German LC

[sigeena]

Hello,

Time to play a German LC, 60 battles starting from Invasion of Poland.

Follow the trials and tribulations of a German Infantry Battalion.

But I will only upload battles beginning from Operation Barbarossa onwards, since the Russians are the only enemy interesting enough to fight, and I will probably only post battles which are Delay or Defensive, since those tend to be more suspenseful.

Broadly, my battalion is as follows.

A0- Commander

B0- 10cm Mortars, 4 tubes (Heavy Mortars to be replaced with 12cm Mortar eventually)
C0- 8cm Mortars, 6 tubes
D0- HMG Platoon, 4 guns Tripod mounted
E0- HMG Platoon, 4 guns Tripod mounted

F0- 1st Coy Commander
G0- MMG Section, 2 guns Bipod mounted
H0- 1st Platoon
I0- 2nd Platoon
J0- 3rd Platoon
K0- AT Rifle Section, 3 guns

L0- 2nd Coy Commander
M0- MMG Section, 2 guns Bipod mounted
N0- 4th Platoon
O0- 5th Platoon
P0- 6th Platoon
Q0- AT Rifle Section, 3 guns

R0- 3rd Coy Commander
S0- MMG Section, 2 guns Bipod mounted
T0- 7th Platoon
U0- 8th Platoon
V0- 9th Platoon
W0- AT Rifle Section, 3 guns

I will upgrade the platoons over time, so that they are more and more AT capable, but I will refrain from buying molotovs as they are expensive. As of Operation Barbarossa, the main infantry AT weapon is still the humble grenade bundle for close assault.

[sigeena]

Delay in August 1941.

44 Turns, and 74 Visibility. Map size is 80x120, so it's about 3km depth from the start-line.

The terrain here favours the attacker since there isn't much good cover, and the 2 roads leading E-W also helps any attacker in pushing down fast.

I bought the following support units
X0- Recon Air
Y0- Munitions
Z0- 3.7cm AA Platoon 3 guns
AA0- Panzerjager I Section
AB0- Pz III G 5cm Section

Since all my AT assets are mobile, and the main consideration is if the EN comes down the 2x E-W roads, I decided to place my PzJgr and Pz III along the roads and fight initial contacts there. PzJgr with 1st Coy and Pz III with 2nd Coy.

The rest of the battalion is spread out in corresponding sectors. My HMG platoons, D0 and E0 are both in 3rd Coy sector, since they lack supporting AT weapons.

Blue circle marks my arty park, with munitions and AA guns.

[sigeena]

A closer look at my Arty Park.

Blue Triangle is my Commander

Blue Stars are the 3.7cm AA guns

Blue Circles are the mortars themselves.

[sigeena]

1st Coy sector

They've been set-up to ensure maximum firepower along the road. My MMGs are sited so that they can hose down any EN armoured units roaming down the road, while my PzJgrs will scout ahead gingerly for approx. 400-500 metres, and take ambush positions.

Blue Stars mark the AT Rifle Section.

Only 1 platoon, H0 is deployed in reserve.

In the event that the EN doesn't move down the road, or the EN armoured units are moving towards other Coy sectors, I will withdraw the PzJgr, using the road for quicker movement and with terrain masking find a flanking position. I estimate I will need to make such a decision by Turn 3-4

[sigeena]

2nd Coy Sector

2nd Coy has been set-up with an early skirmishing force while the rest are held in reserve.

The skirmishing force is a pair of Pz IIIs and my MMG Section. The main objective is to destroy any EN advance elements and gradually pull back to the reserve line.

[sigeena]

3rd Coy Sector

3rd Coy was set up in a very dispersed manner. Main thing was to try and hide most of the platoons under cover.

HMGs have been deployed very forward, and intended to slow down any possible EN advance. 3rd Coy is the southernmost sector, so if they need any AT support, it will be leaning very heavily on 2nd Coy's Pz IIIs. Fortunately, the road running E-W will be very useful for them to relocate.

[sigeena]

Turn 3

The first EN contact erupted near the main road in 2nd Coy's sector. The Pz IIIs have moved forward and covered by the MMGs. EN Armoured Cars (BA-10) are scouting just north of the road, while more BT cruiser tanks can be spotted massing near the road.



Turn 6

As the EN tanks advance, the MMGs hose down any tank-riding infantry, and force the EN tanks to button down. When suitably suppressed, the Pz IIIs emerge from concealment and engage at ranges not exceeding 600m.



Turn 10

By turn 10, I'm beginning to sense that my Pz IIIs have been too lucky for too long. They have destroyed at least 10 EN tanks and a couple of EN armoured cars. Their SABOT rounds are also beginning to run low.

In the next couple of turns, I will pull them back, since the EN armoured advance is beginning to skirt north of the road towards 1st Coy position.

EN infantry advancing down the road usually gets slapped back pretty quickly and with so many disabled tanks, their suppression rises very fast. Russian morale in 1941 is very brittle and units are prone to breaking.

[sigeena]

Elsewhere in 3rd Coy sector

Turn 3

EN has a good number of armour units massing in 3rd Coy sector. The vanguard is made up of mostly T-60s. My AT Rifle Section is capable of destroying them but they'll need to be free of any infantry riding along.

By the end of Turn 3, I have already decided to run my PzJgrs from 1st Coy towards 3rd Coy sector. 1st Coy sector is very quiet.



Turn 6

As the T-60s advance, I drop my HMGs back off the ridge towards the cover of the forest with a supporting platoon. My MMGs continue to harass the rest of the advancing EN armour. Also spotted T-34s in the mix. T-34s would be challenging. The AT Rifles would not be able to cope with T-34s. (AT Rifles are the blue stars in top right corner)



Turn 10

My HMGs return to their position and find accompanying EN cavalry riding with the final wave of EN tanks. Again, my HMGs get to hose the EN tanks and cavalry.

The AT Rifles brace themselves to engage the approaching EN tanks at close range as the EN tanks spill across the tree line.

The PzJgrs are on their way but I estimate another 3-4 turns before they'll reach 3rd Coy sector.

[sigeena]

Turn 13

Some 3 turns later, my AT Rifle section has been badly mauled but together they also destroyed 3x T-60s. It's a good trade in a sense, 1 AT Rifle team is worth 9-10 pts, while a T-60 is probably worth 25-30 pts.

The PzJgrs are finally arriving at the scene.

The infantry steel themselves to close assault with the EN tanks.

You can also spot my Pz IIIs at the top-right corner. They are pulling back from their block along the road.



Turn 15

The initial EN armoured thrust in 3rd Coy sector is fast dissipating. The EN T-34s have come closest but they are also routing from the action.

[sigeena]

Turn 13

The 2nd wave in 3rd Coy sector. The EN cavalry is lagging further and further away from their armour. The EN armour, I think these are T-26, are coming along unsupported.



Turn 17

I've positioned my PzJgr and Pz IIIs better to take the EN in the flank whenever possible. This should be quite fast.

Shortly after this fight, I send 1 of my Pz IIIs back to the Arty Park to replenish its ammo.