Chain of command Gembloux - Game One

A return to chain of command and the Gembloux campaign part one.

Figure by me (German), and Chris (French and terrain.)

• Germans force morale 11
• French 9

German supports

• Shabby trick, fifth columnist
• Red dice
• IeIG 18
• MG 34

French supports

• MMG
• AA MG
• MG team
• Two trenches

Patrol phase was bad for the Germans ending up mostly on their base edge.

Chris threw 4 COC dice heading advantage to the Germans who try to head down their left wing. The shabby nazi trick delays one deployment but French still arrive killing the saboteur 

The Germans get a double move, reach the hedge and open fire while in tactical killing 2 but the overwatch gets one back.

A French double turn and a HMG ends up killing half the unit who then retreat

HE artillery against the building, after some shoots were fired, wound a French JL Rene Artois 

The game slows until the Germans creep trough the right hand wheat fields, the HMG killing 3 with its first burst ( from 3 Hits) wounding the leader Rene Artois again. Two other squads open fire in the same unit causing further casualties.

The French retreat back while the Germans push forward down the railroad track

The French consolidate and not seeing a threat head off down the road hidden by the corn fields

The French get a treble move hiding in the buildings.

Pushing forward the Germans move off the road into the field, Attacked via overwatch but no casualties 

Ambush from the buildings kills Lieutenant Vogel, causing 2 points of force morale.

I use a COC dice to interrupt, causing 5 shock on the French right flank.

The French retreat but do not make the hedge and are cut to pieces 

The French elect to leave the field with 5 force remaining, This was a mistake as Chris had not realised he received a new platoon for game 2 and would have fought on

German win 9 force morale, French 5

Casualties

French 9 killed, 2 Return, 3 later, 4 Dead

German 7 killed, 4 Return immediately, 1 later, 1 Dead

Lieutenant Vogel is replaced by Wilhelm Richter, 36, known as the Old Man.

French Opinion

-1 Leaders opinion

-1 Men’s opinion

German Opinion

+1 Leaders opinion

0 Men’s opinion

 

 

Chain of Command - German Advance vs French Reconnaissance.

We played a smaller game last night with the German looking to push back the French reconnaissance patrol.

This was difficult for the Germans as they only had one anti tank weapon. The mortar they had only had HE so was not fired once.

The French armored cars had to wait to withdraw until a third car caught up with them.

The Germans tried to maneuver froward and knock out a car via either machine guns (mostly ineffective but do stop them firing/moving) and use of the antitank weapon.

On the last turn before the French withdraw intact a HMG forced the last remaining armored car to panic, withdrawing by 2". This then put it square in the sites of the antitank weapon. The result the car was immobilized resulting in a German win.

All figures and terrain supplied by Chris, building are nice cardboard and foam card creations.

A lone armored car realizes there are Germans ahead

The full table the German advancing up the left while a platoon is based in the house bottom right

A close up of the Germans vs 2 armored car, just about to wipe out the French MG (In the building) section pinning them down.

Chain of Command - "Hell & Heroism at Hannut".

Another game of Chain of Command, this time played at Wayland Games. This was the second (my first) of our new planned 'once a month on the last Friday of the month' games we have decided to give the very original title of "Friday Night Firefight".

This game was taken from the scenario "Den Ganzen Lieben Langen Tag!" in the Too Fat Lardies Christmas 2013 Special.

Somewhere in France 1940.

French Forces

1st Battalion, 1er Regiment des Dragons Portés
Motorised Dragoon Platoon
Command Dice: 5

Platoon HQ (7 men)
Lieutenant, senior leader, with pistol
Sergent, Senior Leader, with rifle
VB Launcher Team ‐ one VB grenade launcher with two crew, and three riflemen

Sections One –Three (Each 10 men)
Sergent, junior leader, with rifle
LMG Team – FM24/49 Châtellerault LMG with two crew and two riflemen
LMG Team – FM24/29 Châtellerault LMG with two crew and one rifleman
1 x VB Launcher team – VB grenade launcher with two crew

1 x Hotchkiss H39 with junior leader (long SA38 37mm gun, as France 1940 briefing but gun is AP 5)
1 x Hotchkiss H39 with junior leader (short SA18 37mm gun, AP is 4 as in rules)

2 x Roadblocks
1 x Minefield

German Forces

Schützen‐Regiment 4 and Panzer‐Regiment 35
Panzergrenadier Platoon
Command Dice: 6

Platoon HQ
Leutnant, senior leader, with pistol
Feldwebel, Senior Leader, with SMG
Le.GrW36 5cm mortar with three crew
7.9mm Panzerbüchse 38/39 anti‐tank rifle with two crew

Sections One –Three (Each 10 men)
Gefreiter, junior leader, with SMG
LMG Team – MG34 with three crew and two riflemen
LMG Team – MG34 with three crew and one rifleman

2 x Panzer II ausf C with junior leader
1 x Panzer III ausf E with junior leader

1 x Pre‐Game Barrage
1 x Engineer Mine Clearance Team

The Battleground

The German forces advance to the outskirts of the village.

It wasn't long before they had two squads and the HQ on the table.

The French were another matter entirely. For several phases they only managed to activate their two senior leaders and one squad!

The Germans took no time to advance through the village, taking up a defensive point in the large building.

Finally the French brought on another unit, this time one of their tanks. It promptly fired a few shots over the German heads!

The third German squad entered the village to the French right flank. The defenders were looking like they may be very quickly overwhelmed after only a few phases...

...indeed the German squad to the left flank had soon overrun one of the French jump off points!

A view of the battlefield - at this stage the Germans had three squads on the table, one in the large white building (the figures a short distance to the right of the picture are 'in' the building) another one just on the edge of the town square (to the left of the picture) and the last by the fencing. The French had one squad, two senior leaders and a tank.

The French then cam under fire from the Jerry across the town square...

...and just when it looked like it couldn't get any worse for them a German panzer rumbled up the road!

What followed was a bizarre series of die rolling (by me) that resulted in 6 double 6's being rolled (!!!!), thus carrying the turn over to the French for a long period of play.

First up, another French squad took up residence in the old medieval tower just off the town square - a perfect position to shoot at the Jerry below!

The third French squad then entered the field just behind them.

A massive fire-fight then erupted across the town. The French concentrated most of their firepower on the more exposed Germans by the town square - caught in the open and with the turn constantly carried over to the French they didn't stand a chance - after a few turns all that remained was the shocked MG crew and their unconscious Gefreiter. Not surprisingly they fled the field!

Meanwhile the first French squad turned its firepower on the Germans by the hedges but this was pretty much stalemate.

Deciding they were too exposed they retreated to the relative safety of a stone wall - unfortunately not all of them made it and those caught behind ended up taking some hits.

The French and German tanks exchanged shots across the town eventually forcing the French tank to retreat.

Finally I stopped rolling double 6's and the Germans got to play another phase...

...and that was about as far as we got.

The French Secret Weapon!

"Bonjour!"

*********************************************

We didn't get to play a full game but it all ran pretty smoothly, rulebook referencing was fairly minimal and all present enjoyed! The French looked like they were going to be severely battered within a few rounds of play but my ridiculous rolling streak of double 6's (yes, 6, surely some kind of record?) turned things around and the French almost looked like they could snatch it. Could have gone either way when we had to wrap up the game.

Figures and terrain are all from Chris other than the cobblestone roads kindly lent by Wayland Games.