WW2 - Monday 28th April

[steven]

This time we return once again to the Russian Front, but this time its the story of Herman and his part in the battle of Courland (Baltic area) and the defense of this area by the cut-off Army Group North.

Army Group North is a rag-tag bag of damaged units and newly arrived recruits. Desperate to defend the Baltic as a training area for The Kriegsmarine U Boats, Hitler has actualy reinforced the cut-off army group with many new recruits, men like Herman.

And as Herman shelters in his dug-out against the biting cold, he sees the squat dark green beetles advancing towards the line. These are no beetles - they are T-34s of the 2nd Baltic Front and they and their accompaning infantry charges are determined to remove the fascists from this part of the globe!.

Herman is lucky - he has a unit of the 653rd Army Group Tank Destroyer battalion near him. What is unlucky is, instead of the 30 or so Nashorn Tank destroyers he would have had if he unit had been at full strength, he has only one bside him. But 1 is better than 0, and its mighty 88mm gun opens fire! A T34 instantly explodes, hit by the huge shell, its turret blown clean off.

Herman lies down in his hole and weeps. This doesn't last long as Senior Sgt Steiner kicks him out of his pity. Herman is needed to fight the avalanche of Soviet infantry pouring forwards.

Can Herman survive? Can Army Group North hold out?

We shall see on Monday!

[steven]

Herman is in his bunker and ready to meet the Soviet onslaught!!

I have a superb combat debut ready for the game!!

Swede - if you are short of an opponent for your game, do please come along and be a Swedish volunteer fighting for Army Group North in Latvia!!!

Peter - usual stuff required please including the Red Airforce which we WILL use at in the game!

Banzai!

[steven]

Richard and Dave Bettison defended Courland (Latvia) very well against the two pronged Soviet assualt. My own failure to get the KVs moving out of their snow drift meant my attack never got going. Meanwhile on the other side of the board Peter did well against the German tanks losing only T34 against the Nashorn before it was destroyed. However, is infantry fell like droves against David's mortar fire and in the end the game was a draw. The Germans had lost most of their tanks for not that many Soviet vehicles BUT the lack of Russian infantry meant that the Soviet tanks would have real difficulty from the cloase range Panzerfausts of the German infantry.

Good game, good game.

Next week we return to Normandy and the bocage comes out!

[chris]

Sorry for the delay in photography this week. It has been a hectic time!

Without further ado here's some scenes from the action:

[chris]

Meanwhile Herman seems to be getting nervous?

[steven]

Thank you Chris - lovely pictures. I particularly like the PE-2 - Soviet aircraft. For readers who are curious - the red markers are placed on vehciles that have been destroyed / K.O.'ed! Superb!

[steven]

Ah-ha a firm defence of Normandy by Richard.

Some lousy dicerolling by Richard. Given 10 different forces to dice for using a d10, poor Richard didnt manage the Panthers or JagdPanzer IVs - no he got the training troop of various modified French vehicles. Mind you, despite some terrible dice rolls they fought well and held the British up. Peter also suffered from poor rolls too and the only person who wasn't cursed in this area for once was Steven.

Still, good game, good game!

[richardsimpkin]

Back to the previous week's game on the Russian front - I reckon Herman was one of the few German infantry killed. The squad alongside the (now-wrecked) Nashorn opened up with their two old machine guns on those surviving Russian tank-riders who were getting dangerously close. The T34s replied of course - having no tank or gun opposition left to engage - and so did the Soviet artillery, with a direct hit on the trench. So the best we can hope for him is being back in a field hospital and about to be invalided out of the service.

[steven]

Well he died for his furher and fatherland!

We will return to the russian front soon.

Tomorrow night is Wings of War. I shall be a little late - appearing at 8pm

[eturns]

Wings of war was always a fun quick game

[steven]

welcome back Ed!

It is quite possible that i will not be at the club tonight now - sorry!

[richardsimpkin]

No problem Steve. See you whenever.