BdF8: Cold Reception

BdF features a gorgeous map (said before) and some good looking scenarions (perhaps also a CG sometime?)

I got the Germans by dr again, so it fitted in with the previous KGP, since BdF is located in almost the same area (but two weeks later) as KGP. That brings some subtle changes, the biggest being extending the PF range to three hexes instead of two. Another was the MMC having an ELR of 1 only.

My purchases included 4 Foxholes, two wires and and the rest as dummies (mainly 5/8"). Two wires went into the Scrub area in Q17/Q18 in front of a 5/8" dummy. Really wastefull, but it worked. The 5/8" attracted the attention of two 666, a leader and an AFV for quite some time.

I set up two defend heavily in the woods on the left flank in LOS of the forward US entry area. A 8-1 stacked with a 658/LMG, a HS skulked in the woods and a lone 658 guarded the open ground hex leading out of the wooded area. There were no dummies here. The MMG+9-1 leader went into a foxhole in Z18 guarding the exits from the same area. The PSW is at the edge of the "finger" woods.

A lone 467 guarded the south exit road with the roadblock. The 75L AT went into HH6 (rear right wooded area). The Mortar HT slightly forward of the AT in the open. The StugIII went into the building in X16.

The cellars of building T14 are RB Cellars, so a 8-0, 658/LMG went into the northern one. A lone HS was in 2nd level to strip concealment. Forward on the right went a squad + LMG in front of the Mortar HT. The final four squads were set up two defend the various buildings.

The only forces on board was two large stacks in the woods to northern right of the village, opposing the Mortar HT and the squad/LMG. There was also two dummy stacks (one ?(3) inf and one ?(2) vehicle) in the deforested area in between.

To enter from open ground "finger" on the left flank were two 76(w) Shermans with 4-5 squads and two leaders. The rest came in on the northern road.

Off we go.

First two enter is one of the 76(W)s. It moves three hexes and stops at a two hex distance from my 9-1, 658/LMG. Ha! PF time! The MMC dr=6... End of that. The leader tries, dr=3D6... Ah, well. The 76(w) goes for a BFF HE attack: TH 1,1! Does the Unlikely CH, and a random selection dr: 6,6 (ouch one of those days). Not to bad though, a K/4 leaves the 9-1 wounded and the 658 ELRs into a 447. Frank throws in a CMG attack just for fun, and off course it is the Gyro stabilized one. The IFT DR is 1,1, but the leader shrugs it off and the 658 too.

Next to enter is the three 75(W) Shermans from the north with 3x666 and a leader doing a spectactular Armored Assault - Platoon Movement - Double Time - Road Bonus - move (note: this was illegal. Multi hex armored assault is only possible with Human Wave et al).

After stopping they also decide to do some BFF using ATT vs the T14 building. The formost Sherman misses, the second has no LOS and the third roll a 1,1 again. It hits the cellar location with -4 DRM with 8-0, 658/LMG. KIA (something high) clears that out. Only the LMG survives. Amazingly the building is still standing. (Unknown to all this cellar is where all the PF have been stored - more on that later). Two moves into the game and already an ITT CH, an ATT CH and a CH 1,1. Only a VTT CH is missing now ...

The HS left in building T14 hastily retreats to the Cellars and recover the LMG (slippery as it is) and stays there. The US advance parallel to the finger and drives an AFV close to my guarding 658. Which propmply discover a PF and sinks the firs 76(w), the second is skulked by a ?(247). But it misses and is broken and captured together with everyone else in the area.

On the other flank is the 10-3 et al working their way to the edge of the woods and are held up there for 4 turns. The perimeter squads break some of the 666 that go to far, and the Mortar HT is molesting others that appear, though without any lasting casualties.

The US managed to miss the first call for OBA, but then got it right and started ponding the village on the right and the MMG nest in the foxhole. Finally everyone broke. One another AFV went down due to PF from a perimeter squad on the right. One Sherman went around the village to flank the Stug and a second directly behind the wall opposing the Stug (adjacent to building T14 with the 247/LMG). That HS had tried some PF shoots in the meanwhile without effect. After refusing to break from the attention of a PBF 666 and a PBF 346/MMG it finally hit the Sherman opposing the Stug, killing it. The other Sherman went up when the AT 75L activated, shooting it from behind on a distance of 13 hexes or so.

Half an hour playing time left till we have to go...

The final surviving 76(w) emerged from the cleaning up of the finger woods area, only to be targeted by the AT again. This LOS went through village for about 23 hexes or so, with +much on TH. TH DR =3 - a hit! But it fails to penettrate and the Sherman continous down the left side of the village to target the Mortar HT which has withdrewn to the GG6 area after a MA malfunction. The Mortar is repaired but shoots on the 10-3 stack mowing down the orchard to the rear village (which held only by 467). A second stack with 8-0 and two 666 follows. The stug breaks all in the 10-3 stack but 666, but is killed in CC immediately thereafter.

It is almost time to leave for Franks train...

The 10-3 rallies himself and everyone else too. The lone Sherman roll a 1,1 for TH on the Mortar HT and turns it into cinders (a VTT CH as well to complete the suite). The 75L malfunctions and the game is drawing close. The broken MMG squad routs in the FFE:2 and rolls a 1,1 on rally for a BH and a Hero. But these get wasted by a 666 working with the OBA. On the other flank the final frenetic attack by the US surrounds the 467 which decide to go berserk and CCs a 346 + US wounded Hero and dies. The dust settles, there are counters everywhere on board (and off board), and the final CVP calculations are 64 for the US vs 32. VC says > double so it is a minimal win for me. Now is that a feeling after 40+ hrs of ASL in 2.5 days or not?! It does make one feel blurry... The 247/LMG held out to end the made the difference. Sinking one Sherman, holding one building and shrugging of the Backblasts of all PFs he found made it.

The was as exiting as it gets (with your clothes on).