In the aftermath of Operation CITADEL, Soviet attacks in the Ukraine followed the usual pattern: masses of med and machines thrown at the lines of Panzerkorps III, only to be thrown back by German counterattacks. However each time the new front line would be further west. In an effort to flank the SS divisions defending west of Kharkov, Major General Ivan Galanin’s 4th Guards Army threw more fresh troops at Hoernlein’s “Grossdeutshland” Division.
Attacker: Russian (5th Guards Airborne Division)
Defender: German (Bataillon II, Panzergrenadier-Regiment 'Grossdeutschland')
7 turns
Players: 2 OBA: None Night: No
Unit Counts:
Squads: A:21.5 D:12.5
AFVs: A:0 D:2
SPW 251/2 SPW 251/sMG
Guns: A:0
50mm RM obr. 40 PTRD-41 ATR
D:1
8cm GrW 34
Misc Rules:
All buildings are ground level only. D: SPW 251/2 enters with all armaments removed
Map Board(s):
17
q
Overlays:
NONE
Errata (source)
Players wanting to play this game/Request a match:
NWASL Championship 2021. The Russian went all out on their right flank. They took 6 VP of buildings for the turn four contition. The Germans did not have enough EVP on turn 7 to equal or better the Russians. IMO the Russians can win without the ability to deploy.
2021-01-18
(D) Vilis Pavulans
vs
Erik Grande
German win
Probably a very nice scenario and as a german I thought that this would be damn near impossible with all those 8 ML russians with the right to deploy but with unreasonable luck on nearly all shots, I broke most russians and on turn 3 I killed the 9-1 and 9-2 with lucky shots and there wasn´t much sense in playing on. In our game much of the joy was taken from us by the dice.
2020-12-28
(A) X von Marwitz
vs
Alex Koestler
Russian win
I selected this scenario because I thought it would be just a big all-infantry slugfest with not much to think about and with mistakes made being able to compensated due to the number of units involved on both sides. With hindsight I have to admit that I underestimated this scenario. Both the Russians and the Germans need to make careful considerations when to sit tight, when to fall back, and how audacious to be on the attack. The SSR providing a lot of extra value to the two half-tracks - provided they evacuate the onboard 81mm MTR and the HMG and the possibility to gain extra EVP in case the capture multi-hex buildings by the end of Turn 4 add a lot to ponder about. Furthermore, the Germans move last. In short, this scenario has many tactical challenges and it was a whole lot of fun to play. Among the best I played in 2020. Both my opponent gave it an 8 out of 9 on ROAR, the current ROAR Excitement Rating after 36 reports is 7.22 and on the ASL Scenario Archive even 7.58 after 12 votes. On top of that, ROAR currently (as of 28. December 2020) balanced at 19 Russian wins vs. 19 German wins. So we might have a little gem here...
In the end after a tough and hairraising battle, my Russians prevailed.
My attacking Russians split their force equally on each flank, with a substantial supporting force in the center to prevent easy German shifting and to provide pressure on the two closest buildings (which I intended to grab for the extra VPs). I was quite concerned about locating his mortar as early as I could as its presence prevented me from doing too much stack movement. It took a shot toward the end of my Turn 1 moves and immediately was gone for good, having rolled a "12" being manned by non-qualified personnel (Ivan choosing to place the crew back in the village to allow easier escape once the AFVs entered). Ivan used a lot of foxholes and chose to retain concealment for the most part, which made my job of exposing units/dummies a bit daunting. He held me up in the middle of the board for a good turn or two with what proved to be dummies. He had positioned some key units on the flanks in some solid defensive positions. The eastern flank was a bit easier to crack as it had more cover, but the theme of the attack turned out to be swarm, surround, and CC. With 8 morale the defenders should definitely consider FPF. If it wasn't for the ability of the Russians to deploy I think it would be a pretty insurmountable job for them, but the Germans are outnumbered by a decent margin and need to cover a fairly wide initial front. Fun scenario that I would play again from either side.
