendations are actually pretty valuable.

They also have this neat blog widget I've added on the right below the links. It'll show you some of the books I've put into my library. It's clickable, and will take you to the librarything or Amazon page for that book (depending on where you click).

So, I cataloged a few dozen books, and in so doing came to the horrible realization that I own a LOT of books that I have not read. Guess maybe I better go crack one....

VotG AAR CGII Drive to the Volga Sept 17th Part I

After a fairly large setup, we squeezed in the first turn of the 9/17 CG Day this weekend.

My infantry having been decimated on 9/15, I went idle on 9/16, and fortunately so did Joe. Desperately in need of manpower I purchased three "code blue" rifle coys in reserve, plus a Stosstruppe pltn.

For 9/17 I purchased my last "code green" rifle coy to enter in the north. I purchased a heavy weapons platoon to replace a few of the dozens of German MG's captured or destroyed so far. I purchased a pltn of StuG B's, which along with two other StuGs and a FlaK halftrack platoon returning from redeployment would actually give me some decent AFV capability for the first time since the opening day.

With my six "support cpp" I eschewed the rotating stukas in favor of two Bltn Mtr modules with pre-reg'd hexes. My plan was to bury the southern edge in smoke and rush forward, trying to achieve a breakthrough.

Joe (Russian side) had cleverly anticipated that I would be attacking on 9/17, and drew an attack chit himself to make it a duel attack. The dice gave me the first setup, which forced me to give away my planned "big push" up the southern edge. A little free intel for the Russians, nice move.

Jump Street



The dice also gave the Russians first move. With the first WC DR Joe rolled up civilian interrogation revealing my HIP stack on the second level of K45. (Two 8-0's with radios). Already things .....well you get the idea.

In the Russian half of the turn there was sporadic prep fire and some cautious forward movement. The Russians broke a squad in the center and got him to die for FTR. They also got a few melees going, but nothing too dramatic.

Sporadic light skirmishing through the center

In the German half of the turn, we maintained contact on both modules and let fly the smoke. We also got four smoke rounds from a Mtr on the south edge. There is a lot of smoke. When it drifted northwest in the advance fire phase the counter density became -- spectacular.

Stalingrad in the artificial fog

When my concealed 2 x HMG + 9-2 stack assault moved out of the Nail Factory into N39, Joe revealed a set DC. Although he did not rubble the building, it did break all three units. I was just thinking that I had cheated death and was starting to breath again. when Joe opened up with a stack of three 4-5-8 manned HMG's and a 10-3(!) leader from across the street. 3 KIA.

A broken HMG is all that remains

I brought my reinforcement rifle coy on in the north to find very few Russians in the area. I had planned to mostly just play defense in the north as all my major resources were diverted to the southern assault. Ironically, the real opportunity for this day may lie in the north, where the Russians are looking suddenly a bit overextended.

Northern Exposure?

Hope to be back at it within a few weeks.

VotG AAR CG II Drive to the Volga Sept 15th Part III

German perimeter after Russians recapture ground on Sept 15th.



Well, we finished the German attack of Sept 15th. Unfortunately, I brilliantly left my camera at Joe's place, so there is no photographic evidence...probably for the best.

The best that happened during our last session was Joe's end of game roll on turn five was a '1'. That was awesome. As picked up the die to make the roll, I began to chant "End it Joe! End it Joe! End it Joe!". When the '1' came up I did what could best be described as a "touchdown dance" around Joe's living room.

The Russians beat the daylights out of the Germans for four turns. All of the savagery is chronicled in other posts on this blog.

The Germans pulled a second red card on our 150mm OBA, scoring that module a big disappointment. But we did have a few moral victories in the last turn and a half.

For one, all members of a 247 half squad earned an Iron Cross at the northern end for single handedly holding up that flank against a strong Russian advance. They advanced into CC with a Russian 527 squad which had reached as far West as hex H2 (!). They then won ambush and cut the Ruskies down in HtH CC.

Then, the Russians boldly moved two MMG toting squads and a leader up into the ADJACENT building. The 247 got a 1MC effect with their 2+1 SFF shot, getting all the Russians to break amd rout away, leaving their MMG's behind.

Secondly, down towards the center of the map, a 467 and 9-1 German leader were in HTH melee with a Russian halfie. During Russian 5, they broke the German leader by firing a 76L ART piece into the melee. Then, they advanced in another two and a half squads and a leader , while surrounding the melee hex to make sure the leader couldn't withdraw. There was no way to survive that mess, but when I rolled a three for change (that's right! my turn to roll a three! It's Rockford's turn now ! ), I took an entire Russian platoon and their leader down with me! That. Felt. Good.

What didn't feel so good was surveying the carnage afterward. The Russians recaptured a lot of ground. But more importantly, they are leading the Germans by 33 squads: 55 to 22. Think about that. Three scenarios and the Germans have lost in the neighborhood of 100 squads! The Russians while obviously better off, have still lost a huge number as well.

There was no Russian counter attack on the 15th, and the 16th turned into an idle day. I might have attacked if I had the Russian just to press the advantage, but then again they are likely trying to run out the clock now.

One good thing about the Russians winning the first three scenarios is that the Campaign Balance kicks in giving the German a better modifier for some of the refit rolls.

There will be another German attack on Sept 17th. Looking for a bold stroke to regain the initiative.

Hey Baby!

Guess what day it is?

Music Video:4TH OF JULY (by X)